I finally had some good light the other day and a willing subject. I was disappointed that so many shots were OOF despite taking my time to compose and carefully depress the shutter button. This picture is about a 100% crop and was one of the sharper ones. Taken with an E-3, 150mm f/2, EC-20 TC, ISO 400, f/5, 1/1250 sec. This is an effective 600mm combo and I'm wondering if I should start using a tripod more or practice my hand holding technique. ISO 400 is really the limit with my camera as far as holding any detail.
I see this is your first post! Welcome to BPN! Do you have image stabilization built in to the lens or body? If not, a tripod or monopod will help with sharpness. You could have used a smaller aperture to increase your DOF (you don't need 1/1250 to freeze a perched bird). Keep in mind that post-processing can really help with sharpness. On a related note, are you shooting RAW or JPG? If you are shooting RAW and not sharpening, your images will look soft. Here is a repost with some sharpening performed on the bird.
Nice image of this great bird. The repost by Doug is sharper and an improvement. That means you had the detail there to begin with. You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear in this case!
By way of a small ornithological trivium- this is a Common Yellowthroat rather than the Yellow-throated Warbler.
First off would suggest using a tripod. With your effective focal length it is a necessity. You did real well in not increasing the ISO further since noise is a drawback for the camera. Photographing wide open is a good idea since it has very good dof compared to a larger sensor camera.
You captured the bird in a good pose and bg. You always want as clean a bg as possible. In my re post I cleaned the right side for comparison. As presented the dark bands behind the bird detract from the image. Always see if you can take a step left/right to keep the bands form intersecting the birds head.
Should look a the the workflow. I think you can do some improvements in that area. The overall image is a bit dark and as Doug pointed out sharpening was needed. Doesn't take much just a couple of little things here and there. In the repost I added a couple of enhancements besides the sharpening. Lighten, remove some of the bg lines and adjusted contrast !! Looking forward to many more.
btw if you can send me your first name or two initials I could update your profile. We would like to have all members with full names, Thanks.
Thanks, I have a feeling the membership fee I spent is going to be one of the best investments I have made in a long time. I do shoot RAW but have never really learned how to sharpen correctly. I sharpen an ACR and adjust exposure and others sliders there as I think the picture needs. I then usually use Noiseware and on occasion Focus Magic after I convert to JPEG. I haven't started using layers yet as I have yet to get the hang of it. By the way I have sensor based IS which I use intermittently( I have missed a few shots by panning while still in IS ). I have a alot to learn so I will read with great interest in this beginner's forum. Thanks Again,
Thanks Alfred, My name is Robert Gallagher Manzo ( I'm a Green Bean, mom named Deirdre Gallagher and dad Ricardo Ortiz Manzo ;) Any good resources for PP that you would recommend ? And also a good tripod and ball head that I can grow into ? Many Thanks
Gallagher, A big warm welcome to the BPN family. I like your composition and the colors of your bird. No nits from me since they have been discussed already. The repost from Mr. Al Forns is fantastic...Once again, welcome and looking foward in seeing more of your work...:D:cool:
Glad your using RAW. No secrets to convert just use ACR. For the workflow your best bet is buying Arties Digital Basics. It is easy to follow to the point and great. Basically you follow to the letter as he takes you to all the steps in order. Works like bicycle training wheels ..... after a couple you will be doing all on your own.
Tripod wise depends on your needs. I use the Gitzo 3530 LSV mainly for the 200-400 and 600 lens. For smaller lenses (macro and landscape) I have a 200 series Gitzo. You will also need a ball head or similar. For the bigger lenses I have full Wimberley and a Mongoose 3.5 Smaller a Really Right Stuff ballhead.
Fire away anything you need. We all are here to help !! Will send you a pm confirming the user update with the full name Thanks !!!
Yellow Throated Warbler
