Results 1 to 7 of 7

Thread: Savannah Sparrow

  1. #1
    Forum Participant
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Weimar, TX
    Posts
    934
    Threads
    274
    Thank You Posts

    Default Savannah Sparrow

    Sparrow's never get any love so I thought I would show some. I think that I should have masked the fence post and BG, it looks crunchy to me.

    EOS 1DMKIV manual and dented
    800mm f5.6L IS

    ISO 400
    1/50s @ f8

    Name:  Savannah Sparrow_MLL9892b.jpg
Views: 130
Size:  165.3 KB

  2. #2
    Avian Moderator Randy Stout's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    SW Michigan
    Posts
    14,112
    Threads
    820
    Thank You Posts

    Default

    Michael:

    Very nice colors here, engaging look back pose. I think sparrows can present very well with the right light like you have here.

    The bird and post look a little soft to me. Perhaps the low shutter speed?

    I agree about softening the trees in the background a bit.

    Cheers

    Randy

  3. #3
    Forum Participant
    Join Date
    Jul 2008
    Location
    Haliburton, Ontario
    Posts
    886
    Threads
    57
    Thank You Posts

    Default

    I like the pose Michael. The bird appears soft to me too. But I am with you on the sparrow comment - they deserve a little more credit!

  4. #4
    Forum Participant
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Location
    Green Lane, PA
    Posts
    744
    Threads
    42
    Thank You Posts

    Default

    I also like the pose but in addition to seeming a tad soft it also seems a tad harsh, almost like it's over processed. I'm having a hard time putting my finger on it, but it reminds me of many old film photos I had seen.

    I love the perch, probably once again putting me at odds with the "natural" perch people. The old fence post with lichens looks great to me.

  5. #5
    BPN Member Alan Murphy's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Houston, TX
    Posts
    2,193
    Threads
    467
    Thank You Posts

    Default

    Nice setting and comp. The image looks a bit contrasty to me.

  6. #6
    Super Moderator Daniel Cadieux's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Ottawa, Canada
    Posts
    26,266
    Threads
    3,976
    Thank You Posts

    Default

    The image does look contrasty too me too, and I also agree with sharpening the bird and perch. I love the look-back pose. I'm pretty sure the MKIV can handle higher ISOs:p therefore I am wondering why you would give yourself such a slow SS to work with especially with such a big FL?

  7. #7
    Forum Participant
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Weimar, TX
    Posts
    934
    Threads
    274
    Thank You Posts

    Default

    I agree with all posts. I'm not sure "what" kicked the contrast over the top but I absolutely know "who" kicked it over the top :o

    Softness... It's probably a combo of slow shutter and the 800 f5.6 (most likely culprit). It doesn't tolerate bad technique and DOF is razor sharp at the distance I was shooting (9.9 meters according to the EXIF), even at f8. Th Online DOF calculator says DOF is .01 feet st f8 snf 9.9m. That's less than an 1/8th of an inch. If you look closely the eye and beak are sharp. All else is lost in the depths so to speak. All in all it's not my favorite lens for this reason. In my opinion the 600 f4, even with a 1.4x TC, outperforms it. I didn't select the 800 for this outing on purpose. During the Bosque trip the 800 was put into the 600 case and vice versa. I didn't catch that until I was in the field so I made due.

    Daniel- to paraphrase an old movie and good song- What we've got here, is failure to pay attention to his camera settings. Some men just don't pay attention to that when the sun is going down fast and the subject wants to leave. So you get what we had here last week (or a couple of days ago .) I basically saw the sparrow, managed to stop directly across from it without scaring it, set the camera on the window ledge, rolled the dial and shot.

    Thanks all! Merry Christmas!

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
Web Analytics