What is the general rule of thumb for bird photography in terms of subject distance

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I'm not good at telling you how significant 80 yards is, but here are a few things to consider. One of my problems with a two hour drive is that I find the birds are more active within a couple hours of sunrise, and not so much after that. So you need to get up pretty early. YMMV.

It also depends on which way the birds fly. There is an Osprey nest near me where a lot of photographers hang out. It is a bit far away and the problem is that the wind is usually coming towards where I am able to stand and get a good shot of the birds. That means that the bird is taking off going away from me and going further away from me, extending the distance (and also showing me his backside on takeoffs and landings). It is to the point I don't go there any more.

There are times where I had to crop so much I thought there was no point to it as the picture wouldn't turn out well. Then I began using Topaz Photo AI. I do a crop and Upsize so I'll crop an image that started out with over 8000 pixels on the long edge down to 1000 pixels on the long edge, but then have Topaz upsize it to 4200 pixels on the long edge (which is just over a 4k image). I've gotten incredible results doing that. The Topaz algorithms for upsizing are excellent.
 
I bet you could crop down to aps-c or m43 size, crop factor 1.5 or 2.0, and get fair results with resampling/upsizing. Beyond that probably not worth it.
 
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I would think 80 meters is doable esp as said above light and wind conditions allow. Assuming the nest is high you will shooting up so if you get too close this only gets worse. Also the birds will be flying about so if you can position your self is such a way to get flying birds coming towards you with the sun behind you that can make for some nice action shots. Shoot full frame, not crop sensor so you don’t clip wings etc. I have always tries to think shotgun range for how far I’m willing to shoot larger BIF. That far out you will lose some fine feather detail but should be OK otherwise. Also the wingspan of an Osprey here in Alabama is between 4-5 feet. Bald Eagles are about 6ft.
 
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Maybe you can solve the distance problem a different way. Go to the location and plan to spend 2- 3 days. Hire a guide or rent a pontoon boat with a flat floor so you can get closer.
and stand up without too much boat rocking.

Go out twice a day in AM and Late afternoon and observe then anchor close to the Osprey Hunting area and wait for a magnificent shot.
 
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mosoaringwings said:
To get a good quality of photo, not just for a picture to identify the bird. I understand it matters what lens and the size of the bird. But just to simplify, let's say it is shot with 45MP full frame (or 20MP crop sensor) and 600mm with 1.4tc.

There is a osprey nest about 2hr drive for me, and I heard the distance of the nest to the shore is about 80 yard. I wonder 840mm would be enough to get some good pictures. For my own criteria, the max crop I can go is the picture should have at less 8MP. If 8MP after the crop, the bird is still small then I don't think the picture is great. I am kind of debating whether to go. Thank you!
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To re-iterate a few things that others have said, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Is there any place you can spend the night near the site of the nest? I would try to stay late (ie. dusk) and get there early (at sunrise) for the best light. I go to a peregrine falcon nest that is actually further than that almost 100 yards from me and use the 800mm PF (so less than your 840mm). Sometimes the falcons can fly right over me with the food that they are bringing to the chicks. More important than the actual distance is trying to get something interesting. One can crop and upscale as mentioned. Good luck! Looking forwards to seeing your pics.
 
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Charles Loy said:
My rule of thumb is - the closer the better
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Best advice Charles, one wants to get as close as possible (without disturbing the bird or animal ofcourse) but if that’s not possible it depends on one’s intentions.
Now would I drive up two hours for a mediocre chance to shoot Osprey under subpar conditions? Nope personally I’d rather drive further for the right shootingconditions.
But then again, like I said before intentions do vary. (I can imagine someone eager for his or her first Osprey shots being happy for the occasion alone)
 
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