Diane Miller
05-28-2014, 05:15 PM
This little guy has to be a juvie -- I've been watching and shooting them at our feeders and water (they LOVE the water) for several years and never saw one like this. The adults have a pink (sometimes almost colorless) iris and this one is blue-gray. The beak is lighter and the tip of the tail isn't ratty. Hope to get better pictures in the next few days. I've been ignoring the feeder to concentrate on the recently-discovered bluebirds, but they have now fledged and moved on.
Canon 5D3, 600 II, Wimberley head. ISO 800, f/13. 1/160 to allow flash, as the birds are in the shade early, when I like to shoot, but BG is in sunlight. Would like a lower ISO but I feel I need the DOF, and ambient light on the BG (distant trees) limits how low I can go with ISO. So flash is the main light here, for the birds. It I use it on-camera I get very flat light. This is 45 degrees off-axis, to my left (with a Better Beamer). I've tried all kinds of diffusers both for flash and sunlight. Have had decent results with very large overhead translucent panels for sun (when there is no wind), and a 2 ft x 3 ft softbox on a studio light head close to the bird, to soften shadows, but I'm just as pleased with the Speedlite and a Better Beamer. And diffusers give strange catchlights.
Canon 5D3, 600 II, Wimberley head. ISO 800, f/13. 1/160 to allow flash, as the birds are in the shade early, when I like to shoot, but BG is in sunlight. Would like a lower ISO but I feel I need the DOF, and ambient light on the BG (distant trees) limits how low I can go with ISO. So flash is the main light here, for the birds. It I use it on-camera I get very flat light. This is 45 degrees off-axis, to my left (with a Better Beamer). I've tried all kinds of diffusers both for flash and sunlight. Have had decent results with very large overhead translucent panels for sun (when there is no wind), and a 2 ft x 3 ft softbox on a studio light head close to the bird, to soften shadows, but I'm just as pleased with the Speedlite and a Better Beamer. And diffusers give strange catchlights.