How to Photograph Birds in Flight Using a DSLR Digital Camera – Picture Tips and Techniques

Capturing great images using your DSLR digital camera is extremely rewarding and once you have a pretty good understanding of some of the cameras functions both on automatic and manual you can focus on the job of putting this information to good use. One of the hardest images to capture tends to be of something that is moving and in particular photographing birds in flight can be pretty difficult to start with, but there are some tips and tricks you can use that will make it a lot easier to master.

Photographing inanimate objects really is the place to start and by using the same object in totally different settings and light can give us a lot of information and feedback. It is also a good idea to place some objects up high so as to see what is needed to make these a clear and focussed picture.

Top Tip: When you photograph anything in the sky there are a couple of factors to take into consideration. If you do not have the sun to your back then forget it, the picture will more than likely be a silhouette image, if it is cloudy you may not have enough good light, the picture might turn out grainy. Keep subject at eye level or slightly raised, but not overhead as this will also silhouette image.

Moving on from static objects, with more knowledge you will now want to explore the world of moving objects and photography. The technique for photographing a moving subject is known as panning, this involves levelling the camera with the subject, finding it in the viewfinder (This is best done by first having the zoom completely in showing the object furthest away) then zooming out to bring the image closer in the viewfinder while focusing either automatically or manually.

When first starting out with panning photography it is a good idea to use the cameras automatic settings until you are confident that being on manual will not be the difference between capturing or missing a great image. Once you have the image firmly locked on start to follow the images motion slowly with the camera, while at the same time zooming until the image is now the size that you want for your picture. Take the shot and review.

Top Tip: You will find that when panning it is a good idea to be slightly ahead of the image in the viewfinder and slowing down your panning motion to capture the image dead center. Also try holding your breath for a few seconds while you pan as this can improve your pictures.

Learning to take good pictures using panning can be achieved on a gradual progressive basis like this. Find a road that you can stand a reasonable distance from and not be in any danger from passing cars. For best results you want to find a fairly long road where you will have plenty of time to locate a car in the viewfinder focus, zoom and shoot.

A good result should show the car as clear as if it was standing still and you captured the image using a tripod, while the foreground and background should be blurred from camera motion and not aperture settings.

Try the same method on a motorbike, this is improving your technique as it is not only a smaller object to focus on, but also tends to be moving a lot faster. Remember taking pictures of anything outdoors or on the ground is always made better when the sun is behind you and certainly not in front of you, this is essential to great results for panning photography.

Moving on again you can now focus on photographing flying subjects that can fly. With anything flying it is always best to try where possible to capture the image from a side angle and with the subject as low down as is possible.

A good way to hone your panning skills of flying objects is to visit air-shows, or even by getting close to an airport. Air-shows are good as they have a variety of aircraft that you can practise on, not only that, but you can get some really good photograph sessions from air-shows.

One of the main reasons it is a good idea to start photographing flying objects by using aircraft is due to their overall size, this in itself tends to make panning photography with them a great starting and learning point.

Now onto birds in flight, using the car and aircraft theory we want to start off with something that is not only big, but also slow and graceful. That way we will find it much easier to keep track of and photograph while also making sure we can get the timing and lighting right. One of the best birds to start learning panning skills on is the seagull; they tend to tick all the boxes when it comes to getting a great shot.

The seagull is fairly slow in flight and tends to glide more than fly, not only that but they also do a lot of low level flying when it comes to catching fish or hovering in a bay on the thermals.

Moving on from the seagull should be a natural progression, but as a rule of thumb, the bigger the bird the easier it is to capture in flight. When you move down to smaller birds it can often be the case of hit and miss many times, but one little trick I have learned is that if there is a specific bird in your area that you are trying to photograph it is well worth simply watching his/her movements a few times before you actually try and photograph him/her.

By knowing which tree he/she is going to fly to or from can often give you an upper hand due to knowing the direction or target of his/her flight. Also setting up shots for birds is a good way of getting great pictures too. Using food to entice them or even a stick strategically placed on a riverbank can reward the photographer with a stunning image of a kingfisher.

Panning photography is certainly an art, but if the photographer studies and learns from initial attempts the end results can be pretty staggering in a relatively short period of time. Keeping the camera steady and smooth at all times is critical to the overall results, and it is even possible to use a mono-pod in some instances for even more clarity, but panning free hand should be mastered first.

By now you should have a pretty good idea on photographing birds in flight using a digital single lens reflex camera, which is an amazing subject when you start getting it right.