CeasarsDad Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 Hi guys, so many of you have emailed and PM me to ask about photography in general and photography when it comes to taking photos of African Greys. I thought we would start a thread that talks just about that. This is your thread where you can post photos of your Grey and ask questions about how to make your photographs better. Don't be shy. No question is a bad one. Photography is confusing to some and it need not be. If you have a baby Grey you owe it to yourself to take great photos of this little thing while you can. If you wait you will miss a wonderful time in your babies life. I'll start it off with a few new Ceasar photos.. I hope you guys follow my lead.. http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/D2X_0225-1.jpg http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/D2X_0204.jpg http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/D2X_0184.jpg http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/D2x_0143.jpg http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/d2x_0127.jpg http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/D2x_0103.jpg http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/D2x_0087-1.jpg http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/D2x_0079.jpg http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/D2x_0073.jpg Post edited by: CeasarsDad, at: 2007/05/19 17:19<br><br>Post edited by: CeasarsDad, at: 2007/06/14 18:50 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talon Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 Here are some pictures of Talon, open for critique. http://i150.photobucket.com/albums/s98/talon1013/IMG_2772.jpg http://i150.photobucket.com/albums/s98/talon1013/IMG_2759.jpg this one was taken without flash, but it was too dark. so I tried to save it cause I liked the look of it, by lightening it and making it black and white. http://i150.photobucket.com/albums/s98/talon1013/IMG_2768.jpg grr it uploaded weird. All for now! Melissa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeasarsDad Posted May 11, 2007 Author Share Posted May 11, 2007 Hi Melissa. I love the one where Talon is holding his "talon" up. That's a great capture. Good job. What happened with the second one? The flash didn't fire or you were trying to expose with natural light? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talon Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 yup I was trying to use the natural light...but it didnt really work lol. :lol: Melissa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeasarsDad Posted May 11, 2007 Author Share Posted May 11, 2007 We can fix that.. don't worry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splint101 Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 I can stop looking at your photos, they are so GOOD..... I will put up some photos later of Max...Is it okay to use a flash around them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MARIR Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 Talon those are great pic's, the one without the flash kind of looks like he's trying to sneak up on you....the one with his foot in the air, (don't take this personal but I think he's giving you "the bird" ha ha ha ..sorry my sick sense of humor is up and at em this am...Happy Friday! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeasarsDad Posted May 11, 2007 Author Share Posted May 11, 2007 Hi Splint101. Yes you can use flash around them no problem I would suggest that if you have the kind of flash that has a pivoting head you could try bouncing that flash off the ceiling. This would make for a very nice, soft light on your Grey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeasarsDad Posted May 11, 2007 Author Share Posted May 11, 2007 Here's a shot I posted somewhere else but I wanted to bring it into the Members Photo Thread. This is Ceasar caught shaking his head. It looks really weird doesn't it? It's a real rare catch so I am happy I got it. http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/D2X_0191.jpg<br><br>Post edited by: CeasarsDad, at: 2007/05/11 13:59 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splint101 Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 Yeah the one with the saking head is my fav one of your pics. That was sure the catch of the day..... @ CeasarsDad please let me know what you think about the photos.. <br><br>Post edited by: splint101, at: 2007/05/11 16:17 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeasarsDad Posted May 11, 2007 Author Share Posted May 11, 2007 Hi Splint101.. I LOVE the low angle you used in making these captures. Wonderful look and quite nice resolution on these. Good job. One thing you might try next time is to perhaps "reflect" some light on the head of your baby if she/he is in the shade like this again. If a reflector is not available fill flash would also add a nice look in that kind of photo. Thank you for adding your wonderful shots to our Photography Thread. I look forward to seeing more of your work as I can see you are a lover of fine photography.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeasarsDad Posted May 12, 2007 Author Share Posted May 12, 2007 Speaking of low angles. It's amazing how little you see of this perspective. Here's another example of a low perspective shot. Here's Xena again. http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/xena033007.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeasarsDad Posted May 12, 2007 Author Share Posted May 12, 2007 I want to also discuss the effect of aperture on the look of the background. When you want to isolate your subject from the background chose an aperture with a smaller number like 2.8 instead of something like 8.0 or 11.0 Here's an example using Sonny my Sun Conure as subject. (Thanks sonny ) The background was the ugly wooden fence of my next door neighbors' house. Notice the aperture of 2.8 has blurred the background to the point where you can't tell what's there at all. Makes for a very pleasing photo http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u97/venuto/DSC_3021.jpg<br><br>Post edited by: CeasarsDad, at: 2007/05/12 21:49 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoesDad Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 Hi again Ceasarsdad, Incredible pics as always! I just wanted to know how you manage to get Ceasar's whole body in sharp detail. Do you use a narrow aperture setting? I used to have a nice Minolta SLR camera (Maxxim 5000i) but it no longer works. Sadly, I can now only take pics with a very basic Kodak digital 3MP camera (purchased for $100). It takes decent pictures of lanscapes and distant objects but is very poor at portraiture. The fixed flash also turns everything bluish. Could you please let me know again what sort of camera you use and if you use a tripod? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoesDad Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 Sorry CeasarsDad, I didn't see the posting where you discussed aperture. I wrote my last message to you just as soon as I finished admiring your pics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeasarsDad Posted May 12, 2007 Author Share Posted May 12, 2007 ZoesDad wrote: Hi again Ceasarsdad,Incredible pics as always! I just wanted to know how you manage to get Ceasar's whole body in sharp detail. Hi ZD Thanks for the compliments. I appreciate them very much. Yes, you are correct about the aperture setting. The smaller (larger aperture number) the more of the subject is in focus. The trick is to get just the subject in focus and not much of the background. Depth of field preview is perfect for this. I am using the Nikon D2Xs with pro glass. Sometimes I use a tripod but all of the photos I have on this site are handheld shots. Regarding your 3mp camera. Don't let that fool you. I was in the front row of a Bon Jovi concert last summer. I was only allowed to bring in my pocket camera. No pro cameras were allowed. I got GREAT photos you would not believe were taken by a point and shoot. Perhaps i will post them here one day. Regarding your "bluish" look when you take flash shots. This is happening because the White Balance of your camera is not set correctly for flash. There should be away to fix that.<br><br>Post edited by: CeasarsDad, at: 2007/05/11 20:40 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 Great thread! Thank you for the wonderful photos B) This I like especially Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeasarsDad Posted May 12, 2007 Author Share Posted May 12, 2007 Hey Talon.. Are you reading this latest post from FairY.. Interesting isn't it.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talon Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 Yes, I find it a welcoming admin. Looks like home to me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talon Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 alright, well I figured I will post the latest ones here... I had tried to use the partial metering mode, but do you use it with flash? This is what happened without flash: http://i150.photobucket.com/albums/s98/talon1013/IMG_2786.jpg http://i150.photobucket.com/albums/s98/talon1013/IMG_2785.jpg and I used flash on this one, but she wasnt really near the window as much. http://i150.photobucket.com/albums/s98/talon1013/IMG_2790.jpg and here's an another from the other day. I like the look of it, how theres really a small area which is in focus http://i150.photobucket.com/albums/s98/talon1013/IMG_2718.jpg Melissa<br><br>Post edited by: Talon, at: 2007/05/12 19:10 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeatherStrella Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 Hey...I'm going to post my album...there are a lot of photos in it, but I figured you could give me some good feedback with a good sample of my photography. I know I need to work on composition...I have one of those light boxes...I call it a "tent"...it's sheer white and I have two lights on either side...I've take pics of some of my geckos in it, but never Harrison. Anyway, here's Harrison's album http://imageevent.com/heatheranddenis/congoafricangrey'>http://imageevent.com/heatheranddenis/congoafricangrey Here's my whole album...I hope you like Olivia Newton-John..lol...I could only bring a P&S to the concerts so they're not wonderful photos... http://imageevent.com/heatheranddenis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeasarsDad Posted May 13, 2007 Author Share Posted May 13, 2007 Talon, OK, The ones that are dark clearly the meter is still seeing the bright background and exposing for that. We are gonna try a different approach here since 9% partial is still too much. You need 1% spot in these situations. I want you to look at your exposure compensation control. Let me know when you have this and we can start playing. Just for starters. When you see the background bright like in the first 2 photos you need to increase the exposure compensation +1 to +2. Remember this easy formular. Light=lighter and dark=darker. This means if your background is light you INCREASE exposure compensation. Light = Lighter. If your background is darker like a performer on stage with a black background you would DARKEN the exposure compensation. Hence Dark =DARKER.. Got it?<br><br>Post edited by: CeasarsDad, at: 2007/05/12 19:49 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeasarsDad Posted May 13, 2007 Author Share Posted May 13, 2007 Heather, You have some really nice stuff of your bird. Clearly you love photography. I don't think your composition is bad either. Feel free to chime in here when someone has questions. I think your photography skills are excellent. Keep on shooting and posting.. I want this thread to grow to be one of the biggest ever on this forum.. I have my reason why that is.. <br><br>Post edited by: CeasarsDad, at: 2007/05/12 21:39 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Talon Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 ah, that makes more sense! I'll go try that now. Thanks! HeatherStrella, what kind of camera do you have? Melissa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeatherStrella Posted May 13, 2007 Share Posted May 13, 2007 Hi..I have Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D, Panasonic FZ50 and Panasonic FZ20. On each photo, if you click it to make it bigger, it will say at the bottom which camera took the picture. CD, thanks!!<br><br>Post edited by: HeatherStrella, at: 2007/05/12 20:00 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts