Astroscope + DSLR = Gallery! (2 Viewers)

[Oskar Moilanen]

What SW are you using to develop the RAW files?

Just Lightroom 4 at the moment, but I have access to Photoshop CS5.

 

[Roy C]

Cannot wait to get out and try the SW80 out in the field - been pouring down all day today so had to make do with this shot through double glazed window. Very poor light (1/250 sec at ISO 800) but not bad considering. This is the full frame taken from around 7 metres I guess.

 

[Tord]

Looking good.

 

[Tord]

White Stork

I have observed about a dozen of Storks and quite many Kites on this meadow each time I have passed by during the past 2-3 weeks. The Storks are quite wary, with some care you can approach close enough to take a few pictures before they pull back.

I am quite pleased with the bokeh in this one.

 

[Roy C]

I have observed about a dozen of Storks and quite many Kites on this meadow each time I have passed by during the past 2-3 weeks. The Storks are quite wary, with some care you can approach close enough to take a few pictures before they pull back.

I am quite pleased with the bokeh in this one.

Superb shot Tord - like you say a very nice uncluttered background.

 

[DanC.Licks]

Agree.

 

[Tord]

Great Crested Grebe

Left work a bit earlier than usual to take advantage of a glorious autumn afternoon. Not much action to report today, nothing worth sharing except this one. SW80 + 1.4 TC, E620 @400 ISO

PS. By the way night temperatures have plummeted way below freezing point, so I guess all the summer visitors will be gone soon.

 

[DanC.Licks]

Always wonderen where these guys get their hair done.
Nice shot, Tord.

 

[Roy C]

Left work a bit earlier than usual to take advantage of a glorious autumn afternoon. Not much action to report today, nothing worth sharing except this one. SW80 + 1.4 TC, E620 @400 ISO

PS. By the way night temperatures have plummeted way below freezing point, so I guess all the summer visitors will be gone soon.

Lovely Grebe capture Tord, very nice light - IQ looks good with the 1.4x tc attached.

 

[Tord]

Thanks for feedback. If you look carefully there lis a slight back-focus offset, focus is just behind the bird and the ~70 cm DOF a tad too shallow to fully compensate for my mistake. The next shots in the sequence are spot on from focus point of view, however obstructed by reed. These guys swim quite fast... Anyway, not much to complain about the IQ with the 1.4 TC.

 

[Oskar Moilanen]

Pleasant shot Tord, too bad that smudge in the corner couldn't be cropped away without losing the reflection.

 

[Tord]

Pleasant shot Tord, too bad that smudge in the corner couldn't be cropped away without losing the reflection.

Thanks,
Yes the smudge, originating from the top of a single straw of reed is a bit annoying. Would retouching the picture to get rid of it be considered cheating?

 

[Roy C]

Thanks,
Yes the smudge, originating from the top of a single straw of reed is a bit annoying. Would retouching the picture to get rid of it be considered cheating?

Getting rid of that 'smudge' would be very easy in Photoshop CS5/6. Removing unwanted objects from bird pictures is a widely done and accepted practice. Adding elements to a picture is another thing and if you do add anything the it should always be declared IMHO, if you do not declare adding elements then that would be cheating.
Below is an extreme example of one of my shots, for this one I would certainly declare that a lot of clutter has been removed and also I have toned the background. First shot shows the original full frame and second shot is after cropping and removing branches. BTW this was taken with a DSLR set-up and not with a scope.

 

[Oskar Moilanen]

That's each to his own I guess.
I don't have the know-how, desire or intention to add or remove anything from my photos. I work with the captured colours and scenery, enhancing pleasant tones and cropping away the unwanted. If I had photo completely ruined by some unwanted object then well.. better luck next time.
This is nothing at all an iron clad ethique principle, It's just the way I work that comes naturally. Other individuals work differently, we all have our way to show the beauty of nature. Adding to a photo is where I also draw the line, it is another matter.

Those are nice pictures Roy, both of them.

 

[Paul Corfield]

I tend to be like you Oskar. The most I tend to do is adjust levels, crop, remove background noise, sharpen, enhance any colours that need it and then save the image. I just walk around the countryside with the family, take photos when the situation arises and if there's anything in the picture that's no good then it's just a record shot, there's always another day. Having said that I don't mind other people removing stuff and you see some in the birdforum gallery that have had a ton of work done on them. I draw the line at adding things to the bird though, like fake highlights to the eye and stuff like that.

Paul.

 

[Roy C]

I am not necessarily advocating that people should play around with their pics but was just answering a query from Tord about the ethics of it. The bottom line is that most of the very best bird photographers happen to also be the very best at processing and removing unwanted items and blemishes as well as things like selective sharpening is very much a widely done practice.
If you are good enough to get everything right in Camera then that is great but for my part I am certainly not and need all the help I can get in processing to give me something that is reasonably presentable. But like I have already said I will always declare what I have done if anything more than just the usual processing like levels, NR, sharpening .......

 

[Roy C]

Managed to get out for the first time with my new astroscope this morning. This is a very heavy crop with the bird being around 120 feet away I would estimate. I particularly like the colours that the ED scope gives and CA is very low. A very promising start.

SW80ED + 1.4xtc
Canon 7D - Tripod - manual focus
1/1250 sec
f10 (ish)
ISO 800
840mm

 

[Oskar Moilanen]

Promising indeed, very nice for such a heavy crop.

 

[Roy C]

Thanks Oskar - here are another two from today, again with 1.4x tc and heavily cropped. I really love the colours that the scope produces.

 

[deboo]

Looking good Roy. Seems like you made a good scope choice.

dave..