End of distance for detail with Canon 300

sososleepy

I got a Rebel XTi a few months ago. It came with two lenses. I've recently started trying to photograph birds with the zoom 75-300mm 1:4-5.6 III. I know, you're all ready laughing, and now I understand why. I've gotten some shots I'm really happy with of reasonably still birds I've been able to get very close to, but I can't get clear crisp shots at any real distance. Forget the autofocus on anything flying; it's completely useless. I'd still like to get crisp pictures of my local birds, and a new lens isn't in the budget, so I'm trying to find the max range for clear detail shots.

I considered going out and planting little flags every 10 feet and photographing each to find the give up distance, but the battery is charging and I'm hoping someone here knows.

Photoskipper

There are few things you need to watch out before you test the lens:
1. Mount it to the tripod so that the camera is fixed at the zero point.
2. Check the dioptic adjustment knob position and adjust it to you eyesight
3. Consider the depth of field. For more accurate focal point, you can use bigger aperture to limit the DOF, then check the range DOF with smaller aperture. Take note of the DOF at each common F stop such as 3.5, 4 and etc, no need to do for any F > 8, it will not be useful for the bird photos.

Consider a laser range finder or range finder telescope (from the golf shop) during your field shooting. Eyeballing the distance in the field is never be accurate.

ziggy53

Most of those lenses are only sharp to around 200mm and at f8 or so. 300mm tends to be soft. AF is not practical for BIF with that lens.

I believe your best strategy is to concentrate on what "can" be done.

Lure birds to within practical distance with foods that they like and use simple "blinds" to keep them from noticing you. You will need to be very still and very quiet for hours at a time. I believe you will find that you need to get the smaller birds to around 20-25 feet or so at 200mm to get a decent and usable crop. Pre-focus to items in the correct focal plane where the birds will be to eliminate focus delay.

ian408

Ziggy's right. Your best opportunity is to lure the birds with apple
slices, bird food or something similar. This may also take some time
for the birds to become familiar with the food location so you may
need to do it frequently.

You may also want to look for a Wild Bird Center near you for some
additional tips.

Photoskipper

I am still learning how to take bird photos.
One of the way is to learn the behavior of the bird, study their habit and where they like to stay or hang around. Position the camera at the nearest possible location with good camouflage and wait.
Need a lot of luck!

pathfinder

sososleepy wrote:

I got a Rebel XTi a few months ago. It came with two lenses. I've recently started trying to photograph birds with the zoom 75-300mm 1:4-5.6 III. I know, you're all ready laughing, and now I understand why. I've gotten some shots I'm really happy with of reasonably still birds I've been able to get very close to, but I can't get clear crisp shots at any real distance. Forget the autofocus on anything flying; it's completely useless. I'd still like to get crisp pictures of my local birds, and a new lens isn't in the budget, so I'm trying to find the max range for clear detail shots.

I considered going out and planting little flags every 10 feet and photographing each to find the give up distance, but the battery is charging and I'm hoping someone here knows.

I tried to shoot birds with that lens a few years ago, and like you, found it frustrating. The images did not compare to what I see posted regularly on Harry's forum.

The trick to using that lens to shoot birds is to go to the beach with a bag of popcorn. The gulls will LOVE you and as long as the popcorn hangs around, so will the gulls. You will be able to get some close ups, and might even bag a few BIFs if you are lucky and practice a bit. Gluwater, Nic, Nightingale and I made a trip to Mackinac City a while back to shoot the bridge, and we shot a few frames of gulls as well. Shooting BIFs with gulls is a great way to practice shooting BIFs.

These were done with a fixed 135mm lens on a 20D, so you will have all the reach you need.






If you desire is to shoot songbirds and fill the frame, 300mm won't deliver the goods. Plan on a good 500mm, and a blind as well. Little birds can be very challenging. Setting up a feeding station so that they come to you, and are used to feeling safe in that location can help a great deal. You can shoot out the window of your house, using the house as a blind as well.

Do some folks use shorter lenses - sure - you can find pictures of hummingbirds shot in the palm of their hand shot with a 50mm ( normal) lens, but do not plan on doing this yourself routinely. You may be disappointed.

Consumer zoom lenses of the 70-300mm range,hold significant compromises in their construction, and, like Ziggy said, are not at their sharpest at the long end. I tried using mine on a tripod with a flash - nothing really helped until I finally bought better, longer glass.

[Deleted User]

Pathfinder, I like "the look" the gull is giving you in the second photo :pissed

Jim

Photoskipper

Finally, I got my dream come true
I have been trying to shoot wild birds in the nature reserve. Got some success but missed the Collared Kingfisher which does not like to fly close to human being.
Finally, I got it with the new 500mm F4 with 1.4X last week.