What am I doing wrong?

[ChowChi-Ching]

Here are three pictures I took of birds on my tree but for some reason I just can't seem to get a good clear crisp picture like I see most of you all post on here.... I am kind of getting frustrated. I cannot figure out what I am doing wrong. They are all cropped but not by alot(except the first one).... They were pretty high up in the tree....

Shot with a Nikon D70s... 70-300mm
exif info:
Bird 1:
ISO: 640
Shutter: 1/2000
Aperture: F5.6

Bird 2:
ISO: 640
Shutter: 1/2500
Aperture: F6.3
Length: 300mm

Bird 3:
ISO: 640
Shutter: 1/2000
Aperture: F5.6
Length: 300mm

[Grandpaw]

Below is the address for the Nikon Digitutor for the D70 and how it focuses. I think you need to be on single area focus and make sure the point of focus is on the bird and you will find that will give you much better results. The point of focus can be moved around within the frame so that it is only on the bird, Jeff

http://www.nikondigitutor.com/eng/d7...&sub=b08&num=1


Use the multi selector button on the rear of the camera to move the focus point around so it will be on the bird. Look here to see where the multi selection button is located. Click on the BACK tab at the bottom then put your pointer over the multi selection and it will show you the button.

http://www.nikondigitutor.com/eng/d7...&sub=b01&num=1

[ChowChi-Ching]

Thanks so much! I was having a hard time with the focus because it would move constantly and manual focus is something I have to get better at, I am just too slow with it with the birds..... I will try that now and see if I can get better results..... Was the rest of my settings okay?

[Dylan8i]

you may want to try to hit f8.0 thats usually the sharpest f stop on lenses, although you could experiment with YOUR lense to make sure.

[ChowChi-Ching]

thanks, I will try that!

By the way, anyone know what kind of birds these are?

[Grandpaw]

I would try and set the ISO lower. you don't need need 640 to get shutter of 1/2000sec when the subject is setting still, Jeff

[Loupey]

To expand on the great tips you've already received so far...

1) appears you're shooting wide-open or nearly so. Even with primes I try to stop down 1 full stop to achieve the best resolution. With my 70-200mm f/2.8, I try to shoot stopped down 2 stops.

2) in bright, mid-day sun, I shoot ISO 400 in order to use 1/1500s at f/5.6 with my 500mm or 1/350s~1/500s at f/11 with my 300mm+2x.


Definitely work on your manual focusing skills. It is far easier to pick a specific spot on an animal on which to focus manually, rather than using using one mode, pushing that button, hitting this thingy, moving that... a fraction of second will cost you many shots.

[mn shutterbug]

Also, try and focus on the eye of the bird. This is the area that draws the viewer in. If the eye is sharp and the DOF isn't too narrow, the rest of the bird will look good.

BTW, I believe your sensor needs cleaning.

[mjs1973]

By the way, anyone know what kind of birds these are?

They look like house finches to me. The male is the one with the red on it.

[AgingEyes]

I would try and set the ISO lower. you don't need need 640 to get shutter of 1/2000sec when the subject is setting still, Jeff

But birds move their heads pretty much all the time.

[ChowChi-Ching]

Thanks everyone...... I am going to play some more and see if I can get some better shots! I appreciate all the help! And if you have any more advice, feel free to tell me! lol

[mn shutterbug]

But birds move their heads pretty much all the time.

They don't move their heads that fast.

[AgingEyes]

They don't move their heads that fast.

Well, probably not need to have 1/2000 sec. But it's stiff saver to have a fast shutter speed instead of say 1/30 sec. even though they're perching there like doing nothing.

[Dylan8i]

another thing your lense may not have the IQ (image quality) that the more expensive lenses have, ones like loupy and Canon bob are shooting.

i just realized how bad my 18-135 is after using the same techniques etc as my macro lense and getting really bad results (after zooming in to 1:1 ratio).

someone that knows more about lenses may be able to say how much you can improve.

[AgingEyes]

another thing your lense may not have the IQ (image quality) that the more expensive lenses have, ones like loupy and Canon bob are shooting.

i just realized how bad my 18-135 is after using the same techniques etc as my macro lense and getting really bad results (after zooming in to 1:1 ratio).

someone that knows more about lenses may be able to say how much you can improve.

If Chow was using 70-300 f4.5-5.6 VR, then, shooting at 300mm, Chow should have stopped down to f8 or f11 to get better result. Afterwards, do some post-processing enhancement should help, too (assuming Chow is not against post-processing). 70-300 VR is optically very good for its price.

