How to Take Sharp Bird Photos Without a Tripod – Tips From BirdBrainMatt

If you’ve ever tried to photograph birds, you know how tough it can be to capture sharp, detailed shots, especially handheld.

Arizona-based photographer Matthew Williamson @BirdBrainMatt has built a growing following by doing just that. In just over a year, he went from backyard birdwatching to consistently producing crisp, handheld portraits full of warmth, detail, and clean composition.

His approach is all about technique and mindset: reading the light, staying patient, understanding the habits of his subjects, and more.

In this interview, he shares how he plans his outings, composes his shots, processes his photos to get that signature look, and more. Whether you’re brand new to bird photography or looking to refine your results, there’s plenty to take away from Matt’s process!

Can you tell us a bit about how you first got into bird photography? What sparked the obsession?

I was sitting in my backyard about 1.5 years ago and heard a bird that sounded like the chirp most smoke detectors make when they’re low on battery. Curious what it could be, I downloaded Merlin for the sound ID feature. It turned out to be an Abert’s Towhee, a somewhat large and plain-looking sparrow, but I was intrigued and kept identifying the birds around me. My bird obsession spiraled from that.

As far as photography, I actually wasn’t a photographer at all when the bird obsession started. I didn’t own a camera, and hadn’t really thought much about photography other than enjoying it as an art form like most people. I had taken a photography class in High School that I don’t really remember anymore, but that was about as far as I’d gone into it.

I felt the desire to share some of the unique birds I was identifying on Instagram, and I recalled that a friend and ex-coworker of mine was deeply into photography (Chuck Dries, @chuck.dries.photo). I reached out to him, he gave me some great guidance on acquiring a starter camera, and it was off to the races.

You're based in Arizona, a dream for birders and wildlife lovers. How has the desert landscape and regional wildlife influenced the way you shoot?

Arizona is beautiful and varied, but the Sonoran desert that I call home can be a challenging place to take pictures due to the heat, harsh light, and limited color palette for most parts of the year. One of the “benefits” of this environment though is that birds (and other wildlife) tend to congregate around water, much more than other places I’ve visited.

I’ve found that I have by far the most success along rivers, lakes, and even at water recharge facilities or canals. It is doubly helpful that those areas tend to be Mesquite Bosque habitats, which provide relief from the sweltering sun and can help make some pretty bokeh.

I tend to favor warmly lit, highly contrasted frames but ideally without blowing the whites out. I think the landscape here has played a large role in that preference.

Your portraits are razor-sharp and beautifully lit. What’s your typical gear setup when heading out to shoot?

Starting with the camera, I have a Canon R7 body and an RF100-500 L lens. Maybe 3 months after I started, I upgraded to this setup and haven’t felt the need to tweak it since. I don’t actually own any other camera gear, I try hard to avoid obsessing over that stuff. I’ve had other hobbies where I paid more attention to the gear than the hobby itself and I’m trying not to repeat that mistake with this one. I don’t use a tripod, I only shoot by hand-held.

Other items that I’d consider necessities when I go out:

• A hydropack backpack,
• A spare camera battery
• A lens cleaning kit
• eBird species hotspot/explore map on my phone
• My Sunday Afternoons (@sundayafternoons_hats) hat
• A long-sleeved SPF shirt and my Keen trail shoes.

You capture such a wide range of bird species in all kinds of settings and behaviors. Do you usually head out with a target species and location in mind, or do you prefer to let the encounters unfold naturally?

This is tough because the answer is both, and it actually depends on the weather (or more specifically, the lighting).

If it is a sunny day, I will go to locations that offer shade, which means that I won’t have a particular species in mind. The Gilbert Riparian Preserve is an example of an ideal place for this. It is a water recharge facility with dense foliage surrounding the ponds and a great variety of species.

If the day is overcast, or I can see that some part of Arizona within a reasonable day trip from me will be overcast, I will go to eBird hotspots in that area looking for either new-to-me species or ones I haven’t captured in a long time.

Your work has a signature look, warm tones, creamy bokeh, and precise focus. How much of that is done in-camera vs. post-processing?

I’d say the bokeh and focus are almost entirely in-camera.

For the focus, I have a (probably unreasonably) high bar for what I consider a usable shot and a lot of it depends on how much detail I can see in the place I’m trying to draw the viewer’s eye to.

As for bokeh, I try to position myself so that the subject is framed by foreground or background elements that will create pleasing blur. I will lightly adjust clarity/texture/haze using masks for foreground and background to enhance some of this but nothing too wild usually. 

The warmth is more of an intentional post-processing thing for sure, though Arizona does tend to give warm tones to start with. I find myself adding a touch of warmth to nearly every shot I take. I like how it “feels” to the eye, if that makes any sense.

Your framing and sharpness are consistently spot-on, even with fast or jumpy birds. Are there any techniques, settings, or habits you’ve developed to consistently nail focus and composition in the field?

1. I almost never take a photo where the sky is the main background—it’s just hard to make it work compositionally.
2.  I try not to shoot upward at birds in treetops. That angle usually doesn’t lead to the most interesting or eye-pleasing photos.
3. I’m fine using low shutter speeds in low light, even though conventional wisdom says to shoot fast for wildlife. If the bird’s still, I’ll take the tradeoff for a cleaner image.
4. I tend to favor portraits. All I really need is a moment of stillness from the subject, and with some patience, that usually happens.
5. Light is the most important part of photography. I pay close attention to it. Where I go birding often depends on cloud coverage, time of day, or whether there’s good shade.
6. Cropping is great for composition, but bad for detail I’ve found. I try not to over or under crop.

Arizona is home to such a range of birds, from desert quail to tropical parrots. Do you have a favorite species you always go back to?

My favorite species of all time is the Lesser Nighthawk, but they are incredibly difficult to photograph for a variety of reasons. I always try, but rarely succeed (even in finding them, most outings).

As an effective stand-in, I do love capturing Gambel’s Quail, Green Herons, and Vermilion Flycatchers. There are so many amazing birds here it is hard to even come up with a top 10 list, let alone pick a single favorite.

What’s been the most unexpected or memorable bird encounter you’ve had while out shooting?

One of my favorite encounters has been watching a pair of Cooper’s Hawks raise a nest together. They’ve got three chicks now that are probably close to fledging. I’ve named the father Kevin and the mother Caroline. They’ve been incredibly inspiring to watch.

My favorite moment was when they chased off a Great Horned Owl that had settled a little too close to their nest. They spent hours harassing it until it finally moved on. I’ve got a reel of it on my IG, it was incredible to see their teamwork and bravery.

Your color work really pops without feeling overdone. Do you have a specific editing workflow you stick to, or does it vary by subject?

My editing workflow would probably give most photographers heart palpitations. I download all my images directly from my camera to my phone, and only ever edit them in Lightroom Mobile. Despite shooting in Raw + JPG, I probably only ever edit in JPG, but to be honest, I don’t even know.

The workflow from there is roughly similar, but what I land on ultimately varies by subject. I usually start by cropping the shot until I like the frame, running the shot through a list of about 50 presets I’ve either made or acquired that I tend to like, and see if any are good or at least look promising. Usually I find one I like, and then I’ll tweak it to taste for the specific shot. Sometimes I don’t find one and have to start from scratch, but normally I do.

Occasionally I will use a much “heavier” edit than normal, like the Woodland Presets Dark Woods pack or my selective color edits. Totally depends on the subject.

What’s the hardest part of bird photography that most people don’t realize?

Probably the mindset. Specifically, shifting your mindset towards art instead of just excitement over seeing a bird in the moment (which, trust me, I get). Taking a bird picture is one thing. Taking a photograph of a bird is something else entirely.

I think that’s actually the biggest difference between birders and bird photographers. I used to try to capture every bird I saw, and photography wasn’t really the focus. Now it’s the opposite. I see birds all the time while I’m out walking, but I don’t even raise my camera unless I really think it could make a good photograph.

What advice would you give to new photographers trying to break into bird or wildlife photography, especially those working with limited gear?

I’m relatively new and unproven as well, so take this with a grain of salt, but photography is art, and you will need to find what speaks to you. For me, that is hyper-detailed portraits, usually. For you, it might be intense action scenes, or really unique and artistic compositions. Find what resonates with you. Practice it. Above all else though, have fun with the process.

As far as the gear goes, I have seen amazing photos taken on all sorts of cameras with all sorts of lenses. Great photos are gear agnostic.

And finally, where can people see more of your stunning work or follow along with what you're creating next?

I post daily (or near daily) on my IG page @birdbrainmatt! I haven’t branched out to other forms of social media yet, trying to grow my audience there first.

Bonus question: Anything you’d like to share about yourself or your work that we didn’t cover?

Quick shoutout to a couple extremely important photographers for this journey I’m on. They all were critical in helping me get started and continue to support me:

Chuck Dries @chuck.dries.photo
Josh Pelta-Heller @koalaphotography
Jean-Paul @jps_wildlife

Also, the ultimate goal of my page is to bring appreciation and awareness to the birds I photograph. Like the Nene in Hawaii, for example. My dream is that every person that follows me loves the birds as much as I do, and we all recognize what a treat it is that we get to co-exist with the last lineage of dinosaurs (yes, birds are the only remaining dinosaurs).

Thanks for reading! Matt’s journey is proof that you don’t need years of experience, fancy gear, or a massive editing setup to create stunning bird photography. In just a year and a half, he’s gone from curious backyard birder to producing razor-sharp portraits using a single handheld setup and nothing more than Lightroom Mobile. His approach, prioritizing light, patience, composition, and connection with the subject, shows what’s possible when you focus on the craft, not the gear.

We’re incredibly grateful to have Matt as part of the Woodland Presets community and truly appreciate him taking the time to share his process, mindset, and tips with us!