20d birding: 2nd attempt

jeff lapoint

went out again vs. the ducks (and turtles...dont even get me started on those little...). better this time, but i could still use some tips...especially on panning when they are in flight.






this dude was pretending to be asleep...


almost got this one in air




and 100% crop of above



any tips?

jeff

ginger_55

Gosh that crop came out well. And I love the bluebird.

Tips? BIF tips???

I will be watching to see if you get any. Oh, after my experience today, make sure your shutter speed is high enough. (In order to do that you might have to raise your ISO, get grain, then you wonder why you can't win.)

Really that shutter speed is important. I have 50 shots of blurred birds today, some in flight.:cry An Osprey!

Nice shots.

ginger

jeff lapoint

ginger_55 wrote:

Gosh that crop came out well. And I love the bluebird.

Tips? BIF tips???

I will be watching to see if you get any. Oh, after my experience today, make sure your shutter speed is high enough. (In order to do that you might have to raise your ISO, get grain, then you wonder why you can't win.)

Really that shutter speed is important. I have 50 shots of blurred birds today, some in flight.:cry An Osprey!

Nice shots.

ginger

thanks ginger. i think being in Av mode can really hurt the BIF deal. using my tripod as a monopod of sorts today made a big difference. these results were way better than last time. it also didnt hurt that there was a ton of more light available.

i wonder if anyone has tips on using AI servo? is it best to select all the focus pts (auto) or keep it in center? Av mode or shutter priority? i bumped the iso up to 200, but i think i need to get used to the ability to go higher with the 20d...

jeff

Harryb

Hey Jeff,

Excellent shots. I love the crop on the last one.

BIF shots are as you probably know the toughest to get. They are at their hardest when you are shooting on the spur of the moment and not prepared. I get my best BIF shots when I pre-plan them. I'll go to a site where I know there will probbaly be some birds in flight. I will pre-meter the scene and make the necessary EV adjustments and will try to shoot in shutter priority or aperture priority if I know I can keep the shutter speed fast enough. I will usually try for around 1/1000 sec or higher. You will want to set your focus for continual focus mode (Or the Canon equivalent). You then want to capture the incoming birds as they approach your spot. Lock in on them as they approach and track them until you get the shot you want or the best you think you can get and then start clicking.

jeff lapoint

Harryb wrote:

Hey Jeff,

Excellent shots. I love the crop on the last one.

BIF shots are as you probably know the toughest to get. They are at their hardest when you are shooting on the spur of the moment and not prepared. I get my best BIF shots when I pre-plan them. I'll go to a site where I know there will probbaly be some birds in flight. I will pre-meter the scene and make the necessary EV adjustments and will try to shoot in shutter priority or aperture priority if I know I can keep the shutter speed fast enough. I will usually try for around 1/1000 sec or higher. You will want to set your focus for continual focus mode (Or the Canon equivalent). You then want to capture the incoming birds as they approach your spot. Lock in on them as they approach and track them until you get the shot you want or the best you think you can get and then start clicking.

thanks harry

i'll give that a try if it ever stops freaking raining here...

Dixie

jeff lapoint wrote:

thanks ginger. i think being in Av mode can really hurt the BIF deal. using my tripod as a monopod of sorts today made a big difference. these results were way better than last time. it also didnt hurt that there was a ton of more light available.

i wonder if anyone has tips on using AI servo? is it best to select all the focus pts (auto) or keep it in center? Av mode or shutter priority? i bumped the iso up to 200, but i think i need to get used to the ability to go higher with the 20d...

jeff

Jeff, I haven't shot a lot of BIF's, but I can relate it to racing which I've shot a lot. I use spot, AI Servo, and multiple exposures (I will normally shoot anywhere from 3-8 shots in a sequence - one button press and hold) with the aperture set wide (normally 2.8-5.6) in Av mode and set the ISO as low as the conditions with allow to keep the shutter speed high enough to stop the action.

Ideally, I try to get the vehicle quartering into me, and then start the sequence and pan with the subject keeping it in the center. Focus moves with the subject (and in the case of BIF, you should get a lot of different wing positions). This also works when the subject is crossing perpendicular to my shooting position, but takes more practice to get the pan down correctly.

If you use something like th 70-200 IS or 100-400 IS, set the IS in the mode 2 position. This helps keep the vertical movement stabilized and fixes the horizonal movement so you can pan with the subject without the gyro trying to correct for the lateral/horizontal movement.

Hope this helps.

jeff lapoint

Dixie wrote:

Jeff, I haven't shot a lot of BIF's, but I can relate it to racing which I've shot a lot. I use spot, AI Servo, and multiple exposures (I will normally shoot anywhere from 3-8 shots in a sequence - one button press and hold) with the aperture set wide (normally 2.8-5.6) in Av mode and set the ISO as low as the conditions with allow to keep the shutter speed high enough to stop the action.

