Getting good pictures of birds in flight can be some of the most difficult types of photography you can do. The smaller the bird the more difficult to capture. They move very fast and can change direction quickly. Your autofocus has to be even faster to get these images sharp. It can take years of practice to perfect your technique. I suggest starting with the bigger birds. One problem that the beginner has to overcome is the underestimation of the bird's wingspan. The bird sits there. You zoom in loosely because you need to leave room for the expanded wings in the frame. You are ready. The bird takes off. You review your images (shot in burst mode) only to find clipped wings. You will be surprised at the wingspan of birds but people often only notice this once they start to attempt to get birds in flight images.

Here are a few things I find helpful:

• Get to know your bird's behavior. They often signal before they take off by lowering their necks.

• Please leave enough room for large wingspans.

• Having lots of megapixels are advantageous because you can afford to leave enough room and crop later while still retaining enough resolution to be useful.

• Good light is still essential.

• Use the fastest possible shutter speed to freeze the wings' movement. Remember the wings move much faster than the bird. At times one can get creative images of sharp birds in flight with blurred wings. Those images can also work.

• The eye has to be sharp, period.

• It takes a lot of practice and patience, don't give up.

Getting great images of birds in flight can be very rewarding. Even if you don't succeed, trying will make you appreciate good birds in flight photographs even more.