BIRD IN FLIGHT ONLY -- share your BIF photos here

AlanF

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Aug 16, 2012
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Great shot of this bird Alan! I'm quite partial to these small birds of prey - they are so elegant and purposeful...
Perfect exposure also, these birds have a tendency to hover with their back to the sun, so the head and eyes are shaded - but yours is beautiful :). Sharp as well, for me the combo 7DII, 100-400 II + 1.4xIII lacks that last bit of sharpness that the 100-400 itself does have but on your 5DSR it looks perfect... Do you use IS on or off btw.?
Wiebe.
Thanks Wiebe. The 5DSR has a real edge over the 7DII for sharpness, and I sold my one as I stopped using it after buying the DSR. This shot was of the bird flying because of the better illumination - it’s head is not looking down as much as when it is purely hovering. The IS was on even though I was shooting at 1/4000s. It’s rare for me to use the extender for BIF and I was surprised at a near 100% of tack sharp keepers.
 
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Jul 29, 2012
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Beautiful shots, Mikehit.
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Jul 28, 2015
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Thank you all for your comments.The best bit about it was this was free !
There is a good population of kites around Harewood House - the House does feeding where you pay something like £20 to watch them. But on the outskirts of the estate is a cafe called Muddy Boots Cafe where people throw chinks of raw chicken on the garage roof and these magnificent birds come swooping and diving in to pick up the meat. So you can sit there with your camera, bacon sandwich and a mug of coffee.
 
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Good one, Jim.
I would crop the post from the right hand side but you have great sharpness on the bird in an great pose - some eagles I have photographed get a bit scruffy when coming in to land.

I appreciate your time and your perspective; my intent was the rule of birds. Thirds. The rule of thirds.

Jim
 
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Jul 28, 2015
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I appreciate your time and your perspective; my intent was the rule of birds. Thirds. The rule of thirds.

Jim

I have taken the liberty of 'print screen' to Paint and done a quick crop at the same 3:2 ratio to show what what I was thinking - removing the post and whatever is needed top/bottom and keeping on about the thirds. Personally I would put the bird more central because the visual 'weight' (for want of a better word) balances the picture better
I know you put this on 500px with the protections so I will delete it if you wish.
 
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My favorite black headed gull the laughing gull. The white eye ring, white under wing color and beak trying to be red tipped along with the eel in the mouth are distinguishing characteristics.

These fellows were caught on Cape Cod bay in Massachusetts feasting on sand eels that emerge from the sand on the incoming tide.

Some laughing gulls to make for a comedic break.. laughing gull w eel wet feet                                          .JPG laughing gull w eel and friends                                          .JPGlaughing gull dinner discussion                                          .JPG
 
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Dear forum members,
This week I finally found a good location and time for practicing my new EOS 5D IV and 70-200 F/2.8 (+2x extender Mark III) with BIF. Location was in the Swiss Alps and there were many swallows in the air. These were not the easiest birds for practicing, but I was able to make a couple of good shots. I am seeking however some advise from the experts among you forum members. I was only able to make good shots while focusing on the top branch of a tree, where I had seen the swallows flying around. The shot shows focus on the branch, but not on the swallow. But since the distance was the same, the swallow was sharp. This way I was able to make decent pictures. I was not able to follow any birds while flying around and catch them sharply. I used AI Servo case #2. Either they were too fast for me to follow with the camera. Or the camera was not quick enough to focus on the bird. Or do I have too high expectations of the camera/lens for these type of birds that are too small and flying in erratic patterns?

EOS5D4_01463.jpg
 
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AlanF

Desperately seeking birds
CR Pro
Aug 16, 2012
12,298
22,371
Dear forum members,
This week I finally found a good location and time for practicing my new EOS 5D IV and 70-200 F/2.8 (+2x extender Mark III) with BIF. Location was in the Swiss Alps and there were many swallows in the air. These were not the easiest birds for practicing, but I was able to make a couple of good shots. I am seeking however some advise from the experts among you forum members. I was only able to make good shots while focusing on the top branch of a tree, where I had seen the swallows flying around. The shot shows focus on the branch, but not on the swallow. But since the distance was the same, the swallow was sharp. This way I was able to make decent pictures. I was not able to follow any birds while flying around and catch them sharply. I used AI Servo case #2. Either they were too fast for me to follow with the camera. Or the camera was not quick enough to focus on the bird. Or do I have too high expectations of the camera/lens for these type of birds that are too small and flying in erratic patterns?
Very unlikely you will be able to AF fast enough with a 2xTC. A native 100-400mm II or the old 400mm f/5.6 will give you a much better chance.
 
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