First Use of New Toys: Australian White Ibis

[Jay Gould]

Hi, well here is the first of the first efforts with the new 5D2 and the 300f/2.8. Shot 160 - wow a 4gb card disappears quickly (15 minutes) - dared to keep 4 for the ETL. For awhile I am only posting images with no PP; only straightened and cropped. Interested in all comments and critiques, especially exposure, composition, sharpness - yup, everything you can think of. I am going to do this for about a month while I do the PS lessons. I am not going to repeat what I have just written with each image. The only cloning was really tight cropping to eliminate the terrible backgrounds. I was so intent on shooting the birds and using the gear I completely ignored the backgrounds. Awful!!

I can understand why serious birders have 500mm and up lenses. I certainly understand why a 300 would be the absolutely shortest lens you would use for these subjects. I will definitely be using the 1.4 and 2x extenders. These birds were not that far away.

While my eye says that the images are quite sharp - what does you eye say?

Custom settings are basically a mixture of Artie's 50D/1D3 recommendations.

Camera: 5D2
Lens: EF 300 f/2.8
Extender: none
Flash: none
ISO: 1250
Speed: 1/1600
Aperture: f/5.6
Exp Comp: none
Metering: Evaluative
AF Drive: AI Servo AF

Thanks in advance for all of you c & c.

[Jeni Williams]

Congrats with the new toys Jay, hope you have lots of fun using them! This image looks pretty sharp to me, maybe a small nit is on my screen whites on back look a tad hot.

[Lance Peters]

Hi Jay - looking good - don't right off that 300 2.8 - I have the nikon version and yep you need to use a TC with it - But a great lens for when you can get close - and the best place I have found to get close is the Botanical Gardens in what ever city you happen to be in - birds are relatively tame and the 300 will rock.

Pose looks good as does HA and eye contact - a little tight on the LHS maybe, not sure on your use of the 1250 ISO - I Use the D3 at 800ISO as a standard setting and its really clean - dont know if the 5D MKII is up to that standard, either way you have shutter speed to burn here - a 1600th is perhaps overkill here - might have swapped some of that for a lower ISO.
The whites are not hot, might run some NR on the background and lighten and sharpen the eye a tad.

Have fun with the new toys looking forward to seeing more :)

[Alfred Forns]

Hi Jay

As presented is very tight in frame Understand about the bg was ugly but it detracts as much as being ugly bg. Exposure wise does look a little over, you did have a lot of white in the frame which helped with the exposure setting closing down the aperture but still would have gone 1/3 under. Would also try focusing on the eye area rather than the shoulder.

Tech wise it makes a huge difference if you use a converter or not for the selected shutter speed, here you are only shooting a 300, short focal length. Your camera is excellent with noise but don't see the need to go that high. As you add converters there will be a need to increase the ISO !!!

btw all my suggestions are just that, suggestions from more than forty years of making images, I'm not overly scientific just compare and look at results. If your opinions vary it is just fine, there are just opinions and not need to point out in a critique !!!

[Dave Phillips]

Congrats on getting the new gear Jay....and I applaud the "all in camera" effort.
You mentioned the bg......seems this is an element almost more important than the
subject at times. The distractions can ruin an image......I've done it plenty of time,
but have learned to move sideways and up and down. But you know all that :)

anyway, I think as noted that a bit more space in front and below changes the whole look of this one.
See what you think.

http://i44.tinypic.com/10wp0ya.jpg

[Dave Mills]

Agree with Alfreds comments and like Dave's additional canvas.

[Alfred Forns]

.... btw can add for some of these with the bg coming into play you might take advantage of the 2.8 Will get some luscious looking bg !!!

[Harold Davis]

nice repost, dave. much better!! good luck with the new equipment, jay. cant wait to see what's next.

[Cheryl Slechta]

Jay - I liked the original and thought it was nice and sharp but I do think the added canvas makes it better.:)

________
Cheryl

[denise ippolito]

Jay, Nice base image and like Dave's re-crop. Lucky you w/ the new toys!!!!

[Gus Cobos]

Hi Jay,
Congratulations on your new toy...:D I like your base image...very good advise given. Dave's repost with the added canvas puts it over the top...keep them coming...:cool:

[Jay Gould]

Hi, This is a small version of the original as shot. I simply did cloning by crop!

There is no question that Dave's version rocks; I have no idea today - I intend to know ASAP "tomorrow" - how Dave added the canvas. My "day with the master" Robert O'Toole is not until October; hope to understand the basic concepts by then so that Robert can polish my brain ;) .

I was so excited to finally go out and use the equipment that all I did was set an ISO high enough to insure removal of camera shake - it is the heaviest/largest rig I have ever HH - set the mode to AV - Sit down where the birds were congregating around the area and shoot. :D Never looked at background and I think I only once looked at the histogram.

I agree with Al about a - 1/3 (I was going to post the original histogram - opened Manage Attachments and received a message: You have uploaded the maximum of 1 files - Why The Message? - will hopefully upload in next post); I was concerned about losing the detail in the black head. Next time I will shoot SLOWER and definitely try the -1/3 with this bird - the local pest! They are all over the caravan park where we are currently located.

