Forty Eagles and Two Pleasing (?) Blurs ...

What’s Up?

I created 1352 images on Sunday morning in a bit more than an hour. On Saturday, an adult crane stood in the same spot for more than an hour and preened. On Sunday morning, it was in the same spot. I got down by the canal with the 600 f/4 and was determined to wait for an elegant wing stretch. I did not have to wait too long. From the beginning of the wing stretch until the bird re-folded its left wing, I created 122 images. Those included a few good ones. Next, I worked with the large colt family. Working vertically at 840mm, I was on one of the big colts as it ran across the South Peninsula to grab a big mole cricket from one of the parents. Though my shutter speed was marginal at 1/500 second, I did get a few good (sharp) ones. I was tooling around near the pier just about ready to head home when I spotted two fuzzy little birds on the grass. Then I photographed two Killdeer chicks for more than 45 minutes. They were the first I had seen at Indian Lake Estates in my 22 years here. What fun! I had given up finding the new chick, but on the way home I saw it with the parents on Park, two blocks up from the lakefront!

I finished editing the Z9 Camera User’s Guide and sent it to Warren Hatch via Hightail. I did my bursts and a swim after my nap and got back to work.

Today is Monday 25 April 2022. The forecast for this morning is for a gentle ENE breeze with clear skies, perfect for bird photography. I will be heading down to the lake for a short photo session. Wherever you are and whatever you are doing, I hope that you too have a great day. This blog post took about an hour to prepare and makes forty-five days in a row with a new one.

Please remember to use the B&H and Amazon links that are found on most blog pages and to use the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout when purchasing your new gear from Bedfords. Please, also, consider joining a BAA IPT. You will be amazed at how much you will learn!

BIRDS AS ART Image Optimization Service (BAA IOS)

Send a PayPal for $62.00 to birdsasart@verizon.net or call Jim at 863-692-0906 and put $62.00 on your credit card. Pick one of your best images and upload the raw file using a large file sending service like Hightail or DropBox and then send me the link via e-mail. I will download and save your raw file, evaluate the exposure and sharpness, and optimize the image as if it were my own after converting the raw file in Adobe Camera Raw. Best of all, I will make a screen recording of the entire process and send you a link to the video to download, save and study.

This image is another that was created on 27 February 2022 on the second Homer IPT. I used the hand held Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter (at 252mm) and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera.. The exposure was determined via Zebra technology with ISO on the rear wheel. ISO 50: 1/30 sec. at f/4 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 9:47:28am on a cloudy dark morning. Tracking: Zone AF/C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy a high-res version. Image #1: Bald Eagle adult — striking blur

Necessity, the Mother of Invention

When the birds are flying around in extreme low light conditions, you have a choice of trying to create a few pleasing blurs or working at high ISO settings while trying to create some sharp flight images. If my math is correct, you would have needed to use ISO 4000 to get to 1/2500 second. At Kachemak Bay, the tree-covered hillsides reflected in still, deep waters offer green backgrounds that are perfect for blurred eagles. I created almost 300 blurs during a 15-minute session and kept 16.

This image is another that was created on 27 February 2022 on the second Homer IPT. I used the hand held Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter (at 186mm) and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera.. The exposure was determined via Zebra technology with ISO on the rear wheel. ISO 100: 1/30 sec. at f/4 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 9:55:49am on a cloudy dark morning. Tracking: Zone AF/C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy a high-res version. Image #2: Bald Eagle adult — striking blur II

Striking Splash Blur

Several images that I kept were created just as the bird struck. This resulted in some neat patterns with the spray caused by the splash. Compare the two images. Which is the stronger image? Why? Does anything bug you about Image #1? Does anything bug you about Image #2? Which image has the nicest background color?

This image was created on 27 February 2022 on the second Homer IPT. I used the hand held Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter (at 98mm) and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera.. The exposure was determined via Zebras. ISO 1000: 1/1600 sec. at f/4 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 11:37:21am on a then-cloudy bright morning. Tracking: Spot AF/C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy a high-res version. Image #3: Counted and numbered Bald Eagles roosting on hillside

How Many Eagles?

In the blog post here, I asked, with regards to the image above, How many eagles?

The adults are numbered, the young birds were given a number with a J at the end, like 5J and 6J near the top of the tall tree. I counted 40. Did I miss any? Note: there is a Common Raven perched above eagles 29 and 30.

Both Muhammad Arif and Chris Davidson counted 40. Ted Willcox came up with 42, and Joel Eade with 39. Time will tell. One thing is for sure, that is a lot of eagles!

