by Gareth Wild

Created on: October 23, 2008

For bird photography you will require a fast focusing camera with a high shutter speed. If you can guarantee that the birds will not need to be photographed moving you could get away with a manual focus camera but you would need allotof patience to get the shots just right. A camera that has easy to operate controls and that can be put into a fully automatic mode would be useful as it allows you to concentrate on the correct framing of the bird. Once you get used to using the camera you can then start to play around with the controls to develop the image you so desire.

My own personal favourite camera for bird photography is a Nikon F90X (N90X) with a selection of different focal length lenses. This camera has a shutter speed of 8000th of a second. A quick focus depending on the lens and a rapid film advance all the specifications you need for a bird photography camera.

If you use a high powered flash you can actually freeze the birds in flight. If you are a long distance from the bird with a long zoom lens fitted it would be advantageous to use a tripod in order to eliminate camera shake. But the flash can help and allow some leeway.

Any make of single lens reflex camera would be suitable as long as the range of lenses you require are able to be fitted> coupled to this would be a fast shutter speed and the availability of a motor drive either built into the camera or fitted as an accessory.

The motor drive will allow for continuous shooting to aid getting the photograph you are after this is especially true when trying to capture birds in flight. My particular camera I use has adjustable speed continuous shooting from 2 frames per second up to a maximum of 3.6 frames a second. Admittedly not many cameras are as top spec as this but if you shop around in the second hand suppliers such as Ebay you may be able to bag yourself a bargain. Always carry spare batteries as the last thing you want is the power source dying on you at a crucial moment.

Typical makes of camera you can look out for are Nikon and Canon as the major leaders with the likes of Pentax and Minolta also providing a similar specification of camera at a lower price. You should look for long focal length prime lenses for a high qualityimage with the maximum light gathering capabilities but also a telephoto lens is another must. The problem with a lens such as a 500mm prime is that they are so expensive but a more compact 500mm mirror lens is a cheaper alternative. If you can get close enough to the birds a short prime lens is another possibility. Brands such as Sigma and Tamron produce lenses cheaper than the camera manufacturers so this form of photography can be done on a budget as well as no expense spared.

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