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Seabirds on the Great Saltee – 12 May 2012
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All taken on Sat 12 May 2012
Canon 7D & 100-400mm
All in TV mode at least 1/640 or 1/800, Centre weighted metering, ISO 200-320 to try get a aperture of f/6.3 to f/8 and manual focus.Click on pics for lagrer versions. Apologies if too many in the single post!!
Thks for looking.
brenFulmar
European or Common Shag
Razorbill
Guillemot
Atlantic Puffin (1)
Atlantic Puffin (2)
Great set Brendan. Hard to pick a favourite, but I think I’ll pick the shag. Well done
I think the Razorbill would be my favourite but they’re all excellent images. Can I ask why you were manually focusing, you done a great job.
Dave.
Many thks everyone.
Dave-Seaview.
Good question as to why i use ‘Manual Focus’
I have a Canon 7D (which probably has the most advanced AF system in the Canon range – and is now shared on the 1Dx) and the 100-400. I turn off Image stabisation off as i’m over 1/640 – and the AF works better if its off.
As good as it is – it still can’t cope with a bird flying by you at 40-45 mph
So i turn off AF – focus on a point on the cliff face around 100-200 feet away – depending on focal lengeht and how much of the frame i want the bird to fill. I’d vary this constantly.
I then track the bird in the view finder, as he starts to become sharp in view – I start rattling 7-8 frames a second while he flies through the ‘sweet spot’ or DOF- which is only a few inches wide..or less – depending on focal lenght and distance away.
Hopefully i’ll nail a sharp shot.In my opinion – this is the only technique to use.
In laymans terms for others not familiar with what i’m taking about – imagine a thick pain of glass from the floor to the sky – say 4-6 inches thick – 200 feet in front of you – it’s the pain of glass that is in focus. All in front and behind are out of focus – or ‘soft’. I start shooting as he approches the glass – and hopeully get a pic as he passes through it.
Worth trying on garden starlings before a field trip.
Hope this helps.
bren
Thanks for the info, it makes since now. Certainly is a good technique considering the result.
Dave
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