A few ducks

[quackaddict]

As much as they are loved here, I really enjoy taking photos of ducks, we have a resident bunch of a couple hundred mallards here that let me get good and friendly as long as I give them about 5lbs of corn. These shots are from my fifth outing with my Xsi and 70-200 F/4. Comments and any pointers are appreciated!

http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/1669/mg1378ay4.jpg

http://img22.imageshack.us/img22/5386/mg1304id3.jpg

Note, second image is recropped from the original posted.

[ravencrew]

I like the first one. The image is really sharp.

[LeuceDeuce]

Very nice shots.

I'm a beginner at duckscapes. I hope to capture one this good soon :)

[drdiesel1]

#1 is sweet. It looks like the duck is looking at you..:cool:

#2 is good as well, but #1 makes it look not as good....:lol:

I think both came out very well for the XSI body...IMO What mode did you use.

[tonydee]

#1 is a superb shot of the bird itself, and given how hard it is to get such a shot, it'd be unfair to be harsh about other things, but that's what we're here for right...? :-). If you're keen enough to own a 70-200f4 then you probably already know everything I'll have to say anyway: namely the old Rule of Thirds, framing with some space in front so the subject has somewhere to "move into", and that the background does look kind of flat and uninteresting is unconnected to the bird.

#2 has a better (but not great) background, but suffers from the shadow around the head and lack of contrast with the neck, which makes it seem less detailed and interesting than #1. I'd crop the right almost up to the wing, and the top just above it, such that the head's a third from the top. That concentrates focus on the bird instead of the background.

Still, not sure I've ever taken a shot of a bird in flight to match #1... thanks for sharing.

Cheers,
Tony

[drdiesel1]

#1 is a superb shot of the bird itself, and given how hard it is to get such a shot, it'd be unfair to be harsh about other things, but that's what we're here for right...? :-). If you're keen enough to own a 70-200f4 then you probably already know everything I'll have to say anyway: namely the old Rule of Thirds, framing with some space in front so the subject has somewhere to "move into", and that the background does look kind of flat and uninteresting is unconnected to the bird.

#2 has a better (but not great) background, but suffers from the shadow around the head and lack of contrast with the neck, which makes it seem less detailed and interesting than #1. I'd crop the right almost up to the wing, and the top just above it, such that the head's a third from the top. That concentrates focus on the bird instead of the background.

Still, not sure I've ever taken a shot of a bird in flight to match #1... thanks for sharing.

Cheers,
Tony

Good Stuff....:cool:

[Titus213]

Very nicely done - and with only 200mm. I can't get anywhere near this close with my 200. #1 is outstanding, crisp, great color.

[Robbierob]

image #1 rocks. the color saturation and composiion work well. image #2 comes across as flat to me, however I love the perspective of him flying right at us!

good job

[chauncey]

#2 looks like he's a little overweight, probably from all the corn. :lol:

[quackaddict]

The biggest challenge with the location I am using is the light, the holes the ducks use (the reason they even stay here) are on the south side of a pond surrounded by large tall trees. With the relative low angle of the sun, even at midday most of the pond has large shadows, making it very difficult to get light where you need it. It also makes for a time trying to get anything above the f/4 aperature. I have found I need around 1/2000 for a shutter speed to get the wings to freeze correctly, and some shots I wish I could get it even quicker! I shoot in shutter-priority mode, as I don't feel comfortable in "M" trying to get exposure right on the fly. One minute your shooting in the sun and the very next shot could be shaded. If I could afford the 2.8 version of the 70-200 I would sell the F/4 in a minute, but funds at this time don't allow it.

I want to note that I am by no means an expert or a good photog, I went with the 70-200 f/4 because of the sharper images it produces, higher resale value than the 70-300, and because I hate buying things twice. I know what good optics are, and I hate crummy optics. Being new to photography I would rather grow into a lens than have to hate one for soft images. I plan on getting a 1.4 extender to get a bit more standoff distance, though eventually I would like to get a 100-400 or a 400 or 300mm prime. Again, funds are the limting factor here.

I was very lucky with the first one, he was about 15ft from me when he flew by, all I had to do was get him in the viewfinder! I know about the rule of thirds, but to be honest the left side of the image is the actual image edge, I cropped it to make it look somewhat right with the limited "movement area" to the front of the bird.

The second image has a fair amoutn of crop already, and its soft as it is, getting a tighter crop makes it look even worse, though I agree that it needs light on the bird and a tighter crop.

[Robbierob]

quackaddict said..."I want to note that I am by no means an expert or a good photog,"



wow...dont be too hard on yourself! those are nice images. I find ones own worst critic is themself (myself included).

I guess what im trying to say is...dont beat yourself up..thats what were here for lol ;) :D

[LarryD]

Great shots..........:)

Only a bit of contrast and a crop needed to get the image you want to see...... Birds in flight don't get too much better captured than that..


(You guys quack me up.........)

[quackaddict]

The second image has been recropped, hopefully to be a bit better than the original. I wish I would have been close enough to get this shot without the crop I need to use!