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Share Your Best Photo of the Day

bearcat6
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aveschapinas
Message added by aveschapinas,

Folks: it's not OK to take other people's photos to edit and re-post. Just like we don't correct each other's spelling and grammar, we don't take it upon ourselves to decide that someone's photo needs correction. In addition, as has been emphasized before, you need to respect copyright.

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Birds are cool

Birds are cool

Posted
Posted
11 hours ago, Quiscalus quiscula said:

So at this point it's mostly my gear? Or should I try to fiddle around with the shutter speed more?

What @IKLland said. The less you zoom in, the better the quality of the pics, but that can be very hard sometimes, especially when the bird is far away.

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lonestranger

lonestranger

Posted
Posted (edited)
13 hours ago, Quiscalus quiscula said:

So at this point it's mostly my gear? Or should I try to fiddle around with the shutter speed more?

I would suggest that better lighting conditions could have improved the quality of this photo. Good lighting, along with good technique, can make a world of difference in getting those 5 star photos. As @Charlie Spencer pointed out, we don't know the gear or the techniques used, settings, tripod, toothpaste, etc., but we can see that the bird isn't really catching any light, at least not to my eye. Catching the right light brings out the best in our gear, but I don't think it did that for you here.

I won't argue that better gear will produce better images, regardless of who you are or what gear you shoot with, but there could be other ways to get better images with the gear you/we already have. 😉

Edited by lonestranger
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Quiscalus quiscula

Quiscalus quiscula

Posted
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5 hours ago, Charlie Spencer said:

Remind us what your equipment is.  That isn't coming through in the metadata for your eBird posts.

My camera is a Lumix FZ80.

 

5 hours ago, Charlie Spencer said:

What do you do with your photos? 

  • Do you use them strictly in electronic format - wallpaper, posting to eBird, sharing, etc.?  If so, are they viewed mostly on a TV, large monitor, tablet, or phone?
  • Do you print them?  If so, what sizes?  Are they for personal use, giving to friends, semi-professional sales?

Yeah, I'm just using them electronically, I view them on a laptop. I haven't printed any of my photos yet.

 

5 hours ago, Charlie Spencer said:

Are you shooting mostly at maximum zoom?  Optical only or do you have digital zoom enabled?  Mostly autofocus or manual?

I usually shoot close to maximum zoom, I only use optical zoom. I then crop my photos on my computer which works well because my files are usually very large. I use autofocus which works pretty well on my camera.

 

11 hours ago, Charlie Spencer said:

Are you using a tripod or other support?  Is your lens clean?  Do you have only a screen or do you have a viewfinder too?

No tripod, I haven't had a problem with shaky hands. My lens is quite clean, I always replace the lens cap quickly and store the camera properly. I have the option to use screen and viewfinder, and I've been using the screen as it's easier for me. 

 

11 hours ago, Charlie Spencer said:

Do you floss regularly and brush with a fluoride toothpaste?  :classic_biggrin: 

Lol, I don't tend to use fluoride, but I brush and floss regularly and always get an "A" grade from my dentist!

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Charlie Spencer

Charlie Spencer

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49 minutes ago, Quiscalus quiscula said:

I use autofocus which works pretty well on my camera.

I have the similar FZ70.  Unless the 80 had significant improvements, the manual focus is kind of clunky.  Still, you might try it with long range shots of cooperative subjects.

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lonestranger

lonestranger

Posted
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29 minutes ago, Quiscalus quiscula said:

No tripod, I haven't had a problem with shaky hands.

Are you sure? If you can turn off the camera's image stabilization and still say that, then you're doing good. If you benefit from the camera's image stabilization though, you may benefit from a tripod's stabilization more than you realize, especially when zooming out past 600mm which is only half your max zoom. Camera shake gets more noticeable the longer our zoom  gets and 600+mm is a pretty long lens in any format to be using without stabilization when aiming for top quality photos. Although they aren't always convenient, tripods will help produce better photos. 

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Quiscalus quiscula

Quiscalus quiscula

Posted
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2 hours ago, lonestranger said:

Are you sure? If you can turn off the camera's image stabilization and still say that, then you're doing good. If you benefit from the camera's image stabilization though, you may benefit from a tripod's stabilization more than you realize, especially when zooming out past 600mm which is only half your max zoom. Camera shake gets more noticeable the longer our zoom  gets and 600+mm is a pretty long lens in any format to be using without stabilization when aiming for top quality photos. Although they aren't always convenient, tripods will help produce better photos. 

I'm not sure how to turn that off...Anyway, that's a good point, thanks! Although in most cases it won't be practical for me running around in the field and trying to take photos before the bird flies away in five seconds or less.

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Tim Emmerzaal

Tim Emmerzaal

Posted
Posted

Not sure if this would fit here, but I need your help! I was playing around with some environmental backlight shots. What do you guys like the best? I think my preference goes to the first image shown here. I realize the bird is tiny in the frame, but that is why I labelled it as an environmental shot.

A comment here or rating on eBird, all feedback is welcome 🙂

https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/594860031

2400

 

https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/594859981

2400

 

https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/594860021

2400

 

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Kevin

Kevin

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Tim Emmerzaal said:

Not sure if this would fit here, but I need your help! I was playing around with some environmental backlight shots. What do you guys like the best? I think my preference goes to the first image shown here. I realize the bird is tiny in the frame, but that is why I labelled it as an environmental shot.

A comment here or rating on eBird, all feedback is welcome 🙂

https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/594860031

2400

 

https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/594859981

2400

 

https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/594860021

2400

 

I like the first one the best, the last one second best, and the middle one the least.

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Kevin

Kevin

Posted
Posted
11 hours ago, HamRHead said:

Swallow-tailed Kite and Black-bellied Whistling-Duck from today.

Swallow-tailed Kite 1 7-16-23.PNG

Black-bellied Whistling Duck 1 7-16-23.PNG

Funny, just yesterday I was thinking it had been awhile since I'd seen you post.

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HamRHead

HamRHead

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Kevin said:

Funny, just yesterday I was thinking it had been awhile since I'd seen you post.

Hey, Kevin! Yeah, lately I've been too busy to keep up with Whatbird. And when I do pop in, it looks like you, Charlie, and the rest of the crew have everything under control 👍

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