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Hello @oljon! I love to photograph birds. I could probably write a whole book with tips about this genre. There are countless bird photographers more talented than I am, but in terms of the time I have put into the endeavor, I have definitely learned a lot that I love to share with others. A couple years ago I did an online bird photography course for the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and you can find that there if you're interested. Bird photography I venture to say, may be the most challenging of all photography pursuits. It can be devilishly hard and frustrating, but it's also hugely gratifying when you're able to come up with a good shot. You must be willing to be persistent and patient. And above all--know your subject. How to find it, how to read it (so that you can predict behavior--and also avoid some behaviors!), how to photograph it. Wonderful web sites like Cornell Lab of Ornithology's All About Birds (and, even better, Birds of the World, which is by subscription) give detailed information that can help you tremendously. Here below I'm going to list a few random, basic tips. You can also find some good resources on the topic at the Audubon web site, which has a whole section devoted to bird photography. That is here: https://www.audubon.org/photography Long lenses are important, whether you're working with an all-in-one kit, a dslr or a mirrorless. You really need at least 300mm. 500mm or 600mm is best. Along with teleconverters when you need them. The farther you can stay away, the less you're likely to stress the bird, and the more likely you will be able to get the shot. That is, unless you live in Florida, where birds are silly tame. In terms of lighting, your best bet is to position yourself between the sun and the bird, with your shadow pointing at your subject. That being said, some of the most artistic shots are made by side light and back light. Be ready to try all angles. The most pleasing light is at the edges of the day: at sunrise and within an hour or two later; and then again a couple hours before sunset and onward. If you have a bright overcast day though, you can shoot all day. Focus on the eye, always, and get it sharp as best you can. The viewer wants to connect with the bird or other animal through the eye. This is key. Try to be at the level of the bird as best you can. If it's a shorebird or wading bird, get as low as possible! Use aperture mode or manual mode. Shutter mode works too. Manual mode is best for birds in flight as your exposure will remain the same no matter how your background changes as the bird moves. Use continuous shooting mode, shoot at the highest frames per second your camera allows, and always be thinking of having your shutter speed up as high as you can manage, given the light. I like to start out at 1/1000 with birds, and will often go up to 1/3200 or 1/4000 for flying birds. A big mistake I see a lot of people make is simply not using a high enough shutter speed. Avoid centering the bird in the frame; use the rule of thirds and leave space in front of the bird to walk or fly into. Give your bird room to breathe. Pay attention to background distractions; reposition yourself, and/or use a wide aperture like f/4 or f/5.6 to blur the background. Use your vehicle as a mobile blind; it’s less intrusive to birds. They are more comfortable with you in a car than they are with you on foot. If you have a silent shutter, use it. Birds don't like loud shutters. For more help, see this article I wrote not long ago on how to photograph warblers, for Living Bird magazine: How To Photograph Fidgety Warblers I hope this can be helpful. Thank you for your question!

@avmil! I'm glad you read the article about photo game farms. The writer did a great job with giving a very detailed history and explanation of why these places are antithetical to nature photography, and are abysmal facilities for captive wildlife. For those who missed it, it's here: https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/photography-game-farms-exploiting-wild-animals-1235002275/ Photography game farms are captive wildlife facilities where genetically-wild animals like wolves, snow leopards, lynxes, bears, mountain lions, foxes, coyotes, badgers, bobcats, and more, are kept in small concrete-floored cells, to be brought out to perform for treats in front of paying photographers, filmmakers, and illustrators, in natural-looking settings. Most of the hundreds of animals that live at these places, never get out even for a few minutes like the performers do. They are there simply to breed, to keep pumping out babies to be sold within weeks of birth, to exotic pet owners, roadside zoos, exotic animal auctions, and more. Some of the babies are kept though, at least for a while, to be used for baby animal photo workshops, featuring, for instance, bobcat kittens posed perfectly in the mouth of a log. People travel from all over the world to these places, to get their shots of elusive animals. Often they share on social, and don't even divulge the animals are captive. The photos permeate social media, esp Instagram. You have tigers running directly at the camera, mountain lions leaping in broad daylight from one boulder to another, etc. They are used in ads, calendars, books, greeting cards, and heavily dominate in all stock agencies. It's a desecration to the field of nature photography, and it's, more than anything, an act of absolute cruelty to these animals, to support these places. (shall I tell you how I really feel? ha). I'm currently a defendant in a lawsuit, sued for "tortious interference" because I sounded the alarm about these places, having gathered hundreds of documents through FOIA requests over the years, to determine what happened to the baby animals at these places once they grew up--and what the living conditions are like for all the animals there. What I learned horrified me and set me on this journey. I shared what I had learned, on social media and in articles--and I shared only the truth. Juried trial is next summer, in Montana. Stay tuned.... PS we can each be better about the places we visit for captive photography. Make sure at the very least the zoo or other facility you are visiting is AZA-accredited. Did you know roadside zoos can call themselves anything they want--even a "sanctuary" or a "refuge" when they are anything but? The best choices are true sanctuaries, and there is no better guide to those than the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries. Find a true sanctuary near you and support it!

