Christmas Eve birds

[Tom Hook]

Here are some birds that I photographed this afternoon from the second floor window of our house. They are the usual winter birds, buit I never tire of taking their pictures. The Red-bellied Woodpecker (#3) was taken through a window so is not as sharp (I liked the pose so I included it).

Merry Christmas to all.

[Akira]

Cuteness index at maximum!  Happy holidays, Tom!

[Bill De Jager]

I particularly like the last one.  Focus is tough for these kinds of shots and this one is the sharpest, plus the bird provided an excellent pose.  What lens did you use?

[Tom Hook]

Thanks Akira and Bill for commenting.

Akira, these birds are cute and all but the Red-bellied are small and cute.

Bill, I used a 400 2.8 G with an 810. I take your point about focus. I noticed that too and was one of the reasons I posted them to garner just such comments as yours.

With the 800, I had far less difficulty acquiring focus with this lens than with the 810. I don't know exactly why. With the 800 I would shoot the eye and get acceptable focus on these little birds. Now I miss more often and hopefully that has not lowered my standards. Maybe the camera needs calibrating with the lens or maybe I just need more practice!

The 810 has been a sea change for me both for hardware considerations and software as I am learning new software because Capture NX-2 no longer works. I'm good with that, a rigorous challenge is always fun.

[Jakov Minić]

Merry Christmas, Tom!
My neighborhood offers only sea gulls and pigeons, lucky you!

[Tom Hook]

Merry Christmas, Tom!
My neighborhood offers only sea gulls and pigeons, lucky you!

And a Merry Christmas to you Jakov!

I've seen 107 different species of birds in our yard over the years. If I were lucky enough to be near the water, it would be much higher. I'll bet if you kept your eyes peeled, you would see all sorts of birds. When I lived in New York City, the parks in the spring would be alive with a multitude of migrants passing through.

[Bill De Jager]

Thanks, Tom.  I have an earlier version (D vs. G) with a different optical formula.  I haven't tried yet to shoot smaller birds; I might try it with a TC-14E on a D7200 to get more reach.

[Tom Hook]

Thanks, Tom.  I have an earlier version (D vs. G) with a different optical formula.  I haven't tried yet to shoot smaller birds; I might try it with a TC-14E on a D7200 to get more reach.

The 400 2.8 is far and away my favorite lens. When it gets the picture right, it is so right! It has two drawbacks - it's too heavy and it's getting a bit long in the tooth (as is its owner...) and there are worries about something breaking. It works very well with a 1.4 teleconverter on a full frame body but never tried it with a cropped body.

Smaller birds (i.e. less than six or so inches long) are really only manageable for me when they stay perched or proximate to that perch. Once aloft, it's a crapshoot. I wish I could fly and go up to the treetops and shoot warblers in the spring - maybe in the next lifetime.

Now, to master the D810 or at least manage it better.

And then there's the software. I could go on but might lose my sense of place (and the reader's attention) in this rambling post.

[elsa hoffmann]

Tom these are sooooo beautiful. Thanks for sharing.
I dont know how you manage with only a 400 - especially on the little ones!
So double well done.

[Tom Hook]

Thanks Elsa. I have been admiring your Kingfishers and you seem to get very sharp images with the 200-500. When I can no longer manage the 400 that would seem to be a very good option.

One way to get pictures of little birds is to shoot out our second floor window with our bird feeders just below. It's almost cheating in a way but it works for me!

[elsa hoffmann]

Tom - what I find works - is to get the birds come to you. Especially the little ones - and you did just that. We built a new perch and it worked (until the perch collapsed when a huge cormorant decided it works for him as well - so we will re-build today)

As you know - I am a real 200-500 Evangelist. The day they release Version II - (and they will) I will buy it. I really do like what I get and it is affordable.