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I ran into a small group of Western Bluebirds a week ago and they let me wander among them as they fed. I shot a lot of frames to try to get an action shot of one of them but they are such quick little birds that it proved very difficult. I think this is my favorite that I took that day, what do you all think?
What technical feedback would you like if any?
Any
What artistic feedback would you like if any?
Any, also what do you think of having the bird to the left of center in the frame? It had been sitting on the branch in the right side of the frame and had flown off. Does the composition convey that?
Pertinent technical details or techniques:
Shot with Fujifilm XT-2, 100-400mm, handheld, f5.6, 1/1600,
(If backgrounds have been removed, etc. please be honest with your techniques to help others learn)
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@scholzj1
Hi Jeremy, I do get a sense of the bird flying off from the green branch on the right. I like the flying pose of the bird with the wings up even though the shadow on the bird doesn’t help the image. Shooting songbirds in flight is really tough and the “experts” do it from set ups to control the situation. That said, to my eye the bird’s head is a bit soft. I’d also look to add more space on the left for the bird to fly into. One other nit are the branches intersecting the bird - nothing you could do about that in the field but may be worth taking out if you wish.
Congratulations on catching this, Jeremy. We’ve had a nesting pair most years since 2008 and I haven’t managed anything that I really like. The wing position and take-off energy are excellent in this. The bird is rather soft, so it looks like the autofocus may not have kept up. I’m not familiar with Fuji’s nomenclature, but you want whatever mode they recommend for action images.
As Allen noted, this is easier from setups where you can control the location of the bird. They’ll often prefocus just to the side of the perch (birds take off and land into the wind, if there is one), then set back with a remote shutter relase and blast away whenever a bird comes near. I have seen some wonderful images taken that way.
Exposure and depth of field look good. I agree with Allen on the need for more room for the bird to fly into.
Keep at it and you’ll nail it sooner or later. For inspiration on this kind of image, check out Kurt Bowman’s posts on the archived old site. He hasn’t posted recently, but he’s a master at this.
Colors are nice, and I like the concept. But everything is pretty soft. These shots are so difficult to get. I’ve never really had much luck. Dennis has some good advice, and Allen’s critique is spot on. I’d add that your shutter speed would have to be much higher to freeze a flying bluebird.
