Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART
August 29th, 2017

Being Greedy Pays off for the First Time Ever ... And the 100-400 L IS II versus the 400 DO IS II for Flight Photography.

What’s Up?

On Monday I got lots more work done on my 2016 taxes. I did some stretching, some core exercises, and enjoyed my easy half-mile swim.

I was glad to learn that two more folks signed up for the Fall DeSoto IPT. We are up to four.

Canon 100-400 II On Sale

The Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens is on sale right now from B&H for only $2049!

The Streak

Today marks thirty-six days in a row with a new educational blog post. This one took an hour to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time, the plan now is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.

Everybody’s Doing It…

Everybody’s buying and selling used gear on the BAA Used Gear Page. Sales recently have been through the roof. Selling your used (or like-new) photo gear through the BAA Blog or via a BAA Online Bulletin is a great idea. We charge only a 5% commission. One of the more popular used gear for sale sites charged a minimum of 20%. Plus assorted fees! Yikes. They recently folded. And eBay fees are now in the 13% range. The minimum item price here is $500 (or less for a $25 fee). If you are interested please e-mail with the words Items for Sale Info Request cut and pasted into the Subject line :). Stuff that is priced fairly–I offer free pricing advice, usually sells in no time flat. In the past few months, we have sold just about everything in sight. Do know that prices on some items like the EOS-1D Mark IV, the old Canon 500mm, the EOS-7D, and the original 400mm IS DO lens have been dropping steadily. Even the prices on the new 600 II and the 200-400 with Internal Extender have been plummeting. You can see all current listings by clicking here or by clicking on the Used Photo Gear tab now on the the left side of the second yellow-orange menu bar at the top of each blog post.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I recently updated the IPT page. If you doubt that I am really slowing down, click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is I now have two folks registered for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer in person, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With two folks signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Scroll down for details. Click here for complete IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on our afternoon landing at South Plaza Island. I used the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 220mm) and my favorite gull flight photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering at zero off the water which was +1 2/3 off the bright gray sky: 1/2000 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode. AWB.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -3.

Center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was on the upper back just left of center. Be sure to click on the image to see a larger, somewhat sharper version.

Swallow-tailed Gull, adult in flight — dorsal view

Greedy Pays off for the First Time Ever …

I have written and said many times, “Universal advice for better flight photography with a zoom lens: zoom wider!” Our instincts tell us that the bigger the bird in the frame, the better the image and the more pixels on the subject we have to work with.” This type of thinking almost always results in clipped wings at best. On the afternoon landings at South Plaza we often have lots of opportunities for top shots, images showing the dorsal wing surfaces of gulls, frigatebirds, and tropicbirds as the fly into the cliffs in an attempt to land. With the often fierce winds many of their approaches are aborted. So if you see a bird come into the cliff to land and screw things up, you can be pretty sure that it will circle around and try again. These situations often give you multiple chances to create some flight photography magic.

The 100-400 L IS II versus the 400 DO IS II for Flight Photography

I started the afternoon hand holding the 400 DO II with the 1.4X TC in an attempt to photograph the backlit tropicbirds directly overhead. That turned out to be pretty much of an abject failure. In general, if you need to add the 1.4X TC you are much better off with the 400 DO than with the 100-400 as AF at 5/6 is always going to acquire more quickly than AF at f/8. That true no matter the light levels. But, and this is a huge but, the 400 DO is too heavy for many folks, often including me. And that is even more true with fast flying birds that change direction rapidly and often. With its smaller size and lighter weight (3.5 lbs. vs 4.13 lbs. out of the box), it is far easier to follow birds in flight, adjust to their flight patterns, and enjoy long photo sessions with the 100-400 II.

I was actually surprised when I did the research for this blog post that the difference is only 1.13 pounds as it seems a lot more than that. But, for most flight photograph sessions I remove the base of the lens foot with the P-10 plate attached. This gains me another 4.6 ounces bring the difference up to 1.59 pounds, a bit more than 1 1/2 pounds. In addition, the lighter weight and smaller size of the 100-400 II as compared to the 400 DO II made it easier to use on the pangas. I am glad that I took the 400 DO II for those special low-light fight situations, and for the times that I needed extra reach for flight with distant birds. And I realize that I am blessed to be able to own and travel with both of these great lenses.

Yikes, I almost forgot one huge advantage of the 100-400 II: the ability to zoom out for flight when needed. Note the 220mm focal length used for today’s featured image; with the fixed focal length 400 DO II I would have been dead in the water when that Swallow-tailed Gull banked. Summing up, the huge advantage of the 400 DO II is the extra stop of speed at f/4 that can save you a stop of ISO in low light or gain you a stop of shutter speed or allow you to go to a stop smaller aperture (depending on the situation). The advantages of the 100-400 II include its lighter weight, lesser bulk, close focusing, and focal length range.

Head Angle

Before you leave a comment noting that the bird is looking (and obviously flying) away, ask yourself this question: for this dramatic, frame-filling pose could there have been a better head angle?

Another Flight Photography Tip for Zoom Lenses

It is better to zoom out quickly to the anticipated focal length you will need (as I did to create today’s featured image) rather than try to zoom out slowly as you follow the bird in flight …

Your Call?

Feel free to leave a comment critiquing this image. If you don’t feel qualified, consider this: ask yourself: What do you like? Why? What don’t you like? Why? Could I have done anything in the field to make it better? Could I have done anything better in post-processing? You can learn and practice these skills by joining BirdPhotographer’s.Net.

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.


desoto-fall-card-a-layers

Obviously folks attending the IPT will be out in the field early and stay late to take advantage of sunrise and sunset colors. The good news is that the days are relatively short in October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

The Fort DeSoto 2017 Fall IPT/September 22 (afternoon session) through the full day on September 25, 2017. 3 1/2 FULL DAYs: $1649. Limit 8/openings 4.

Fort DeSoto, located just south of St. Petersburg, FL, is a mecca for migrant shorebirds and terns in fall. There they join hundreds of egrets, herons, night-herons, gulls, and terns who winter on the T-shaped peninsula that serves as their wintering grounds. With luck, we may get to photograph two of Florida’s most desirable shorebird species: Marbled Godwit and the spectacular Long-billed Curlew. Black-bellied Plover and Willet are easy, American Oystercatcher almost guaranteed. Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Tricolored Heron are easy as well and we will almost surely come up with a tame Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or two. We should get to do some Brown Pelican flight photography. And Royal, Sandwich, Forster’s, and Caspian Terns will likely provide us with some good flight opportunities as well. Though not guaranteed Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork would not be unexpected.

Folks who sign up for the IPT are welcome to join us on the ITF/MWS on the morning of Tuesday, September 26 as my guest. See below for details on that.

On the IPT you will learn basics and fine points of digital exposure and to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, how to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them, to understand and predict bird behavior, to identify many species of shorebirds, to spot the good situations, to choose the best perspective, to see and understand the light, and to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system. And you will learn how and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).

There will be a Photoshop/image review session after lunch (included) each day. That will be followed by Instructor Nap Time.

The best airport is Tampa (TPA). Register soon so that you can be assured of a room at the IPT hotel.

A $500 deposit is due when you sign up and is payable by credit card. Balances must be paid by check after you register. Your deposit is non-refundable unless the IPT sells out with ten folks so please check your plans carefully before committing. You can register by calling Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand or by sending a check as follows: make the check out to: BIRDS AS ART and send it via US mail here: BIRDS AS ART, PO BOX 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855. You will receive a confirmation e-mail with detailed instructions, gear advice, and instructions for meeting on the afternoon of Friday, September 22.


desoto-fall-card-b

Fort DeSoto in fall is rich with tame birds. All of the images in this card were created at Fort DeSoto in either late September or early October. I hope that you can join me there this October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

BIRDS AS ART In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session (ITF/MWS): $99.

Join me on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for 3-hours of photographic instruction at Fort DeSoto Park. Beginners are welcome. Lenses of 300mm or longer are recommended but even those with 70-200s should get to make some nice images. Teleconverters are always a plus.

You will learn the basics of digital exposure and image design, autofocus basics, and how to get close to free and wild birds. We should get to photograph a variety of wading birds, shorebirds, terns, and gulls. This inexpensive afternoon workshop is designed to give folks a taste of the level and the quality of instruction that is provided on a BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-tour. I hope to meet you there.

To register please call Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand to pay the nominal non-refundable registration fee. You will receive a short e-mail with instructions, gear advice, and meeting place at least two weeks before the event.


fort-desoto-card

BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT.

Fort DeSoto Site Guide

Can’t make the IPT? Get yourself a copy of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide. Learn the best spots, where to be when in what season in what weather. Learn the best wind directions for the various locations. BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. You can see all of them here.






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 :).

August 28th, 2017

Why I Took the 400mm f/4 IS DO II Lens to the Galapagos/Part II, Shutter Speeds for Flight Photography, Apertures for Flight Photography, and Understanding a Vitally Important Depth of Field Concept ...

What’s Up?

On Sunday I got lots more work done on my 2016 taxes. I did a bit of stretching and some core exercises but skipped my swim.

The Streak

Today marks thirty-five days in a row with a new educational blog post. This one about 1 1/2 hours to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time, the plan now is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.

Everybody’s Doing It…

Everybody’s buying and selling used gear on the BAA Used Gear Page. Sales recently have been through the roof. Selling your used (or like-new) photo gear through the BAA Blog or via a BAA Online Bulletin is a great idea. We charge only a 5% commission. One of the more popular used gear for sale sites charged a minimum of 20%. Plus assorted fees! Yikes. They recently folded. And eBay fees are now in the 13% range. The minimum item price here is $500 (or less for a $25 fee). If you are interested please e-mail with the words Items for Sale Info Request cut and pasted into the Subject line :). Stuff that is priced fairly–I offer free pricing advice, usually sells in no time flat. In the past few months, we have sold just about everything in sight. Do know that prices on some items like the EOS-1D Mark IV, the old Canon 500mm, the EOS-7D, and the original 400mm IS DO lens have been dropping steadily. Even the prices on the new 600 II and the 200-400 with Internal Extender have been plummeting. You can see all current listings by clicking here or by clicking on the Used Photo Gear tab now on the the left side of the second yellow-orange menu bar at the top of each blog post.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I recently updated the IPT page. If you doubt that I am really slowing down, click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is I now have two folks registered for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer in person, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With two folks signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Scroll down for details. Click here for complete IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on our second landing at Darwin Bay, Genovesa, (Tower Island), Galapagos at 6:32am on a misty, heavily overcast morning with the hand held Canon EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II USM lens and my favorite booby camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 2500. Evaluative metering +2 2/3 stops off the gray sky: 1/640 sec. at f/4 in Manual mode. AWB.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -5.

Center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point and all of the assist points as well missed the bird completely yet the system continued tracking well. Be sure to click on the image to see a larger, inexplicably sharper looking version.

Nazca Booby, adult in flight

Why I Took the 400mm f/4 IS DO II Lens to the Galapagos/Part II

Working wide open or close to it for flight photography in low light conditions allows you to save a stop of ISO. It would have been worth it for me to have taken the 400 f/4 DO II lens just for our two Darwin Bay landings as it is almost always heavily overcast and there are always lot of birds in flight. It is fun picking out the white birds in flight from the zillion frigatebirds. That is a good strategy in the early mornings as you need a faster shutter speed to come up with the right exposure for the white birds than you do for the dark or black frigates. Opening up (increasing the exposure) for dark or black birds in low light conditions requires higher ISOs.

