Welcome Visitor IV. Photo

Photographer’s Note

Hi all. This is one of my most satisfying shots for some time. Firstly because it is one of my first shots with my new camera and was taken under marginal conditions, dark and very flat light. This was hand held at 1/60 second ISO 800 and 400mm lens wide open at F5.6. I can now vouch for the antishake system employed by Sony!
Secondly because this bird is sitting in the top of a tree that I have grown from seed, especially to attract him and his feathered friends. The tree is a Kowhai tree and its flowers are a NZ icon.
This is a Bellbird, native to NZ and though not scarce still fairly elusive. Just a bit larger than a sparrow these birds have a remarkable song that is both beautiful and amazingly loud for such a small bird.
In WS a closer look at the flowers that attract the birds.
Enjoy. Paul.

robertosalguero, sevy, trekks, danos, Photo65Net, jhm, lucasgalodoido, jaywalker, edytungkal, MLINES, Graal, AiresSantos, gracious, Uhu, ktanska, Docarmo, vmf-214, maltese, belido, josepmarin, Cricri, jafadabret, Charo, riclopes, siolaw, axiotea, Didi, pablominto, edal, cfreire, zeca, Angshu, plimrn has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

sevy (13296) 2008-10-09 0:11

Hello Paul,

Always nice to see your nature shots. Here the bird and the tree are well isolated from the background due to the narrow deep of field: it is working well here.

Yves.

robertosalguero (2763) 2008-10-09 0:27

Hi Paul,

The quality of this image is very good. I can see the subject is properly in focus while the blurred background make it even more prominent. Nice colours and sharpness. Tha antishake is an excellent feature eh? Thanks Paul :-)

Roberto

izmirli (3055) 2008-10-09 0:31

merhaba dear paul
excellent macro picture.magnificent colours and lovely little bird.well done.
best regards.
gürkan akçakır.

emka (21179) 2008-10-09 1:11

Hi Paul, Very nice photo with an exotic tree and a bird. Splendid sharpness, it is so difficult to make a bird's shot. Thanks for sharing. Regards

Malgorzata

trekks (14262) 2008-10-09 1:48

hello Paul

Impressive camera performance (not the photographer, haha!) - so I expect this photo to be cataloques in Sony's sales brochure soon? (just kidding)

Congratulations to your new A700 and 400mm lens. So all your Minolta lenses can be used! The telephoto shot is great and sharp. Obviously anti-shake works beautifully here.

I am also tempted to try my new Sigma 50-500mm zoom on birds but unable to get a clear target yet.

Nice macro work. tfs

bill

danos (32228) 2008-10-09 8:12

Hello Paul,
very nice the result of your new camera with the little bird to looks so calmly and waiting to shot it.Excellent the colors of the bird and the flowers of the Kowhai tree in the WS.Well done.

Regards,danos

Photo65Net (43084) 2008-10-09 10:06

Hello Paul,
Nice nature catch.
I like how you managed with DOF... And of course AntiShake is just an amazing tool :o)
Have a nice day,
JB.

Nicou (44553) 2008-10-09 11:21

Hello,

Mangnigiqwue cet oiseau posé sur sa banche, il est de toute beauté, superbe captage au bon moment, mangigique.

Bravo et amitié

Nicou

lucasgalodoido (16583) 2008-10-09 11:55

Olá Paul,
conseguiu um belo flagrante aqui, com ótima nitidez e DOF. Belo trabalho e mãos firmes você tem!
Parabéns e Abraço

jaywalker (12190) 2008-10-09 15:51

Hi Paul, A very beautiful capture of nature at work, the shallow DOF is really excellent & the light is very good indeed despite the problems you were up against, your new camera has worked brilliantly, but its the person behind it that sees the picture, TFS, kind regards Wilson.

edytungkal (4519) 2008-10-09 19:53

You showing an excellent macro shot both pictures and i also like the ws's picture...and congrat for your new alpha...
Thanks Paul for the shots

daniel

testmaniac (12060) 2008-10-09 21:20

Hello Paul, very good shot of this nice bird. More sharpness will be better.

