Conrad Tan wrote:
@ Petkal:
Let me ask you, why are other's photos so free of noise and yet so sharp? If I use ISO of any less than 800 my shots are just too blurry. the trado off is my noise a$$ photos which noise removal takes out the detail way too much in! Is it my 50D? Should I replace it with the 1DII or 1DIII? Seems like the photos from those cameras like Wing's and Noelle's are so sharp and noise free.
If anything, 50D should have a bit less ISO noise than 1D MkII (N).
Generally, up to and including ISO 800 one shouldn't require any ISO noise removal unless a major enlargement cropping is done on the image.
You shouldn't have to go much above 1/1250 sec shutter speed to get motion blur free images of the kind of birds you've been shooting. For that ISO 400 should suffice even if you stop the lens down to f/8.
When noise is present I use the Neat Image software to get rid of it.
PetKal wrote:
If anything, 50D should have a bit less ISO noise than 1D MkII (N).
Generally, up to and including ISO 800 one shouldn't require any ISO noise removal unless a major enlargement cropping is done on the image.
You shouldn't have to go much above 1/1250 sec shutter speed to get motion blur free images of the kind of birds you've been shooting. For that ISO 400 should suffice even if you stop the lens down to f/8.
When noise is present I use the Neat Image software to get rid of it.
Conrad Tan wrote:
I haven't tired looking for wildlife yet in CC County but I suppose there's San Pablo reservoir where I hear there's a couple bald eagles and Mt. Diablo State Park I hear there are plenty of raptors. I'll be looking to shoot there this summer!
I don't think it offers anymore opportunities then from where your at in the bay area. I did not start photography there so I really can't tell you though. I was a birder there though and I can tell you there are some hard to see birds in the bay area on Mt. Diablo in Spring, particularly on the Mitchell Canyon Trail. Some of these birds are: 3 empidonax flycatchers, Ash-throated flycatcher, Olive-sided flycatcher, Hermit, Townsends, MacGillivrays, Black-throated Grey Warbler. There is a place if you google it on Mt. Diablo where you are pretty much gauranteed to find Sage Sparrow and Black-chinned Sparrow also kind of scarce in your part of the bay area. The wild flowers and other things are pretty cool as well with one the mt. diablo globe lilley being found only on Mt. D!
You also might want to google Bethel Island Birds. There is a road (sorry don't remember name) that dead ends on a delta and some prime habitat for Black-chinned Hummingbird, Blue Grosbeak and Yellow-breasted Chat not too mention a myriad of other birds and wildlife!
You ever go to the little lakes in Golden Gate Park? Those should be awesome in Winter for getting amazing closeups of ducks that are usually pretty skittish and pretty far out into the bay such as: Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Wood duck, Boneparts Gull, etc.
Anyway keep up the good work! Enjoy the bay area! Wish I could be!
PetKal wrote:
Right.....are we falling into the "PP fixes it all" trap here ?
Let me just preface this with: I think your work is outstanding!
I guess I don't understand. You always have to do a little PP if your shooting raw. Sharpness, Contrast, selective noise reduction (sharpness for sure since there is a filter in front of the sensor that softens the photo automatically). It only takes 5 seconds more to apply the shadow/highlight tool to maybe recover a photo that was not necessarily a perfect spot on exposure.
Conrad Tan wrote:
@ Petkal:
nice SIF! Let me ask you, why are other's photos so free of noise and yet so sharp? If I use ISO of any less than 800 my shots are just too blurry. the trado off is my noise a$$ photos which noise removal takes out the detail way too much in! Is it my 50D? Should I replace it with the 1DII or 1DIII? Seems like the photos from those cameras like Wing's and Noelle's are so sharp and noise free.
No 1D.anything here, you may have confused my "dreaming about...the 1D". I shoot the lowly, less than a year old, 40D . My thing is to expose to the right and pp down if necessary. Alot of sharpness comes from the lens, pp will enhance it but too much pp sharpening will kill your shot and add noise.
wing tong wrote:
No 1D.anything here, you may have confused my "dreaming about...the 1D". I shoot the lowly, less than a year old, 40D . My thing is to expose to the right and pp down if necessary. Alot of sharpness comes from the lens, pp will enhance it but too much pp sharpening will kill your shot and add noise.
