Working on BIF Shots - All Critiques Welcome!

[benm]

Nancy Moran G, you must be pretty confused by now. As you can see, some photographers prefer Tv, some Av and some Manual. You need to try them all and find out which works best for you. And the one you use may change depending on lighting or what the bird is doing.

[suenewbie]

Thank you, Scarlet. It's so nice to be able to get input on my photos, especially when somebody likes them!

[suenewbie]

Try shooting with focus set to AF-C (continuous) and as Clive says track or pan in the direction the bird is moving. If you can lock on focus one of the three or four shots your camera is capable of firing in will get you a clean shot, hopefully.

John, my camera describes AF-C this way: "Continuous-servo AF: For moving subjects. Focus does not lock when shutter-release button is pressed halfway. AF-assist illuminator does not light." Based on that, I'm not sure what I'm missing when you say, "If you can lock on focus..." Can you please clarify? Thanks!

[suenewbie]

Ideally you really want high shutterspeeds (I prefer 1/2000th upwards) & normally since DoF isn't an issue, wide-open aperture - which lends itself to Av mode (pre-selecting ISO) or Av mode with Auto-ISO (set to (in my case) 1/2000th minimum).

Colin, Can you provide a couple of clarifications? 1) When you say "wide-open aperture," what do you consider "wide-open"? 2) Where you said "...or AV mode with Auto-ISO set to 1/2000th..." does that number refer to shutter speed or ISO?

Thanks!

[suenewbie]

I summarized what I've learned and advice given on this topic for myself and thought others may find it useful. I'd welcome corrections, clarifications, etc.

Here's my list:

General:
• Practice tracking moving birds: Pan in direction bird is moving; Focus on where you expect the bird to go (e.g., on the nest); Keep both eyes open when tracking; lock onto the bird on the ground then walk towards it to make it fly for your shot.
• Under exposure is preferable to motion blur, as underexposure can be corrected in PP.
• Use Continuous Release Mode so you get several “tries” at a moving shot.

Shooting Mode:
• Try Shutter Priority except when lighting is really bright.
• In Aperture Priority, you’ll need to set it wide open to get a fast enough SS.
• If you prefer Manual mode, it works best in stable light situations. In this case, use Auto ISO with max 1600.

ISO:
• ISO 200 might work well in Shutter Priority
• ISO 400 and f/8 might improve focus (as opposed to my settings of ISO 1600 and f/13).
• Some prefer to pre-select ISO.
• Auto ISO, if used, can be set to 1600 max without risking too much noise (in my D3200).

Aperture:
• f/8 seems to be the agreed-upon “best” aperture for BIF.
• Low f numbers give thin DOF, requiring “perfect” focus and you still may get parts of the bird blurred.
• High f numbers (f/13+) give deeper DOF but many lenses produce softer focus at high f/stops.

Shutter Speed:
• Some prefer shutter speeds of 1/2000 or more.

Focus & Metering:
• Try focus of AF-C (NOTE: Focus does NOT lock when shutter button is pressed halfway down in this mode).
• Try 11-point 3D tracking if Center-point isn’t working in the shooting conditions.
• The fewest # of focus points that works in a given situation is best because camera can calculate & set focus distance more quickly with fewer points.

[Colin Southern]

Colin, Can you provide a couple of clarifications? 1) When you say "wide-open aperture," what do you consider "wide-open"? 2) Where you said "...or AV mode with Auto-ISO set to 1/2000th..." does that number refer to shutter speed or ISO?

Thanks!

Hi Sue,

DoF is a function of aperture, but it's also a function of camera to subject distance. Normally wide apertures (eg F2.8 / F4.0 etc) would give a small DoF, but because birds are so far away, even wide apertures give sufficient DoF - which is good because wide apertures let the most light in - which means that we can have a higher shutterspeed - which means we have more "freezing power" (so we don't get motion blur).

So to (finally!) answer the question, "wide open" is as wide as your lens can do; in my case with my EF70-200mm F2.8L IS USM II it'll be F2.8 - with an F4 lens it'll be F4 etc.

With regards to Auto-ISO ... Auto-ISO creates a dilema for the camera; it's quite happy to change the ISO, but if it's in Av mode then it's also quite happy to change the shutterspeed - oh what to do! So to help the camera out, we need to also give it some guidelines on how to proceed in the form of telling the camera "don't let the shutterspeed drop below "X" - and if it tries to, then adjust the ISO". In the case of BIF you generally want the shutterspeed fairly high (I like 1/2000th), but there are a few variables in there such as lens speed (ie F2.8) - ambient lighting - and camera type. With my gear I can tell the camera to do these things and it will - with slower lenses or less advanced cameras one may have to use other techniques (eg they may need to use manual because auto-ISO won't let them specify a high enough minimum shutter speed).

Does that help?

