Kingfisher, my first one!

[Jay Bernstein]

Canon Rebel xti
Canon 100-400mm 5.6L IS USM
focal length 400mm
ISO 400
F8
1/4000/sec
I was just amazed watching this guy perform aerial acrobatics. He would hover and then accelerate (dive bomb) faster than my Audi TT. I would love to become fast enough and skilled enough to capture what I saw.This was the best of roughly 20 shots and he disappeared about as fast as he appeared. I know its noisy. I tried to sharpen the best I could. Kingfishers are hard to find, but when you do, I want to be prepared. Any tips? Thanks Jay

[Ian McHenry]

Hi Jay
Congratulations on your first Kingfisher.
Nice open wings and head angle.
I think most of them have their favourite perches so if you can locate one in a fairly open area watch for perch faves, preferably with good light, fairly close and some cover for you to blend in.
My best image of one was where it had just taken off from a perch.
Good Luck.
Cheers: Ian Mc

[Julie Kenward]

I agree with Ian - I rarely see images of the Kingfisher in flight because they are so fast and so small. It makes it very difficult to get a good inflight image when they are that quick and that little!

I'd definitely hone in on the perch and watch from that vantage point. Other advice would be to get a better beamer for the end of your flash and try to use that to "slow him down" a bit.

You're very close to getting this right Jay so keep at it! Can't wait to see what you can come up with...

[Dave Leroy]

That is very good to catch up to a Kingfisher. Photo is nice and sharp.

It also looks like a hard bird to expose for with the whites and some pretty dark areas as well. Flash would also help with that aspect.

Getting the pose that you did and sharpness with only twenty shots is very good.

Dave

[annmpacheco]

Great capture, those kingfishers are faster than my TT as well! Looks like 1/4000 stopped him for a bit. I am delighted for you that you have such a good capture. I haven't tried using flash or a better beamer but will watch and see if yo do first. I have the same lens. thanks, Ann

[John Chardine]

Agree, Kingfishers are very skittish! Nice wing position here, which is "hit and miss" when in a hovering bird like this. The image looks like a heavy crop. Would a little looser crop improve the IQ?

[Jay Bernstein]

Agree, Kingfishers are very skittish! Nice wing position here, which is "hit and miss" when in a hovering bird like this. The image looks like a heavy crop. Would a little looser crop improve the IQ?

I agree however when I originally did the first crop I lost the detail of the wings.
Jay

[Jay Bernstein]

I agree with Ian - I rarely see images of the Kingfisher in flight because they are so fast and so small. It makes it very difficult to get a good inflight image when they are that quick and that little!

I'd definitely hone in on the perch and watch from that vantage point. Other advice would be to get a better beamer for the end of your flash and try to use that to "slow him down" a bit.

You're very close to getting this right Jay so keep at it! Can't wait to see what you can come up with...

Julie thank you for all your direction on this one and the others, I really appreciate you taking the time. I do own a good flash, canon speedlite 430ex..Is that what you mean by getting a beamer?
Jay

[WIlliam Maroldo]

Hi Jay.

The better beamer is a flash extender, fits in front of a flash unit and focuses the light in a realitively narrow beam.
I think in this case the major problem is a you need a lens with more reach, and a flash wouldn't help.
Substantial crops almost always create serious image quality problems that can easily be attributed to other causes, such as looking like excessive noise, poor focus, insufficient shutter-speed, etc. Even the best image will exhibit what appears to be noise if enlarged too much. It is very helpful to disclose how much cropping was done when posting. It is worth noting that the size of the sensor is important as well. A full frame sensor will allow more cropping without image degredation than an ASP-C sensor and the more MP you have the greater you can crop.

It seems whatever reach your lens has, there will be many times when you need more, and you simply will not be able to make a decent shot. It is quite possible to incorporate a relatively small subject in environmental shots, or use clever composition, but you will not be able to "blow up" the subject to any great degree without severely compromising the image. regards~Bill

[Jay Bernstein]

Hi Jay.

The better beamer is a flash extender, fits in front of a flash unit and focuses the light in a realitively narrow beam.
I think in this case the major problem is a you need a lens with more reach, and a flash wouldn't help.
Substantial crops almost always create serious image quality problems that can easily be attributed to other causes, such as looking like excessive noise, poor focus, insufficient shutter-speed, etc. Even the best image will exhibit what appears to be noise if enlarged too much. It is very helpful to disclose how much cropping was done when posting. It is worth noting that the size of the sensor is important as well. A full frame sensor will allow more cropping without image degredation than an ASP-C sensor and the more MP you have the greater you can crop.

It seems whatever reach your lens has, there will be many times when you need more, and you simply will not be able to make a decent shot. It is quite possible to incorporate a relatively small subject in environmental shots, or use clever composition, but you will not be able to "blow up" the subject to any great degree without severely compromising the image. regards~Bill

I understand now Bill. Yes I had to crop it because even with my 400mm he was pretty high up. I tried to get him as whe was coming down but those images were not worth posting.Now I understand why the noise would not go away. I ruined all the pixels. The original RAw image was crisp but you could not tell it was Kingfisher until I blew it up.
I am going to go back this weekend and try again. Thanks for all your advice, I really appreciate it. Jay

[Jon Saperia]

Hi,

Your Kingfisher shot is better than any I have - they are hard to capture - A wise birder told me just last week that what he does to capture them is wait in the bushes where they are diving to for a good shot. I was at a place that had had one for several weeks but the Kingfisher had gone before I could try this advice out.

The second comment about lenses and reach is that your ability to rapidly frame and get a shot off is proportionally more difficult with longer focal lengths. I started about 2.5 years ago with a 200 - 400 (Nikon) zoom and found that I wanted more reach and so I got a 600. It takes a bit of time to adjust to the longer focal length (like finding the subject and perfecting long-lens technique). The comments about problems blowing up a picture I think are dead on. Even with a 1.7 and occasionally a 2.0 TC on my 600, I can not get close enough. This is why some advice that Artie gave me a couple of years ago is so important. He said that to be a good bird photographer, you have to be a good birder. I think this means you have to know how to approach them to get close enough to get shots off without stressing and spooking them. Easier said than done.....

All that said, one of the best bird photographers I know in my area up here in the northeast only recently purchased a 500mm for her Canon after using the 100 - 400 zoom for many, many years. But she is a superb birder -- I guess this supports the previous point.

/jon