Barn Owl - Peregrine Falcon

Hi There

Its been a while since i posted any of my bird in flight shots so i thought i would share a couple of pictures taken today.

I was invited on a visit to a Falconer and his birds of prey collection and myself and a small band of photographers were treated to our own private flying display.

There were various birds on show both tethered and free flying but i post below 2 portrait shots of a male Barn Owl and 2 in flight shots of the Peregrine.

I was particularly pleased with the Peregrine shots as getting sharp focused shots of it banking and stooping has always been a real challenge.

Tech detail for each shot shown above it

Comments and Critiques as always welcome

John

Shot 1 Barn Owl on Tree Stump EOS1DMKIIN 300mm F4L ISO 400 1/500 @ F8



Shot 2 Barn Owl on Roof EOS1DMKIIN 300mm F4L ISO 400 1/320 @ F8



Shot 3 Peregrine Banking EOS1DMKIIN 500mm F4L ISO 640 1/1600 @ F4



Shot 4 Peregrine Stooping EOS1DMKIIN 500mm F4L ISO 640 1/1600 @ F4

Hi John,

I don't have any critique, but only positive comments. The third one just blew me off my socks, wow! The fourth one is also very, very good. Thanks for showing, I am deeply impressed.

Cheers,

Agreed - that 3rd shot is killer!!

Of the first two, I prefer the pose and the background in the second shot over the first, however, the unnatural looking wood plank and tether in the second shot make me prefer the first shot overall, with its nicer looking log perch.

The third shot is very good.

Well done!

Hi John,

The first is a classic, and the two falcons are excellent. I don't know if you have seen any of the tv series 'will work for nuts', in particular the falcon/hawk seeing the lure from over a mile away, and chasing the guys on the motor bike (and catching them) at fifty mph or so.

Best wishes,

Ray

Pictures 3 and 4 would make Audubon jealous and despair!

John, these are Audubon beyond all his work I have seen. spendid and breathtaking!

Asher

Thank you

Gentlemen

Thank you for the positive comments, it was a most enjoyable day and gave a good opportunity to practice bird in flight shots from a closer distance than i have previously been able to.

This may well have been the main reason that i was able to come back with the shots that i did, the Falcon was probably only flying around 10 meters or so away from us. The bulk of the shots that were in focus were taken as the bird turned at the top of his flight path (for the pilots among us - a sort of stall turn).

He was therefore relatively speaking, not moving that fast which gives the camera the best chance of achieving focus on him assuming he is big enough in the viewfinder and you have the sensor on the right area (ie - the eye if possible).

I used the 500mm A because of the reach and B because its the fastest focusing lens I own. The biggest problem I have found is tracking the bird with camera and lens handheld, as this combination altogether weighs around 10LBs or so.

Once you get it moving in one direction it wants to keep going in that direction because of its own inertia, so is difficult to change direction quickly to follow the swoops and dives of birds especially Falcons in flight.

So again as the falcon was at the "top of his arc" it was "easier" to follow.
Focus was with the "*" button on the rear of the camera as recommended by Don and this has made a big difference in being able to focus on the part of the subject you want and then take the picture without the camera jumping to another point of focus as you press the shutter release.

So another step on the road to better pictures, but i must give a thank you to all the people on these forums who have given help and advice to me on this challenging area of Photography


John

P.S One more shot taken on Saturday 24th at my usual haunt of the Hawk Conservancy, this time of a Lanner Falcon

EOS 1DMKIIN EF500 F4L ISO 800 1/1600 F4

I thought the third photograph was wonderful, but this last one is exceptional, thank you for sharing these.....

John,

Looks like you had a great day at Ray's place. He has some lovely birds and is one of those traditional Falconers - its like stepping back in time when you arrive at his cottage. Pity I had to pull out, but it clashed with the Craft Fair.

The Peregrin shots are superb mate. You really are starting to tame the mighty EF 500.

Only one minor criticism, the static owls need a catchlight in their eyes or they can look lifeless, perhaps a -1 1/3 ev fill in flash or a reflector of sorts, just to add that sparkle.

BTW, A PS trick i've learnt, is to carefully dodge (brighten) what's there with an appropriate shaped brush to pull out the highlight. Over do it and it looks alien, but you can find a happy medium (see below).

Nice shots. I'm amazed you're shooting handheld with a 500/4.

You might want to look into a Wimberley gimbal head, which was made for flight shots with big lenses. I don't own one myself, but I've tried them, and they do make the big lens feel weightless. Info at www.tripodhead.com.

Wimberley

David A. Goldfarb said:

Nice shots. I'm amazed you're shooting handheld with a 500/4.

You might want to look into a Wimberley gimbal head, which was made for flight shots with big lenses. I don't own one myself, but I've tried them, and they do make the big lens feel weightless. Info at www.tripodhead.com.

Click to expand...

