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Bird Photography How can I get a medium size bird to fill the frame? I seem to never be able to get close enough with my 200mm lens.
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John A. Lind |
Unless you can change how you are going about it to decrease the distance, you need to increase the focal length. How much depends on how much larger the "medium size bird" needs to be to fill the frame. 300mm will increase the size by 1.5X compared to the 200mm, 400mm will increase it by 2X, etc. In general 200mm is about the limit hand held regardless of shutter speed; anything longer should be tripoded or otherwise solidly braced. There are two basic options: (1) First, the trivial answer, a longer focal length lens. Common lengths for 35mm format are 300mm, 400m and 500mm. The longest made for most 35mm camera systems are 1000mm. Starting with 300mm and up, the lens is usually mounted to the tripod because its size and weight is greater than that of the camera body. A ball or fluid head on the tripod can allow you to adjust aim quickly and yet maintain the stability you need. Primes in these focal lengths with reasonable lens speed can be expensive. Don't discount patiently searching reputable dealers for an excellent condition used one. (2) Next, the less expensive approach is a good teleconverter (TC). I don't recommend a cheap third party TC though. They can leave a lot to be desired in image resolution, contrast, and introduce various aberrations. The better ones have more than two elements and preferably are matched to your lens(es) if that's possible. Much more expensive than the dirt cheap ones, but still significantly less than a good 300mm or longer prime lens. The most common ones are 1.4X and 2X, which would increase your 200mm to 280mm and 400mm respectively. The downside with even the best TC's is loss of lens speed with them; one stop with a 1.4X and two stops with a 2X. It's going to be very difficult for you to get closer to the birds. My experience is with wild Canadian geese which seem to have a common distance below which they will not allow a human to approach them, even from downwind. The more effective method is them getting closer to you. You might consider setting up a downwind blind or using an equivalent method to disguise yourself and your equipment, if that is allowed where you are doing the photography. You might also look for a different location with a natural downwind blind formed by foliage that you can use. Camouflage, concealment, maintaining quiet, keeping still and patience (sometimes lots of patience) are the keys to getting closer shots. Good Luck!
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