Bird photography

[bashblues]

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Naa man mga post sa mga sinaunang page mga dli flying birds so pwede ra tingali pd ni!


Jurong Bird Park by Bash Baddong, on Flickr


Ostrich by Bash Baddong, on Flickr


Bela by Bash Baddong, on Flickr

[reyscott1968]

Naa man mga post sa mga sinaunang page mga dli flying birds so pwede ra tingali pd ni!


Jurong Bird Park by Bash Baddong, on Flickr


Ostrich by Bash Baddong, on Flickr


Bela by Bash Baddong, on Flickr

powered by tamron 70-200mm 2.8 ni ? ?

[bashblues]

powered by tamron 70-200mm 2.8 ni ? ?

yes bro mao ray makaya jud hehe!

[Chedrek]

bro chedrek nice shot... isog kaayo imong bird hehehe

comment pwde? pwde nlang oyyyy hehehehe ilisi imong border beh kay isog ra kaayo ang yellow mawala ang attention sa imong photo... sagoli ug gmay orange kanang pina nat.geo nga magazine para di kaayo sakit sa mata..

mao ra to hehehe

Salamat Master Mike sa comment pasensya na sa borders... isog lagi ang eagle nako membro ni siya sa angry birds =)

[dolina]

I wrote this last year. HTH.

=====================
Top Tips for Wildlife Photography


Wildlife photography is considered one of the most challenging forms of photography to delve in. Other than having advanced photography skills such as getting the proper exposure, wildlife photographers need good knowledge in animal behavior and stalking skills to get close enough to the subject that may involve spending hours on end in a hide or blind to get the subject in range.

This was written as a number of friends have been asking me how to get into this gig. The original article was first published in Ayala Alabang Camera Club's Monthly Newsletter.

1. Know the subject well. Knowing animal behavior, migratory patterns and breeding seasons is a good way of knowing your subject. Go to places where wildlife are used to people.

2. Approach slowly. Wildlife generally do not mind some noise or oddly colored appearances but are hardwired to flee when they notice rapid motion.

3. Try to approach as close as possible. Regardless whether you have a 400mm, 600mm or 1200mm you will be fighting against light refraction from the amount of air separating you from the subject and time of day. This screws up image quality, as you will get a distorted image from light being bent while traveling through hot/cold/polluted air. As I approach the subject I make it a habit to take photos of them every step I get closer to them. So if the next step they run or fly away I have the best possible photo.

4. Keep low when taking photos of wild life on the ground. This allows you to approach your subject closely. You can kneel but laying on your stomach often times is better. You will also create a more pleasing framing that doesn't appear you are shooting from above.



Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)


5. Always have a teleconverter/extender handy. The one I'd suggest would be the teleconverter or extender that increases length by 1.4x. You will however lose 1 stop of light and one stop of shutter speed and the image quality will somewhat diminish unless you are using a fast (f/1.8, f/2 or f/2.8 aperture) pro quality lens. There are 1.7x and 2x teleconverter or extenders but these are generally useful for those with really high-end lenses. Teleconverters/extenders are a convenient way to extend the length of your lens without having to lug around another lens or spend another fortune.

6. Buy the best camera gear with autofocus you can afford. Often times we are tempted to take shortcuts by buying cheap, old manual focus lenses. Almost all cases would require you to have autofocus as wildlife tend to move rapidly. We sometimes buy lenses that are too slow for your camera body to autofocus. Not the fault of the lens but the limitation of the camera body's autofocus mechanism. Cameras that can accommodate slower lenses tend to be pro-level bodies. With Canon non-pro cameras you can autofocus with lenses with apertures as small as f/5.6. Canon pro cameras can autofocus as small as f/8.

7. Longer "slower" lens trumps shorter "faster" lens. Given a choice between 400mm f/2.8 (fast) lens vs a 500 f/4 (slower) lens I'd go with the 500 f/4. The reasoning being wildlife tend to stay as far away from people as possible. So length is most useful in this regard. By the time you will need a "faster" lens the wildlife may be off to their homes to sleep. Note also that faster lenses tend to be heavier by a few kilograms making it difficult to carry around that will impact on your health.



8. Use a high weight capacity tripod with a gimbal head. A heavy duty tripod allows you peace of mind and stability when taking photos of subjects a few hundred meters away. A gimbal head is a type of tripod head that is designed to allow easy handling of large & heavy lenses. In the Philippines, if you are starting out and on a budget I would recommend going to Island Photo along Gamboa St in Salcedo Village, Makati and look for a Manfrotto branded tripod with at least a 7kg max capacity or gimbal head. These are the least expensive and yet reliable brand I would recommend for anyone with looking for quality equipment. The best equipment you could buy are either the Wimberly or Mongoose brand gimbal and a Gitzo brand Series 3 tripod or higher.

9. Consider your framing. Is it following the rules of photography? Is the background distracting to your viewers? Avoid light, dark or cluttered backgrounds. Try as much as possible to put some distance between the subject and the background to produce what people call a pleasing bokeh.

10. Practice, practice, practice. Just like cooking practice makes perfect to be a success! Practice on wildlife within your neighborhood like a backyard bird like the tree sparrow, your common alley cat, butterflies, etc. This allows you to be close to perfect in the actual location. Outdoor sporting events are another good way to practice as well.



Blue-tailed Bee-eater, Merops philippinus


11. If you want light & hand holdable gear check out the Canon EOS 7D with 100-400mm IS or a Nikon D300s with 80-400mm VR lens. These two setups allow you reduced vibration from being held, sharp and in focus images at slow shutter speed. These two camera bodies allow for magnified images.

12. Shoot in RAW. Unless you got your white balance calibrated and properly exposed. This allows for easier post processing.

13. Check the weather report. Know when it rains, bone dry or cloudy. You really don’t want to get your gear drenched nor have problem lighting up the scene.

14. Buy a good pair of binoculars. Easier to spot the wild life than through the view finder.



Philippine Trogon (Harpactes ardens)


15. Buy a good wild life book. At the moment Philippine Birds are what I want to focus on so I got myself a copy of A Guide to the Birds of the Philippines by Robert S. Kennedy, Pedro C. Gonzales, Edward C. Dickinson, and Hector Miranda. Among bird watchers it is often referred to as the "Kennedy Guide". I've contacted National Bookstore, Fully Booked and Powerbooks and none of them have it on stock. I got my copy from Amazon. The Philippine Dept of Tourism came out with a bird book of their own but it isnt as comprehensive as the Oxford one.

16. Use good judgment and common sense. Don't risk your life to take that shot. Don't consume all your money on it (it should be disposable income only). I've read of stories of really crazy people who traveled the world with a painful yet curable diseases to spot wildlife, get attacked by rebels, raped by the natives, dying from a tiger mauling, dying from a snake bite, dying from falling off a tree, dying from falling off a cliff, etc. This being the Philippines avoid rebel invested areas. Contact the local govt or Philippine military on which wildlife area are infested by disgruntled rebels and bandits.

[reyscott1968]

yes bro mao ray makaya jud hehe!

nndota sa imong framing style oie.. i like it..

[Slyfox]

[guyjasper]

my share...

[michaelocana]

bro sorry ha kay gi report na tika... samok kaayo ka.. hehehehehe tanang thread imo butangan ug same message para mosaka imong level.

super coolness!!!

[Harvie]

Very Nice Shots

Thumbs Up for you Sir Dolina