This was not the shot I had hoped to post today. Here is a brief lesson in what not to do. I carried stool and tripod into garden, went back to house for camera and placed it on tripod. Back into house for my cup of coffee, quite organised today, out of back door and a flock of Longtailed Tits were flitting about on the feeders next to house, taking no notice of how close I was. Rush down to camera, put cup down, get camera off tripod and back up to house. Birds still there, I knew the settings on camera were wrong, so switched it from B&W, adjusted ISO to a more appropriate setting, looked through viewfinder and birds had gone. They had gone to the feeders further down, nearer the tripod. Walked down slowly, got close, focused and then discovered the 2 second delay on the shutter was set. Switched that to high speed and tried again. Today the Longtailed Tits were happy to pose, I took a load of shots, getting closer and closer all the time till I reached the limit of focusing on the lens. Got some amazing close ups, then they all flew off. I switched camera to viewing mode and saw the message NO MEMORY CARD !!!! No photos.
Happily the Blue Tits decided to be good as well once I had put a SD card in. Think he might be smiling that it is his turn to be the star today.
A gorgeous shot and a reminder to reset camera to "it can shoot just about anything" mode at the end of each session... come to think of it... have I done mine yet?
Instant Fav! Love the coloring, the tiny feet gripping the branch, the natural framing set up by the branches, the bokeh effect of the background, the blue of the sky. Very nice!
I am full of admiration for your bird photography since I tried to take shots of blue tits myself today - I find it nearly impossible to get a sharp shot.
I love this shot! It's a shame about the full SD card, hopefully they'll be back soon. Love the character you've caught in this little guy, it does look like he is posing for you :)
@steampowered Thank you Paul, yes I know that is what you should do, but very often leave it on the wrong settings, but normally remember to change it before I try and re-use it.
@night_nurse Thank you very Cindy for your comments and Fav.
@dh Thank you very much Delena, yes they can be very frustrating. They flit around all over the place never staying still long enough to properly focus on. I have got a couple of hints for you, if you want to have another go. Turn up the ISO a bit to get a faster shutter speed, try maybe 320 or 400, if you go too high you will get more grainy shots. If they are coming to your feeders, watch them, they very often use the same perch to land on before they go on to the feeder. If there are twigs or branches that obstruct your view maybe a little judicious pruning to make it a little more open,but not too much as they like the cover. Another idea is to provide them with a natural looking perch near the feeders and were you can get a nice POV. Try putting peanuts on the perch or rub suet into it to encourage them to use it and sit there to feed.
Also if you have the time, get in the garden, get them used to you, and they will quite often begin to ignore you offering more chances to get in close. Good luck.
Oh Mark - sorry to say I chuckled too...! I know that experience3 so well... the number of times I have turned my camera on to capture something quickly to find it has a ten-second delay... or dark exposure set... or no memory card (aaaaargh)...!! But what a cracking shot you got in the end, the birds were perhaps enjoying the show :) fav
@filsie65 Thank you Phil, and thanks for the fav. Best of it is I have got spare battery and cards and still manage to into the garden with something missing, not gone a long way without vital bits, yet ! I am sure I will one day. Lol.
January 11th, 2014
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@steampowered Thank you Paul, yes I know that is what you should do, but very often leave it on the wrong settings, but normally remember to change it before I try and re-use it.
@night_nurse Thank you very Cindy for your comments and Fav.
@dh Thank you very much Delena, yes they can be very frustrating. They flit around all over the place never staying still long enough to properly focus on. I have got a couple of hints for you, if you want to have another go. Turn up the ISO a bit to get a faster shutter speed, try maybe 320 or 400, if you go too high you will get more grainy shots. If they are coming to your feeders, watch them, they very often use the same perch to land on before they go on to the feeder. If there are twigs or branches that obstruct your view maybe a little judicious pruning to make it a little more open,but not too much as they like the cover. Another idea is to provide them with a natural looking perch near the feeders and were you can get a nice POV. Try putting peanuts on the perch or rub suet into it to encourage them to use it and sit there to feed.
Also if you have the time, get in the garden, get them used to you, and they will quite often begin to ignore you offering more chances to get in close. Good luck.