Lucky Thirteenth « Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Lucky Thirteenth


What’s Up?

This blog was written from scratch on Sunday, December 14, 2014 in the lobby of the Albatross Hotel.

Along with the rest of my shipmates I boarded the Ortelius on the afternoon of 15 DEC. We get back to dock on the the morning of 9 JAN. There is no wifi on the ship. That means that I will effectively and absolutely be without internet at least from 14 DEC through 9 JAN. At present I am further behind with answering e-mails than at any time since I have began answering folks’ photography-related questions about 25 years ago.

Please therefore refrain from e-mailing me at the usual samandmayasgrandpa e-mail address until I get back home on 13 JAN. You can reach my right-hand man Jim Litzenburg by e-mail here or reach Jennifer here as usual.

Important Blog Notice

I have been preparing a few new blog posts today to be published during my absence with the help of either Jim or the invaluable Peter Kes, the BAA webmaster. In addition, my plan is to resurrect a collection of older but important educational blog posts (like today’s) and have them re-published during my absence. Please enjoy. Please consider signing up for an IPT. And please continue to do a great job of using my B&H and other affiliate links while I am gone.

To show your appreciation for my efforts here, we ask, as always, that you use our the B&H and Amazon affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your purchases. B&H Is recommended for you major photography gear purchases, Amazon for your household, entertainment, and general purpose stuff. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially Gitzo tripods, Wimberley tripod heads, and the like. We sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And we are always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and visiting the BAA Online store as well.


snow-geese-blur-1-13-sec-_y7o0952-bosque-del-apache-nwr-san-antonio-nm

This image was created on the cloudy bright morning of 6 DEC, this one at 7:48am with the hand held Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II lens , the <Canon Extender EF 2X III (at 400mm), and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 400. Evaluative metering + 2/3 stop with the geese on the ground before the blast off: 1/13 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode. With the 3-stop Singh_ray ND

Two sensors below the central sensor/AI Servo Surround/Rear Focus AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Be sure to click on the image to see a larger version.

your text and adds

Lucky Thirteenth

While 1/13 sec. is not a long way from 1/15 sec. I have done quite well on occasion going with the lucky thirteenth, inspired by Denise Ippolito who often makes magic with a shutter speed of 1/13 sec.


snow-goose-blur-wide-1-13-sec-_y7o0966-bosque-del-apache-nwr-san-antonio-nm

This image was also created on the cloudy bright morning of 6 DEC, this one at 8:06am with the hand held Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II lens , the <Canon Extender EF 2X III (at 400mm), and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 400. Evaluative metering + 2/3 stop with the geese on the ground before the blast off: 1/13 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode. With the 3-stop Singh_ray ND

Two sensors below the central sensor/AI Servo Surround/Rear Focus AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Be sure to click on the image to see a larger version.

Use a variety of techniques to spice up your blurs

It pays to use a variety of techniques to spice up your blurs. When you are in an obviously good situation change things up. Pan a bit faster than the birds. Pan a bit slower than the birds. Jiggle the camera a bit. Turn the zoom ring a bit. Raise the lens a bit. Jerk the lens every now and then. There is no telling what you might come up with. But one thing is for sure, creating pleasing blurs is way fun. And remember, for every hundred that look great on the back of the camera there will usually be only one or two that stand up to close scrutiny. I believe that the image immediately above was zoomed just a bit.

I am often asked exactly what makes a dramatic pleasing blur. The best I can come up with is the one that stops you in your tracks when you are editing and does the exact same thing to everyone else.


snow-goose-blast-1-13-sec-_y7o0996-bosque-del-apache-nwr-san-antonio-nm

This image was also created on the cloudy bright morning of 6 DEC, this one at 9:15am with the hand held Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II lens , the <Canon Extender EF 2X III (at 400mm), and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 400. Evaluative metering + 2/3 stop with the geese on the ground before the blast off: 1/13 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode. With the 3-stop Singh_ray ND

Two sensors below the central sensor/AI Servo Surround/Rear Focus AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Be sure to click on the image to see a larger version.

The best blastoff images…

The best blastoff images are often made in the first three seconds of the blast when the geese are most tightly packed. Does this one cut the mustard for you?

Your Favorite?

Which of today’s featured images is the strongest. Please let us know why.

IPT Updates

Would you like to visit some of the great bird photography locations on the planet? Would you like to learn from the best? Click here and join us.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack!

Support the BAA Blog. Support the BAA Bulletins: Shop B&H here!

We want and need to keep providing you with the latest free information, photography and Photoshop lessons, and all manner of related information. Show your appreciation by making your purchases immediately after clicking on any of our B&H or Amazon Affiliate links in this blog post. Remember, B&H ain’t just photography!

…..

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use this link:

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here. Many thanks to those who have written.

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).

Comments are closed.