Shooting full zoom with the P950

I love using my P950 at full zoom to get really good close ups of my subjects – usually birds. I get some asking how I hold the lens so still? It has taken practice. It is a light lens, doesn’t weigh a lot, so does sway after I’ve pressed the button but by then I’ve usually gotten the shot. If not, I try again. I hold my breath, I stand slightly to the side, legs apart, to steady myself. I often hold one elbow close to my body.

 

I used to shoot with a much heavier Nikon D7100 and 200-500mm lens, weighing more than 3 times this camera so I am used to doing these type of shoots, but all the same, learning to use a lighter camera did take some time. Hence why I used only this camera in the first few months of getting it – it paid off. Key thing is practice – use the camera regularly. And keep trying – as I do. Not all my shots turn out but I’m an addicted birder so I’m out with my camera almost every single day. And I get a lot of shots I am happy with. Don’t give up – keep trying.

 

Some shots below of birds at full zoom.

 

Photo of a Black Kite, at a wetlands, Melbourne, Australia. I was many metres away from the bird. Taken with Bird mode, zoom at 2000mm, F6.5, 1/60, ISO400. Hand held. It was a grey day as you can probably tell, hence the slower shutter speed in that mode.

 

Same type of bird, different day, sunny conditions. The Bird mode adjusts the shutter speed according to the lighting.
Taken at full digital zoom, almost 4000mm, hand held, F6.5, 1/400, ISO100.

 

Great Egret, at the same wetlands on another day. Very bright day that day so I dropped the Exposure Compensation by .7 but perhaps should have dropped it lower as the highlights are blown out.

Handheld in Bird mode, full zoom at 2000mm, F6.5, 1/250, ISO125

 

Closer to home in Monbulk while I was at the local market. These birds were probably a good 30 metres high – the stall holders know I have a camera with a superzoom so they like to challenge me to get shots of the birds high up 🙂
These are Long-billed Corellas. Taken in Bird mode, on a grey day, hand held, full zoom at 2000mm. F6.5, 1/250, ISO280.