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Author & Editor
Author: Lee Thiah Khee aka LTK
Editor: <Please add your name here if you have edit this article>
Photographs are copyright of Lee Thiah Khee
Introduction
Capturing birds in flight is one of the most demanding and challenging task to most avian photographers. I admire wild birds that take wind beneath their wings and never failed to be mesmerized by these gorgeous feathers flying over grassland, mountain ranges or waters. It is my dream to freeze these spectacular moments through my lens.
Common kingfisher diving for fish
You must be wondering how do I manage?
Well, here are some of my ‘secrets’:
For a start, my equipment and set up are nothing fancy but just my faithful old 600mm (occasionally with a loan 800mm) and a camera body.
White-bellied Sea Eagle captured with my faithful companion - my lens and camera body
So how do I do it?
Practice, practice and PRACTISE!
I started off by practicing flight shots in places that I can find co-operative subjects, like at Singapore Botanical Garden where the Lesser Whistling Ducks were most obliging and ‘helpful’. This allowed me to be familiarized with my equipment and set up as well as understanding the subjects’ flight pattern. It is the easiest way for a beginner to master the auto-focus (AF) technique. Many valuable lessons could be learnt this way. A good example is that through these sessions, I can’t help but notice shooting flock of birds in flight is much easier than a single bird.
Camera settings
Aperture priority mode is my favorite setting. I always set it at the maximum aperture to obtain the fastest shuttle speed possible in order to freeze the subject’s movement.
There are few problems that I would always encounter in the field. White skies tend to confuse the camera meter, so usually I had to increase 2/3 or more stop in the exposure than what was metered. If it is a dark colored bird against a bright sky then it is necessary to add another 1/3 to 1/2 stop in the exposure above the meter reading. On the other hand, shooting a light colored bird required a similar decrease of exposure stop. I often like to shoot birds against clear or homogenous background as compared to a messy one. This allowed me to achieve a quicker AF respond.
Classic example of light colored bird with a dark background - Terns
After rounds and rounds of practice and mastered the skills in AF technique, it is time for one to venture out of comfort zone and explore the wilderness.
Field knowledge
In the field, I make an effort to understand the specific subject's flying pattern before decide what to shoot and how to shoot. I also studied and learnt where they usually hunt, where they perch or even look for their nesting site. These allowed me to better predict the subject's flying routine and ‘flight schedule’. Then I would settle into the most ideal position where I decide and choose the range of AF distance. This is to prevent the lens from searching ‘blindly’ when the targeted subject appeared.
Barbet approaching its nest
Inevitably, I shoot my subjects in the ‘landscape’ format and ensure the subject would fill up less than 1/2 the frame. This allowed room for the sudden plunge in taking off, opening wings span or sudden change of subject’s direction.
Opsrey took off suddenly from its perch
I don't practice full burst of maximum frame rate when action occurred. This is because I can’t keep the subject in sight when the viewfinder image is interrupted too frequently every time the mirror flipped up. And when this happened, I could miss out the best action that may follow. Instead I do short burst of triggering at about 4-5 frames when the subject is in ‘position’ on the viewfinder. I am a strong believer of the good old trust in reflex triggering and sound judgment before pressing shuttle when the actions unfold.
The other trick is to compose the shot before the bird appears then trigger when it flies into the frame. I used this trick to capture the Sunda Pygmy Woodpecker recently and it proved to be effective.
These tips are from my personal experience and hence they can be very subjective. Learnt and understand the tricks but these are not hard and fast ‘golden’ rules. Take chances and perseveres, never be disheartened with failures. Till date I myself do not have a 100% success rate and I am still learning something new every day.
Have fun and certainly hope to see more dramatic flight shots from you folks in NPX soon!
___________________above article, photographs contributed and copyright of Lee Thiah Khee
