Originally posted by Ramcam Here is what not to doJust joined the forum as i blew this great opportunity (Blur)and looking for feedback on my settings .Pentax K50 with Pentax -DA 1:4.5-6.3 55-300mm ED PLM WR REAll the photos where shot at ISO 100 55M -0.7ev F/5.6 1/125
Originally posted by PancakeFlipper Start out with a faster shutter speed. Are you using a tripod? I like using a tripod with a gimbal head. It gives support and I’m able to move the camera around to track the birds easier. But I think at minimum a faster shutter speed to free action and minimize blur.Hopefully you’ll have another opportunity to photograph this. It’s amazing to see
I agree about the shutter speed. With birds in flight you really need to prioritise a fast shutter speed even at the expense of aperture and ISO. With the K-50 you can take the ISO to 3200 if necessary if the light is reasonable (although if the light is good enough to get by with less, so much the better), and the PLM lens does quite well at its maximum aperture, so there is some scope. Shooting at the wide end of the range (55mm) is more forgiving than shooting at the long end - you already have greater depth of field and can often get away with a slower shutter speed than you can at the long end (because slight camera movements will have less of an effect than at longer focal lengths). But to account for a fast-moving subject you really need to use a much faster shutter - something like 1/500th second at the minimum. I have one of my User settings devoted to birds in flight - I use shutter priority (Tv), a default shutter speed of 1/1000th second and an ISO band of 100-3200. That is about the only situation in which I use AF-C and multi-point autofocus. In this User setting I also have the camera set for shutter-button and back-button AF (I usually use back-button only), single-point metering, RAW only, and continuous shooting at the highest rate.
The best settings for BIF have been discussed a few times here. See this thread for example:
Focus help with K-3 birds in flight - PentaxForums.com I think you just need to try a few different settings and see what works best for you.
Interesting effect using the wide end of the telephoto lens. Gives more context. One thing is that if the bird occupies only a small part of the frame (because the lens is zoomed out to 55mm), the AF will have a harder time getting a fix on it, because the subject won't cover a lot of the AF points. If you zoom in a bit, so the bird is bigger in the frame, you might find it easier to keep in focus.
I can't gainsay the point made by @PancakeFlipper that a tripod and gimbal are advantageous. But I'd have to say that my experience is that BIF opportunities often don't allow for anything but handheld shooting. Just try to make sure you get a good grip and stance. I like to stand side on to the subject, with the left elbow in tight, the left hand supporting the lens and pivot with the hips - but that's just me.
Incidentally I think you did pretty well in tracking the eagle and keeping it roughly in the centre of the frame, @Ramcam. That's not easy. You are well on the way.
Last edited by Des; 06-23-2018 at 09:17 PM.