local birds in flight

[Graham Owen]

I recently bought a Nikon 70-200 lens, and I love it. For a newby like me, this lens coupled with a nice camera makes my introduction into bird photography immediately gratifying. Granted, I had to find a location where large birds fly in close proximity to people and seem rather accustomed to human presence. The place chosen was a small local lake in Los Angeles, about 15 minutes from home, and a few days ago I spent a few hours having so much fun, it was incredible. I know I’ll need glass with a much longer reach to capture wilder moments in time, but having so much to look forward to is another aspect of photography I love.

Here's a few shots I like...

A cormorant eyeing its reflection







Great Egret cruising along...





The real treat was admiring an Osprey taking fish from the lake. I did capture a few shots of it exploding into the water creating an impressive splash, but those shots would need to be drastically cropped, and unworthy of presenting here. But, I'll be back...











Sorry if I posted too many Osprey shots, but this bird had me captivated.

Certainly more exciting than a Gull...



And of course, I had to watch the ducks...



I arrived home feeling very excited about my venture into bird photography, and headed out into my back yard, and managed one quick shot of a humming bird. Nothing special, but, all told, it was a day I'll likely never forget.



Cheers,
Graham

[BPK]

osprey are indeed a treat to watch. my inlaws live on the west coast of florida close to a place called honeymoon island. they used to have 30 mated pair living on the island.

[Graham Owen]

Hi BPK,

I agree, what an impressive creature it is!

Now that the exhilaration of my hours of shooting birds at the lake has faded, and upon further examination of my photos, I have a couple of questions, and would greatly appreciate any help and advice.

First, I ordered a TC-14, which should arrive early this week, will attach that between my D200 and 70-200 lens, hopefully allowing me to more easily fill the frame, while hopefully not decreasing auto focus too drastically.

My questions relate to shooting the osprey as well as other large flying birds. If I do find myself in the fortunate position to have the osprey dive into the water close enough to shoot, would it be best to shoot several frames per second using a fast shutter speed, or slow it down and capture a longer exposure which implies motion? Perhaps too much water in motion will obscure the bird? I’m also very much looking forward to panning flying herons and egrets utilizing slower shutter speeds, hopefully keeping the head sharp while allowing for one full wing flap. I have a feeling it will take time to figure out an average shutter speed for the shot I hope to capture, or is there a suitable speed someone can suggest as a starting point?

Honestly, I was rather proud of the flying bird photos I posted here recently, especially as a newby, but upon further self critique, they look sterile, and certainly need to be improved upon.

Thank you!

Graham

[Graham Owen]

Well, I tried my hand at shooting slower shutter speed, flying bird shots, yesterday afternoon, a total disaster...

After returning home, I was excited to find this months Outdoor Photographer magazine in the mail. I'm sure I'm not the only one who hungers for this magazines articles and relishing time digesting them.

Sunset yesterday was spectacular....

[BPK]

Graham, it really depends on the action. usually a fast shutter will get the shot of the bird entering the water, but it is a much better shot of him exiting the water. static shots in flight can be steril looking if they are agains a solid blue sky. with practice you will find out what works for you. remember that its it up to the viewer to deceide what is or is not a good shot.

[Graham Owen]

Thank you for such supportive and helpful remarks!!!

I have been trying to imply either action, reaction, or better yet, both, to make images that I feel happy capturing.

I rather like this one, and wonder what the fish would shout, it it could...

[bob_r]

"Honestly, I was rather proud of the flying bird photos I posted here recently, especially as a newby, but upon further self critique, they look sterile, and certainly need to be improved upon."

Graham,

I think you're being too hard on yourself. While it is nice to catch our subjects in unusual situations or poses, that is not something you can control. You just have to be around when the opportunity is available and hopefully have your camera at the ready. I think you should be very proud of these shots, I know I would be.

Bob R

[Graham Owen]

Hi bob_r,

Thank you! Before going to my local lake with camera in hand, I watched a local Osprey splash down and take fish from the water, several times. Well, I've been back many times now trying to capture the scene, but it hasn't happend, yet. I have been capturing some flight shots, but no action yet. I like this shot from yesterday afternoon where the top side of the wings is in view.

Graham

[bob_r]

Graham,

That's a nice capture, Graham. By the way, sorry it took so long to respond to your post, but I've almost quit checking this forum. Most of the time, no one responds to posts, even when they ask questions and you try to answer them. If you'd like to have more people review your posts and respond to them, you might try joining PBASE.
( http://www.pbase.com )

I have no affiliation with this site other than being a member, but they host pics for users all over the world and have a gallery called PAD (Picture a Day), where members try to post a picture a day (click on 'Galleries" and then "PaD galleries"). Other members (or anyone) can post comments to the pics. It's fun and makes you want to get out and take pics. Their rates are very reasonable - I believe it's $23 a year for 400MB and you can reference your pics at other sites rather than downloading to them. It's a nice feature if the other site restricts the size of your pictures.

I'll probably continue checking here once in a while, but there is so little activity here, that it's almost a waste of time. Hope to see some of your pics on PAD.

Bob R

[Graham Owen]

Hi bob_r,

I will have a look at pbase right now, and I'm sure I'll join, sounds like a great place for inspiration and sharing, which is something I need. I was hoping this forum would become more active, especially due to the excellent magazine articles, which have helped my photography to progress with much less aggravation. Finding a copy of Outdoor Photographer in an airport book shop about five months ago, and reading the articles while flying to my destination, allowed me to photograph my vacation, without leaving my camera in programmed automatic mode. It felt good attempting creativity, even got a few nice macro shots, and I look forward every month to receiving the latest issue and continuing my progression forward. Anyway, I have been amazed and inspired by a number of photos on this forum and I’m sure I’ll be checking in here frequently. Thanks again!

Graham

[BPK]

i to have been away from here as well.

[Graham Owen]

Capturing birds with my camera seems to rather addictive... White Pelicans have recently shown up at my local lake. Here's a few shots..









Luckily there are still plenty of Egrets and Herons hanging out..







Below are a few photos taken from my backyard. While chasing humming birds, I looked up and a pair of hawks were circling overhead. Since I only have a 70-200 lens, I couldn't fill the frame, and the pics below are cropped significantly. But it was cool watching the smaller bird crash through the wing of the larger Red Tailed hawk... Practicing photography sure is fun...







both birds were fine and quickly flew away.



Soon the Brown Pelicans will be sporting breeding plumage.



Looks like I'll buy myself a 300mm f/4 for Christmas, and I'm looking forward to some enjoyable experiences in the future.


Graham

[BPK]

you dont have to always fill the frame. while the 300f4 is tempting, the 80-400 sigma or nikon usually work better. while being a slower lens the VR/OS really helps. having the extra 100mm really comes in handy. I have the sigma 50-500, referred to as the bigma. while it has hsm so its fast to focus it is slow and needs support. i usually hand hold the lens. ill post some air show pics