Hey! Hope you've all been having a great couple of weeks. I'm still freaking out over the colors of the Barbets! Let me know what you think and have a great week, Happy Birding!
I was directed here by your tips for photographing birds in the forest video. I really like your videos and the simultaneously laid back yet enthusiastic vibe to your videos. Must say, I'm amazed at the proximity you get to such small subjects! I've been following a nesting pair of osprey and great blue heron (when I can) for a few months, but still struggle to fill the frame with them. Hats off to you, sir! I'm a bit older than you, but hope to reach you level your competence one day.
Thank you so much! I've heard stories of people removing branches and leaves from in front of a nest to get better photos. Totally unacceptable. So thought I would share a few tips!
@@StefanoIaniro yeah for some it's all about the shot regardless, fieldcraft is important, it's not restrictive and will, if followed, get you the kind of shots on your video, you just need to be mindful, respectful and most of all patient 👍 enjoy your weekend 😊
Thanks for the brilliant videos of your work. I appreciate the fact that you respect the boundaries between humans and nature. As an aspiring wildlife photographer, I have subscribed to your channel to learn from your experience in capturing incredible moments, but not at the expense of disturbing natural habitats. Cheers!
Always learn so much from your adventures...excellent advice on respecting the nest and your subjects. The female was equally beautiful...those blue cheek patches!
Very glad to share some advice! And I totally agree, the female is gorgeous. Female birds are generally more "drab" but there's nothing drab about this one! If I didn't know any better I'd assume it was another species.
Excellent video once again.thanks.. One question- what is your take on low light/ high ISO performance of a7riv? If we compare it with a9, where does it stand?
Thanks a lot! In terms of image quality, the a7r4 isn't great at those higher ISOs (above 3200). I haven't used the a9 in many low light scenarios when I tried it out, but I did compare the a7RIV vs the a7III in low light. Although the R4 has a 61mp sensor, the pixels are rather small, meaning they don't gather as much light. The Sony a7iii was certainly the better camera when it came to low light, since the pixel size is a fair bit larger than the R4. Also, noise will always be a bigger issue on high MP sensors than it is on smaller ones, like the a9 + a7iii. I guess it all comes down to how far you want to push your camera in terms of low light settings. Most of the time I sacrifice shutter speed to keep my ISO below 3200.
@@StefanoIaniro thanks for the response, this really helps. The reason I asked is, I have the a7iii and 200-600 combo, and was thinking of getting riv. Majorly because of the fact that I love to shoot birds and % of BIF are lesser compred to other scenarios. So, since 200 600 is 6.3, the chances of ISO going higher is always there specially inside a forest. Hence wondering how riv will handle such cases. And as the a9 price has dropped now to become almost same as riv, the dilemma is more. 😊
@@StefanoIaniro will be a while as in new year (may be) 😔 as my photography is only hobby based with home printing Epson p800 so I will be pushing out ori ts to try and generate some I come.
Nice work with the barbets... looks like MIndo was able to meet your expectations! DId you try the 1.4x and/or 2.0x converter with the 200-600 to see the impact on QI and AF with the a7Riv? Also, can you share the lodges you used while in Ecuador? I'm wondering if you got to Tandayapa, which was highly productive for me last January.
Hey! Thank you so much. I don't have the teleconvertors sadly, I've never really used them on zoom lenses. I didn't get to Tandayapa, but the next time I go I will stay there and maybe 3-4 other lodges. There's so many great options around. I stayed at YellowHouse, El Descanso, El Eden Treehouse, and El Septimo Paraiso. Mostly because I was filming a video on different lodges at different prices points if people are looking to visit Mindo.
Hi Stephano, thanks for sharing this wonderful footage and your tips on photographing birds. Could you please tell me what the food source is that both parents are feeding the chicks, it looks like scrambled eggs? Is this a natural source of food or supplemented by the Wildlife Lodge? Thanks again for the fabulous footage. Bruce
Thank you! It's actually banana/plantain. When the parents would go out, one would go for fruit and the other would go for insects, and it seemed like they alternate. Since insects are the most important food source for chick development.
Yes, definitely! Everytime I go out I have a camo rain sleeve on my lens/camera. Although its main purpose is to protect against the elements, the camouflage is a nice added bonus. In this video I was right next to my cabin so I didn't bother putting it on.
Thank you! And I treat all my gear as if it isn't weather-sealed. Weather sealing is sort of a loose term when it comes to camera manufacturers, so safest thing to do is always use a rain sleeve and take proper precautions to avoid condensation. With that being said, the weather sealing is certainly more apparent on the R4 compared to my a7iii
Stefano Ianiro Wildlife Thanks Stefano, that's helpful. I'm used to the legendary weather sealing on the Olympus OMD EM1X and Pro series lenses and was curious as to how the R4 and 200-600 compared in that regard. Whatever, you're clearly getting great results from your setup and enjoying the process and that what's it all about.
