Waxwing shot I was hoping for.

Hi again

After yesterdays poor light shots of the waxwings I eventually got the pic I wanted. The sun made a brief appearance at lunchtime and off I went in the hope the birds were still there, and they were. I took six shots and this was the better. Another chap was stood there with huge lens and tripod, no doubt he got some stunning pics.

 

Nice photo pip, we have been trying to get a few snaps of the 'local' Redwings around here, but never quite get a good enough image...

Glad you got your camera out in time!

- Luke -

 

Thanks lukenotts, was fortunate with the sunshine and the height they were feeding at, would love to see the other guys shots

 

Don't shoot the Waxwing

Lovely pics, still not seen any around here.

 

Nice pic pip! A couple of tips for you, when cropping the photo above..leave the leaf in..you cut it in half (makes the shot look more aesthetically pleasing). Also when shooting animals try a faster shutter speed, it would be worthwhile shooting in shutter priority, faster shutter speeds freeze the action and therefore sharpen up these types of photo's as in the example below.



Steve...

 

Splendid Pip. Well captured with the berry in the mouth as well...
Sound advise from Steve, It does look like a touch of movement in the image.

 

Love your pic of the waxwing with the berry in it's mouth Pip.
Thank you.

 

Thanks to you all for the comments, advice taken on board,new to this game and all advice is appreciated. Was using a zoom lens without a tripod which explains the movement.

 

Great shot Pip.

 

If your anything like me Pip, when I see a shot I have to take quickley like your Waxwing shot

i panick incase it flys away. You dont always get chance to set your camera to what would be

ideal. I think it is a great shot, I know Id be proud of it, well done

 

Lots of great comments

I am very pleased with the original shot although when zoomed and cropped it does lose its edge.

Completely agree with you about the panicking Takemore. I was on my way to work and decided beforehand to have a quick look and see if they were still around, with the brief spell of sunshine it seemed ideal conditions for a great shot. As I rounded the corner I saw they were still in the tree and out came the camera, zoomed in and shot. Within 30 seconds I had six different shots (that particular one was 3rd pic taken almost as soon as waxwing landed) and was setting up for another when a train went by and off they flew. Done and dusted in 1 minute. The chap stood by me had heard about the birds being present via a website and had spent two days trying to get a similar (no doubt better due to his lens) shot to the one I walked up pointed and clicked. Right place, right time, right conditions and a bit of luck.

As Marley says it is indeed a learning curve and with time I will be able to react very quickly to the situation and adjust my camera accordingly, although having said that, there is the chance that great images would be missed while setting up manually. When I have time I do use the manual functions including focus.

P.S

Went by the following day and it seems that the waxwings have left town.