The Blue Bird of Happiness and the Olympus 300mm f4 + MC14

For the past six years, since I retired, I have tried to photograph the Blue Birds as they return in the spring. Each year they arrive, fly around in the tops of the trees for 30-45 minutes, then drop down to check out the housing accommodations.

The result has always been the same, they stay for an additional 5-15 minutes and leave. They appear to believe the housing is substandard, the neighbors are noisy (House Sparrows and Wrens), and the area has a serious crime problem (too many local cats). I have only 5-15 minutes to get Blue Bird images each year.

I first used the E5 with the EC14+50-200 and then the E-M1 with the same lens. The problem was that I could not focus quickly enough (they rarely remain stationary for more than a couple of seconds), the focal length (283mm) was not long enough, the shutter speed was too high with result high ISO. I have very few images (5 that I still have) from the first five years.

This year, when my wife told me they had arrived, I picked up the E-M1+MC14+300mm and waited. The lighting was not particularly good (overcast with periods of light mist), so I chose Aperture Preferred at maximum aperture (f5.6) and the Electronic shutter (to not frightened them). All images hand held with shutter speeds between 1/50-1/250.

The total time from the first image until they flew away was 8.5 minutes. I shot 216 images and 148 were acceptably sharp (the others were misses – the bird flew – distorted by bird movement, or I missed focus). By replacing a $1640 lens (EC14+50-200 SWD) with a $2850 lens (MC14+300mm f4), I got 148 acceptable images in one year vs 5 acceptable images in five years. The new lens is definitely worth the additional cost to me.

After the Blue Birds left, I did some bird house renovations, to improve Blue Bird housing quality, however, it will not improve the neighborhood. There are still those House Sparrows and Wrens and crime will still be a problem. If they return, I would also appreciate it, if they would bring better lighting.

See the attached for a few images. I will eventually have time to PP more images, I have been too busy using the new lens creating an even larger PP backlog.

Rusk wrote:

You are wrong. You can't buy happiness!

I am not sure about that, I purchased the lens and I am much happier about my images.

Pikme wrote:

Love the story and the images! Where do you live? Do the bluebirds hang around all summer or just drop by on the way further north?

My own once a year opportunity is to capture the one day each winter that new grass wakes up but is still young enough to have a day-glo psychedelic green over the rolling hills. The green becomes 'normal' color after one day, so I have to get it on the right day and with the right light. Not sure really why I bother, because no one believes me anyway - they think I created the crazy color in Photoshop!

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Roberto M.

Northern NJ in the mountains.  They nest in the area, but unfortunately not at my house.  I occasionally see them in the winter, but most show up in the early spring.  Hopefully a later group will decide to nest in one of my birdhouses.

drj3 wrote:

For the past six years, since I retired, I have tried to photograph the Blue Birds as they return in the spring. Each year they arrive, fly around in the tops of the trees for 30-45 minutes, then drop down to check out the housing accommodations.

The result has always been the same, they stay for an additional 5-15 minutes and leave. They appear to believe the housing is substandard, the neighbors are noisy (House Sparrows and Wrens), and the area has a serious crime problem (too many local cats). I have only 5-15 minutes to get Blue Bird images each year.

I first used the E5 with the EC14+50-200 and then the E-M1 with the same lens. The problem was that I could not focus quickly enough (they rarely remain stationary for more than a couple of seconds), the focal length (283mm) was not long enough, the shutter speed was too high with result high ISO. I have very few images (5 that I still have) from the first five years.

This year, when my wife told me they had arrived, I picked up the E-M1+MC14+300mm and waited. The lighting was not particularly good (overcast with periods of light mist), so I chose Aperture Preferred at maximum aperture (f5.6) and the Electronic shutter (to not frightened them). All images hand held with shutter speeds between 1/50-1/250.

The total time from the first image until they flew away was 8.5 minutes. I shot 216 images and 148 were acceptably sharp (the others were misses – the bird flew – distorted by bird movement, or I missed focus). By replacing a $1640 lens (EC14+50-200 SWD) with a $2850 lens (MC14+300mm f4), I got 148 acceptable images in one year vs 5 acceptable images in five years. The new lens is definitely worth the additional cost to me.

After the Blue Birds left, I did some bird house renovations, to improve Blue Bird housing quality, however, it will not improve the neighborhood. There are still those House Sparrows and Wrens and crime will still be a problem. If they return, I would also appreciate it, if they would bring better lighting.

See the attached for a few images. I will eventually have time to PP more images, I have been too busy using the new lens creating an even larger PP backlog.

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drj3

Dear DRJ3, thank you for perservering and posting these results.  We look forward to some more when you get the opportunity to do some PP.

This is very encouraging for when my 300mm f/4 arrives in several weeks time.

