At the end of the day, after paddling for the first time in six months, and waving a heavy lens around all day (no tripods in kayaks LOL), that 29 lb Kevlar kayak felt like 99 lbs trying to get into the roofrack of the truck.
Greg, speed is the main issue of catching good clear bird shots. Luckily the 70-200 is 2.8 so I just open it right up, and luckily the S3Pro can shoot at 800 or 1600ISO without a spec of noise, so combining those two, I can get some great speeds with this setup. That was my main reason for purchasing this camera, and these lenses. Wanted no noise camera and fast lenses to get the shots I want. Then tracking the bird in the viewfinder is not easy at all! You have to track the bird at the exact same speed as its' flight. I was waving that thing around all over the place. Tried to do a bunch of duck take-offs but was always hearing them too late to get a good focus. You can always count on something good happening right behind you when you're in a kayak, Mother Nature just works that way!! LOL
Thanks Jarrell, I think you overestimate me. I am having a ball with this whole new setup. Have to get used to the fstop changes but all in all, loving it!
Gordon, sometimes in life, you just have to go way out on the skinny branches to see what's there. I got very comfortable in my kayak shooting last year with my Nikon 5700. Was out about 4 days per week. Kayaks are VERY stable as you're sitting your backside right down on the bottom, not twitchy like a canoe. I only take the camera once I'm set.... during channel crossings or choppy open water, it stays in the drybox which will float.
I went around to all the rescue boats last summer and told them all that if they ever see me dumped into the water and hanging on for dear life, there's $500 cash to the first guy to fish me out, BUT he must bring a knife to cut the tethers to my drybox because that's what the reward is for!! *LOL* I was the most watched kayaker out there!! *LOL* Boaters here on Lake Ontario are a very polite lot, for the most part. They give you plenty of space and drop their wakes right down even in open water. All in all - the best moments of my life - on the water, shooting pics... ahhhhhhh. Well, going to be a beautiful spring day, better get back out there.