Re: [Leica] Photographing birds

[Bud Cook <budcook@ibm.net>]

Doug,
This is a bit off subject but do you use binoculars in your birding
activities?  I have a pair of Zeiss 8X30's and a pair of Leitz Trinovid
7X42's.  I'm thinking of replacing the 7X42's with a new pair of either Zeiss
or Leica 10X40's.

Do you (or anyone else) have an opinion on this subject?  Zeiss vs. Leica?
10X40's or keep the 7X42's?

TIA,
Bud

Doug Herr wrote:

> [Snip]
>
> Hey guys, Robert's "truck blind" idea is a good one, an idea I've used at
> times but the longest possible lens isn't always the right answer.
> Photographing birds is like any other branch of photography: know your
> subject.  I've made good, frame-filling photographs of wild, unrestrained
> birds using 50mm and 90mm lenses (one was shown at the Palo Alto LUG slide
> night a few months back - anyone care to guess which one?) but the lens I
> use most is the 400, and the f/6.8 Telyt is a bird photographer's fantasy.
>
> There are several tricks to get closer to birds:
>
> ) reduce your profile.  Tall two-leggeds are more threatening than
> for-leggeds or belly-crawlers.  Lie down in the mud & let the tide push the
> birds toward you (wear disposable clothes!)
>
> ) hide yourself near the bird's favorite perch, using a blind (called a
> "hide" in the U.K.).  Birds are creatures of habit, as humans are, and will
> use the same perch repeatedly.  Find such a perch & set the blind up.  You
> may need to wait a couple hours before the bird returns.
>
> ) act like a prey species, not a predator.  Predators stare and sneak
> closer; prey species are constantly aware of their enviornment.  IMHO the
> big lens stuck to a tripod looks like a gigantic eye staring at the bird.
> I prefer the hand-held Telyt, which I raise for the exposure, then quickly
> and quietly put back down at my side.  Occasionally aim the lens at other
> stuff so the bird doesn't get the idea he/she's the target.
>
> ) find a favorite feeding spot & wait.  A hatchery's outflow near my home
> is a favorite of the local herons.  After 2 hours of hanging around, acting
> like a prey species, I become part of the background and the 280 is too
> long.
>
> ) Let the bird get used to you gradually.  Walk to within 100 feet & just
> hang out for a while; after 10 minutes or so you can walk a bit closer
> without alarming the bird. Repeat as nessesary.  Using this method I've
> photographed a hummingbird in my yard at 6 feet (2 meters).  When I ran
> short of film I walked back to the house, reloaded, and walked right back
> to the hummingbird & resumed photography.
>
> I wouldn't do without the Leica hardware but the really important tool is
> the gray stuff inside the brain bucket.  I hope these tricks help.
>
> Doug Herr
> Sacramento