Important Notice

I fly to Ushuaia, Argentina on 12 DEC arriving on the late afternoon on 13 DEC. I board the Ortelius on the afternoon of 15 DEC and disembark on the morning of 9 JAN. There is no wifi on the ship. That means that I will effectively and absolutely be without internet at least from 14 DEC through 9 JAN. At present I am further behind with answering e-mails than at any time since I have been answering folks’ photography-related questions about 25 years ago.

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

Important Blog Notice

I hope to have some time before getting on the ship to prepare a few new blog posts and to have them published during my absence with the help of either Jim or the invaluable Peter Kes, the BAA webmaster. In addition, my plan is to resurrect a collection of older but very important educational blog posts and have them re-published during my absence. Please enjoy. Please consider signing up for an IPT. And please continue to do a great job of using my B&H and other affiliate links while I am gone.

What’s Up?

Today is packing day. Serious packing. Getting everything that I need for a month long journey going as far south as the Antarctic Peninsula needs to be done with care. So I will be busy today.

This blog post was published from my home in Indian Lake Estates at just before 8:00am.

My Health

Many have written asking how my right shoulder and left knee have been doing since the last round of Stem Cell/Platelet-Rich-Plasma, and Prolozone injections several months ago.

For several years the pain in my right shoulder, from nagging but not-too-serious rotator cuff injuries, made it difficult for me to put on a t-shirt. If I swam two straight days, the pain got worse. When I was home for most of ten weeks from AUG thru mid-NOV, I was swimming 1/2 to one mile every day. Without pain. At present, I feel pretty much as if I have a new shoulder. While have not and will never go back to carrying a big lens on a tripod on my right shoulder, I am absolutely fine handling big glass in the field. As detailed in yesterday’s blog post here, I do use a variety of long lens bags when I need to walk considerable distances with heavy gear. In short, the results of the treatments have been nothing short of miraculous.

So how’s the bone-on-bone twice surgically repaired but not-too successfully left knee you ask? Nearly as good as the shoulder. It was pretty much perfect until the other day. I was with the Canon Destination Workshop group on Saturday morning past. As we approached the Flight Deck I noted that there were only a few cars. I made a snap decision to get take the group out on the deck. That decision turned out to be a brilliant one :). Anyway, I thought about getting out my flashlight while making my way out onto the deck with my gear. But I was a bit too lazy. On about my third step in the pitch dark my left foot struck on of those low concrete parking barriers. Ouch. I have had a very little bit of pain there since but yesterday I had a touch-up Prolozone injection and the knee is feeling great again this morning.

I am not sure if I mentioned it but when I had the right shoulder and left knee injected I opted to have Dr. Rucker try the same Stem Cell/Platelet-Rich-Plasma, and Prolozone injection protocol on my three trigger fingers: left pointer, right middle, and right pinkie. Those injections were extremely painful. Though healing there took longer than with the shoulder and the knee I am currently enjoying amazing relief from trigger finger pain.

So the right shoulder is like new, the left knee is not far behind, and the three trigger fingers are greatly improved. What’s the problem? The elders among us will remember the pitch line of the late Gilda Radner, as Saturday Night Live character Roseanne Roseannadanna, “It’s always something.”

About four months ago I began noticing a tiny pin-prick pain on the dorsal surface of the base of my left thumb. It was barely noticeable on some mornings. Skip ahead three months and I woke every day with pretty severe pain in the left thumb and wrist. When I would try to extend the thumb it felt as is someone were sticking a hot screwdriver into the base of the thumb and pushing it in as far as the wrist. A visit to my local chiropractor, TJ McKeon, revealed the very specific diagnosis of De Quervain’s Syndrome, aka tenosynovitis. As my health guru Dr. Cliff Oliver of San Diego, CA is 100% against the use of either splints or cortisone injections–the standard treatment for De Quervain’s, I got in touch with Dr. Rucker’s office.

Bino (the doctor who is most happy with a big needle in his hand) and his bother Dini, came up with a new protocol: A-Cell and Prolozone injections. Jim Litzenberg drove me to their office in Bradenton yesterday while I answered e-mails on the laptop online with my Verizon Droid. After a series of numbing injections Dr. Rucker went to work doing what he does best with a series of injections in the left thumb and wrist. And as mentioned above, he kindly volunteered to add two Prolozone injections to his day’s work. He used a new relatively pain free without-the-need-for-numbing injections method of delivering the Prolozone into the knee joint and the lower quadriceps. It worked just fine.

When the numbing medicine in my thumb wore off I was in quite a bit of pain but fortunately we had a few gel ice packs in a cooler. That brought me quite a bit of relief. Once we got home I took 3 Advils and iced the thumb some more. When I awoke this morning, the left thumb had calmed down and was feeling pretty darned good. That may very well be the result of the fast healing and pain relief properties of the Prolozone but I am hoping against hope that the miracles will continue.

The treatments are quite expensive but what is he price of pain relief and improved function? If anyone wishes to get in touch with the Rucker brothers they can call their office in Bradenton, FL at (941) 448-1199.

When I was talking to Dr. Oliver about my upcoming treatment, I casually mentioned that I eat about one large jar of store-bought mayonnaise a week. As my health guru/chiropractor/nutritionist he about had a cow. “Heck, you never asked me about condiments” I said somewhat defensively.

What’s the big deal? Nearly all store-bought mayo is made with either or both soybean or canola oil. Each causes an inflammatory response in humans. Can you say shoulder pain, knee pain, trigger finger pain, De Quervain’s Syndrome, and benign prostatic hypertrophy? The latter gets me up as many as six times per night for pit stops when I am away from home without my ice baths.

Yesterday was my first mayo-free day in many decades…. When I get back from the trip I will be trying some healthy mayo recipes using coconut oil. If I like any of them I will share them with you here. In the meantime, you might consider ditching the mayonnaise….

Those interested in hearing my complete life-improvement health story may shoot us an e-mail with the words “Health Basics File” cut and pasted into the Subject line.

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

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

BAA Bulletin #470

BAA Bulletin #470 was published yesterday morning. It can be accessed online here. Be sure to check out the Bosque Moon Shot Repair Tutorial.