Shutter Speeds for Flight Photography

Most folks will advise that you use a shutter speed of at least 1/1600 second when photographing birds in flight and I do just that when there is lots of light. But in low light conditions I often choose to go with shutter speeds that are well less than that, usually ranging from 1/500 sec. to 1/800 sec. If you acquire focus correctly and pan with the subject, most folks will have zero problem creating sharp on the eye images while minimizing their ISO requirements.At times, your images may show wingtip blurring that is often pleasing as it depicts the motion of the bird in flight.

Apertures for Flight Photography

Most folks will tell you to stop down at least one stop when you are doing flight photography. To f/5.6 with an f/4 lens, and to f/8 with an f/5.6 lens (like the 100-400 II). I consider that a waste for two reasons:

1-You will need to use a one stop higher ISO in order to come up with the right exposure at a given shutter speed.

2-Working with a conservative (under-) estimate of the distance to the subject of 60 feet, the total depth of field at f/4 would be about 1.6 feet. Increasing the aperture to f/5.6 would yield a depth of field of 2.3 feet, a pretty much meaningless increase .7 feet (about 8 inches, four inches in front of the point of focus and 4 inches behind it. If I had done that with today’s image I would have needed an ISO of 5000.

If we increase the distance to a probably more realistic 80 feet, the total depth of field soars with the increase in distance to more than four feet, way more than enough to cover a booby-sized bird in flight. Case closed. The is no need to stop down for flight photography. Note: out of force of habit I will usually stop down 1/3 stop even for flight photography, to f/4.5 with an f/4 lens and to f/6.3 with an f/5.6 lens. Except when really pressed to save ISO …

Understanding a Vitally Important Depth of Field Concept …

Please remember that depth of field increases dramatically as the distance to the subject increases. We saw above that at 80 feet the total depth of field is more than four feet. At the minimum focusing distance of the 400 DO II of about 11 feet, the total depth of field shrinks to just a bit more than 1/2 inch! When using a telephoto lens and working with distant subjects at a given aperture, you will have gobs of depth of field. When you are working at point blank distances you will have little if any depth of field.

Learn more at the DOFMaster website here.

Any and all depth of field and ISO questions are welcome.

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.


desoto-fall-card-a-layers

Obviously folks attending the IPT will be out in the field early and stay late to take advantage of sunrise and sunset colors. The good news is that the days are relatively short in October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

The Fort DeSoto 2017 Fall IPT/September 22 (afternoon session) through the full day on September 25, 2017. 3 1/2 FULL DAYs: $1649. Limit 8/openings 6.

Fort DeSoto, located just south of St. Petersburg, FL, is a mecca for migrant shorebirds and terns in fall. There they join hundreds of egrets, herons, night-herons, gulls, and terns who winter on the T-shaped peninsula that serves as their wintering grounds. With luck, we may get to photograph two of Florida’s most desirable shorebird species: Marbled Godwit and the spectacular Long-billed Curlew. Black-bellied Plover and Willet are easy, American Oystercatcher almost guaranteed. Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Tricolored Heron are easy as well and we will almost surely come up with a tame Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or two. We should get to do some Brown Pelican flight photography. And Royal, Sandwich, Forster’s, and Caspian Terns will likely provide us with some good flight opportunities as well. Though not guaranteed Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork would not be unexpected.

Folks who sign up for the IPT are welcome to join us on the ITF/MWS on the morning of Tuesday, September 26 as my guest. See below for details on that.

On the IPT you will learn basics and fine points of digital exposure and to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, how to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them, to understand and predict bird behavior, to identify many species of shorebirds, to spot the good situations, to choose the best perspective, to see and understand the light, and to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system. And you will learn how and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).

There will be a Photoshop/image review session after lunch (included) each day. That will be followed by Instructor Nap Time.

The best airport is Tampa (TPA). Register soon so that you can be assured of a room at the IPT hotel.

A $500 deposit is due when you sign up and is payable by credit card. Balances must be paid by check after you register. Your deposit is non-refundable unless the IPT sells out with ten folks so please check your plans carefully before committing. You can register by calling Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand or by sending a check as follows: make the check out to: BIRDS AS ART and send it via US mail here: BIRDS AS ART, PO BOX 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855. You will receive a confirmation e-mail with detailed instructions, gear advice, and instructions for meeting on the afternoon of Friday, September 22.


desoto-fall-card-b

Fort DeSoto in fall is rich with tame birds. All of the images in this card were created at Fort DeSoto in either late September or early October. I hope that you can join me there this October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

BIRDS AS ART In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session (ITF/MWS): $99.

Join me on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for 3-hours of photographic instruction at Fort DeSoto Park. Beginners are welcome. Lenses of 300mm or longer are recommended but even those with 70-200s should get to make some nice images. Teleconverters are always a plus.

You will learn the basics of digital exposure and image design, autofocus basics, and how to get close to free and wild birds. We should get to photograph a variety of wading birds, shorebirds, terns, and gulls. This inexpensive afternoon workshop is designed to give folks a taste of the level and the quality of instruction that is provided on a BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-tour. I hope to meet you there.

To register please call Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand to pay the nominal non-refundable registration fee. You will receive a short e-mail with instructions, gear advice, and meeting place at least two weeks before the event.


fort-desoto-card

BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT.

Fort DeSoto Site Guide

Can’t make the IPT? Get yourself a copy of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide. Learn the best spots, where to be when in what season in what weather. Learn the best wind directions for the various locations. BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. You can see all of them here.






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 :).

August 27th, 2017

No Noise at ISO 1600? Why I Took the 400mm f/4 IS DO II Lens to the Galapagos/Part I

What’s Up?

On Saturday, I finally started work on my 2016 Federal tax return. I did lots of stretching and core exercises and enjoyed an afternoon half-mile swim. I met Jennifer, Erik, Sam, and Maya in town at 6pm where we enjoyed dinner at Crazy Fish to celebrate Sam’s heading to Boston with Jen on Monday to begin college at Emerson. He is in the film program. Good luck Sam!

The Streak

Today marks thirty-four days in a row with a new educational blog post. This one took about 2 1/2 hours to create. With all of my upcoming free time, the plan now is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.

Everybody’s Doing It…

Everybody’s buying and selling used gear on the BAA Used Gear Page. Sales recently have been through the roof. Selling your used (or like-new) photo gear through the BAA Blog or via a BAA Online Bulletin is a great idea. We charge only a 5% commission. One of the more popular used gear for sale sites charged a minimum of 20%. Plus assorted fees! Yikes. They recently folded. And eBay fees are now in the 13% range. The minimum item price here is $500 (or less for a $25 fee). If you are interested please e-mail with the words Items for Sale Info Request cut and pasted into the Subject line :). Stuff that is priced fairly–I offer free pricing advice, usually sells in no time flat. In the past few months, we have sold just about everything in sight. Do know that prices on some items like the EOS-1D Mark IV, the old Canon 500mm, the EOS-7D, and the original 400mm IS DO lens have been dropping steadily. Even the prices on the new 600 II and the 200-400 with Internal Extender have been plummeting. You can see all current listings by clicking here or by clicking on the Used Photo Gear tab now on the the left side of the second yellow-orange menu bar at the top of each blog post.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I recently updated the IPT page. If you doubt that I am really slowing down, click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is I now have two folks registered for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer in person, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With two folks signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Scroll down for details. Click here for complete IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This is a 100% crop of an ISO 1600 image

No Noise at ISO 1600

Above is an unsharpened 100% crop of the optimized TIFF. I did not need to run NeatImage on this photo. The only noise reduction applied was during the RAW conversion in DPP 4 where I used Arash’s values for Luminance and Chrominance noise as per the DPP 4 RAW Conversion Guide. Note the complete absence of noise in the iris where it is often evident. I am not seeing any chrominance noise at all. And I am not seeing any luminance noise anywhere. Are you?

DPP 4 Screen Capture

Be sure to click on the image so that you can read the fine print and see the detail in the Color Fine Tune box.

Why No Noise at ISO 1600?

The way to reduce noise at any ISO is to expose to the right. Note the RGB values with the cursor placed on the brightest part of the penguin’s breast: R = 248, G = 246, B = 248. Note that on the left side of the histogram, the dark tones are a proverbial mile away from the left-hand axis. In contrast, the light tones on the right are nearly up against the right-hand axis. With regards to the Color Fine Tune box, the WHITEs in the RAW file were a bit blue so I clicked on a spot away from BLUE to better line up the ends of the RGB histogram.

Knowing that I was using a relatively high ISO and that I wanted to minimize the noise in the dark tones, I pushed the exposure farther to the right that I usually do.

This image was created on our late afternoon panga (zodiac) cruise at Punta Morena on August 13. I used the hand held Canon EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and my favorite penguin camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 1600. Evaluative metering +3 stops off the gray sky: 1/800 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode. AWB.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: zero.

One AF point to the left of the center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as originally framed was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was placed on the side of the bird’s neck just this side of the plane of the bird’s eye. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Galapagos Penguin, immature, head and shoulders portrait

Why I Took the 400mm f/4 IS DO II Lens to the Galapagos/Part I

Though the 100-400 II counterfeits the 400 DO II to some degree — I use it often with the 1.4X TC –I took the 400 DO II on the trip for three main reasons:

  • 1: to use on the panga (zodiac) photo outings where the additional stop of speed would often come in handy by allowing me to work at a lower ISO. Had I been using the 100-400 II/1.4X III TC combo I would have needed to be at ISO 3200.
  • 2: to use in low light flight situations.
  • 3: as a long lens back-up in case I dropped my 500 II into the ocean or in case it was otherwise damaged or disabled.

As things turned out, I used my 100-400 II at least 75% of the time on the trip, very often with the 1.4X III TC. I used the 500 II about 15% of the time, only rarely with the 2X III TC. And I used the 400 DO II less than 10% of the time, never with 2X III TC.

To reduce the weight of my Think Tank roll aboard on the way home, I packed the 400 DO II in one of my two checked bags. It was well padded with dirty laundry inside the Think Tank Glass Limo. And the whole thing was wrapped by my terry cloth travel robe. It survived the journey quite well. If you ever opt to take this route, do so at your own risk.

Final Thoughts

Understand that the skill of the zodiac driver is paramount to the success of all panga photo sessions. Both Juan and apprentice guide Jimmy consistently got the zodiacs into perfect position by hook or by crook, often being able to stabilize the craft using a variety of techniques.

Note that I added canvas above and in front of the bird. I used John Haedo Content Aware fill as detailed 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. Just so you know, 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.

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.


desoto-fall-card-a-layers

Obviously folks attending the IPT will be out in the field early and stay late to take advantage of sunrise and sunset colors. The good news is that the days are relatively short in October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

The Fort DeSoto 2017 Fall IPT/September 22 (afternoon session) through the full day on September 25, 2017. 3 1/2 FULL DAYs: $1649. Limit 8/openings 6.

Fort DeSoto, located just south of St. Petersburg, FL, is a mecca for migrant shorebirds and terns in fall. There they join hundreds of egrets, herons, night-herons, gulls, and terns who winter on the T-shaped peninsula that serves as their wintering grounds. With luck, we may get to photograph two of Florida’s most desirable shorebird species: Marbled Godwit and the spectacular Long-billed Curlew. Black-bellied Plover and Willet are easy, American Oystercatcher almost guaranteed. Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Tricolored Heron are easy as well and we will almost surely come up with a tame Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or two. We should get to do some Brown Pelican flight photography. And Royal, Sandwich, Forster’s, and Caspian Terns will likely provide us with some good flight opportunities as well. Though not guaranteed Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork would not be unexpected.

