10 tips for better bird photos

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Being a bird photographer presents problems that most other photographers don’t face. First, birds move, and often very quickly! Second, they see you coming long before you see them. Have you ever seen an orchid do a runner when you pull out your macro lens? So how do you get a good, sharp shot of something that pings around like a rubber ball on a squash court?

Here are my top ten tips for bird photography beginners that will set you on the path to getting that perfect shot. 

Australian Pelicans, Toodyay, WA. This photo was taken at the Avon River near my house. It was a misty morning and I was very pleased to find these three birds perfectly positioned. The mist lent an ethereal quality to the background. Canon EOS-1D X, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens @ 600mm, 1/6400 sec. @ f/5.6, ISO 1600, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, selective noise reduction, some cloning out of distracting spots on the water and sharpening. 
Australian Pelicans, Toodyay, WA. This photo was taken at the Avon River near my house. It was a misty morning and I was very pleased to find these three birds perfectly positioned. The mist lent an ethereal quality to the background. Canon EOS-1D X, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens @ 600mm, 1/6400 sec. @ f/5.6, ISO 1600, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, selective noise reduction, some cloning out of distracting spots on the water and sharpening. 

1) A Good Lens 

There is no getting around the fact that the better the quality of your lens, the better chance you have of getting a sharp image, even in low light. 

It comes back to what you can afford and how serious you are about bird photography. If you are just starting out, or if it’s always just going to be a hobby, then I would avoid a large prime lens and stick with a good zoom lens as this will be cheaper and prove much more versatile for all aspects of wildlife photography. Image stabilisation, or vibration reduction, is a key feature of most modern long focal length lenses and where possible you should try to get a lens which has it.

Having image stabilisation means that you can handhold a lens at much slower shutter speeds than you could with a conventional lens.  

Unless you are taking ‘birds in the environment’ shots, the general rule is that the bigger the focal length the better. The maximum focal length of the lens should be at least 300mm.

There are some ways that you can increase your focal length without spending a fortune, such as by buying a camera with a cropped sensor or investing in a teleconverter. 

Buller’s Albatross, Lord Howe Island, NSW. 
This is one of my hero images, as I took it from a rocking boat, in the rain and in between throwing up overboard!  Pelagic birds, such as this albatross, often come very close to boats out at sea so it’s better to have a medium range or zoom lens, than a super telephoto prime lens. This image illustrates why you should use continuous high-speed shutter mode so as to maximise the chances of getting the bird with an interesting expression or at an interesting angle. 
Canon EOS 7D Mark II (cropped sensor), Canon EF 300mm f/4 IS lens, 1/3200 sec. @ f/5.6, ISO640. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, cropping, levels, selective noise reduction and sharpening.   
Buller’s Albatross, Lord Howe Island, NSW.  This is one of my hero images, as I took it from a rocking boat, in the rain and in between throwing up overboard!  Pelagic birds, such as this albatross, often come very close to boats out at sea so it’s better to have a medium range or zoom lens, than a super telephoto prime lens. This image illustrates why you should use continuous high-speed shutter mode so as to maximise the chances of getting the bird with an interesting expression or at an interesting angle.  Canon EOS 7D Mark II (cropped sensor), Canon EF 300mm f/4 IS lens, 1/3200 sec. @ f/5.6, ISO640. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, cropping, levels, selective noise reduction and sharpening.   

2) Get close 

Generally, the closer you get to your subject the better. Every bit of space between you and your subject reduces clarity. There are lots of ways to get closer to your subject (camouflage, long lens, teleconverters, etc), but it’s best to let the bird come to you. Sound ridiculous? Well, it’s true -- and easier than you think. 

I don’t advocate using any kind of food (especially not live bait), but setting yourself up near points of water in the dry Australian climate is a no-brainer. Then, to appear less threatening, it’s best to lie down on the ground or at least stay seated in one spot. I often do this with migratory waders and other shorebirds that like to feed along the shorelines. If you lie down well in advance of their appearance and don’t move, often they will come very close to you – sometimes so close you can’t focus on them anymore! 

But you do need to be patient. Once you’ve gained their trust, you can’t move until the birds move on first. It is important not to deliberately flush birds, as this causes undue stress. 

A great way of getting close to skittish birds is by sitting in your car or staying within its shadow. Raptors, for example, are often easier to shoot from a car.