• Bosque Moon Shot Repair
• The Blog is the Bomb!
• Jim Neiger Osprey Heaven and Custom Anytime Workshops
• The New Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM Lens
• Selling Your Used Photo Gear Through BIRDS AS ART

Used Gear Prices Dropping Like a Rock

The prices of some used photography gear have been dropping recently like the proverbial rock. Sellers have been forced to offer lower and lower prices on certain used cameras and lenses. The Canon EOS-7D that was listed yesterday for $475 sold immediately. But several older version Canon 500mm lenses and more than a few Canon EOS-1D Mark IV bodies have lingered for too long. Below are some new items and new price reductions. Several are ground-breakingly low and should sell almost instantly. You can see the complete listings here.

Selling Your Used Photo Gear Through BIRDS AS ART

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 charges a minimum of 20% plus assorted fees! Yikes. 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.

Used Gear Cautions

Though I am not in a position to post images of gear for sale here or elsewhere, prospective buyers are encouraged to request for photos of the gear that they are interested in purchasing via e-mail. Doing so will help to avoid any misunderstandings as to the condition of the gear. Sellers are advised to take care to photograph their used gear with care against clean backgrounds so that the stuff is represented accurately and in the best light; please pardon the pun :).

Brand New Listings (12/11/14)

Canon EOS-1DvX Body with Extras

Muir Robertson is offering a used Canon 1DX Body in excellent condition–a small scratch in one spot on the body otherwise like new. The camera comes in the original box and with the standard accessories. The shutter count is a very low 30,497. The sale includes a RRS L bracket, 2 spare 1 series batteries, a Lexar 1000X 64GB CF card, a large Hoodman eye-cup (great for those with glasses), and insured ground shipping to lower 48 US addresses. Camera has just been checked out and the sensor cleaned by Canon CPS. System change drives sale.

The price for this package is great value at $5099. Interested folks please contact Muir first by e-mail and then by phone at 513-314-2471.

Two 1D X bodies served as my workhorse camera bodies since their introduction in early 2012. Sturdy, super-fast frame rate, gorgeous image files, and a great AF system. artie

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

Muir Robertson is offering a used Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM Mk II lens in like-new condition for $1850. The sale includes the original box and accessories and includes a Really Right Stuff lens foot and insured ground shipping to lower 48 US addresses.

Interested folks please contact Muir first by e-mail and then by phone at 513-314-2471.

As regular readers know the 70-200 f/2.8L IS II lens is with me every time I head into the field. It is amazingly versatile. I use mine often alone and with either TC. artie

Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 L IS USM Lens (the white one with L series glass)

Muir Robertson is offering a used Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 L IS USM lens in excellent condition for $950. The sale includes the original box and comes with the optional Canon Tripod Mount Ring C, $164.95 at B&H, a RRS lens foot, and insured ground shipping to lower 48 US addresses. This lens is a great performer and if super fast f/2.8 isn’t critical, it is significantly lighter and smaller than the 70-200 F2.8 – perfect for travel.

Interested folks please contact Muir first by e-mail and then by phone at 513-314-2471.

I used this lens briefly in Norway to photograph jaegers in flight. It was ideal for the task: lightweight with super-fast and accurate focusing. artie

Canon EOS-5D Mk III with Extras

Muir Robertson is also offering a practically unused Canon 5D Mk III body in like-new condition with only 3,876 shutter actuations!. The camera comes with its original packaging, 1 spare battery, a Really Right Stuff L Bracket, and a Tamron AF 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 XR Di LD VC (Vibration Compensation) Aspherical (IF) Macro Zoom Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras, a Lexar 32GB 1000x CF card and insured ground shipping to lower 48 US addresses.

The remarkably low price for this package is only $2400. Interested folks please contact Muir first by e-mail and then by phone at 513-314-2471.

Y’all know how much I love my 5D III for landscapes and flowers and it does quite well for birds as well. artie

Used Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM Lens

Price reduced $350 on 10/17/2014!
Price reduced an incredible $650 on 12/10/2014!!!
Lowest price ever for this item!

Dan Womack is offering a used Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM lens in excellent condition with clean glass with a few small nicks on the lens hood for $4500. B&H was recently offering a virtually identical used “old 500” for $6,299.95; you can save nearly $2K by grabbing Dan’s lens asap. The sale includes the front leather hood, the rear dust cap, the original case with keys, and insured shipping to US addresses only. Your lens will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Dan via e-mail or by phone at 337 412 1898.

The old five was at one time the world’s most popular telephoto lens. It still makes great images with both TCs. artie

Used Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM Lens

Kathleen Graff is offering a used Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM lens in very good to excellent condition for $4799. The sale includes the front leather hood, the rear dust cap, the original case with keys, a Lens Coat, a 4th GD Custom Lens Adapter Plate CP-51, the lens manual, and insured shipping to US addresses only. Photos available. Your lens will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Kathleen via e-mail with a copy sent here. Alternatively, you can try her by phone at 262-797-2530 or 262-389-7998.

The old five was at one time the world’s most popular telephoto lens. It still makes great images with both TCs. artie

Used Canon EF 100-400 f 4.5-5.6 L IS Lens
Lowest price ever for this item!

Barry Mansell is offering a used Canon EF 100-400 f 4.5-5.6 L IS lens in excellent condition for $949 including insured shipping via UPS Ground to US addresses only. The plastic lens hood has a very few light scratches. The sale includes the original tough fabric case, the front and rear caps, and the lens hood. Your gear will be shipped only after your check clears.

Please contact Barry via e-mail, by phone at 904-388-8675, or on his cell at 904-655-0022. Eastern Time Zone.

The 100-400 is a versatile intermediate telephoto zoom lens with 1,000+ uses. It makes a great starter lens especially for folks who do general nature and wildlife in addition to birds. I’ve sold 100s of images made with a 1-4 and denise loved hers for many years forsaking it only recently for the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens. Barry’s 100-400 is priced to sell. artie

Used EOS-1D Mark IV Digital Camera Body

Price reduced $700 on 12/10/2014. Lowest 1D IV price ever!

IPT veteran Brent Thompson is offering a used EOS-1D Mark IV digital camera body in excellent condition for $1799. The sale includes the RRS L-plate, the charger and battery, and all the manuals and cables that came in the box, the camera strap, the original box, and insured ground shipping to continental US addresses only. Your camera will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Brent via e-mail, by phone at 650-857-8695, or on his cell at 408-219-5023 (Pacific time).

