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jcroyle

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Hi all

I took a few shots this morning from about 25 feet . I was wondering what you all thought I could do to make these better. They are only croped, nothing else done.

They just don't look sharp to me, and they look a little noisy. They were hand held VR on normal. Nikon 70-300

CC welcome in fact needed. I'm just not happy with them.











 
How much did you crop? That may explained some of the softness.
It appears to me that the lighting wasn't the best. Snowing ?

I would recommend using a flash with a flash extender like better beamer. If you have a tripod, use it.
Overall nice set of pictures.
harsha
 
Try stopping down a bit - you are shooting wide open. The light looks to be pretty flat - without much contrast - and low contrast images tend to not look sharp. Get a better beamer (as mentioned above) or wait for better light.
 
It was snowing pretty good at the time. I'll try stopping down. Maybe around f11 or so?
 
The light could be better, but it's not the main problem. It seems you have some over-expectations from the IQ of this lens. Just don't push it to it's limits as it's getting soft over 230-250 mm., worst at 300 mm. Better stop it to 200-230 mm. and then crop, you'll have better final picture.

Cheers
 
A couple of comments:

1st off these images are very good considering the settings. It has been my experience (I'm not the only one either) that the Nikon 70-300 is not a very sharp lens fully extended to 300mm. I've read reviews that suggest that if you're going to shoot fully extended, try and keep the aperture at f/8 or higher as the lens is soft at f/5/6 at 300mm. One setting you may want to look at if its available on your camera is (and it is on the D90) "High ISO NR" which reduces noise at ISO 800 or higher albeit it will slow down your overall frame rate in a single burst.

Again I thiink these images came out pretty good considering all and all but like you I was looking for better images and thus I purchased the 300 f/4 and there is just no comparison.

Rich
http://www.richardcleis.com
 
jcroyle said:
Hi all

I took a few shots this morning from about 25 feet . I was wondering what you all thought I could do to make these better. They are only croped, nothing else done.

They just don't look sharp to me, and they look a little noisy. They were hand held VR on normal. Nikon 70-300

CC welcome in fact needed. I'm just not happy with them.
Click to expand...
1. Buy a decent tripod and a decent head. Look to spend between $500-$1,000 USD.

2. Turn OFF the VR. VR will give you worse images when used with a tripod. For these images that you shot at 1/800th...VR is also useless. It only has value at lower shutter speeds, so it played no role in these shots.

3. Buy a remote release and use it.

4. Stop the lens down to f/8.

5. Do NOT shoot above ISO 400 with the D3100.

6. Manual focus the lens. It is quite possible that this lens has an AF issue when used with your D3100.

7. Avoid shooting on windy days. Avoid shooting when it is raining or snowing. The rain or snow in between the lens and the subject will decrease contrast and will also give you sub-par results.

You must follow all of the above tips, especially 1 through 5. Please keep in mind that the 70-300 VR is somewhat soft beyond 200mm, so there is only so much that you can do to get sharp results when using this lens between 200-300mm.

If birds are your thing, then I suggest you sell this lens and buy the 300/4 AF-S and also buy the 14TC-E II.

Best wishes!
--
The Five 'Ps' of Photography:

Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance!
 
The best thing you can do is shoot on a day with better light. Early morning or late afternoon on a sunny day would be good.

Next, you may need a longer lens to shoot birds this small unless you can get closer. Unfortunately adding a t.c. to the 70~300 is not a good option.
Use a decent tripod with a decent ball head if you can.
--
http://www.andrewsandersphotography.co.uk
 
You've received some very complicated advice, and some unflattering characterizations of the 70-300vr lens. Keeping it simple, just shoot when there's some light on the subject. This example was taken with the 70-300vr at 300mm.



Those who berate this lens for being soft at full zoom might well examine their their long lens technique. This is a 100% crop of a hand held shot taken at 300mm.



--
Warm regards, Frank
Grand-Paparazzo
Galleries at fdrphoto.smugmug.com
 
I like wildlife in general. I had taken a few shots of some wild turkey that morn also, but it was snowing pretty heavy and they were unusable. I will try again with better light and stop the lens down.

Thanks for all the advice!
 
While the 70-300VR will certainly perform better between 70-250, decent results can be obtained at 300mm if there is good light, a steady hand, and get close enough to prevent "heavy" cropping. Below taken at 300mm (excuse the blown highlights)...

 
Uncle Frank said:
You've received some very complicated advice, and some unflattering characterizations of the 70-300vr lens.
Click to expand...
Yes it seems most if not all of the advice has come from non-owners of the 70-300VR. I get so tired of the regurgitation on these forums that the 70-300VR is not sharp past 220mm or 230mm or some arbitrary focal length. Read Thom Hogans review if you want an objective analysis from a pro who has actually used it. I have owned it for about three years. I find it equally sharp until about 270-280mm with a slight drop off after. That is typical of most zooms, even a pro level, to need to be stopped down more at the long end. Yes, it is not at it's best wide open at 300mm, but stopped down to f7.1-8 it's sharp. That's a tiny bird so 25 ft away is too far at 300mm. One thing no one mentioned is using some fill flash, it makes a world of difference. It's always great to have good light, but it's not an absolute determinant of getting some worthy shots. Keep shooting it's a great lens with it's main limitation of being only 300mm. :)

Lora

--
Lora

I've been on Dpreview since June 2006. Unfortunately, some posting history has been lost along the way...

 
Uncle Frank said:
You've received some very complicated advice, and some unflattering characterizations of the 70-300vr lens. Keeping it simple, just shoot when there's some light on the subject. This example was taken with the 70-300vr at 300mm.
Click to expand...
Exactly!

Also, from the reflections in the eyes it appears that flash was used (two flashes for the hummer?)

Getting oneself close is a lot cheaper than a super telephoto lens!

Best Regards,

RB

http://www.pbase.com/rbfresno/profile
 
lac111 wrote:

. . . I get so tired of the regurgitation on these forums that the 70-300VR is not sharp past 220mm or 230mm or some arbitrary focal length. . . . .It's always great to have good light, but it's not an absolute determinant of getting some worthy shots. Keep shooting it's a great lens with it's main limitation of being only 300mm. :)
lac111 said:
Lora
Click to expand...
I agree. Stopped down, it is an admirable lens, especially considering its consumer level cost:





Even wide open it does just fine:



 
Not necessarily, it depends upon what you're looking for. I find the soft lighting and neutral color of these images quite warranted for the subjects. Bright sunlight would potentially cast shadows, and early or late light is often very warm, which could overpower the subtle colors of many birds' feathers.

I think that a longer lens would be better for birds this small, maybe a 300mm w/ a teleconverter.

This only issues I have with these images is the unnatural perch in the first two, and the awkward pose and the mergers of the branches with the edges of the frame in the third. I realize that often these things can't always be controlled, but perseverance is often the difference between good and great photographs.
slimandy said:
The best thing you can do is shoot on a day with better light. Early morning or late afternoon on a sunny day would be good.
Click to expand...
--
http://jamesfraser.us
 
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