Neat finale shot! I watched a grebe swallow a crappie one day that I thought I
knew that it had no hope of downing, but after many, many minutes of struggle
the crappie (like the crayfish) went down! I agree that a fast shutter speed is
often necessary to freeze action, particularly in wildlife shots. Since active
wildlife, particularly small birds, often move from one light condition to
another, I find myself shooting not shooting in manual as much as I have for
other subjects. If things are relatively "normal", I may even shoot in P
(Program) mode where I can simply adjust exposure compensation for minor
exposure "issues". I find myself shooting in A or Aperture Priority mode quite
a bit. For full frame bird shots, most of the time I would like my aperture to
to be around f/8ish to have most of the bird in focus. However, because of low
light (even with supplemental fill flash), I often shoot at shallower depths of
field until the light level increases. I often start off with my aperture at
f/4 or f/5.6, and then watch the light. I keep an eye on my shutter speeds,
and if my shutter speed starts creeping up, I close down the aperture a bit. I
continue this until the light gets bright enough for me to use the aperture I
want (assuming the light ever gets that bright...). Like Frank, I let my ISO
float with my minimum shutter speed at 1/60th or 1/200th depending on what I'm
doing. Good luck!
Robert Smith
336-339-3497
rsmithent@xxxxxxx
www.photobiologist.com
Date: Sat, 24 Mar 2012 08:34:11 -0700
From: dr_frank_hensley@xxxxxxxxx
Subject: [missbirdphotos] Re: latest pics
To: missbirdphotos@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Larry,
Since most birds move fast, high shutter speeds can be essential to freeze
action and prevent blur. But since big lenses are so dark, and light varies so
much from one perch to the next, I like my camera to adjust ISO, aperture, and
shutter on the fly. I think it increases my odds of a sharp shot, with a
reasonable compromise between noise (high ISO) and depth of field (wide
aperture).
It has taken me a long time to figure out how to get my Nikon D60 set up so it
is doing the exposure adjustments in ways that I want it to. I shoot in the
Variable Program mode with ISO going no higher than 800 and shutter no slower
than 1/125th. Under darker conditions the camera will keep the shutter speed at
125th and raise the
ISO. Under brighter conditions, the camera will keep the ISO at 100 and
compromise the shutter and aperture. With enough light, I can turn the command
dial to the right on the fly if I want faster shutter and shallower DOF, which
is more often the way to go for birds. Or I can dial to the left and get slower
shutter and more DOF, which I prefer for insects.
At least, that's what I THINK I've got set. But every now and then when I'm
navigating the menus or shooting, I get confused about what I see. Still
learning. But I know the camera is way smarter than I am when it comes to
exposure!
-Frank
From: Larry Pace <larrypace64@xxxxxxxxx>
To: "missbirdphotos@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <missbirdphotos@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Saturday, March 24, 2012 9:39 AM
Subject: [missbirdphotos] Re: latest pics
The Grebe photos are examples of the type of bird photography that I am really
after--behavior related pics. Unfortunately the best of the series from this
particular encounter with the Grebe were grossly overexposed and essentially
not useable.
I primarily rely on manual exposure techniques but am wondering if maybe
shutter priority would have been a better option----thoughts----from the group.
The attached photo, although technically imperfect, does show the final result
of little grebes catch.
Larry
From: Robert Smith <rsmithent@xxxxxxx>
To: missbirdphotos@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Saturday, March 24, 2012 7:37 AM
Subject: [missbirdphotos] Re: latest pics
Sweet! That mudbug is a mouthful for that little grebe!
Robert Smith
336-339-3497
rsmithent@xxxxxxx
www.photobiologist.com
From: larrypace64@xxxxxxxxx
To: missbirdphotos@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [missbirdphotos] latest pics
Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2012 22:09:41 -0500
Pied Bill Grebe and lunch
Pied Bill Grebe
Latest photo endeavors from blind at Stillwater Bayou--Dahomey NWR
Larry
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