Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Stuff

I drove over to Fort DeSoto on Friday afternoon and met up with two good friends, many multiple IPT veteran John Dupps and multiple IPT veteran Lee Sommie. I was glad to see that though the wind was from the east southeast it was not very strong. We did great on my favorite afternoon beach with the usual cast of shorebirds, Willet, Black-bellied, Semipalmated, and Wilson’s Plovers, Sanderling, Ruddy Turnstone, and Least Sandpiper. We wiggled over to my new favorite DeSoto location and had great fun with the Snowy Egrets photographing at first with the sun behind us and then, at K7500, shooting into the sun and the blasting highlights.

Dinner at Goodtimes on Tiera Verde as excellent as usual. Conditions for Saturday morning are looking perfect 🙂

The Streak

Today makes ninety-three days in a row with a new educational blog post! This one took about an hour to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not …), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of 480 … Good health and good internet connections willing.

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

This image was created at Fort DeSoto with Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 2X III, and my favorite pelican photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1 stop: 1/640 sec. at f/9 in Manual mode. AWB. Early morning light. Though my big lens was not mounted on the Induro GIT304L Grand Series 3 Stealth Carbon Fiber Tripod and the Mongoose M3.6, both were involved in the creation of the image. See below for details. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -5. Upper large Zone/AI Servo/Shutter Button AF was active at the moment of exposure and performed to perfection. See the DPP 4 screen capture below to learn the location of the activated AF points. Brown Pelican juvenile, low perspective

How Low Can You Get?

The young pelican above was perched on a rock that protruded just above the water at high tide. I noted the bird even before the sun came over the dunes behind us. I knew from the get-go that the best images would be there for the taking if I got flat down on the ground. But the sand was wet, the beach sloped downhill towards the Gulf, and I was feeling a bit lazy and was enjoying being dry … I tried sitting behind my lowered tripod; the horizon cut through the top of the bird’s head. So I bit the bullet by splaying the legs of my Induro GIT304L Grand Series 3 Stealth Carbon Fiber Tripod — they do great around saltwater and sand — and got down flat on the beach. Still no good as now the horizon cut the bird neatly in half.

So, even though I was working at 1000mm, I unclamped the lens from the Mongoose and rotated the whole tripod so that one of the legs pointed squarely my left. Then I rested the barrel of the lens on that single splayed tripod leg; the bottom of the lens barrel was about an inch above the sand. I was effectively hand holding with a bit of support.

I faced several problems. My rig was so low that it was very difficult to get my eye to the viewfinder while working vertically. But it was imperative that I do just that so I could get a good look at the in-viewfinder electronic level. When you are lying on the ground your head is naturally skewed while looking through the viewfinder so the in-viewfinder level is a must. As I strained to get my eye to the viewfinder I felt at times as if my left eyeball was gonna pop right out of its socket. And I received the gift of an instant headache every time that I got to make a few frames. I could not take the pain for long so I quit as soon as I felt that I had made a few good ones.

I had thought of using Live View but concluded that without the lens securely mounted on the tripod that that would be a losing effort.

Was it worth it for me? Yes, I absolutely love going super low even when it involves great effort and some pain.

Note that the FocusTune micro-adjustment of -5 fits into the fairly significant category.

A DPP 4 Screen Capture for today’s featured image

A DPP 4 Screen Capture for today’s featured image

Upper Large Zone AF Rocks Verticals!

Check out the three AF points that were activated and note the perfect job done by Upper Large Zone AF. If you own a camera that offers Manual Selection Large Zone AF and are not using it for verticals, you are making your life more difficult than it needs to be. Upper Large Zone offers almost unlimited compositional freedom.

The RAW Conversion

After bringing the image into DPP 4, I entered my 5D Mark IV/ISO 400 basic recipe and then checked the RGB values for the WHITEs for this early morning light image. Since the RGB values noted lots of RED I moved the Color fine tune point toward BLUE. This lined up the R, G, and B histograms quite a bit but still left the image looking like rich early morning light. With less RED than I had started with the RGB values read 244, 234, 217. Note as pointed out in the Understanding the Color of Light/Part II blog post here, it is not necessary to work towards images with a perfect neutral white balances (unless that is what you want). For this image, the warm light was a big plus for me. As was the low perspective 🙂 (Next time I might dig a big hole so that I can get even lower …) Adjusting the Color fine tune dot was the only thing that I did in DPP 4 (other than entering my basic recipe). So then I hit Command + D to convert the CR2 file to a TIF.

The Image Optimization

The image optimization in Photoshop was about as simple as the RAW conversion had been. I used the 2X3 crop preset and cropped a bit from above and from the left to tighten up the composition. Then I selected the bird using the Quick Selection Tool (my keyboard shortcut W), placed the selection on its own layer, and applied my NIK Color Efex Pro 30-30 recipe mainly to bring up some of the detail in the bird’s white breast. Then I saved the master TIF file, cropped the image to 900 pixels high, sharpened it with Unsharp Mask at 80/.3/0 and save the JPEG, making sure to hit “D” for Don’t Save when asked if I wanted to save the changes made to _W5A7642. (If you hit save, you replace your master TIF file with a tiny JPEG …)

The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) will teach you an efficient Mac/Photo Mechanic/Photoshop workflow that will make it easy for you to make your images better in Photoshop (rather than worse). That true whether you convert your images in DPP 4 or ACR. See the blog post here to learn lots more and to read a free excerpt. You can order your copy from the BAA Online Store here, by sending a Paypal for $40 here, or by calling Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-692-0906 with your credit card in hand.

The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II)

Everything mentioned above is covered in detail in the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. Learn more and check out the free excerpt in the blog post here. The new e-Guide reflects my Macbook Pro/Photo Mechanic/DPP 4/Photoshop workflow. Do note that you will find the RGB Curves Adjustment Color Balancing tutorial only in the new e-guide. Note: folks working on a PC and/or those who do not want to miss anything Photoshop may wish to purchase the original Digital Basics along with DB II while saving $15 by clicking here to buy the DB Bundle.

The two most recent and many of the older MP4 Photoshop Tutorial videos releases go hand and hand with the information in DB II):

• The Wingtip Repairs MP4 Video here.
• The MP4 Crow Cleanup Video here.

Folks who learn well by following along rather than by reading can check out the complete collection of MP 4 Photoshop Tutorial Videos by clicking here.

You can learn how and why I and other discerning Canon shooters convert nearly all of their Canon digital RAW files in DPP 4 using Canon Digital Photo Professional in the DPP 4 RAW conversion Guide here. And you can learn advanced Quick Masking and advanced Layer Masking techniques in APTATS I & II. You can save $15 by purchasing the pair. Folks can learn sophisticated sharpening and (NeatImage) Noise Reduction techniques in the The Professional Post Processing Guide by Arash Hazeghi and yours truly.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, 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 please remember that I am 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, and for everything else in the new store, 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 those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

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.

Facebook

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

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 :).

Stuff

Wednesday was one of those Roseanne Roseannadanna “It’s always something” days. It began when I could not turn off the pool’s underwater lights. I had turned them on for my very late swim on Tuesday. Then several electrical outlets in my office (in the new rooms in the back of the house) went dead. We tried all the circuit breakers in the garage with no luck. Then, just as I was about to dial Fletcher Electric Jim somehow remembered that the electrical panel for the addition were under a large canvas print of a Sandhill Crane with two chicks on the nest. It was the breaker.

Then when I went to work on this partially prepared blog I learned that the server that hosts both my blog and BPM was down. I tried getting in touch with Peter Kes for hours but he had gone to bed early (in Switzerland).

Things are looking better for Thursday as when I awoke both the BAA blog and BPN were back up and running.

I did get a fair amount of work done on the 5D Mark IV User’s Guide and will do more on it today. Still, the woods are lovely, dark and deep.
but I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep. Robert Frost. BTW, it is a chilly 53 degrees here at Indian Lake Estates, FL this morning.

The Streak

Today makes ninety-one days in a row with a new educational blog post! This one took about 90 minutes to prepare over two days. With all of my upcoming free time (or not …), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of 480 … Good health and good internet connections willing.

2017 in San Diego was a very good year ….