Australian Fairy Tern, Woodman Point, WA. One morning, I saw several young terns on the beach being fed by their parents. I lay down on the sand about 20 metres from the group to get at eye level and, also, to appear less threatening. After a while, one of the young terns landed very close to me. I took the photo across a sand bar, which is why there is a soft blur between myself and the bird.   
Canon EOS-1D X, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS lens with Canon Extender EF 1.4x II @ 700mm, 1/2500 sec. @ f/5.6, ISO 1000. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with lightening, cropping, curves, levels, selective noise reduction and sharpening. This image won the Threatened Species category of Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2015. 
Australian Fairy Tern, Woodman Point, WA. One morning, I saw several young terns on the beach being fed by their parents. I lay down on the sand about 20 metres from the group to get at eye level and, also, to appear less threatening. After a while, one of the young terns landed very close to me. I took the photo across a sand bar, which is why there is a soft blur between myself and the bird.    Canon EOS-1D X, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS lens with Canon Extender EF 1.4x II @ 700mm, 1/2500 sec. @ f/5.6, ISO 1000. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with lightening, cropping, curves, levels, selective noise reduction and sharpening. This image won the Threatened Species category of Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year 2015. 

3) Spray and Pray 

‘Spray and Pray’ refers to shooting in Continuous High Speed shutter mode (you know, the one that sounds like a gatling gun) and hoping you get a great shot of the bird doing something interesting. I’ve only recently discovered this expression. The practice isn’t quite as random as it sounds in the sense that you’re still choosing when and what to photograph.   

Bear in mind, though, that you can only Spray and Pray effectively if you have a reasonably fast camera, and a fast card with a good amount of storage. If you are still using the 2GB card you got with your camera, it’s not going to matter how fast your camera is supposed to be (that is, the number of shots it takes per second) because the ‘buffer’ between shots (that time when you can’t take a photo because it’s still writing the last image to the camera card) will be huge (you’ll also run out of space pretty quickly). 

So, sorry, but the moral of this story is get the BIGGEST card with the FASTEST speed that you can afford (ideally, a 16GB or bigger camera card with at least 80mb/s write speed … and a spare).  

We have the privilege of shooting with digital cameras where it costs nothing to take extra photos (apart from time spent deleting the rubbish), so don’t be stingy. The more shots you take, the quicker you’ll learn and the more likely it is that you’ll capture that perfect moment.  

Australian Bustard, Murchsion, WA. This is another example of a car window shot. These birds were walking beside the road and again I did not want to risk startling them. By staying inside the car, they continued slowly walking in the direction in which they were heading, and I was able to get several good images (albeit with my father in the back seat, saying “I think you have enough photos now. Let’s go”).  
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS lens @ 500mm, 1/1250sec. @ f/4, ISO800. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, cropping and selective sharpening. 
Australian Bustard, Murchsion, WA. This is another example of a car window shot. These birds were walking beside the road and again I did not want to risk startling them. By staying inside the car, they continued slowly walking in the direction in which they were heading, and I was able to get several good images (albeit with my father in the back seat, saying “I think you have enough photos now. Let’s go”).   Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS lens @ 500mm, 1/1250sec. @ f/4, ISO800. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, cropping and selective sharpening. 

4) Get Low and Dirty 

If the bird you want to photograph is on the ground or in the water, then get yourself down and dirty. There is no doubt that photos taken at the bird's eye level have an intimacy with the viewer that photos taken from above or below (or even from side-on) can't match. Also, getting at eye level with the bird helps to reduce the amount of background and foreground in focus, resulting in pleasing blurs around the bird. 

New Holland Honeyeater, Donnybrook, WA. 
This is another common Australian bird.  I took this photo in my parent’s garden. The honeyeaters were very busy in their flowering wisteria and, because they’re used to human company, I could get quite close to them. Trees in the distant background provided a lovely touch of greenish yellow behind the white of the wisteria flowers and the effect was further enhanced by using a very shallow depth of field. 
Canon EOS-1D X Mark II, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens @ 600mm, 1/2000 sec. @ f/4.5, ISO 640, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, cropping and selective sharpening. 
New Holland Honeyeater, Donnybrook, WA.  This is another common Australian bird.  I took this photo in my parent’s garden. The honeyeaters were very busy in their flowering wisteria and, because they’re used to human company, I could get quite close to them. Trees in the distant background provided a lovely touch of greenish yellow behind the white of the wisteria flowers and the effect was further enhanced by using a very shallow depth of field.  Canon EOS-1D X Mark II, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens @ 600mm, 1/2000 sec. @ f/4.5, ISO 640, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, cropping and selective sharpening. 

5) Common birds 

When you start out in bird photography, there’s a huge temptation to chase the rarer bird species. Hence, you drive five hours to a water hole where someone once saw a purple-breasted green-haired bob-eye (not a real bird). If you want ID shots of different bird species, that’s fine. But if you want a good bird photo, you are rarely going to get it that way. You are better off spending time at your local park, or in your back garden, photographing the birds around you which are already habituated to human company.

A photo of a common bird doing something interesting in good light is far better than a photo of a rare bird doing something boring in bad light. If you browse through nature photography competition finalists you will see that a significant proportion of the photos are of common, not rare, animals.

Red-necked Avocet, Toodyay, WA. 
This image was taken in the last rays of a golden sunset. By shooting in this light, and lying at the water’s edge, I was able to get a portrait of this bird in perfect light with pleasing blurs in the foreground and background.  
Canon EOS-1D X, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens @ 600mm, 1/2000 sec. @ f/4, ISO 500, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, selective noise reduction and sharpening.
Red-necked Avocet, Toodyay, WA.  This image was taken in the last rays of a golden sunset. By shooting in this light, and lying at the water’s edge, I was able to get a portrait of this bird in perfect light with pleasing blurs in the foreground and background.   Canon EOS-1D X, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens @ 600mm, 1/2000 sec. @ f/4, ISO 500, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, selective noise reduction and sharpening.

6) Good Light 

There are lots of ways you can use light to alter the feel or impact of an image. One of the best ways of enhancing image quality is by taking photographs in the first few (preferably golden) hours after sunrise and the last few before sunset and keeping the sun behind you. This will not only give you perfect light on your bird but, if its head is turned towards you, you’ll get a beautiful catch-light in its eyes. 

Indian Parakeet, Chambal River, India. 
I was on a boat on the Chambal River in India when the guide pointed out these martin nests on the underside of the bridge. I had to aim directly above and there was little time to compose or plan each photo. I adjusted my camera settings and fired away (the ‘spray and pray’ method). It was only later when I looked at the images that I noticed the parakeet skulking in the corner.   
Canon EOS-1D X, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens @ 600mm, 1/1250sec. @ f/8, ISO 2500, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with cropping, curves, levels, and selective sharpening. 
Indian Parakeet, Chambal River, India.  I was on a boat on the Chambal River in India when the guide pointed out these martin nests on the underside of the bridge. I had to aim directly above and there was little time to compose or plan each photo. I adjusted my camera settings and fired away (the ‘spray and pray’ method). It was only later when I looked at the images that I noticed the parakeet skulking in the corner.    Canon EOS-1D X, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens @ 600mm, 1/1250sec. @ f/8, ISO 2500, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with cropping, curves, levels, and selective sharpening. 

7) Turn on the Blinkies!  

One of the most important aspects of bird photography is getting the exposure right in camera. If your image is overexposed you’ll lose crucial detail in the highlights. If that’s in the background, the problem might not be a biggie. But if it’s the bird that is overexposed, well... Houston we have a problem! Photoshop can do many things but performing miracles isn’t one of them. 
Fortunately, there’s an easy solution.

On most modern digital cameras there’s a setting in the menu called ‘Highlight Alert’ or similar. If this is enabled, you’ll quickly see if there are any problem areas. When the preview image appears in the LCD any blown highlights will blink black and white. If this happens anywhere on the bird (it’s quite common with a white bird against a dark background), adjust your exposure (either by choosing negative exposure compensation or by adjusting the aperture, shutter speed or ISO if you are shooting in manual mode). Take another shot and check the ‘blinkies’. Repeat until the area you are concerned about stops flashing. Simple! 

The Screaming (Black-shouldered Kite, Toodyay, WA) 
This young kite was calling from the TV antenna of our house. I went outside and positioned myself with the sun at my back. I was lucky that one of the kite’s parents flew up behind me, because this youngster took off, looking in my direction. The apparent eye contact with the viewer makes this an engaging image. The image is shortlisted in the Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year competition 2018. 
Canon EOS-1D X, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS lens @ 500mm, 1/4000 sec. @ f/8, ISO 1250, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, cropping, levels, selective noise reduction and sharpening. 
The Screaming (Black-shouldered Kite, Toodyay, WA)  This young kite was calling from the TV antenna of our house. I went outside and positioned myself with the sun at my back. I was lucky that one of the kite’s parents flew up behind me, because this youngster took off, looking in my direction. The apparent eye contact with the viewer makes this an engaging image. The image is shortlisted in the Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year competition 2018.  Canon EOS-1D X, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS lens @ 500mm, 1/4000 sec. @ f/8, ISO 1250, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, cropping, levels, selective noise reduction and sharpening. 

8) Research 

I once saw an article on Australian bird photography which said that rainbow bee-eaters were rare birds. That’s not true. Depending on where you are and what time of year it is, they can be extremely common and easy to photograph. They, like sacred kingfishers, are summer migrants. So yes, if you want to photograph them in July around Perth, for instance, you may as well go to the zoo because, chances are, you won’t find one in the wild. However, come November, if you visit certain parks in the city, they are as common as kookaburras. In other words, the key to getting a good photo of some bird species is to do your research: Get to know what birds are doing and when they are doing it. 

