Manual Focus BIF with t1i and 55-250 kit lens.

I never really did any BIF work before. I took a t1i with a version 1 55-250 lens to a local nature reserve for a couple of hours. The auto focus was utterly useless, so I went fully manual just like the old film days when I used a Pentax K-1000.

I think with a bit more practice and a better lens, the results might be pretty good.

Here is the full gallery of shots I took.
http://www.johaneickme​yer.com …M#!i=3436233371​&k=wW7VHQ6

I shoot 99.99999% landscapes, so please any comments or criticism is more than welcome in helping with the BIF stuff.

Um..

We can all go home now!

What you have done is photograph one of the hardest birds to catch in flight (due to it's amazing speed and agility and penchant for turning a lot!)

And you've done it with what most of us "bird photographers" would consider a fisher price toy. I mean no disrespect there, to the contrary, you are AMAZING!

Well done!

What you've done is show us all that patience and skill and more patience will trump gear every time!

^^^^^^ +1 ^^^^^^ ( you oughta check out the landscapes too! At the 500 PC site, wow)

Golly. I didn't realize they were a difficult bird to photograph. Once I figured out their flight patterns is was pretty easy going.

Thanks!

These are amazing shots of a Barn and a Tree Swallow. I bet you could get some great Hummingbird photos too!

Wow your swallows pale by comparison to your landscapes, you are skillful with your art.

Thanks again guys! Glad you like em.

You did extremely well; in fact, you put most of us to shame, those that have tried shooting swallows on the wing. And, as has been said, your landscapes are superlative.
Al

Well done.

Like Jake says, I giving up now.

Those are outstanding images. If there was every proof it is the photographer and not the equipment this is it.

sigh.....

Thanks for giving feedback!

I might try putting my 70-200 f4 is on there with a 1.4x tc. It would be much worse for tracking and focusing manually but the images would be considerably sharper.

These are ridiculously good. I have no idea how you manually focus for BIF shots. I have trouble with my 1D4 and it has an excellent AF system! Amazing work!

I have tried manual focus when becoming frustrated with auto. But never had any results like this. You have a talent.

Thanks for looking and providing feedback.

I'm starting to think maybe FPS are more important to me than AF would ever be. I could have had 10 times as many keepers with a 7D2 (10 FPS) that day if the T1i buffer didn't fill in 3 shots at like 2.5 FPS.
The blackout time in the viewfinder also made MF super hard to do in burst mode.

I've been playing with my MF techniques lately and I think I may have a reliable and logical system that can always outperform AF in difficult situations. With MF you have full subject identification, full frame coverage "AF", perfect predictive tracking when you know the flight patterns, and zero need for focus limiters, etc.

A made a guide for my B.I.F.L.A.B. (birds in flight like a boss!) method for manual focusing birds in flight.

Let me know what you think! It's just simple geometry and quick reflexes.

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