Photographing Birds in Heavy Downpours During Thunderstorms. Learn About Protecting Your Gear and the Best Shutter Speeds … « Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Photographing Birds in Heavy Downpours During Thunderstorms. Learn About Protecting Your Gear and the Best Shutter Speeds ...

What’s Up?

I began Friday morning with the dependable and tame crane chicks in early light but nothing great. By 8:00am it was cloudy-bright and still so I did some flowers. My macro plan is not working out too well; details soon. Friday afternoon marked two days in a row with thunderstorms but the rain was not as heavy as it was on Thursday (as seen in today’s two featured images. Speaking of which, do let us know which of the two images you feel is the stronger image and why.

There was another big mayfly hatch on Friday. The cranes were chowing down along with several 20-30 bird flocks of White Ibises and a few Great and Cattle Egrets.

Activity on the Used Gear Page continues to increase with many sales and pending sales (including five of Anita North’s NIKKOR lenses and Sandra Calderbank’s Canon 400mm f/2.8L IS II, all for BAA record-low prices). See the great Nikon Firesale listings here.

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Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of photographers whom I see in the field and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and/or lens choices and decisions.

This image was created on 21 MAY 2020 at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Working from the driver’s seat of my SUV, I used the FlexShooter Mini-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens and the 61-MP Sony Alpha a7R IV Mirrorless Digital Camera Body. ISO 640. Exposure determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear dial: 1/250 sec. at f/4 in Manual mode. AWB at 6:19pm during a thunderstorm.

Tracking Flexible Spot (S) AF-C was active at the moment of exposure and performed quite well.

Click on the image to see a larger version.

Image #1: Sandhill Crane, adult standing in heavy rain

Photographing Birds in Heavy Downpours During Thunderstorms

I love photographing birds in heavy downpours during thunderstorms. But I pretty much hate the lens raincoats. I have tried the most expensive (complex) ones and the simple ones and find them all cumbersome and difficult to use. On a Southern Oceans trip about ten years ago I trashed two Canon EOS-1D Mark IV bodies during a heavy downpour somewhere on South Georgia. I will still photograph on foot in a heavy drizzle but not in a big storm with heavy rain. When it is raining lightly and I am away from my vehicle I will simply place a woolen watch cap over my camera and peek under it to make some images. I have never had a lens damaged by rain no matter how torrential.

When I lived in Deltona I did lots of photography at Gatorland. Now? Not so much. I cannot remember the last time I was up there. IAC, when there was a chance for an afternoon thunderstorm I would bring a large golf umbrella, an Umbrella Clamp Rig, and my flash stuff. What fun. I never owned a Nikon flash and I do not own a SONY flash. The only times I miss not having a flash are when I am photographing strongly backlit/rim-lit subjects and when shooting in the rain (when the flash makes the raindrops no the subject sparkle!)

Learn how to photograph in a driving rainstorm by scrolling down to the item next.

This image was also created on 21 MAY 2020 at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Still working from the driver’s seat of my SUV, I used the FlexShooter Mini-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens and the 61-MP Sony Alpha a7R IV Mirrorless Digital Camera Body. ISO 1250. Exposure determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear dial: 1/320 sec. at f/4 in Manual mode. AWB at 6:22pm during a thunderstorm.

Tracking Flexible Spot (S) AF-C was active at the moment of exposure and performed quite well.

Click on the image to see a larger version.

Image #2: Sandhill Crane brooding two chicks during rainstorm

Working From Your Vehicle in Heavy Downpours During Thunderstorms

In central Florida, you pretty much know that when the wind picks up a thunderstorm is likely to follow. That and the blackening skies. Working from your vehicle keeps your gear dry for the most part, and offers protection from lightning. The trick is to angle your vehicle so that the wind is blowing at the passenger side (with those windows shut of course). That places you in the lee so that you and your gear stays dry. 99% of the time I will be using a big f/4 lens on a tripod set up inside my SUV (or car). Why are fast lens so valuable in a rainstorm? The extra stop or more of light saves you three or four clicks of ISO when the skies are dark and the light is low.

There was a nasty GREEN cast in the feathers of the bird’s chin. I selected those feathers with the Lasso Tool and reduced the Saturation 45 points. Voila!

As far as shutter speed when it is raining, I have found that intermediate shutter speeds in the range of from 1/200 to 1/400 sec. will usually produce pleasing rain streaks with not-too-distant subjects. Do you prefer the rain streaks in Image #1 or the rain streaks in Image #2?

Despite the faster shutter speed with Image #2, why might the rain streaks be larger and more obvious in Image #2 than in Image #1. Me-thinks there are two reasons …

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9 comments to Photographing Birds in Heavy Downpours During Thunderstorms. Learn About Protecting Your Gear and the Best Shutter Speeds …

  • avatar Neil Hickman

    I like both images a lot. The rain adds that extra dimension. In relation to the birds head, the rain streaks are the same length in both images. In image 1 the closer rain streaks to the bird will be a bit sharper and the rain closer to the camera blurred out. In image 2, by being closer in terms of focal distance you pick up closer rain drops which are a bit more out of focus which makes them wider but not longer.

  • avatar Richard Curtin

    Really like both but #2 best because of the unusual pose. Believe the rain is more prominent in #2 because you are closer and it is raining harder. Maybe a little more daylight to reflect also.

  • avatar Elinor Osborn

    Because you are closer to bird #2 the raindrops show up larger? I like #2 because the drops show up much better and I like the wild expression of the bird. But with #1 enlarged the rain drops show up well there too. I like the overall haze of drops in #1 when enlarged.

  • avatar James Saxon

    No. 2 for me. I like the streaking rain and the pose of the crane with the water on the beak. The streaks are larger because the rain is falling and you raised the ISO approximately 1 full stop that made the rain more prominent by adding some noise.

  • avatar Guido Bee

    I like #2. Closer, or cropped more (?). Either way, it holds up well. I like the drip of water on the beak in #2. Also like the feather detail in #1. Pretty much hammered the exposure on both.
    Rain streaks may appear longer due to being, or appearing to be, closer to the lens. Since the focal lengths did not change, the closer image will benefit more (in size) by being larger in the frame, as will the raindrop streaks.
    I do like both images. I’d be happy to call either one mine.
    10-15 bald eagles feeding at Seabeck yesterday, but cloudy, dark cloudy.
    Thanks, and be well out there.

  • avatar Ted Willcox

    Image # 1 is my favourite, I like the finer streaks of rain in #1. I like the shallow depth of field in #1, the way it shows the row of in focus grasses across the entire frame. I like the way she/he appears to be leaning into the wind and rain. I also like how the dark colour of the wet bird stands out against the soft pastel colour of the background.

  • Hey Arthur, Love a bird in the rain. The rain was harder and the background is darker in image #2.

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