photography in woodland problems.

[gaddypaid]

went out this morning to see if i could capture some nature, it was around 7am and still darkish by the time i got to my destination it was dull with a slight fog/mist in the air. i headed into the nature reserve and found the light a bit dim trees blocking the light in some areas. There was bird songs and squirrels about the place. i had my camera in shutter priority at around 300 -500th of a second so i would be able to catch anything moving fast. But couldnt take any pictures because the aperature was not wide enough and to compensate with upping my iso bigtime to be able to get my shutter speed up which meant soft and grainy pictures. which was a shame since some where first time seen this year.
The only fairly good pictures was when i was out in the open walking around the farmers fields when the light was better but could only capture a few due to distancing
my camera is a d5200 with a 70-300mm vr lens with an f4-f5 stops which i know doesnt let in enough light .
So i just wondered how you guys take such great pictures do you wonder around snapping here and there or do you stake out a place untill you get results.
I suppose you will all advise me to get a lens with a wider aperature but would still like to get some feedback on this.

 

[mikew]

Not for one moment going to say i get great pictures but i work like you walking around,i opt for a different set of settings,aperture priority iso 500,800 or 1000 depending on the light, VR on and gamble with the slower shutter speeds,you could set auto ISO with what ever you want as an upper limit.
Ime not going to recommend spray and pray but when your stuck with slow speeds hand held try a burst of 3 to 4 shots you often find the first and maybe the second has shake and quiet often for some reason the third or fourth is ok.

 

[Alastair]

So i just wondered how you guys take such great pictures do you wonder around snapping here and there or do you stake out a place untill you get results.
I suppose you will all advise me to get a lens with a wider aperature but would still like to get some feedback on this.

It's all about the light. Sometimes it just isn't good for the "perfect" shot, so you have the choice of compromising on ISO/shutter speed to get a shot - or just enjoying the walk and coming back another day.