rjmelone

I wish we were still able to submit images for ratings.

<p>Outstanding shot of the two GBH's Sebastian! Using a Nikon 300 F/4 for bird photography for several years I have to tell you that I am very happy that I switched to the Tamron 150-600mm lens. I use this with a D7000. Do yourself a favor and give the Tamron a look. For around a $1000 its the best 600mm for the price that you can buy! BR, Rob</p><div></div>

<p>Hi Jean, It is smart of you to post a question about which lens to buy for bird photography. And you will get many different answers to consider. For me, I always start with a budget and take it from there trying to get the best lens for the buck. One thing that might help you would be to go back to the camera store and try the Nikon 80-400. Since you already own the Nikon 70-300 (as I do), place the 80-400 at 300mm and then zoom to 400mm. This way you can tell how much the extra 100mm will get you. It's really not a lot! Of course you will get better IQ with the 80-400 and faster autofocus, but stopping down the 70-300 can get you some nice shots too! You can go with the new Nikon 300 f/4 with a tc and get excellent results with a good technique. I say good technique because if the subject is sharp to begin with you can easily crop to a size equal to that of the big glass. I do this all the time with excellent results with the previous generation Nikon 300 f/4 and 1.4x tc. I also own the Tamron 150-600 which so far I like very much. It's autofocus is quirky, making you work harder, but I have taken shots of birds as sharp if not sharper than my Nikon 300 f/4. And I'm talking about 600mm! BIF are another matter requiring a faster lens and experienced technique so I not going to get into that. I just trying to provide you with some information, Jean to help you decide. What I would do is narrow your choices down, try/buy each lens you are considering from a place that has a good 30 day return policy and then decide for yourself. Whatever you decide, one of the most important aspects of bird photography is not your focal length (which helps of course) it's understanding bird behavior so you can get close to the action and get as many pixels on the bird as you can. To do this, you don't need to spend thousands. All you need is a $100 camouflaged blind chair. Set this up by a feeder in your back yard, stop your 70-300 down to f/11 and you have the potential of getting more satisfying shots with this setup than if you were to take a thousand shots in the field with a $10,000 rig. All best of success to you, Jean. Rob Melone, your neighbor in NJ.</p>

<p>Hi Richard, I have been shooting with a Nikon 300 f/4 and 1.4x tc for several years and never thought of buying a non-Nikon lens, but recently purchased the Tamron 150-600 to try. I shoot only birds. Comparing the Tamron to the Nikon prime, I must admit that the Tamron is just as sharp, if not sharper for bird feathers. Besides optics, this may have to do with the fact that the Tamron has stabilization where the Nikon 300 f/4 does not. The stabilization may also make up for the difference in speed (f/5.6 and f/6.3 for Tamron). I shoot handhold only. I really don't know what the actual reason is, but I can tell you that the Tamron seems to work very well with fine details such as bird feathers, even at 600mm and f/6.3. It's also just slightly bigger and heavier than my Nikon lens and tc. Take a look at the last 3 images in my "Birds" folder and compare these to all the others shot with the Nikon 300/4 and 1.4x. I should point out that the Tamron images are from my first attempt using this lens. I did another shoot yesterday with equal results. Of course if you are not in a hurry wait for the Sigma, but I wanted to let you know my opinion on the Tamron. I use a Nikon D7000. Best of luck and feel free to contact me if you like. Rob</p><div></div>

<p>Hi Vinny, I owned a D90 and traded up for a D7000. If you shoot mostly landscapes they are similar, but if you intend to crop (like I do for bird photography), the D7000 is hands down better because of the higher pixel count. Meaning you will get cleaner, clearer crops compared to the D90. Good luck, my friend! </p>

<p>I guess yo are reading this too late, but all you need to do (for next time) for flowers in full sun is bring a black umbrella with you to shade the flowers.</p>

<p>In case any one is interested, the price for this lens on Amazon is currently $2,296. This is the first price reduction I've seen on this lens so far.</p>

<p>nazir, in addition to all the good advice for camera settings, remember to pan your camera in the direction the bird is heading. You must try and match your pan speed to the birds flight speed. </p><div></div>

<p>I agree with Floyd. If you are referring to the purple clouds (not spots) this could be the result of underexposure. Try boosting the exposure in post and see what happens. Better yet, do another shoot and bracket your exposure. This will help to troubleshoot the problem. Best of success! </p><div></div>

<p>Nice shots everyone! Here is a mink which makes its home along a jetty located in Barnegat<br /> Light, New Jersey.</p><div></div>