TFS

Phil

UnTrained (0) 2008-10-09 22:14

Hi Paul,
very attractive result with your new camera, congratulations. Well placed in the frame and in that lens wonderful reduced DOF, seems to play good together. I like the moment where the bird seems to decide whether to fly or not.. (Shakespeare?)
Lieben Gruss, Ulf

MLINES (10860) 2008-10-09 22:53

Hi Paul, Wonderful to see a bellbird which is often spoken off but not seen very much. The flowers with bright yellow colours show up well. I agree it is avery fine photo. Handheld 400mm is a big ask, but succeeded well. TFS. Murray.

Graal (57689) 2008-10-09 23:13

Hi Paul,
good shot, fine caught scene and moment. An interesting species of bird. Good DOF and colours. WS ok. also.
Gr., Aleksander

Giorgio (8678) 2008-10-10 0:40

- Excellent Paul, no problem for your new camera, sympathetic close-up with this native pretty bird, it's very successful, bravo!
Have a nice weekend.
giorgio

gracious (20017) 2008-10-10 1:02

Good evening Paul,
Very good shot from your new camera with good result under this sort of light condition!
the image is in good sharpness, good colour and details
many thanks for the sharing
take care and a good weekend, Paul!
cheers
Tony

AiresSantos (41908) 2008-10-10 1:15

Hi Paul
Lovely visitor !
Very good sharpness and POv taking in consideration the 400 mm.
Beautiful contrast between colours and good low DOF
Thanks for sharing and greetings
Aires

giorgimer (21000) 2008-10-10 2:07

Hi Paul,

I like it a lot, good positioning and excellent effect by the blurry BG.

TFS

Gio

jhm (82233) 2008-10-10 2:55

Hello Paul,

Birds are always a extraordinarily subject, where I real like it.
Your blurred background make this picture attractive.
A well balanced composition and beautiful natural area.
TFS.

Best regards,
John.

Uhu (7366) 2008-10-10 3:51

New camera worked great! Nice birdie, Bellbird. Always hard to make a decent photo of them, these small things are moving too fast and too often. Yours photo is great!

ktanska (16524) 2008-10-10 4:22

Hi Paul,
There are not too many bird shots here, and this one is very good. Both the bird and flowering tree have nice colours. Blurry background is not too restless. Calm dark green colourscape.
Kari

Docarmo (8820) 2008-10-10 6:01

Hi Paul,
Excellent focus on this bird and the plant, both native to NZ, as you explain in a very useful note. The "design" of the plant in the principal photo is very interesting, like it was making a camouflage to hid the bird.
Very well done!
MCV

vmf-214 (1622) 2008-10-10 10:07

Hi Paul,

Wonderful capture and like how you focused on the bird and like how you blurred the background so people would not be distracted by it. Great job Paul.

Regards

Jason.

Budapestman (41618) 2008-10-10 11:04

Hi Paul,
Great nature photo. Very much likes the attractive composition. The background blurred behind the bird resting on the branch and not to be top notch what hides. The details are beautiful, the colours are natural. Congratulations. Have a nice weekend!
George

jimkilgallon (0) 2008-10-10 15:28

Hello Paul
Nice shot with your new gear.... perfect aperture to bring out the sharpness of the main subject against the background. The sharpness is very good here as is the natural colours. We have plenty of birds eating the seeds from the flowers in our garden. New Zealand is a haven for all the type of birds that exist here, I particularly enjoy the Tui (the beer aint bad either mind you) in our environment.
Regards
Jim

lightsensor (721) 2008-10-10 22:11

hi, Paul,
i like u saved a big background for this one. it is better way to make this birdy stand out of the background. 400mm on 5.6 with Sony, no doubt Sony proves itself on your photo here! very good catch!

J-P,

Kielia (8387) 2008-10-10 23:02

Hi Paul,
congratulation! Your new camera is working excellently! This is a charming nature shot with excellent sharpness and nice colours! Really very pleasant. TFS and have a nice weekend downunder!
Warm regards
Harriet

maltese (21535) 2008-10-11 14:20

Hello Paul
Une très gestion de la DOF pour bien isoler cet oiseau sur sa branche.
une très belle réalisation technique avec ces superbes couleurs.
Très beau travail!!
Amicalement
Hervé

belido (16331) 2008-10-12 4:31

Hi Paul,

very effective aproximation. Hard to catch those fast animals but you did a great job. The focus is perfect and dof enhanced that feature. Great job!
Regards,
Carlos

josepmarin (33785) 2008-10-12 5:13

Hi Paul,
Your capture is impressive, the adjustments to 1/60s, with ISO 800 and using the 400mm lens, they have given a great result without tripod.
The image is clear, the field depth is very well managed, I like the blurry background, and I think that the high ISO has not created noise.
And I agree in that the image stabilizer of Sony works very well, the proof is this beautiful photo.
Beautiful work.
Friendly regards,
Josep

nels (2455) 2008-10-12 11:47

hello paul, nice shot, so crisp and clear, more so because it is hand held,
regards
adrian
i have just bought a large lense to start to experiment with shots like this if they come out as good as this one i will be well pleased.

