Signs of Improvement?

I made several refinements to my Bird in Flight technique today.  I used a shorter lens - 135mm, moved back for a larger target area and stopped down more to get more depth of focus. I placed the camera outdoors in the freezing temperatures of late December.  I moved the feeder in an attempt to make the flight path more predictable. 

Increased depth of focus increased the number of sharp images, but the news wasn't entirely good.  The 135mm lens increased the background area.  Stopping the lens down made the background sharper.  As a result, the bokeh on today's images isn't as good as the results from the 400mm lens. The image below is a good example, the backgrould is mottled and distrating. 

I used a remote to fire the camera today.  I was able to trigger the camera remotely.  As a result, I wasn't able to chimp and make adjustments to my camera position and focus as easily.  The flight path is still too short and random for consistent focus.

I awarded this image 6 points

10 Point Bird Photo Scoring Checklist	Point	Comment
Is there adequate detail.  Noise? Focus? Is the body sharp?	1/2	Noise Reduction destroyed some detail
Is the exposure good? Has motion been arrested?  Are the wings sharp	1
Does lighting enhance the image?	1	Backlighted
Is the bird in an interesting pose? Are the wings spread?	1
Did I make good use of the frame? Is the frame free of distractions?	1/2	It's head is too high in the frame
Does color enhance the image?
Does the background contribute to the image?  Color?  Depth?
Is this bird a good subject?  Young and beautiful?  Ugly, ragged and missing feathers?  In mating plumage - sexy?	1
Does the bird look alive and engaged?  Eye sharp? Catchlight?	1/2	Cannot see eyes
Is the bird doing something interesting?  Is it interacting with a mate, offspring, friends, enemies or the environment?	1	Looks active

I awarded this image 6 1/2 points.

 

10 Point Bird Photo Scoring Checklist	Point	Comment
Is there adequate detail.  Noise? Focus? Is the body sharp?	1
Is the exposure good? Has motion been arrested?  Are the wings sharp	1
Does lighting enhance the image?	1	Backlighted
Is the bird in an interesting pose? Are the wings spread?	1
Did I make good use of the frame? Is the frame free of distractions?
Does color enhance the image?
Does the background contribute to the image?  Color?  Depth?		I like the blue
Is this bird a good subject?  Young and beautiful?  Ugly, ragged and missing feathers?  In mating plumage - sexy?	1
Does the bird look alive and engaged?  Eye sharp? Catchlight?	1/2	No catchlight
Is the bird doing something interesting?  Is it interacting with a mate, offspring, friends, enemies or the environment?	1	Looks active

 I definitely need to help the birds maintain a consistent flight path to the feeder.  I also need to fire the camera before the bird enters the target area to compensate for the birds speed and my slow reactions.

In a future session, I plan to put up a branch that is higher than the feeder.   If I can convice the birds to start there flight to the feeder from this perch, I should be able to increase the number of images that are in focus.