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  • Welcome to the new site. Here's a thread about the update where you can post your feedback, ask questions or spot those nasty bugs!

My day in pictures. All day to get the shot.

Jim Olson

Well-known member
I started my day off with just the camera set up looking out the window 8;15 AM
No editing was done on these shots just cropped
IMG_1975 screen crop.JPG


Next was 8:30 AM & the only thing that is different is I added external flash

IMG_20200523_131817 crop.jpg


IMG_20200523_131855 crop.jpg


IMG_20200523_190606 crop.jpg


And then I waited all day for a shot.
This one is okay but I just couldn't wait anymore. It was 7:00 PM when I got this.
I may have to try again soon for a little better shot of our hummingbird.
Again, no editing on any kind (just cropped) & just the JPGs. I have RAW images but I just wanted to show how much the Canon Speedlite 30EX flash & the Canon Off-Camera Shoe Cord 2

IMG_1993 screen crop.JPG
 

Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Well done, you are moving forward. I love your enterprise. This is the right path!

but why 1/3200 sec at f4.0!

Should be at least f8.0 and camera synch

....and what’s the sync speed of the camera. Are you using strobing of the flash?

You obviously thought a lot about it!

Can you rotate the feeder so the bird is not blocked?

Asher
 

Jim Olson

Well-known member
Well done, you are moving forward. I love your enterprise. This is the right path!

but why 1/3200 sec at f4.0!

Should be at least f8.0 and camera synch

....and what’s the sync speed of the camera. Are you using strobing of the flash?

You obviously thought a lot about it!

Can you rotate the feeder so the bird is not blocked?

Asher
I had to take down the flash to close the curtains last night (since it is the front window) but I have it back up & it is raining so I have a great day to shoot.
Now working on focus. I put my camera on manual so it may take a few times for me to get it correct.
Also the hummingbird is hiding because of the rain.

I have the camera in TV for shutter speed but everything else is just auto. I was talking to Will, & he was telling me what I need to do to set it up in MANUAL.
Not sure what the sync speed is & no strobe that I know of. I'm going to download the manual now because this is the first time ever using it since Will gave it to me.

Edit because I forgot to say... If I turn the feeder, the bird still comes to the back one. There is 4 openings & I have tried to turn it.
also, here is the first couple of pages of the manual

Page 2 & 3 Flash manual.jpg
 
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Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Tape closed or cork the other feeder access parts!

The sync speed has a red X by it.

The aperture to 8.0

ISO 400

practice on the feeder with no bird.

See if you can find a branch to rig up near the feeder.

if you are lucky, the bird may rest there.

Try to get the bird resting on the nearby branch.

or on the feeder but with it not blocked.

Asher
 

Jim Olson

Well-known member
Tape closed or cork the other feeder access parts!

The sync speed has a red X by it.

The aperture to 8.0

ISO 400

practice on the feeder with no bird.

See if you can find a branch to rig up near the feeder.

if you are lucky, the bird may rest there.

Try to get the bird resting on the nearby branch.

or on the feeder but with it not blocked.

Asher
That's a good idea.
By the way... Here is a shot I got over at my in-law's house (front yard) today. The wife & I left to play Pokemon Go (today was a community day) & I never got back to shot with the flash.
IMG_2084 E8 C12 S14 crop.jpg


Back yard

IMG_2125 E5 C8 S6 crop.jpg
 

Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Just a superb climb to the top, Jim!

These are fabulous. With your permission, I post then adjusted for light and dark
This


5AA78FA8-4593-4B50-BB9A-6B6E4D7C10D1.jpeg


.....and below, with the feeder removed (which of course is optional).


0C254355-B109-4085-B193-4D9A84D096BA.jpeg


Just fabulous. One perfect wing and the crimson head with its Spiderman cap” on!

You are moving into stardom, my friend. This is not easy and you are now reaping the benefits of better planning, more knowledge of the bird and improved reach and focus of the 50D with your new lens!

Search for all the posts by Doug Herr and Peter Dexter for their humming birds and start looking them up and identifying them!

