PHOTOGRAPHING BIRDS IN FLIGHT - 10 TIPS FOR SUCCESS...
(advice from Glenn Bartley - http://www.glennbartley.com/)When it comes to bird photography there is nothing that I love more than capturing an intimate portrait of a bird in its natural environment. Creating an artistic photograph of a challenging bird on an appropriate perch is what I live for! With this said, there is also something thrilling and deeply satisfying about capturing an image of a bird in flight. For many bird photographers this is the ultimate goal. After all, when you think of the defining characteristic of a bird, flight generally does come to mind. This month I will share my top 10 strategies for successfully photographing birds in flight.
TOP 10 STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS
Pre-Focus: If you are anticipating photographing a bird at a certain distance, pre-focus your lens (manually or by auto focusing in the area where you expect them to be). This will make it easier for you to initially find the bird in your viewfinder and allow your auto-focus to lock faster.
Continuous AF: Whatever brand you shoot with - make sure you are using the predictive AF tracking mode (Canon calls this AI Servo). In this mode you can lock focus on the flying bird from far away and then by holding the shutter button down half way the camera will constantly keep the bird in focus as it gets closer to you.
AF Sensor Selection: Depending on the brand and model of camera that you use you will have varying options for what auto-focus points are actively being used. I recommend using the center auto-focus point with some form of peripheral auto assist focus points.
Limit the Lens: Many telephoto lenses allow the user to limit the range in which the auto-focus will search. For example my 500mm lens has a setting for 10m to infinity. If I know that the flying bird is not going to come closer than 10m from me I always use this setting. Doing so means that the auto-focus doesn’t have to hunt all the way back to 4m and drastically speeds up the rate at which focus is acquired.
Ditch the Tripod: For perched birds I use a tripod 99.9% of the time. But when it comes to photographing birds in flight I highly recommend hand holding your gear. The freedom to move freely in all directions and pan comfortably will undoubtedly result in more keepers.
Study your Subject: Some birds fly in a straight line, others have undulating flight patterns. Perhaps the bird is flying in a predictable direction or towards a known location? As is the case in all types of bird photography, the more you know about your subject the better you will fare.
"Pump" the Focus: If the camera does not lock on the subject quickly, rather than simply holding down the shutter button and hoping that it finds the subject, it is much better to “pump” the shutter button until the camera locks focus. Otherwise the auto-focus will simply go back and forth between infinity and the minimum focus distance of the lens.
Practice, Practice, Practice: Ultimately, being a proficient flight photographer requires good eye to lens coordination. This skill can only be developed from practice. Start with easy and readily available targets such as gulls and herons and then move on to more challenging subjects.