Absolutely! So glad to hear it was helpful!

That's a great question, jajo. And I really appreciate that you are able to see emotion and connection in my images. I do feel like photography is how is my love for animals, and for nature, is made visible. I am grateful all the time that I found this vehicle, because it allows me to celebrate wildlife, and to give others a look into that world they might not otherwise have. I think anytime as photographers, we feel a strong connection to something we're photographing--whether it's a flower, or a person, or an abstract pattern, or a bird--pay attention to that. Follow that draw. If you find that something really lights you up inside, pursue it for all you're worth. Get the technical side down and then get into a creative flow. The viewer will inevitably feel that passion through your image. I really believe that. Thanks for the question!

That is a great question. A couple years ago I wrote an article for BBC Wildlife magazine, examining the question of why there weren't more woman wildlife photographers at the professional level . If people are interested they can see it here. Much of the article, as I read it now, still rings true, but what's different is that even just in the last couple of years, I think there’s been a sea change. I feel that women are rapidly being better represented in the field of conservation storytelling. At least from where I sit, though that may be partly due to the fact that I know so many women in the field, and so it seems they should be as visible to everyone as they are to me! I think the need for parity has really bubbled up to the surface, and I do think many photo editors, for instance, now actively seek out female conservation photographers. I think it's finally become plain that women can do the job at least as well as men. But there is still a lot of work to be done to level the playing field. As women photographers, we can always do whatever we can to lift other women photographers up--if we can't do a job, for instance--suggest another woman you know! There are so many ways we can help elevate each other. I will say if we are moms at home, it’s a bit tougher, at least to go on the road for assignments or workshop-leading. I have one child, a daughter who’s just about to head to college, and I made a promise to her when I started ramping up as a photographer about 10 years ago, that I would never be gone longer than 2 weeks from home. I kept that promise. But it definitely kept me out of the running for the longer periods of time needed to tell in-depth stories. There’s no getting around the fact that as mothers, we feel more ambivalent about leaving home for periods of time than fathers. (I hope I don’t offend any fathers by making that generalization—it’s simply how we’re biologically wired!) If you are a mother and travel is not an option, it will of course become even more important to find opportunities locally to tell conservation stories. But you can do it. I have wanted very much to try to show younger women that it is possible to make your own way in this profession—having a family while also pursuing your passion. I would never say it’s easy-- it’s a very difficult balancing act and you have to have a supportive family, the ability to say no to a fair amount, and the grace to accept that you’re not as free an agent as some, and be ok with that. What can give you a leg up (and not just as a woman, but for anyone), is to diversify as best you can. As well as honing your photography craft, strive to be good at writing, speaking, teaching, selling your work as art, and marketing yourself. Try every avenue you can think of in pursuit of your goal. You are limited only by your imagination. Hope that helps!

Thank you, Susan! For your very kind words. And for adding that quote by Sartore, which has really become such an iconic and defining statement (it was a butterfly on a flower--but simply the flower works too!). It's such a great visual that instantly drives home the nature of conservation photography.

Mmmm, I like it. Let's see....I think I would have to say, a couple packets of Ben's Insect Repellent Wipes. I seem to attract biting insects wherever I go...😆 😩 so I have learned to have these handy. Often just in a pants pocket.

you are welcome!