2018 San Diego 3 1/2-DAY BIRDS AS ART IPT #2: Sunday, JAN 28 thru and including a morning session on Wednesday, JAN 31, 2018: 3 1/2 days: $1699. Limit: 8: Openings: 6

Meet and Greet at 6:30pm on the evening before the IPT begins; Saturday, Jan 27, 2018.

Click here for details.

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

This image was created on Sunday morning, October 22 with the Induro GIT304L Grand Series 3 Stealth Carbon Fiber Tripod/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens and my favorite bird photography camera, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2 1/3 stops of the light grey sky: 1/1600 sec. at f/4 in Manual mode. AWB. The center AF point/AI Servo/Manual selection/Shutter Button AF as originally framed (see below) was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was placed squarely on the leading edge of the base of the bird’s right wing and thus was slightly beyond the plane of the bird’s eye. None-the-less, the image is acceptably sharp. The selected AF point should have been squarely placed on the bird’s face or upper breast (at worst). Chalk it up to the ravages of age 🙂 FocusTune/LensAlign Micro Adjustment: +2. Brown Pelican, immature braking to land

Major or Minor Screw-Up by Yours Truly?

I thought that I had had a pretty darned good morning last Sunday at Desoto, but when I went to edit my images in Photo Mechanic, I noted the none of the photos that I made with my 600II appeared to be in sharp focus. In fact, they all looked like garbage. I wondered if my 600II had somehow been damaged. I did notice also that all of the image files were RAW + JPEG. I never set RAW plus JPEG: .CR2+jpg in Photo Mechanic, and R+J in DPP 4. That’s when I realized that the AFA settings for my 600 II had disappeared from my #1 5D IV body. That probably courtesy of Canon repairs.

After getting a perfect (but mostly insignificant) +2 with the 600 alone I realized that the lens was sharp and performing perfectly. Next I viewed the images enlarged in DPP 4 and they looked fine and sharp … So, anyhooo, I went back to Photo Mechanic and tried viewing the images smaller by changing the zoom from 1 to 2. I do not quite understand how or why that worked, but presented smaller, the images looked fine and I was able to judge the sharpness as I usually do. If I zoomed in on the image in PM, it was back to garbage time. Small RAW produces junk files as compared to the superb image quality of a sharp 5D IV large RAW file …

As the image above looks great as presented, I consider the Small RAW debacle a minor screw-up at worse. Scroll down to see more on this topic in the What do you do with your images ??? item below.

Notice

Notice with the soft light in the white sky image above that underwing detail of the fully and perfectly outspread wings of the braking pelican is perfectly and evenly lit. On sunny days, 99% of similar images will show at least some unpleasing shadows on the underwings. That is one reason that I love soft light for flight.

This is a DPP 4 Screen Capture showing the full frame original and the selected AF point.

A DPP 4 Show Focus Point Screen Capture

In the DPP 4 Show Focus Point screen capture for today’s featured image we can see that because of declining strength, hand-eye coordination, and fine motor skills, I failed to get the selected AF point on the “bird’s face, neck, or upper breast” (as I always advise). 🙂 If I had nailed this bird with the AF point right between its eyeballs the pelican would have been perfectly framed and I would have eliminated most if not all of the pelican heads at the bottom. That’s why God invented Photoshop. After converting the Small RAW file in DPP 4 I moved the bird in the frame using techniques from APTATS I and then eliminated the extraneous heads using the Patch Tool, Content Aware Fill, and the Clone Stamp Tool. Lastly I sharpened the bird’s face with a Contrast Mask.

What do you do with your images ???

In nature photography today, the income derived from leasing one-time (and other) rights to publish images in books, calendars, and on the web has declined more than 90% as compared to what it was 15 years ago. It has gotten to the point that the potential value of having a large, sharp, high quality image file has dropped to pennies. Over the past decade, the income produced by my favorite two hundred images is negligible at best. At least for BIRDS AS ART, the best images that I produce are used almost exclusively here on the blog where their direct value is pretty much zero. But their indirect value is as advertising. If I were not consistently producing good numbers of excellent images on a weekly basis then fewer folks would be attracted to the blog; my Instructional Photo-Tours would not be nearly as successful as they are (despite the fact that everyone who owns a camera is now running photo tours); the Used Gear page would not be the huge success that it is; the sale of merchandise in the BIRDS AS ART Online Store would be a fraction of what it is today — thanks so much for your patronage there; and the sale of educational books, PDFs, and videos would drop precipitously.

My point is that a good 1200 pixel wide JPEG is far more valuable to me than a 70mb perfectly optimized TIF file. So aside from being what is, the Small RAW file episode did not bother me one bit. In fact, doing The Work on “I shouldn’t have screwed up” would lead to these turnarounds: “I should have screwed up.” How is that more true than the original stressful thought? Because I did screw up. That is the reality. In addition, if I had not “screwed up” you would never have been reading this Small RAW blog post 🙂 Peace of mind is a wonderful thing.

Learn about The Work of Byron Katie here.

So what do you do with your images? Do you really need super-sharp thirty to fifty megabyte RAW files? What is the end product of your photographic efforts? Please feel free to share what you do with your images by leaving a comment below. And do feel free to leave a link to an online gallery of your best work.

with love, artie

The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) will teach you an efficient Mac/Photo Mechanic/Photoshop workflow that will make it easy for you to make your images better in Photoshop (rather than worse). That true whether you convert your images in DPP 4 or ACR. See the blog post here to learn lots more and to read a free excerpt. You can order your copy from the BAA Online Store here, by sending a Paypal for $40 here, or by calling Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-692-0906 with your credit card in hand.

The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II)

Everything mentioned above is covered in detail in the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. Learn more and check out the free excerpt in the blog post here. The new e-Guide reflects my Macbook Pro/Photo Mechanic/DPP 4/Photoshop workflow. Do note that you will find the RGB Curves Adjustment Color Balancing tutorial only in the new e-guide. Note: folks working on a PC and/or those who do not want to miss anything Photoshop may wish to purchase the original Digital Basics along with DB II while saving $15 by clicking here to buy the DB Bundle.

The two most recent and many of the older MP4 Photoshop Tutorial videos releases go hand and hand with the information in DB II):

• The Wingtip Repairs MP4 Video here.
• The MP4 Crow Cleanup Video here.

Folks who learn well by following along rather than by reading can check out the complete collection of MP 4 Photoshop Tutorial Videos by clicking here.

You can learn how and why I and other discerning Canon shooters convert nearly all of their Canon digital RAW files in DPP 4 using Canon Digital Photo Professional in the DPP 4 RAW conversion Guide here. And you can learn advanced Quick Masking and advanced Layer Masking techniques in APTATS I & II. You can save $15 by purchasing the pair. Folks can learn sophisticated sharpening and (NeatImage) Noise Reduction techniques in the The Professional Post Processing Guide by Arash Hazeghi and yours truly.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, 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 please remember that I am 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, and for everything else in the new store, 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 those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

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.

Facebook

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

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 :).

Stuff

On Monday I began re-micro-adjusting my 600 II with both my 1.4X III i and my 2X III i teleconverters. I am not sure how but my AFA values disappeared both from my #1 5D Mark IV and from my Excel file 🙂 In addition, I answered lots of e-mails, prepared this blog post, and swam twice totaling one mile.

The LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-Adjusting Tutorial e-Guide

If you missed the announcement of the The LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-Adjusting Tutorial e-Guide, click here.

Below are ome MA/FT e-Guide follow-ups.

Via e-mail from Richard Gollar:

First off I want to say thank you for the great detailed guide you did on Focus Tune. I tried it a year ago when I purchased it and could never get it to work. After going thru you guide and following along carefully it worked perfectly. Before, I didn’t have all the settings in the camera right but after reading your guide and doing it step by step it worked great. To be honest with you Focus Tune should be including this guide away with each sale!

I attached my final adjustment could you look at it and tell me if you think its dialed in close enough. The only thing I really need to get now is the lighting you suggest because outdoors the lighting was variable but it worked with no problem. One important thing I did learn from the guide was that I had been working too close. Now I set everything up, take one shot, load it into Focus Tune, and verify the distance is right before I go through all the steps. FocusTune gave me consistent values every time I ran it. That was great. Before I had been using FoCal and could never get consistent results; they were different each time. Thanks again for the tutorial.I will be recommending LensAlign/FocusTune to my photography friends only if they plan on buying your guide because with out it, I do not think they will be able to figure it out.

