300mm plus Lens Club: discuss your long lenses

**Ash** · 01-22-2019, 04:17 PM

Originally posted by northcoastgreg

Thanks for your nice comment. Much appreciated. Hummingbirds are challenging but fun to photograph.

One more hummingbird image, shot with the DA* 300:

Again, brilliant detail. Stunning bokeh. Perfectly captured.
I'm surprised how well your DA* 300 was able to latch focus onto that bird. Was he hovering long enough for you or darting around?

**Ash** · 01-22-2019, 04:17 PM

Originally posted by marcusBMG

Another terrific image Greg. I'd be really interested to hear if you did anything particular lighting wise...

Looks like front flash, but it would have had to be from some distance with that lens.

**WPRESTO** · 01-22-2019, 05:31 PM - **6 Likes**

DA 300mm + 1.4X. I should have set a wider aperture to get a higher TV as almost all the images of these hummers suffered from motion blur.

**Canada_Rockies** · 01-22-2019, 06:48 PM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by WPRESTO

DA 300mm + 1.4X. I should have set a wider aperture to get a higher TV as almost all the images of these hummers suffered from motion blur.

I find the bit of blur on the wings more attractive
than crisp. We all know hummers' wings are a blur. Your image shows just enough blur to show the speed of the flap while still showing the feather patterns.

**WPRESTO** · 01-22-2019, 07:58 PM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by Canada_Rockies

I find the bit of blur on the wings more attractive
than crisp. We all know hummers' wings are a blur. Your image shows just enough blur to show the speed of the flap while still showing the feather patterns.

I would be happier with much crisper detail in the body feathers. The image was taken @ 1/1000 f13. It would probably have been better to use 1/4000 @ f6.3 even with the risk of having the bird out of the plane of focus

northcoastgreg · 01-23-2019, 07:27 AM - **2 Likes**

Originally posted by Ash

I'm surprised how well your DA* 300 was able to latch focus onto that bird. Was he hovering long enough for you or darting around?

Yes, it was challenging to photograph. I used a feeder to draw the birds. Now it so happens that these hummers are rather aggressive and will fight over the feeder, so when they come in to drink, they frequently will hover about six inches away from the feeder and glance around to make sure no other birds are heading their way to attack them, and that's when I would photograph the little rascals.

Incidentally, I had better luck with the AF on these birds with the K-1 than the KP.

Originally posted by marcusBMG

Another terrific image Greg. I'd be really interested to hear if you did anything particular lighting wise...

I used flash to both light the bird and freeze the wings. Four flashes were placed fairly close to where I expected the bird to hover around the feeder and then set at 1/16th power. The images were shot at 1/200 shutter speed, ISO 100 and 200 respectively, at f16.

The trickiest part of these images were the backgrounds. There were some hanging leaf-engorged branches behind the birds, but in the images these leaves were only slightly blurred out and only partially lit by flash. So I selected the bird in Photoshop on one layer, content-filled the selection, applied radical blurring and exposure gain to the whole layer, reversed the selection and erased the area around the bird in the top layer.

**marcusBMG** · 01-23-2019, 09:05 AM - **1 Like**

Yes - very informative Greg thanks. And of course you are effectively pre-focusing because AF can't react that fast.

zzeitg · 01-23-2019, 09:16 AM - **12 Likes**

DFA 150-450

**alfa75ts** · 01-23-2019, 07:26 PM - **9 Likes**

It's a wonderful feeling when any tiny (and cute) creature trusts you enough to come really close.

But DoF can be a bummer.

These are all uncropped and at about the minimum focus distance of the DA*300 of 1.4 metres. Dof would be around 10mm (3/8").

The Pardalote (F) came over from another tree about five metres away specifically to check me out, the Grey Fantail was circling me as it went about it's business.

**alfa75ts** · 01-23-2019, 07:30 PM - **9 Likes**

This Straw-necked Ibis however was more cautious.

**alfa75ts** · 01-24-2019, 03:41 PM - **10 Likes**

Headed off to the park early this morning, going to be 44°C (111°F) later (You won't catch me out with the 'Mad dogs and Englishmen').

34°C (93°F) at 6:00am.

Got to the park at 7:15am.

Pretty quiet, left about 8:30am 37°C.

Heading for the pool next.

dbs · 01-24-2019, 08:26 PM

Hi Craig

Nice shots......but......stay in or by the pool....youre just a little bit English..

Dave

**joehenryd** · 01-25-2019, 09:21 PM - **7 Likes**

Watch out road runner. Coyote at Nisqually NWR.

