Raptors!

I met with CliffB and 4labs at the carolina Raptor Center today for the annual PhotoWild event. I shot mainly with a D200 and Sigma 150mm 2.8 Macro with TC. For some reason, I had trouble with sharpness...and I don't know why. This lens is very very sharp. I even tested it last night before the event. Nosie was an issue too....lighting was fairly dim, and to keep backgrounds from going too dark, I had to keep ISo up a bit. Oh well....perhaps it was low contrast lighting and the feathers...in any event, this is what I came away with.

NIKON D200    ---    210mm    f/6.3    1/100s    ISO 400

NIKON D200    ---    210mm    f/4.0    1/100s    ISO 400

 

Yes, the BW photo is an IR photo...and they have a tendency to be soft since the camera focuses at a different wavelength than IR. That is a common issue with IR photos.

 

Yeah we did, but it feels like cheatin' when they are tied down :wink:

I'd love to get shots like these (and the ones you post) in the wild. It aint gonna happen with a 150mm lens though!

 

Thanks Eric. I think that'll be my competition submission.