Best, Richard

A Note on the MA/FT Lighting

LED Light Panel for Micro-adjusting

I use the Fancierstudio 500 LED light Panel With Dimmer Switch Led Video lighting Led Lite Panel by Fancierstudio VL500 for all of my micro-adjusting. Even when working outdoors. As is stated clearly in the guide, many factors including the quality and strength of the light will affect AFA settings; using this daylight balanced LED light will ensure your getting consistent and accurate results.

The Streak

Today makes eighty-nine days in a row with a new educational blog post! This blog post took less than an hour to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not…), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of exactly four hundred eighty … Good health and good internet connections willing.,

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

Very Recent Fort DeSoto Images From bottom left clockwise back to center: Great Egret, blasting sunrise highlights; Black Skimmer, winter plumage in pre-dawn light; Roseate Spoonbill foraging; Brown Pelican, juvenile landing; hybrid heron X egret; American Oystercatcher feeding; Royal Tern, worn juvenile; Great Blue Heron from below.

Cheap Weekend Fort DeSoto In-the-Field Instruction

Saturday, October 28, 2017: Morning session — 6:45am for 3 1/2 hours: $149. Add lunch, image review, and Photoshop session: $249 (total).

Saturday, October 28, 2017: Afternoon session — 4:00pm for 3 1/2 hours: $99.

Saturday October 28, 2017, both sessions including lunch: $329.

Sunday, October 29, 2017: Morning session — 6:45am for 3 1/2 hours: $149.

Learn to see the great situations, get the right exposure every time (even when photographing into the blasting highlights!), to approach free and wild (and often tame!) birds, and to design pleasing images. Learn the location of my new Fort DeSoto hotspot and my favorite sunset spot. To register call Jim or Jen at 863-692-0906.

Canon lens rentals are available on a limited basis. Cheap but great instruction.

This image was created at Fort DeSoto in the pitch dark of early morning on Saturday, October 27 with the Induro GIT304L Grand Series 3 Stealth Carbon Fiber Tripod/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 100mm), and my favorite pier photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering ??? 2 1/2 seconds at f/22 in Av mode. WB: 5500. I used my still flower technique: Live View (for mirror lock) and 2-second timer. Flexi-Sone Single rear focus AF. I selected a point 1/3 of the way out onto the pier. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: zero (extrapolated). Please click on the image to see the spectacular larger version. Pier at night, Fort DeSoto Park, Pinellas County, FL

Why Stand Around Doing Nothing When It Is Too Dark To Shoot?

Because the park roads were going to be closed from 7am to 9am (9:30am as it turned out) I arrived at DeSoto way early at about 6:30. Rather than stand around doing nothing I decided to experiment. I began by mounting the lens foot with a Wimberley P-10 plate on it. When I am hand holding I remove it to save a bit of weight. Then I grabbed the tripod and went to work. I started by framing too tight so I zoomed out to 100mm and got more of the near-end of the pier. Then it was a matter of experimenting with both the apertures and the White Balance. When I was going through the images in Photo Mechanic I gasped when this one opened up to full frame. From the color to the blurred waves to the amazing starbursts atop each light pole everything was beyond perfect.

Starburst Aperture Basics

Some lenses, in some lighting conditions, may produce starbursts of pinpoint (or larger as here) light sources if you choose an aperture of f/22 or smaller. I would caution you to beware of diffraction at tiny apertures if I knew what it was and had ever seen it … But alas, I have not.

Exposure Question

What exposure compensation do you think that I set to come up with the perfect exposure?

Technique Question

Why were both Live View and the 2-second timer both unnecessary precautions?

The Image Optimization

After converting the RAW file pretty much straight up in DPP 4 the image optimization too was fairly straightforward. I used the Patch Tool, the Clone Stamp Tool, and some Content Aware Fill to eliminate some specular highlights, some unwanted reflections,n and about a half dozen early-arriving fishermen.

To learn how and why I and other discerning Canon shooters convert nearly all of their Canon digital RAW files in DPP 4 using Canon Digital Photo Professional in the DPP 4 RAW conversion Guide, click here. You can learn everything about my workflow and exactly how I optimize my images in The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, 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 please remember that I am 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, and for everything else in the new store, 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 those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

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.

Facebook

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

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 :).

Stuff

Friday afternoon was wind against sun so I went out late and found some excellent backlit and silhouette situations. The east wind persisted on Saturday morning when IPT veteran Winn Krafton joined me in the pre-dawn darkness. After a very nice sunrise we had some good chances with flying pelicans, Common and Sandwich Terns, Snowy Egret, and Ruddy Turnstone. See some of the exciting keepers from those two sessions here.

The Streak

Today makes eighty-seven days in a row with a new educational blog post! This blog post took less than an hour to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not…), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

All four of these images were created on the early morning of Sunday, October 15 well before the sun came onto the birds. I used the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 400mm) and my favorite skimmer photography camera, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. The ISOs ranged from 800 to 1250. All at Evaluative metering +2 stops: 1/320 sec. at f/6.3 (except for the last image at f/7.1) in Tv mode. AWB. ‘s One AF point to the right of the center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter Button AF was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point fell somewhere on the bird face below the eye in each image. Please click on the image to enlarge it. FocusTune/LensAlign Micro Adjustment: -5. Black Skimmer at water’s edge (four ways)

Following Up; My Best Skimmer …

In the Black Skimmer Editing Practice blog post here, I posted two items:

Item #1: Black Skimmer Editing Practice

Click on the composite above to view the images larger. Which is the strongest image? Why? Which is the weakest image? Why? What do you think of the two images with the breaking wave included?

For those not blessed with eagle eyes here are the file numbers from left to right, top row first, then the bottom row.

• _P3A3247 (at 7:50am)
• _P3A3248 (five seconds after 3247)
• _P3A3256 (40 seconds after 3248)
• _P3A3270 (4 1/2 minutes after 3256)

My Favorite Skimmer Image

For the most part I do not like breaking waves in images of single birds along the shore. I will admit that 3247 is stronger than 3256, but I kept those two only for educational purposes. That left me with 3248 and 3270 with the latter image being the clear winner. Why? The bird is larger in the frame and super sharp. Ans I like the bubbles left over from a breaking wave near the bird’s feet. You can see my optimized version below.

Item #2: High Level Exposure Question

Considering that the exposure compensation for each image was +2 stops, why is _P3A3270 considerably brighter than _P3A3256? Please note that it has nothing to do with the fact that the light has increased; remember that I was in an automatic exposure mode, Tv …

The Exposure Answer

This was actually a very basic question and I was surprised that nobody came up with the right answer. For 3270, I had gotten closer to the bird and as a result the bird is larger in the frame. With more dark (feathers) in the frame, the meter opened up. Thus the lighter background. This principle goes all the way back to the crude exposure diagrams in the chapter on Exposure in the original The Art of Bird Photography. A second factor might have been that the light have gotten a bit stronger; that possibly brought the following principle into play: in soft light situations the meter begins to get smarter when the light begins to get brighter …

This image was created on the early morning of Sunday, October 15 with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 371mm) and my favorite pelicans in flight photography camera, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2 stops: 1/320 sec. at f/6.3 in Tv mode. AWB. Center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter Button AF was active at the moment of exposure. As originally framed, the selected AF point fell on the bird’s face just behind and below the eye (as seen in the DPP 4 screen capture below). Please click on the image to enlarge it. FocusTune/LensAlign Micro Adjustment: -4 (extrapolated). Black Skimmer, winter adult on the edge of the surf Be sure to click on the image to see the larger version and the excellent sharpness.

My Favorite Optimized

Both Jake Levin and Greg agreed that 3270 was their favorite. Keith Swinndell liked 3247 best because the wave framed rather than cut the top of the bird’s head as it does in 3256.

