Afternoon Lesson

[finnbay]

Spent some time with Steve this afternoon photographing songbirds from his blind - you'll probably recognize the perch. Got some good pointers and Steve said he really should post a tutorial on some of the stuff we talked about. Pressure's on, good buddy! Anyway, here are a few from our session:

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Thanks, Steve! Opened an account with Photobucket and hope this makes a difference!

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Took off the first photo - not up to snuff. Guess it looked better to me at closing time last night than it did this morning. Kinda reminds me of the college days.

[Dbl]

#2 and #5 look good to me!

[fishinchicks]

Wow! The detail on the second one is amazing! Looks like you were a good student.

[Steve Foss]

Good stuff, Ken. Some still more sharp than others, but that's the way it goes with rainy days, slow shutter speeds and fast birds. I really like the junco and the chickadee the best (got that raindrop in there, I see). And No. 2, the immature white-crowned sparrow, is very sharp (and a bird I don't have photographed yet.)

I reckon the Hupila backyard is about to undergo an interesting transformation. Your wife will wake up one morning and realize it's become a Birch Lake avian outdoor studio. Don't forget that burst mode!

Oh, and that tripod is the Manfrotto 725B.

[finnbay]

Thanks again for your help, Steve. Oh, and the Manfrotto is already on its way!

[mmeyer]

Great shots Ken,

What kind of bird is that in the 2nd photo? Sounds like a great time. And Steve, I know you're here, when and if you get time a tutorial would be awesome. Also maybe just a photo of your setup if you're willing to reveal may help some of us. Just thought I'd ask.

Mike

[buzzsaw]

Mike, that second bird is a Junco.

I like the nice clean backgrounds in your images. What ISO/shutter speed were you guys shooting these at? The ones I just was getting in those gloomy conditions were at ISO 800 1/180 sec... just curious.

[finnbay]

I was able to get by with ISO 400. I started with Av of 5.6 but shutter speeds went down below 100, so dropped the Av to 4.0 and was able to shoot at 180th.

[mmeyer]

Thanks Buzz, I was actually wondering about the 3rd bird. Apparently my bird I.D. knowledge is as good as my counting ability.

Thanks

Mike

[finnbay]

Buzz,

Have to apologize. Apparantly my memory is fading faster than your sunset photo! I did have to kick the ISO up to 800. Rest of the info is correct. I was using a Canon 300 2.8 at just over 8' from the perch. We had a 1.4 TC on at first but it was too much.

Mike, that is an evening grosbeak. Kind of a tawdry one with the feathers unkempt. I'm not a birder, so I may be asking for ID's if I shoot one I don't know.

[Jim Almquist]

Very nice shots Ken and you are lucky to have a great teacher to show you ropes or show you the blind

[Steve Foss]

OK, when the original post went up there was a bird before the immature white-crowned sparrow (a female purple finch), so originally the second bird was the w-c sparrow. Now the first bird is the w-c sparrow. I'm so confused. Ken, did you pull the finch, or am I losing my mind?

[finnbay]

You might be losing your mind, but it isn't because of me. I edited the first one out because I wasn't happy with the sharpness (see my editorial note at the bottom of my first post). Thanks for all the compliments - Steve has a great set up for getting these results.

[Steve Foss]

Oh, cool. Thanks for letting me know. I lose my mind a couple times each day so it's nice to know I remember THIS right, anyway.

[buzzsaw]

Yes, that third bird is an Evening GB as mentioned. I had to go back and read the thread to keep from thinking I was losing my mind.

[mmeyer]

Thanks for the I.D. guys. I'm glad I'm not the only one that thinks they're losing their mind.

Mike