A rule that I learnt a long time ago was to keep both eyes open anyway, it soon becomes second nature and makes photography easier.I've found it's easier if I keep both eyes open
We took delivery of one yesterday and I took a few shots with it today, just on auto. I've not had time to play around with it yet.
Certainly well specified and easy to use. Even managed a few flight shots with it of gulls and Marsh Harrier.
Are you shooting in raw Ian - if so whats the buffer speed like ?
I thought when offering RAW on the SX50 that they must have increased the buffer size/speed compared to the SX40. With the SX40 shooting in RAW it took more than a second to clear a single shot which made shooting in a burst not on.Funnily enough I just tried using RAW last night just to see how fast it writes to the card. It writes remarkably fast to the card with single photos. All being well I'll give it a proper try today with RAW in continuous shooting to see how it performs.
The buffer must be much better. A miserable wet snowy day here so I didn't bother going out this morning. I've just taken a continuous series of 26 RAW photos which it wrote to the card straight away without a pause in shooting. I dare say it would have continued taking photos, it was just me that stopped at 26. I would describe it as more of a 'continous' shooting rather than what I'd call a 'burst' of shots, certainly less than a second between each shot.
I agree with Roy, as in most photography equipment the closer the subject the better this little camera performs. The autofocus is quite fast though a problem I've been having for birds in flight, even large birds like Cormorants is trying to locate them in the viewfinder/LCD as at 1200mm the field of view width is quite narrow. Plus of course a DSLR view finder is through the lens whereas the view is slightly offset with the SX50, so it's not as natural to lift the camera and locate the bird. I've found it's easier if I keep both eyes open when locating the bird in flight. At present though I can't see it ever replacing the DSLR for birds in flight.
I wouldn't rule out the SX50 entirely though for more distant subjects as the 50x zoom fills the frame better than using my 7D + 400mm lens. I came across a distant group of Whooper Swans today. I managed better photos with the SX50 than I did with the 7D+400mm lens even when using a 2x teleconverter - though both sets of photos were taken hand held in windy conditions. The SX50 of course has a very effective image stabiliser.
1. Whooper Swans with Canon SX50 - 120m+
2. Whooper Swans with Canon 7D + Canon 400mm f5,6 - 120m+
3. Red-breasted Mergansers - 150m+
4. Common Scoter - 150m+
5. Goldfinch - 2m
Here is a few from last weekend - all taken at 900mm (1440mm on the 7D). all these are cropped to some extent and all taken from at least 120 feet.
Mind you its a heck of a lot more to lug around than the SX50 lol. For clarity these were not taken with a SX40/50 but via a astroscope in answer to a query in post #36.
It would be great to see some comparison shots between your new setup and the SX40/50 Roy !!!
Don't think the ISO is really going to hold it up there especially if the light is getting poor, it is a very small sensor after all.
£499! Sheesh, though no doubt it will drop.
Superb shots. I'm watching the SX50 with some interest as I use the SX30 for my bird shots and have been very happy with it. But am now looking to move up a little and not sure between SX40 or SX50. Any ideas anyone between the two for birding?
A couple more taken on a brighter day earlier in the week.
1. Turnstone
2. Purple Sandpiper
3. Purple Sandpiper
4. House Sparrow
5. Common Darter
A few Short-eared Owl photos from today.
The video was taken with the 2x teleconverter engaged. The camera was perched on a fence post and hand held in place.
Video - Short-eared Owl - http://youtu.be/Tn8UmBMu1Hk
A few photos from today.
The first two were 18-20m away. It still amazes me the results this little camera can produce.