The only two things of note during the otherwise straightforward image optimization was the RGB Curves Color Balance adjustment that did more to brighten the image than to correct any color casts and a bit of Gaussian Blur to the near shoreline. (I applied it to the whole image on a layer, added and Inverse (Black or Hide-all) Layer Mask, and then painted the effect in as needed. Learn exactly how I optimize my images in The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail.

The DPP 4 Screen Capture for today’s featured image

The DPP 4 Screen Capture for today’s featured image

Note the perfect placement of the selected AF point. Note the excellent exposure. Note the almost perfect RGB values for the brightest WHITEs: 237, 237, 233. Lastly, note that I moved the Color fine tune dot away from BLUE to reduce the BLUE color cast. Learn how and why I and other discerning Canon shooters convert nearly all of their Canon digital RAW files in DPP 4 using Canon Digital Photo Professional in the DPP 4 RAW conversion Guide here

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, 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 please remember that I am 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, and for everything else in the new store, 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 those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

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.

Facebook

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

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 :).

Stuff

On Friday afternoon I will drive to Brandon to get my almost brand new i-Phone 8+ replaced. I somehow managed to drop it out of my car at 35 mph last week 🙂 I did purchase the Apple Care insurance. Then I continue on to Fort DeSoto for another busman’s holiday, in hopes of running into the mystery heron/egret again.

The Streak

Today makes eighty-six days in a row with a new educational blog post! This blog post took less than an hour to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not…), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

This image was created on the late afternoon of Friday, October 13 with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 112mm) and my favorite bird photography camera, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering -2/3 stop: 1/2,000 sec. at f/6.3 in Av mode. AWB. Center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/Rear Button AF and recompose. FocusTune/LensAlign Micro Adjustment: -2. Great Blue Heron sunrise scenic with god-rays.

Please Note

Please note that by any standard the colors and contrast in the image above are boring!

The First-Ever RAW File/Image Optimization Challenge

I posted the following in the The First-Ever RAW File/Image Optimization Challenge blog post here:

If you would like to take a crack at this image please click here to download the RAW file. Save the image to your hard drive, convert it in the program of your choice, and then optimize it with the program of your choice. save the TIF. Then create a sharpened 900 pixel tall JPEG and shoot it to me via e-mail.
Assuming that I receive at least a few decent images, I will publish at least the best one here on Friday along with my optimized version.

If at least a few folks give it a try, we can play this game again. If not — well, you can figure it out. Those who try will wind up learning a ton. And who knows, they may create an image that is stronger than mine 🙂

The Reaction

About 20 folks responded by sending their version of the posted image. I responded to each by commenting on their version at times, offering suggestions for improvement. Many folks did a decent job but left to image too dark overall (for reasons noted immediately below). The way to deal with these situations is to do a Curves adjustment that includes pinning the light tones (in this case, the sky), and then pulling the rest of the curve up. Thanks to all who participated. Though it involves a lot of work for me, we will be doing this exercise again.

My Critique

The JPEG above represents the RAW file converted straight up in ACR (with no adjustments). The image overall is way too dark because of the underexposure that was needed to hold back the bright sections of the sky … As both the bird and the god rays are a bit too centered, I wish that I had moved two steps to my right so that the bird would have been closer to the lower left corner and the god rays closer to the upper right corner. I created the image at K-7600 to juice up the colors but the underexposure muted those quite a bit. I converted the image in DPP 4 and optimized it in Photoshop. I will share it with you here in a few days.

Great Blue Heron sunrise scenic with god-rays. Conversion and optimization by Nick Clayton.

Middle of the Road …

Nick Clayton’s version was well done — he did a nice job of boosting the colors — but is too middle of the road for me. In part, because he failed to deal with the tonality. Again, the way to deal with these situations is to do a Curves adjustment that includes pinning the light tones (in this case, the sky), and then pulling the rest of the curve up.

Great Blue Heron sunrise scenic with god-rays. Conversion and optimization by Anthony Ardito.

Brighter

Anthony Ardito’s version was a brighter than the boring ACR-converted version that I posted. Please note that I cast no aspersions at ACR — had I wanted to, I could have just as easily boosted the colors and dealt with the tonality in ACR as I did in DPP 4.

Great Blue Heron sunrise scenic with god-rays. Conversion and optimization by Jerry Turner.

Getting Creative

Jerry Turner opted to soften up the wavelets by applying a fairly strong layer of Surface Blur and then reducing the opacity until a bit of wave detail showed. HIs first version had an unnatural glow around the brighter tones in the water; he eliminated that on his second try. I just noticed that he somehow introduced what looks like a large dust spot in the sky above the trees on the right. I am not a big fan of the CYAN water …

Great Blue Heron sunrise scenic with god-rays. Conversion and optimization by Michael Eckstein.

More Creativity

Michael Eckstein used Topaz Impressions to come up with his version. I love the effect but he could have done a lot more with the color and contrast.

Great Blue Heron sunrise scenic with god-rays. Conversion and optimization by Pat Dunnuck.

Over the Top?

Pat Dunnuck used Topaz Studio with a radiance adjustment to come up with her wild version. She sent many versions. Some were too light without much contrast. Though her last version, the one presented here, is way over the top, I do like her creativity. I am pretty sure that there is a less out of the box version that might be more pleasing while still being dramatic.

Great Blue Heron sunrise scenic with god-rays. Conversion and optimization by Arthur Morris.

artie’s version

Above is my version, converted in DPP 4 and optimized in Photoshop. I will detail the image optimization in a future blog post. How did I move the god rays to the right hand corner of the image?

Comments Welcome

Please feel free to comment on any of all of the images above. What did you like and why? Which is your favorite. Do you have any suggestions for improvement for any of the photos?

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, 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 please remember that I am 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, and for everything else in the new store, 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 those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

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.

Facebook

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

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 :).

Stuff

With lots of phone and e-mail help from Michael Tapes over the past few days I finally put the finishing touches on the LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-Adjusting Tutorial e-Guide late on Wednesday. Jim got it into the BIRDS AS ART Online Store after dinner. Learn more below.

I was glad to learn that Dave Williams of Santa Barbara, CA signed up for his first IPT: San Diego IPT #1. That trip is now sold out. There is, however, still lots of room on San Diego #2. If you are considering this trip and might be interested in adding on a free day of instruction before the IPT begins please shoot me an e-mail.

I got back in the pool twice on Wednesday: 48 lengths and 40 lengths made an even mile, with lots of exercise during the day as well. It all felt good.

The Streak

Today makes eighty-four days in a row with a new educational blog post! This blog post took more than two hours to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not …), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.

2017 in San Diego was a very good year ….

2018 San Diego 3 1/2-DAY BIRDS AS ART IPT #2: Sunday, JAN 28 thru and including a morning session on Wednesday, JAN 31, 2018: 3 1/2 days: $1699. Limit: 8: Openings: 7

Meet and Greet at 6:30pm on the evening before the IPT begins; Saturday, Jan 27, 2018.

Click here for details.

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

White-breasted Plover chick, Namibia IPT

The Poster Child for the the LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-Adjusting Tutorial e-Guide

I consider the White-fronted Plover chick image above to be the poster child for micro-adjusting; it shows just what can happen when you opt to work with gear that has not been micro-adjusted. I made it to Namibia at great expense both financially and time-wise. This baby plover presented the best avian opportunity of the trip. It was late afternoon and the light was gorgeous. And I got relatively close to this tiny gem of a subject. When I viewed the image on my laptop I quickly realized that sharp focus was on the bird’s legs, not on the eye where I had carefully focused.

In error, I used my back-up 5DS R body with a 2X III TC and the 600 II lens. This combination had not been micro-adjusted. Though the image above might look OK as a small JPEG, it is unusable, i.e., worthless junk: the chick’s eyes are nowhere near sharp. Except as great advertising for this guide. When we got back to the hotel I did a quickie micro-adjustment on this set-up in the hallway of the hotel (near a large window) and obviously without my lighting set-up. The AFA turned out to be -19 … Many times when micro-adjusting you wind up at zero or +1 or -2 and think, “No big deal there.” And you would be correct; tiny AFA values like those will not make a great difference in the final image. But when you wind up at -7 or +11 as frequently happens, the difference in the sharpness of your images can be huge. Not to mention minus 19 … With properly micro-adjusted big lenses folks can begin to routinely create sharp images, even when working with working with 2X teleconverters.

