On 24th March I had a short session with the new camera at Calke Park. Being in the hide gave me a good variety of lighting conditions and background situations, plus an almost endless stream of birds, enabling me to get in some much-needed practice with the new equipment. I was delighted with the results, although some problems were discovered, and later resolved.
The owl sculpture just before the hide at Calke Explore, although a little on the naive side, is weathering nicely. I just managed to squeze it all in with the lens wound back to 100mm and turning the camera into portrait orientation - something that I don't think I've done for many years.
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Owl Sculpture - Calke Explore
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I was fortunate to find a space in the hide, and that someone had had the foresight to bring some suet pellets with them, as it seems that the feeders in front of the hide are not being replenished at the moment.
There were a few Reed Buntings in the area, both male and female, and these were not too difficult to photograph. The female, in the first image, was quite close to the hide, but the male in the second image was way behind.
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| Reed Bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus) (female) - Calke Park |
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| Reed Bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus) (male) - Calke Park |
There were also a few Nuthatches to keep me entertained, but they were not so easy to photograph as they habitually zoom in, grab food and then zoom away again. One did, however, briefly stop quite close!
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Nuthatch (Sitta europaea) - Calke Park
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During the next five minutes, I took some more shots, two of which I offer below.
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| Coal Tit (Periparus ater) - Calk Park |
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| Reed Bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus) (female) - Calke Park |
It was then that a minor calamity struck. A Water Rail - always exciting to see - wandered into view and I started firing off shots, only to find that my camera suddenly stopped and refused to take any more shots. There was a message to say that the card was full. This puzzled me as the camera has two card slots and I thought that I had set it up so that it automatically switched to the second card. By the time I found a workaround, the Water Rail had gone. I had, however, managed a few shots before I hit the stops.
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Water Rail (Rallus aquaticus) - Calke Park
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I managed to sort out the problem when I got home again.
After this, I stayed a while longer, hoping for the Water Rail to return, but it didn't. Here are some more shots of some of the birds photographed during this session. With the objective of getting to know the camera better, I was trying for shots in a variety of situations, rather than a variety of birds, so the subject matter might seem a little repetitive.
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| Dunnock (Prunella modularis) - Calke Park |
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| Reed Bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus) (male) - Calke Park |
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| Nuthatch (Sitta europaea) - Calke Park |
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Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) - Calke Park
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One small negative aspect of the new camera set-up came to light during this session, and it was one that I had not considered. My old Sigma 50-500 offered maximum appertures of f4.5 at 50mm and f6.3 at 500mm. The new 100-400 lens is f5.6 at 100mm and f8.0 at 400mm. This makes it a little more difficult to lose busy and confusing backgrounds behind the main subject.
I also have another minor problem, and that is that I had the camera set up to give a gentle 'beep' when focus was achieved. Since updating the firmware a few days ago, this 'beep' no longer happens. The camera beeps OK when I select it during the 'set up' process, but fails to carry it through to when the camera is in use. I am waiting for Canon to come back to me on this one.
Overall, however, I'm delighted to have made the switch.
I shall close now, and hope to be back with another post in, as usual, about a week's time.
In the meantime, please take good care of yourselves and Nature. Thank you for dropping by - - - Richard
As I see it, your delight that you made the switch appears to be justified. Overall was the word you used Richard, and you seem to have enjoyed the exercise of getting used to the new equipment with good results, the Water Rail being the best example I thought.
ReplyDeleteRegards from North of the Watford Gap....Pete.
Thank you for your kind words, and sorry for the very late reply, Pete. Just managing to catch up after a visit to Rutland Water on Tuesday, and having two granddaughters to keep entertained on Wednesday and Thursday.
DeleteI'm pleased to say that Canon got back to me and the issue is now sorted. Hopefully the learning curve will continue unfettered.
Best wishes to you both - - - Richard
Hello Richard
ReplyDeletethese cameras have so many settings, i adjusted a few things on mine when i had it new and it happened like yours, it stopped... in my excitement i sent it back to the seller. Luckily, he was a real photo expert and after a short time gave the all-clear, everything was OK, just pretended.. now to your pictures, I think the pictures of the nuthatch are pin-sharp, great picture, the water rail is also great. Very good results you show.
Greetings Frank
Canon were very helpful with my camera problem, Frank. It seems that it was nothing to do with the firmware update that I'd applied, but that I had put in a setting that upset things. All seems to be working just fine now!