Ideally, I try to get the vehicle quartering into me, and then start the sequence and pan with the subject keeping it in the center. Focus moves with the subject (and in the case of BIF, you should get a lot of different wing positions). This also works when the subject is crossing perpendicular to my shooting position, but takes more practice to get the pan down correctly.

If you use something like th 70-200 IS or 100-400 IS, set the IS in the mode 2 position. This helps keep the vertical movement stabilized and fixes the horizonal movement so you can pan with the subject without the gyro trying to correct for the lateral/horizontal movement.

Hope this helps.

i'm getting some great advice here! thanks for the tips.

the 20d doesnt have spot metering...whats the next best thing to use for action/BIF? dixie, when you shoot nascar, do you use a tripod? monopod? handheld?

on my photo of the ugly duck tring to look like he's asleep, i noticed i blew the background exposure...is the fix for next time to meter the highlight and do an exposure lock?

thanks again for all the help folks

Dixie

jeff lapoint wrote:

i'm getting some great advice here! thanks for the tips.

the 20d doesnt have spot metering...whats the next best thing to use for action/BIF? dixie, when you shoot nascar, do you use a tripod? monopod? handheld?

on my photo of the ugly duck tring to look like he's asleep, i noticed i blew the background exposure...is the fix for next time to meter the highlight and do an exposure lock?

thanks again for all the help folks

Jeff, I meant spot focusing. I should have been clearer on that. Look on pages 67-68 in your 20D manual and it will show you how to select the center spot for AF.

No tripod or monopod for the races. I've tried with a monopod, but it gets too tight in the pits as it is without me hitting or tripping someone up with a tripod or monopod. It's all handheld.

As to the metering, go to page 71 in your manual and read the procedure for "partial metering." If you are using center spot AF and partial metering, you should be just about dead on for the subject you are tracking for the shot. As to the background - if you had metered for the backgound you would have had a silhouette of the duck. The shot appears overexposed. You could adjust the exposure in RAW or adjust the levels on a jpeg to correct some of it, but the backgound is still going to be out.

If you had shot it (Rule of Thirds) and placed the eyes in the upper left crosshair, the background wouldn't be as noticeable. As is, the eyes are virtually dead center.

jeff lapoint

Dixie wrote:

Jeff, I meant spot focusing. I should have been clearer on that. Look on pages 67-68 in your 20D manual and it will show you how to select the center spot for AF.

No tripod or monopod for the races. I've tried with a monopod, but it gets too tight in the pits as it is without me hitting or tripping someone up with a tripod or monopod. It's all handheld.

As to the metering, go to page 71 in your manual and read the procedure for "partial metering." If you are using center spot AF and partial metering, you should be just about dead on for the subject you are tracking for the shot. As to the background - if you had metered for the backgound you would have had a silhouette of the duck. The shot appears overexposed. You could adjust the exposure in RAW or adjust the levels on a jpeg to correct some of it, but the backgound is still going to be out.

If you had shot it (Rule of Thirds) and placed the eyes in the upper left crosshair, the background wouldn't be as noticeable. As is, the eyes are virtually dead center.

10-4. i really need to work on my compositions.

if i use center AF and AI servo, do i have to keep the subject on the center for AI to keep focusing?

as always dixie, thanks for the great advice.

Dixie

jeff lapoint wrote:

10-4. i really need to work on my compositions.

if i use center AF and AI servo, do i have to keep the subject on the center for AI to keep focusing?

as always dixie, thanks for the great advice.

The simple answer is yes. In AI Servo, you cannot press down the shutter button halfway to focus and then frame your shot. "Focus lock" only works in the one-shot mode. Therefore, you have to keep your subject at the focal spot you have chosen whether it is the center spot or any of the other eight spots. Each is selectable separately.

Once you've gotten use to the different settings and see what they do, the mode you use and actual setting of the camera becomes second nature the more you use them.

jeff lapoint

Dixie wrote:

The simple answer is yes. In AI Servo, you cannot press down the shutter button halfway to focus and then frame your shot. "Focus lock" only works in the one-shot mode. Therefore, you have to keep your subject at the focal spot you have chosen whether it is the center spot or any of the other eight spots. Each is selectable separately.

Once you've gotten use to the different settings and see what they do, the mode you use and actual setting of the camera becomes second nature the more you use them.

thanks again dixie. the 20d seems stacked with features vs. my rebel...even more than the ones i used to convince the Mrs....

the learning curve can be steep at times, but even then i find myslef really enjoying every minute.