Summary
Pat Fishburne drove up from Fort Myers, FL on Friday afternoon. She had not been doing a lot of photography recently and wanted me to get her acquainted with her new 100-400 f/4.5 GM lens and reacquainted with her Sony a-1 ii. We spent 45 minutes that evening doing just that and had a great morning session on Saturday. These were Pat’s major take-aways from her first field session:
1- The very first step in the bird photograph process is to set an ideal shutter speed for the task at hand.
2- Next, set the aperture, almost always wide open. If you have just removed a teleconverter it is imperative that you make sure that you are at the widest aperture.
3- Determine the ISO that will give you a perfect or near-perfect exposure by adjusting the ISO. That is of course easiest for those using Sony Zebra technology.
If the above is news to you, you will want to click here and get studying.
After a pool deck dinner on Saturday evening, we spent an additional hour reviewing the camera and lens info and looking at images from our morning session. While reviewing Pat’s photos she said, “Thank God you convinced me to switch from Canon to Sony.”
Pat is planning on selling here Sony 300mm f/2.8 GM and her a-9 iii on the Used Gear Page. For early bird info, please get in touch with me via e-mail.
What’s Up?
Today is Sunday 26 July. I am rushing to get this published so that I can get in my walk in the dark before picking Pat up at 6:45am. We will be headed down to the lake to learn and practice. Whatever you opt to do, we hope that you too choose to have fun and enjoy life. Please remember that happiness is a choice Byron Katie – The Work.Com
If an item — a Delkin flash card or reader, a Levered-clamp FlexShooter Pro, or a Wimberley lens plate or low foot — for example, that is available from B&H and/or Bedfords, is also available in the BAA Online Store, it would be great, and greatly appreciated, if you would opt to purchase from us. We will match or beat any price. Please remember also to use my B&H affiliate links or to earn 3% cash back at Bedford by using the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout for your major gear purchases. Doing either often earns you free guides and/or discounts. And always earns my great appreciation.
Gear Questions and Advice
Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of photographers whom I see in the field and on BirdPhotographer’s.Net, 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.
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This image was created on 25 July 2026 by Pat Fishburne down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Working from behind the drivers seat of my SUV she used the BLUBB-supported Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter (at effective 840mm) and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a-1 II Mirrorless Camera (in APS-C crop mode). The exposure was determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear wheel. ISO 1600: 1/2500 second at f/6.3 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 7:26:40am on a sunny morning. Wide/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy the larger high-res version. Image #1: Great Egret preening underwing on Bob’s Eastman’s V-Perch. |
Pat Beat Me to the Punch
As I was positioning my X5 the egret was just finishing an elegant wing stretch. Pat had her lens on the BLUBB as I slowed to a stop and created the single best image of the morning.
We spent an additional half hour with this bird creating a variety of both horizontal and vertical images. We work in both full frame and APS-C crop modes. We each had lots of nice keepers. I would, however, have traded all of mine for Pat’s Image #1 above.
It just “shows to go you” that my long-held belief is 100% true: beginning and intermediate shooters with their Sony cameras set up properly and modicum levels of study and instruction can often create an image that is as good or better than an image made by a pro in the very same situation.
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This image was created on 25 July 2026 by Pat Fishburne down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Working from behind the drivers seat of my SUV she used the BLUBB-supported Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 2x Teleconverter (at 1200mm effective) and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a-1 II Mirrorless Camera (in APS-C crop mode). The exposure was determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear wheel. ISO 1600: 1/1600 second at f/9 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 8:03:05am on sunny morning. Wide/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy the larger high-res version. Image #2: Red-shouldered Hawk on perch |
Pat’s New Handhold-able 1200mm Lens
400 X 2 =800 X 1.5 with APS-C crop mode + 1200mm. All in a small, lightweight, amazingly versatile package. Remember to use one of my affiliate links as the next BAA Lens Guide is coming soon.
As this bird was perched high in the dead pine at the south end of Banyon Drive, I moved my vehicle farther away from the subject to reduce the angle of inclination to the subject.
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This image was created on 25 July 2026 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Working from the drivers seat of my SUV I used the BLUBB-supported Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 2x Teleconverter (at effective 1800mm!) and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a-1 II Mirrorless Camera (in APS-C crop mode). ISO 1250. The exposure was determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear wheel: 1/2000 second at f/8 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 8:28:19 am on sunny morning. Upper center Tracking: Zone/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy the larger high-res version. Image #3: Little Blue Heron — one-year old calling on Bob Eastman’s Pine Perch |
I Could Not Resist Going for the Big Gun
While Pat was photographing this bird at 1200mm — she got some very nice images, I grabbed my 600mm f/4 and went with the 2X, the a-1 ii, and APS-C crop mode to get to effective 1800mm. This bird also put on a nice show for us.
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This image was created on 25 July 2026 by yours truly down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Standing at full height on the beach at South-of-the-Pier Bay, I used the handheld Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter (at effective 840mm) and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a-1 II Mirrorless Camera (in APS-C crop mode). The exposure was determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear wheel. ISO 1250: 1/3200 second at f/6.3 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 8:49:52am on a sunny morning. Upper center Tracking: Zone/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy the larger high-res version. Image #4: Black-bellied Whistling Duck finishing a sip |
Practice, Practice, Practice!
I spoke to Alvin “Red” Stevens by phone on the way to town on Saturday afternoon. He had e-mailed about his frustration mostly with his progress in Photoshop. I asked him about dental school. He told me that he studied dentistry of four years. In his first year, he studied 5 days a week, ten or eleven months a year. For the next three years it was 5 1/2 days a week plus weekends in the lab. Having begun bird photography only a year ago and since done three trips with me, he got my point very quickly.
Pat really wanted to get some good images of the whistling ducks. As we approached a pair on foot, I called out the shutter speed and ISO for her. She was so excited that she fumbled with the controls for several minutes and wound up not making a single image. What’s the answer? Practice, Practice, Practice! I am hoping to get her another good chance this morning.
Topaz Gigapixel Note
I am now using Topaz Gigapixel to upscale all of my APS-C crop mode image files. More soon.
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 :).
My Bad,
Thanks all. I was in a rush to get down to the lake and get Pat some nice whistling ducks. I did 🙂
artie
ps: fixed now!
Great images. In addition to agreeing with Steve’s analysis of image #4, I note that there’s o photographer credit, although it seems from the description that it’s Artie’s fine image.
Image #4 seems to be of a little blue heron wearing a pelican costume. (Also, the pine perch is disguised as an ocean.)
Thank you Bob! Yesterday was good, but today was even better. Great shots of whistling ducks, sand hill cranes, immature caracara, wild turkeys and a black vulture preening on a good looking perch. If this is what Art describes as “the summer doldrums,” I can’t imagine when it’s like in the winter.
Enjoyed seeing Pat’s beautiful images and learning about the new lens.
I’m pretty sure image #4 isn’t a Little Blue Heron and the ocean isn’t Bob’s pine perch even though Bob is amazing.
Sandra you’re the Amazing one! I know the perches I put up attract lots of birds and how cool is that to have a Brown Pelican flying by……an OOPS by Artie.
Pat I totally love the Great Egret and the Red Shouldered Hawk is pretty darn sweet as well however #1 is much Gooder in my opinion.
Always with love b