Birding *without birding gear*?

[ahsanford]

(Wasn't sure where to put this, sorry)

I'm off to northern Wisconsin in the fall and the lake we're staying on frequently sees bald eagles. Normally, I wouldn't make a thing of it -- I'm no birder. But my future in-laws have expressed an interested in actually boating out to see one of the nests (they're locals and know all the nesting areas), and since they twisted my arm, I naturally think it should be captured for posterity's sake.

However, I have avoided the birding/sports/wildlife big white lens bug and have zero intention to start that now. Further, given that it will only be a one-off boating try one day of a longer trip, I am formally ruling out the rental of longer glass.

So I want to try this with what I have. Wesley + Fezzik + Inigo style, I shall list my assets for this impossible quest:

5D3
70-200 f/2.8L IS II
24-70 f/4L IS
100 f/2.8L IS
2x T/C
Monopod / Tripod / Arca head / Body L-Plate / 70-200 collar with Arca plate

What on that list would you bring? I presume anything other than the 70-200 (for the eagle opportunity) would be nuts, right? Given how short a lens that is, is there any value in mounting/stabilizing the lens?

My gut says to bring the collared 70-200 and the monopod and simply keep the 2x T/C on-hand if needed.

But what do you think?

- A

 

[lion rock]

I went bald eagle shooting in February 2014 and April 2015 on the James River, near Richmond, VA. First time I rented a 200-400 with built in 1.4X and a monopod on a pontoon boat.
The lens was too heavy for hand held for me for any length of time more than 2 minutes. Using the monopod was really bad idea, as the boat rocked and heaved up and down. I couldn't aim with the attached monopod. I switched back to my trusty 70-200 f/2.8. Just too short for reach.

So in 2015, I borrowed a 300 f/2.8. No support! Success! I hand held the lens with 5D3 set for continuous shuttled for the day, and no problem.

Again, you may be able to use 70-200, just not enough reach, if you don't want to borrow longer lens. I still suggest the 300 if you're not adversed to borrowing one.

Above all, have fun!
-r

 

[bholliman]

You can probably get by with your 70-200 and 2x extender. When we were in Alaska last summer I shot eagles several times with my bare 70-200, but we were able to get really close.

Why are you ruling out a rental? If I were doing this trip, I'd look at 3-day rental of a 500/4 or maybe 600/4.

 

[ahsanford]

Why are you ruling out a rental? If I were doing this trip, I'd look at 3-day rental of a 500/4 or maybe 600/4.

If this was a dedicated 2-3 days of birding, sure. But this will be a single 2-3 hour boat ride one morning, and I've been told we may entirely strike out depending on conditions. That's not worth the hassle and expense in my book.

I generally only bring the bigger backpack and larger spread of gear for landscape work where I know I'll have a few dawns/dusks to myself. This will be a family reunion where I need to be more social / involved with activities. So I'll have gear with me -- I'm just not going to blow it out and go big.

- A

 

[bholliman]

Why are you ruling out a rental? If I were doing this trip, I'd look at 3-day rental of a 500/4 or maybe 600/4.

If this was a dedicated 2-3 days of birding, sure. But this will be a single 2-3 hour boat ride one morning, and I've been told we may entirely strike out depending on conditions. That's not worth the hassle and expense in my book.

I generally only bring the bigger backpack and larger spread of gear for landscape work where I know I'll have a few dawns/dusks to myself. This will be a family reunion where I need to be more social / involved with activities. So I'll have gear with me -- I'm just not going to blow it out and go big.

Understood. I think you will be fine with your 70-200 and extender.

 

[Northbird]

Why are you ruling out a rental? If I were doing this trip, I'd look at 3-day rental of a 500/4 or maybe 600/4.

If this was a dedicated 2-3 days of birding, sure. But this will be a single 2-3 hour boat ride one morning, and I've been told we may entirely strike out depending on conditions. That's not worth the hassle and expense in my book.

I generally only bring the bigger backpack and larger spread of gear for landscape work where I know I'll have a few dawns/dusks to myself. This will be a family reunion where I need to be more social / involved with activities. So I'll have gear with me -- I'm just not going to blow it out and go big.

Understood. I think you will be fine with your 70-200 and extender.

Agreed that your best option with your gear is hand holding the 70-200 with the extender. I have that combination and it surprises me with excellent results more often than I'd expect.

 

[unfocused]

Why are you ruling out a rental? If I were doing this trip, I'd look at 3-day rental of a 500/4 or maybe 600/4.

