Reading mode: Light Dark

Birds from Palo Alto Baylands Reserve - Critiques needed

Go to last post
A

Anand Sankaran

Senior Member
Messages
4,330
Reaction score
0
Location
SF Bay Area, CA, US
Anand, these look a little overexposed to me. I'm not familiar with "Ron's method". Looks like you are making progress though. Catching birds in flight isn't easy. Thank you for sharing
Anand Sankaran said:
Nikkor AF-D 70-210 f/4-f/5.6, ISO 200, monopod held, AF-C single
area focus.

Post processed through Ron's methodology.

Comments on photographic and post
processing techniques welcome.

Slide show and EXIF in
http://www.anands.net/photos/baylands/index.html













--
http://www.anands.net/photos
Click to expand...
 
Thanks a lot.

I used oldskool's all-in-one curve as well.

My monitor is not calibrated either :(, I went by the histogram.

The neck regions of the bird were white (all are white gulls :)).

Thanks - I will check exposure again.

--
http://www.anands.net/photos
 
Thanks.

I have to calibrate my monitor soon :), right now in cases like this, I depend on the histogram and the information window for details.

anand
--
http://www.anands.net/photos
 
I'm using the Monaco Optix easy color software to calibrate, but it's not easy to do. I'll check things out again. Thank you.
joe325 said:
Joe
beaucamera said:
Anand Sankaran said:
Nikkor AF-D 70-210 f/4-f/5.6, ISO 200, monopod held, AF-C single
area focus.

Post processed through Ron's methodology.

Comments on photographic and post
processing techniques welcome.

Slide show and EXIF in
http://www.anands.net/photos/baylands/index.html













--
http://www.anands.net/photos
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
I was trying bird shots with a 2.8 80-200 and they dont look any better (or as good FTM). It is really hard I found out to catch them.
Anand Sankaran said:
Nikkor AF-D 70-210 f/4-f/5.6, ISO 200, monopod held, AF-C single
area focus.

Post processed through Ron's methodology.

Comments on photographic and post
processing techniques welcome.

Slide show and EXIF in
http://www.anands.net/photos/baylands/index.html













--
http://www.anands.net/photos
Click to expand...
--



http://www.pbase.com/nowhereatoll
http://www.nowhereatoll.com
 
I have PS-CS too, but this is an all Nikon capture post processing.

I bought Ron Rezneick's ebook and follow his rules step by step. Not sure how elaborately I can explain here :)

But coarse grained, this is what I do.
  • Fix WB
  • Fix exposure
  • Fix black point
  • Sharpening
There are lots of subtelities that Ron explains in his eBook that one needs to follow on a case-by-case basis :)

--
http://www.anands.net/photos
 
tehtarik said:
1) how far were you from the birds?
Click to expand...
Less than 20 feet
tehtarik said:
2) any TC used?
Click to expand...
No - this is a SLOW lens, f/4-f/5.6 and adding a TC would slow it down.

IMHO, if you want to add a TC, one must have the 80-200 / 2.8 at least for starters.
tehtarik said:
3) were the pics above 100% cropped?
Click to expand...
Actually, there was no cropping at all, but for a slight cropping in one of the photos.

The remaining photos were as composed, since I was pretty close to the birds, I did not have to crop them much.
tehtarik said:
faizal

--
http://faizal.fotopic.net/
http://www.pbase.com/tehtarik
Click to expand...
--
http://www.anands.net/photos
 
Thanks nowhereatoll :)

This lens, the 75-300 f/4-f/5.6 lens and the 70-200 f/4 lens all supposedly share the same optics as the 80-200.

This is the only "D" lens in the category, so I bought this lens [used for $133 - now beat that].

This is a push-pull zoom, and it is HUGELY prone to dust. Every time I take it out in a windy day, it sucks in dust :(

I have to use rocket blower and if too late, do the CCD cleaning thingie.

I think my next step would the 80-200 / 2.8 lens (nikon or sigma), but I think I will still have this lens, this is a handy size to carry around.

I have shot nearly 800 exposures of flying birds and I have got about 10 good ones :)

Thanks.

--
http://www.anands.net/photos
 
Good to hear from you :) this is a compliment.

Yeah - really missed it.