A quick and easy way of getting information is by joining a local bird group. BirdLife Australia is Australia’s leading bird organisation, dedicated to our native bird conservation. Each state has its own sub-groups and some, like BirdLife WA, run regular bird outings for free. 

Online resources are also invaluable. Most states have Facebook groups dedicated to bird photography. Join one of these and see what images other people have posted. Where did they take the photo? When did they take it? When the rainbow bee-eaters are in town again, you will know it, because someone, somewhere, will post a photograph of one. 

Carnaby’s Black-cockatoo, Mindarie, WA. 
I saw these birds feeding on bottlebrush plants on the roadside in a Perth suburb. Rather than get out of the car and risk scaring them away, I parked nearby and took photos from the car window. The birds were quite relaxed, and I was able to get several shots like this one as more birds flew in to join the feeding flock.   
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS lens @ 500mm, 1/1600sec. @ f/5.6, ISO500. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, cropping and selective sharpening. 
Carnaby’s Black-cockatoo, Mindarie, WA.  I saw these birds feeding on bottlebrush plants on the roadside in a Perth suburb. Rather than get out of the car and risk scaring them away, I parked nearby and took photos from the car window. The birds were quite relaxed, and I was able to get several shots like this one as more birds flew in to join the feeding flock. Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS lens @ 500mm, 1/1600sec. @ f/5.6, ISO500. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, cropping and selective sharpening. 

9) Good post-processing of RAW images

It is essential, especially as a beginner in bird photography, to have a good post-processing workflow. You don’t need the latest Photoshop and nor do you need to be a master of Layers, but you do need to be able to make sure you get the most out of your bird images. As a judge of several national nature photography competitions, and a moderator of a premier bird images gallery, I’ve seen a lot of potentially great images let down by bad post-processing.

The most common signs of bad processing are images that are badly cropped (usually too tightly around the bird), too dark, too colour toned, too saturated, too sharpened (or not sharpened at all) or that have too much digital ‘noise’. Each of these can be corrected to some extent by good post-processing techniques that could turn your photo from average to excellent.

Beware badly calibrated monitors too. Your image might look great on your computer, but diabolical on everyone else’s! And no matter how much you love vignettes, using them to hide problems (eg a distracting background) rarely works. There might be a case for using a vignette with artistic images but, even then, it should be done with a delicate touch rather than a fat-bottomed sledgehammer. 

Pied Stilt  
This pied stilt was standing in very dark water against a dark embankment. I had relied on the cameras automatic settings, the white parts of this bird would have been blown out (in other words, have no detail at all). To get the correct exposure, I deliberately underexposed the image and used the Highlights (Blinkies) alert on my camera to check if the white areas were ok. I had to repeat this many, many times. In the end, I had to underexpose by 5 or more stops to ensure I retained maximum detail in the highlights.  
Canon EOS-1D X Mark II, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens @ 600mm, 1/5000 sec. @ f/6.3, ISO 250, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, some cloning out of distracting spots on the water and selective sharpening of the bird. 
Pied Stilt   This pied stilt was standing in very dark water against a dark embankment. I had relied on the cameras automatic settings, the white parts of this bird would have been blown out (in other words, have no detail at all). To get the correct exposure, I deliberately underexposed the image and used the Highlights (Blinkies) alert on my camera to check if the white areas were ok. I had to repeat this many, many times. In the end, I had to underexpose by 5 or more stops to ensure I retained maximum detail in the highlights.   Canon EOS-1D X Mark II, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens @ 600mm, 1/5000 sec. @ f/6.3, ISO 250, handheld. Processed in DPP4 (Canon) and Photoshop CC 2018 with curves, levels, some cloning out of distracting spots on the water and selective sharpening of the bird. 

10 Be Ethical 

Ethics, in this context, is another way of saying you put the welfare of the bird above your need to get a photo of it. Nature around the world is under enormous threat from human activity. Let’s not compound the problem.

A good test is to ask yourself if you are comfortable explaining exactly how you took the photo. If you find yourself ‘editing out’ certain aspects of how you took the photo because you’re scared other people won’t like your methodology, that should be a warning. Be honest with the public, but most of all be honest with yourself. You are not doing the bird, or yourself (in the long run), any favours by engaging in conduct that isn’t 100% bird-friendly. #ethicsbeforeimages. ❂

About the author: Georgina Steytler is an award winning nature photographer with a passion for ethics and bird conservation. You can see more of her work at georginasteytler.com.au.

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