Vertical Puffin Pano ...

Atlantic Puffin with sandeels/the optimized version

This image is a composite of two consecutive images. Both were created on July 8, 2018 on the 2018 UK Puffins and Gannets IPT with the hand held Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR lens and the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-14E III (at 550mm) with the Nikon D5 DSLR Camera (w/Dual XQD Slots). ISO 800. Matrix metering +2/3 stop: 1/1000 sec at f/9 in S (Tv in Canon — shutter priority in both systems) mode. AUTO1 WB at 11:01am on a nicely cloudy morning. Just above center D-72/Shutter button AF was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point in the first image was on the fish. In the second image, it was too our left of the bird’s head. As with Canon’s Expand and Surround, it is not possible to ascertain which AF point was active at the moment of exposure. This is a weakness in both systems that could easily be fixed with a software update. Focus peaking AF Fine-tune: +3. See the Nikon AF Fine-tune e-Guide here.

To learn see the two images and learn why I needed to create a pano see the Is the Nikon 80-400 VR with the TC-14E III (teleconverter) a Viable Combination? Creating a Vertical Puffin Pano. And News on the Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS III USM Lens blog post here.

As for the image, don't be shy; all comments and suggestions are appreciated.

with love, artie

Looks like a solid frame of this puffin. Maybe a little tight on the left. The details look good. Great background.

Nice one Artie. I’m all for a bit of an unconventional head angle for a Puffin shot. We’ve all seen the classic side pose with fish a million times already. Great and informative blog post as well. For someone like me who is in system limbo any and all info helps.

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Originally Posted by John Mack

Looks like a solid frame of this puffin. Maybe a little tight on the left. The details look good. Great background.

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Thanks John. Nearly 3X as much room behind the bird with a facing vertical works perfectly for me.

with love, artie

The tip of the bill is a perfect spot within the black neck feathers, and well separated from the fish. Pretty neat. I love the BG. Although the end result is good (and that's what matters) I'm surprised you did not zoom out a bit.