Cheers, Mark

The photos look very nice and I am glad that you have found the 300mm f/4 so useful. Unfortunately, just now DPReview is not permitting me to get larger views of the images--only the first one opens up.

/Bill

WGHalvorsen wrote:

The photos look very nice and I am glad that you have found the 300mm f/4 so useful. Unfortunately, just now DPReview is not permitting me to get larger views of the images--only the first one opens up.

/Bill

I have the same problem.  If I click the first image and then click download jpeg on the right on any image (even the blank ones), the full resolution one will open.  I have no clue why some of the small view images will not display or only display after a long wait, and yet the full resolution image will open only when I click the jpeg on the right.

I appreciate the improvement in keeper rate with the new the lens, also agree to get better images you need better lighting - and the birds/nature won't necessarily provide it.  My go-to accessory for these kind of pictures is a high output TTL flash mounted with a Better Beamer flash extender, which can focus the light out 50 yards as a narrow beam.  Then you can ramp up the speed, reduce the aperture and get sharper shots when there isn't going to be a second chance.  I've been using an FL50 and BB for a long time (originally got it for the FZ50 and Nikon TC17ED teleconverter as a 1400mm equivalent birding set up, since then evolved on the G5 and GX7), works like a charm.

Okreb wrote:

You have captured a very nice series. The images appear sharp. Why don't you crop the photos and bring the resulting larger images to the front, filling up the frame?

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Milt
Author of 'Brain Surgery, Self Taught'
Gallery: http://picasaweb.google.com/okreb1

When I print images, I do crop.  When I post them on DPR, I almost always post the full resolution image.  I know that when others post the full image, it helps me better evaluate the camera/lens, so I post them that way for others.  If the viewer wants to see the image in more detail, they can simply view at 100% or click the jpeg download.

As DOCCY politely pointed out, the background blur is a bit busy for this quality of lens.  We don't know how close the items in the rear of the shot were to the subject so it's hard to judge.  I also wonder whether the TC1.4 effect that takes the lens to f5.6 is partly responsible for the effect.

At any rate I assume that cropping and PPing will be enough in most cases to soften the blur.  But I have to admit, I'm curious because I am thinking over a purchase of the 300mm f4 too.

Here's a creamy background from a M4/3 Oly EM5 body attached by adaptor to an old manual focus legacy 400mm f5.6 Nikkor ED AIS  at about f6.7 in low light.

400iso 1/320th

This one is from an EM1 with the same lens, at dusk, tried iso200 this time.

A moth for dinner

These are older shots.  The recent development in silent shutter really improves detail.   gp

doccy wrote:

Nice pics and love the story. Nice when an outlay of cash works out in getting you the pics you want.

They do confirm to me a common theme in recent comparisons though... the bokeh on this lens is really unattractive to my eyes (subjective i know). It does look to me so far that the 100-400 looks nicer in the this particular respect (though early days of course).

With tongue in cheek - the bokeh in pic 5 looks especially 'horrific' in a Munchian type way

Apparition.

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https://500px.com/docwheeler

I really like this shot and the fact that it hasn't been cropped, I like the isolation.  I'm glad that I don't have a serious bokeh obsession it would make my life not worth living,  If anything was going to distract me in this picture it would be the top right hand corner not the highlighted splodge.  As long as my eyes are drawn to the subject matter which they certainly are here and there aren't stray branches too visible I am happy

Trevor Carpenter wrote:

doccy wrote:

Nice pics and love the story. Nice when an outlay of cash works out in getting you the pics you want.

They do confirm to me a common theme in recent comparisons though... the bokeh on this lens is really unattractive to my eyes (subjective i know). It does look to me so far that the 100-400 looks nicer in the this particular respect (though early days of course).

With tongue in cheek - the bokeh in pic 5 looks especially 'horrific' in a Munchian type way

Apparition.

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https://500px.com/docwheeler

I really like this shot and the fact that it hasn't been cropped, I like the isolation. I'm glad that I don't have a serious bokeh obsession it would make my life not worth living, If anything was going to distract me in this picture it would be the top right hand corner not the highlighted splodge. As long as my eyes are drawn to the subject matter which they certainly are here and there aren't stray branches too visible I am happy

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My Galleries are at
my albums are at https://picasaweb.google.com/115423645123114525430
latest birds at https://goo.gl/photos/tDqEhPMiwZ47fpey8

If I were printing this image, I would "fix" the upper right hand corner.  It is a branch of oak tree (with last years leaves still attached) moving in the breeze.  I am not sure whether it would look any different with the mechanical shutter.  I personally don't mind the background in any of these images, it is produced by the branches of trees behind the bird and multiple branches pointing in many directions will not produce a smooth background.  They can be somewhat more distracting if they are only inches away as with my little Titmouse.