Very nice, Kenn

Really shows him for the "jewel" he is.

Dave

Hi Kenn, very nice photo! I see on that smugmug link there's a buy this photo cart. Do you sell your photos there?

Thanks Dave and jimmyjojo,

Smugmug apparently does offer some professional photographers this marketing service. And I believe anyone can also order prints and other imprinted products made from smugmug gallery photos via the shopping cart feature. But we post our gallery for all to enjoy. If you like any of our pictures enuf to download them, (for non-commercial purposes), there is no block imposed on this that I'm aware of. We are bird lovers, and only amateur photographers who've not sold any of our pictures.

Kenn

Ken, your photos are amazing! What camera are you using?
Keep up the good work!

Thanks michelled,

We use a Canon S3-IS. A lot. :)

Here's another shot of him (a bit closer yet):
{{gwi:998362}}

Kenn

Ken,
Is that a Canon S3 IS Powershot? I got a Canon S2 IS Powershot, 5.0 Megapixels, 12x zoom lens for Christmas a year and a half ago and it doesn't take pictures like yours, at all. I've seen some of your other pictures and they are absolutely gorgeous...ah...I dream of doing that!

Do you have an additional lens you attach to yours or is the step-up model just that much better?

Thanks,
Beverly

Thank you bevinga, ...we do work at it. But it's a labor of love to be sure. :)

From what I've read and seen, there are only incremental differences amongst the Sx-IS Powershot models. Each offering some additional features and minor improvements over the previous generation. But I've seen S2 shots that were very good indeed (some of them from posters in this forum), and I expect you can get comparable results with yours.

We've had our S3 for a little over 2 months now, and have taken about 7000 pictures with it. We use no additional lens systems yet, although I am tempted to try a teleconverter. I do use a tripod for these closeup feeder shots; and use Manual, or Tv modes to allow adjustment of exposures, apertures, and shutter speeds. It's taken a good deal of experimenting and research to learn how to optimize our results. But in truth, we're still learning.

We use ISO 80 (equivalent to ISO 50 on your S2) almost exclusively and simply never shoot above ISO 200 in daylight. We've found this is essential with this camera to avoid visible noise in our images. I have been using manual focus whenever possible also, because I find it difficult to judge the accuracy of the autofocus through the view finder in many situations. And lastly, I crop, adjust levels, and often perform VERY minor unsharp masking in Photoshop.

I know this workflow will likely be more effort than most people want to expend with a point and shoot cam. But to us, the beauty of the S3 is that it allows us to optimize the photographing of our birds by using its manual features.

hth,

Kenn

Thank you Ken, for your help. I've not tried the manual or TV modes yet. I don't mind the extra work, but frankly, I don't know that much about all the technical stuff...to me, this thing has a lot of bells and whistles! I will try what you mentioned though, and see if I can't get some better shots. I've been meaning to buy a tripod since I have the tendancy to move when I click.

Again, thank you for your willingness to offer advice to a newbie like me!

Beverly

Beverly,

I know the numerous controls on your camera can be a bit intimidating. We went through this also. But maybe I could suggest a somewhat easier starting point than my earlier post about the more advanced settings:

If you set your Mode dial to P(rogram), and then press the ISO button (repeatedly) to select:
ISO 50 for bright sunny shots...
ISO 100 for less sunny days... or
ISO 200 for overcast and low-light days...
The camera will then adjust the aperture and shutter speeds automatically just as it does in AUTO Mode. But you will have controlled the ISO setting to minimize noise, and this alone can greatly improve the quality of your photos.

After using the Program mode for awhile you can experiment with the other modes and learn the effects of aperture settings (F stops) and shutter speeds if you wish.

We're really newbies too, I took my first bird photos on June 11th of this year. Under ideal lighting conditions (and with a fairly steady hand) the Sx-IS cams will take very good photos in Auto mode. But conditions are seldom ideal, and it's a big help if you you learn to use the manual modes to optimize your results.

hth,

Kenn

Thank you, so very much Ken! I set my camera as you suggested on the (P) mode and since it was somewhat cloudy when I was out snapping pictures, I put the ISO on 200. I got some good shots, I think. I've got to load them on the computer and then the truth will be known.

I had always used a 35 mm. camera until I got this one, so I thought the higher the ISO, the better the photo would be for quick-moving subjects. I used the 35 mm all the while my son played football in high school and the first couple of years of college. When I started using my digital for his football games, they didn't turn out as good as I wanted, but I do at least have pictures!

Again, thank you for your help. Ya know, I'm still reeling over that 7000 shots in a little over 2 mths! I'm impressed!

Beverly

Lol... yeah we take a lot of pictures... and believe me, they aren't all good ones... But we're constantly trying to learn, to get better ones for the gallery.

And I take a lot of inspiration from others here... both from the many outstanding photos posted, and the encouragement we get from those who enjoy seeing ours.

A rather amazing shot of a bazillion hummers (taken at dawn with a flash) posted here recently inspired me to try my luck on a recent very low-light morning. I must admit it took many tries adjusting my flash intensity, and exposure settings but I finally got a few shots that weren't too harsh. I actually kinda like the lighting on this one:
{{gwi:995741}}

keep shooting,

Kenn