Folks who sign up for the IPT are welcome to join us on the ITF/MWS on the morning of Tuesday, September 26 as my guest. See below for details on that.

On the IPT you will learn basics and fine points of digital exposure and to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, how to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them, to understand and predict bird behavior, to identify many species of shorebirds, to spot the good situations, to choose the best perspective, to see and understand the light, and to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system. And you will learn how and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).

There will be a Photoshop/image review session after lunch (included) each day. That will be followed by Instructor Nap Time.

The best airport is Tampa (TPA). Register soon so that you can be assured of a room at the IPT hotel.

A $500 deposit is due when you sign up and is payable by credit card. Balances must be paid by check after you register. Your deposit is non-refundable unless the IPT sells out with ten folks so please check your plans carefully before committing. You can register by calling Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand or by sending a check as follows: make the check out to: BIRDS AS ART and send it via US mail here: BIRDS AS ART, PO BOX 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855. You will receive a confirmation e-mail with detailed instructions, gear advice, and instructions for meeting on the afternoon of Friday, September 22.


desoto-fall-card-b

Fort DeSoto in fall is rich with tame birds. All of the images in this card were created at Fort DeSoto in either late September or early October. I hope that you can join me there this October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

BIRDS AS ART In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session (ITF/MWS): $99.

Join me on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for 3-hours of photographic instruction at Fort DeSoto Park. Beginners are welcome. Lenses of 300mm or longer are recommended but even those with 70-200s should get to make some nice images. Teleconverters are always a plus.

You will learn the basics of digital exposure and image design, autofocus basics, and how to get close to free and wild birds. We should get to photograph a variety of wading birds, shorebirds, terns, and gulls. This inexpensive afternoon workshop is designed to give folks a taste of the level and the quality of instruction that is provided on a BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-tour. I hope to meet you there.

To register please call Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand to pay the nominal non-refundable registration fee. You will receive a short e-mail with instructions, gear advice, and meeting place at least two weeks before the event.


fort-desoto-card

BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT.

Fort DeSoto Site Guide

Can’t make the IPT? Get yourself a copy of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide. Learn the best spots, where to be when in what season in what weather. Learn the best wind directions for the various locations. BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. You can see all of them here.






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 :).

August 26th, 2017

Not So Quick Thinking ... And Dealing with hot YELLOWs.

What’s Up?

I spent most of Friday on the couch vegging out, resting, and watching the last of 30 hours of the coverage of all four rounds of the PGA golf tournament on Tivo. Congrats to yet another twenty-something winner, Jordan Speith look-alike Justin Thomas. The win was his fourth of the year.

This blog post took more than two hours to prepare.

I did exercise a bit and enjoyed my half-mile afternoon swim in a steady drizzle (with no lightning thank you very much).

The Streak

Today marks thirty-three days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about an hour to create. The plan right now with all of my upcoming free time is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.

Everybody’s Doing It…

Everybody’s buying and selling used gear on the BAA Used Gear Page. Sales recently have been through the roof. The sale of three of the twelve items that I posted to the Used Gear Page this morning are pending after only four hours.

Selling your used (or like-new) photo gear through the BAA Blog or via a BAA Online Bulletin is a great idea. We charge only a 5% commission. One of the more popular used gear for sale sites charged a minimum of 20%. Plus assorted fees! Yikes. They recently folded. And eBay fees are now in the 13% range. The minimum item price here is $500 (or less for a $25 fee). If you are interested please e-mail with the words Items for Sale Info Request cut and pasted into the Subject line :). Stuff that is priced fairly–I offer free pricing advice, usually sells in no time flat. In the past few months, we have sold just about everything in sight. Do know that prices on some items like the EOS-1D Mark IV, the old Canon 500mm, the EOS-7D, and the original 400mm IS DO lens have been dropping steadily. Even the prices on the new 600 II and the 200-400 with Internal Extender have been plummeting. You can see all current listings by clicking < here or by clicking on the Used Photo Gear tab now on the the left side of the second yellow-orange menu bar at the top of each blog post.

Brand New Listing

Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II Lens (with extras!)

Ron Paulk is offering a Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM Lens in like-new condition for $9,899 with lots of great extras. The sale includes the rear lens cap, the lens trunk, the tough front lens cover, the lens strap, the original product box, and insured ground shipping via major courier to US addresses only. Also included are the following extras: a Canon Extender EF 1.4X III in excellent condition, the 4Th Generation Design CRX-5 low foot (that artie uses), a LensCoat in Realtree Max5 , the AquaTech Soft/Collapsing Hood, a LensCoat Hoodie, the AquaTech Soft Cap, and a LensCoat Travel Coat. The extras are valued at just under $1,000.

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

Please contact Ron via e-mail or by phone at 1-360-391-2090 PT. Photos are available upon request.

The 600 II is the state of the art super-telephoto for birds, nature, wildlife, and sports. If I can get it to a location, it is my go-to weapon. It is fast and sharp and deadly either alone or with either TC. With a new one going for $11,499 Ron’s lens with tons of great extras represents an amazing savings. artie


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I recently updated the IPT page. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is I now have two folks registered for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer in person, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With two folks signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Scroll down for details. Click here for complete IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on the morning that we all got to photograph the sea lion birth/Galapagos Hawk action. I used the hand held Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and my favorite warbler camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering -1/3 stop: 1/500 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode. AWB.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -2.

One AF point above the center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as originally framed was active at the moment of exposure — this image was cropped a bit from the bottom, left, and right. The selected AF point was placed on the bird’s upper breast. Do click on the image to see a larger version.

Yellow Warbler (Galapagos race)

Yellow Warbler (Galapagos race)

I am pretty sure that the Yellow Warbler seen on the Galapagos is a distinct race of the same species as our Yellow Warbler (Dendroica petechia). The handsome male’s rufous cap makes it a very desirable photographic subject and the fact that they rarely stay still for a second makes photographing them a big challenge.

The Situation and the Solution

Having seen my images from eight previous trips, several folks in the group — including and especially my roommate Loren Waxman and my friend Dr. Anita North — had been lusting after a nice male for almost two weeks. Many of us were trying to make some good images of the guy in today’s featured image as it foraged on a rocky lava shelf on a very low tide at James Bay, Puerto Egas. At first I tried working with the 500 II/1.4X III on my lowered Induro tripod but with the sun coming in and out and the bird moving closer and then moving away, that was a pretty much fruitless effort. I could have gone to the 100-400 II/1,4X III combo but that would have found me blocking the bird for the folks using big glass.

Not So Quick Thinking …

Then, the bird paused in a tidal pool to bathe. I watched it for probably a minute as it soaked and flapped, right behind a small boulder that blocked everyone’s view. It kept bathing so I took my big lens off the tripod and made my way around the bird (and the pool) without disturbing the bathing warbler. That required traversing some mighty slippery seaweed and scum covered rocks, with care. I got fairly close on sun angle and used my knee pod technique: left forearm resting atop my left knee while sitting. I was thrilled that the bird kept bathing. It gave me enough time to fire off about 30 frames before it resumed foraging. I kept nine images on the first edit. Today’s featured image was one of my two favorites.

Hand holding made getting into position a snap. And it made it easier to follow the foraging bird when it resumed feeding. Had I made my move more quickly, I might have had time to make 200 or so images …

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 Image Optimization

The YELLOWs in the RAW file were so bright and so yellow that they were close to being detail-less; in retrospect, raising the shutter speed one click to 1/640 second would have made my life a lot easier. Thus, restoring the detail in the YELLOWs was my primary concern both during the RAW conversion and then in Photoshop. During the RAW conversion in DPP 4 I reduced the exposure 1/3 stop by moving the Brightness slider to -.33. The YELLOWs looked a lot better but when I brought the TIFF into Photoshop they still needed help. First I tried moving the YELLOW slider in Selective to the left, toward BLUE but that did nothing. So I dropped down and added some BLACK to the YELLOWs. That brought in some detail. Finally I painted a Quick Mask of the still too bright YELLOWs, put the selections on its own layer, ran a Linear Burn, and reduced the opacity to 20%. Everything looked good but for the edges of the selection that were a bit too dark. To rectify that, I added a Regular Layer Mask, hit B, D, X, and fine-tuned the Linear Burn layer by painting in stages with a 33% opacity brush.

Everything mentioned above plus tons and tons more is detailed in the new 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. Just so you know, 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.

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. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.


desoto-fall-card-a-layers

Obviously folks attending the IPT will be out in the field early and stay late to take advantage of sunrise and sunset colors. The good news is that the days are relatively short in October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

The Fort DeSoto 2017 Fall IPT/September 22 (afternoon session) through the full day on September 25, 2017. 3 1/2 FULL DAYs: $1649. Limit 8/openings 6.

Fort DeSoto, located just south of St. Petersburg, FL, is a mecca for migrant shorebirds and terns in fall. There they join hundreds of egrets, herons, night-herons, gulls, and terns who winter on the T-shaped peninsula that serves as their wintering grounds. With luck, we may get to photograph two of Florida’s most desirable shorebird species: Marbled Godwit and the spectacular Long-billed Curlew. Black-bellied Plover and Willet are easy, American Oystercatcher almost guaranteed. Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Tricolored Heron are easy as well and we will almost surely come up with a tame Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or two. We should get to do some Brown Pelican flight photography. And Royal, Sandwich, Forster’s, and Caspian Terns will likely provide us with some good flight opportunities as well. Though not guaranteed Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork would not be unexpected.

Folks who sign up for the IPT are welcome to join us on the ITF/MWS on the morning of Tuesday, September 26 as my guest. See below for details on that.

On the IPT you will learn basics and fine points of digital exposure and to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, how to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them, to understand and predict bird behavior, to identify many species of shorebirds, to spot the good situations, to choose the best perspective, to see and understand the light, and to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system. And you will learn how and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).

There will be a Photoshop/image review session after lunch (included) each day. That will be followed by Instructor Nap Time.

The best airport is Tampa (TPA). Register soon so that you can be assured of a room at the IPT hotel.

A $500 deposit is due when you sign up and is payable by credit card. Balances must be paid by check after you register. Your deposit is non-refundable unless the IPT sells out with ten folks so please check your plans carefully before committing. You can register by calling Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand or by sending a check as follows: make the check out to: BIRDS AS ART and send it via US mail here: BIRDS AS ART, PO BOX 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855. You will receive a confirmation e-mail with detailed instructions, gear advice, and instructions for meeting on the afternoon of Friday, September 22.


desoto-fall-card-b

Fort DeSoto in fall is rich with tame birds. All of the images in this card were created at Fort DeSoto in either late September or early October. I hope that you can join me there this October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

BIRDS AS ART In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session (ITF/MWS): $99.

Join me on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for 3-hours of photographic instruction at Fort DeSoto Park. Beginners are welcome. Lenses of 300mm or longer are recommended but even those with 70-200s should get to make some nice images. Teleconverters are always a plus.

You will learn the basics of digital exposure and image design, autofocus basics, and how to get close to free and wild birds. We should get to photograph a variety of wading birds, shorebirds, terns, and gulls. This inexpensive afternoon workshop is designed to give folks a taste of the level and the quality of instruction that is provided on a BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-tour. I hope to meet you there.

