My first attempt at Birding

[407370]

Hi All,

I wanted to try my hand at getting some pics of small British birds. Have a look and let me know what you think.

I tried a few different styles of processing and I am not sure what is more appropriate.


1 - Dunnock

2 - Eurasian Nuthatch

3 - Robin

4 - Rather accommodating squirrel

CHEERS
JBO

 

[Digger...]

They look fine. I'd prefer rectangles than the cropped square framing & the subjects having negative space to look into.

Love the squirrel, whats the Eurasian Nuthatch eating?

 

[Bill in Texas]

Nice job on these. The first looks a bit over sharpened but the nuthatch shots are really good.

 

[Jeff15]

A very good start but try to get the birds when they are not on the feeder (that's cheating) ....

 

[jeffashman]

Wonderful set of images! I agree, they need a little more negative space as they are rather cramped, but they are lovely.

 

[Thiophilos]

Good work on these! Bird photography is a lot of fun and there are lots of subjects around. Birds will often perch a short distance a way from a feeder before coming in. That gives opportunities to shoot them without the feeder or seeds in the photo. You have good focus and good lighting. Agreed that the first shot is oversharpened. BTW, the last two are not British birds.

 

[407370]

They look fine. I'd prefer rectangles than the cropped square framing & the subjects having negative space to look into.

Love the squirrel, whats the Eurasian Nuthatch eating?

These are the Instagram crops. They are all in 5 x 4 to start with:

Its eating the mix I made up from unsweetened museli / suet / seeds. I got the recipe from a birdwatching website. I was going to clone it all out but decided for authenticity to leave it in the pics.

Nice job on these. The first looks a bit over sharpened but the nuthatch shots are really good.

Thats why I mentioned the processing. The first one is a lot more oversharpened now I can see it on the forum. Noted for later.

A very good start but try to get the birds when they are not on the feeder (that's cheating) ....

Its not a feeder. This is the middle of a nature reserve where I put a very small handful of the mix on top of a fence. Its not cheating if you dont get caught.

Wonderful set of images! I agree, they need a little more negative space as they are rather cramped, but they are lovely.

Thank you.

Good work on these! Bird photography is a lot of fun and there are lots of subjects around. Birds will often perch a short distance a way from a feeder before coming in. That gives opportunities to shoot them without the feeder or seeds in the photo. You have good focus and good lighting. Agreed that the first shot is oversharpened. BTW, the last two are not British birds.

Thanks for the comments. I had to look up these birds on Google. I just assume all birds are British if I see them in Britain. Probably have to rethink that if I see a Turkey Vulture in Sussex.

CHEERS
JBO

 

[KJ_North]

Great shots!

 

[MitchP]

Nice close shots with lots of detail. I wish my first attempt was this good!

 

[407370]

Nice close shots with lots of detail. I wish my first attempt was this good!

All nature pics are based on 3 elements:

1 - Good Light
2 - Good Glass
3 - Blind Luck

Keeper rate was about 10%.

CHEERS
JBO

 

[MitchP]

All nature pics are based on 3 elements:

1 - Good Light
2 - Good Glass
3 - Blind Luck

Keeper rate was about 10%.

CHEERS
JBO

I would add another crucial element is being prepared. There's simply no time for in depth fiddling or doubts, so be prepared before leaving the house. A 10% keeper rate is pretty good. Many times I'll come home with 400 shots, and end up with 2 keepers. But I'm usually going for the in-flight shots so the hit rate goes down considerably.

 

[407370]

I would add another crucial element is being prepared. There's simply no time for in depth fiddling or doubts, so be prepared before leaving the house. A 10% keeper rate is pretty good. Many times I'll come home with 400 shots, and end up with 2 keepers. But I'm usually going for the in-flight shots so the hit rate goes down considerably.

I am not equipped for in flight shots yet. Got my eye on a long lens for Christmas.

 

[slat]

Nice ones.