Asher
 

Jim Olson

Well-known member
I’m not very happy with Manual Mode. The camera won’t even shoot in some settings.
With the aperture set to 8.0, ISO 400 & the shutter 1/3200 it works but hit & miss. (7:20 AM)
IMG_2184  E13 C7 S7 crop.jpg

IMG_2184.JPG Properties.jpg


Then a few sec later I got this but the flash wasn't charged :(
IMG_2185  E16 C4 S8 crop.jpg
 
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Peter Dexter

Well-known member
Jim a little tip from when I was photographing humming birds in flight that were coming to a feeder. I'd put a little scotch tape over the holes on the back of the feeder so they were forced to come to the front of it where I could photograph them. Another: shooting them at 1/1000 or 1/1250 should stop the action sufficiently. A setting of 1/3200 requires an awful lot of bright sun and isn't going to produce that "stopped action" effect where there is perfect feather detail on the wings in flight. The photos you may have seen with that effect were taken with multiple flash set ups. Also you can crank up the ISO much higher. At least 1000 and maybe 1600. Images will have "noise" but that can be minimized with a program like Neat Image. Depending on your lens I would suggest something like f 6.3 or 7.1 at 1/1000 or 1/1250, ISO 1250 or 1600 and flash except for bright daylight opportunities. That's what has worked for me with Canon equipment.
 
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Peter Dexter

Well-known member
Jim looking back at some of my hummingbird in flight photos I need to make a slight correction to what I stated above. I typically shoot them at 1/1250 or 1/1600 not at 1/1000. Here is a picture presented for example, of a Booted Racket-tail in flight. it was shot at 1/1600, f/9.0 with ISO 1000 and using flash. As you can see there is still plenty of wing movement/blur at that speed.

20801124114_52e7a8a0c8_b.jpg
 

Robert Watcher

Well-known member
Jim. The flash sync speed of the Canon 50D is 1/250’th second.

You should be keeping your shutter speed at or below that (example 1/250, 1/125, 1/60), in order for the flash to properly expose the frame. You see when using a flash for such photography, it isn’t the camera‘s shutterspeed that stops the motion - it is the short flash duration.

If the flash is set to a reduced power output, it can provide very short bursts that help freeze the action (not the same as high speed sync). To do this you generally dial in settings of maybe 1/8th or 1/16’th power on your flash. Because of the reduced light output, it often benefits from having multiple flashes set the same low power/short duration (all firing at the identical time). This generally requires getting the flashes as close to the subject as is reasonable.

It is easy to say use flash - and is probably best to use flash for hummingbirds - but there is also a learning curve. To use proper camera sync shutter speed with flash, requires that the ambient light does not negate the effect of the short flash duration. The principle for determining exposure when using flash, is that the Aperture controls flash exposure and Shutter Speed controls the ambient exposure. No hard and fast rules as to the balance of flash and ambient light used - but for me there is nothing appealing about seeing pictures of hummingbirds/birds/animals where the use of flash is obvious - sheen on the feathers along with bright spotlight in the eye.

Yes there are high sync ( FP ) modes for the flash, but that have limited use depending on the photographers abilities. It may work for adding a tiny bit of flash into the scene. What that flash mode does is provide a stream of low output flashes one after the other in quick succession to make up the desired exposure value.

—————

If you decide that you aren’t going to use flash for your hummingbird pics, you will need the highest shutter speed your camera offers - hopefully 1/4,000th or 1/8,000th - if you are wanting to minimize wing blur. The challenge here is that you need very good lighting to achieve those shutter speeds. If natural light is your decision, you will likely have to be content with using higher ISO settings than you would like. Get your exposure proper, and the resulting noise become less of an issue.


————

Personally, I don’t mind some motion in the wings. Iris very natural looking to me.

Good to remind yourself that a big part of learning photography is experimenting and failing and trying again. So don’t get discouraged and don’t presume your issues are the camera. They generally never are. Don’t try to fix things in Photoshop. Get the images right in camera by controlling the scene.

Make good use of Google Search and nowadays there are many YouTube videos where you can see the instruction in action. Watch them and learn.

