I have been in Galveston for the past 2-1/2 weeks and even though the weather hasn't been to good, I have been out birding a few times. I got this Long Billed Curlew early one morning.
All critiques are welcome so I can learn what I am doing wrong.
Thanks.
David
Camera: Canon 60D
Lens: Sigma 70-200 f/2.8 @200mm w/2x TC
Exposure: 1/250 sec @ f/8
ISO:400
Shot from tripod
PP: Nik DFine2 and Detail extractor @25%
No Crop
Hi David, I like how you framed this one. I would have liked the SS to be a little faster so the leg in motion was not blurred ( although some might say it shows motion), it just caught my eye before I had a chance to look at the photo.
A nice catch and great light. Sharpness and detail are something everyone strives for and is something that could be improved a little here.
Sharpness is generally better with prime lenses (non-zooms) and a TC usually causes noticeable softness, especially a 2X at the longest focal lengths of the zoom. You can find a lot of information here about lenses, some of which are not horribly expensive. (And those that are will probably be best paired with a horribly expensive body.)
Even with a tripod, steadiness can be a factor that causes loss of critical sharpness. How solidly is the tripod planted? How solid is the head, are there vibrations or shake...?
Higher shutter speeds are always good, but cost you in terms of needing higher ISOs. It's a balancing act to find the sweet spot.
The higher end bodies allow AF calibration, which can give improved sharpness in reasonably close images. It may not be as important for more distant subjects. I don't know if your body has that capability. And of course, the capability just AF itself is a huge factor -- not only accuracy but speed.
And of course sharpness is affected (can be helped -- a little -- or harmed) by processing. That's cheaper than hardware!
Last edited by Diane Miller; 12-11-2013 at 01:04 PM.
Thanks for the replies. I thought the image might be a bit soft using the set-up I did but I am trying to justify buying a Canon 100-400 f4-5.6L lens but thought if I could get good IQ with what I had then I could spend that money on a different lense. I know for this forum this image isn't as good as what others post but for other photo forums I have been on it is pretty darn good so that is the reason I post here is to get the best critique. I have 3 more weeks in Galveston so hopefully I will have more images that I feel are suitable to post during that time.
We'd love to see your progress! We're all working on things at different levels. And it is a very good idea to find out how to get the best of the equipment you have before jumping into an upgrade.
There have been some incredible images posted here with the 100-400. I haven't used it but I'd bet it will give better image quality than a 70-200 with a 2x TC, but how much better in practice depends a lot on technique.
Super pose with good light, nice FG & BG. I like all the texture in the sand. I am seeing a pretty strong yellow cast to your image.
This lens has been known to produce very sharp images with either the 1.4 or 2.0 TC, but this image does not look sharp. It could be that the tripod wasn't steady or that your lens with teleconverters needs to be calibrated to your camera. Not sure whether the 60D offers this feature. I was about ready to send in my 1.4 TC to Canon, and it turned out to be that it needed to be recalibrated with one of my lenses.
There is a very good article in the new Outdoor Photographer (the Feb 2014 issue -- already!) by Rob Sheppard titled "Sharpness, The Deadly Dozen" in which he discusses many factors that can affect sharpness in the field. It is well worth reading!
I know I'm late to the party, but I didn't see it mentioned and figured it might help. With the 2x TC you're at 400mm with a shutter speed of 1/250--and even on a tripod that can be a tough combo. I personally try to aim for shutter speed to at least match your focal length, and when possible it's best to even double it (so 1/800 of a second here).
Since the whole image appears to be a tad bit out of focus I'd suggest that you had some camera shake with the 1/250 that led to this. In situations like that I'd try to keep my f/stop as low as possible (f/5.6 in this case) and raise the ISO to keep the shutter speed up. Something like f/5.6 and ISO 800 would have given you a high enough shutter speed that you more than likely would have nailed crisp focus.
All that being said...still a better picture than I have of any LB Curlew!
Long Billed Curlew
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