The Young of 2019

Hello Alan, Hazel and Mike-
such a wonderful collection of youngsters...adorable! All three are so sweet! And yes, Hazel yours is definitly a youngster , too! When I saw them first in Norway (there where almost as many as here Sparrows) I thought I found a new sub-species... but no, it were the youngsters...
In odds & sods there was a question about a tiny youngster: If it was a juvenile Dunnock or Robin.
After seeing your juvenile Dunnock , Alan - I´m sure the other one was a Dunnock too. ( Have seen many juvenile Robins so far , but just a few Dunnocks-and none of it a juvenile (apart from here on the rspb community I mean...)

Wanna swap windows Alan? :-)
Nice shots. We had 2 pairs of bullfinch last year, but only seen one male this year and that was in February, so I'm disappointed as you can probably guess.

Juvenile Robin

The red breast is slowly showing it's colour.

Just adorable Mike, not had any yet in my garden despite feeding wax worms to Dad who takes them away for his young ... unfortunately 3 gardens away!

I see your camera is still in your hand Mike :o) Good on ya!!
Nice shots...out of curiosity (I'm looking at upgrading from my bridge camera to "proper" dslr so am gleaning info from anywhere and everywhere) what sort of distance were these taken from... and on your new toy I guess? And what lens?

PimperneBloke said:

I see your camera is still in your hand Mike :o) Good on ya!!
Nice shots...out of curiosity (I'm looking at upgrading from my bridge camera to "proper" dslr so am gleaning info from anywhere and everywhere) what sort of distance were these taken from... and on your new toy I guess? And what lens?

For those photos, I was probably about 20-30 mtrs away, I was sitting on a shooting stick at the time, though it is rare I use a tripod (I probably should use a tripod more often).

The set-up for most bird photos is: a DSLR, (previously a Canon 750D), the  Canon 5D MkIV, and the Sigma 150-600 Contemporary lens.

I do have the Canon 24-105 lens, which is used for landscape and macro.

I'm probably one of the last to ask for advice, I know there will be some who will  happily offer better advice.

To upgrade initially depends on available budget, then what you want to achieve.

I started with a budget DSLR, initially a Canon 450D, mainly because Jessops at the time had a good offer on for a starter kit, DSLR, 18-55 & 75-300 lens, complete with kit bag for under £300, but that was back in 2010.

As time has progressed, I've gradually upgraded, sticking to Canon, that way I didn't need to buy new lenses, to the 1200D (now 1300D), then the 750D (now 800D) three years ago to my newest purchase the 5D at a little under £2500!

I could probably have got cheaper, but I know the shop, they sort of know me and it was easy dealing, also, as reliable as cameras are today, if I have an issue, it's an easy trip to the shop and talk over the issue.

There are plenty of good DSLR's out there, and also some extremely good bridge cameras.

Bridge cameras have one big advantage over DSLR's, you have one lens that does everything, and some are extremely capable cameras, on a par to many DSLR's.

Probably the two most notable brands are Nikon and Canon, both do good budget ranges through to full on professional gear. There are others, Pentax, Olympus, Sony and many many more too numerous to mention.

DSLR's give you the option to select the lens for what you're doing, which means the lens in theory should be more suited to what you're doing.

You might find it best to visit a good camera retailer, have a look at what they have, handle them, and see what the price is. If you buy a DSLR, consider what lenses you want and can afford, you may even be able to get a bundle deal.

If you buy a DSLR, consider how you will carry the camera and lenses, there is a good selection of camera bags.

If you stay with a bridge camera, apart from the lenses, the same applies.

I hope I've given you enough info to look at your options, and if anyone wants to chip in with advice, please do.

That's fab, thanks Mike, I have just started a new thread :o)

PimperneBloke said:

That's fab, thanks Mike, I have just started a new thread :o)

You're welcome, and I saw the thread before I saw your reply.

Good luck in your quest.

Is that a young Bullfinch Alan? and it's parent - lovely photos.

gaynorsl said:

Is that a young Bullfinch Alan? and it's parent - lovely photos.

I'd say they are both youngsters, Gaynor.