DeleteBest wishes - - - Richard
If this is repetitive, repeat on, I say! The results here seem to indicate that the new camera is doing what you hoped it would, Richard, and the results are very pleasing. There will be other times and other Water Rails, I am sure. It's hardly surprising that there are a few unknowns at the beginning but no doubt each session will be smoother than the last. I hope that The good folks at Canon get back to you quickly and are helpful. With our best wishes - David
ReplyDeleteI have to say that the Customer Support service at Canon seems to be excellent, David, and the problem was quickly sorted. Unsurprisingly, it was a case of 'operator malfunction' - something that I'm getting used to in my dotage!.
DeleteBest wishes to you both - - - Richard
I confess to developing an ever great acquaintance with operator malfunction too!
DeleteHi Richard! Absolutely lovely birds!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Anne. I like them too!
DeleteDidn't notice on my first visit to your website Richard....The Nuthatch is a ringed bird right leg.
ReplyDeleteRather a lot of birds at that location are ringed, Pete. I have tried to avoid photographing those with rings, or just publishing shots where the ring is not showing. I have mixed thoughts about ringing in general, but feel that, photographically, rings spoil the shot.
DeleteHello Richard :=)
ReplyDeleteSplendid results with your new Canon camera. Your Nuthatch captures are charming. I especially like the one with the suet pellet in it's beak. The Water Rail and the male and female Reed Bunting are also lovely sharp images, and the carved Owl is a nice addition to the area.
All the best.
Sonjia.
Thank you, Sonjia. I am getting more and more pleased with the new camera as I learn how to use it better.
DeleteBest wishes - stay safe - - - Richard
You and your new equipment had a nice workout! Many more to come as you get to know each other.
ReplyDeleteThese initial results are certainly impressive! Soon, all the new buttons, settings and adjustments will be second nature and you'll be looking at those computer maps dreaming of what you might find over the horizon. You know, just to get a bit more "practice"!
Seriously, all of these images are great.
Gini and I are well. Preparing to spend Easter Sunday with the daughter and her hubby. The following day, I think I found a new spot for some photo "practice" of my own!
All the best to you both.
I'm not just delighted with the camera's capabilities, Wally, but also very thankful for the weight reduction. I'm hoping for more opportunities soon, now that the weather seems to be improving.
DeleteLindsay's mobility is continuing to improve and we're looking forward to a short time away next month.
I hope you have a great Sunday with your daughter and son-in-law.
As well as having the pleasure of hosting two of our granddaughters for the past two days, they're back with us again now, while their dad (our son) and our daughter go to a memorial dedication of a bench in thew local park to the memory of a friend, so I shall have to keep this short.
Best wishes to you and Gini - - - - Richard
Hi Richard, Sorry for the lateness in my reply, I have finally mastered my problems and I can catch up with everybody. Nice shots as usual, Take care.
ReplyDeleteMike.
Delighted to hear that you are back on track with your computer, Mike, and thank you for your visit. Best wishes - - - Richard
DeleteHello Richard, not dissapointing at all these photos you took. Sharp and crispy. So you can enjoy Spring and Summer etc. with finding more delightfull subjects to take photos off.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to that.
Warm regards,
Roos
Thank you, Roos - I'm too am looking forward to enjoying the warmth and photographic opportunities of Spring and Summer and hoping that I'll be suitably acquainted with the camera by then.
DeleteWith my best wishes - - - Richard
Hi Richard we are back home and struggling with an over grown garden though thankfully, we covered the vegetable garden with weed free cloth and it has worked. Several day of work saved 😊 I have several hundred photos to go through so blogging for me will be slow.
ReplyDeleteLove the photos taken with your new camera and I am sure the few hiccups will soon be overcome. I am not sure that I would have known that was a Reed Bunting, I would have been searching under sparrow or similar for an ID!!! I need to see one now so I know for future ID.
Hoping that all is well and that Lindsay's knee is now trouble free. Wishing you both all the best, cheers Diane .
Hi Diane. It's good to hear from you and know that you are safely home, even if you have now got a mountain to climb in reclaiming your garden!
DeleteReed Bunting is not uncommon in these parts so, if you were resident here, I am sure that you would have recognised it instantly. The only small difficulty you might encounter would be distinguishing between male and female when in winter plumage - something that I'm not confident with either!
Lindsay's knee is now relatively trouble-free, thank you, and she is almost fully recovered from the cellulitis. However, her other knee and her hip have deteriorated with the compensation they have had to provide, and causing her quite a lot of pain. We're still unable to travel anywhere with confidence, including visiting family and friends as she's dependent on access to disabled loo facilities!
My best wishes to you and Nigel - - - Richard