[Dylan8i]

70-300 VR is optically very good for its price.

beignn very good for its price, and being as good as the bird shots he sees on here are competely different though. with the tips already given he can prob get alot closer to what he wants. but you can only get as good as the lense will give you.

was just pointing out that may be another cause of the unsharpness in his pics.

[AgingEyes]

beignn very good for its price, and being as good as the bird shots he sees on here are competely different though. with the tips already given he can prob get alot closer to what he wants. but you can only get as good as the lense will give you.

was just pointing out that may be another cause of the unsharpness in his pics.

Sure. But since you brought up the question of the lens, I was simply trying to say the results could still be better than they are now if Chow used it differently. It's a known fact that the long end of that 70-300 VR is soft until it stops down a couple of stop. That's what I was trying to say since, as posted above, Chow was using f5.6 and that's part of the reason for that softness.

Didn't mean to hijack this thread but just want to illustrate my point about the quality of 70-300 VR, esp on using f5.6 and stopping down more. Here's a shot I took with that lens with f11 ISO 1600 on tripod:

[victorhuang20]

so practically speaking the sweet spot on most lenses is f/8? interesting...

[Canon_Bob]

Grandpaw's advice is spot-on.

Don't over-complicate things. Use a single focusing point when possible. In all your images above, there are foreground objects that will interfere with pattern focusing. Bring yor ISO down to 200 or below, and try to leave it there. I have one of the best camera's around for high ISO work, and I still shoot at 200 most of the time. Shooting at slower speeds is fine as long as you have a good support system (tripod). When I say slower speeds, I'm not referring to speeds below 1/100th of a sec. You definitely don't need to shoot at 1/2500th to get sharp images. Common sense obviously applies...if you're shooting flight shots, you need to be faster. I typically shoot flight at 1/1200th or faster (depending on the lens).

When it comes to exposure control, keep it simple. let your histogram tell you what's right. Every single camera is different, so use the histogram on YOUR camera, and not someone else's exposure methods. I've shot side-by-side with many pro Nikonians, and there is regularly as much as a 2/3 stop difference in our cameras for the same light/subject! Same rule applies to my two Canon bodies. The Nikon histogram has 4 sections (vertical sections) on it. Try to get some data to just creep into that fourth section. that's it! It's really that simple! Don't worry about where the peaks are. Just worry about getting some data barely into the fourth section, but not any to the far right side. If you go too far, you over-expose.

The last thing I'll point out is that you need to clean your sensor. You have several dust spots on there. See your manual for instructions. Welcome to the forum!

[ChowChi-Ching]

Thanks very much! I know the dust is a problem we live by wheat fields so it is a constant issue.....(any ways on helping that?) You have given me some very good tips! I was hoping to get some birds today but it rained and they all hid most of the day... hopefully tomorrow! Interesting info on the lens......
I am anxious to get out there tomorrow! Thanks again so much... I will post if I get better results!
Oh, and just a fyi, I am a girl ;)

[Loupey]

so practically speaking the sweet spot on most lenses is f/8? interesting...

I wouldn't say that exactly. I would generalize and say that the optimal sharpness for most lenses starts at between 2 and 3 stops down from wide open.

Interestingly, some highly regarded lenses didn't even fit this generalization. I had the Canon 50mm f/1.4 and 28mm f/1.8 lenses and both were too soft for me until about f/5.6! Sold them off. The 85mm f/1.8 is similarly poor performing (on the open end) but I kept it in case I need a low-light portrait lenses (like that is ever going to happen) or for shallow DOF work.

[Loupey]

ChowChi-Ching, you may not have heard me preaching the manual focus bit before (others are rolling their eyes, again), but I can't stress how important this skill is to have under your belt.

I MF everything I post in this forum. You may find it interesting that 50%~75% of the shots I delete immediately are because the focus is off a fraction on an inch. I KNOW that auto-focus can't possibly know which fraction of an inch I'm looking for. Even bird shots at 30' or bug shots at 4' require the focus to be dead-on (and, yes, typically on the eyes). If the wind is blowing and the bird is close, it may take a dozen or more shots to get one shot where the focus and action both coincide.

Although you can't often tell at the resolutions shown here, in most of my shots the eyes are in focus but the bill is typically OOF as is the neck - the precision necessary is that tight. I would like to use deeper DOF sometimes but in the compromise between IQ (lower ISO, higher shutter speeds) and DOF, I almost ALWAYS pick IQ.

[ChowChi-Ching]

I will definitely work on my manual focusing... I know I get lazy about doing it, but I would like to know it.... I do need to get to know my camera better anyway! Thanks alot!