Black-Naped Oriole & Drongo

Madcat II · 19th February 2004

Black-Naped Oriole singing

Drongo

Fred · 19th February 2004

#2 is the best here.

You could try using a higher flash setting when you encounter the same lighthing condition as #3 in future.

Madcat II · 19th February 2004

thanks Fred, I think what I need is a stronger flash... 420EX is kind of weak for this kind of work.

Originally Posted by Fred

#2 is the best here.

You could try using a higher flash setting when you encounter the same lighthing condition as #3 in future.

Fred · 19th February 2004

Originally Posted by Madcat II

thanks Fred, I think what I need is a stronger flash... 420EX is kind of weak for this kind of work.

Have you tried Flash-extender?

chngpe01 · 20th February 2004

Hi Jason

The first and third pics are what I would like to have. Though there is abit of motion blur at the beak (1st pic), its acceptable to me. For Pic 3, perhaps you can wait for it to turn to the right and take a shot, the composition would then be perfect IMHO.

Originally Posted by Madcat II

thanks Fred, I think what I need is a stronger flash... 420EX is kind of weak for this kind of work.

Though I have not seen your setting, I personally think that you and your flash has done well, in fact all the shots were taken against a backlight, show the subject well lighted by the flash not too much nor little.

Keep up the good works

Garion · 20th February 2004

Jason,

Here's my "neng chiam" take on your shots.

1st shot: Good action capture with his beak open, thought its somewhat blur due to either lens shake or slow shutter.

2nd shot: Sharp and well exposed, nice catchlight in his eyes. And direct eye contact too. Excellent capture.

3rd shot: Very good capture and exposure considering the subject is very dark and also framed against a very bright background/backlight, very easy to screw up the exposure and metering here but u did well. Only nit is (like PE had mentioned), u could wait for the bird's head to swivel right. Then it would be a keeper shot.

Well done, you have improved quite a bit and keep up the good work. The monopod/flash combo works very well for the Bigma, compare the sharpness and detail of this shots (esp no.2) to your previous ones and you'll get what I mean. Like Fred suggest, what you could do is get a flash extender to extend the reach of your flash. Costs abt $70 from Konota at Peninsula Plaza. Else, if you have the budget/moolah, can consider upgrade to 550EX or Sigma 500 Super DG (cheaper but also just as powerful).

Keep shooting...

skfoo · 20th February 2004

Ha! Ha! You are really into forest birds my friend! Good variety. I enjoy the image of Oriole feeding (image #1) and seeing the tail of a Racket-tailed Drongo swaying in the wind (image #3).

Sooner or later, you will ask yourselves what you intend to do with the images. In my opinion, the images are fine for record shots (which most of our first shots started this way). Slowly we progressed to ask ourselves which areas do we need to improve upon…….the composition? The background? The sharpness? The exposure? Or the equipments for that matter. Then ……….. you have caught a bird flu! Congrats!

Bird flu is not a bad thing you know? Speaking for myself, I hope my images would help to generate nature awareness. Many people still do not believe that there is such a thing call “wildlife” (not the type of wildlife at disco or nightlife areas) in Singapore. With more nature images posted or display in exhibitions, I hope that more people will appreciate nature around us and support nature conservation.

Happy shooting!

Avatar · 20th February 2004

Jason,

Forest birds ain't exactly easy subject to tackle, and so far the shots I had seen from you show a good use of available lighting and flash techniques. Good work!

Like SK, I am surprised by the number of PMs I had gotten over this period of time that many fellow Singaporeans are in disbelief that we have such nature beauties in our island state. For the awareness and hopefully, a small step for us all to take in order to conserve all these for our future generations ...

erwinx · 20th February 2004

i think there are 2 priorities
(1) aesthetically pleasing photographs.
(2) recording a wide range of species.

For forest birding, you're going to find that (1) is very difficult to achieve. But what you will get are rare glimpses of bird species that are hardly ever seen. Personally, I get satisfaction from <both> (1) and (2).

Personally, this is where i think the americans are a bit off. When you look at the usual sites, they have many beautiful pictures, but the variety of species recorded is rather low. Given the size of the USA, you would expect photographs of hundreds of different species. Often, its the same few species again and again. Maybe because they all seem to photograph at the same locations

so i salute all those who break new ground and seek new locations

p.s. I've recently started keeping a log of species of birds I've photographed in Singapore and the month/year I first photographed them (easy with exif). You guys should try it too

I still haven't broken 100 yet [experienced birders see 100 species within 24 hours, FYI, so thats how slow-going photography is]

Madcat II · 20th February 2004

err... me still member of SG Shake-Leg Association, so don't have any intention to buy the extender or bigger flash... unless I get a job soon.

