3rd December 2009, Boat Harbour

I’ve often tried to take photos of birds in flight. At full zoom (400mm at 35mm slr equivalent) it is hard to even track a bird if it is flying and reasonably close. This is the first camera I’ve owned that can lock focus quickly enough on a moving object - I still shot a lot of photos to get a few good ones. It also took me a while to begin to figure out how to do it best with this relatively new camera - the Panasonic G1.

Rather than read and research the camera, I’ve just been using it, then trying to find out how I can do what I want with it. I have discovered a few things:

• The hood! I’ve never used one before and didn’t think I would start; now I try to use it all the time. An obvious reason is sun glare, although I find it really useful around water. It keeps spray, splashes and rain drops off the lens. Water on the lens seems to happen frequently with me, and it ruins the shot.
• High speed shooting. This is something that I’ve never used much before. Action shots aren’t really the forte of compact digitals - my previous cameras. Although the G1 isn’t an SLR, it is a big improvement on what I’ve had. There is also a switch to change to high speed, or single or timer release - this makes it quick and easy to change.
• Focus tracking is good for slow moving things - walking speed only. Great for trying to photograph a walking bird or person.
• Focus lock - I often use this for stationary subjects. I leave the focus point in the middle of the view finder, lock focus with the AF/AE button (set to focus lock only in the setup menu), then take my time shooting while playing with things like composition and depth of field.

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