Ordering Info

To purchase the LensAlign/FocusTune package ($124.90) please click here.

Click here to order your copy of the LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-Adjusting Tutorial e-Guide: $50.

The LensAlign/FocusTune Back-story by Michael Tapes (October 2017)

LensAlign was developed as a reliable and repeatable way to test and analyze problems in DSLR autofocus systems, among the bodies, firmware and lenses.

The original LensAlign hardware target was introduced in 2007. It provided a tool that helped photographers to assess the degree of front or back focus with various combinations of their camera bodies and lenses, a problem that was becoming more prevalent. Before then, determining AF accuracy and reliability was hit or miss. The forums were bursting with allegations claiming that photographers did not know how to use their gear, and that front, or back, focus issues were a matter of illusion.
However, with the increases in sensor resolution, and the growing number of photographers shooting DSLR cameras, the complexity and prevalence of AF inaccuracy issues grew.

At the time I invented LensAlign, there was no camera with a user-based provision to adjust for such issues. We needed a reliable tool that could test for, and measure the degree of the AF issues, along with the ability to document them in a repeatable fashion so that the camera makers could acknowledge the problems and fix them. Equally important, when the gear came back from the repair station, the photographers needed a method to verify the repair. In truth, fixes in most cases were not done, or they were inadequate.

Sometime between the LensAlign concept, and the subsequent product release more than a year later, Canon did, in fact, introduce what they called AF Micro-adjustment in the EOS 1D Mark III. I had been in consultation with Canon during my development of LensAlign, but I had no idea if my work influenced the development of this feature or not. However, I was clearly glad they did, since photographers could now “fix” the problem on their own. Of course, this would be a catalyst for LensAlign sales. Although Nikon made no mention of such a feature in their D3 product release, they quickly copied the Canon feature (precisely) and added it to the Nikon D3 calling it AF Fine-Tune. Since that time virtually every mid/high end DSLR camera from all manufacturers have included a provision for AF adjustment, requiring a LensAlign or lesser method to do the actual testing and analysis.

The first LensAlign hardware system (called the Pro Version) sold for $179. It was extremely labor intensive to build and required individual laser calibration (for each unit). I soon discovered that this business model could not be sustained. The price was too high, and the time-and-labor made it impractical to build.

Enter LensAlign MkII, a about 2 years later; it overcame many obstacles:

• It was easier to manufacture (although it required expensive solid steel blanking dies.)
• It could be shipped in a Priority Mail envelope, reducing shipping costs.
• It could be disassembled for travel.
• It was more accurate than the original, and no longer required individual calibration.
• It provided a sensible, and profitable, business model for me and a lower retail price for the end user (then $79.95 and now $84.95)]

With the MkII design established, we concentrated on a companion software solution to couple it with. FocusTune Calibration Software would raise the bar by facilitating the precision (and objectivity) of computer analysis of the test photos, thus eliminating the subjective nature of human analysis. Further, the new software made the AF adjustment task considerably easier and quicker. FocusTune software was designed so that it could be used in conjunction (together with) with any LensAlign hardware (system) or even without LensAlign with a wall mounted target.

Moreover, the FocusTune application actually promoted our development effort that led to additional improvements in both the LensAlign hardware and the FocusTune software! In order for these developments to stretch the envelope of possibilities, we optimized the LensAlign MkII’s Target and Ruler in a series of revisions culminating in the current Generation 4.

The downside was that in order to gain the greatly increased accuracy and speed that the new FocusTune made possible, its utilization necessarily was tied to LensAlign MkII with its new Target and Ruler. This ended FocusTune’s use as a standalone product or its use with older LensAlign designs (the Pro and Lite)

The good news is that we finally have what we wanted were striving for — a unique and phenomenal Hardware + Software solution that aids, enhances, accelerates and improves the task of analyzing and correcting troublesome AF front / back focusing inaccuracies that plague all DSLR cameras. No other commercial system available today is able to explore these issues and offer AF adjustment setting recommendations based on a precision 3-dimensional target that is crucial for accurate calibration. This is what makes the LensAlign/FocusTune system so powerful.

The LensAlign/Micro-Adjusting Tutorial e-Guide: $50 Don’t need to read the sales pitch? Click here to order your copy.

The LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-Adjusting Tutorial e-Guide: $50

For serious photographers using telephoto lenses including the Canon 100-400 II.

Don’t faint. The LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-Adjusting Tutorial e-Guide is finally finished and available for purchase. Before I begin to (briefly) sing its praises — I have to send huge thanks to my brilliant friend Michael Tapes. For the following:

1- Conceiving of, developing, and marketing first the LensAlign hardware and then doing the same with the amazing FocusTune software.
2- Driving down from Orlando to my home at Indian Lake Estates three times over the years to educate me on the use of LensAlign and then finally, FocusTune.
3- Spending many hours on the phone with me over the past few years answering my micro-adjusting questions. And then doing the same thing all over again for the past few months. And the past few days!
4- Skillfully reviewing the final draft of the manuscript and then graciously spending several more hours on the phone with me ironing out the final details.

Thank you Micheal.

Thanks also to dear friend Patrick Sparkman who helped me a lot along the micro-adjusting trail and provided a careful review of the final text.

Note however that any errors in the text are all on me.

The purpose of this guide is to teach you how to use the LensAlign hardware and the FocusTune software to determine an accurate AFA (autofocus adjustment) value for a given gear combination. It is written for users of current Canon camera bodies; folks who use the older Canon bodies and users of Nikon bodies that offer the ability to fine-tune focus will also benefit tremendously.

What can I say about the guide other than “It’s great!” It was about eight months in development. I spent dozens of hours writing it and many hundreds of hours testing and re-testing all of my lenses, teleconverters, and camera bodies, while at the same time fine-tuning the text. I even did some micro-adjusting on IPTs, some of those with the light setup! Most of the many improvements that I made in my techniques over the years were a result of finally listening to and implementing what Michael Tapes had told me in the first place. I can be stubborn, but then again, Michael and I are very much alike in that regard. The problem is that he is smarter than me.

Apologies to the many who were supposed to receive early drafts of this guide but did not. I only sent one to a very few folks as I was never completely comfortable with the contents and the flow and the clarity of the work. I am now. Very much so. I did get a copy to Bill Hill who wrote, “Thanks a ton. As in the past, I rely on you to interpret what the geeks write. Even though the version of the e-guide that you sent was far from complete, I found it much more helpful than anything that I had read online.”

Michael Tapes had this to say about the new guide: “I especially like the second half of the document where you show all of the examples.” He was referring to the many sample graphs in the guide that are accompanied by my illustrative comments:”Here is what I saw. This is what I thought. Here is what I did. And this is why I did it.”

Over the years many have come to value my simple, easy-to-follow instructions, my conversational style, and the clarity of my writing. Many find micro-adjusting to be complicated, time-consuming, and as I did often (and still do on occasion), frustrating. In the new guide, I have worked very hard to take you by the hand and lead through the process step by step. The guide includes camera and lens set-up lists, precise instructions on setting up, positioning, and aiming the gear, and detailed instructions on the testing, the strategies I developed and used, and interpreting the FocusTune graphs (that many find mystifying). Instructions for micro-adjusting zoom lenses at the T (tight or telephoto) end and the W (wide or zoomed out) setting are of course included. Plus dozens of practical tips to make your micro-adjusting experience a lot less frustrating than mine was 🙂

For years many folks have marveled at my ability to create sharp images with Canon 2X teleconverters and long f/4 super-telephoto lenses. Now the secret for much of that success is out of the bag. There is not a single sharp image in the guide; to see those simply surf the blog for the past two years. You will find hundreds of super-sharp images each accompanied by the AFA (autofocus micro-adjustment) that was in play.

Note that micro-adjusting is not for the faint-of-heart. Only serious photographers interested in creating the sharpest possible RAW files with their telephoto lenses (and teleconverters) should apply …

Nuff said.

Ordering Info

To purchase the LensAlign/FocusTune package ($124.90) please click here.