Cricri (43030) 2008-10-12 12:32

Hi Paul
Magnifique image, trés belle capture de l'oiseau sur la branche, de jolies couleurs et un bon DOF, bravo
Good evening for you
cricri

MarcT (21093) 2008-10-12 12:43

Hi Paul,
Excellent shot indeed. The result isn't flat at all...
Excellent camera.
Cheers
Marc

fabio_ts (13674) 2008-10-12 23:37

A really nice moment well captured by you with great detail and quality, excellent work Paul, all my compliments!!

Have a nice week,
Fabio.

Clementi (43713) 2008-10-13 0:45

Ciao Paul,
nice shot,a photo from the extraordinary details, perfect the sense of timing.
compliments
Have a nice week end
Giorgio

jafadabret (39417) 2008-10-13 6:22

Hello Paul.
Cette prise est excellente avec cet oiseau et la branche fleurie bien nets alors que le fond est flou. Couleurs et graphisme sont au top.
Jacques

Waylim (10741) 2008-10-13 12:33

Paul,
A very nice close up shot of this cute little bird, a very appropriate image for TN as well. Beuatiful soft blur background contrasting very well the great sharpness of the bird, Good color, good comosition, and good technical quality overall. Thanks
Way

ElAprendiz (7370) 2008-10-13 14:05

Hello Paul:

An exceptional shot, for the beauty of the bird and the naturalness with which he was captured.

Very focused for my taste, but very sharp and appropriate handling of light. It highlights the proper approach and the smoothness of tones.

John

Charo (31665) 2008-10-13 14:17

Hello Paul,
Beautiful photos and wonderful moment captured.
Excellent image with excellent detail and color.
Best regards,
Charo

barrufeto_77 (25705) 2008-10-13 14:56

Hi Paul.

Wowwwwwwwww...what a great moment! The quality is also impressive!!!

My compliments!

Scharan (13951) 2008-10-13 17:20

OLá Paul

Uma delicadeza de composição com cores lindíssimas.
Parabéns!
Grande abraço,
Vera

devimeuxbe (55853) 2008-10-13 23:44

Hi Paul
beautifull capture with a perfect sharpness even you were at 1/60.
Light also is nice.
Well done
Bertrand

riclopes (32967) 2008-10-14 1:12

Very impressive result indeed, Paul. Specially considering the parameters of 1/60s with 400mm. Wonderful details and beautiful contrast with the background. Lovely yellow WS, as well. Congrats.
cheers,
ricardo

John_F_Kennedy (31229) 2008-10-14 2:10

Lovely shot, great pose captured. Beautiful composition and POV.
Best wishes,
Achim

siolaw (25720) 2008-10-14 3:56

Hi Paul,
You managed excellent sharpness at 400 handheld! I just did some at 200 the other day and none was sharp enough! Good DOF too keeping the BG blurred...then the subject itself is interesting, with a nice tree you've planted here!
Greetings
Laurent

Greg1949 (8507) 2008-10-14 4:17

Paul, nice one, I have hundreds of bird shots not worth the posting effort and this one is really great.

Greg

axiotea (16053) 2008-10-14 8:07

Hello Paul
It looks like you are enjoying your new camera ;) and I can understand your satisfaction with this picture for the reasons you mentioned in your note!
The belbird stands out nicely against the blurred BG and I found you handled well the low light condition...I like the natural colors too!
Greetings from north of Thailand
Marilyn

rodgerg (23757) 2008-10-15 1:06

Congratulations dear Paul for this perfect and formidable macro work. The quality of this image is incredible: colours, details, sharpness, composition.
Have a good day,
Roger

Didi (36020) 2008-10-15 10:01

Hi Paul
No chance to see this bird in Europe.
Very nice selective setting with ablur background.
A very interesting picture; the subject is a little bit centered tha's why I have done a WS.
Best regards.