You could start here with some interesting tips:

 
Last edited:

Jim Olson

Well-known member
Jim looking back at some of my hummingbird in flight photos I need to make a slight correction to what I stated above. I typically shoot them at 1/1250 or 1/1600 not at 1/1000. Here is a picture presented for example, of a Booted Racket-tail in flight. it was shot at 1/1600, f/9.0 with ISO 1000 and using flash. As you can see there is still plenty of wing movement/blur at that speed.

20801124114_52e7a8a0c8_b.jpg
TNX for the updated info. And I am shooting for stop action on the wings so still experimenting with shutter speeds.
 

Jim Olson

Well-known member
Jim. The flash sync speed of the Canon 50D is 1/250’th second.

You should be keeping your shutter speed at or below that (example 1/250, 1/125, 1/60), in order for the flash to properly expose the frame. You see when using a flash for such photography, it isn’t the camera‘s shutterspeed that stops the motion - it is the short flash duration.

If the flash is set to a reduced power output, it can provide very short bursts that help freeze the action (not the same as high speed sync). To do this you generally dial in settings of maybe 1/8th or 1/16’th power on your flash. Because of the reduced light output, it often benefits from having multiple flashes set the same low power/short duration (all firing at the identical time). This generally requires getting the flashes as close to the subject as is reasonable.

It is easy to say use flash - and is probably best to use flash for hummingbirds - but there is also a learning curve. To use proper camera sync shutter speed with flash, requires that the ambient light does not negate the effect of the short flash duration. The principle for determining exposure when using flash, is that the Aperture controls flash exposure and Shutter Speed controls the ambient exposure. No hard and fast rules as to the balance of flash and ambient light used - but for me there is nothing appealing about seeing pictures of hummingbirds/birds/animals where the use of flash is obvious - sheen on the feathers along with bright spotlight in the eye.

Yes there are high sync ( FP ) modes for the flash, but that have limited use depending on the photographers abilities. It may work for adding a tiny bit of flash into the scene. What that flash mode does is provide a stream of low output flashes one after the other in quick succession to make up the desired exposure value.

—————

If you decide that you aren’t going to use flash for your hummingbird pics, you will need the highest shutter speed your camera offers - hopefully 1/4,000th or 1/8,000th - if you are wanting to minimize wing blur. The challenge here is that you need very good lighting to achieve those shutter speeds. If natural light is your decision, you will likely have to be content with using higher ISO settings than you would like. Get your exposure proper, and the resulting noise become less of an issue.


————

Personally, I don’t mind some motion in the wings. Iris very natural looking to me.

Good to remind yourself that a big part of learning photography is experimenting and failing and trying again. So don’t get discouraged and don’t presume your issues are the camera. They generally never are. Don’t try to fix things in Photoshop. Get the images right in camera by controlling the scene.

Make good use of Google Search and nowadays there are many YouTube videos where you can see the instruction in action. Watch them and learn.

You could start here with some interesting tips:

WOW Good info... TNX
Jim. The flash sync speed of the Canon 50D is 1/250’th second.

You should be keeping your shutter speed at or below that (example 1/250, 1/125, 1/60), in order for the flash to properly expose the frame. You see when using a flash for such photography, it isn’t the camera‘s shutterspeed that stops the motion - it is the short flash duration.

If the flash is set to a reduced power output, it can provide very short bursts that help freeze the action (not the same as high speed sync). To do this you generally dial in settings of maybe 1/8th or 1/16’th power on your flash. Because of the reduced light output, it often benefits from having multiple flashes set the same low power/short duration (all firing at the identical time). This generally requires getting the flashes as close to the subject as is reasonable.

It is easy to say use flash - and is probably best to use flash for hummingbirds - but there is also a learning curve. To use proper camera sync shutter speed with flash, requires that the ambient light does not negate the effect of the short flash duration. The principle for determining exposure when using flash, is that the Aperture controls flash exposure and Shutter Speed controls the ambient exposure. No hard and fast rules as to the balance of flash and ambient light used - but for me there is nothing appealing about seeing pictures of hummingbirds/birds/animals where the use of flash is obvious - sheen on the feathers along with bright spotlight in the eye.