If this was a dedicated 2-3 days of birding, sure. But this will be a single 2-3 hour boat ride one morning, and I've been told we may entirely strike out depending on conditions. That's not worth the hassle and expense in my book.

I generally only bring the bigger backpack and larger spread of gear for landscape work where I know I'll have a few dawns/dusks to myself. This will be a family reunion where I need to be more social / involved with activities. So I'll have gear with me -- I'm just not going to blow it out and go big.

Understood. I think you will be fine with your 70-200 and extender.

I agree. I'm a Midwesterner (living in Illinois, not Wisconsin) and my wife is a bird lover. We've taken a number of road trips prompted by promises of eagles or other big or unusual birds. They are like crack cocaine to her.

Anyway, while we always hope to photograph eagles, we almost always end up just enjoying seeing them. Why? Because they are usually so far away that even with a 400mm lens (which is the longest I own) they are out of range for any reasonable shots. Which means that realistically they are unlikely to be in range for a 600 mm either.

I'm sure that in Alaska, where they are gorging themselves on salmon, it is possible to get fairly close. But, here in the Midwest, at least at the places I've visited, they are usually pretty far away. So, my recommendation is to take your 70-200 and converter, enjoy your time with family and just enjoy the experience.

 

[tomscott]

I shoot my 70-200mm MKII with a 2x MKII all the time… really convenient.

Here are a few recent shots with the combo at the Farne Islands in the UK.

Puffin with a mouth full of Sand Eels, Farne Islands, Seahouses by Tom Scott, on Flickr

Puffin in flight with a mouth full of Sand Eels, Farne Islands, Seahouses by Tom Scott, on Flickr

Razorbill, Farne Islands, Seahouses by Tom Scott, on Flickr

Can see the rest here

https://flic.kr/s/aHskg1jKtw

I find the combo tack sharp, its at least as sharp as the original 100-400mm, although sometimes bokeh isn't perfect and the af can be slow at times but I don't find it hampers me. Great combo in a pinch and means you can use the 2.8 if you can get close enough.

 

[Hillsilly]

Is there anything that you can do to encourage the birds to come closer to you? Or is there a particular time of day that they are more active? The good thing about the 70-200 is that it focuses reasonable quickly, so if you're lucky you can be in the right spot at the right time and get a nice photo. Otherwise, have fun.

 

[JPAZ]

Of course the 70-200 with a 2x might be all you need but if your budget allows, rent a 300 f/2.8 ii. This lens on your FF with a 2x can be hand held, will still focus, and yields amazing results. I used that setup a few years back (and this image could be better but I was still new to BIF) and got this:

 

[Don Haines]

Three helpful tips......

The first is that with food, you can get birds to come close..... but it does take time and patience... you can lure them in close enough to use a phone (first picture) or with a 24mm lens (second picture)...

you can also set up a hunting blind..... I STRONGLY recommend bringing a chair and a good book... a snack, and lots of patience.... as the birds wander around, your opportunity will eventually arise as in the third picture, shot with a 70-200.....

The third tip is be quiet and be still. Sometimes, even if you are in plain sight, the birds will forget that you are there. I can float motionless in my canoe and let the wind slowly drift me towards my target and they don't seem to mind (picture 4)... this seems to work particularly well with ducks and loons and works particularly terribly with herons.... you have to know your birds!

Good fieldcraft is more important than great equipment......

 

[nc0b]

The 70-200mm f/2.8 IS II will very likely be too short. I gave up on it and the 2X TC III for BIF. If perched, no problem. Maybe as a perched bird just taking off you would be ok, but as soon as BIF is against a blue sky, the TC combo will likely lose focus and never recover if you have to reacquire focus. If you want something light weight, a 300mm f/4 or 400mm f/5.6 would work better than what you own. If you don't want to rent a "big white", the "little whites" will do well. In Alaska I used the 400mm f/5.6 for all sorts of wildlife from eagles to whales. Focus is blazingly fast.

 

[danski0224]

You can also look into "digiscoping".

 

[Halfrack]

While a big white may be out of your interest, the 100-400 II is damn impressive, cheap to rent/own, and would be an easy swap in your bag with the 70-200.

 

[unfocused]

Is there anything that you can do to encourage the birds to come closer to you? Or is there a particular time of day that they are more active?

Since we are talking eagles here, I'd suggest getting a small dog and leashing it to a tree somewhere where it will be in plain site.

Alternatively, I've seen pictures of eagles making off with peoples' prized koi, so maybe stop by a fish store and pick up a bucket of fish.

A small child might work too, but only if the eagle is very aggressive.