Lance, I haven't written off this lens on the first day by a long shot! This focal length with it close focus ability is great. Next use will be with the 1.6 cropped 40D and my 1.4X Kenko until the Canon 1.4 and 2.0 arrive. Agree with NR and eye sharpen - now all I have to do is learn how to do it. I have the NR programs - just a matter of time until utilized.

Thanks for all of your comments.

[Jay Gould]

Here is the original histogram; I have again received the message that I have uploaded the maximum of 1 files. What I do not understand is that there are a lot of threads especially in the Educational Resources with more than one image: http://birdphotographers.net/forums/showthread.php?t=20434. How do I upload more than one image in the same post?

[Alfred Forns]

Hi Jay You will get that message every time ... its ok !!!

Histogram looks good ... don't see anything crawling up the right side !!!

After seeing the original can suggest to move in and wait for a clear bg. In that situation going down to ground level can produce a stunning image, all bg will not come into play !!! Always try to get close to your final crop in camera ... a good rule of thumb is having 70-75% bird in frame !!!

[Jay Gould]

Hi Jay You will get that message every time ... its ok !!!

Histogram looks good ... don't see anything crawling up the right side !!!

After seeing the original can suggest to move in and wait for a clear bg. In that situation going down to ground level can produce a stunning image, all bg will not come into play !!! Always try to get close to your final crop in camera ... a good rule of thumb is having 70-75% bird in frame !!!

How do I post more than one image in the same post, for example, the bird and the histogram?

Initially, you suggested you might go -1/3 on the exposure. Seeing this histogram would you still go -1/3 which would move me further left and darken the head?

Looking at the original I am asking myself why I am sitting on the other side of that concrete hole in the ground! :confused: ;) :D

That original was obviously made my a newbie!!

Cheers,

[Dave Mills]

Jay,you can show two images on one screen. Create a new canvas...in PS click file/new. On the blank canvas move the images(using the move tool) onto the blank canvas. Use the transform tool to size the images. When finished flatten layers. Then size the image for uploading to BPN. There are probably other ways to do it but thats how I did this.

[Jay Gould]

Thanks Dave, perhaps that will be my first venture into PS. Cheers,

[Dave Phillips]

Thanks Dave, perhaps that will be my first venture into PS. Cheers,

you can host free also at www.tinypic.com and just post the link given with bb code for image to show

[Kerry Perkins]

Hi Jay. Great to see you posting with the new kit! Techs have been covered nicely here, but just wanted to reiterate that the high ISO was not really needed here, especially with IS on that lens. Also, while the whites are technically not blown, you can get a lot more detail by keeping them at 245 or less. Don't know about your camera, but my 50D tends to overexpose even when showing no "blinkies". As you learn PS, you will see how you can add sharpness, saturation, and curves adjustments to make the image pop even more.

Nice job with the image, you are on your way! Looking forward to more of your posts and can't wait to see what you get in Antarctica!

[Jay Gould]

Hi Jay. Great to see you posting with the new kit! Techs have been covered nicely here, but just wanted to reiterate that the high ISO was not really needed here, especially with IS on that lens. Also, while the whites are technically not blown, you can get a lot more detail by keeping them at 245 or less. Don't know about your camera, but my 50D tends to overexpose even when showing no "blinkies". As you learn PS, you will see how you can add sharpness, saturation, and curves adjustments to make the image pop even more.

Nice job with the image, you are on your way! Looking forward to more of your posts and can't wait to see what you get in Antarctica!

Hi Kerry, thanks for the comments.

I will do this simplistically: 0/black/underexposed to the left; 255/white/overexposed to the right.

White 245 is almost but not quite against the right side - ETTR.

Are you reading the whites as being more than 245?

Other than looking at the histogram and preventing when necessary by a -EC the whites from climbing up the right side, does your camera/can you read the "245" somewhere in the display, OR is it a PP reading you are getting from PS?

I am not sure that LR2 gives you the "number", does it?

Cheers, Jay

[Kerry Perkins]

One of the inconsistences in Adobe products that I find odd is that LR gives you pixel values in percentage, not aboslute steps. 245 is about 96%, so that can be a guide. What I was saying about my camera is that I have to expose only partly into the fifth segment of the histogram. If I let it go to the edge with any white in the image at all, it will overexpose the whites. I would love it if I could set the "blinky" threshold in the camera, but as it is I have to wait and see what I got in PS.

In your image CS4 is seeing a goodly amount of pixels over 250 in the whites, but mostly in the blue and green channels. It's not a show-stopper, but if you take this image back into LR and lower the exposure just a tad you will see more detail appear in the whites. I find this the hardest thing to do control when I am shooting, as there is a sweet spot for whites that is less than all the way to the right.

[Kerry Perkins]

Jay, the Canon software - Digital Photo Professional - lets you set your own thresholds for the warning colors. Red for highlights and blue for blacks. I have mine set at 245 for the whites and here is what it sees.