Two Mark IVs served as my workhorse bodies for more than three years. artie

Canon EOS-1D Mark IV

Gerald Barrack is offering a used Canon EOS 1D Mark IV body for the low price of $1900. The body is in very good to excellent condition and is in perfect working order having been check by CPS in November 2014. The body has several scuff and wear marks that do not affect function. Photos are available upon request.

The sale includes a Really Right Stuff mounting plate, the original Canon camera strap, the battery charger and an extra battery, the instruction manual, and insured ground shipping within the continental US. Interested folks can contact Gerald via e-mail or try him on his cell at 201 638 3510 (Easter Time Zone). The camera will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Two Mark IVs were my workhorse bodies for many years. artie

Used Sigma Zoom Super Telephoto 300-800mm f/5.6 EX DG APO IF HSM Autofocus Lens for Canon EOS

Beth Starr is offering a used Sigma Zoom Super Telephoto 300-800mm f/5.6 EX DG APO IF HSM Autofocus Lens for Canon EOS, aka The Sigmonster, in like-new condition. Used only 3-4 times: $5,500. The sale includes the original shipping box and the original lens case. Includes insured ground shipping in the continental US. You can call Beth on her cell at 908-625-1589 or contact her via e-mail.

This is a superb lens for folks working from a vehicle with the lens supported by a BLUBB. James Shadle has used the Nikon mount version of this lens on a tripod for years to create many memorable images. Strong folks can save a bundle as this is a steal at $2,499 below the list price. artie

Used Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM Lens

Mike Stevens is offering a used Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM lens in like-new condition (used just once) for a ridiculously low $7999. The sale includes the front leather hood, the rear dust cap, the original case, a Wimberley P-50 lens plate, and insured shipping to US addresses only. Your lens will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made; Paypal is an option.

Please contact Mike via e-mail, by phone at 951-260-2507, or on his cell at 951-821-1600.

The 800 was my go-to super-telephoto lens for about 4 years. artie

Used EOS-1D Mark IV Digital Camera Body

Price reduced $249 on 10/30/2014!
Price reduced another $300 on 12/7/2014!

Multiple IPT veteran and good friend Monte Brown is offering a used EOS-1D Mark IV digital camera body in excellent condition (with about 22,000 shutter actuations) for $1900. The sale includes the charger and an extra battery, the original box, cables, software, manuals, and insured ground shipping to US addresses only. Your camera will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Monte via e-mail or by phone at 765-744-1421 (Eastern time).

Two Mark IVs served as my workhorse bodies for more than three years. artie

Used Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS Zoom Lens

Price reduced $74 on 12/7/2014!

Multiple IPT veteran and good friend Monte Brown is also offering a used Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS Zoom Lens in very good to excellent condition for only $799. The sale includes both front and rear lens caps, the older-style tough fabric case, the original box, and insured ground shipping to US addresses only. Your lens will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Monte via e-mail or by phone at 765-744-1421 (Eastern time).

I used this lens for about two years. It makes a great lightweight, intermediate telephoto lens that is sharp, easily hand held, and works well with a 1.4X teleconverter. It is great for hand held flight photography and would go great with a 7D II (and a 1.4X TC) as a starter bird photography rig for folks who work around relatively tame birds. artie

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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 :).

What’s Up?

My flights home were a piece of cake. Jim picked me up at MCO just after 2:00pm on a very rainy Monday afternoon. I almost slept on the plane a few times…. And as I type, I am falling asleep again in the car. After a stop at Publix we arrived at home just before 4:00pm. Laundry tomorrow and then packing for the next big trip. On Friday.

This blog post took about two hours to prepare and was published from my home sweet home in Indian Lake Estates, FL at 3:30am.

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

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

This image was created at 5:05pm on Sunday, DEC 7, the second and last evening of this year’s Canon Destination Workshop. I used the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod), the Mongoose M3.6 head, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and the Canon EOS 7D Mark II. ISO 1600. Evaluative metering +1 2/3 stops as framed: 1/800 at f/5.6 in Av Mode. Color temperature: 8000K. 65-Point Automatic Selection/AI Servo Rear Focus AF as framed activated an array of 3 AF points that caught the left wing of the crane on our right and were active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Sandhill Crane pair landing SILH against pale sky

65-Point Automatic Selection AF Area Selection Mode

I love to use 65-Point Automatic Selection AF Area Selection mode when photographing the cranes in silhouette. It allows me to place small in the frame birds well out of the center of the frame and it allows me to frame incoming pairs without clipping the wingtips of one or the other. If the contrast gets too low I will usually go to Surround.

I had the group in the perfect location but the color did not materialize until it was way too dark to shoot despite the thin clouds that had graced the western horizon in late afternoon. You never want to get into the business of predicting sunrise or sunset colors….

This image was created at 5:35pm on Sunday, DEC 7, the second and last evening of the Canon Destination Workshop. I used the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod), the Mongoose M3.6 head, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and the Canon EOS 7D Mark II. ISO 6400. Evaluative metering +1 2/3 stops as framed: 1/250 at f/5.6 in Av Mode. Color temperature: 8000K. Central sensor/AI Servo surround Rear Focus AF as framed was (amazingly) active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Richly colored sky well after sunset

Half-way Decent

We did get just a bit of sky color well after sunset. As I often do I created a few images with the distant ridge and the color. I am not sure why I had not thought of combining two such images before.

The Color Fine-tune box

The Color Fine-tune box

I juiced up the colors of the sky image a bit during the RAW conversion in DPP 4 using the Color Fine-tune box on the Perform basic image adjustment tab. Though we only touch upon the use of the Color Fine-tune box in the DPP 4 Guide I used it a lot recently with sunrise and sunset images from Bosque. How do I use it? Experiment by dragging the center point around. Next I worked on the color in Photoshop with both Vibrance and Selective Color adjustments.

This image was created from the two images above using a blend mode in Adobe Photoshop Creative Cloud (1-Year Subscription). Which one?

The Blending

I knew that there was probably a one-step technique to blend the two images together using one of the Blend Modes in PS. But I had no idea which one would retain the rich colors of the BKGR image and the deep BLACKs of the SILH. I experimented and finally hit the case ace for four of a kind.