[workshop] [compare]

pablominto (40456) 2008-10-16 1:55

Hello Paul,

You get really fine details here, considering the the circumstances for the capture!
And I agree with you, the VR function has come a long way by now...
The image has lovely colours and a fine feeling of depth!

Greetings,
Pablo -

edal (6567) 2008-10-16 13:19

Hello Paul,
Congratulations for the new camera and for the remarcable close-up. The three photoes are remarcable - Sony colors cannot be mistaken fo others.
Friendly greetings,
Anton

cfreire (11647) 2008-10-16 16:50

Hi Paul
splendid shot well composed with use of f/5.6. The definition is excellent and the blurred background adds more attractive for the picture. Beautiful colors and contrasts. Well done. Regards, consuelo

zeca (20026) 2008-10-16 21:03

So congratulations for everything, Paul! I also love to catch birds with my camera and I´ve been posting some to TN. Its not an easy job! I have been using a 70-300 Tamron without stabilizer and hand helding it... so I know exactly what are you saying. Its hard! But you did a great work, first with the seed! I've planted many trees nearby my farm's house last year, just to have the birds at my windows. I also built some little houses to them and I am happy they are using it this year to nest. The 400mm is one of my dreams, since I feel that I miss at least 100mm more. 500mm would be perfect, maybe reaching it with any converter 1.4. Your photo is very nice, with good details and excellent contrast to the unsharp bg.
Good luck with your new camera!
Regards,
Zeca

ryno (4590) 2008-10-18 20:50

Hi Paul, you've executed this obviously tricky shot very well. Great sharpness and clarity, and the light is catching the branch at just the right angle. Excellent work! (You may also be interested to see Joszef Szentpeteri's photos of bee-eaters in the Oct. edition of Nat. Geographic, just to see what is possible).
Regards,
Ryno

jmdias (19087) 2008-10-19 8:51

paul

very nice macro showing the flower and this bird. very interesting view, sharpness is nice and pov too.

hugs

jorge

Angshu (33561) 2008-10-26 22:24

Hello Paul
You show two typically NZ icons here, both not very known to most of us, the Bellbird & the Kowhai tree & flowers. When I see the specs I said wow! 400mm lens handheld. Superb sharpness & great DOF to isolate the BG...Excellent work & no wonder this is a satisfying shot for you.
Regards
Angshu

Bluejeans (32035) 2008-10-28 12:23

Ola Paul ,
Linda macro deste pássaro neste ramo de flores amarelas , os detalhes ficaram fantásticos , gostei do fundo desfocado , parabéns !!
Um abraço Gonçalo

sacavem (8225) 2008-11-29 13:53

Olá Paul,

Nice macro shot with fresh colour and great detail. I like you composed the bird in kind of diagonal position.

Regards,
Filipe

danyy (68546) 2008-12-02 2:07

Bonjour Paul,
un plan rapproché bien ficelé avec une profondeur de champs bien négociée qui donne de relief à cette scène naturelle aux couleurs tout aussi naturelles.
Se rapprocher d'avantage aurait certainement provoquer la fuite de l'oiseau.
Best regards.
Daniel.

downer (244) 2008-12-11 14:12

Hello,
I guess these guys don't stay put for long, so apart from your equipment, your reflexes should also be praised. Beautiful shot, love the warm colors of the bird and flowers.
Cheers, Ioanna

stego (22350) 2008-12-14 10:34

Hi Paul,
I had been missing this one.
It's a great capture and a beautiful image, very well composed and amazingly achieved technically. I would imagine that the light wasn't good, as the sharpness and colours are so good.
Regards, José.

plimrn (19600) 2009-01-07 20:36

Hi Paul,
It is wonderful when everything comes together; even to the tree you planted to bring this fellow. Interesting to hear our well Sony's antishake system works. Larry is fascinated by the fact that it's in the camera rather that having to pay extra for each lens. He is very impressed with the detail.
HLJ, Pat

SteveH (3885) 2009-02-14 21:52

Hi Paul, I didn't realise that Bell birds are natives of NZ. In fact as I sit typing here I can hear one nearby. There are loads in Yarra Bend Park, but as you say, they are small and don't stay still, making them a difficult subject, making this shot more impressive. cheers, Steve