To register please call Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand to pay the nominal non-refundable registration fee. You will receive a short e-mail with instructions, gear advice, and meeting place at least two weeks before the event.


fort-desoto-card

BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT.

Fort DeSoto Site Guide

Can’t make the IPT? Get yourself a copy of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide. Learn the best spots, where to be when in what season in what weather. Learn the best wind directions for the various locations. BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. You can see all of them here.






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 :).

August 25th, 2017

First-ever Used 5D IV/100-400 II for sale. My Vitreous Detachment Story. An Amazing North Seymour Final Landing. More on 100-400 II Versatility. And Free but Hugely Important Nature Photography (and Photo-Philosophy) Lessons.

What’s Up?

I visited the eye doctor early on Thursday morning. See more on that below. In the afternoon I went back to town to see my chiropractor. Late in the day I exercised a bit and enjoyed an easy 1/2 mile swim. I hope to get started on my 2016 Federal Income Tax return today. And to catch up on more e-mails.

I was glad to learn that IPT veteran Richard Bohnet sold his Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM lens (the “old” 1-4) in excellent condition for an even $500 in mid-August. Used Gear action has heated up since my return …

Vitreous Detachment (or Separation)

From the National Eye Institute/Vitreous Detachment

Most of the eye’s interior is filled with vitreous. There are millions of fine fibers intertwined within the vitreous that are attached to the surface of the retina. As we age, the vitreous slowly shrinks, and these fine fibers pull on the retinal surface. Usually the fibers break, allowing the vitreous to separate and shrink from the retina. This is a vitreous detachment, a common condition that usually affects people over age 50, and is very common after age 80. People who are nearsighted are also at increased risk. Those who have a vitreous detachment in one eye are likely to have one in the other, although it may not happen until years later.

From Wikipedia

The vitreous (Latin for “glassy”) humor is a gel which fills the eye behind the lens. Between it and the retina is the vitreous membrane. With age the vitreous humor changes, shrinking and developing pockets of liquefaction, similar to the way a gelatin dessert shrinks and detaches from the edge of a pan. At some stage the vitreous membrane may peel away from the retina. This is usually a sudden event, but it may also occur slowly over months.

My Vitreous Detachment Story

Early on in the Galapagos trip I noticed a zillion tiny specks when looking at the sky. The first day it did not grab my attention. On the second day I had a really big floater; it had a black head and a long tail. It kept swimming across my field of view and from left to right and then re-appearing, sometimes smaller and sometimes larger. I spoke with Dr. Anita North who was on the trip. She said that it might be a detached retina or it might be a retinal tear. But my peripheral vision was fine as was my visual acuity. So she thought that it was likely something more benign.

The tiny zillion amoebas continued and with Anita’s help (she suggested shutting one eye at a time) I brilliantly deduced that the problem with my left eye. Duh! On the third day I tried my dear friend Alan Levine on the Samba’s satellite phone but failed. Alan is a top-notch (retired) opthalmic surgeon. On the fourth day I reached him. After I shared the whole story with him and told him that I had not seen any lightning flashes, he felt that it was likely not a detached retina or a retinal tear but that it was likely something called vitreous separation (or detachment). With that condition, the vitreous membrane pulls away from the retina. He said that if things got worse that I needed to get to get off the ship asap, fly to Guayaquil, and see a retinal specialist there before flying home. But that if things stayed the same or if they improved that I would be fine to fly home. Things got better every day.

I called Jim and asked that he make me an appointment with Dr. Roy Z. Braunstein for the day after I got home. Dr. B is a fine opthalmic surgeon in Lake Wales (who practiced in New York City for most of his career). When I stood outside his office yesterday and looked at the sky there were no more tiny dots. After a lengthy examination that included my regular diabetic eye testing, I was glad to learn that I had no retinal detachment, no retinal tears, no glaucoma, and that the both eyes were in perfect shape with excellent blood vessels and flow and both macula completely normal. You have the eyes of a non-diabetic, said Dr Braunstein, who suggested follow-up testing in one month. I will be making that appointment today.

To learn more about Vitreous Detachments click here.

ps: As a result of attending the School for the Work last March I did not freak out when my vision problems surfaced. I was weirdly calm. When I got my clean bill of eye health I was glad as though I am right-handed I am left-eyed at the viewfinder 🙂 Which is your dominant hand? Which eye do you use?

The Streak

Today marks thirty-two days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about four hours to create. The plan right now with all of my upcoming free time is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I recently updated the IPT page. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is I now have two folks registered for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With two folks signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Scroll down for details. Click here for complete IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

Last morning North Seymour composite

All images made with the hand held EF 100-400mm II and the 5D Mark IV

some with the 1.4X III TC added.

Last Morning North Seymour Composite Details

From upper left clockwise to center:

Image #1: Barnacles. Created at 8:51am on the morning of 22 AUG when all of the images in the composite were made. Focal length: 200mm. This was the last image that I made on the IPT as we waited to board a panga (zodiac) for the short ride back to the Samba.

Image #2: Blue-footed Booby female head portrait. Created at 7:22am. Focal length: 560mm. Note the large pupil as compared to the tiny pinpoint pupil of the male as seen in the center image immediately below.

Image #3: Blue-footed Booby, head portrait of large chick. Created at 7:41am. Focal length:358mm.

Image #4: Blue-footed Booby single foot. Created at 7:50am. Focal length:490mm.

Image #5: Morning sunrise (photo illustration–two birds added, two small birds eliminate). Base image created at 6:10am from the landing. Focal length:100mm.

Image #6: Frigatebird take-off silhouette. Created at 6:23am. Focal length:330mm.

Image #7: Male frigatebird in flight with pouch inflated. Created at 6:25am. Focal length:238mm.

Image #8: Blue-footed Booby, large chick flapping. Created at 8:07am. Focal length:420mm.

Image #9: Blue-footed Booby male head portrait. Created at 7:23am. Focal length: 560mm. Note the tiny pupil as compared to the large pupil of the female as seen in Image #2 directly above.

All of the images above were created on our second abbreviated (6am-9am) landing at North Seymour Island. My trips are the only ones on the planet to land twice at North Seymour, twice at Hood Island (Espanola) for the Waved Albatrosses, and twice at Darwin Bay (Genovesa)for the nesting Red-footed and Nazca Boobies, the nesting frigatebirds and Swallow-tailed Gulls, the Sharp-beaked Ground Finches, and tons more. If you are seriously interesting in learning about my late-July 2019 Galapagos Photo-Cruise of a lifetime, please get in touch via e-mail. I already have many interested folks. For good reason 🙂

ps: many of the images above will be featured in upcoming blog posts that will include lots more on the situations as well as expanded learning opportunities.

More on 100-400 II Versatility

I made our last morning landing (and several others as well) with only the 100-400 II/5D IV combo as my “big lens” always being sure to have my 1.4X III/ii TC in my fanny pack. With focal lengths ranging from 100mm to 560mm it helped my create tight head portraits (images 2, 3, 8, and 9), quasi-macro shots (images 1 and 4), flight and action photographs (images 6 and 7), and even a nice scenic (image #5). The lens is incredibly sharp, the 4-stop IS is phenomenal (and helps a ton when hand holding), it focuses to under one meter, it is relatively lightweight and thus can be easily hand held by most folks, and as seen here again today, the combination of its performance, its focal length range of from 100mm to 560mm (the latter with the 1.4X III TC), and its versatility are simply unmatched.

If you were inspired to purchase your own 100-400 II after reading this blog post, please be sure to use this link.

Most Apropos New Used Gear Listings …

Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM Lens

Ivan Kuraev is offering a Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens in excellent plus to near near-mint condition for $1699. The lens has been used professionally, but has been cared for exceptionally well. The sale includes the original product box and everything that came in it including the front and rear lens caps and the zippered case. Insured ground shipping via major courier is also included.

Please contact Ivan via e-mail or by phone at (781) 475-8061 (Eastern time).

Loving this lens so much — see today’s blog post to learn why — I am not surprised that this is the first-ever used 1-4II to come up for sale … If you have been lusting after this, lens it will be best to grab this one quickly and save a cool $350. artie

Canon EOS 5D Mark IV

Ivan Kuraev is also offering a Canon EOS 5D Mark IV in excellent plus to near near-mint condition for $2499. The body has been used professionally, but has been cared for exceptionally well. The sale includes the original product box and everything that came in it including the front lens cap and the strap. Insured ground shipping via major courier is also included.

Please contact Ivan via e-mail or by phone at (781) 475-8061 (Eastern time).

What can I say. The 5D IV is my favorite ever digital dSLR. I own and use three of them while my 1DX II sits on the shelf in my garage. If you have been dreaming of a 5D IV, grab Ivan’s camera body right now and save a cool $800. artie

Free but Hugely Important Nature Photography (and Photo-Philosophy) Lessons

At dinner with most of the group on the night before most of us would be flying home, participant and good friend Anita North said to me, “You were really on your game on this trip. Look how many great images you made.” I replied, “I was not on my game any more than usual. And please understand that I do not consider myself talented at all when it comes to nature photography. Success is simply a matter of studying and experimenting, seeing what works for you, paying attention to small detail, and then grinding it out.” First you learn to spot the good situations and then you follow up by executing what you have learned. And you do that by following the simple directions.

For two weeks on the Galapagos IPT I emphasized the following points repeatedly:

1: To create tight head portraits it is generally best to hand hold an intermediate telephoto lens, add the 1.4X TC, get low, and choose an off-center upper AF point.

The birds are silly tame so getting low makes a close approach easy. Adding a TC enables you to keep a respectful distance. And getting low helps to create those pleasing, out-of-focus BIRDS AS ART backgrounds. Choosing an off-center upper AF point allows you to create a pleasing image design. If you insist on staying with the center AF point you will have too much dead space above and behind the bird’s head and will be wasting lots of pixels that could be put to better use on the bird’s head! (See images 2, 3, 8, and 9).

2: In pre-dawn or in very low light you can use Tv (Shutter Priority) Mode with great effectiveness. Simply choose a shutter speed that you are confident will yield sharp images for you and then enter the correct exposure compensation. I keep ISO Safety Shift set on all of my cameras so in the low light I set the ISO to 400 –in low light situations the camera will raise the ISO as needed to fit your specifications (as it did dramatically with Image # 7). You can get the same results by setting Auto ISO.

Image #5: 1/500 sec., -1/3 stop EC, ISO 400. Image #6: 1/500 sec., +2 stops EC, the camera raised the ISO to 500. Image #7: 1/1000 sec., +2 2/3 stops EC, the camera raised the ISO to 2500.

3: When working at point blank range near the minimum focusing distance of the lens, be sure to stop down for a bit of extra depth-of-field.

Remember that wide open is f/8 with an f/5.6 lens and a 1.4X TC. Image #1, no TC: f/11. Image #2, with TC: f/11. Image #3, with TC: f/11. Image #4, with TC, f/16. Image #8, with TC: f/10. Image #9, with TC: f/11.

4: When working with an evenly toned scene and subject, working in Av (aperture priority) Mode allows you to select the aperture and EC that you need and then fire away at will.

Image #1: f/11 with +1 EC.

#5: When the sun is strong enough to create shadows it is generally best to point your shadow directly at the subject.

As with images 2, 3, 8, and 9.