Yes there are high sync ( FP ) modes for the flash, but that have limited use depending on the photographers abilities. It may work for adding a tiny bit of flash into the scene. What that flash mode does is provide a stream of low output flashes one after the other in quick succession to make up the desired exposure value.

—————

If you decide that you aren’t going to use flash for your hummingbird pics, you will need the highest shutter speed your camera offers - hopefully 1/4,000th or 1/8,000th - if you are wanting to minimize wing blur. The challenge here is that you need very good lighting to achieve those shutter speeds. If natural light is your decision, you will likely have to be content with using higher ISO settings than you would like. Get your exposure proper, and the resulting noise become less of an issue.


————

Personally, I don’t mind some motion in the wings. Iris very natural looking to me.

Good to remind yourself that a big part of learning photography is experimenting and failing and trying again. So don’t get discouraged and don’t presume your issues are the camera. They generally never are. Don’t try to fix things in Photoshop. Get the images right in camera by controlling the scene.

Make good use of Google Search and nowadays there are many YouTube videos where you can see the instruction in action. Watch them and learn.

You could start here with some interesting tips:



That is a great site. I'll being going back there more. TNX for the info & the insight into how you do hummingbird shots.

Also "Good to remind yourself that a big part of learning photography is experimenting and failing and trying again. So don’t get discouraged and don’t presume your issues are the camera. They generally never are. Don’t try to fix things in Photoshop. Get the images right in camera by controlling the scene.

Make good use of Google Search and nowadays there are many YouTube videos where you can see the instruction in action. Watch them and learn."

That is very good info. And I just got a library card just before the "Stay at Home order" was put in place so, I have access to free LinkedIn videos & others through a site call Lynda.com and plan to go back & see what they have.
 
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Jim Olson

Well-known member
I got one yesterday at the in-law's house that I like. Getting better.
We (the wife & I) are watching the house & going to be waiting for a delivery for them Fri & plan to sit on the front porch & get some more shots then.
IMG_2248 E16 C5 S7 crop.jpg
 

Robert Watcher

Well-known member
I got one yesterday at the in-law's house that I like. Getting better.
We (the wife & I) are watching the house & going to be waiting for a delivery for them Fri & plan to sit on the front porch & get some more shots then.

definitely nicer separation from the background. Keep on.
 

Jim Olson

Well-known member
Flashback NOT Throwback
My wife & I went to the Drive-in movies last night. First time in almost 15 yrs since we have gone.
This was the first time we have gone in the state of Washington & it was first for this season with all the precautions.

IMG_2389 STR -0.7 crop sepia.jpg

This is cool!!!
The owner of the drive-in Wiley will, be busy for the next few weeks as he prepares the Wheel-In for Port Townsend High School’s graduation ceremonies.
He said attendees will stay in their vehicles and listen to the broadcast on their car radios of a few speeches from a makeshift stage.
“There will probably be 100 cars” at that event, and graduates won’t walk to the stage to collect their diplomas, he said.
Locke sought to explain the public health policy he and state officials advocate when it comes to activities such as going to a drive-in.
“We support this very much, in concept,” he said. “Anything done with a low risk that’s fun and entertaining and social, we support it.
“We’re not trying take the pleasure out of life. We’re just trying to prevent disease transmission.”
Taken from Peninsula Daily News
 
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Jim Olson

Well-known member
I took so many pictures yesterday & the day before that I still haven't looked at all of them.
Here is just a few that I did edit. from Fri 5/29/2020
IMG_2337 E12 C12 S12.jpg


Mt Baker from Port Townsend, WA.
IMG_2366 E10 C16 S7 H-4 STR -1.6.jpg

We did get to go back to Fort Worden (Port Townsend)
IMG_2381 E-4 C11 S16 STR -2.1.jpg

Some kids digging near the pier
IMG_2354 E16 C16 S16 STR -1.0 crop.jpg

Pigeon on the pier
IMG_2355 E-4 C16 S16 STR 1.3 crop.jpg


Looking down to where the otter was but no otter this time
IMG_2369 E12 C12 S12 STR -1.0.jpg
 
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Asher Kelman

OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
This is a most wonderful thread of an adventure in progressing in photography. We can see the growth and it’s wonderful.
Asher
 
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