Optical glass? I have my desk in front of a double window that looks out at the garden and porch. Birds do not mind me when they come to bird feeders hanging there--unless I come...

Charles 46277 Loc: Fulton County, KY

I have my desk in front of a double window that looks out at the garden and porch. Birds do not mind me when they come to bird feeders hanging there--unless I come outside.

Is there a kind of glass or plastic that I could use (replace one pane, perhaps) that is best for this sort of thing? I believe part of the reason they ignore me is that from the outside, they see glass and its reflections, and disregard what is behind in the dimmer light. If I removed the glass, opened it, or cut a hole in it, they would see right away that I am right there. Also the shutter might spook them unless the mirror is locked up.

Perhaps a very large skylight filter could be mounted on a hole cut in the glass, if there are no room lights turned on to make reflections on the inside. But wait--how many shots of birds do I really need?

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

Charles, even if there was an easy solution, you'd have to photograph through the glass such that the axis of the lens was perpendicular to the glass. Any variation of that would most likely cause aberrations of the light passing through the glass.
--Bob

Charles 46277 wrote:

I have my desk in front of a double window that lo... (show quote)

nadelewitz Loc: Ithaca NY

Charles 46277 wrote:

I have my desk in front of a double window that lo... (show quote)

You don't say what the problem is you want to "fix". Do you want the birds to see you, or not? Right now it's "not", and you can shoot them all you want. So what's wrong?

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

nadelewitz wrote:

You don't say what the problem is you want to "fix". Do you want the birds to see you, or not? Right now it's "not", and you can shoot them all you want. So what's wrong?

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

Charles 46277 wrote:

I have my desk in front of a double window that lo... (show quote)

If the weather is good you could try just opening the window.

Bill_de Loc: US

I shoot a lot from my garage. When I first put the feeder out it took a while for the birds to show up. After a while they were unconcerned with me at my workbench right at the window. I tried opening the window and the birds steered clear for a while, even if I wasn't in the garage. Now I stand at the workbench, window open, and many of the birds ignore me. If you feed them regularly food will overcome fear.

If you can't open the window, maybe rig a removeable pane?

---

Shellback Loc: North of Cheyenne Bottoms Wetlands - Kansas

The use of 2 way mirrors in outdoor photography is common in Europe - Bench Mates Hides is an example of the pictures that can be captured...

There are various types that can be obtained which are explained here

Hope this helps...

Charles 46277 Loc: Fulton County, KY

rmalarz wrote:

Charles, even if there was an easy solution, you'd have to photograph through the glass such that the axis of the lens was perpendicular to the glass. Any variation of that would most likely cause aberrations of the light passing through the glass.
--Bob

I noticed Adorama sells sheets of large format UV glass--over $350 each. There are sheets of UV gel material you can cut to size, pretty cheap. I wonder if gels distort at an angle? Probably not?

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Charles 46277 wrote:

I have my desk in front of a double window that lo... (show quote)

OK, couple of ideas, if your window is double hung, raise your lower window up, replace it with a white poster board with a hole for your camera, I would strongly suggest using a tripod but they may mean moving the desk. I would do this at night and the birds will then not notice the switch the following morning. I would use white because it would reflect light back at the birds and help with lighting.

ELNikkor

I have the same dilemma, and often, it is too cold to open the window. Probably cheapest solution is to remove the pane, take it to a glass cutter and have a section cut out of it. Create your own little door which can be closed when not shooting, but open inward to accommodate your lens for shooting. A sleeve from door to lens could also be fashioned if too much cold air still comes in the little door.

agillot

clean the window , and use a polarizer to eliminate reflection from glass .

Dikdik Loc: Winnipeg, Canada

Charles 46277 wrote:

Is there a kind of glass or plastic that I could use (replace one pane, perhaps) that is best for this sort of thing?

Good quality float glass should not be an issue. I have an old 'flat to the wall' with 'double diamond' glass panels on the door. These have noticeable 'bubbles' and ripples. Good quality glass is pretty flat and shouldn't distort the image noticeably. Also with the greater light source on the 'back' surface, reflection shouldn't be much of a problem.

You may not have to do anything.

Dik

Charles 46277 Loc: Fulton County, KY

agillot wrote:

clean the window , and use a polarizer to eliminate reflection from glass .

Yes, that is certainly a start.

Charles 46277 Loc: Fulton County, KY

Dikdik wrote:

Good quality float glass should not be an issue. I have an old 'flat to the wall' with 'double diamond' glass panels on the door. These have noticeable 'bubbles' and ripples. Good quality glass is pretty flat and shouldn't distort the image noticeably. Also with the greater light source on the 'back' surface, reflection shouldn't be much of a problem.

You may not have to do anything.

Dik

OK--but does glass itself affect autofocus? I think usually it does not affect it much?

Dikdik Loc: Winnipeg, Canada

Charles 46277 wrote:

OK--but does glass itself affect autofocus? I think usually it does not affect it much?

Not that I've noticed... maybe if it's in need of a cleaning.

Dik