There you have it. Recipes for improving your nature photography. Study and experiment. Look at as many great images as you can. See what works for you. Pay attention to small detail. And then grind it out.” Learn to spot the good situations and then follow that up up by executing what you have learned and practiced. You can learn to do all of those things by following the simple directions. And by attending as many IPTs as possible …

It thrills me when my students pay attention and begin making great images on a consistent basis. I will be sharing some of those great images with you here in the coming weeks.

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. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.


desoto-fall-card-a-layers

Obviously folks attending the IPT will be out in the field early and stay late to take advantage of sunrise and sunset colors. The good news is that the days are relatively short in October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

The Fort DeSoto 2017 Fall IPT/September 22 (afternoon session) through the full day on September 25, 2017. 3 1/2 FULL DAYs: $1649. Limit 8.

Fort DeSoto, located just south of St. Petersburg, FL, is a mecca for migrant shorebirds and terns in fall. There they join hundreds of egrets, herons, night-herons, gulls, and terns who winter on the T-shaped peninsula that serves as their wintering grounds. With luck, we may get to photograph two of Florida’s most desirable shorebird species: Marbled Godwit and the spectacular Long-billed Curlew. Black-bellied Plover and Willet are easy, American Oystercatcher almost guaranteed. Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Tricolored Heron are easy as well and we will almost surely come up with a tame Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or two. We should get to do some Brown Pelican flight photography. And Royal, Sandwich, Forster’s, and Caspian Terns will likely provide us with some good flight opportunities as well. Though not guaranteed Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork would not be unexpected.

Folks who sign up for the IPT are welcome to join us on the ITF/MWS on the morning of Tuesday, September 26 as my guest. See below for details on that.

On the IPT you will learn basics and fine points of digital exposure and to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, how to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them, to understand and predict bird behavior, to identify many species of shorebirds, to spot the good situations, to choose the best perspective, to see and understand the light, and to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system. And you will learn how and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).

There will be a Photoshop/image review session after lunch (included) each day. That will be followed by Instructor Nap Time.

This IPT will run with only a single registrant (though that is not likely to happen). The best airport is Tampa (TPA). Though I have not decided on a hotel yet — I will as soon as there is one sign-up — do know that it is always best if IPT folks stay in the same hotel (rather than at home or at a friend’s place).

A $500 deposit is due when you sign up and is payable by credit card. Balances must be paid by check after you register. Your deposit is non-refundable unless the IPT sells out with ten folks so please check your plans carefully before committing. You can register by calling Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand or by sending a check as follows: make the check out to: BIRDS AS ART and send it via US mail here: BIRDS AS ART, PO BOX 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855. You will receive a confirmation e-mail with detailed instructions, gear advice, and instructions for meeting on the afternoon of Friday, September 22.


desoto-fall-card-b

Fort DeSoto in fall is rich with tame birds. All of the images in this card were created at Fort DeSoto in either late September or early October. I hope that you can join me there this October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

BIRDS AS ART In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session (ITF/MWS): $99.

Join me on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for 3-hours of photographic instruction at Fort DeSoto Park. Beginners are welcome. Lenses of 300mm or longer are recommended but even those with 70-200s should get to make some nice images. Teleconverters are always a plus.

You will learn the basics of digital exposure and image design, autofocus basics, and how to get close to free and wild birds. We should get to photograph a variety of wading birds, shorebirds, terns, and gulls. This inexpensive afternoon workshop is designed to give folks a taste of the level and the quality of instruction that is provided on a BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-tour. I hope to meet you there.

To register please call Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand to pay the nominal non-refundable registration fee. You will receive a short e-mail with instructions, gear advice, and meeting place at least two weeks before the event.


fort-desoto-card

BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT.

Fort DeSoto Site Guide

Can’t make the IPT? Get yourself a copy of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide. Learn the best spots, where to be when in what season in what weather. Learn the best wind directions for the various locations. BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. You can see all of them here.






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 :).

August 24th, 2017

Wishing and Hoping, A Good Eye and a Neat Situation, and Don't Leave Home Without It ...

What’s Up?

After waking at 2:30am in Guayaquil and working on yesterday’s blog post, roomie Loren Waxman and I took the 4am shuttle to GYE as we were both on the AA flight to Miami. Smooth as silk. We waited a long time for our bags in customs to re-check them to our final destinations, Portland for Loren, Orlando for me. My connection was tight. After checking the board, I took the new Skytrain at MIA to Gate 8D. No air conditioning on the train … When I got to the gate I learned the the plane was no good but that a new plane was waiting at Gate D-50. Back on the steaming hot Skytrain. “We have a plane but it will take a while to get the luggage off the first plane onto the new plane.” Thirty minutes later, “Most of the luggage is aboard but we are one flight attendant short so we cannot board you.” Thirty minutes later. “We have a full crew but there is a mechanical problem with this plane.” Thirty minutes later, “We are good to go but the field is closed because of thunderstorms and lightning.” I finally got to MCO at about 5:30pm and then promptly waited 45 minutes for my bags to come out; they were the last two.

Jim did get us safely home at 7:45pm. It was a long travel day 🙂

I Was glad to learn of these recent Used Gear sales:

Multiple IPT veteran Carlotta Grenier sold her Canon EOS-1DX camera body in excellent condition for $2358 and a never used Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens for Canon EF in better than like-new condition for the BAA record low price of $998.

Eric Karl sold his Canon EOS 5D Mark III body in very good plus condition with extras for $1,300 in mid-August.

600 II Coming Soon …

Stay tuned as there will be a like-new Canon 600 II up for sale very soon. Please shoot me an e-mail if you would like advance notice.

Price Drop

Canon EOS-1D Mark III Professional Digital Camera Body

Price Reduced $50 on August 2, 2017.

David R. Gibson (the original owner) is offering a Canon EOS-1D Mark III in near-mint condition but for a few very faint scratches on the rear LCD for only $549 (was $599). The sale includes the front cap, the Canon LP-E4 Rechargeable Lithium Ion and the charger, the Canon camera body manual & pocket guide, a new Canon Pro Neck Strap 1, a Sandisk 8GB Ultra Compact Flash memory card, and insured ground shipping via UPS to US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears, unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact David via e-mail or by phone at 1-757-816-2825 (Eastern time).

Two EOS-1D Mark IIIs served as my workhorse camera bodies for more than 2 years. I created thousands of consistently sharp, saleable images with them. B&H currently has a used 1D III in excellent condition (8+) for $799.95; that makes David’s body a superb buy. As with my two 1D III bodies, David never experienced any AF problems. artie

The Streak

Today marks thirty-one days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about an hour to create. My plan right now with all of my upcoming free time is to break the current record streak of (I think) four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I recently updated the IPT page. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is I now have two folks registered for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was at James Bay, Puerto Egas on the 2017 Galapagos IPT with Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM lens and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering at -2/3 stop: 1/125 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode. AWB.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: +5.

One AF point to the left and five 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 placed slightly below the bird’s eye.

Image #1: Galapagos Hawk perched on lava rock.

Wishing and Hoping

Kidney transplant surgeon Ajit Huilgol who had made the trip from India with his good friend M.N. Jayakumar, a retired forestry manager, had been hoping for a photographable Galapagos Hawk for two weeks. Also on his wish list was Galapagos Fur Seal. And my roomie, Loren Waxman, had been wishing for a nice male Yellow Warbler for two weeks. On the morning of our last full day all of those prayers were answered. In spades. The fur seals were expected and dependable at this location; the other two were very nice bonuses.

A Good Eye and a Neat Situation

The tide was very low when we landed at James Bay, Puerto Egas and it was dead calm as well. Many in the group had been hoping to do some pleasing blurs of wave-washed Sally Lightfoot crabs but that was simply not gonna happen. Our naturalist/guide Juan scoped out the beach in both directions with his bins and quickly announced that there were three Galapagos Hawks surrounding a sea lion waiting to scavenge the placenta after a very recent birth. We made our way down the beach to the east and approached with care. I had opted to carry my 500 II along with the 100-400 II and the 500mm of reach at f/4 was perfect for the low light conditions. The trick for the exposure with the dark background and the dark bird was to avoid significant blinkies on the yellow on the bird’s bill. I started at f/4 but with the bird posing as if it were a statue I dropped down to f/5.6 for a bit of extra depth-of-field. I varied my backgrounds by moving a bit right or left and lowering or raising the tripod. Today’s featured Image #1 was my favorite from the series.

This image was created at the same location with the hand held Canon 24-105mm f/4 L IS lens (now replaced by the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS II USM lens) at 50mm and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering: 1/125 sec. at f/5.6. AWB.

Center AF point/AI Servo/Expand rear button AF on the mother sea lion’s face and re-compose. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial.

Image #2: Galapagos Sea Lion, newborn pup, the placenta, and Galapagos Hawk

Don’t Leave Home Without It …

I’ve said here many times, “Whenever I opt to head into the field without my 24-105 I usually come to regret it quite quickly.” When I muttered, “Yikes, I see a great image with a 24-105 but I left mine on the ship,” participant Frank Sheets offered to loan me his. I approached slowly so as to get over the big rock in the foreground; momma sea lion was sitting in a bit of a crevice in the rocks. As the light had not changed, I went with the same exposure setting that I had used for the hawk portrait and then checked the histogram which looked just fine. As the hawk got closer and closer the mother sea lion lunged at it a few times possibly thinking that the predator was after her pup rather than after the afterbirth. My shutter speed was too low for any action shots and the angle was much better for those to my left. After a while all three of the hawks took off, and so did my group. When we returned several hours later the placenta had been completely devoured.

Your Favorite?

Which of today’s featured images do you like best? Be sure to let us know why.

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. 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 :).

August 23rd, 2017

A Unique Red-billed Tropicbird Image and the Absolutely Amazing Versatility of the Canon 100-400mm II Lens

What’s Up?

The 2017 Galapagos IPT was the best ever. We had memorable photographic opportunities for virtually 15 straight days, a group of 12 eager to learn nature photographers, and the world’s greatest-by-far Galapagos leader. Aside from Juan Salcedo’s encyclopedic knowledge of everything Galapagos (and more), his pleasant manner, his understanding of photography and photographic situations, his ability to spot even distant situations that might be worth exploring added tremendously to the group’s experience. I will be returning in late-July 2019. Those dates are firm and will be announced here soon. Please shoot me an e-mail if you are interested in joining us. The trip will need eight photographers signed up by next spring to run. Right now it looks as if two of the folks on this year’s trip will be returning …

After a great landing at North Seymour we flew back to Guayaquil yesterday, Tuesday, August 22 and were in the hotel at about 4:30pm. Most of us met for an early dinner. I was in bed and asleep by 7:30pm and up working on this blog post at 2:00 am. Those (including me) on AA 948 to Miami will be on the 4:00am shuttle. Jim will be picking me up at MCO at about 3:00pm. After a refueling stop at Publix in Lake Wales we should be home at about 5:00pm.

As I have a ton to share with you, expect lots of great images from the trip in coming weeks. I will be catching up on e-mails and Used Gear stuff in the next few days and will then be working on my 2016 tax return. Right now the only thing that I have scheduled before San Diego is the DeSoto Fall IPT and the ITF Morning Meet-up Workshop that follows it.

with love, artie

The Streak

Today marks thirty days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about an hour to create. My plan right now with all of my free time is to break the current record streak of four hundred eighty something … Good health and good internet connections willing.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on the 2017 Galapagos IPT with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 241mm) and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering (probably at about -1/3 stop as framed: 1/2000 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode. The EXIF shows Custom WB; I have no idea where that came from …

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -3.

