A lot of practice. Step by step description would put you to sleep.
Or me. I don’t like to think too much about the process.
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Oh man, do I feel for you on this one! I have observed only one Emesinae so far (unconfirmed) and it was one of the most difficult shots to get ever. Unbelievable anatomy and the optical effects are just horrendous for a good tight macro. And usually in a dark place (mine was inside a hollow tree). I didn’t even know what I was looking at until I looked it up later.
But man, to get as close as you did on that background…AAAARGGGHHH!!!
I tried, but the improvement I could make was so marginal, I’m not even sure I should post it.
Aw, what the heck.
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this yellow-wattled lapwing I took from 50 m away with my phone camera:
i wonder how it got to rg
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/160230311
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i used the binocs method (putting phone camera in binocs)
also it was raining
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Thank you so much for this post – I can’t even count how many times I’ve made a bad photo, and I think to myself, “Ooof. This would be embarrassing to post…” But then I remember that the ID characteristics still show, so I just smile and say, “hey! that’s good enough!” :)
*As I was going through my observations, I started compiling a list of bad photos… but it would have just flooded this message. ;)
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) from Parker County, TX, USA on May 14, 2023 at 05:29 PM by Sam Kieschnick · iNaturalist
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I have a feeling that this is the worst pic that I have uploaded to iNaturalist.
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Here I have a few more bad shots:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/166881429
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/164083861
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What’s that!?
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the tiny dot in the sky is a peregrine falcon, but I highly doubt that anyone would be able to confirm it.
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On that note: this backswimmer made it to genus and this predaceous diving beetle managed to make it to species because it was conveniently the one local species with a light stripe on the elytra.
This one is just on the right side of “bad enough I won’t bother posting it”: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/167078282
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My House Sparrow observed inside the concourse at RDU airport is the worst:
Image description: A silhouette of a bird perched on a pipe near an industrial-looking ceiling. End image description.
Actually, this observation has three pictures, all equally bad.
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Low light conditions and fast-paced situations don’t mix well!
A Coyote passed me by in a neighbourhood as the sun set. I was shocked, and a bit scared too, not great for photography! I got a shot just as it turned the corner. I wish the picture was as good as the story, but I think I was able to salvage it :)
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Don’t worry about the photos, I’m pretty sure I have worse pics than you do, like this one: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/168170311
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Oof! I feel your pain with that one. Why can’t they just fly closer!
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I’ve got clip-on lenses, so in this case I was “using” my telephoto lens.
As there were no birds flying around, I unscrewed it from my phone and guess what happened! This crested caracara passed flying just a second after that and, as I knew it would take me too long to screw it again, I had to take the shot just with my smartphone and then cropped the image.
That’s the result.
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Wow. Bird by Salvador Dali. That little sucker was fast!
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i mean… probably this one?
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I always find it strange seeing water-dwelling birds just flying out in the city, not near any water. It leaves you so unprepared, so getting a shot is a real challenge! The same thing happened to me with a Great Blue Heron, didn’t end up uploading the photo.
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definitely! we do see them around here sometimes, as i’m close to plenty of waterways, but usually if we see them it’s pretty close to the water. i’m guessing this scenario was because of a storm that occurred prior.
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