Swans

[Mohammed Raheel]

Clicked these fellas early morning (before sun rise) at Baan Ganga a fresh water pond besides Arabian Ocean in Mumbai.
I feel the reflection in water is diminishing the effect.
Suggestions/feedback welcome since this camera is 1st time in use.

Canon 400D, Aperture F/5.7, Shutter Speed 1/250, ISO 200

[Rajan Kanagasabai]

Hi Raheel

This is indeed a versatile camera (Of late, since my 40D has stood up on me, the 400D has been my mainstay).

Your Picture properties suggest you are on the longest end of your kit lens (55MM), you have you Full Auto mode switched on and the Flash Mode has kicked in.

Early morning shots like these, especially on the Kit lens are best on the Apreture priority mode, which turns off the flash. You can also explore the option of bumping up the ISO a little higer (say 400, anything above this produces a lot of noise on the 400D and you will need to use Neat to remove noise). Lastly, for starters, you should try to have the AF on a center focus. This seems a bit out of focus. Maybe experts like Sabyasachi can correct me if i am wrong.

Otherwise, a nice frame and a great one for starters (believe me, my first ones on the 400D were absolute fiasco's)

Rajan

[Sabyasachi Patra]

Mohammed,
Congratulations on your purchase. Now the most difficult but fun filled phase starts. We all will help you in learning fast.

Is it cropped image?

You clicked a nice scene. The shutter speed 1/250 was adequate for these fellows as they are swimming towards you. The image lacks sharpness. Please look at the sharpness tutorial and see if your technique needs any improvement.

Centre point AF helps acquiring the focus faster. In a 55mm lens, the AF sensor can pick up a point near the subject and lock focus on it. It will look for contrasty portions of the image and focus on it. It helps to check if the focus is right before you click. You can try manual focus as well.

Try to steady yourself and click. After you click, you can see the histogram at the back LCD. If there are flashing highlights, then you will know that a portion of the image is over exposed. In this image, you will find the white body of these fellows overexposed and that portion will blink.

The shaded portion on the left is under exposed and the whites on the bird are over exposed. Did you do some post processing? Look at your original capture and compare.

[Aditya Panda]

These are not swans, the swan is a very different bird found in Australia and a few other places in the southern hemisphere. These are captive domestic geese. Congrats on your upgrade.

Regards,
Aditya

[Mohammed Raheel]

Saby, this is the original image, though cropped.
I tried to bring some clarity in the initial one using Picasa.
The picture lacked sharpness which I tried acquiring through PP.
I am not aware of the AF and its usage so far, will read on it and experiment surely.
Regarding the results in Histogram, how do I dilute the portions overexposed?
I see the flashy portions often in the histogram. I try to eliminate them from focus in the next shot and remaining through Post Processing.

Rajan,
FALSH I do not remember the flash while clicking, maybe I did not notice.
APERTURE Using the Aperture priority mode under such conditions is learning to me.
ISO I was sceptical of a higher ISO fearing Noice, maybe I shall try increasing the levels a bit under similar lighting conditions.
The lens had to be zoomed fully to bring them closer since they swam in the middle of the pond. How does the Zoom impact clarity of subjects?

Aditya, these are Geese,, I stand corrected. :d

Thanks Guys for the valuable feedbacks. More welcome :)

[Sabyasachi Patra]

Try getting the sharpness while capturing the photo. No amount of processing will make the image sharper. For sharpness, there is a rule of thumb that says the shutter speed has to be atleast 1/focal length. That means, if you are using a lens of 55 mm focal length, then your shutter speed has to be 1/55 or higher. Your shutter speed of 1/250 is much faster than 1/55 and hence is adequate for this situation.

To start with use aperture priority and select f5.6. That would be the lowest aperture setting at 55mm. Shutter speed would be set automatically by the camera. When you half press the shutter, it will show you the shutter speed.

The zoom increases or decreases your focal length. Accordingly you will find the subjects closer to you or farther to you. More focal length means the subject is more closer.

Flashing highlight, means the subject is brighter and is getting over exposed. So you have to reduce the exposure. You can do that by dialing in a negative exposure compensation -1/3rd EV, -2/3rd EV etc.

I would strongly advise you to read the manual from end to end. In case any doubt, either mail me or anyone of us or put a question in the tips section.

This forum is meant for only wild and free animals, birds etc. However, before you run to the nearest wildlife sanctuary to photograph animals for uploading in this forum, keep on trying with these captive subjects to hone your skills. Since this is of a captive subject, we are supposed to remove this image. However, this being your first image, keep on asking questions. We will respond and clarify your doubts. We will remove the image later.
Cheers,
Sabyasachi