Bottom Large Zone/AI Servo/Shutter button AF as presented was active at the moment of exposure. The system selected two AF points that fell on the eye and the base of the bill of the bird on the bottom of the frame.

Red-billed Tropicbirds (probably at pair) squabbling on a cliff ledge. South Plaza Island, Galapagos, Ecuador.

The Situation

Photographing Red-billed Tropicbirds in the Galapagos is a huge challenge. They are a bit easier on Hood Island where the cliffs are a lot lower and the flight patterns are more predictable than on South Plaza. We struggled in high winds photographing backlit birds overhead. I continued along the high cliffs and finally found a spot where a few tropicbirds were angling in trying to land. I made a few decent flight images but failed miserably on some spectacular chances at point blank range. I noticed one bird land successfully (and and out of sight) high on the vertical rock face about fifteen feet to my right. I gingerly made my way over to the edge of the cliff. I had been photographing the birds in flight at 1/3200 second at f/5.6 in Manual mode so as I approached the spot where I might be able to get a peek at the bird I lowered the shutter speed two clicks as I knew that there would be less light on the cliffs than there had been in the sky. That guesstimate turned out to be perfect.

When I looked over the cliff I was excited to see a tropicbird almost directly below me, perhaps a foot or two to my left. I struggled to frame an image of the whole bird and fired off two images but they failed as the cliff had slightly blocked my view of the bird’s head. Then another tropicbird, probably the bird’s mate, landed. Instinctively I acquired focus and fired off two quick frames. The second was completely mis-framed but the first resulted in a unique image (to say the least). Images of perched Red-billed Tropicbirds are extremely rare and I have never seen an image anywhere similar to this one.

As is typical of birds when they are fighting, both tropicbirds had their nictitating membranes in place. As I had my lens pointed almost straight down I was unsure at first of whether to present this image as a horizontal or a vertical but as it did not make much sense visually as a horizontal the decision turned out to be an easy one.

The Absolutely Amazingly Versatile Canon 100-400mm II

I took the 1-4 II ashore on every landing and on every panga (zodiac) ride. I used it to create probably 80% of my keepers (roughly half the time with the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III and almost always hand held). I used it as a flight and action lens, as a portrait lens, as a macro lens, and as scenic lens. And I used to to create more than a few pleasing blurs. I made many landings with only the 100-400 II (with the 1.4X III TC in my fanny pack). It would be entirely conceivable to make a Galapagos trip with only this great lens. As I left my 1DX II at home all of my Galapagos images were created with one of my three Canon EOS 5D Mark IV bodies.

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. 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 :).

August 22nd, 2017

A Fabulous DAY 1 in Guayaquil. And the story of Miracle Merle ...

What’s Up?

I have been without internet access since 8 AUG. I should be back online late today. I look forward to re-connecting with y’all soon.

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty-nine days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

Guayaquil: DAY 1

A Fabulous DAY 1 in Guayaquil, Ecuador

IPT veterans Frank and Laurie Sheets arrived several days early, did some photo scouting, and shared what they found much to the groups benefit. The Sheets had spotted a hillside right behind the hotel covered with colorful houses. They thought that we might have been able to photograph it from the pool level but the great view was blocked completely by a slatted glass wall. Then hotel staff member Charles came to the rescue. He showed me a wide open sub-roof one floor up from the swimming pool with a completely clear view. The group — all but Merle Greenway that is — assembled there at 9:30am for an introductory session. Wow, did we have fun. Kathy Tyson looked behind us and inspired us with her architectural images.

After lunch — the food at your hotel was consistently superb — we grabbed a few cabs and headed to the Parque de las Iguanas to photograph the iguanas. Again we had a blast. Though we were the only photographers getting a few good images was a challenge for three main reasons: the environment was cluttered, hundreds of local families were out enjoying the iguanas (most feeding them lettuce leaves), and the animals did not stay in one spot for very long.

The images above, just nine of my 71 keepers, were all made on our layover day, Monday August 6th, with one of my three Canon EOS 5D Mark IV bodies with the following lenses: the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS, Canon EF 8-15mm f/4L Fisheye USM and the amazingly versatile Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II (that was used for all of the iguana images).

We flew to the archipelago on Tuesday, August 8 to begin our great adventure.

The story of Miracle Merle …

IPT newbie Merle Greenway was one of the very first to sign up for the trip nearly two years ago. He was supposed to be on the last flight out of Miami on Sunday August 6. That evening I received this e-mail from him at 10:49 that day.

Hi, It’s now 11:45 p.m. And I’m stuck in Miami. Flight AA927 has been delayed repeatedly since 6:05 p.m and they just announced another 2-hour delay. Any advice? Next one is tomorrow evening, and I am not sure I can get on it. Merle

And then the next one at 3:16am on the 7th:

They stuck me in a Sheraton. Yesterday’s flight is supposed to be go at 11:00am this morning. Merle

And then at 11:00am on Tuesday AUG 7:

During the hours-long delay last night, it appears my passport was stolen, along with my other ID, credit cards, cash, etc. The Miami passport office is closed due to flooding. It’s doubtful I’ll be joining you. Merle

That seemed to be about the end of the line for Merle. The key phrases being “appears my passport was stolen …” and “seemed to be.”

Then, at 2:39pm that day:

New news. I’m on AA933 arriving this evening and my bag is on the next flight this evening, I believe AA927 (not sure of number), arriving at 9:30- something. Will explain later. Merle

Merle made it. His bags made it. How? He was on his way to the airport to get tickets for his flights home. Then he decided to make one last-ditch effort to find his passport. He made a list of all the possibilities. He had already asked at the Sheraton if they had found his passport. “Nope.” After all the other possibilities were exhausted, he called the Sheraton back. “Yes, we have your passport. It was in the manager’s office. Sorry.”

And thus began the tale of Miracle Merle.

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. 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 :).

August 21st, 2017

Tips on Pattern Images ...

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty-eight days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on the 2017 Japan IPT with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 153mm) and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2 stops as framed: 1/640 sec. at f/8 in Manual mode. Daylight WB.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: +3.

One AF point down from the center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as originally framed was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was a bit down from the center of the frame.

Snow Monkeys foraging for seed on snow

Tips on Pattern Images …

My #1 tip for photographing medium sized groups of birds, flowers, or monkeys is to seek out patterns without merges. For today’s image of a group of monkeys on a hillside I did not have to wait long. The individual Snow Monkeys were nicely spaced out on the hill so my main concern was with the framing. That was controlled by zooming in and out till everything looked good. In this case I made only two or three images.

If two of the monkeys had been merged eliminating one of the two in post would have been a difficult proposition because of the fur … With larger groups you can always remove one or two or three whatevers that are cut by the frame edge during post processing.

Hard Question …

What is the one monkey merge that I could do without in this image?

Jigokudani Monkey Park

The famed Jigokudani Monkey Park is about an hour outside of Tokyo. I remember the night before the first time I climbed that big hill. I went to bed dreaming of photographing the monkeys soaking in the natural hots springs and forage for leaves and stems of of low growing bushes and the trees on the hillsides. Surprise! As it turned out, the Monkey Park is really just a big zoo. The natural springs? They turned out to be large manmade rock bathtubs. And while on occasion you will see a Snow Monkey dining on parts of a hemlock, most of them subsist on grain spread by the zookeepers who, by the way, call the monkeys down from the hillsides for breakfast with plastic whistles. Please do not take this as a criticism. Many decades ago the local farmers hatched a plan to kill all the Snow Monkeys as they were eating their crops, apples, and grapes and nuts, perhaps. A local man intervened and came up with a plan to capture, re-locate, and fence in most of the monkeys and feed them with grain. And that is exactly what happened and exactly what carries on to this day.

Still, I have enjoyed photographing at Jigokudani. I have entered several of my Snow Monkey images into prestigious contests (without success). Do understand that every year a Snow Monkey image from the park is honored in one or more major photographic competitions. Realize however, that things are not always as they seem. I will not,however, be climbing that hill anymore. If I do ever return to Japan to do an IPT, my two great loves, the Red-crowned Cranes and the two species of sea eagles, will be on the menu, perhaps with a side order of Whooper Cranes.

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.

Everything mentioned above plus tons and tons more is detailed in the new 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. Just so you know, 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.

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. 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 :).

August 20th, 2017

The Soft/Sharp Nut ...

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty-seven days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created from two images made on the on the 2017 Palouse IPT with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2 stops: one was t f/2.8, the other at f/16. Both in Av mode with Daylight WB.

I used my still flower technique: Live View (for mirror lock-up) and the 2-second timer. Flexi-zone AF with the square right on the KS.

The Soft/Sharp Nut Combo(I think it’s a nut …) on old farm machinery

A Soft/Sharp Combo

In a recent blog post I shared an f/2.8 version of this image and an f/16 version of this image and asked if anyone had any ideas as far as combining the the two. Above is what I came up with. (Note: I forgot to mention that the two original images were in-camera Art Vivid JPEGs.)

How I Did It

For those familiar with layer masking this is pretty much easy-peasy. I opened both images in Photoshop and hit my Command F to separate the two and put them in framed view. Working with the soft image I hit Command J to duplicate it. Then I used the Move Tool to place it on top of the sharp image. Lining up the two images was more difficult than I thought that it would be; my usual trick of reducing the opacity of the top layer did not work very well as the soft image was so defocused that nothing lined up very well. So I resorted to going back to 100% opacity and then nudged the soft image while clicking the eyeball for the soft image on and off and on again. After about twenty attempts I was happy with the alignment. Next I added a Regular Layer mask and after hitting BDX to erase, I painted in the sharp stuff below with a large brush. Once I had revealed the detail that I wanted I merged the two layers and then using the Spot Healing Brush and the Patch Tool I eliminated most of the sharp specks and left the cracked paint lines.

What Do You Think?

What do you think of my soft/sharp creation? Do you have any suggestions for improvement during the post processing?

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.

Everything mentioned above plus tons and tons more is detailed in the new 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. Just so you know, 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.

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. 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 :).

August 19th, 2017

Nuts (and Bolts) Examples of Depth of Field

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty-six days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on the 2017 Palouse IPT with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2 stops: 1/100 sec. at f/2.8 in Av mode. Daylight WB.

I used my still flower technique: Live View (for mirror lock-up) and the 2-second timer. Flexi-zone AF with the square right on the KS.

Image #1: Nut (I think it’s a nut …) on old farm machinery

Depth of Field at f/2.8

Notice that at f/2.8 only the top of the nut is in sharp focus.

This image was created on the 2017 Palouse IPT with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2 stops: 1/3 sec. at f/16 in Av mode. Daylight WB.

I used my still flower technique: Live View (for mirror lock-up) and the 2-second timer. Flexi-zone AF with the square right on the KS.

Image #2: Nut (I think it’s a nut …) on old farm machinery

Depth of Field at f/16/h3>

Notice that at f/16 the depth of field has increased tremendously. Note only is the top of the subject in sharp focus but the cracks in the paint and the blemishes on the machinery are all rendered sharp.

This principle comes into play in bird photography when you stop down even a bit, to f/8 or f/11, you will –depending on the distance to the BKGR — bring up unwanted background detail.

Your Choice?

Which of the two images do you like best, the one at f/2.8 or the one at f/16?

If you have any ideas on combining the two images, please share them by leaving a comment.


flower-guide-cover-1200-w

The Art of Flower Photography, a 203 page eBook/a link to the PDF will be sent via e-mail: $29.00.

