I have owned both models of the 80-400 (and would today use only the newer version) and have rented the 200-500. Both have advantages and disadvantages. I think the 200-500 was a bit sharper and gave me some more distance - but occasionally a bird would be too close for the 200 end. The 80-400 matched up with what I do somewhat better. In the end, both gave me a lot of enjoyment. And in the end, the quality of the images produced depended more on me than the hardware.
Mike
Agree with Northern rough-winged. These are tan on the throat and have rather uniform coloration below; Bank swallows would be whiter on the throat and belly with a dark breast band. All that is hard for me to see in life, easier in photos.
Nice images!
Very nice. I especially liked the heron.
Mike
I'm surprised this happened with the MPIX system. When I have ordered from them, there are several steps at which you can check crops and the final image structure.
You can review your orders in the MPIX system. It would be interesting to see if the tail is cropped in the order.
Thanks! Used Nikons for years and never used the ? button.
Very nice. Now you have to make another trip there to photograph the birds when it's open. That's a fabulous place to photograph some birds you won't see near Kalispel.
Mike
The eBird range map shows them broadly distributed in the continental US
https://ebird.org/map/blugrb1 They've been in Central California for a few weeks.
Mike
Beautifully done. The contrasts in the wet fur are difficult to do well.
Mike
A tremendous collection - thanks!
Mike
A nice day in the Park!
The exhibit is fabulous.
Thank you for the post. We stopped there a few years ago and it was a profound experience. Not enough people who are traveling on Highway 395 up and down the East side of the Sierra Nevada take the time to stop and learn our history's details. Since our visit I've encouraged many people to make the visit - especially young people.
Another major internment center was at the other end of California, in the far North at Tulelake. Visiting there isn't as easy as at Manzanar, and the facilities aren't in the same condition, but it is possible.