Thank you so much! I'm using the 128GB Lexar 1667x. I could have gone with the more expensive ones that were 2000x but performance wise I saw a few charts that said there wasn't a huge difference.
Thank you so much! It's been great for me the whole trip. Even with quick moving hummingbirds. If I'm not mistaken, several times while autofocusing it locked on to the eye of certain birds. I know they have animal eye AF but not sure how well it works on birds. I'll have to record my screen while focusing to try to see if it was actually picking up the eye, or just happening by fluke. But yeah, overall I'm very pleased. A9 still better at tracking though!
Great shots!! Sharp for sure. So what are your thoughts on the R4 and uselessness for wildlife,. Birding at this point after extensive time with it? On fence between R4 or older A9 as they're same priced now. Thanks and wonderful work!
I think it's brilliant for wildlife photography (videos I'm still on the fence about). Beautiful colors straight out of camera, insane detail, plenty of room to crop/recompose, the autofocus is much improved over the a7iii I was using. Not up to the a9 autofocus standards, but decently close. I was doing hummingbirds in flight at 1/50th of a second and getting decent results when doing a burst of images. The buttons actually make a big difference now that they are raised and more tactile. I feel like I can switch between settings way quicker. This is only my experience with it. If you tell your local camera store you intend to buy either the a7r4 or a9, they may rent you some for free to test out and see which you prefer. I've received free rentals in the past when I mentioned I was going to buy from them when I make a decision.
@@StefanoIaniro my local camera store immediately went to the A9 when I mentioned birding. Lol. I don't think they realize just how good the AF on the R4 really is. I'm also amazed at how many A7RIII owners are quick to put down the new R4 and complain that it has the same image sensor that the R3 has... It does not! It feels like an entirely different camera speed wise vs. R3. I just wish some of these reviewers would actually take the camera out in the field for at last a month or so before offering bad advice to users out there. I was close to returning mine for the old A9... Then I downloaded the A9 RAW s from the web and I must say looks fine at normal sizes but detail isn't there with any cropping. It just isn't there
Definitely! Even when comparing my a7III to my a7R4 at full frame, you don't really notice a difference until you start cropping in. I think if you own an R3, it's a little bit more difficult to justify the upgrade to the R4. But if you're like me who was using an a7III, it's a no brainer for wildlife. I think it also depends what style of bird photography you're into. If I was doing primarily BIF or Action, I would certainly give more thought into an a9. But for what I do, I don't do BIF or Fast Action consistently to really need an a9. But yeah everyone has their own needs and desires!
@@StefanoIaniro true on all points except if you shoot wildlife with an R3... You'll want to upgrade for sure. The R3 autofocus was terrible with tracking birds...the primary reason I just sold mine .
I think the question to ask is... Would you give up the A7RIV resolution for cropping for the A9 and faster tracking? That is If you had to choose between the cameras? :)
At the moment I don't think so. But in a couple of years, when they release the a9III with likely a higher MP sensor and better video specs, then I think it would be a tougher decision! Either way, can't go wrong with either camera!
Great video about an amazing bird! When I was in Costa Rica a couple of years ago, I had lots of issues with the dark environments in the jungles and forests... How did you handle that in Ecuador?
Thank you so much! And I used low shutter speeds a lot of the trip! Sometimes even going down to 1/30th of a second. This in combination with ISO of around 2000-6400 seemed to be decent for a lot of darker situations. A tripod came in handy to get a better success rate. Some of these barbet images are a little dark IMO, but at the same time, their nest was under thick canopy, so I think having them a little darker makes sense "storytelling" wise. If I had used a flash for example and had a much brighter image, I don't think it gives as much of a dark jungle vibe. But yeah tripod, low shutter speed, higher iso. Those are key!
It was beautiful there! Cool in the mornings and late afternoons, so amazing for hiking/photography. I just got home and it's below freezing and snowing haha
@@StefanoIaniro Thanks! I am focusing on a couple of birds of prey right now: bald eagle & red tailed hawk. I have gotten a few shots of both, but I am struggling to get a good clean shot of them in flight. This time of year, I should have plenty of opportunities for the eagles. The challenge is getting close enough to get a good one when they're close-ish to my lens. It would be so cool to get a good one of a bald eagle fishing!
@@JB_Hobbies Yeah that would be epic! The blind should definitely help, especially if you have a chance to leave the hide out 24/7 so they get used to it. I had to film some eagles for a documentary, not so easy depending your location. Again, good luck! I hope you get something great!
@@StefanoIaniro Thanks for the tip. I am little nervous leaving it out and being a victim of the "finders keepers" rule. 🤣 But, I was impressed with how well it works. About 30min after I set it up, a small bird came out of nowhere and tried to land inside the blind. It waived off about 5 feet from my face! Was too quick for me to see what kind of bird or to even react to take a shot. Maybe next time it will be that magical eagle!
@@JB_Hobbies Yeah I wouldn't recommend leaving it if it's a public place. But that's awesome! I have had smaller songbirds land on the blind too. Way too close for minimum focusing distance 🤣
