I would suggest a sturdy tripod, and a gimbal head

Cancer.
I had a cancerous kidney cut out. I just sat down for a year after, and felt sorry for myself. I knew I had to find something to do, a hobby.
I decided to try photography. I found a good deal for a Canon 10D, on craigs list.
The rest is history.
I now have a 1Ds, a 1Ds Mark lll, and a 1D mark lll. 4, L lenses covering a 24-300 mm range, a F/1.4 50 mm, and the new model, Tamron 90 mm Macro lens, that should be here any day now.
I am cancer free, although, my back is shot. I can't sit behind my drums, and play 3 hours a night in a band anymore. I am glad I found photography, for a artistic release.

1D Mark lll and a the 300 mm L. Both hand held. the elk was maybe 150 feet away. the Eagle maybe 100 feet away. I paid 550 dollars for it off of ebay.

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I own both, this was taken this summer, in Estes Park Colorado. A 1Ds and a non IS 300 mm L. Probably 200 yards away. Hand held. Straight out of the camera

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I bought a 300 mm L - non IS that is tack sharp, from ebay for 500.00

You get what you pay for. Check craigs list in your area for a used lens.

Made me laugh

Anderson's Farm. Erie, Colorado.
For some reason the download pictured is sharper. At least it is on my monitor.

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I have a gimbal on a tripod and a ball head on a monopod. It works for me.

Good for you

cool shots. A little oversaturated. Try using more vibrancy instead. I have learned to lower saturation and increase the vibe. It pops the mid tones, with out affecting ever pixel in the shot.

Barb, go offline. Turn off your phone. Quit your job, buy a tepee, and head for the hills. Close your bank account. Live free.
You do know that the water that is used to cool the servers, is in a closed system [pipes] and is used over and over.

I was a Union Pipefitter [welder] I made a lot of money, running chill water line to server rooms. It was good clean work.
I have worked on nuclear, coal burning, gas fired, and hydro electric, power plants. The all have a impact on the environment. Some less than others, but the point remains, you cannot have power without a cost.
With Solar, batteries wear out. You have to store the energy. Electric cars? When their batteries go, it costs more than a engine replacement, somewhere in the neighborhood of, 6-8,000 dollars. Not to mention, the batteries themselves are highly toxic. Where do you dispose of them? And of course they do not charge themselves.
We, as a species, are messy, we pollute. I guess if you used a stick to plow and plant food. Relied on rain to water the crops. You would have to eat what you grew raw, because fire produces pollution. Lived where clothing was a option. And never used anything made from metal, plastic or any other man made substance.
It takes electricity to mint and print money, your visa card is plastic, can't use that. you could barter, for goods I guess. Then you could, bitch about the use of un-necessary electric use.
But then again, how would you know if the whining helped. Computers, TV's and smart phones, would be on the no go list. You could make your own ink, paper and pen [a quill] and spread the word. You could always, sit next to your poster and get feedback.
Me, I ain't gonna to complain.

My uncle was a welder at the John Deere factory. These brought a smile, to me. Thanks. One of bit advice though. Try using the vibrancy slider more than the saturation. Vibe pops the midtones, instead of the whole spectrum. It looks more natural.

Take a picture in auto. Look at where your camera decided to set it's self. Switch to manual, set it the same. You now have a reference point. Make your adjustments from there. It is not rocket science, and not scary. You may tank a couple of shots, but that's how you learn.