Thanks for that Miki--I think you are wanting to know how we can each help make our windows safe for birds? There are so many different methods we can use to show birds there is a glass surface there. American Bird Conservancy is really the leader in this--some of the products they recommend are at this link: https://abcbirds.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/ABC-Collisions-Flyer-2016.pdf Acopian Bird Savers is particularly effective. It's a wonderful way we can each contribute to the conservation of birds. Every year almost one billion birds collide with glass in the US! Most of these happen at homes and buildings shorter than 4 stories tall. Audubon also has a good list of resources here: https://www.audubon.org/news/simple-solutions-prevent-collisions Thanks for caring, Miki! And for your question.

Thanks for explaining this, Jessica!

Can l ask if you used the Creators App to download any images in this period ? I've had issues with the camera running the app and the camera locking up (wouldn't switch on) and draining the battery when supposedly off.

My favorite lens is a small, light, manual lens, with a hard focus stop so I can pre-focus before the lens is even at my eye. But we are blessed to be in an era when there are so many good lens choices still out there.

Hello OwlDude24! I currently have 2 Sony A1s, and recently purchased the Sony A9iii. I have the following Sony lenses: 600mm; 200-600mm; 70-200mm; 24-70mm; 16-35mm; 50mm; and 90mm. Most often I find I'm working with the 600mm, the 24-70mm, and the 200-600mm. Love the 70-200mm and trying to find more opportunities to use it. I love both the A1 and A9iii, for different reasons. The A9iii has some incredible features such as PreCapture, 120 fps when needed (and the boost button that quickly gets you there), and what I have found to be an incredible, matchless Eye-AF ability that in my experience surpasses the A1's by quite a bit. But I still love my A1, so much, and the greater resolution of it over the A9iii makes it a solid workhorse for me for much of my shooting. Esp when it comes to small birds small in the frame!

I'd love this! I'm just starting out on Youtube, and truthfully have been really intimidated by long-form content until recently. Now that I know this is something you guys are interested in, I'll definitely add it to my to-do list!

I adore Melissa's work and can't wait to learn more from her next week! Melissa is an expert in conservation storytelling, photographing birds, ethics, and much more. Feel free to drop any questions here for Melissa to answer next week! To pop a question in, you'll first need to join the club. There's a "join club" button on the grey bar to the right of the Community Guidelines.

Oh! I might try that Auto ISO mode next time and see for sure! Thank you

I believe its a driver issue, the Sony Imaging Edge driver is different then the Capture One driver. So I believe you will need to go into your device manager and drivers and switch between the two.

I emailed Sony themselves, but they say they have no numbers or details...

I had the battery drain issue. The following proceedure was recommended on AlphaShooters.com and solved the issue. Turn the camera off and remove the battery. Let the camera sit powered off and untouched for one minute. Turn the camera to the on position without the battery inserted and hold the shutter down for 30 seconds. Turn the camera to the off position. Reinsert the battery and power the camera on. Hope this helps.

Hey Trek, how are you doing? I was experiencing something similar so I decided to buy a Lexar card reader. Best thing I did in years. The model is Lexar Professional Multi-Card 3-in-1 USB 3.1 LRW500URBAMZN. I mean, I transfer 128gb in seconds. Hope this helps.

I’m leaning more towards documentary and photojournalism. When I press the shutter I feel this image will a piece of memory that I could tell my future grandkids stories about, and reminisce what seeing them when I’m old. A strong recommendation: print your work. Photo books and albums is a must.

I haven’t tried it with strobes, but fast recycling ones is the key here. Another idea is to use constant light eliminating the issue all together. And since this would require a tripod, slow shutter speed and lower ISO is achievable.

Can 50mm F1.2 GM be calibrated? Or, can any of Sony's other lenses be calibrated. If yes, how?

Photogrammetry (3d models reconstruction) is another interesting application for focus stacking You can do focus bracketing on older camera with your smartphone if bluetooth is supported by your camera

You may workaround the issue by using the app Alpha Focus Bracketing (for iOS and Android)