JimBart Loc: Western Michigan

I took a walk in the local preserve today and took a few bird shots. Although they are not the best they will have to do as the day was cold and grey skies. What am I doing wrong........Something seems to be lacking
Blue skies are forecast for the weekend
Thanks for the help

Snowy egret looking for lunch

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Blue Heron thinking I just missed lunch

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Wild grapes

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Another bunch

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Osprey mama coming home

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I'm outta here

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I think Ill sit awhile

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White pelican coming in for a landing

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Snowy egrets looking for lunch

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revhen Loc: By the beautiful Hudson

Nothing

Mark Sturtevant Loc: Grand Blanc, MI

I think these are good. But I suppose 'better' would be photos in sunrise and sunset lighting. A longer lens / more cropping to pull in more of the single birds? The ospreys might have had a better pose just before or after these frames were taken. I'm just guessing, really.

1Feathercrest Loc: NEPA

I like (very much) every one of those captures!

waltnetto Loc: LaVerne, CA

Agreed!

Note: Photographers are often their worst (best) critics!

photoman022 Loc: Manchester CT USA

I think I would crop the first two photos to show more bird and less surroundings. I think the second photo has too much empty space (background) above the bird.

letmedance Loc: Walnut, Ca.

Really nice photos, the only tip i can provide is to use spot metering when you shoot those darn Egrets, almost any setting Egrets will always get over exposed and has no feather detail. As far as composition that is not game so no comment.

Merry Christmas

TheShoe Loc: Lacey, WA

I think the first may be an overexposed Great Egret. There is very little detail in the feathers. It would probably be necessary top use spot metering to get detail when so little of the frame is occupied by the white subject. There also appear to be focus or DOF issues with that picture. F7.1 is not that far below wide open (F5.6) at that zoom setting.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

Here's a quick list of actionable ideas:

1, The focus on most of these images is soft. Take the first image, where was the AF set? It's not on the bird's eye, nor anyplace else in the image I could find. Solution: use a single AF point set on the bird's eye. Use the AF-C setting on the D7100 and shoot in short 3- to 5-image bursts.

2, Better wildlife photography has the animal looking at the camera, or at least in the direction of the camera. Images that fail this composition rule are better deleted than edited.

3, The first image, and probably all, are using an uncalibrated colorspace rather than sRGB. This impacts them in a negative way when viewed / shared online. Update your workflow to output sRGB images.

4, The first image is blow-out for the whites of the bird. Either do a better job of recovering the highlights in editing, if possible, or lower your exposure to not lose the feather details. Your test images should have shown a blinking over-exposed bird, telling you to adjust your exposure parameters before seeking to capture keeper images.

5, Try to find a shooting position where you're at eye level or looking up at the animals, not these from-above shots.

6, The longest focal length I could find was 300mm on a 1.5x crop. You're probably too far from these wildlife subjects for this lens to be (more) successful.

7, Don't get discouraged. Look critically at your image results, research what worked / failed and implement corrective actions, such as the points above and those identified in other actionable responses.

Wallen Loc: Middle Earth

Nature photos lean more to luck than getting things the way we wanted it, unless we make the great effort of setting up the shot like using feeders & blinds.

For a general walkabout shoot, here's some stuffs to consider:

1. Know your quarry, so you can somewhat predict what it is going to do and set up an ambush shot(pre planned composition) accordingly.
2. Try to get in the same level. Shooting up or shooting down usually do not make for a good composition because we are used to seeing them that way, so it does not make for a special looking shot.
3. Avoid clutter. Strive to make the subject a hero and everything else in the frame supporting it. Think how the scene would look as a silhouette.
4. Shooting from the windward side so you point the camera downwind. Birds generally fly or perch looking into the wind. This means getting face or side photos instead of tails.
5. Use the lowest f-number you can unless you want to include the background.
6. Focus on focus! Always try to focus on the eyes, or keep in mind what you want to hero and focus on that.
7. If it is moving, give some room for cropping. If it is still, then shoot to final composition. Move closer if needed.
8. Shoot as much as you can, use multiple exposure mode. Don't be a sniper unless you have reached proficiency.
9. Chimp whenever possible. Outdoors, lighting can change by the second. Adapt & adjust
10. Plan ahead, imagine the shot and give it time.
11. Use the longest & fastest lens you can hand hold. Reach is king and light is queen when it comes to wildlife photography. Comfort, control, mobility & smooth operation are your aces.
12. Study your captures and others, and try to figure out where it can be improved. Repeat the shoot and study it again. Sometimes it takes multiple tries or days to get one good perfect shot.

I use this list as my own guide in getting the shot i want. It is not complete by far or perfect, but IMHO, a good base to build upon.

Good luck and may you always have brightlight and smiles.

Earnest Botello Loc: Hockley, Texas

They all look good to me, Jim.

J-SPEIGHT Loc: Akron, Ohio

Nice set.

ORpilot Loc: Prineville, Or

The 1st photo is a bit overexposed. It takes lots of shots to get that one that is really nice. Be aware of DOF with your berry shot. Shoot, shoot, shoot, and keep shooting until you get the one you like. Change things up if you don't like the results. I shoot in "P" mode so I can change up Shutter speed, F-stop, and exposure compensation. I don't worry about high ISO with birds and animals. Landscapes and still life is where I use a tripod and low ISO. Wallen has lots of good tips.

bwana Loc: Bergen, Alberta, Canada

Basically they're all pretty decent.

I find them to be a little soft in focus.

I also think something is a little off in color; leaning too far to the red.

bwa

GAH1944 Loc: SW Mich.

Great pic of the Blue Heron but get rid of most of the "mud flat" behind the Heron----just a thought ???---