Cock chaffinch

[Frankie_flea]

Taken 11-02-2010, in my garden. One of a sequence of three.
Nikon D200
Sigma 150-500mm at 380mm
JPEG (fine)
Aper. priority f8
ISO 500
Finally got the background noise issue sorted.http://lh4.ggpht.com/_wGSRUg9JC5Q/S3US_tzQCMI/AAAAAAAAFHU/Xb0PBEFR_88/s800/Chaffinch%20%28cock%29%20007.jpg

[Katie Rupp]

What a pretty little bird and sweet bg, Frankie. Sharp details, nice eye contact and on my monitor, the yellow on the perch looks a little over-satuarated? If you have room I might try a different crop so that the perch doesn't intersect the corners. Nicely captured.

[Peter Farrell]

Good detail and color on the bird. BG could use some NR. Agree with Katie on the perch

[Alfred Forns]

Hi Frankie Agree with comment on perch coming out to the corner ... also would like the light more form behind you to avoid the dark right side. At times it does create mood !! Can lighten a bit in PS !!! Good pose, sharpness and bg !!!

[Lance Peters]

Hi Frankie - agree with the above comments - nice sharp details - might try to lighten the LHS that is in shadow.
Looking forward to seeing more ;)

[Bill Dix]

Lovely bird. Details are great, and head angle is perfect. I personally don't mind the perch going to the corners; individual preference I guess.

[Oscar Zangroniz]

Beautiful bird with nice details. Agrr on the perch being a bit over saturated.
Congrtas

[Harold Davis]

beautiful bird and i really like the pose! agree with trying to work on the shadows. will present even better. nice job on the techs. how do you like that lens?

[Frankie_flea]

I love the lens Harold. Pleasantly surprised by the quality achievable. Of course it has its limitations, all lenses have, i suppose its about making the best of what you've got. Its a beauty at f8 or f11, and up to 450mm, but fully extended its a bit soft. The OS is as good as any, and i've heard its better than some that cost 4 times as much, with a little whir noise. The auto focus is fast, smooth, and quiet. Its quite heavy for its size, and the zoom ring is a bit hard. I recommend it for low budget bird photography. Of course a few expensive Nikon/Canon lenses would have the edge on quality, but you'd need to re-mortgage the house to purchase one. This is my first winter season doing birds, and so far its been a steep learning curve, but very enjoyable.

[Harold Davis]

i'm using the 50-500. have been for a few years. have the same issues as you and try my best to be at f/8 or greater. i considered the 150-500 when i replaced mine recently, but opted for the bigma due to sigma saying it had better glass that the 150-500. who knows!!? you are getting good results with yours.

thanks for the review!!!