<p>Sounds like a software memory problem on the camera which may have to do with the fine-tune process. Since they are both Nikon products that have caused the problem, I would contact Nikon. There may be another more robust way to reset the camera that is not in the manual.</p>

<p>Happy 26th edition and great shots as usual everyone! This one was taken while I was kayaking in NJ this past summer. I must admit that I was startled when I saw this proud gull coming at me with a freshly caught blue-claw crab in its mouth. It goes to show that you never know what you will find in nature.</p><div></div>

<p>While larger, the D7000 shot looks out of focus, sort of like what I get when I take my glasses off. If you were focusing manually, I would say to adjust the diopter on the D7000. But since this is not the case, make sure that the paper appears in focus while looking through the viewfinder. If it is and the camera beeps to indicate auto-focus and you get the same results, even when you downsize the image, try a different lens or different subject to troubleshoot the D7000. </p>

<p>Thanks a lot Shun! It sounds like the new 80-400 would be a good investment for me and even though it is considered expensive, it still would be a lot less (although slower) than the 300 f/2.8 w/1.4 x teleconverter. </p>

<p>For those who have both lenses, I would like to know if the new 80-400 generally provides quicker focus speed than the 300 f/4, which I typically use with a 1.4 x teleconverter attached. My main interest is in capturing birds in flight. I am shooting a D7000. Thanks.</p>

<p>Check for exposure lock.</p>

<p>I find it interesting that the D300s is ahead of the D7100 and the D90 ahead of the D5300 in the Nikon lineup.</p>

<p>David, pardon me if I am too obvious, but camera’s today are considered electronic devices and this market is driven by upgrades. Take a look at the lifespan of a computer, flat-screen TV or Smartphone. Manufacturers purposely build in technological obsolescence where a product is scheduled to be discontinued, no longer supported and replaced with an upgrade. Whether an upgrade is beneficial is of course a matter of opinion. But, those manufactures that do not have a new product under development at the same time an upgraded product is released, could possibly find themselves falling short of the competition. While I’m sure film camera manufacturers operated under a similar principle, the electronics industry is a somewhat different beast and our economy is directly affected by consumer appeal.<br>

So, what are we to do about it? We do have a choice. We can keep what we have and not remain current with new technology releases, which is fine, or, we can remain current (i.e. informed) and make a decision whether an upgrade is appealing/relevant to us. I have to admit that the latter can be challenging, but some might argue the benefits are worth it. So, to answer your question about whether you are missing out on something, I can tell you that for me upgrading from a previous Nikon DSLR to a newer one, has improved my images (e.g. better autofocus for cleaner shots of moving subjects, tighter crops through higher megapixels, faster shutter speed through higher, cleaner ISO) and this is enough of a motivator for me to keep a watchful eye on what might be coming down the pike. And while I am keeping a watchful eye, I will continue to read good books at the same pace that I did when I was a kid.</p>

<p>Hi April, photography today is more about good subjects, good light and composition than it is about megapixels and learning every detail of a DSLR. Set the D7000 to Auto or Aperture Priority mode and concentrate on your subjects. Once you do this and get some nice results then you can sit quietly with your camera and start to explore the different settings. But I think that your results may not be that different one way or the other. Besides, if you get perplexed with the D7000, you can always reach out to your friends on this website for guidance.</p>

<p>Outstanding shots everyone! Roberta, what a beautiful composition and capture.</p><div></div>

<p>Such beautiful images! Here is a shot of a juvenile yellow-crowned night heron. I was in my kayak and it was low tide that is why the bird appears high in the frame. </p><div></div>

<p>Lovely images everyone, as always! Here is an early morning shot of a sunflower opening its petals.</p><div></div>

<p>The image looks pretty good to me. See if your camera or software allows you to turn on focus points. This way you can see where your camera focused on the bird. If it focused other than on the eye, then it looks more like a dof issue rather than camera shake. If you are looking for the eye to be sharp, you will want to position yourself so the bird is facing you with its head at a slight angle. This is a good shot Arvind! </p>

<p>Hi Arvind, I just want to point out that the dof issue that you referenced is directly related to how close you are to the bird. If the bird is 10' away then yes at f2.8 you could see feather detail reduced. But at 100' I don't think you would be able to tell the difference between f/2.8 and f/4. I have the 300 f/4 and have been very happy with the IQ. Focus speed is not super quick but certainly adequate. It's light and easy to handhold for inflight shots. If I ever upgrade to the 2.8 it will be for situations where I need 600mm (with a 2.0 x tc). While you can still handhold this setup, you won't get consistent results without a tripod, and that's a whole different ball game. Since you are a beginner, please keep this in mind. Hope this helps!</p><div></div>

<p>Amazing shots everyone!</p><div></div>