Click here to order your copy of the LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-Adjusting Tutorial e-Guide: $50.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, 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 please remember that I am 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, and for everything else in the new store, 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 those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

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.

Facebook

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

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 :).

Really Important Stuff, All Unsolicited

Via e-mail from Jim Miller

I can’t stop thinking about how much fun the DeSoto Fall IPT was, and how much I learned. There were so many things that suddenly made perfect sense after I had been confused for so long. Thank you very much for the wonderful trip, and for being a great teacher. As I worked through the raw files last week, I realized what a fantastic lens the 600 IS is. Thanks for the rental! Maybe some day I will be able to afford one. Some images for critique are attached.

By the way, the plant we were looking at along the sidewalk in Gulfport is Blue Porterweed. It is worth a few minutes on the internet to read about it: native of Florida and the Caribbean, used for medicine in The Bahamas, etc. We have it in a large pot in the front yard and it takes a lot of water, but it blooms Spring through Fall. Thank you again, Artie. It was really wonderful to be with you and learn from you.

Via e-mail from Lee Sommie

I want to thank you for making the Fall 2017 Ft. DeSoto IPT such a fun and educational experience for me. I truly did not want the adventure to end. I now look through the viewfinder with an artist’s mindset. And the real bonus was making new friends with fellow students. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and enthusiasm for wildlife photography. I had a great time with you and look forward to more adventures on future IPTs.

Followed by this one

BTW. I downloaded Photo Mechanic and started using it in my workflow. Since I like using Lightroom for my adjustments, I found a way to incorporate Photo Mechanic and Lightroom together. Lightroom was driving me crazy with how slow it is to import and preview photos. I was impressed with how fast you could preview photos and start editing your photos on the DeSoto Fall IPT. Life is too short to wait for applications to import and preview photos and Photo Mechanic solves that problem.

Thanks again for everything Artie. Your knowledge keeps on giving well after the IPT!

Via e-mail from Muhammad Arif

I had a great time at Fort De Soto. Thank you for all the instruction, for your help and pointers; my photography has already improved tremendously and I’ve never made such good bird photos before. I wish I could’ve joined you on Monday and Tuesday morning as well but work got in the way. It was also nice to meet everyone on the IPT; sorry that I missed you Ray. Thanks again for everything and I hope to join you at a future IPT sometime again.

Stuff

I visited the Social Security office in Winter Haven to start collecting on my money. I had been drawing my SS on my late-wife Elaine’s money. Next was a visit with my chiropractor friend Dr. Scott Pancake for an Atlas Orthogonal treatment. Too soon to tell but you will hear from me soon. Scott advised two days of rest, i.e., no swimming, no exercises.

I am still looking for a few more folks for San Diego #2. If you are considering this trip and might be interested in adding on a free day of instruction before the IPT begins please shoot me an e-mail.

Great Response

After downloading the RAW file, lots of folks have been sending me JPEgs of their version of yesterday’s featured image. If you would like to take a crack at it, see yesterday’s blog post here. I will publish my version on Friday.

The Streak

Today makes eighty-two days in a row with a new educational blog post! This blog post took less than an hour to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not …), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.

2017 in San Diego was a very good year ….

2018 San Diego 3 1/2-DAY BIRDS AS ART IPT #2: Sunday, JAN 28 thru and including a morning session on Wednesday, JAN 31, 2018: 3 1/2 days: $1699. Limit: 8: Openings: 7

Meet and Greet at 6:30pm on the evening before the IPT begins; Saturday, Jan 27, 2018.

Click here for details.

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

All four of these images were created on the early morning of Sunday, October 15 well before the sun came onto the birds. I used the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 400mm) and my favorite skimmer photography camera, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. The ISOs ranged from 800 to 1250. All at Evaluative metering +2 stops: 1/320 sec. at f/6.3 (except for the last image at f/7.1) in Tv mode. AWB. One AF point to the right of the center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter Button AF was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point fell somewhere on the bird face below the eye in each image. Please click on the image to enlarge it. FocusTune/LensAlign Micro Adjustment: -5. Black Skimmer at water’s edge (four ways)

Black Skimmer Editing Practice

Click on the composite above to view the images larger. Which is the strongest image? Why? Which is the weakest image? Why? What do you think of the two images with the breaking wave included?

For those not blessed with eagle eyes here are the file numbers from left to right, top row first, then the bottom row.

• _P3A3247 (at 7:50am)
• _P3A3248 (five seconds after 3247)
• _P3A3256 (40 seconds after 3248)
• _P3A3270 (4 1/2 minutes after 3256)

Note: I have a 100% best by far choice; I will share it with you here soon.

High Level Exposure Question

Considering that the exposure compensation for each image was +2 stops, why is _P3A3270 considerably brighter than _P3A3256? Please note that it has nothing to do with the fact that the light has increased; remember that I was in an automatic exposure mode, Tv …

More 100-400 II Versatility

On both Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning I never took the 500 f/4L IS II out of my Sequoia. What fun to walk around with a lightweight lens that is great for flight photography; being able to zoom out on close-flying pelicans and gulls can be a huge plus. Once the sun came over the dunes I added the 1.4X III TC for additional reach. We saw yesterday that the 1-4 can be used at the wide end to create scenic-type images (without having to run back to the car for a shorter lens). It’s focal length range (with or without the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III) is fantastic. And its amazing close focus (down to less than one meter) make this the most versatile lens you will ever own. Lastly, as we saw the other day, you can add a few extension tubes and use the 1-4II to photograph very small flowers.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, 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 please remember that I am 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, and for everything else in the new store, 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 those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

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.

Facebook

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

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 :).

Stuff

It was 8:12am on Saturday morning as I put the finishing touches on this blog post. I am toying with the idea of heading over to Fort DeSoto this afternoon to look for the mystery heron/egret. I would stay over on Saturday night. I will need to swim early today and start driving at about lunch time …

I am still looking for a few more folks for San Diego #2. If you are considering this trip and might be interested in adding on a free day of instruction before the IPT begins please shoot me an e-mail.

The Streak

Today makes eighty days in a row with a new educational blog post! This blog post took less than an hour to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not …), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.

2017 in San Diego was a very good year ….

2018 San Diego 3 1/2-DAY BIRDS AS ART IPT #2: Sunday, JAN 28 thru and including a morning session on Wednesday, JAN 31, 2018: 3 1/2 days: $1699. Limit: 8: Openings: 7

Meet and Greet at 6:30pm on the evening before the IPT begins; Saturday, Jan 27, 2018.

Click here for details.

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

This image was created on the 2017 San Diego IPT with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 360mm) and my favorite bird photography camera, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering probably at zero as famed: 1/2000 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode. AWB. One AF point that was two and one-half rows up from and three columns to the right of the center AF point/AI Servo/Manual selection/Shutter Button AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. See the DPP 4 screen capture below to see the exact placement of the single (selected) AF point. FocusTune/LensAlign Micro Adjustment: 0. Western Gull, adult breeding plumage preening

Helpful Bird Photography Principles …

• 1- When photographing a bird from behind the best head angle will generally be very close to a perfect 90 degrees with the bird’s head square or close to square to the imaging sensor.
• 2- When photographing a bird from behind be sure to focus on or very near the head.
• 3- When working in horizontal format be sure to select your AF point carefully so as to keep the bird out of the center of the frame (unless you can verbalize a very good reason for putting the subject dead center …)
• 4- Learn to work competently in Manual mode so that the amount of black or white in the frame at a given moment will not affect the exposure. That involves making an exposure check image, checking or blinkies, and evaluating the histogram to make sure that you have exposed well to the right (with at least some data halfway into the rightmost histogram box).
• 5- Even when photographing a bird from behind there is no need to use additional depth of field as long as the distance to the subject provides you will enough depth of field to cover the subject (as with today’s featured image).
• 6- Working with backgrounds that are separated from the subject and relatively distant while using wide apertures will yield pleasingly out of focus canvases for your avian images.

From Chapter Seven, Designing the Image (page 108), of the original The Art of Bird Photography (Amphoto, NY: 1998)

If the subject is positioned against an uncluttered background or if there is a cluttered background well behind the subject, telephoto lenses — with their narrow angles of view — and the shallow depth of field that comes with the use of wide apertures, will produce lovely soft, out-of-focus backgrounds. I’ll take still blue water or well lit green foliage every time.

