Blue Tit (1 Viewer)

My 5X OpticZoom arrived the other day and here is one of my first efforts using it. Just sat in the garden with the camera on a tripod with the zoom attached. I also used my Xtend-a-View lens shade, which does take some getting used to!

This is one of four shots that came out quite well. I just resized and sharpened them in Photoshop.

Only problem now is that the 28-37 step up ring is stuck on the 995's lens thread! Any ideas?

Camera : E995
Quality Mode : FINE
Metering Mode : Center-Weighted
Exposure Mode : Aperture Priority
Speed Light : No
Focal Length : 24.1 mm
Shutter Speed : 1/181.1 second
Aperture : F4.3
Exposure Compensation : 0 EV
White Balance : Auto
Lens : Built-in

Very nice shot, Diane. As for the stepping ring problem, I believe that J*ssops do a plastic wrench type thingie for freeing stuck filters, which should work - other wise B*tt*w*re or Kl**n**z** do gadgets for removing jar lids. Alternatively, wrap a thick rubber band around it and hold it gently with a pair of pliers or a wrench.

Next week on Blue Peter, Valerie will show you how to make a large hole in your mother's best tablecloth.

Ynot

Thanks for the comments Tony. I'm a bit happier with the results so far from this lens than I was when I started digiscoping, I can tell you!

I struggled with the step ring for another half an hour and then I wrapped something soft round it and got a small pair of pliers to it and managed to work it loose. I'll have to get one of those wrench gizmos for next time.


:t:

Good to hear that your struggle with the step ring has been won.
Nice picture of a blue tit but I am not very fond of such a cluttered background. It might be a good idea to put yourself in such a place that you have much more distance between your subject and the background and with a large f.stop the background should be more blurred than it is now.
Also check where the light comes from and ideally you are in one line with subject and light, and then,with a bit of luck, you would get a nice catchlight in the bird's eye and make it look more alive.
My rating: 1 star.

Great results with the EagleEye so quickly after having received it. I sruggled with mine for quite a while before getting used to using it. It's a fine lens to use, though I have trouble with stability unless using a bean bag or on a tripod. The tripod mount is a litle dear, but well worth the money.

The Blue Tit came out very well.

I'd have been inclined to crop the shot a good bit more in order to remove some of that foliage, but keeping the bird in the same position. Also there is a little CA on the higher leaves that could be removed.

The backlighting doesn't really help the shot as it has caused some burnt out highlights below the bill and above the bird on the leaf. Though you managed to retain loads of detail and colours in the shadow areas.

I'd say the shot is well worth keeping. I give it : 1 star

A tip for the EagleEye. I used to find with mine that it was best to set the camera in macro mode, roughly focus with the barrel adjustment, usually about halfway,then point the lens straight at the subject and half depress the shutter to lock focus/metering on the subject and then reframe the shot before full pressing the shutter button. Very much like the digiscoping technique. The actual lens focus locking point on my camera used to be just slightly off centre, but once you'd established where it was, it was easy to use. Another tip is to use the EagleEye in conjuntion with an Olympus B300 or the new (cheaper) Tcon 17. You'll be amazed at the clarity of shots and how much higher the shutter speeds are.

One last tip, before you get bored with reading this, is as regards the sticking filters - believe me it's far worse when a two step rings get stuck together or when one becomes jammed on the back of the EagleEye. A good way of avoiding it is to run a B or BB graphite pencil around the threads before screwing them together. You only need to use it once every few months. I still have a tube of 'Lockite' which I bought from Halfords years ago, a product designed for just this use. It holds threads tight, but prevents them sticking together. Being an old stick myself, I tend to favour the graphite pencil though.

Thanks for your very helpful advice everyone.

I was just so thrilled to have a Blue Tit land right in front of me I didn't want to lose it by worrying about the background. It was gone a few seconds later. I will try cropping and playing about in Photoshop a bit more.

I had the camera on Macro setting but I can't remember what the focus setting on the EagleEye was. It's interesting what you say about the focus lock point being off centre. I have noticed, in practice, that the centre red focus bracket on the 995 does not appear to focus correctly when putting the subject bang in the middle of it. I tested it on a standard lamp pole in the house and when I moved the camera slightly to one side, the pole was perfectly in focus. I haven't had the same results on birds yet though (when using the scope).