If you know or think that you know which Blend Mode I used please do leave a comment. Note: the sky was the bottom layers, the crane pair was the top layer.

Just for the record books…

The file name for the optimized image, “Sandhill Cranes landing–blend of two images _Y8A7665 Bosque del Apache NWR, San Antonio, NM.tif” lets editors know what they are dealing with. My intent is always to avoid deception and to let folks know how an image was created.

Digital Basics

Everything that I did to optimize today’s image is covered in detail in my Digital Basics File–written in my easy-to-follow, easy-to-understand style. Are you tired of making your images look worse in Photoshop? Digital Basics File is an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. It includes my complete digital workflow, dozens of great Photoshop tips (including the Surface Blur settings that I used to smooth out the noise in the ISO 6400 image as taught to me by Denise Ippolito), details on using all of my image clean-up tools, the use of Contrast Masks, several different ways of expanding and filling in canvas, all of my time-saving Keyboard Shortcuts, Quick Masking, Layer Masking, working with color and contrast, and NIK Color Efex Pro basics, Contrast Masks, Digital Eye Doctor techniques, using Gaussian Blurs, Tim Grey Dodge and Burn, a variety of ways to make selections, how to create time-saving actions, and tons more.

DPP 4 is completely new and different from the various versions of DPP 3. It handles files only from the following cameras: EOS-1D X, EOS 5D Mark III, EOS-6D, and the EOS-7D Mark II.

Great 7D II/DPP v4.01.0 News

An updated version of Canon Digital Photo Professional that supports RAW files from the EOS-7D Mark II was released more than a month ago and is available for download the Canon USA website. To download DPP v4.1 first click here and then click on Drivers and Software and follow the prompts.

The Photographers’ Guide to Canon Digital Photo Professional 4.0 by Arash Hazeghi and Arthur Morris is now available. Click here to order.

The DPP 4 eGuide (PDF)

The Photographers’ Guide to Canon Digital Photo Professional 4.0 by Arash Hazeghi and Arthur Morris: $40.

Artie first went to DPP because he was not happy with the colors he was getting with 1D X and 5D III images from ACR (Adobe Camera Raw). Though less than intuitive, he found it fast and easy to use once he mastered the basics. He collaborated with Arash Hazeghi on the first DPP RAW Conversion Guide. Do understand that the DPP RAW Conversion Guide details the use of various iterations of DPP 3. He calls those the DPP 3.whatever versions. The latest version is DPP 3.14.41.0.

Some time ago Canon released DPP 4.0, completely and utterly new and different from DPP 3. When it was introduced DPP 4 worked only EOS-1D X, EOS-5D Mark III, and EOS-6D images but support for the EOS-7D Mark II was added to the latest version when that camera began shipping.

When I first opened DPP 4 I felt as if I were in the cockpit of a Boeing 747 and was being asked to fly it. There were so many tabs and buttons and controls that I simply closed the program. I immediately called Arash and asked him if he wanted to work together on a DPP 4 guide. After 100s of hours of work the guide was ready to teach you to conveniently and easily use DPP 4 to create the finest possible image files from your 1D X, 5D III, 6D, and 7D II image files. Basically, Arash sent me a sophisticated outline that I re-crafted into a clear, concise, easily understood, and easy to follow how-to guide written in the BAA style. Arash created all of the charts, diagrams, and graphics.

His charts with recommendations for both Chrominance and Luminance Noise Reduction values for each of the 4 covered cameras at various ISO settings are alone worth the price of the book. He spent many dozens of hours experimenting with high ISO RAW files and shares his findings with you in the DPP 4 Guide. Folks will surely want to create some sort of easily accessible quick reference on their laptops and home computers.

DPP offers a host of great features some but not all of which are reminiscent of ACR. These include the following: Multi-image display, the extremely valuable Before/after Comparison layout, Highlight/shadow warnings, White Balance, and the eight RAW Conversion tabs that include sliders for Brightness, Highlights, Shadows, Contrast, Hue-Saturation, Color Tone, Sharpness, Noise Reduction, HSL (Hue/Saturation/Luminance), Lens Corrections, and Digital Lens Optimizer among others. We teach you how to best utilize each of those and many more. We share our slightly different DPP workflows and dozens of tips that will simply make your life easier. Arash uses DPP4′s rating system for choosing his keepers while artie continues to rely on BreezeBrowser Pro for that. DPP offers a variety of sorting filters. We explain all of the options. In addition, we teach you how to set your preferences and how to arrange your workspace for the greatest efficiency.

Both authors firmly believe that the manufacturer’s conversion algorithms will always out-perform 2nd party software when it comes to preserving image quality, fine detail, and accurate color rendition.

The authors wish to thank Chuck Westfall and Rudy Winston of Canon USA for their help; they are always available to answer our nit-picking questions. Sincere thanks also to Ken Kovak, Bob Schwartz, Dane Johnson, and John Stuhlmuller for their thoughtful and substantive reviews of late drafts of the DPP 4 manuscript.

You can order your copy of the DPP 4 Guide for $40 through the BAA Online Store by clicking here, by calling Jim or Jen in the office at 863-692-0906 with credit card in hand, by sending us a check made out to “Arthur Morris” or a money order for $40 to BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855, or by by sending a Paypal for $40 to e-mail. IN the latter two instances be sure to note DPP 4 Guide so we know what you are ordering :).

Note: the Sharpness and Noise Reduction Charts will be updated to include the recommended values for the 7D Mark II. I have been sending RAW files to Arash for several days. Now Arash has a lot more work to do. For those who have purchased the DPP 4 Guide, the update will of course be free but please be patient.

Those using older Canon camera bodies like the 1D Mark IV, the 7D, the 50D, the 40D, the various Rebels (not highly recommended for serious nature photography), are directed to the original DPP RAW Conversion Guide click here. DPP 3 (the latest version is DPP v3.14.41.0) does a fine job of converting images from the older camera bodies. I used it for several years.

