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Red Squirrel
- Thread starter Gordon Baird
- Start date
IG9A1765
Asher Kelman
OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Once again such a beautiful image with the richest Sienna colors!
Again I feel it’s done with a flash but I would like to know the technical details!
Asher
Andy brown
Well-known member
Absolutely gorgeous shot Gordon.
Captured some of its character for sure.
I try to spend time communing with all sorts of animals as often as I can.
They never let me down.
Always full of surprises.
Nice glimpse into its world.
Captured some of its character for sure.
I try to spend time communing with all sorts of animals as often as I can.
They never let me down.
Always full of surprises.
Nice glimpse into its world.
Asher Kelman
OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Andy,
You describe the apparent “peeking in to a private world” that makes these pictures so magical!
Asher
Asher Kelman
OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Gordon,
Are you totally knocking out the relevance of sunlight with flash or is this careful post-processing photoshopping to get the dark periphery?
Since this seems tack-sharp, with no IS, then I would guess that this fits in with use of powerful flash or a tripod with a gimbal.
On the other hand, I can’t explain the blue fragments below the squirrel, and these suggest image manipulation!!
Asher
Are you totally knocking out the relevance of sunlight with flash or is this careful post-processing photoshopping to get the dark periphery?
Since this seems tack-sharp, with no IS, then I would guess that this fits in with use of powerful flash or a tripod with a gimbal.
On the other hand, I can’t explain the blue fragments below the squirrel, and these suggest image manipulation!!
Asher
Gordon Baird
Member
Hi Asher.
Thank you for your kind comments on my image. This is shot with no flash. It is in a part of the forest where there is a small gap in the canopy for the light to pass through and light the squirrel.
the hard part is getting him to the area where he will be lit by the sun. The blue at the bottom is wet bark that I can only think was the blue sky through the canopy reflecting.
No tripod I was resting the lens on a ledge to keep it stable. Shooting at 1000sec at high ISO.
Post processing in in photoshop is a little sharpening, some clarity, and quite a bit of luminance, and a spot of vignette. and noise reduction. All done in camera Raw.
Hope this helps.
Gordon
Gordon Baird
Member
Thank you Andy. I am a wedding photographer, and to unwind and de-stress I love to go photograph wildlife. And try and spend as much time as possible photographing Birds, Squirrels, at a local hide.
Gordon Baird
Member
One other thing I have had focus issues with the big lens. Which I have ironed out with some Micro adjustments to get the best possible image and sharpness.
I had the lens stripped and serviced and cleaned inside. So it is like new.
This lens has had very little use in its life outside is spotless. I am just eager to get out with it, but the weather is against us at the moment. I will post more images when I capture them.
Gordon
I had the lens stripped and serviced and cleaned inside. So it is like new.
This lens has had very little use in its life outside is spotless. I am just eager to get out with it, but the weather is against us at the moment. I will post more images when I capture them.
Gordon
Asher Kelman
OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Gordon,
These are the secrets to the “Private World” signature style you seem to have perfected!
You are lucky as a cat, (walking away from 9 jumps from a skyscraper), or else you wait long enough for the creature to be lit by a fortuitous beam of light. This gives you perfect exposure of the subject moving to progressive blurred darkness!
The result? Rich nature’s colors set in a private illuminated home for that creature!
I am impressed by the 10,000 ISO performance! But what size can this be printed
Asher
nicolas claris
OPF Co-founder/Administrator
@Asher Kelman there's a mistake somewhere, I could easily download the HD file from Flicker and could read the exif:
It is 800 ISO "only…
But, BUT, Gordon this is an absolutely marvellous image!
The blue does bring magic.
Kudos!
Asher Kelman
OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Nicolas,
I was influenced by the 10,000 ISO mentioned with a similar “reach-into-the-trees” shot here!
I see you first downloaded the file from Flickr! I will check that out again!
🙏
Asher
Peter Dexter
Well-known member
So nice to have the subject iluminated by sunlight passing through a hole in the canopy/
Gordon Baird
Member
The Robin is shot at 6400 ISO This is the one I was referring to I thought it was 10,000
IG9A1872 by Gordon Baird, on Flickr
IG9A1872 by Gordon Baird, on Flickr
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
That is one expensive lens that you have there. I hope you are able to make lots of use of it. Very nice photos you have captured. The lens is great for the subject isolation Which works well with wildlife photography.
I notice that everyone longs for these exotic long focal length lenses, and have heard from different ones that they didnt get the results they were expecting - especially when forking out large amounts of money to buy and thus expecting it has to result in amazing images.
Often the blame is put on the specific copy of the lens, but my experience has been that it is a huge challenge to get consistently great images from such focal lengths and so it takes time and practice for photographers to develop the skills to get great results and recognize where and how the lens can be best utilized. I have used an equivalent 600mm lens on my Olympus cameras for many years, and was so disappointed in the results at the start, but eventually and with much patience started refining my technique with the lens.
Great that the light coming from behind you (recognized in reflection of the squirell’s eye), added the catchlight to the eye. An interesting spot lighting effect. It’s nice to expect that we can get usable 6400ISO results in modern cameras (with your bird shot)
I notice that everyone longs for these exotic long focal length lenses, and have heard from different ones that they didnt get the results they were expecting - especially when forking out large amounts of money to buy and thus expecting it has to result in amazing images.
Often the blame is put on the specific copy of the lens, but my experience has been that it is a huge challenge to get consistently great images from such focal lengths and so it takes time and practice for photographers to develop the skills to get great results and recognize where and how the lens can be best utilized. I have used an equivalent 600mm lens on my Olympus cameras for many years, and was so disappointed in the results at the start, but eventually and with much patience started refining my technique with the lens.
Great that the light coming from behind you (recognized in reflection of the squirell’s eye), added the catchlight to the eye. An interesting spot lighting effect. It’s nice to expect that we can get usable 6400ISO results in modern cameras (with your bird shot)
Last edited:
Gordon Baird
Member
I have only used this lens about 5 times and yes the first time my heart sunk to my feet when I seen the images. Not good at all. Very, very soft images at f4, but I looked into the camera menu and started some micro adjustments. Which was a stab in the dark. I started to take images and make adjustments 5 at a time until the results were as close as could be to being reasonably sharp, then started to adjust 1 at a time until the images appeared pin sharp.
Shooting at such extreme focal lengths at f4 the depth of focus is extremely shallow and if focus is out even slightly it will be really noticeable.
But I think I have it sorted now.
Next I have a 2x converter that I have to make some micro adjustments to improve the sharpness. The camera recognizes that there is a converter fitted. I will keep you all posted on progress.
Goggs.
Asher Kelman
OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Gordon,
How are you doing the micro adjustments?
Both Bart Van Der Wolf and Michael Tapes have Hardware plus software Systems for doing the adjustments right.
Also there is Focal software.
Also this search might be useful!
Asher
Gordon Baird
Member
Hi Asher.
As said mines was a bit of a stab in the dark. Micro adjustments are in the focus menu of the 5dmk3. I set the lens on a tripod and took a photo of some tree bark that was about 65ft away.
Reviewed the image on the back of the camera and it was very soft.
Micro adjustments start at zero through to plus twenty and minus twenty on a scale. The camera recognises each lens that is fitted so will only adjust that lens.
So I started at zero and photographed the tree and move the micro adjustments up by five. Take another photo review, then move by five again and repeat this until the image looks sharp.
When you reach that point its the case of moving the micro adjustments by one up and down until the image is pin sharp.
My lens has a micro adjustment of plus sixteen to be near perfect. There is room for some improvement yet, but without any charts or software I am happy with the results I have achieved.
Hope you understand my process I used.
Below is the said tree micro adjustments were done in about twenty minuets. Then it was back to the business of photographing the wildlife around me.
Goggs....
IG9A1767 by Gordon Baird, on Flickr
As said mines was a bit of a stab in the dark. Micro adjustments are in the focus menu of the 5dmk3. I set the lens on a tripod and took a photo of some tree bark that was about 65ft away.
Reviewed the image on the back of the camera and it was very soft.
Micro adjustments start at zero through to plus twenty and minus twenty on a scale. The camera recognises each lens that is fitted so will only adjust that lens.
So I started at zero and photographed the tree and move the micro adjustments up by five. Take another photo review, then move by five again and repeat this until the image looks sharp.
When you reach that point its the case of moving the micro adjustments by one up and down until the image is pin sharp.
My lens has a micro adjustment of plus sixteen to be near perfect. There is room for some improvement yet, but without any charts or software I am happy with the results I have achieved.
Hope you understand my process I used.
Below is the said tree micro adjustments were done in about twenty minuets. Then it was back to the business of photographing the wildlife around me.
Goggs....
IG9A1767 by Gordon Baird, on Flickr