Getting MORE from your photos !

[Cuppa]

The auto/manual focus on mine is called DMF (Digital Manual Focus I think)

[mudnut]

https://www.google.com/search?q=digi...ez7sPxbuBkA039

Some easy tips.

[FNQGU]

Mudnut, coming in late here, so you guys might have already covered this, but have you tried opening your aperture right up to as large as it will go for those sorts of subjects? Or is 6.3 as large as it gets on that Sigma? I routinely shoot on Aperture mode using autofocus but manually place my focus point. With things like birds (and even goats), you don't necessarily need more depth of field than what you would get at your largest aperture and the blurred background keeps your bird as the main subject without any distractions.

Also there is a general rule to always focus on the eye if you can. The human eye is always drawn to the eye of any subject, so images with the eye in crisp focus tend to be viewed as better images. I don't know how your model Cannon works but are you able to select a single focus point and then move that focus point around within your composition to where you need it to be?

Another feature that might be worth considering is to set your exposure to a pinpoint setting, or the smallest circle/area that the camera has. I'm guessing that the goanna shot would have looked quite a lot different if you were able to do this.

Some good advice from Cuppa there on refining your focus manually as well. Your instruction book should tell you if you can do this when your lens is on AF or not. My lenses do and I love the feature, particularly if shooting through a fence or some foliage or some distraction in between you and your subject as well.

Hope this helps a little. Best thing is to get your camera off the Auto setting and into the zones where the creativity starts...and you can get what you are looking for. :-)

[Cuppa]

Or is 6.3 as large as it gets on that Sigma?

The lens is 150mm to 600, & f5-f6.3. I think f5 is only available at 150mm.

[Cuppa]

Was talking to a photographer when up at Portland Roads & he asked me how I was storing my camera & lenses. "In a soft carry bag" I said. This brought on a drawing of breath in through his teeth. Next time he visited he brought one of his camera cases, a Pelican case, airtight, waterproof with silica gel to keep things dry & a small battery powered hygrometer to keep a check on humidity levels in the case. He opened the case & the hygrometer said 20% , but reached 50% & still rising within within just a few minutes. Ambient humidity was over 90%. He then explained how one wet season was sufficient to get mould/fungus growing between the coatings of lenses, ruining them, & corrosion inside cameras. Well I don't mind admitting that it was an issue I had never considered, & that he put the wind up me. Seeings we are likely to see a lot more high humidity I thought it prudent to take some preventive action. The Pelican case & Silica gel arrived from ebay this morning. The mini Hygrometer (2 for $8!) should get her next week. Wife agreed to it being an early birthday pressie.

IMG_1418 (1).jpg

[mudnut]

What model and how heavy is the case when fully loaded, Cuppa. I suppose it would be useful as a 'base' storage unit for me to transfer the gear to a travel case on outings.

[Cuppa]

It's a Pelican 1520, I think the case(with foam) weighs around 4.5kg.Not sure of fully loaded weight . I'd guess around 10 kg. They do a large range of sizes.
Since posting earlier, I decided to clean my lenses & to my horror discovered I already have a small amount of fungus inside my Sigma lens. At the moment it doesn't show up in photos, but it could get worse. Tomorrow I'm going to put it out in direct sunlight if I can in the hope that the sunlight will kill it. It's 12 months old.

[mudnut]

I've watched a few videos on youtube about cleaning fungus off lenses, but a professional clean for your Sigma is on the cards.

[Cuppa]

I've watched a few videos on youtube about cleaning fungus off lenses, but a professional clean for your Sigma is on the cards.

I think it would cost more than half the cost of the lens given that it's inside, & I'd question whether it was worth it to be honest. If it was an easier lens to use I might feel differently. It's out in the sunlight now, hoping it might kill off the fungus to stop it getting worse.

[mudnut]

I didn't have time to get the Sigma lens or get the camera ready. 150mm lens, on sports setting.

A pair of humpbacks passing under a cliff at around 300m. I am really happy with the results.

You can see the white of the whale's fin and underbelly under the murky water, a lot clearer than my naked eyes could.