The Art of Flower Photography

My still flower technique and tons more is covered in detail in this great e-book by Denise Ippolito and yours truly. Learn everything that you ever want to know about flower photography but were afraid to ask (and lots more as well) by getting your copy here. You can learn more about this e-book and see lots of our great images in the Tour de Force blog post 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. 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 :).

August 18th, 2017

A Horse Above the Bear ... Art Vivid at its Best

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty-five days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This in-camera Art Vivid HDR image (Auto Dynamic range)was created on the 2017 Bear Boat IPT with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and my favorite looks like a horse’s head photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1 2/3 stops around a base exposure of 1/1000 sec. at f/7.1 in Manual mode. Daylight WB.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -2.

One row above and two to the left of the center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. I picked that AF point so that it would be right on the spot where the horse’s eye might have been, if it were in fact a horse’s head. Click on the image to see a larger version

Mountain-top and snow patterns resembling a horse’s head. Or not?

Art Vivid at its Best

I first spotted this “horse’s head” from the ship. It is part of the top of a mountain high above the meadow at Hallo Bay, a meadow that is pretty much filled with bears in mid-July. We saw 21 bears one day. In any case, I photographed the horse’s head with a variety of lenses on several occasions both hand holding and off the tripod. I am not sure why I decided to create an in-camera Art vivid image but I am glad that I did. All in all I created about 100 images of the alleged horse’s head. I deleted all but this one as the mountain was simply too black with almost no detail. Being on the tripod (with Auto align properly disabled) the image quality is quite good.

I am pretty sure that most of the snow that you see in the image is part of a glacier. And heck, there is a lot of geology going on up there. If you are knowledgeable in that area, please do share.

Your Thoughts?

Feel free to critique this image. Let us know what you like and what you don’t like. Could it have been improved in the field? Could it have been improved in post-processing?

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. 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 :).

August 17th, 2017

Mistakes Times Three!

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty-four days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This in-camera Art Vivid HDR image (Dynamic range: +/- 2 stops) was created on the 2017 UK Puffins and Gannets IPT with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 312m) and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1/3 stop around a base exposure of 1/400 sec. at f/8 in Manual mode. WB = K 4,500.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: +1.

Center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. Click on the image to see a larger version

Black-legged Kittiwakes nesting on wall of the ruins of historic Fort Dunbar (at the harbor entrance)

The Problems with in-camera Art Vivid JPEGs

As stated here previously, when viewed large, the image quality of in-camera HDR JPEGs will always be poorer than the image quality of a sharp RAW file. That as a result of how the image is put together in-camera. There will always be some color fringing and if anything is moving, there will be signs of mis-alignment. So why do I continue to create in-camera HDR images? When using Art Vivid, especially with the WB lowered to tone down the colors a bit, the impact of HDR Art Vivid captures can be quite dramatic. Why? Because of the vivid colors (even when toned down).

If you enlarge the full sized JPEG for today’s featured image to 100%, you will see lots of color fringing and lots of mis-alignment with both the birds and the bricks.

Mistakes Times Two!

I made lots of images of this wall this year. Many of them were made on the tripod with the Mongoose. Mistake #1 was made during the creation of this image: the Auto Align feature was turned off. When hand holding, this is a big mistake.

Mistakes #s 2and 3 were made during the final edit. After the first two edits I had saved about 8 similar images. At least a few of those were RAW files. (I set up my in-camera HDRs to Save all files not just the final JPEGs). During the final edit I deleted all of the images in this series but for the one you see above. I did not enlarge the JPEG that looked best. As it was obviously one that was made hand held, saving that one was a mistake. And not saving at least one RAW file was another big mistake. I could have juiced up the color a bit and added some grunge and wound up with a much higher quality image.

The Good News

It is likely that I have the eight or so images that I saved on a back-up disk that is not back in ILE.

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. 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 :).

August 16th, 2017

Getting Up Early Part III

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty-four days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This in-camera Art Vivid image was created from the boat in Hallo Bay, Katmai National Park on the Bear Boat Cubs IPT with the hand held Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM lens (at 11mm) and my favorite sky photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. Auto Dynamic Range. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 stop as framed yielded a base exposure of 1/200 second at f/4.5 in Manual mode.

Center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/Rear button focus and recompose. I focused on the water about 1/3 of the way into the frame, made sure the image was square to the world by looking at the electronic, in-viewfinder level, and made sure to hold the camera as still as possible. Auto align was enabled. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Two rows down from the center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure.

Do click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

Early morning Art Vivid sky

Getting Up Early … Part III

This image was made well after dawn on July 22, the same morning that I created the Tufted Puffins flock silhouette image. Anita North kindly loaned me her 11-24 so I went to work quickly so that I could return it so she could try some ART VIVID HDRs. I use the Artist’s Brush button to access HDR. I am begging to refer to the 11-24 as the “big sky” lens because I love it when there are clouds up the kazoo.

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.

Everything that I do to optimize all of the images that you see here on the blog plus tons and tons more is detailed in the new 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. Just so you know, 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.

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. 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 :).

August 15th, 2017

Getting Up Early Part II

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty-three days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created in Kukak Bay in Katmai National Park on the Bear Boat Cubs IPT with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 135mm), and my favorite blur photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 50. Evaluative metering +1 stop as framed: 1/8 sec. at f/16 in Tv mode. WB: K800.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -2.

Two rows down from the center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure.

Do click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

Pre-dawn pan blur

As Promised … Part II

Getting up early whenever you are sleeping on a boat on a photography trip can often pays dividends. I always make sure to ask my group, “Who wants to sleep, and who wants to be roused very early in case of a nice pre-dawn sky?” On the bear boat 3 out of five opted for sleep 🙁 Though I never set my alarm, and though the weather overall was not great, I did get lucky more than once when I woke early.

On the morning that I created today’s featured image, July 23, we were again anchored in Hallo Bay — we had gotten very lucky with the winds and the resulting sea condition. The colors on the water were actually nicer than the colors in the sky so I pointed my lens down to take advantage of that. Only Mark Harrington was out on deck with me at the time. When I showed him what I was doing he was eager to learn how I make these. So I shared. With this one I stuck with the out of camera color at 8000 K.

Custom Setting 2

On each of my three 5D Mark IV bodies I use Custom Setting 1 or my LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjusting settings. What a time save that is. And, I use Custom setting 2 for my blur pre-set: Highlight Tone Priority off, ISO 50, +1 stop EC, and TV mode with the shutter speed set to 1/15 sec. One quick twist of the dial and I am good to go.

The funny thing with this image …

The funny thing with this image is that most of the images that I created showed only the water with the blurred wavelets. I made only a few that included the distant shoreline with the low mountains.

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.

Everything that I do to optimize all of the images that you see here on the blog plus tons and tons more is detailed in the new 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. Just so you know, 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.

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. 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 :).

August 14th, 2017

Getting Up Early Part I

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty-two days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created from the boat in Hallo Bay, Katmai National Park on the Bear Boat Cubs IPT with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens with the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III (at 318m) and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering -1/3 stop as framed: 1/320 sec. at f/9 in Av mode. WB: K8000.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: zero.

Two rows down and three AF points to the left of the center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point just caught the forward part of the Orca’s fin and was the key to the success of this image.

Do click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

Tufted Puffins, small flock at dawn

Getting Up Early Part I

Getting up early whenever you are sleeping on a boat on a photography trip can often pays dividends. I always make sure to ask my group, “Who wants to sleep, and who wants to be roused very early in case of a nice pre-dawn sky?” On the bear boat 3 out of five opted for sleep 🙁 Though I never set my alarm and though the weather overall was not great, I did get lucky more than once.

On the morning in question, July 22, we were anchored in Hallo Bay. I was glad to see the red skies and its reflection in the still waters of the bay. I was thrilled when I moved towards the bow of the Coastal Explorer III and saw a string of puffins in a pretty darned good spot.

I almost always set a high color temperature like K7500 or K8000 to enhance the colors of nice sunrises and sunsets. For this image the colors were so rich that I toned them down by working with the slider in the Adjust image tab reducing both Saturation and Luminosity in the REDs and ORANGEs. I also used a Curves adjustment to lighten the water.

Exposure Question

Why was -1/3 stop needed for this image?

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.

Everything that I do to optimize all of the images that you see here on the blog plus tons and tons more is detailed in the new 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. Just so you know, 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.

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. 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 :).

August 13th, 2017

What was it? No real clue here ...

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty-two days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created in the harbor at Kodiak, AK while seated on a wet dock with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 142mm) and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1 stop as framed: 1/400 sec. at f/7.1 in Manual mode. Cloudy WB.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -2.

Center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure.

Who knows?

What was it? No real clue here …

In the Improving Your Bird Photography. And What the ??? Do you like it? blog post here, I asked about the image above, “What is it?”

Kevin Hice came close when he wrote, Hello Artie, like the colors. Side of a boat. He would have been prefect if he had stopped there but he continued: Top right seems to be the clasp where they tie down.

I responded, Getting closer, but there is no cleat in the image. with love, artie

And that was it …

So what was it? It, was the side of a boat. But I have no clue as to how the colors and the pattern formed. I liked it so much that I was gonna go back and shoot it at a smaller aperture on the tripod the next morning in Kodiak, but alas, it poured all morning. BTW, the other side of the boat was painted plain white … Later that day we made it to the bear boat and enjoyed a great afternoon with a bear, a fox, the harbor seals, and several cooperative Orcas.

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.

Everything mentioned above plus tons and tons more is detailed in the new 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. Just so you know, 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.

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. 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 :).

August 12th, 2017

I Would Love to Find One of These at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge ... Heck, it would be possible.

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty-one days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created in Iceland on July 21, 2017 by UK Puffins and Gannets IPT participant Tony Zielinski. He used the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 400mm) and the greatest value ever in a digital camera body, the Canon EOS 7D Mark II. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/500 sec. at f/7.1 in Manual mode. Cloudy WB.

The center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as originally framed was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point fell on the front of the bird’s breast. This image is a healthy crop from the original.

Black-tailed Godwit, fresh juvenile, Iceland. Image courtesy of and copyright 2017: Tony Zielinski

I Would Love to Find One of These at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge … Heck, it would be possible.

There is at least one record of adult Black-tailed Godwit in the northeast. My late friend, bird photography inspiration, and shorebird ID mentor, Thomas H. Davis, once saw all four godwit species at Forsythe NWR (then Brigantine NWR) on a single day: Marbled, Hudsonian, Bar-tailed, and Black-tailed. Tom used to say, “If you live long enough all of the world’s migrant shorebirds will show up at the refuge (meaning Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Queens, NY). The following mega rarities have occurred at JBWR, most on the East Pond: Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Little Stint, Red-necked Stint (then Rufous-necked Stint), and Broad-billed Sandpiper. In addition, the following rare species are seen once every few years: Curlew Sandpiper and Ruff.

Tom wound up hemi-plegic after suffering a cerebral aneurism in his doctor’s office at age 39. He was twice taken to the East Pond to try for his last lifebird and was successful on the second attempt when he saw New York State’s first-ever Rufous-necked Stint, the very bird that I had found and identified two weeks before. He died shortly after that at age 41 I believe.