Pentaxians · 01-26-2019, 06:04 AM - **10 Likes**

Finally I've completed my Singapore Kingfishers collection. Waited consecutively 8 days since last week, today finally got a chance to shoot this Black-capped KF, a skittish and usually don't allow any comfortable distance between shooters.

**Ash** · 01-26-2019, 06:49 AM - **1 Like**

Singapore has some amazing gardens that attract a lovely variety of birds. It is quite the paradise there for them. It would be for the people too if the cost of living weren't so high.

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01-22-2019, 04:17 PM	#30436
Ash Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Toowoomba, Queensland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 23,920	Originally posted by northcoastgreg Thanks for your nice comment. Much appreciated. Hummingbirds are challenging but fun to photograph. One more hummingbird image, shot with the DA* 300: Again, brilliant detail. Stunning bokeh. Perfectly captured. I'm surprised how well your DA* 300 was able to latch focus onto that bird. Was he hovering long enough for you or darting around?

01-22-2019, 04:17 PM	#30437
Ash Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Toowoomba, Queensland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 23,920	Originally posted by marcusBMG Another terrific image Greg. I'd be really interested to hear if you did anything particular lighting wise... Looks like front flash, but it would have had to be from some distance with that lens.

01-22-2019, 06:48 PM - 1 Like	#30439
Canada_Rockies Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Sparwood, BC, Canada Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 12,385	Originally posted by WPRESTO DA 300mm + 1.4X. I should have set a wider aperture to get a higher TV as almost all the images of these hummers suffered from motion blur. I find the bit of blur on the wings more attractive than crisp. We all know hummers' wings are a blur. Your image shows just enough blur to show the speed of the flap while still showing the feather patterns.

01-22-2019, 07:58 PM - 1 Like	#30440
WPRESTO Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Massachusetts Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 59,106	Originally posted by Canada_Rockies I find the bit of blur on the wings more attractive than crisp. We all know hummers' wings are a blur. Your image shows just enough blur to show the speed of the flap while still showing the feather patterns. I would be happier with much crisper detail in the body feathers. The image was taken @ 1/1000 f13. It would probably have been better to use 1/4000 @ f6.3 even with the risk of having the bird out of the plane of focus

01-23-2019, 07:27 AM - 2 Likes	#30441
northcoastgreg Pentaxian Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Northern Michigan Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,173	Originally posted by Ash I'm surprised how well your DA* 300 was able to latch focus onto that bird. Was he hovering long enough for you or darting around? Yes, it was challenging to photograph. I used a feeder to draw the birds. Now it so happens that these hummers are rather aggressive and will fight over the feeder, so when they come in to drink, they frequently will hover about six inches away from the feeder and glance around to make sure no other birds are heading their way to attack them, and that's when I would photograph the little rascals. Incidentally, I had better luck with the AF on these birds with the K-1 than the KP. Originally posted by marcusBMG Another terrific image Greg. I'd be really interested to hear if you did anything particular lighting wise... I used flash to both light the bird and freeze the wings. Four flashes were placed fairly close to where I expected the bird to hover around the feeder and then set at 1/16th power. The images were shot at 1/200 shutter speed, ISO 100 and 200 respectively, at f16. The trickiest part of these images were the backgrounds. There were some hanging leaf-engorged branches behind the birds, but in the images these leaves were only slightly blurred out and only partially lit by flash. So I selected the bird in Photoshop on one layer, content-filled the selection, applied radical blurring and exposure gain to the whole layer, reversed the selection and erased the area around the bird in the top layer.

01-23-2019, 09:05 AM - 1 Like	#30442
marcusBMG Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: North Wales Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,869	Yes - very informative Greg thanks. And of course you are effectively pre-focusing because AF can't react that fast.

01-23-2019, 09:16 AM - 12 Likes	#30443
zzeitg Pentaxian Join Date: Sep 2014 Location: South Bohemia Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 4,017	DFA 150-450

01-24-2019, 08:26 PM	#30447
dbs Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Clare Valley S A Photos: Albums Posts: 7,563	Hi Craig Nice shots......but......stay in or by the pool....youre just a little bit English.. Dave

01-26-2019, 06:04 AM - 10 Likes	#30449
Pentaxians Pentaxian Join Date: May 2011 Location: Singapore Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 733	Finally I've completed my Singapore Kingfishers collection. Waited consecutively 8 days since last week, today finally got a chance to shoot this Black-capped KF, a skittish and usually don't allow any comfortable distance between shooters.

01-26-2019, 06:49 AM - 1 Like	#30450
Ash Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Toowoomba, Queensland Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 23,920	Singapore has some amazing gardens that attract a lovely variety of birds. It is quite the paradise there for them. It would be for the people too if the cost of living weren't so high.