My lenses are pretty sharp. All of them! It's the missed shots I guess I am whining about. Although, I've been shooting mostly in really bad light (harsh afternoon and dim early evening) which does not help either.
noelle wrote:
Conrad, it's the camera..... I had it on a tripod and focused on the Swallow house and just kept firing away when the birds were fluttering around it.
If I were trying to get him just flying around that would be tough!! Those little birds are fast and skittish.
A Tripod?!? I never thought of that. I guess I need to use a tripod. I actually don't have a good one. Just a plastic $20 dollar one I never use! I see so many use one when I'm out I suppose that's the key to getting the best shots.
PetKal wrote:
If anything, 50D should have a bit less ISO noise than 1D MkII (N).
Generally, up to and including ISO 800 one shouldn't require any ISO noise removal unless a major enlargement cropping is done on the image.
You shouldn't have to go much above 1/1250 sec shutter speed to get motion blur free images of the kind of birds you've been shooting. For that ISO 400 should suffice even if you stop the lens down to f/8.
When noise is present I use the Neat Image software to get rid of it.
I am still resisting using Tv mode! Haha! I'll try that list of 1/1250 at ISO of at most 400 and only in the best light possible WITH a tripod and we'll see if these get any better! Thanks Peter.
chupacabra31 wrote:
I don't think it offers anymore opportunities then from where your at in the bay area. I did not start photography there so I really can't tell you though. I was a birder there though and I can tell you there are some hard to see birds in the bay area on Mt. Diablo in Spring, particularly on the Mitchell Canyon Trail. Some of these birds are: 3 empidonax flycatchers, Ash-throated flycatcher, Olive-sided flycatcher, Hermit, Townsends, MacGillivrays, Black-throated Grey Warbler. There is a place if you google it on Mt. Diablo where you are pretty much gauranteed to find Sage Sparrow and Black-chinned Sparrow also kind of scarce in your part of the bay area. The wild flowers and other things are pretty cool as well with one the mt. diablo globe lilley being found only on Mt. D!
You also might want to google Bethel Island Birds. There is a road (sorry don't remember name) that dead ends on a delta and some prime habitat for Black-chinned Hummingbird, Blue Grosbeak and Yellow-breasted Chat not too mention a myriad of other birds and wildlife!
You ever go to the little lakes in Golden Gate Park? Those should be awesome in Winter for getting amazing closeups of ducks that are usually pretty skittish and pretty far out into the bay such as: Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Wood duck, Boneparts Gull, etc.
Anyway keep up the good work! Enjoy the bay area! Wish I could be!...Show more →
Wow, I've got lots of places to try out now! I am in Benicia on the weekends and there are lots of birds in and around the marshes up towards the delta as well. But the smaller birds I would like to try to find too! Thanks for the tip!
chupacabra31 wrote:
Let me just preface this with: I think your work is outstanding!
I guess I don't understand. You always have to do a little PP if your shooting raw. Sharpness, Contrast, selective noise reduction (sharpness for sure since there is a filter in front of the sensor that softens the photo automatically). It only takes 5 seconds more to apply the shadow/highlight tool to maybe recover a photo that was not necessarily a perfect spot on exposure.
Thank you, Chupacabra.
I personally don't mind PP at all as long as I am not using it......
* as a crutch by taking the emphasis away from developing/improving my photographic skill, and
* to distort/falsify the reality photographed.
However, obviously different people have different ideas on how photography and computer graphics interact and blend with each other.
Conrad Tan wrote:
So you like egrets huh? Here's a few for you!
Conrad, the first egret is really well done.....exposure, framing, focus and capture in genuine flight. In PP you could play with levels/curves a bit in order to make it stand out better and gets a bit more uniformly lit. You could also ligten up the background just a wee bit so the contrast relative to the bird is not so stark.