Check your email :)
Vinod Menon said:
Great shots! Looks like you have nailed it! :-) Postprocessing
looks great too. I can see you really missed your camera all these
days.

Regards,
-Vinod
Anand Sankaran said:
Nikkor AF-D 70-210 f/4-f/5.6, ISO 200, monopod held, AF-C single
area focus.

Post processed through Ron's methodology.

Comments on photographic and post
processing techniques welcome.

--
http://www.anands.net/photos
Click to expand...
--
Vinod Menon
FCAS Member
http://www.vinodmenon.com
Click to expand...
--
http://www.anands.net/photos
 
Thank you for summarizing Ron's method. I don't have Nikon capture so I can't make a comparison. In Nikon View you can fix WB, exposure, sharpening, etc. Then I import into PS-CS to fine tune. The shadows & highlights adjustment is an excellent tool for correcting lighting issues. Have you ever tried using it after doing Ron's method?
Anand Sankaran said:
I have PS-CS too, but this is an all Nikon capture post processing.

I bought Ron Rezneick's ebook and follow his rules step by step.
Not sure how elaborately I can explain here :)

But coarse grained, this is what I do.
  • Fix WB
  • Fix exposure
  • Fix black point
  • Sharpening
There are lots of subtelities that Ron explains in his eBook that
one needs to follow on a case-by-case basis :)

--
http://www.anands.net/photos
Click to expand...
 
NC has a feature called "digital dee" that is similar to shadows.

I use it when the picture has contrasting light and I need to extract data from shadows.

I have used shadows and highlights as well.

In this photo, it retrieved some highlight detail.



--
http://www.anands.net/photos
 
You are definately getting there. Feels good huh? The challange of getting flying birdies just turns on the adrenaline for me. When you get one, it brings a feeling that cannot be described unless you've been there.

Excellent job,

Frank
Anand Sankaran said:
Nikkor AF-D 70-210 f/4-f/5.6, ISO 200, monopod held, AF-C single
area focus.

Post processed through Ron's methodology.

Comments on photographic and post
processing techniques welcome.

Slide show and EXIF in
http://www.anands.net/photos/baylands/index.html













--
http://www.anands.net/photos
Click to expand...
--
Frank Wilson
Huntsville, AL
http://flew.smugmug.com
Looking, listening, learning....
 
Anand,

What time of day were you there? Light looks a little harsh. Ron was there a month or so ago, when he was doing that talk up in the city. The lighting in the images was quite impressive. The thread is somewhere in the D100 forum.

k.
--
http://www.pbase.com/romosoho (pbase supporter)
 
Thanks. Yeah. Feels good :)
flew said:
Excellent job,

Frank
Anand Sankaran said:
Nikkor AF-D 70-210 f/4-f/5.6, ISO 200, monopod held, AF-C single
area focus.

Post processed through Ron's methodology.

Comments on photographic and post
processing techniques welcome.

Slide show and EXIF in
http://www.anands.net/photos/baylands/index.html













--
http://www.anands.net/photos
Click to expand...
--
Frank Wilson
Huntsville, AL
http://flew.smugmug.com
Looking, listening, learning....
Click to expand...
--
http://www.anands.net/photos
 
kaiyen

I work 1.5 miles from here and I did not know until I saw Ron's photos :)

I usually visit the other end of the swamp in Mountain View.

This was at 3:45 pm and the sun was harsh, I should have waited till late evening, any way, lot more options I guess.

Thanks for viewing.

anand
kaiyen said:
Anand,

What time of day were you there? Light looks a little harsh. Ron
was there a month or so ago, when he was doing that talk up in the
city. The lighting in the images was quite impressive. The thread
is somewhere in the D100 forum.

k.
--
http://www.pbase.com/romosoho (pbase supporter)
Click to expand...
--
http://www.anands.net/photos
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Keyboard shortcuts

f
Forum
m
My threads
Mobile site
About
Editorial content
Cameras & Lenses
Community
All content, design, and layout are Copyright © 1998–2025 Digital Photography Review All Rights Reserved.
Reproduction in whole or part in any form or medium without specific written permission is prohibited.
When you use DPReview links to buy products, the site may earn a commission.
©GPS Media - Guides, Products, Services.
Back
Top