Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2007/05/10
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Leonard Taupier wrote: > Ira, > > I like the first photo the best. The composition is very nice. Bird > photography is not as easy as Doug makes it look. About your photo. > Yes it is soft but maybe for a couple reasons. Here are a couple > things I've found out about my bird photography. > > 1. Never autofocus. > 2. Use a lens longer then 300mm, preferably a prime lens unless the > zoom is of prime quality. > 3. I never use auto exposure. Generally the small object like a > bird will be under exposed against the brighter background. > 4. Try and stay at or below ISO 400. Bird photos will most likely > need cropping. The added noise of the higher ISO's will make the > photo softer as well, especially if the focus is not dead perfect. > 5. Find some Leica glass for your Canon. ;-) > > 6. And finally, I get many more failures then successes. Keep trying. > I agree with Len mostly. Where we differ (slightly) is that I crop as little as possible, trying to get closer instead. Makes big prints prettier. Frank Dernie wrote: > You have the same problem I do if I use autofocus. The tree is in focus and the bird not quite. Woodpeckers on tree trunks are surprisingly difficult and it's because the tree trunk is a large surface with lots of contrasty detail, which the AF system will pick up on if you're not careful. > It would have been all the more noticeable with a wider aperture. I find the autofocus point > choice of the cameras I have used only to be OK for slow zooms where the depth of field > covers a multitude of errors. Surprisingly, Canon agrees. Their advice where you're working at larger apertures and high magnification (i.e., where DOF is negligible) is to avoid the focus-lock-recompose technique. If you're not OK with centered compositions their advice is to focus manually. Since I don't want my compositions dictated by the camera I've chosen to use cameras optimized for manual focus. Ir'a choice of subject isn't an easy one. Aside from the tree trunk, this particular species is very active, likes the deep shade of oak woodlands and is often in the higher branches of the tree. My hat's off to him for getting ANY photo of the Nuttall's Woodpecker. Doug Herr Birdman of Sacramento http://www.wildlightphoto.com