Bird photography is a popular genre that can be undertaken in a variety of different ways, with each style presenting its own challenges. Nonetheless, there are common elements in what makes a successful bird photo, and this excellent video features two seasoned pros discussing seven important aspects of every compelling image.
Coming to you from Jan Wegener and Glenn Bartley, this awesome video discusses seven elements of a successful bird image. Of them, I think one of the most fundamental is simply getting the bird sharp. Because of the environments and settings involved, you will often have to bump up the ISO a bit, and this often leads to the temptation to push the shutter speed lower to avoid introducing noise from those higher ISOs. While using the lowest ISO possible is certainly desirable, if you push the shutter speed too low, you risk blurring either from the subject moving or from your hands shaking (especially with longer focal lengths). You can always do things in post to reduce noise, but once a photo is blurry due to camera shake or subject blur, there is not much you can do to save it. Check out the video above for the full rundown.