Juvenile Shorebirds

Juvenile shorebirds, especially those in fresh plumage, i.e., really young birds about four weeks or less out of the nest, always exhibit neatly fringed feathers with rufous or buff edgings. This gives them a warm, evenly patterned look, just as seen on the bird in Tony’s image. The same is true of juvenile gulls and terns, and of juvenile raptors (to mention only a few bird families). Hey, the bill on Tony’s bird is not fully grown; in another six weeks it will be about 5-6 inches long, just like the bill of its parents. Actually, the adult males of this species have bills that average well shorter than the bills of the females. This is typical of most shorebirds. To learn more about aging and identify the shorebirds of North America, check out my Shorebirds, Beautiful Beachcombers here.

The Sibley Guide to Birds

When Tony asked me to ID the bird in his images, I first turned to my Sibley. I was not sure if the bird was a young bar-tailed Godwit or a young Black-tailed Godwit. The Sibley Guide enabled me to make an accurate ID simply by looking at his paintings and comparing the two. Simply put, this is the gold standard for identification guides to the birds of North America. I consult mine often. Sibley’s artwork is fantastic on its own, and paintings are alway more consistently accurate for ID purposes than photographs.

Shorebirds: An Identification Guide to the Waders of the World (in paperback): Prater, Hayman, & Marchant

This great and immensely detailed guide has been my shorebird bible since 1986. My hard copy is worn and frayed and the binding has come loose. This book is only for seriously addicted shorebird loonies like me. New and entry-level students are directed instead to my Shorebirds, Beautiful Beachcombers to learn the basics of identifying and aging North American shorebirds.

More e-mail conversations with Tony

TZ: Wow! Those 3 Whimbrel shots are fantastic.

am: They are my best in 34 years 🙂

TZ: They are way better than the ones i captured on a hike (hand-held at 400mm while walking, very cloudy day; unfortunately camera shake made them less-than-sharp, and standing while shooting made the background rather busy. Had I stopped and squatted or laid down i could have got some separation with the background as well as getting a steadier hand. See, I did learn something 🙂

am: Getting low is almost always a good plan.

TZ: And Thanks Artie, that is very kind of you to say. I really enjoyed meeting you too and spending time with you.

am: kind but true 🙂

TZ: Galapagos 2019 with my family, eh? That would be awesome. Give me time to get my wife on board (pun not intended). I am not sure if I mentioned this, but I gave my wife my backup camera (a 7D) for the Iceland trip and she discovered a real love of photography! And her trip pictures were quite good. My daughter is the bird lover, but so far not she is not interested much in photography. Anyway, I’ll be trying to get at least one of them interested in going to the Galapagos!

am: That would be beyond awesome.

(Note: I first heard from Tony in May of 2016 when he wrote asking for gear advice. He kindly used my B&H affiliate link to purchase the 100-400 II and the 7D II that I recommended. And as they say, the rest is history.)

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. 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 :).

August 11th, 2017

A Most Happy Camper ... And face photography tips

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks twenty days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on the boat on the way to Staple Island on the 2017 UK Puffins and Gannets IPT with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 220mm) and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +3 stops off the light grey sky: 1/1600 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode. Daylight WB.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: +1.

Center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF as originally framed was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point fell on the inside corner of Tony’s right eye. This image was cropped a bit from the left and the right and a bit more from above.

Happy camper Tony Zielinski

Photographing Faces on Cloudy Days on an Open Boat

Photographing faces on cloudy days on an open boat is a great way to learn and have fun. Most times you will wind up underexposing your images quite a bit as the white sky fools the meter. Try this approach for light skinned folks: meter the gray sky, open up three full stops, set that manually, and then make a single exposure. If you have any blinkies try a faster shutter speed by one-third increments until no more blinkies. For dark skinned folks you will need to go even lighter. Either way, having a few blinkies on white clothing will usually not be too terrible.

Take care with your selected AF point. With a rocking boat it can be difficult to get the selected AF point on a corner of the eye or the bridge of the subject’s nose (where it should be).

As you can imagine by Tony’s beatific, serene smile, he is one happy camper.

Unsolicited via e-mail from Tony

First, an e-mail to the IPT Group

Hi Everyone, I’m finally back in Toronto after touring Scotland and Iceland (post-IPT). I had a really great experience on the IPT. I learned a ton (often including old habits to break), and I MUST spend some time now documenting as much of what I learned as possible so that don’t forget most of it before my next opportunity to get out there with a camera. It was a great a pleasure to meet you all and get you know you a little. It was great meeting people who are so passionate about birds, nature, and photography. I hope that we can keep in touch.

I’m really impressed with how you guys all deal with such a huge volume of photos. I am still swimming through the thousands of photos that I didn’t delete while we were in the UK, and it may take me a while longer before i can isolate the 5 to share and for Arthur to critique. I’ll commit to getting that done in the next week or two (before the eclipse), or else it will never get done. Again, thank you all; that was an amazing week! Best regards, Tony

Next,an e-mail to the me

Hi Arthur, I wanted again to say thank you for everything. That Puffin IPT trip was fantastic. At times it was overwhelming, and sometimes the lessons seemed repetitive, but that’s exactly what I needed to learn the skills and retain the knowledge so that it wasn’t immediately forgotten during my flights to Iceland and then home.

Two of the birds that I didn’t get proper shots of in the UK, fulmars and oystercatcher, I found in abundance in Iceland. I was able to apply what I learned and get some good shots of them there. I got some somewhat-ok-shots of a whimbrel too. I know that they migrate through Toronto but I had never seen one before. Additionally, we found a place in Iceland where the puffins were nesting right next to the path at the top of a cliff, so my daughter and wife were able to experience the joy of seeing the puffins up-close. I had described that to them many times by e-mail while on the IPT! It was one of the highlights of their trip!

I would like to take you up on your offer of the photo critique, and I’m going to sign up for another IPT next year, perhaps one in Florida (that way I can bring my wife and daughter along so they can visit relatives, and it won’t feel as if I’m vacationing on my own.) Perhaps they might like to join the IPT too, given how much they’re both starting to enjoy photography.

Anyway, I can imagine how jet-lagged you must be, with the amount of travel you do. (I am amazed at your energy and vigor – i am completely bagged right now and ready to sleep for a week, and I wasn’t carrying half what you carried every day.) I hope you get lots of rest before your Galapagos trip. I have several weeks of your blog to read through, so I will catch up on all the goings-on on your Alaska trip, and trust i’ll also be seeing many of your photos from the Puffin trip 🙂

It was a real pleasure meeting you, Artie. Thanks again for everything. Best, Tony

My Reply to Tony

Hi Chris 🙂 I mean Hi Tony, (sorry, that’s an inside joke …)

Thanks for the e-mail 🙂 I am in the middle of answering your previous one but have a bit more work to do before I get to that one; you inspired me finish my third edit of the UK Puffins IPT folder. I eventually got down to only 274 images for the entire trip. Thanks for your kind words regarding the IPT. Thy are greatly appreciated. Many folks need repetitive 🙂 Whimbrels are not easy in Florida but I got some great stuff on them in San Diego last year; my three faves are attached; sorry, I could not pick just one …

Your puffin experience with your wife and daughter sounded wonderful. My late wife, Elaine, loved the birds (but she did not photograph). I look forward to receiving your images for critiquing. I hope to meet your wife and daughter either in FL or on an IPT somewhere.
Sounds great. I look forward to meeting them. As far as my jet-lag, I still feel whipped here and there. I did sleep eight hours last night with just one pit stop so I am doing better 🙂

Thanks again for your kind words. Please know that when I say that you are one of the nicest, sweetest people I have ever met, that I was not BS-ing you. Your smile and your helpful, easy-going attitude and manner made every minute that we spent together a pleasure. And your help was greatly appreciated as well.

Hey, here is some long-range food for thought — I am looking to do my amazing Galapagos trip one more time in AUG 2019 and I am in search of Happy Campers. It might make the trip of a lifetime for the three of you. Just a thought. For this year’s trip Juan, my great guide, was able to add a third great island to visit twice making three in all. We should be able to duplicate that in 2019.

with much love, artie

ps: I hope that you did not get any great images of Black-tailed Godwit. I went to Iceland just for that bird and pretty much struck out.

(Note: Tony send me several nice images of a bird that he could not identify; I will share his image of a lovely juvenile Black-tailed Godwit in a blog post soon.

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. 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 :).

August 10th, 2017

As Promised ... Part III

What’s Up?

I will be without internet access from 8 AUG through late in the day on 22 AUG. There will be a brand new educational blog post every day in my absence. I toiled long and hard on August 6th and 7th to make that happen 🙂

Please call the office at 863-692-0906 on weekdays and speak to Jim and Jennifer about all things BAA Online Store- and IPT-related. And anything else that you might need help with or would like to chat about.

Please continue to patronize the BAA Online Store and to use my B&H affiliate links. Both are hugely appreciated.

with much love, artie

The Streak

Today marks nineteen days in a row with a new educational blog post. This blog post took about two hours to create.


Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And 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.

Revamped

I finally updated the IPT page to properly reflect the recently completed trips. If you doubt that I am really slowing down do click here to see the meager IPT schedule. Right now there are only two US-based IPTs on the schedule. Best news is that I turned up the missing registrant for the Fort DeSoto IPT so that will run. Do consider joining us if you would like to learn from the best.

Photographers Wanted

If you would like to learn to be a better bird photographer, consider joining me on either the Fort DeSoto IPT in late September or the San Diego IPT in January, 2018. With just one person signed up, DeSoto will offer practically private instruction. And you can tack on the In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for free. Click here for IPT info and the current but abbreviated schedule.



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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created from the skiff in Kukak Bay in Katmai National Park on the Bear Boat Cubs IPT with the hand held 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens (now replaced by the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS II (at 24mm) and my favorite seal photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1 stop as framed: 1/1250 sec. at f/7.1 in Manual mode. Cloudy WB.

LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: +2. (Yes, for the first time I MA-ed a short lens while working on the new guide. There is one mandatory trick.)

Two rows down and one to the right of the center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF was active at the moment of exposure. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

Harbor Seals hauled out on rock, Kukak Bay

As Promised … Part III

I have photographed single Harbor Seals many times before so I opted to try photographing them on this little rocky outcrop with two short lenses, the “circle” lens as I call it, the Canon EF 8-15mm f/4L Fisheye USM , and the reliable old 24-105, my all-time favorite b-roll lens. I shot mostly fish-eye with the circle lens but I liked the images at 24mm much better.

How Many Seals?

Before attempting to count the individual Harbor Seals be sure to enlarge the image. And then leave a comment with your answer.

The Image Optimization

With the yellow seaweed on the rocks, Cloudy WB was not a good choice so I converted the RAW file with Daylight WB. That helped but everything still looked too yellow to me. Th first thing I did to the image after leveling it was to increase the Vibrance 50 points on its own layer. This brought up the color in the distant trees nicely but made the seaweed and the seals even more yellow. To eliminate that problem I reduced the Saturation of the YELLOWs 20 points with a Hue-Saturation adjustment also on a separate layer (Command + J). Then I added a Regular Layer Mask and painted away the island and the two seals in the water (working large on those). Here’s a great tip to make sure that your masks are accurate: when you are painting your mask, toggle off the visibility eyeballs for the layers below; when you paint, you can accurately see what you are painting away. If you paint outside the lines, simply hit X to restore and then hit X again to continue painting.

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.

Everything that I do to optimize the image above and all of the images that you see here on the blog plus tons and tons more is detailed in the new 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. Just so you know, 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.

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. 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 :).