[Nancy Moran G]

Nancy Moran G, you must be pretty confused by now. As you can see, some photographers prefer Tv, some Av and some Manual. You need to try them all and find out which works best for you. And the one you use may change depending on lighting or what the bird is doing.

Thank you Ben. Confused you say...ha, I am totally lost. Kidding. I am a roller coaster, hands in the air kind of (57 yr old) gal. So I do not comment sometimes because I am not as techno as the experts.
Thank Goodness for the experts because they are the teachers here that I am learning from when I can.

I am working on my BIF and high SS has helped me. Altho not perfect, I am not thorough in my explanations, but hopefully some newbie sees my little advice as a step to better photos.
I set my parameters based on a hopeful path of the bird and wait. Example- pelicans only coming from right because of sun, or Osprey landing in nest that is already set for exposure (mostly).

Just learn here!!
Nancy

[Nancy Moran G]

SueNewbie,
I admire you for the analysis in all of this info!
I have to re- read it a few times and digest. Even then, I was always more of a 'show-me' person than read it.
Good info to absorb here, thanks.
Nancy

I summarized what I've learned and advice given on this topic for myself and thought others may find it useful. I'd welcome corrections, clarifications, etc.

Here's my list:

General:
• Practice tracking moving birds: Pan in direction bird is moving; Focus on where you expect the bird to go (e.g., on the nest); Keep both eyes open when tracking; lock onto the bird on the ground then walk towards it to make it fly for your shot.
• Under exposure is preferable to motion blur, as underexposure can be corrected in PP.
• Use Continuous Release Mode so you get several “tries” at a moving shot.

Shooting Mode:
• Try Shutter Priority except when lighting is really bright.
• In Aperture Priority, you’ll need to set it wide open to get a fast enough SS.
• If you prefer Manual mode, it works best in stable light situations. In this case, use Auto ISO with max 1600.

ISO:
• ISO 200 might work well in Shutter Priority
• ISO 400 and f/8 might improve focus (as opposed to my settings of ISO 1600 and f/13).
• Some prefer to pre-select ISO.
• Auto ISO, if used, can be set to 1600 max without risking too much noise (in my D3200).

Aperture:
• f/8 seems to be the agreed-upon “best” aperture for BIF.
• Low f numbers give thin DOF, requiring “perfect” focus and you still may get parts of the bird blurred.
• High f numbers (f/13+) give deeper DOF but many lenses produce softer focus at high f/stops.

Shutter Speed:
• Some prefer shutter speeds of 1/2000 or more.

Focus & Metering:
• Try focus of AF-C (NOTE: Focus does NOT lock when shutter button is pressed halfway down in this mode).
• Try 11-point 3D tracking if Center-point isn’t working in the shooting conditions.
• The fewest # of focus points that works in a given situation is best because camera can calculate & set focus distance more quickly with fewer points.

[suenewbie]

...telling the camera "don't let the shutterspeed drop below "X" - and if it tries to, then adjust the ISO". In the case of BIF you generally want the shutterspeed fairly high (I like 1/2000th), but there are a few variables in there such as lens speed (ie F2.8) - ambient lighting - and camera type. With my gear I can tell the camera to do these things and it will - with slower lenses or less advanced cameras one may have to use other techniques (eg they may need to use manual because auto-ISO won't let them specify a high enough minimum shutter speed).

Colin,
Please forgive my lack of understanding...your terms seem to cross lines (in my feeble mind) between f/stop, ISO, and shutter speed. For example, you talk about specifying a minimum shutter speed via Auto-ISO. In my camera, Auto-ISO lets me specify a maximum ISO, but doesn't have a setting in that screen for specifying minimum shutter speed. I'm sure it makes sense, but I am missing it somewhere.

Another confusion for me is your reference to "lens speed" where you attribute that to an f/stop number (e.g., f/2.8). I'm not understanding lens speed and especially why you reference an f/stop number to describe lens speed.

I'm guessing the problem here is that I only understand the basics in very simple language (i.e., shutters have a "speed," apertures have an f # representing the size of the opening, and ISOs have a sensitivity number. When you start mixing things up, I get lost.

[Colin Southern]

Hi Sue,

It's going to vary from camera to camera, unfortunately.

Auto ISO needs to know at what point it needs to stop decreasing the shutter speed and start increasing the ISO instead. In Canon land you do that by setting the shutter speed option in the Auto-ISO to automatic (at which point it will stop the speed dropping below the 1/focal length guide) (eg if you have a 50mm lens it'll let the speed drop to 1/50th and then increase the ISO), or it can be set manually (eg 1/250th).

The "speed" of a lens is simply it's maximum aperture eg a F1.2 lens is considered to be much faster than an F4 lens (it relates to the shutter speed you can get due to more light being let in).

[suenewbie]

Thanks, Colin. So much to learn......Yiikes!