Hi David

I do have a Wimberley Sidekick which i use on a Gitzo tripod and a Kirk BH1 ball head, and you are quite correct it does make the lens and camera combination appear almost weightless. However i have personally still found it too cumbersome to track really fast moving birds like Falcons and Hawks.

I have had a better hit rate of getting the bird in the frame using the camera handheld than on the tripod. I find i can hold the duo for around the 30 - 40 second mark before i feel the need to lower them down to take a rest and this is generally long enough to fire off a burst of a few shots at a time in the hope that one or more will be in focus.

Other peoples experience with the Wimberley may vary, but i find that if shooting birds in flight where sudden changes of direction and height are likely i get more in frame shots using a handheld camera and lens.

John

John Harper said:

I have had a better hit rate of getting the bird in the frame using the camera handheld than on the tripod. I find i can hold the duo for around the 30 - 40 second mark before i feel the need to lower them down to take a rest and this is generally long enough to fire off a burst of a few shots at a time in the hope that one or more will be in focus.

Click to expand...

Haven't tried them myself, but maybe this could help some:
http://bushhawk.shopol.com/Item/BH-220D.htm
or even:
http://bushhawk.shopol.com/Item/BH-320D.htm
I don't know if the 500mm lens collar position creates a workable mounting position for such a shoulder mount, but it might be worth investigating.

Other peoples experience with the Wimberley may vary, but i find that if shooting birds in flight where sudden changes of direction and height are likely i get more in frame shots using a handheld camera and lens.

Click to expand...

I think your particular situation creates a luxury problem. The close proximity causes high lateral speeds and speed changes. Pivoting around the photographer becomes easier than pivoting around a fixed center of gravity, when trying to keep up with the subject. Tracking becomes more important than stability (for which quality IS is mandatory). Which IS mode do you use?

Bart

Hi Bart

Bart_van_der_Wolf said:

Haven't tried them myself, but maybe this could help some:
http://bushhawk.shopol.com/Item/BH-220D.htm
or even:
http://bushhawk.shopol.com/Item/BH-320D.htm
I don't know if the 500mm lens collar position creates a workable mounting position for such a shoulder mount, but it might be worth investigating.

Click to expand...

I had a look at the Bushawk website and while it looks to give more support to a longer lens, the shutter release method using a trigger button doesn't lend itself to using the CF4 function and having focus activated on the "*" button on the rear of the camera and the actual picture taking on the shutter release. I have found this the best method for focusing on the bird against busy backgrounds as it gives you one shot type focusing in AI servo mode

Bart_van_der_Wolf said:

I think your particular situation creates a luxury problem. The close proximity causes high lateral speeds and speed changes. Pivoting around the photographer becomes easier than pivoting around a fixed center of gravity, when trying to keep up with the subject. Tracking becomes more important than stability (for which quality IS is mandatory). Which IS mode do you use?

Bart

Click to expand...

I mainly use mode 2 for anything that i am trying to track or now and again i turn it off altogether. As i am generally trying to shoot at above 1600th IS probably has less of an effect at those sort of shutter speeds?

John

Hi John,

What you are doing is probably more difficult than shooting clays. Shoulder mounted guns are what are used there, for a reason. If it is merely a question of operating the '*' button, I'm pretty sure something could be rigged up to do that. Start with a simple bent aluminium clamp/gaffer tape, and a remote cable release - progress to a small solenoid and switch, or if the camera is out of warranty, rip of ff the button and solder a couple of wires to the contacts.

It's got to be at least worth a try.

I'm still thinking on this.....

Best wishes,

Ray

When they're that close, it's a difficult task any way you slice it. I usually go to a 400/4.5 for handheld flight shots, and use a 600/4.5 on the tripod, but if you can maneuver the big lens handheld, that's something!

Originally posted by Bart_van_der_Wolf:

"I think your particular situation creates a luxury problem. The close proximity causes high lateral speeds and speed changes. Pivoting around the photographer becomes easier than pivoting around a fixed center of gravity, when trying to keep up with the subject....

Click to expand...

That may seem like a luxury problem, because the animals he was shooting from very close were captive, however it is not merely a luxury problem unique to his unusual situation. Skilled bird photographers actually get themselves that close to birds in flight every day, with completely wild birds. And, for these situations, the Wimberley heads do, indeed, impede the photographer to the point of unusability, when tracking height changes or extreme changes in direction.

I really like the pictures of the Lanner Falcon.

Anthony Reilly said:

I really like the pictures of the Lanner Falcon.

Click to expand...

Anthony,

How did you make that designation?

Asher

Asher Kelman said:

Anthony,

How did you make that designation?

Asher

Click to expand...

I am a falconer and i fly 1 in displays

Anthony Reilly said:

I am a falconer and i fly 1 in displays

Click to expand...

Now that's really a treat! I hope you look at and like Bart's technique with moving gif, as it shows in slow motion the falcon's behavior, talons first! I'm looking forward to some of your pictures here as you must have some smashing shots!

Asher

I will try and get some shots of the falcons flying, but different types of falcons have different flying styles as i will try and show.