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What do you really shoot at mm wise (1 Viewer)

J

JSER

Well-known member
Just a thought, in reality with whatever lens you have (trying to avoid the my make of lens is better than yours debate), as we are new to this, what do you think is the average length you use most with birds in flight.

When shooting stationery birds I want to get as close as possible so mainly 400 at f8 with flash, but in flight is 400mm truly a reality or more 200mm.

Thanks.
 
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Guess the answer also depends in part on the kind of bird you want to catch midair.

A bird flying with a steady and predicable trajectory (soaring raptors, ducks etc.) will allow you to get as close as possible as getting and keeping them in the viewfinder for tracking and to keep the AF locked is quite doable.

On the other hand with birds that move fast, erratic, and unpredictable I find it beneficial to use a shorter focal length and to crop later, as this will give some real estate in the view finder for an increased chance to make and keep contact with the target if it suddenly changes direction (hummers, swifts, swallows, terns).

Ulli
 
JSER said:
Just a thought, in reality with whatever lens you have (trying to avoid the my make of lens is better than yours debate), as we are new to this, what do you think is the average length you use most with birds in flight.

When shooting stationery birds I want to get as close as possible so mainly 400 at f8 with flash, but in flight is 400mm truly a reality or more 200mm.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Presume you mean stationary. 3:)
 
Marcus Conway - ebirder said:
Presume you mean stationary. 3:)
Click to expand...

The problem with being dyslexic is that there is only so much a spell check can do, when in a hurry I tend to not check so close, I will be more careful in the future.

Thank you for pointing the mistake out to me and everyone else.

There is an old saying "speaking without thinking is like shooting without aiming", you can sometimes shoot yourself in the foot!
 
seaspirit said:
Guess the answer also depends in part on the kind of bird you want to catch midair.

A bird flying with a steady and predicable trajectory (soaring raptors, ducks etc.) will allow you to get as close as possible as getting and keeping them in the viewfinder for tracking and to keep the AF locked is quite doable.

On the other hand with birds that move fast, erratic, and unpredictable I find it beneficial to use a shorter focal length and to crop later, as this will give some real estate in the view finder for an increased chance to make and keep contact with the target if it suddenly changes direction (hummers, swifts, swallows, terns).

Ulli
Click to expand...

Many thanks, I assume that also that will also depend if the bird is flying to or away from you.
 
My birds-in-flight stuff is mostly shot with a 300mm with a 1.4x TC, so 420mm for me. Alternately, I'll also use a 200-500mm lens at 500mm. So I'd agree - no problem with 400-500mm for birds in flight - it mostly comes down to technique, skill, and practice.

I use the same lenses, and same basic techniques, whether shooting big wading birds in flight or hovering raptors, or when shooting tiny erratic little missles like swallows and such...the only difference is that the small and fast birds require more practice and experience, and often a few extra frames burst in order to get a good one (the hit rate can be a little lower), whereas the big birds are easy to fire off a whole series of nice, crisp shots.
 
OK OK, I have heard enough, so many people here have spoken about a 1.4 converter I have FINALLY bought my son one, we found a Kenko Pro 300 for £90 including 12 months gtee from LCE, now he can not wait to use it.

I did have one once a Kenro 1.4 AND 2x, and no one believed me that they would focus on a Sigma 170-500 f5-6.3.

Unfortunately due for family loss my lenses stay in a wardrobe for eighteen months and, fungus..........

My lesson here is ALL my bags now have silica gell in them, refreshed every few months on a radiator or a low oven.
 
As long as you go with the high quality ones, the 1.4x teleconverters are essentially non-destructive to a good lens - other than the light loss, quality and detail can match. It's a little harder with the 2x converters, as even the better ones are usually noticeably degraded from the original lens, though can still be usable depending on the crop amount needed or detail needed.

Good on you with the silica - always a good idea. I have that issue due to Florida's extremely high humidity, and the lenses constantly transitioning from dry cool interiors to extremely hot humid exteriors. Condensation is a fact of life, and the routine to regularly let the lenses adjust to the heat and humidity, then always put away with silica or other moisture absorbers.
 
Zackiedawg said:
As long as you go with the high quality ones, the 1.4x teleconverters are essentially non-destructive to a good lens - other than the light loss, quality and detail can match. It's a little harder with the 2x converters, as even the better ones are usually noticeably degraded from the original lens, though can still be usable depending on the crop amount needed or detail needed.

Good on you with the silica - always a good idea. I have that issue due to Florida's extremely high humidity, and the lenses constantly transitioning from dry cool interiors to extremely hot humid exteriors. Condensation is a fact of life, and the routine to regularly let the lenses adjust to the heat and humidity, then always put away with silica or other moisture absorbers.
Click to expand...

I was reading an article on a chap in Australia who has built a large wooden box and keeps a 40w bulb going 24/7 with his camera gear in (holes of course in sides) to combat moisture, said it works perfectly.

Whay amazes me is that 30 years ago I had no problem, nikon lenses etc, fungus was never even thought about, I assume new exotic glass and coatings must add to the problem as I have 30+ year old lenses, nothing.
 
Might also be a case of something that just wasn't considered as much back in the day...or due to less electronics in today's lenses and cameras just wasn't as big of a concern. I have found since picking up a mirrorless camera and now always on the hunt for primo deals on old manual lens hidden gems that quite a few of those 20-50 year old lenses indeed have fungus issues. It's the first thing I need to look at when picking up an old lens cheap - sometimes it's cleanable, if it's only on the front element glass, and assuming the lens allows easy access to removing the front element...but other times it's killed the deal for me and I had to pass on what seemed like a really nice lens deal only to find fungus going rampant inside.

I did buy a Konica Hexanon 50mm F1.7 lens for $20 that had fungus - couldn't pass up the price for a very nice lens - front element was easy to unscrew and the fungus had stayed limited to the front element (no coatings to worry on). A quick cleaning inside, some few hours under a UV light, and the lens works like new!
 
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