How do you setup your camera...

[Slea_]

I thought it would be interesting, to me at least to see how other people setup their camera when shooting wildlife ?

Witha 100-400 lens I normally have ISO 200-400, focus on the * button, safety shift in Av and Tv mode ON, Stutter priority mode set to around 1/60 second for 'arty' blur shots of moving subjects and Aperture priority set to widest aperture (or perhaps 1/3 stop down) to guarantee the fastest shutterspeed. I can then switch between the two modes very quickly depending on the subject in hand

How do you setup yours

Slea

[dougjgreen]

Aperture priority and manual focus, using an older manual focus 300mm F2.8 ED IF lens that I picked up for a song. Depending on the lighting, aperture either wide open or stopped down 1 or 2 stops, never more. Depending on the distance from the subject, either with or without a good 2X teleconverter, giving me a 600mm f5.6 that needs to be stopped down at least one stop.

[cyclohexane]

Well, if seagulls and pigeons count as wildlife, I usually just go ahead and use my 70-200mm f/2.8, as they let me get pretty darn close (I've used my 18-70 on occasion- successfully).* I usually leave my ISO at the base 200 on my D2H, and leave my aperture somewhere near wide-open (i.e. f/3.5-5.6, or even all the way to f/2.8 ) depending on what effect I'm looking for and how the light is.* I shoot in manual, but I seem to leave my cameras in manual anyways (with a little exposure comp dialed in to shift the meter), so this isn't exactly different than when I'm shooting something else.

[Mark McCall]

I've always wondered why in the world photographers use Shutter Priority, when Aperture Priority does the same thing...AND allows for DOF control at the same time. (The wider the aperture, the faster the shutter speed).

For outdoor work:
Aperture Priority, center weighted metering, all focusing zones turned off, except for center.
One of two lenses:
Canon 70-200 F2.8 IS "L"
Tamron 28-200 F3.8-5.6