Fantastic Mike, Love the rain drops in the in flight & static shots at the end. Thanks for sharing another great place that I will have to add to my list.
I have watched this video numerous times and I thoroughly enjoy it each time I see it. The images are pin sharp and the owls are fascinating to watch. Well done Mike!
I truly appreciate your immense practical experience with birds and gear and thank u so much for teaching me. I stick with canon R6 which is great as well,but of course less cropable.
Great videos Mike as always, not sure if this setting is on the a1 but I shoot with the older 7riii and there’s a zoom function that works with video and essentially punches in on my 4K sensor 4x with out any quality loss! Add it with the super 35 mode and you get ridiculous reach! Not so good for photos but amazing quality for video!
Thanks Desmond, I use the clear image zoom for video on the A1. Upto 1.5x mag and it looks good for stills to. Certainly better than the plain digital zoom. I may do a YT film on the subject.
@@MikeLaneFRPS Ah the A1 did keep it in then! admittedly I never had much luck with the clear image zoom especially on the stills front nor with the digital zoom. But on the video front only, do give the digital zoom a go! you will be very surprised at the detail that’s retained from the sensor considering it’s a digital zoom and not an optical. Looking forward to more uploads what ever the subject! Keep it up
It´s great video Mike! The hiding is great, I expect that it is mobile. So am I understand correctly that you find the nest hole and there you put there the hiding and prepare the attractive places for owls?
I was unsure which way to go. The Canon might have been the better option as I was already familar with their system. I would not expect there to be much to choose between them.
@@MikeLaneFRPS . I expect the Sony was better for you as the Canon has some issues with overheating on video, possibly only on 8k though. I don't tend to shoot video, so the cheaper, lighter Canon pairing may be a better choice for me. I would still keep my Olympus gear for macro, stacking and procapture though.
I just watched the segment Sony A1 in which you talk about this camera's ability to keep focus - on even small flying birds. You do mention Canon cameras so I wonder: is this auto focus the same technology that Canon called "auto-eye". I believe that it is the name. Regardless what it has done for auto-focusing on moving birds is phenomenal. As you said of your A1, if the bird is in the frame the camera can find it and even detect the eye and focus on it. Would this be a fair comparison betw. the two brands? Lastly, in the list of cameras above that you use I see only Olympus not Sony.
Bird eye tracking is now available on most brands of camera. It is a recent development and stunning. Hard to say which system is the best. I have sold the Sony some time back and use OM cameras. The list needs updating.
Absolutely Brilliant video, strangely enough we have just done the same thing last week at the Isle Of Sheppey. Luckily for us the rain held off, now editing it for tomorrow. Always love your videos and Photos, keep up the good work Gem 👍🏻😃
It would be interesting to see the G9, Panasonic has just released another firmware update for G9, G90, GH5s. Not the GH5. Users reckong the AF is pretty good now. I don't know how that compares with Canon and Sony, I like the lack of weight.
It still gets used and I do not want to sell it. I hope Olympus will catch up on AF. The Sony A1, Canon R5, R6 are a new breed when it comes to AF. It is not a slight improvement. It is huge. Surely other brands will follow.
Another very enjoyable Saturday morning fix, long may they continue. Like you I’m seriously considering buying the A1, any thoughts on high iso performance yet?
Hi David, The AF is outstanding. The ISO levels are also excellent. 1600 is my default setting. I do not bother going lower. I do not notice much difference when I get to 6400. For the first time ever I use auto iso. Camera is set to manual and seems to rarely move from 1/2500th with the lens wide open. It is not a fast lens (200-600) so I have only stopped down the aperture once I think. The ISO goes up and down and when I am looking at my images on the computer I do not notice noise. If I try and compare 1600 iso to 3200 it is hard to see a difference. I jump between two images trying to make up my mind that one is worse than the other. If I compare between 1600 and 6400 then you can see a slight difference. In other words I need two stop increments to make the difference noticeable.
@@MikeLaneFRPS Thanks Mike. That’s really what I’d hoped to hear. I always use auto iso these days and find it an invaluable asset. I also find that in the winter here in darkest Norfolk that I regularly need iso 6400, so your findings on that were just what I wanted to hear. As a Nikon user I’m waiting to hear the specs on the Z9 before I make a final decision, but I suspect I’ll get an A1 far cheaper and certainly far quicker. You normally have good purchasing links, could I ask you discreetly or not where you bought your A1?
The S&Q setting on a7iii causes the camera to record at a much lower bit rate, i think 16 bits, however if you set it manually at 120 fps you can get 50 bit rate in 4k. Does the a1 also have the same issue? You might be able to get more quality if yes.
The batteries drain fast. I have 3 now. They are not as expensive as other brands. I shoot both video and stills so not able to prove video uses more battery life but suspect it does. Over heating problems reported were with 8k which I hardly use. However the camera did overheat once on a hot day using WiFi. I was not recording just WiFi connected and waiting. Not been able to replicate the problem.
@@MikeLaneFRPS Thanks for the prompt reply Mike , I switched to Sony after many years shooting with Canon and recently purchased the A1. It is a phenomenal camera and I believe it is the best thats out there at this moment in time. I am going to start trying to do more video work as I have hardly done any before but like you I had an overheating message come on the camera and I hadn't even done any filming , just had it on S&Q ready whilst waiting for a Barn Owl. Had to switch the camera off altogether and leave it for a few minutes which caused me bit of head scratching. By the way if Covid permits I look forward to seeing you at Shropshire Ornithological Society in December as I organise the indoor meeting programme.
The netting is known as clearview netting. I do not know what make was in the hide, but Jack Pyke sell such material. Search for "Clearview netting" on Ebay.
Hi Rob Lowe here you gave a hire hide in Droitwich bur you did not state where it was and how to contact them so could you please send me information as I used to go to Upton Warren I have been a member of Wocestershire Wild Life for more than 4 decades and how far the hide is many thanks
I was there in May. This is the first year for this hide so no one will know yet. Sharon the owner will be able to tell you if it is still around. I know there were photographers there last weekend taking pictures.
@@MikeLaneFRPS Hi Mike just spoke to Sharon, unfortunately 2 of the Owls have been predatated, she is not sure if it’s 2 young or an adult and 1 young but the others have spooked off . She is hopeful that they will return thanks anyway.
So then, the "Little Owl" must be its common name as accepted by your birding organization? You don't give a scientific name and if you did you'd save me a bit of effort. Just a suggestion. We 'Norte Americanos' don't know what a "Little Owl" is. 🤔