[Saorsa]

I'm not Colin but, it's all a matter of setting bounds with what is basically a 3 element set. You can vary Shutter Speed, f-stop and ISO. But, each of these has physical limitations within the system. A camera may only allow you to set shutter speeds from 1 minute to 1/8000 second, a lens at full extension may only offer f5.6 to f22 and ISO may only range from 100 to 6400.

Think of it as a rectangle where one side is the range of shutter speeds and the other is the range of available f-stops. Then think of what your shooting situation is and draw another rectangle which encloses the range of acceptable values for that.

To use some rules as an example, when handholding, we are told to use a shutter speed which is 1 over the focal length of the lens. In the case of your 55-300mm that would mean a minimum acceptable shutter speed of 1/300 although many will include the DX crop factor and advise 1/450. You decide you don't want to shoot wide open so you set a minimum f-stop of f8.0 That new, smaller box is your desired operating environment.

If lighting conditions are such that you can't get acceptable exposures within that box you then have the option of raising the ISO until you get your shooting settings for shutter speed and f-stop inside the box.

[suenewbie]

Saorsa, great explanation. Thank you.

[suenewbie]

I went out to the beach today (sorry, for all of you freezing in the rest of the US) to try the settings discussed in this forum for BIF. I set my ISO to auto with a max of 1600, then set it to 400 (it was a sunny day). I used Aperture Priority with aperture of f/8, which pushed the shutter speed way up.

Early in the day, I tried AF-C focus mode & matrix metering, but I was having trouble getting crisp shots, so I changed to AF-S and spot metering. I didn't use a tripod. Let me know what you think. I know these aren't necessarily interesting shots, but they were intended as BIF practice.

Took a bunch of other non-BIF shots, too, which can be seen on my Flickr page.

Here's the 5 BIF shots - let me know which direction I need to go to improve:

#1 - I know focus isn't tack sharp, but I think it's better than previous shots and since I was alone and was "flushing" the Heron to get it to fly and then trying to get the shot, it was challenging!
Camera Info: Nikon D3200; Lens, VR 55-300mm f/4.5-6G @55mm; Aperture Priority @ f/8; Shutter 1/3200s; ISO Auto 400; Focus Mode AF-S, Single AF-Area Mode; Spot Metering.
Post Processing: Exposure Comp +0,4; Brightness +13; Shadow Protection +53; Color Boost +16; Cropped

!Lido Beach Walk DSC_1761_091 ADJ by smolnar18, on Flickr

#2 - 5 For these, someone was feeding the birds on the beach so it gave me a chance to try to get BIF shots without having to make the birds fly by myself! Other than these, it was an EXTREMELY quite day (bird-wise) at the beach today - no "natural" BIF opportunities.
Camera Info: Nikon D3200; Lens, VR 55-300mm f/4.5-6G @116mm; Aperture Priority @ f/8; Shutter 1/3200s; ISO Auto 400; Focus Mode AF-S, Single AF-Area Mode; Spot Metering.
Post Processing: Straightened; Cropped

!Lido Beach Walk DSC_1814_144 ADJ by smolnar18, on Flickr

Camera Info: Nikon D3200; Lens, VR 55-300mm f/4.5-6G @116mm; Aperture Priority @ f/8; Shutter 1/4000s; ISO Auto 400; Focus Mode AF-S, Single AF-Area Mode; Spot Metering.
Post Processing: Straightened; Cropped

!Lido Beach Walk DSC_1819_149 ADJ by smolnar18, on Flickr

Camera Info: Nikon D3200; Lens, VR 55-300mm f/4.5-6G @116mm; Aperture Priority @ f/8; Shutter 1/3200s; ISO Auto 400; Focus Mode AF-S, Single AF-Area Mode; Spot Metering.
Post Processing: Straightened; Cropped

!Lido Beach Walk DSC_1811_141 ADJ by smolnar18, on Flickr

Camera Info: Nikon D3200; Lens, VR 55-300mm f/4.5-6G @116mm; Aperture Priority @ f/8; Shutter 1/3200s; ISO Auto 400; Focus Mode AF-S, Single AF-Area Mode; Spot Metering.
Post Processing: Straightened; Cropped

Yeah, that's a french fry he's going for...

!Lido Beach Walk DSC_1812_142 ADJ by smolnar18, on Flickr

[Bobobird]

If you are using manual one can assume the light is not changing. But if you are changing SS and f stop anyway it's probably because the bird sometimes has a sky background and sometimes a dark background. But exposure should not have to change. Anyway, it's a lot to keep track of while trying to keep the bird in the viewfinder and in focus. I suggest keeping the camera either on aperture or SS preferred.

I am a bit lost by this statement. Would appreciate an elaboration.

[Stagecoach]

Sue, I unburied it for you.

I'm no BIF shooter but follow the threads here on the subject. From the results you have achieved it is apparent that your setting and method has worked very well.

That French fry in flight image is a classic

Great idea to give the shooting data and PP info

Grahame

[deetheturk]

Sue,i dont think i can advise on this as it's something i have yet to try,but from what i see here you are on the right track