Poor quality kingfisher photo for advice please

[SilverW0lf]

I managed to take this photo at Mere Sands yesterday (from the Cyril Gibbons hide)(the image has been cropped for upload)



I know with my camera (Fujifilm S8000fd) I'd never be able to zoom in any further but I was still disappointed with the quality of the photo on a bright afternoon.

The camera was left on automatic and used at maximum optical zoom

I've included the exif data below

Photo - DSCF1554
Date and Time - 21/09/2008 04:29:06
Exp. Time - 1/500
F/Stop - 4.5
Exp. Program - Normal
Exp. Bias - 0
Metering Mode - Pattern
Light Source - Unknown
Flash - Not fired, compulsory flash mode
Focal Length - 84.2
ISO Speed - 800

I've not been brave enough to take the camera off auto yet but was wondering if someone could advise me on the settings I should have used in manual mode.

[Kev-B]

Hi Silverwolf ..

I'm not familiar with your particular camera .. so couldn't advise on manual settings etc ..

But if you have a photo editing programme (eg Photoshop) on your PC .. you can adjust that image on your computer ..

Have a look at this link ... digiscoped.com - The Digiscoping and DSLR Bird photography Resource ... this guy is brilliant & his site includes a section on how to improve images once out of the camera ..

Best of luck with what is essentially quite a decent photo ..

Bye for now ..

Kev ..

[Jim Ford]

Originally Posted by SilverW0lf

I've not been brave enough to take the camera off auto yet but was wondering if someone could advise me on the settings I should have used in manual mode.

The image looks overexposed. You shouldn't need ISO 800 on a bright day.

Jim

[wildlifesnapper]

Hi

I've just spent a few second on it in photoshop. I altered the highlight/shadow to try to bring them closer , given it some colour saturation and a bit of unsharp mask.

This was done in just a few seconds so it shows what improvements can be done if you've got more time. My wife has a fuji and she dousn't go over 400 asa.

neil

[KeenTeen17]

its still a nice photo. Its good to see another Lancashire WABer.

photographing from that hide can be quite difficult (and any other hide for that matter) when one doesn't have a DSLR with a giant lens - I don't so thats why i don't try to photograph birds. I have tried digiscoping with my scope but that doesn't work!

[SilverW0lf]

Originally Posted by Kev-B

Have a look at this link ... digiscoped.com - The Digiscoping and DSLR Bird photography Resource ... this guy is brilliant & his site includes a section on how to improve images once out of the camera ..

Originally Posted by wildlifesnapper

I've just spent a few second on it in photoshop. I altered the highlight/shadow to try to bring them closer , given it some colour saturation and a bit of unsharp mask.

Cheers you've both inspired me to try out a few settings in Photoshop Elements (all I've got in work) and I've managed to make the original photo look better!

Originally Posted by KeenTeen17

its still a nice photo. Its good to see another Lancashire WABer.

photographing from that hide can be quite difficult (and any other hide for that matter) when one doesn't have a DSLR with a giant lens - I don't so thats why i don't try to photograph birds.

I was made up to get the photo! I'd spent some time in the Rufford hide as I'd seen it mentioned on here as promising, there were a few spotters using a lot more impressive camera's than mine but there was no sign, it was only by chance I wondered into the Cyril Gibbons hide for it to turn up after 10 minutes and stay there for at least 20 even with some noisy people coming and going!

[Lancashire Lad]

Don't be disheartened at not having a bag full of expesive kit Silverwolf.
Sometimes you can get superb pics by just being in the right place at the right time. And if you can tailor your photography to what your camera will produce - so much the better.

At Mere Sands Marshall hide there is a semi-submerged shrub quite close to the left hand side, which is probably the closest perch to any of the hides. Last time I was there the hide was empty and would you believe it there was a Kingfisher sat on the shrub.

I quietly got my camera out of the bag, set everything up and went to take the shot. At the last minute I saw that the hide window was not as clean as it could be so I decided to open it. Fatal mistake. As soon the window opener moved the bird was off. and didn't return all afternoon. Result 5hrs. no pic.

Novice mistake!!! Moral of the story - Actually do what photography magazines etc. will all tell you - take the shot first - foremost - every time. If you get another chance all well and good.

Your Fuji S8000FD, with its 18x optical zoom has the equivalent of a 486mm lens on a 35mm camera. I was using a Fuji S9600 which only has an equivalent of 300mm but I reckon even that would have given passable "cropped" photos of the bird on that particular perch.

Incidentally I've seen the S9600 advertised recently at £150.00 (It was in excess of £400.00 when it first came out). Anyone who manages to pick one up for that sort of money has got themselves a real bargain.

Regards
Mike.

[sleipnerofasgard]

This was one of the first pictures of a Kingfisher that i took with a Kodak 10x zoom at Marshside,the post was about the same distance as the one in the Cyril Gibbons, with your 18x zoom, i'm sure with patience and a little more camera skills and 99.9% luck you'll get that shot you want. As has already been said your iso at 800 is a bit too high, you might get better results with a lower one even if you have to sacrifice a little shutter speed say 1/250 (exposure time) also, i don't know the camera setup but the focus seems too general and not on the bird.
i'm sure that when you have had a bit of a play with the settings and a read of the manual you could find yourself with a good picture like i did



Frank

[sleipnerofasgard]

Oh yes ,i almost forgot, did you use a tripod or hide clamp? when using high magnifications it is essential

Frank

[KeenTeen17]

thats a great picture of the kingfisher especially with a non-dslr Kodak 10x optical zoom. I couldn't even dream of getting such a good photo. even though I use a kodak z650 too