Shooting wide open (at your lens’ widest aperture heightens this effect; with subject size constant, it is the aperture rather than the length of the lens that determines the depth of field. Large apertures such as f/2.8, f/4, and f/5.6, minimize depth of field and reduce background detail. Conversely, small apertures, such as f/16 and f/22, maximize depth of field and increase background detail.

Note: I changed a single word in the second paragraph above to improve the clarity of the writing.

More 100-400 II Versatility

The hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens is deadly on the cliffs of La Jolla with or without the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III. Its focal length range, its relatively light weight, and its amazing close focus (down to less than one meter) make it my most valuable lens when visiting San Diego. In addition, it is quite an excellent flight lens and being able to zoom out on close-flying pelicans and gulls can save the day.

The DPP 4 Screen Capture for today’s featured image

Understanding the Color of Light/Part I

Note the RGB values for the brightest WHITEs: R=240, G = 233, B = 216. Not the high value for RED and the low value for B despite the fact that I moved the Color fine tune dot toward BLUE. Note also that this image was created at 7:39am. On clear mornings not long after sunrise the light is rich in REDs and YELLOWs; much of the BLUE is filtered out as the light travels obliquely a long way through the earth’s atmosphere. The result is what we call “early” or “sweet” light (as opposed to the colder light later on in the day when the sun is much more directly overhead. As a guideline folks often state that the really “sweet” light occurs on clear days when your shadow is three time longer than your height. I am generally fine with twice my height. Note that the lower the sun in the sky the more comfortable I am working a bit off sun angle.

As I like the look of the rich, warm light in this image I was not at all concerned with having the WHITEs completely neutral, say 235, 235, 235. I could have worked toward that end if I wanted to either during the RAW conversion in DPP 4 or during the image optimization in Photoshop. But I am a firm believer in “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

The Lesson

There is no need to work towards having perfectly neutral WHITEs or a perfectly neutral White Balance if you are happy with the colors in an image.

High-Level AF Point Selection Question

Why did I abandon my usual AF Expand for this particular situation and go with Manual selection (i.e., with a single AF point)?

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, 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 please remember that I am 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, and for everything else in the new store, 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 those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

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.

Facebook

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

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 :).

Stuff

I started off Thursday watching the Yankees complete their amazing comeback on Tivo. The plan for Thursday night is to Tivo both the MLB playoff game — the Cubs v.s the Nats, and the NFL Thursday Night game — Philly vs. Carolina, and then watch first one then the other toggling back and forth. I am slightly pulling for the Nationals in the baseball game as they too were down 2 games to nothing and have never won a post-season series. And the Cubs did OK last year. On the NFL channel I will be rooting hard for the Panthers. Again I enjoyed a midday and an early evening swim totaling an even mile, 88 lengths. And lots of exercising and stretching.

With only a single slot open on the San Diego IPT, I added a second San Diego IPT — shorter and less expensive. I was glad to learn that Fort DeSoto Fall IPT participant Lee Sommie was the first to sign up for San Diego #2. See the announcement in the blog post here.

New Listing

Canon EF 400mm f/4 DO IS w/free 1.4X II TC!

Francois Botha is offering a Canon EF 400mm f/4 DO IS (with Canon 1.4 extender in excellent condition) for the BAA record low price (for the lens alone!) of $2098. The sale includes the rear lens cap, the front lens cover, both teleconverter caps, LensCoats for both the lens and the TC, the original product box, and insured ground shipping via UPS to US addresses only. Photos are available via email or DropBox.

Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Francois via e-mail or by phone at 1-859-325-1785 (Eastern time).

I used this lens for several years with great success, especially for birds in flight and while working from various type of water craft. In addition, it would make a great prime super-telephoto lens for folks with a 7D II. Gannets in Love was created with the 400 DO. You can see that one and 13 other killer images that I made with my old 400 DO here. The title of that blog post is “The Canon 400mm f/4 IS DO Lens: Fourteen Images that Prove that the Internet Experts are Idiots.” Francois’ lens is priced to sell. artie

Price Drop!

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM Zoom Lens

Price dropped $100 on October 12, 2017.

Les Greenberg is offering a used Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM zoom lens in mint condition for a very low $1499 (was $1599). The sale includes a Kirkphoto LP-2 lens plate, the tripod collar, the lens case, the rear lens cap, the hood, the front lens cap, the original product box, and insured ground shipping to US addresses only. The lens was purchased new in 2010 and used less than a dozen times. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Les via e-mail or by phone at 1-216-571-3636 or 1-216-292-7510 after 6:00 PM (Eastern time).

The 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II lens is amazingly versatile. I still own one and have made zillions of great images with it. It works well with both the 1.4X III and the 2X III TCs, even with the 7D II! It is easily hand holdable. It is great for tame birds, landscapes, urbex, indoor stuff likes concerts and recitals, and just about anything you want to photograph. A new 70-200 II currently sells for $1,949 so you can save a cool $350 by buying Les’s mint copy asap. artie

ps: the 1.4X II TC is optically identical to the 1.4X III TC. The latter has better weather sealing and offers advance AF communication with the new Canon Series II super-telephoto lenses.

2017 in San Diego was a very good year ….

2018 San Diego 3 1/2-DAY BIRDS AS ART IPT #2: Sunday, JAN 28 thru and including a morning session on Wednesday, JAN 31, 2018: 3 1/2 days: $1699. Limit: 8: Openings: 7

Meet and Greet at 6:30pm on the evening before the IPT begins; Saturday, Jan 27, 2018.

Click here for details.

The Streak

Today makes seventy-eight days in a row with a new educational blog post! This blog post took less than an hour to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not …), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

This image was created at La Jolla, CA with the hand held Fujifilm XF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR lens with the Fujifilm XF 2x TC WR Teleconverter (at 670mm–effective 1005mm) with the Fujifilm X-T2 Mirrorless Digital Camera Body with the Power Booster Grip. ISO 800. Pattern metering +1/3 stop as framed: 1/800 sec. at f/10.8 in Manual mode. AWB. Shutter Button Continuous Autofocus. Additional AF information is unavailable. Sanderling, winter plumage adult

Fujifilm XT-2 Advantages

The huge advantage of using the Fujifilm 100-400//2x/XT-2 combination to get out to effective 1200mm as compared to using the Canon 600mm f/L IS II/2X III TC combo at 1200mm is that the size and weight of the Fujifilm gear is but a fraction of the weight of the Canon gear. This makes it far easier to hand hold, handle, and travel with the Fujifilm stuff. The Fujifilm XF 2x TC WR Teleconverter with the XF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR lens is sharp. In addition, you are able to zoom in an out from 200 to 800 mm (effective 300 to 1200mm).

So why didn’t I include the latest Nikkor 600mm f/4 lens with the latest version of the TCE 20? I do not know of any Nikon shooters who consistently use or create sharp images with this combination.

So Why Do I Stick With Canon?

So why do I continue to use my much heavier, much bulkier Canon gear? For now, at least, the image quality of my 5D Mark IV images is significantly superior to the image quality of the (smaller) XT-2 image files. In addition, I like the more natural color of the Canon images. The latter may be due to the fact that I use DPP 4 to convert my Canon RAW files and my experience with that process. Lastly, the Fujifilm stuff made flight and action photography nearly impossible. As I will be 72 next June, switching to a lighter system might be in my future. But not just yet.

Another Fujifilm X-T2 Mirrorless Digital Camera Body Image

Regular readers will likely remember that I experimented with the Fujifilm X-T2 Mirrorless Digital Camera body on my last trip to San Diego. You can learn more about that experience in the Quite Impressive: First Fujifilm XT-2 Image blog post here and in several blog posts that followed. For more on using the Fujifilm 100-400//2x/XT-2 combo handheld check out the Is the Fujifilm XT-2 Capable of Creating Sharp Images Hand Held at Effective 1200mm? blog post here.

Image Question

There is one thing that really bugs me about this image. What do you think it is? Does anything bug you?

The ACR conversion for today’s featured image Please click on the image so that you can read the fine print.

