Sanderling up Close

[NorthernFocus]

Yesterday I was out testing a 1.4x TC on the 200-500mm lens. I saw a couple of shorebirds working down the beach in my direction so got down on my knees and was very still to see if they'd come in range. They hunted right up to within a few feet of me and hung around for a few minutes.

Nikon D500, 200-500mmE, 1.4x TC
1/1600s, f8, ISO1600 handheld

1)


2)


3)

[Donald]

Beautiful, Dan.

Hopefully, those who wonder about higher ISO speeds will note - Get the exposure right and noise won't be a problem.

[Geoff F]

Good clear well exposed shots.

I find it is possible to push the Iso a bit in good light when the increase is simply to have a faster shutter speed. However, increasing Iso in poor light to overcome otherwise unacceptably low shutter speeds or prevent wide open apertures always causes me problems with excessive noise.

[bje07]

Nice shots.
I think due to thickness of birds you should use f/5.6 or less to decrease your ISO or increase your speed.
But I am not a sermonizer

[Geoff F]

The trouble is that larger bird type lenses start at F5.6 or 6.3; at least with the affordable lenses. So F8 tends to be as wide open as you want to go; and focus depth is quite shallow even at F8.

[bje07]

You are right Geoff and 8 is may be close to the soft point of this lens.
I withdraw my remark

[Shadowman]

Nice ones.

[GBO25]

Wonderful shots Dan. Great eye contact especially in the first two and I like that wobbly reflection in the third one.

[madcrow]

You showed great patiences and you reaped the benefits with three striking images. Well done on all accounts.

[John 2]

Very nice indeed Dan. Exposure needed to be spot on given the brightness of the BG and you nailed it.

[NorthernFocus]

Thanks for the comments, guys. One thing about still photography is that it belies the reality of the situation. Looking at the photos one could get the impression that these birds stroll around at a leisurely pace, posing now and again for the camera. In reality they are twitchy little rascals, never stopping for more than a second or two. And when running their legs move nearly as fast as the wings do when in flight. A bit more "interesting" to shoot than one might expect.

This is another species that I'm catching at the opposite end of their range. These birds breed in the arctic.

[JohnRostron]

Very nice images. This is a circumpolar species and we see them from the promenade at Southend-on-Sea, here in Essex. Perhaps it's my age but I never thought of lying down on the shore to try and photograph them!

John

[John 2]

Very nice images. This is a circumpolar species and we see them from the promenade at Southend-on-Sea, here in Essex. Perhaps it's my age but I never thought of lying down on the shore to try and photograph them!

John

Ditto in my part of the world in Morecambe Bay. The problem I have is that they are in such numbers that capturing a study as nice as Dan's is quite difficult.

[Wavelength]

Excellent image

[bnnrcn]

Very skillful images Dan

[NorthernFocus]

Glad you folks enjoyed the shots. Thanks for the comments. Interesting that you have the same birds in the UK.

...Perhaps it's my age but I never thought of lying down on the shore to try and photograph them!...

John, I'm not dedicated enough to lie in the sand/mud. Also I have a bad neck and can't lay on my stomach and look up to shoot. If I do lay down it has to be on my side with the camera at a right angle as if shooting vertical. So for these I wasn't lying down. I was on my knees and bent over at an odd angle. Due to the odd position several shots were so skewed that after straightening I lost the reflections