Photographing Birds In Flight...

Fantastic shots, congratulations.
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Kindest regards,
Stany
I prefer one really good picture in a day over 10 bad ones in a second...

http://www.fotografie.fr/

Jim Fenton said:

If the wind / sun isn't right, I'll go
shoot something else.

Click to expand...

I don't have this luxury. My photography is geared for travel, usually with a group of other people. I either take the shot at the time or never get it. In between trips I work on those photographic skills which need improvement such as BIF.

When I went to Alaska I got some good shots of Bald Eagles. Both perched and in flight. Unfortunately nothing like yours.

I appreciate the information you provided.

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FINE PRINT: I reserve the right to be wrong. Should you prove me wrong, I reserve the right to change my mind.

jiggins2010 said:

I do agree with all the posts in this thread I am new to Birds In
Flight as well but as a good rule of thumb i use a shutter speed
equal to the focal length of the lens eg a 500mm lens 1/500 of a
second. However, if the subject is in motion double/half the shutter
speed to 1/1000 and if both you and the subject are moving triple/one
third the shutter speed 1/1500 of a second. it has helped with some
of the picture but unfortunately I'm still have a little trouble but
I'm Learning at the same time I did not think about the Auto ISO so
I'm heading out to try it.

Click to expand...

Some very good information has been provided in this thread. And, jiggins2010, there is one thing you and I must consider. The quality of the bird pictures presented in this thread makes me wonder if they have these birds on their payroll. (lol)

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FINE PRINT: I reserve the right to be wrong. Should you prove me wrong, I reserve the right to change my mind.

I've seen most of these pictures already, still love to see them again, especially the first one...

Thanks for sharing your technique. Did you say Lock on? I read that it's always better to say Lock Off. I've started using AF-On button recently and learned that it's much better for still subjects. But for flying shots it was difficult for me as the AF-On button was not really reachable for me with my thumb. I can, but It doesn't come below the thumb comfortably. Anyhow I sold D2X and waiting for next cam (hopefully D300). I hope new 51 point AF will help as well. The AF-On button is perfect for me (on D200)

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Thanks
Jemini Joseph

http://www.wildbirdimages.com

Hi Jim, a useful post and great shots as always.
I was just wondering about you always shooting in colour Mode 3.

I have been experimenting and have been using colour mode 1 and low contrast setting recently, as Ronnie Gaubert recommended.

I find that mode 3 can exaggerate the contrast and can cause problems with my photos when editing and making finishing touches.

I wonder have you tried this method and what makes you use the settings you described.
Any advice or insight much appreciated.
Regards
Tony
http://www.pbase.com/antonoat

antonoat said:

Hi Jim, a useful post and great shots as always.
I was just wondering about you always shooting in colour Mode 3.
I have been experimenting and have been using colour mode 1 and low
contrast setting recently, as Ronnie Gaubert recommended.
I find that mode 3 can exaggerate the contrast and can cause problems
with my photos when editing and making finishing touches.
I wonder have you tried this method and what makes you use the
settings you described.
Any advice or insight much appreciated.

Click to expand...

Jim can probably provide better info than I. However, it is my understanding that Color Mode I in D200 is for portrait shots. I think the reason for this , no back up data, is that Mode I has fewer colors. This would give the subjects face a more even look. Mode I can be used with sRGB or Adobe RGB.

Mode II provides more colors and can be used with Adobe RGB, not sRGB.

Mode III provides more vivid colors. It can be used with sRGB or Adobe RGB.

I tried using Mode II for realistic colors but found they tend to be less vivid. I tried Mode III and found they were too vivid. It is my opinion you can use either and with other camera adjustments get the color you want. I still use Mode III because, with the other adjustments, I get realistic color that does not appear to be bland nor too vivid.

Let's see what Jim says.

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FINE PRINT: I reserve the right to be wrong. Should you prove me wrong, I reserve the right to change my mind.

ooooops.......

I forgot to mention that

I've shot Color Mode III for a couple of years now and always use it. Perhaps it's because I shoot long light and wear amber colored glasses?

Naaaah....it simply more acurately reflects the colors my eyes see in nature.

As I shoot RAW + JPEG (jpegs used for culling purposes only) I can switch back and forth between color modes in NC but to be honest....I always leave it in III.

Lately, I've taken to shooting everything with Auto WB on the Xs. I've found that when doing WB balancing during processing, that unless I've shot in really long light, the Auto WB is really, really close to be perfect. In really warm light, I find that it renders it low by about 10%, which can be a major deal when you're up in the 5800 plus K range.

Relative to AF-On (a4)....I now set it at SHORT and leave it there. I've found this particularly useful this summer when shooting in the tern breeding colonies. When shooting low to the dunes I found myself frequently loosing subject lock when the birds were coming down into their nest sites in the grass.

Setting A4 to SHORT completely solved this issue.

In addition, if I'm shooting birds that offer a less than straight like flight path (most of them), that it helps considerably there as well. The one place it works great but can also kill you is against water or a sandy beach. If you don't get a good initial lock and the camera grabs the background (CAM 2000 loves to grab water rather than a white or dark bird) that's exactly what you're going to get..water or sand and a blurred blob which was supposed to have been your intended subject.

I'm really looking forward to the D300 and the new focus system which utilizes color as well.....that could be a world of improvement if it in fact works in this type of situation.

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Jim Fenton
http://www.pbase.com/soonipi1957

The purple martin male with the dragonfly is absolutelt STUNNING!
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Jim Fenton
http://www.pbase.com/soonipi1957

Thanks very much guys, it's always helpful to get real world advice from the folks that know.
Best wishes
Tony
http://www.pbase.com/antonoat

Jim Fenton said:

The purple martin male with the dragonfly is absolutelt STUNNING!
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Jim Fenton
http://www.pbase.com/soonipi1957

Click to expand...

Thank you Jim. I see that you have some nice PM shots. Is that your colony or did you visit?

I don't have a personal colony but we do have several nearby along the coast...so I visit
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Jim Fenton
http://www.pbase.com/soonipi1957