Spyonabird

Eastern Towhee in my backyard

I have the 1.4 extender on my 100-400 V2 lens. It works great but you lose 2 stops of light. If you are on the beach during the day, it is great but move to the woods early in the morning and you don't have the light to take a quality shot. However, as echoed above, it all depends on what you want your equipment to do and what you hope to get from this hobby. If I am "birding", many times I don't take my camera at all or if I do, I only try to get ID shots. I refuse to hike more than 4 miles with 5 pounds of camera around my neck or even in a camera harness. I want to enjoy the process and not be burdened by the weight. If I want the picture to hang on the wall (or gift to a friend), I will take all my gear including a tripod/monopod to get the perfect shot. (although it rarely happens).

I upgraded about 4 years ago to a full frame (5d Mark IV) and my pictures did not improve much. But it is also heavier and I may not be as steady as I was in my youth. As for the 100-400 lens on a mirrorless - there is an adaptor. I would avoid Amazon and go directly to a either KEH or B&H photo. (I have no affiliation with either). Both of these companies sell used bodies and glass.

At this stage of the game - maybe Mirrorless. It all depends on how serious you are about your photography. The latest news is that Canon will stop making the traditional DSLR to focus on Mirrorless. I'm not sure about Nikon but it may be the wave of the future. I haven't done it yet, but it is tempting.

Carolina wren

Terrible picture but... Red-Cockaded Woodpeckers

American Oystercatcher

New Years Eve, Saint Marks National Wildlife Refuge - Florida Panhandle

There are many times that I add a photo that is terrible. see link below. The difference is that I don't care if someone "likes" it or not. This one was to document the number of birds; to justify my count of 250 Cedar Waxwings. Yes, I had better pictures but they would not have told the whole story. My understanding is that ebird/MC library is for citizen science documentation and not to show off your best photos. If you have nice pics - great. My best photos are elsewhere because I like to shoot more "artsy" pics that may or may not be good for ID. https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/236264831 just my two pennies...

This ! !

A young Brown Thrasher in my backyard trying to help with our latest project.

and one more. This is an Indigo Bunting. The lighting was not very good but I was able to get closer. I lightened and sharpened it slightly and added a little noise reduction. I'm not very good at doing masks so I think I lightened the grass a little too much Before after

Here is a before and after picture. As you can see, sometime it is difficult to get it correct in the camera. This is cropped, and minor adjustments including noise reduction. Before after

This is a great topic. I would love to see more before/after photos with constructive criticism. I will see if I can dig up some of mine.