Hi ghlights

eagles in action. The fast and accurate autofocus also made my job that much easier, as my subjects were pin sharp, even in low-light situations. The new dedicated autofocus and shooting mode dials made it easy to change shooting modes without having to fumble with the menu button.

The camera produces top-notch image quality. The lighting can be really harsh in the middle of the day in Mongolia, so having a wide dynamic range is important for shooting subjects in contrasting light situations. In low-light conditions, I was able to shoot at ISO12,800 and still get great images with low noise.

If you compare Sony’s α9 with its predecessors, one of the first things you’ll notice is the extended battery life: It lasts all day while shooting thousands of frames. This is important in cold and remote places.

In my experience, most people at the eagle festival love to be photographed. Even with the language barrier, there are ways of communicating permission: A smile usually indicates “Yes, you can take my photo”, while a frown is a clear “No”. It’s important to be respectful.

Be adventurous, explorative, curious, and most of all – have fun.

I shot in aperture priority mode, so that I could focus on capturing the moment rather than worrying about technicalities. Sony’s α9 is a very intelligent camera, and the 1,440K-dot touchscreen LCD gives you an accurate preview of your exposure, so that you can review your shots.

I was often exposed to snow and dust simultaneously. The magnesium alloy body is robust, and it is dust and moisture resistant – important when you’re working in rugged conditions like those in rural Mongolia. ag