DPP 4 eGuide 7D II Update

If you have purchased the DPP 4 eGuide and have purchased a 7D II, please request the free update by shooting Jim an e-mail with the words DPP 4 7D II Update cut and pasted into the Subject Line. You must include some sort of proof of purchase; a cut and paste of page 2 of the current guide will suffice. If you send your request without including proof of purchase your updated eGuide will not be sent 🙂

Facebook

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

…..

Amazon.com

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

Amazon Canada

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

Typos

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

Did I miss your e-mail?

Obviously, I have been swamped and with my trip to the Southern Oceans beginning this coming Friday, I will continue to be swamped. If I missed an e-mail from you, especially one dealing with the sale of used gear, please shoot me an e-mail and I will try to get to it before I leave. Apologies to those who might be feeling neglected. I have never been this far behind before….

What’s Up?

Oh what a day! The first day of the Canon Destination Workshop was amazing. We enjoyed a red pre-dawn and followed by a white goose blastoff right in our face at the Ed Kranepool. We headed back early and then after our program and a short break, we found the geese at the north end and enjoyed blastoff after blastoff, capped by the largest Bosque blastoff I have ever seen, a triple header from three fields where the flocks wound up intermingling and then coming together as one. I have enjoyed so much great photography at Bosque this year that I am sure that I will not get to share much of it with you until I get back from upcoming my Southern Oceans expedition adventure with Cheesemans’ Ecology Safaris.

Today is Day Two of the workshop. Tomorrow I wake at 2:00 and head to ABQ for my flights home. This blog post took 1 1/2 hours to prepare and was published from my hotel room in Socorro, NM at 4:59am.

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

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

This image was created at 6:15am on Saturday, DEC 6, 2014 with the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod, Mongoose M3.6 head, the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens (at 70mm) and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 100. Evaluative metering -1/3 stop as framed: 8 seconds at f/2.8 in Av mode. White balance: 7000K. Central sensor Surround/Rear Focus AF on the ridge and release. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Red Bosque Sunrise

Images Questions

#1: Why did I set -1/3 stop EC?
#2: Give me two reasons that I went with an 8 second exposure when I could have gone with ISO 400 and a 2 second exposure….

Saturday’s stunner marked four of the last six days with breathtaking sunrises.

Selling Your Used Photo Gear Through BIRDS AS ART

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 charges a minimum of 20% plus assorted fees! Yikes. 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 EOS-7D, and the original 400mm IS DO lens, have been dropping steadily.

Used Gear Cautions

Though I am not in a position to post images of gear for sale here or elsewhere, prospective buyers are encouraged to request for photos of the gear that they are interested in purchasing via e-mail. Doing so will help to avoid any misunderstandings as to the condition of the gear. Sellers are advised to take care to photograph their used gear with care against clean backgrounds so that the stuff is represented accurately and in the best light; please pardon the pun :).

Prices Reduced!

Used EOS-1D Mark IV Digital Camera Body

Price reduced $249 on 10/30/2014!
Price reduced another $300 on 12/7/2014!

Multiple IPT veteran and good friend Monte Brown is offering a used EOS-1D Mark IV digital camera body in excellent condition (with about 22,000 shutter actuations) for $1900. The sale includes the charger and an extra battery, the original box, cables, software, manuals, and insured ground shipping to US addresses only. Your camera will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Monte via e-mail or by phone at 765-744-1421 (Eastern time).

Two Mark IVs served as my workhorse bodies for more than three years.

Used Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS Zoom Lens

Price reduced $74 on 12/7/2014!

Multiple IPT veteran and good friend Monte Brown is also offering a used Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS Zoom Lens in very good to excellent condition for only $799. The sale includes both front and rear lens caps, the older-style tough fabric case, the original box, and insured ground shipping to US addresses only. Your lens will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Monte via e-mail or by phone at 765-744-1421 (Eastern time).

I used this lens for about two years. It makes a great lightweight, intermediate telephoto lens that is sharp, easily hand held, and works well with a 1.4X teleconverter. It is great for hand held flight photography and would go great with a 7D II (and a 1.4X TC) as a starter bird photography rig for folks who work around relatively tame birds.

New Listings

Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS USM Lens, the “old six”

An Amazing Package for Someone Young and Strong. Or Old and Strong.

Gerald Barrack is offering a Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS USM lens for the record-low price of $5600, or $5800 with the 1.4X II and 2X II TCs thrown in. The lens is in very good condition with perfect glass and many dings and wear on the painted surface that do not affect function. Photos are available upon request. The lens was given a clean bill of health after a clean and check by Canon in Nov. 2014. The gear will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made. The sale includes the lens trunk, the front leather hood, the rear lens cap, and insured ground shipping within the continental US.

Interested folks can contact Gerald via e-mail or try him on his cell at 201 638 3510 (Easter Time Zone).

The old six was my workhorse super-telephoto for too many years….

Canon EOS-1D Mark IV

Gerald is also offering a used Canon EOS 1D Mark IV body again for a record low price: $1900. The body is in very good to excellent condition and is in perfect working order having been check by CPS in November 2014. The body has several scuff and wear marks that do not affect function. Photos are available upon request.

The sale includes a Really Right Stuff mounting plate, the original Canon camera strap, the battery charger and an extra battery, the instruction manual, and insured ground shipping within the continental US. Interested folks can contact Gerald via e-mail or try him on his cell at 201 638 3510 (Easter Time Zone). The camera will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Two Mark IVs were my workhorse bodies for many years.

Used Sigma Zoom Super Telephoto 300-800mm f/5.6 EX DG APO IF HSM Autofocus Lens for Canon EOS

Beth Starr is offering a used Sigma Zoom Super Telephoto 300-800mm f/5.6 EX DG APO IF HSM Autofocus Lens for Canon EOS, aka The Sigmonster, in like-new condition. Used only 3-4 times: $5,500. The sale includes the original shipping box and the original lens case. Includes insured ground shipping in the continental US. You can call Beth on here cell at 908-625-1589 or by 843-224-7383 James Shadle has used the Nikon mount version of this lens to create many great images. Strong folks can save a bundle as this is a steal at $2,499 below the list price.

Used EOS-7D: cheap!

William Ellison is offering a used Canon EOS-7D in like new condition for $479; less than 5,000 actuations. The sale includes all of the stuff that came with the lens originally including the manual, the CDs, the battery and charger, all connecting wires and cables for USB and HDMI, the strap, the original box, and insured ground shipping to the continental US.

