Results 1 to 8 of 8

Thread: Buff-bellied hummerbird

  1. #1
    Forum Participant
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Mission, TX
    Posts
    187
    Threads
    97
    Thank You Posts

    Default Buff-bellied hummerbird

    D90 Nikon, 300mm L, f22, 1/200, ISO 250, 3 flashes, tripod
    picture is cropped

    I have been trying to take pictures of hummers, I take about 50 pictures to get one or two I think look good.
    All comment welcome good or bad.
    Where can I get a list of what these letters used in comment stand for like BG, BKGR, OTT, etc?

    I been thinking about joining, but I think all of you are way above me. I am 77 years old and this is just a hobby for me.




  2. #2
    Forum Participant Richard Unsworth's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Location
    Ourique, Beja, Portugal
    Posts
    2,115
    Threads
    495
    Thank You Posts

    Default

    Attached Images Attached Images
     
    0

    Good effort and nice bird - lot of motion blur but keep trying and you will eliminate that. Your f stop f 22 is way off , you need to go the other way for these shots
    ie 5.6 this will give you a huge increase in shutter speed (SS). 1/2000 + needed here; IMHO (IN MY HONEST OPINION)Did you have camera on auto?

    Arthurs Digital Basics really is worth buying and will answer most if not all issues - I HAVE NO CONNECTION WITH BPN other than being a member

    I have just processed the image quickly, removing the noise (NR) and sharpening a little - hope you dont mind (deleted it from my machine)

    One problem here is the noise, particulary in the BKGR (background) there is a list of these abbreviations here somewhere; someone confirm as I cant remember where haha

    plenty of information on how to prevent and deal with noise

    No reason for age to be a concern, doesnt matter if your 7 or 77 everyone is made welcome.
    Last edited by Richard Unsworth; 09-12-2011 at 01:18 PM.

  3. #3
    Forum Participant
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
    Location
    SF Bay Area
    Posts
    327
    Threads
    43
    Thank You Posts

    Default

    I like Richard's repost. Besides eliminating the noise, he also corrected the white balance, making the background look much nicer.
    Hummers are fast and can be hard to track. To eliminate the motion blur, I'd suggest either using the flash as the only source of light
    (the short flash burst will freeze the action), or setting up a fast shutter speed to minimize the blur (1/1600s or faster should do).

  4. #4
    Super Moderator Daniel Cadieux's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Ottawa, Canada
    Posts
    26,266
    Threads
    3,976
    Thank You Posts

    Default

    I hope to be doing bird photography when I'm 77...that is great, keep it up!!

    Most of us delete many more images than we keep so don't feel bad about that. That's what keeps us going, trying to get better and better evry time.

    The biggest issue here is the noise on the hummimgbird. Perhaps due to a large crop, and/or bringing up the exposure in post processing. With three flashes I'd get one of those straight towards your subject. You got a nice pose, and a good clean background. Luis has also given you good advice, hope this helps a bit.

    Here is a link to the acronyms you are looking for:
    http://www.birdphotographers.net/for...light=acronyms

  5. #5
    BPN Viewer
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    Austin, Texas
    Posts
    187
    Threads
    62
    Thank You Posts

    Default

    50 to one is pretty good ratio for keepers. I took hummingbird pictures for several days last month in West Texas and didn't really like any of them.
    I disagree with Richard about shutter speed and aperture. When you are using multiple flashes you want to eliminate the ambient light as much as possible.
    How were you flashes set? Low power? Manual? Three flashes is probably the minimum for lighting the bird, and you need something to light the background as well, otherwise it will be dark most likely.

    With the amount of grain in your original post, I assume that is was cropped pretty small.
    I would also suggest setting you shutter speed at the highest speed that sync's with you flashes, usually 1/250 or 1/320. Ralph Paonessa has a good tutorial on his web site for hummingbirds that is free. Linda Robbins co-authored a book with Artie that is available from BPN for $50.

    Trying to get some good hummingbird photos is very addicting.

  6. #6
    Publisher Arthur Morris's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    Indian Lake Estates, FL
    Posts
    32,506
    Threads
    1,433
    Thank You Posts

    Default

    You have good gear yet the image quality is very poor at best.... I would recommend that you get a copy of Linda Robbins' "The Hummingbird Guide – How to Photograph Hummingbirds Using High-Speed Multiple Flash. You will learn to make great hummer images in no time flat. You will need to buy two more flashes....
    BIRDS AS ART Blog: great info and lessons, lots of images with our legendary BAA educational Captions; we will not sell you junk. 30+ years of long lens experience/e-mail with gear questions.

    BIRDS AS ART Online Store: we will not sell you junk. 35 years of long lens experience. Please e-mail with gear questions.

    Check out the new SONY e-Guide and videos that I did with Patrick Sparkman here. Ten percent discount for BPN members,

    E-mail me at samandmayasgrandpa@att.net.










  7. #7
    Forum Participant Richard Unsworth's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Location
    Ourique, Beja, Portugal
    Posts
    2,115
    Threads
    495
    Thank You Posts

    Default



    Obviously my comment about f and SS was made with regard to no flash, as Luis also said

  8. #8
    Forum Participant
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    Mission, TX
    Posts
    187
    Threads
    97
    Thank You Posts

    Default image change

    You improved the image greatly I like it, but the bird color changed.

    Thanks for the advise.

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