The RAW Conversion in ACR

As detailed in the The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), I followed these steps for converting the RAW file in Photoshop using ACR:

1: I placed the eyedropper on the brightest WHITEs.
2: I reduced the exposure to -.2 to bring down the WHITE RGB values.
3: I set the White Point at +15 and set the Black Point at +5 (both while holding down the ALT key).
4: I pulled down the Highlights slider to -55 to restore detail to the still very bright WHITEs.
5: I set the Clarity slider to +28.
6: I clicked on Open Object to convert the RAW file to a 16-bit TIF file and open that in Photoshop.

The Image Optimization

First, I cleaned up the white specks on the rocks with the Spot Healing Brush (J). Then I cleaned up a bit of the lower center frame edge in two spots with Content Aware Fill (Shift + Delete). The big job was to eliminate the BLUE cast from the dark rocks. To check for a BLUE cast go to Hue/Saturation, select the BLUE channel from the dropdown menu, and move the Saturation slider to +100. That revealed lots of BLUE in the rocks (and of course in the BLUE sky). Then I moved the Saturation slider to -100. This eliminated the BLUE cast on the dark rocks but left the sky grey. I liked the “grey” look a lot but decided to go with the original blue sky. As I was working on a layer, I simply added a Regular Layer Mask and erased the BLUE desaturation from the sky and the bird using a large, soft, 100% opacity brush.

Noise Reduction

In general, XT-2 images show more noise than 5D Mark IV images. With the basically white subject, I decided to do my NeatImage noise reduction on the whole image. Working on a layer, I wound up applying the noise reduction with the Y-value set to a rather high 85 (to smooth the noise in water and the rocks). This however, affected the fine feather detail so I added a Regular Layer Mask and — using a 50% opacity brush, painted away half the noise reduction on the bird only using a soft brush. To learn everything that there is to know about noise reduction using NeatImage (and lots more!) see the Professional Post Processing Guide by clicking here.

The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) will teach you an efficient Mac/Photo Mechanic/Photoshop workflow that will make it easy for you to make your images better in Photoshop (rather than worse). That true whether you convert your images in DPP 4 or ACR. See the blog post here to learn lots more and to read a free excerpt. You can order your copy from the BAA Online Store here, by sending a Paypal for $40 here, or by calling Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-692-0906 with your credit card in hand.

The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II)

Everything mentioned above is covered in detail in the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. Learn more and check out the free excerpt in the blog post here. The new e-Guide reflects my Macbook Pro/Photo Mechanic/DPP 4/Photoshop workflow. Do note that you will find the RGB Curves Adjustment Color Balancing tutorial only in the new e-guide. Note: folks working on a PC and/or those who do not want to miss anything Photoshop may wish to purchase the original Digital Basics along with DB II while saving $15 by clicking here to buy the DB Bundle.

The two most recent and many of the older MP4 Photoshop Tutorial videos releases go hand and hand with the information in DB II):

• The Wingtip Repairs MP4 Video here.
• The MP4 Crow Cleanup Video here.

Folks who learn well by following along rather than by reading can check out the complete collection of MP 4 Photoshop Tutorial Videos by clicking here.

You can learn how and why I and other discerning Canon shooters convert nearly all of their Canon digital RAW files in DPP 4 using Canon Digital Photo Professional in the DPP 4 RAW conversion Guide here. And you can learn advanced Quick Masking and advanced Layer Masking techniques in APTATS I & II. You can save $15 by purchasing the pair. Folks can learn sophisticated sharpening and (NeatImage) Noise Reduction techniques in the The Professional Post Processing Guide by Arash Hazeghi and yours truly.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, 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 please remember that I am 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, and for everything else in the new store, 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 those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

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.

Facebook

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

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 :).

Stuff

On Tuesday I had a lunch appointment at noon with my tax guy in Lakeland. Before and after that it was back to business as usual: answering e-mails and doing blog posts. And a swim and lots of exercise. I was glad to learn that the sale of Stephen November’s Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Lens with Internal 1.4x Extender in near-mint condition for $8399 was finalized.

With only a single slot open on the San Diego IPT, I decided to add a second San Diego IPT — shorter and less expensive. See the announcement in yesterday’s blog post here.

The e-book on CD is available for $20 on CD here or via download here. Studying great images is the best way to learn to improve your bird photography (he said modestly).

Least Tern chick with the 800 f/5.6, the 1.4X II TC, and the 1D Mark IV. A sample page from the Top 100 e-book. The Canon 800mm f/5.6L IS was one of my very favorite super-telephoto lenses. In the original The Art of Bird Photography I advised that it is generally better to choose a longer faster lens over a shorter, slower one …

Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM Lens

Steve Cashell is offering a Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM lens in near-mint condition for a very low $8399. The sale includes the rear lens cap, the E-180C front lens cover, the lens trunk with both keys, a Really Right Stuff LCF-51 lens foot, a Camo LensCoat, and insured ground shipping via major courier to US addresses only.

Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Steve via e-mail or by phone at 1-734-693-4242 (Eastern time).

I owned and used the super-sharp 800mm f/5.6, often with a 1.4X TC, as my go-to super-telephoto lens for almost five years. If you work with birds that are tough to approach and have trouble making sharp images with the 2X III TC, this lens should have your name on it. The 800/5.6 is great from the car or from a blind. I was astounded when I counted to learn that 15 of the 67 images in my San Diego exhibit were created with my 800 … Note that the 800 and a 7D Mark II get you out to 1280mm. Add the 1.4X III TC and you wind up at 1792mm, almost 36X … They 800s sell new right now for $12,999 from B&H. B&H has a used one in similar condition for the insanely high price of $9,499.95. That gives you a choice: save $4,600 off the cost of a new one or $1,100.95 off the price of a used one … artie

2017 in San Diego was a very good year ….

2018 San Diego 3 1/2-DAY BIRDS AS ART IPT #2: Sunday, JAN 28 thru and including a morning session on Wednesday, JAN 31, 2018: 3 1/2 days: $1699.
Limit: 8: Openings: 8

Meet and Greet at 6:30pm on the evening before the IPT begins; Saturday, Jan 27, 2018.

Click here for details.

The Streak

Today makes seventy-six days in a row with a new educational blog post! This blog post took less than an hour to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not …), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

This image was created on the 2017 San Diego IPT with the Induro GIT304L Grand Series 3 Stealth Carbon Fiber Tripod/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and my favorite pelican photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering -1/3 stop: 1/2500 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode. Daylight WB. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: 0. One AF point to the left and two rows up from the center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter Button AF was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was just behind the bird’s eye. Winter plumage California Gull yawning Please click on the image to enjoy a larger, inexplicably sharper version.

Subject to Sensor-Plane Orientation Considerations

One of the first things that I consider when evaluating a situation is the subject to sensor-plane orientation. Ideal is having the bird perfectly parallel to the back of the camera. On sunny days, the subject to sensor-plane orientation will largely be determined by the wind. If the sun is in the east and the wind is from the north or south the bird will almost always be just right: 90 degrees to the light. Simply get on sun angle and the subject to sensor-plane orientation will be perfect. If the sun is out and behind you and the wind is in your face you will be shooting up the bird’s butt; i.e., not good! On cloudy days it is much easier to get the bird square to the back of your camera simply by changing your position. Understand, however, that on cloudy, somewhat bright days the light will still have direction … When both the light and the wind are behind you the subject will, to varying degrees, be facing you. Best is head-on, dead-on with the subject looking right down the lens barrel. Think getting close and making verticals in those situations. When the bird is angled toward you it is easy to create awkward compositions so be sure to consider the light and your perspective carefully when designing your images.

At times, when the light is relatively soft, a good strategy may be to to work slightly off sun angle — usually no more than 15 degrees for me, so that you can work with the bird perfectly parallel to the back of the camera.

A High Level Question on Choosing Your Perspective Carefully …

For today’s featured image the gull was angled slightly towards me; i.e., the head of the bird is a bit closer to me than the tail. Why didn’t I move a yard to my right to square the bird up perfectly?

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, 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 please remember that I am 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, and for everything else in the new store, 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 those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

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.

Facebook

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

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 :).