My first bird with D800 & 70-200VR

Hi,

I am no bird shooter, occasionally if I see a bird close enough I try my hand at it but to be honest no experience with birds here. Okay, peacoks must not be the hardest thing to photograph but I am happy with some of the shots, others seem a tad soft.

I am blaming my poor technique and I'd like some pointers, please.

Most pics @ 200mm, F2.8 to F5.6, AF-C 9 points, VR ON, Auto-ISO with camera speeds about 1/400.

Should I have turned VR off? Should I have used AF-C Single point instead? Too wide? A combination of the above? What could I do better next time?

Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

About 50% of my shots came out like this even if shot @ F4 (100% crop, no pp):

D800+70-200VRII @ 200mm, F2.8, 1/400, ISO720, AFC-9, VR ON, focus on the eye.

Two of the best after pp:
D800+70-200VRII @ 200mm, F2.8, 1/400, ISO720, AFC-9, VR ON

D800+70-200VRII @ 200mm, F5.6, 1/400, ISO2800, AFC-9, VR ON

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Best regards,

Jorge Macedo
http://www.jmacedophotography.com