Originally Posted by Fred

Have you tried Flash-extender?

Madcat II · 20th February 2004

PE & Garion, well I waited, the fellow didn't turn its head but flew off instead... & Garion, you are right, metering this bird is "siong" : black bird in dim forest...

Originally Posted by chngpe01

Hi Jason

The first and third pics are what I would like to have. Though there is abit of motion blur at the beak (1st pic), its acceptable to me. For Pic 3, perhaps you can wait for it to turn to the right and take a shot, the composition would then be perfect IMHO.

20th February 2004	#6
Garion Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: West side of S'pore Posts: 5,516	Jason, Here's my "neng chiam" take on your shots. 1st shot: Good action capture with his beak open, thought its somewhat blur due to either lens shake or slow shutter. 2nd shot: Sharp and well exposed, nice catchlight in his eyes. And direct eye contact too. Excellent capture. 3rd shot: Very good capture and exposure considering the subject is very dark and also framed against a very bright background/backlight, very easy to screw up the exposure and metering here but u did well. Only nit is (like PE had mentioned), u could wait for the bird's head to swivel right. Then it would be a keeper shot. Well done, you have improved quite a bit and keep up the good work. The monopod/flash combo works very well for the Bigma, compare the sharpness and detail of this shots (esp no.2) to your previous ones and you'll get what I mean. Like Fred suggest, what you could do is get a flash extender to extend the reach of your flash. Costs abt $70 from Konota at Peninsula Plaza. Else, if you have the budget/moolah, can consider upgrade to 550EX or Sigma 500 Super DG (cheaper but also just as powerful). Keep shooting... __________________ [ deviantart selections \| Photoblog ]

19th February 2004	#1
Madcat II Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: this world is not my home Posts: 826	Black-Naped Oriole & Drongo Black-Naped Oriole singing Drongo

19th February 2004	#2
Fred Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,240	#2 is the best here. You could try using a higher flash setting when you encounter the same lighthing condition as #3 in future.

20th February 2004	#7
skfoo Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 1,187	Ha! Ha! You are really into forest birds my friend! Good variety. I enjoy the image of Oriole feeding (image #1) and seeing the tail of a Racket-tailed Drongo swaying in the wind (image #3). Sooner or later, you will ask yourselves what you intend to do with the images. In my opinion, the images are fine for record shots (which most of our first shots started this way). Slowly we progressed to ask ourselves which areas do we need to improve upon…….the composition? The background? The sharpness? The exposure? Or the equipments for that matter. Then ……….. you have caught a bird flu! Congrats! Bird flu is not a bad thing you know? Speaking for myself, I hope my images would help to generate nature awareness. Many people still do not believe that there is such a thing call “wildlife” (not the type of wildlife at disco or nightlife areas) in Singapore. With more nature images posted or display in exhibitions, I hope that more people will appreciate nature around us and support nature conservation. Happy shooting!

20th February 2004	#8
Avatar Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Singapore / Taiwan Posts: 1,244	Jason, Forest birds ain't exactly easy subject to tackle, and so far the shots I had seen from you show a good use of available lighting and flash techniques. Good work! Like SK, I am surprised by the number of PMs I had gotten over this period of time that many fellow Singaporeans are in disbelief that we have such nature beauties in our island state. For the awareness and hopefully, a small step for us all to take in order to conserve all these for our future generations ...

20th February 2004	#9
erwinx Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Posts: 2,492	i think there are 2 priorities (1) aesthetically pleasing photographs. (2) recording a wide range of species. For forest birding, you're going to find that (1) is very difficult to achieve. But what you will get are rare glimpses of bird species that are hardly ever seen. Personally, I get satisfaction from <both> (1) and (2). Personally, this is where i think the americans are a bit off. When you look at the usual sites, they have many beautiful pictures, but the variety of species recorded is rather low. Given the size of the USA, you would expect photographs of hundreds of different species. Often, its the same few species again and again. Maybe because they all seem to photograph at the same locations so i salute all those who break new ground and seek new locations p.s. I've recently started keeping a log of species of birds I've photographed in Singapore and the month/year I first photographed them (easy with exif). You guys should try it too I still haven't broken 100 yet [experienced birders see 100 species within 24 hours, FYI, so thats how slow-going photography is]