Search found 140 matches

by Argonaut
Sat Jul 07, 2012 11:08 pm
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

...the Scops Owl certainly doesn’t seem to be keen on your activities, but it’s a wonder how it was even spotted in the first place as it looks like a dead branch, great camo. Greg All I can say is *I* didn't find it myself, and it probably took me a few moments to see it when it was pointed out. I...
by Argonaut
Sat Jul 07, 2012 6:45 am
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

Tanzania - nearing the end. First up, the White-headed Buffalo Weaver, one of the minority of weavers that are not black and yellow. This one also shortcuts the nest building - apparently it doesn't "weave", but manages to put together a bag nest anyway. Sounds more difficult than weaving ...
by Argonaut
Fri Jun 15, 2012 3:50 pm
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

Entering the home stretch of our Tanzania trip. The Red-cheeked Cordonbleu is a tiny bird (the acacia thorns are about two inches long), but it was fairly used to people at this park entrance. a580, Sigma 400, f8, 1/640, ISO 800. On the road we stopped to watch a Crested Francolin having a good squa...
by Argonaut
Mon May 28, 2012 3:52 pm
Forum: Digital Workflow and PP
Topic: Good RAW processing program for Sony files
Replies: 9
Views: 9670

Re: Good RAW processing program for Sony files

Lightroom is excellent - I use it for RAW. BUT, I got it long ago because it was the only editing program that would edit JPGs non-destructively, and because it was really good at organizing large numbers of photos, and I've crested the learning curve. I still think LR is the best all-round program ...
by Argonaut
Mon May 28, 2012 3:40 pm
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

David - nice catch! How did you get so close (135mm lens)?

Re: "is it a bit bright?" I find that photos displayed in this forum are brighter than I see them before sending. And, of course, it's a black bird on a very light background, so something's gotta give.
by Argonaut
Thu May 24, 2012 3:06 pm
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

Undaunted, I return to Tanzania. The Straw-tailed Whydah is a sparrow-sized bird with a really long tail. We were extremely lucky to see it this close - we were watching it across a highway foraging in the weeds and for some reason it decided to fly across and perch next to our Land Cruiser. Better ...
by Argonaut
Wed May 23, 2012 10:09 pm
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

If anyone is feeling "proud" of his/her photos, then do NOT go to the following URL, the winners page of the World Bird Photo Contest. You will be humbled more than if you had spent a week in the Total Perspective Vortex.

http://www.hbwcontest.com/awardees.php
by Argonaut
Thu May 17, 2012 10:26 pm
Forum: Lens Lore
Topic: 200mm lens
Replies: 11
Views: 6024

Re: 200mm lens

Is not the sony 55-200 kit lens a pretty good buy? I have it and a beercan and have been pleased with the Sony's IQ. Plus it's much smaller and lighter. Play your cards right and you can get it with a new body for an additional $100, or at least I did last year.
by Argonaut
Thu May 17, 2012 10:18 pm
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

Dr Harout - that's not bad at all. You must have taken it at sunset or sunrise to get the light underneath. Usually sky shots like that blow the highlights or darken the shadows - or both, on a bad day. I suspect that is a European Bee-eater, but the chest color is hard to make out. Light blue? Blue...
by Argonaut
Fri May 11, 2012 8:02 pm
Forum: Alpha A-mount System
Topic: Any a57 users here?
Replies: 18
Views: 9217

Re: Any a57 users here?

In-camera GPS is a tough issue. I found the a55 GPS ineffective unless I left the camera on all the time, and I didn't feel like lugging along a marine-quality deep discharge 50 pound battery :lol: Then I got an a580, and I always take a P&S along on trips, so I HAD to get an outboard GPS if I w...
by Argonaut
Fri May 11, 2012 7:49 pm
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

Mark - 90% of the battle is being there and being familiar enough with the equipment to be ready when the bird is there. The longer you can be there and the more you are familiar with bird behavior, the better, but on a trip like this you can't control the time and you can't wait long for the bird t...
by Argonaut
Fri May 11, 2012 4:20 pm
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

Tanzania continued: little birds today. By coincidence, first up are Barn Swallows. There are several subspecies and this one has an all-white chest and belly compared to the pinkish color here in the states. a580, Sigma 400, 1/200, f9, ISO 400 (It was an overcast day but I had the motionless safari...
by Argonaut
Sun May 06, 2012 5:41 pm
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

Nice shots Mark, particularly of the smaller birds. Photographing through the foliage and getting close enough is not easy. I don't think Barn Swallows are on the red list - in fact, their Wiki says they are a species of "Least Concern". Local populations might be in trouble but overall th...
by Argonaut
Fri May 04, 2012 5:10 pm
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

Only thing I hate about high ISO's is the exponential drop in detail when cropping. I almost never get the chance to catch the bird live size in my frame, so I have to crop almost all my images. If I go anything above ISO 400 it tends to get really messy in the image. Interesting. Obviously there i...
by Argonaut
Thu May 03, 2012 10:43 pm
Forum: Give it Your Best Shot
Topic: Birds 2012
Replies: 768
Views: 195223

Re: Birds 2012

Thanks for the comments! If I have learned one thing, it is (and I saw this in another article the other day) that shutter speed is more important than anything else in getting a sharp photo, hand-held. The article advised using a rule of 3x focal length (e.g. 1/1200 for a 400mm) instead of the trad...