Homer 2022 Bald Eagle Highlights and Handholding Compositional Tips by Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Enjoy and be inspired by just a few Homer Bald Eagle highlight images. Hand holding intermediate telephoto lens will always yield slightly different compositions. Learn more about that topic in this short (3:14) video.

All images from Homer or Kachemak Bay, AK

2023 Homer/Kachemak Bay Bald Eagle IPTs

IPT #1: MON 20 FEB 2023 through the full day on FRI 24 FEB 2023. Five full days/20 hours on the boat: $5500.00. Limit 5 photographers

IPT #2: SAT 25 FEB 2023 through the full day on THURS 2 MAR 2023. Six full days/24 hours on the boat: $6600.00. Limit 5 photographers/Openings: 4.

IPT #3: FRI 3 MAR 2023 through the full day on TUES 7 MAR 2023. Five full days/20 hours on the boat: $5500.00. Limit 5 photographers. Openings: 4.

Save $1,000.00 by doing back-to-back trips. Save $1500.00 by doing all three.

These trips feature non-stop flight photography as well as many opportunities to create both environmental and point-blank portraits of one of North America’s most sought-after avian subjects: Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus). Other reliable subjects will include Sea Otter, Glaucous-winged and Short-billed (formerly Mew) Gulls.

In addition, we should see Common Murre, Black Guillemot, Pelagic Cormorant, two or three species of loons, and a smattering of ducks including two species of merganser, all three scoters, Common and Barrow’s Goldeneyes, Bufflehead, Harlequin, and Long-tailed Ducks. Close-range photographic chances for these species will require a ton of good luck. Some of these species, especially when in flocks, can, however, often be used effectively when pleasing creating bird-scapes.

If we need to be out early, we will be the first boat out. If conditions are great, we will stay out. And when there is a chance for sunset silhouettes, we will be in the right spot.

We will be traveling through gorgeous wilderness country; landscape and scenic opportunities abound.

Also featured is a professional leader, often referred to as the world’s most knowledgeable bird photography trip leader, who is conversant in Canon, Nikon, and Sony. You will learn practical and creative solutions to everyday photographic problems. You will learn to see the shot, to create dynamic images by fine-tuning your compositions, to best utilize your camera’s AF system, and how to analyze the wind, the sky conditions, and the direction and quality of the light. This is one of the very few Homer trips available where you will not be simply put on the birds and told to have fun. You will learn to be a better photographer.

You will learn to get the right exposure when it is sunny, when it cloudy-bright, when it is cloudy, when it is cloudy-dark, or when it is foggy. Not to mention getting the right exposure when creating silhouettes.

You will learn to make pleasing blurs working in manual mode and to create silhouettes working in Shutter Priority mode.

Most importantly you will learn to pick your best flight images from tens of thousands of images.

You will enjoy working with the two best and most creative boat captains on their sturdy, photography-spacious, seaworthy, open-deck crafts.

The second and third IPTs are the only Bald Eagle workshops that feature an incredibly helpful first mate.

Only five photographers (not the usual six), plus the leader.

Small group Photoshop, Image Review, and Image Critiquing sessions.

All images from Homer or Kachemak Bay, AK

What’s Included

One four hour or two two-hour boat trips every day (weather permitting), all boat fees and boat-related expenses (excluding tips), ground transportation to and from the dock and back to the hotel each day, in-the-field instruction and guidance, pre-trip gear advice, small group post-processing and image review sessions, and a thank you dinner for all well-behaved participants.

What’s Not Included

Your airfare to and from Homer, AK (via Anchorage), the cost of your room at Land’s End Resort, all personal items, all meals and beverages, and tips for the boat captain and/or the first mate.

Please Note

On great days, the group may wish to photograph for more than four hours. If the total time on the boat exceeds 20 hours for the five-day trips, or 24 hours for the second trip, the group will share the additional expense at a rate of $225/hour.

Some folks may wish to rent their own vehicle to take advantage of local photographic opportunities around Homer.

Deposit Information

A $3000 non-refundable deposit/trip is required. You may pay your deposit with credit card or by personal check (made out to BIRDS AS ART) and sent via US mail only to Arthur Morris. PO Box 7245. Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855. Your balance, due 90 days before the date of departure, is payable only by check as above.

In Closing

I have been going to Homer off and on for close to two decades. Every trip has been nothing short of fantastic. Many folks go in mid-March. The earlier you go, the better the chances for snow. The only way to assure that you are on the best of the three trips is to sign up for all of them. Can you keep up with me? If you have any questions, or are good to go for one, two, or all three trips, please let me know via e-mail or give me a call on my cell phone at 863-221-2372.

Typos

With all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors.