Birds Focus problems with the 6400

[Soundmike]

Hi folks, wondering if you guys can have a look at these few bird pics and give me your advice. I've been having problems with blurred images about 60% of the time, admittedly I've only been using the 6400 for about a year now but with the Fe 70-350 and the Fe 200-600 combination I still seem to be getting soft and blurry images. The little owl and the Wren image were taken with the 200-600 in Aperture priority and the Tawny owl taken tonight was shot with the 70-350 , admittedly the light here wasn't the best. Any advice would be extremely helpful, thanks Mike.
As I'm new to the forum not sure if this is posted in the correct thread.

• ILCE-6400
• FE 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 G OSS
• 524.0 mm
• ƒ/8
• 1/800 sec
• ISO 800

• ILCE-6400
• FE 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 G OSS
• 600.0 mm
• ƒ/7.1
• 1/160 sec
• ISO 5000

• ILCE-6400
• E 70-350mm F4.5-6.3 G OSS
• 350.0 mm
• ƒ/6.3
• 1/25 sec
• ISO 5000

 

[garuda]

Try this (only one of many options):

Focus mode: AF-C; Eye/Face priority.

Menu --> Cam#1 --> Focus Area --> set to: Tracking Ext Flex Spot (lower right corner of display)

[I set my toggles at: Tracking-Wide, T-Zone, and T- Ext Flex Spot (and set to center)]

“P”, f/5.6 -->11, ISO 100, shut 250 or 500. Target head. If no luck, play with the numbers --- which depend on ambient light..

a6400 focus

 

[Soundmike]

Thanks for that i will give it a try at the weekend,its all a learning curve for me and any advise is always welcome.

 

[Tim Mayo]

Hope you don't mind John, I've just switched you images from thumbnail to full-width, this way it displays the image EXIF data underneath the image which is quite helpful.

It's a bit tricky to tell but I think the first shot is probably in focus, but at 1/800s you might get some motion blur especially when shooting from a distance. How far away were you here? These small branches would probably be moving in the wind as well, you might need to try something like 1/1600s or faster if the light will allow.

I think the second shot of the owl is in focus, but at ISO 5000 on the a6400 there will be a lot of noise. Also again you will risk motion blur at 1/160s. Same for the third shot as well. Were you using a tripod here or handheld?

You might want to try using shutter priority or full manual so that you have more control over the shutter speed. But it's always a fine balance with having an acceptable speed to freeze the shot whilst keeping the ISO reasonable. The APS-C sensor in the a6400 will always struggle a little more with noise in low light compared with a full-frame sensor.

I do love little owls! We had one on my family farm last year, sadly gone now. I have since put up a little owl box so hopefully one will appear again at some point and make him or herself comfortable.

 

[Soundmike]

Hope you don't mind John, I've just switched you images from thumbnail to full-width, this way it displays the image EXIF data underneath the image which is quite helpful.

It's a bit tricky to tell but I think the first shot is probably in focus, but at 1/800s you might get some motion blur especially when shooting from a distance. How far away were you here? These small branches would probably be moving in the wind as well, you might need to try something like 1/1600s or faster if the light will allow.

I think the second shot of the owl is in focus, but at ISO 5000 on the a6400 there will be a lot of noise. Also again you will risk motion blur at 1/160s. Same for the third shot as well. Were you using a tripod here or handheld?

You might want to try using shutter priority or full manual so that you have more control over the shutter speed. But it's always a fine balance with having an acceptable speed to freeze the shot whilst keeping the ISO reasonable. The APS-C sensor in the a6400 will always struggle a little more with noise in low light compared with a full-frame sensor.

I do love little owls! We had one on my family farm last year, sadly gone now. I have since put up a little owl box so hopefully one will appear again at some point and make him or herself comfortable.

Thanks for taking the time to look over my pictures, of course I don't mind I value your and any other forum members input. Like I said I'm fairly new to the art of bird photography so still much of a learning curve at the moment. Like you I love little owls, they usually have me running ragged in my local open field areas, one night, one owl had me flitting about between four different trees before I gave up as it got too dark. I did initially try shutter priority but switched to aperture after watching the two Mark's videos,all my shots so far are handheld but am going up to Scotland for a few days next week so I'm going to try out your suggestions and give my tripod a try as well. Off course especially with the 6400 and the 200-600 combo the sun really needs to shine, although contrary to a lot of forum talk it can work well in low light, you just get more noise. Thanks again for all your encouragement.

 

[Astrnmrtom]

With birds one of the things I really have to fight is mashing the shutter button too hard. I'm frequently tense trying to get just the right shot timing, or being worried my target will fly away. Even the tiniest twitch of the camera with slower shutter speeds can induce a little blur. I've even done it with the camera tripod mounted. I do much better if I take a breath, relax, and gently push the shutter button in a smooth motion. Another trick I'll use in these circumstances, is to switch to a burst mode, then concentrate on holding the camera as still as possible for a few frames. With a long lens it only takes a tiny vibration to soften an image. Other times on my a6000, when tripod mounted I'll either use a remote, or the app that uses the eye sensor as a shutter release.

Tom

 

[FowlersFreeTime]

I know the feeling of hitting that shutter button too hard like @Astrnmrtom said.
I don't do bird photography, but sometimes for stationary targets (like when your subject is perched) its nice to have manual option at your fingertip, so I have programmed Button C1 (right beside the shutter on the a6400) to be a manual/auto focus toggle. Small thing, but super convenient.