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Inspiring and Supporting Photographers of Australian Birds

Superb Fairy-wren

Photographed by

Ian Wilson on Sat 15th Aug, 2020 and uploaded on same date.

Resolution

1800x1051

Viewed

1052

41922

Comment

This is the first Canon R5 image I have processed. Not much available light in overcast conditions as you can discern from the high ISO. I have set the camera up for back-button focus (AF-ON button) and eye detection AF (* button). The eye AF seems to work quite well provided the bird is not too small in the frame. I welcome comments and questions which I will try to answer based on limited testing.

Equipment

Canon R5 + 600 mm f/4 III, tripod.
Manual, partial metering, servo AF with eye detection, f/8, 1/500 sec, ISO 12,800.
Processed using DPP4 and PSE14 with Neat Image plug-in.

Location

Belgrave Height, Victoria

Keywords

male, adult, breeding plumage/features

This image is not available for download.

Gary King	2020-08-15 22:15:07	Considering the high ISO the detail/sharpness looks quite impressive. Have you compared it with your !D under similar conditions? I will be also be interested to see you try it on some flight photos.
Stephen Garth	2020-08-16 11:08:28	I agree with Gary that considering the high ISO it's a terrific image - just lacking a little detail in the blacks. How much was it cropped?
Ian Wilson	2020-08-16 11:59:14	Hello Gary and Stephen, Thanks for your comments. I have been shooting the same scene with the 1Dx III. This morning I found a 1Dx III image with the same exposure settings and developed it with the same workflow. I cropped to the same field of view and downsized to the same finished size. There is very little difference, detail and noise reduction look about the same. In the case of the R5 the downsize was from 5044 px wide to 1800 px. For the same field of view the 1Dx III image was downsized from 3379 px to 1800 px. The bigger downsize in the case of the R5 image results in more noise reduction but the 1Dx III image had less noise to start with so they finished up looking about the same. If you want more detail in the blacks it is there. The black point is at about 10 DN with a sprinkling of noise pixels hitting the bottom. If you raise the blacks much more these parts start to look an un-natural grey tone. The alternative is to use a wide gamut 10-bit screen, then you will see more detail. My main purpose in submitting this image was to give some idea how high one can push the ISO if necessary and to give a brief report on the eye AF which is a big step forward for Canon cameras. I have been thinking about how I can do some avian flight photography while stuck at home. The best bet is kookaburras as they are fairly slow and have a predictable flight path. BLP member David Newell sent me some PBDs in flight which looked very promising. Importantly, he did not notice any EVF lag with the viewfinder set to the 'smooth' mode (120 fps). There is still lots to learn but first impressions are very positive. I noticed that Jan Wegener has called the R5 the 'best bird photography camera ever', I think he likes it. Cheers, Ian
Stephen Garth	2020-08-16 15:21:55	--Thanks for the information and analysis Ian. I'll be interested to see how the camera goes when we can get out in the field again. How does the battery life shape up? Regards SG
Simon Pelling	2020-08-17 16:54:32	I'll be interested in comments about the EVF in general use. I've always found EVFs to be too dim in bright light although the last ones I used were two or three generations ago. I've avoided them since and have been reluctant to spend big money on an EVF mirrorless camera only to find they still don't suit me. I find the blues in this to be more accurate (ie more in line with what I would expect) than the previous wren image you submitted in New Images. Not sure why the black tends to purple under the chin, though. Simon
Ian Wilson	2020-08-17 17:01:16	It's 'hard' on batteries Steve, that's the reason why the pre-order bundle included a spare battery. I am yet to settle on the combination of LCD and EVF use that suits my style of shooting and I have not sorted out the various energy saving options. Jan Wegener mentions in his excellent Youtube video that he was able to get 2000-3000 shots per battery. If I can get the same I will be happy. Most photographers seem to have ordered the battery grip but I am waiting to see how it works out without the extra weight and convenience. I used a battery grip for many years on my 5DIII and 5Ds but in recent times removed it to save weight. The osteoarthritis in my shoulders gets slowly worse so weight saving is more important for me than battery life.
Ian Wilson	2020-08-17 20:17:14	Thanks Simon, you need to take another look at EVFs, I was pleasantly surprised at how good this one is. Not sure I understand your comment about the 'purple under the chin', looks normal to me. I have deleted the earlier image to which you refer, it was too blue, and not worth re-processing.
Simon Pelling	2020-08-18 10:04:21	Sorry, I wasn't very accurate in my comment - I meant the chin/upper throat patch of black which seems to have a purplish tint, to my eye. But no matter - just a passing comment, no response necessary.
Stephen Garth	2020-08-20 07:40:45	Thanks for update Ian. 2000-3000 shots per battery would be a very good outcome.

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	177/283 in Critique Gallery
	1119/1427 by Ian Wilson
	155/362 of Superb Fairy-wren
	617/1059 of Fairy-wrens, Emu-wrens and Grasswrens
	19426/34408 Overall
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