What’s Up?
The forecast for the Friday morning past at Huguenot Memorial Park was for partly cloudy with a southwest breeze. Partly cloudy in Florida usually means full sun ten minutes are sunrise and that was the case on the 27th. The good news is that the breeze at the beach was from the southeast so flight photography was there for the taking. And there were many hundred Royal Tern chicks on beach behind the new ropes. I actually love the ropes as you do not have to deal with human footprints. The chicks were quite skittish early on but as the sun rose, they became more copasetic. The afternoon forecast was for totally cloudy with a southwest with scattered thunderstorms. Not bad. The reality was a 20-knot wind from the southeast and bright sun till 7:30pm 🙁 So we got a whole lotta nuthin’ until right before they kicked us out of the park.
I was joined by part of the last Galapagos crew — Vasili Chernishoff (here from LA for all ten days) and David and Michelle Pugsley (here for three days from Plant City, FL. Vasili was up to his usual self creating 15,476 images with his Canon EOS R1.
Today is Saturday 28 July 2025. We will be back at the beach at 6:00am sharp again when the gates open in hopes of a mega-sunrise. The forecast is for mostly sunny and SW at 3-4 mph. We are of course, hoping for SE. Whatever you opt to do, I hope that you too choose to have a wonderful and productive day and that you have fun too. Do remember that happiness is a choice — Byron Katie, The Work.Com.
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Your Call?
Which of Vasili’s four images is best? Why?
In the Last Blog Post
In the last blog post I had four favorites: William Wang’s cell phone shot of me heading into the gloaming; the single tern chick with its foot raised for the low perspective and the cuteness factor; the ethereal foggy back shot of the tern; and the squabbling terns for the action and two decent flight poses.
Gear Questions and Advice
Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of photographers whom I see in the field and on BPN, are — out of ignorance — using the wrong gear, especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads. And the same is true in spades when ordering new camera bodies or lenses. My advice will often save you some serious money and may help you avoid making a seriously bad choice. Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. If you are desperate, you can try me on my cell at 863-221-2372. Please leave a message and shoot me a text if I do not pick up.
Don’t Just Shoot: Learn
If you are interested in changing your life and becoming a better photographer by joining me on an Extended IPT at Sebastian Inlet for Ospreys and more (SEPT 25 to NOV 24, 2025) in San Diego for Pacific-race Brown Pelicans and more (JAN 6 to FEB 2, 2026), for Roseate Spoonbills at Stick Marsh mid-March 2026, please e-mail for dates, rates, terms, and additional information. Or shoot me a text to 863-221-2372. All offerings include options for shared AirBnB lodging. Ground transportation during your stay is a possibility.
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This image was created on 27 June on the first morning of the Huguenot Memorial Park/Jacksonville Royal Terns and Chicks and More Extended IPT by many multiple IPT veteran Vasili Chernishof. Seated on dry sand he used the handheld Canon RF 600mm f/4 L IS USM Lens with the Canon Extender RF 2x and the remarkable Canon EOS R1 Mirrorless Camera. ISO 1000: 1/2500 sec at f/8 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 7::16:48am on a sunny morning. Image #1: Royal Tern chick flapping wings
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Vasili, the 600, the 2X, and the Canon EOS R1. Handheld!
For most of our wonderful first morning, Vasili handheld at 1200mm. At times, he lamented that the chicks were too big in the frame. Being able to zoom in and out with the 400-800, I actually felt sorry for him at times. After seeing so many of his very excellent images from the morning, I realized that the last thing he needed was my sympathy. As in San Diego, I was mega-impressed with the autofocus capabilities of the Canon R1.
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This image was also created on 27 June on the first morning of the Huguenot Memorial Park/Jacksonville Royal Terns and Chicks and More Extended IPT by many multiple IPT veteran Vasili Chernishof. Seated on dry sand he used the handheld Canon RF 600mm f/4 L IS USM Lens with the Canon Extender RF 2x and the remarkable Canon EOS R1 Mirrorless Camera. ISO 1000: 1/2500 sec at f/8 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 7:18:01am on a sunny morning. Image #2: Royal Tern chick downing jumbo shrimp
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Amazing AF Performance
How any mirrorless camera grabbed focus on the chick’s eye in the exceedingly difficult situation will always be a mystery to me. Kudos to Canon and to Vasili on this image.
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This image was also created on 27 June on the first morning of the Huguenot Memorial Park/Jacksonville Royal Terns and Chicks and More Extended IPT by many multiple IPT veteran Vasili Chernishof. Seated on dry sand he used the handheld Canon RF 600mm f/4 L IS USM Lens with the Canon Extender RF 2x and the remarkable Canon EOS R1 Mirrorless Camera. ISO 800: 1/2500 sec at f/8 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 7:34:59am on a sunny morning. Image #3: Royal Tern chick swallowing prey item
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What Prey Item?
What prey item did this chick just swallow?
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This image was created on 23 January 2025 on a San Diego In-the-Field session by multiple IPT veteran Vasili Chernishof. Kneeling on damp sand, he used the hand held Canon RF 100-300mm f/2.8 L IS USM lens with the Canon Extender RF 1.4x (at 420mm) and the remarkable Canon EOS R1 Mirrorless Camera. ISO 400: 1/4000 sec at f/4 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 8:28:30am on a sunny morning. Image #4: Royal Tern in flight with baitfish for chick
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Taking a Flight Walk
After sitting for two hours photographing Royal Tern chicks of varying sizes and coloration, Vasili and I grabbed our favorite flight lenses, the 100-300 f/2.8 for him, and the Sony 300mm f/2.8 GM for me. Each of use added the matching 1.4X TC. Vasili wanted to make an image with some of the dunes’ greenery in the frame and he did that beautifully with Image #4.
Typos
With all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors.
I loved #1, the royal tern chick, because of the dreamy, almost angelic look on it’s face and the raised wings. And, unlike Cliff, I actually like the white object behind the chick because it emphasizes the bird’s beautiful head. My second choice is #2 of the chick eating that enormous shrimp (no wonder they grow so fast!).
I’m partial to #1, but #2 is close.
Thanks J Marr.
artie
All excellent, but my favorite is #2–amazing shrimp, and the OOF adult protecting/concealing the chick adds a lot, as does even the shadow. Pose in #1 is wonderful, though the OOF white object behind the chick’s head distracts a bit. #3 is also special, though I’d remove the unknown filament. Guess I’ll keep my Canon gear after all! 😉
Thanks, Cliff. I did lighten the shadow considerably. Agree on the OOF white object behind the chick’s head being distracting. It is a colony pole. I tried to eliminate it but with the fuzzy feather merge, could not do so satisfactorily. Once you learn what the filament is you might would decide to keep it 🙂
with love, artie
#1 and 2 are just awesome photos with the wing flapping and the chick under the adult wing.
Thanks, Elinor. Those seem to be the two favorites.
with love, artie