You can contact William by phone at 843-224-7383 or via e-mail

This 1.6 crop factor camera would make a great starter outfit for someone just getting started as a digital nature photography. Folks who have heard bad things about the original 7D should need to check out the “How Dan Cadieux Masters Canon EOS-7D Image Files” blog post here. When you see Dan’s images, all created with the original 7D, you will be amazed.

Existing Listings

Used Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM Lens

Kathleen Graff is offering a used Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM lens in very good to excellent condition for $4799. The sale includes the front leather hood, the rear dust cap, the original case with keys, a Lens Coat, a 4th GD Custom Lens Adapter Plate CP-51, the lens manual, and insured shipping to US addresses only. Photos available. Your lens will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Kathleen via e-mail with a copy sent here. Alternatively, you can try her by phone at 262-797-2530 or 262-389-7998.

The old five was at one time the world’s most popular telephoto lens. It still makes great images with both TCs.

Used Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM Lens

Mike Stevens is offering a used Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM lens in like-new condition (used just once) for a ridiculously low $4999. The sale includes the front leather hood, the rear dust cap, the original case, a Wimberley P-50 lens plate, and insured shipping to US addresses only. Your lens will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made; Paypal is an option.

Please contact Mike via e-mail, by phone at 951-260-2507, or on his cell at 951-821-1600.

The old five was at one time the world’s most popular telephoto lens. It still makes great images with both TCs.

Used Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM Lens

Mike Stevens is offering a used Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM lens in like-new condition (used just once) for a ridiculously low $7999. The sale includes the front leather hood, the rear dust cap, the original case, a Wimberley P-50 lens plate, and insured shipping to US addresses only. Your lens will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made; Paypal is an option.

Please contact Mike via e-mail, by phone at 951-260-2507, or on his cell at 951-821-1600.

The 800 was my go-to super-telephoto lens for about 4 years.

Used EOS-1D Mark IV Digital Camera Body

IPT veteran Brent Thompson is offering a used EOS-1D Mark IV digital camera body in excellent condition for $2449. The sale includes the RRS L-plate, the charger and battery, and all the manuals and cables that came in the box, the camera strap, the original box, and insured ground shipping to continental US addresses only. Your camera will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Brent via e-mail, by phone at 650-857-8695, or on his cell at 408-219-5023 (Pacific time).

Two Mark IVs served as my workhorse bodies for more than three years.

Used EOS-1D Mark IV Digital Camera Body

Price reduced $299 on 10/30/2014!

Marc Lombardi is offering a used EOS-1D Mark IV digital camera body in excellent condition with 57800 actuations for $2400. The body has one minor cosmetic scratch on top. The sale includes the charger and two batteries, a RRS plate, and insured ground shipping to US addresses only. Your camera will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Marc via e-mail or by phone at 610-585-3500 (Eastern time).

Two Mark IVs served as my workhorse bodies for more than three years.

Used Canon EF 100-400 f 4.5-5.6 L IS Lens

Multiple IPT veteran Jack Panzeca is offering a used Canon EF 100-400 f 4.5-5.6 L IS lens in very good + condition for $999 including insured shipping via UPS Ground to US addresses only. The tripod collar has one small scratch. The sale includes the original tough fabric case, the original box, the front and rear caps, the lens hood, and the strap. Your gear will be shipped only after your check clears.

Please contact Jack via e-mail or by phone at 817 819 1756. Central Time Zone.

The 100-400 is a versatile intermediate telephoto zoom lens with 1,000+ uses. It makes a great starter lens especially for folks who do general nature and wildlife in addition to birds. I’ve sold 100s of images made with a 1-4 and denise loved hers for many years forsaking it only recently for the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens. Jack’s 100-400 is priced to sell.

Used Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM Lens

Price reduced $350 on 10/17/2014!

Dan Womack is offering a used Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM lens in excellent condition with clean glass with a few small nicks on the lens hood for $5150. B&H is offering a virtually identical used “old 500” for $6,299.95; you can save more than $1000 by grabbing Dan’s lens asap. The sale includes the front leather hood, the rear dust cap, the original case with keys, and insured shipping to US addresses only. Your lens will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Dan via e-mail or by phone at 337 412 1898.

Used Canon TS-E 90mm f/2.8 Tilt-Shift Manual Focus Lens

Price reduced $100 on 10/17/2014

Multiple IPT veteran Shelly Goldstein is offering a used Canon TS-E 90mm f/2.8 Tilt-Shift Manual Focus lens in excellent condition for the ridiculously low price of $799. The lens sells new for $1,399.00. The sale includes the front lens cap, the lens shade, the rear dust cap, and insured shipping via Fed Ex Ground to US addresses only. The lens was cleaned and checked by Canon in September 2014.

You can contact Shelly via e-mail or by phone at 646-423-0392 (EST). Your lens will be shipped only after your check clears.

The 90 Tilt Shift is a specialized lens that enable precise control of depth of field along with perspective control. It is useful for portrait, product, and landscape photography. George Lepp loves it for flower field and macro photography, using it often with the 2X III teleconverter.

Used Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM Lens

IPT veteran Stuart Hahn is offering a used original owner Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS (Image Stabilizer) USM lens in excellent condition with clean glass for $5250. B&H is offering a virtually identical used “old 500” for $6,299.95; you can save more than $1000 by grabbing Stu’s lens asap. The sale includes the front leather lens hood, the rear dust cap, a used RRS B-91 Flash Bracket, the original case with keys, and insured shipping via UPS Ground to US addresses only. Your lens will be shipped only after your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Stu via e-mail or by phone (after October 3) at 916-485-1630 (Pacific time).

IPT Updates

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

Facebook

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

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

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

…..

Amazon.com

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

Amazon Canada

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

Typos

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

Thanks

Sincere thanks to those who have and those who continue to leave congratulatory comments on the streak. No worries. This is not a new streak. 🙂 Everyone’s kind words are greatly appreciated.

What’s Up?

Thursday was a rare day off. Though it looked like a total bust with heavy cloud cover at 5:30am there was a layer of thin cloud right at the horizon and it was easy to see well before 6:00am that all were going to be in for a rare treat. We were; there were pinks and purples everywhere with mega reflections. Images coming soon. I drove Denise to ABQ for her AA flight to Chile. I typed this paragraph in a Verizon store in Albuquerque; my Droid battery died. It is plenty cloudy up here so I will likely take another afternoon off. It actually rained in Socorro on Thursday, the first real daytime rain I experienced in 20 years of visits at this season. I wish that it had been colder….

Tonight I meet the sold-out Canon Destination workshop group. Jim Heupel will be co-leading with me. This blog post was published from my hotel room in Socorro, NM at 3:05am.

Incredible luck: photographing a big cat from my vehicle at Bosque

I once saw a Mountain Lion at the refuge. It was on the East Farm Loop Road. It was about 400 yards from me. As I got closer I saw that it was covered in mud and dripping wet. I thought at first that it was a huge River Otter. But as I continued to drive slowly towards the animal its long tail made its identity very clear. As with the one that I saw at Merritt Island NWR, it disappeared as quickly and quietly as it had appeared.

I never thought that I would have a chance to photograph a Big Cat at the refuge. But today, I had that chance and took every advantage of the opportunity. See image next.

This image was created on the cloudy morning of December 4, 2014 on my day off after an amazingly breathtaking predawn filled with exposures as long as 8 seconds. Images coming soon. I used the Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Lens with Internal 1.4x Extender (at 200mm) and the Canon EOS-1D X). ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1 stop as framed: 1/250 sec. at f/5.6. The lens was supported by the BLUBB, the Big Lens Ultimate BeanBag. There are lots of BLUBBs being driven around Bosque. Central sensor/AI Servo-Surround on the black triangle in the A was active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version.

The Big Cat

Unfortunately the “Big Cat” that I photographed from the car today was not a Mountain Lion. It was a large Caterpillar bulldozer, one that has seen lots of use on the refuge. I had had my eyes on the Caterpillar logo for several days and once the huge machine was moved from one side of the road to the other all that I had to do was wait for a cloudy day. Thursday was bingo!

I guess that there is still a lot of little kid left in me.

110 Years Since the First test of the Steam-powered Track-type Tractor

November 24th past marked an important day in the Track-Type Tractor’s history — and Caterpillar’s for that matter. On this day in 1904 in Stockton, California Benjamin Holt tested his steam-powered track-type tractor prototype for the first time. Holt was not satisfied with the performance of his company’s steam traction engine tractors. Regions of California were difficult to prepare for crops because both horses and steam traction engine tractors got stuck in the soggy peat soil.

Holt’s first inclination was to experiment with wider wheels. Some of his machines had wheels that were each 18 feet wide; the engine itself was already 10 feet wide. For that reason, roads and gates to fields needed to be 46 feet wide. These experiments were inefficient, costly and added to the weight of the machine without improving its performance.

After years of research, Holt instructed his mechanics to remove the rear wheels from the 40-horsepower Holt Junior Steam Traction Engine #77 and replace them with a pair of tracks he had designed. These tracks were nine feet long and 24 inches wide. The track shoes consisted of three-by-four-inch wooden slats bolted to an endless chain. The weight of the machine moved on rollers anchored to a supplementary frame.

On Thanksgiving Day, November 24, 1904, this tracked machine was given its first field test and it performed very well. Today, #77 is recognized as the prototype of the world’s first commercially successful track-type tractor. You can learn more about this very interesting company by clicking here.

All of the images in the bear boat card above were created in Katmai National Park during the month of September.

Bear Boat/Bears Catching Salmon IPT: September 1-8, 2015 from Kodiak, AK/6 FULL & 2 1/2 DAYS: $6699. Happy campers only! Maximum 8/Openings: 5. Plus the leader: Arthur Morris.

If I do not have four deposit checks in hand by 1/31/2015 I reserve the right to scrap this trip so please do not purchase your plane tickets until you hear from me. 🙂 Only one to go.

Join me in Katmai National Park, AK for seven days of photographing Coastal Brown Bears (grizzlies) catching salmon, fattening up for the long winter. Other subjects will include Mew and Glaucous-winged Gulls in flight and dip-feeding on salmon roe. Did I mention that we live on a boat and that the food is great? Most of our photography will be done in a variety of famed locations: Geographic Harbor, Kinak Bay, and Kukak Bay. We once had 39 bears fishing the creek at Kukak….

It is mandatory that you be in Kodiak no later than the late afternoon of August 31, 2015 September to avoid missing the float planes to the boat on the morning of September 1. With air travel in AK being what it is, with the chance of fog or other bad weather–being on Kodiak on August 30 is an even better plan). I be on Kodiak on August 30 to avoid any potential disaster. That said in my nearly a dozen bear boat trips I was delayed only once but since I was day early as noted above there was no harm, no foul.

We will take one or more float planes to the boat mid-morning on September 1. We will photograph bears fishing that afternoon and every day for the next six days (weather permitting of course). We should have bears catching salmon every day. In addition, we will get some nice stuff on Mew Gull and Glaucous-winged Gulls dining on roe and the remains of predated salmon. We may–depending on where the concentrations of bears are–get to photograph Harbor seals and some hauled out Steller’s Sea Lions (an endangered species). Halibut fishing (license required) is optional. On September 8, our last morning on the boat, those who would like to enjoy one last photo session will do so. The group returns to Kodiak via float plane midday. Most folks will fly to Anchorage and then continue on red-eye flights to their home cities.

The eight days will consist of six full days (Sept 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, & 7) of photography featuring lots of Coastal Brown Bears catching salmon as above plus a variety of other natural history subjects plus some nice scenic photography that I forgot to mention above. Plus the first afternoon and the last morning.

What’s included? 8 DAYS/7 NIGHTS on the boat as above. All meals on the boat. (The food is quite excellent.) National Park fees. One night’s double occupancy lodging on Kodiak; arrive: Sept 1/depart: Sept 2. The thank-you-in-advance dinner on Sept 1. In-the-field photo tips, instruction, and guidance. An insight into the mind of a top professional; I will constantly let you know what I am thinking, what I am doing, and why I am doing it. Small group image review, image sharing, and Photoshop instruction on the boat.

What’s not included: Your round trip airfare to and from Kodiak, AK (almost surely through Anchorage). All necessary lodging other than the cost of your double occupancy room on the night of August 31 should you opt to arrive early–we can arrange that in advance for you. We will let you know the cost of a single supplement for the one night if so desired. The cost of the round-trip float plane to the boat on September 2 and back to Kodiak on September 9. The cost of a round trip this year was $500. The suggested crew tip of $210.

Is this an expensive trip? Yes, of course. But with 6 full and two half days, a wealth of great subjects, and the fact that you will be walking with the bears just yards away (or less….) it will be one of the great natural history experiences of your life. Most folks who take part in a Bear Boat IPT wind up coming back for more.

A $2,000 per person non-refundable deposit by check only made out to “Arthur Morris” is required to hold your spot. Please click here to read our cancellation policy. Then please print, read, and sign the necessary paperwork here and send it to us.

Your deposit is due immediately. That will leave a balance of $4699. The next payment of $2699 will be due on February 15, 2015. The final payment of $2000 is due on May 1, 2015.

I hope that you can join us for this wondrously exciting trip.

By e-mail from Bill Keown, veteran of three bear boat trips!

Hi Artie, What a great trip! With the exception of the one bright sunny day it was just great. Very different from my first trip in June where we only had the bears clamming; the fishing bears were amazing! As always I learned a lot and enjoyed the group immensely. All the Best, Bill

Facebook

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

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

…..

Amazon.com

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

Amazon Canada

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

Typos

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

Thanks

Sincere thanks to the many who left congratulatory comments on a solid year of educational blog posts. Your kind words were and are greatly appreciated. I enjoyed taking a day off from the blog after 366 consecutive posts. 🙂

What’s Up?

On Tuesday, the morning of the third full day of this year’s 4-Day Bosque IPT, we lucked out again with a second killer sunrise with big flocks of geese flying back and forth through the color for more than fifteen minutes. The tour loop road was totally dead so we did a bunch of teaching near the Flight Deck after a group potty stop. Topics covered included rear focus, shutter button AF, setting the limit range switch on both Canon and Nikon lenses, and creating and saving sets of custom settings. In addition, Denise and I shared our My Menu items and the reasons for our individual choices.

Today is the 4th and last morning of what has been a great IPT. This blog post took about two hours to prepare and was published at 4:33am from my hotel room in Socorro, NM.

Please Help Support My Work on the BAA Blog

Thanks a Stack! The last six weeks have been great!

The last seven weeks have been quite rewarding with more and more folks making it a habit to use my B&H links especially for their major gear purchases. It is great to feel appreciated. Thanks a stack to all who used our links for purchases large and small.

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

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

This image was created at 6:33am on Monday, DEC 2, the second full day of the 4-day IPT. I used the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod), the Mongoose M3.6 head, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and the Canon EOS 7D Mark II. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 stop as framed: 1/30 at f/8 in Tv Mode. Color temperature: 7,000K. Central sensor/AI Servo surround Rear Focus AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Great-tailed Grackle flock as sunrise

Thanks Donna!

This image was inspired by multiple IPT veteran Donna Bourdon (Old Car City and UK Puffins and Gannets). I had been using my 200-400 with Internal Extender every morning for the Main Impoundment fly-ins and blast offs. After seeing some of the images that Donna made of geese against a blood red sky with her 600II/1.4X III/7D II rig, I decided to go that route after noting some nice clouds on the eastern horizon. One thing is for sure, you cannot beat the reach of this combo at f/5.6…

This image was created at 6:49am on Sunday DEC 1, the first full day of the 4-day IPT. I used the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod), the Mongoose M3.6 head, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and the Canon EOS 7D Mark II. ISO 1250. Evaluative metering +2 stops as framed: 1/100 at f/5.6 in Tv Mode. AWB. 65-Point Automatic Selection/AI Servo Rear Focus AF activated an array of three AF points near the rear of the bird at the waterline. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Ross’s Goose in the pink

Three Mistakes…

Not sure how I wound up in 65-Point Automatic Selection AF Area Selection mode; I should have been in my usual AI Servo Surround. In Tv mode I thought that I had rolled the index finger wheel enough clicks to get to 1/125 sec. I fell one click short of that. I should have snugged up the controls on the Mongoose M3.6 a bit. All three of my errors led to this image being a bit less sharp than I would have preferred. When you see a gorgeous bird floating in surreal pink water your brain does not always work as it should. 🙂

Used Sigma Zoom Super Telephoto 300-800mm f/5.6 EX DG APO IF HSM Autofocus Lens for Canon EOS

Beth Starr is offering a used Sigma Zoom Super Telephoto 300-800mm f/5.6 EX DG APO IF HSM Autofocus Lens for Canon EOS, aka The Sigmonster, in like-new condition. Used only 3-4 times: $5,500. The sale includes the original shipping box and the original lens case. Includes insured ground shipping in the continental US. You can call Beth on here cell at 908-625-1589 or by e-mail. James Shadle has used the Nikon mount version of this lens to create many great images. Strong folks can save a bundle as this is a steal at $2,499 below the list price.

Canon EOS-7D Mark II Back in Stock at B&H and Now Shipping

B&H has a limited supply of Canon EOS-7D Mark II bodies in stock. They are ready to ship you one today. Take part in the revolution. Need reach along with a great AF system and superb image quality? Order yours today by clicking on the logo link below.

Does anything about the 7D Mark II bug you?

If anything about the 7D Mark II bugs you, please let me know via e-mail.

If what you’ve learned here on my blog about the Canon EOS-7D Mark II has inspired you to purchase this great new camera body, please consider using the logo link above to support our efforts here in bringing you the latest, greatest educational materials on daily basis.

The Bosque Site Guide

All BAA Site Guides are designed so that with a bit of study you can show up at a great place and know exactly where to be at what time on what wind and in what lighting conditions. With a Site Guide on your laptop you will feel like a 20-year veteran even on your first visit. Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. If you plan on visiting the refuge it would be foolish to make the trip without having this guide in hand. Why spend money on gear and travel and then spend days stumbling around in the wrong spots? If you have visited previously, and are still unsure of where you should be at this time of day with that wind, this guide will prove invaluable to you as well.

You can order yours here or check out all of our site guides here.

All of the images in the bear boat card above were created in Katmai National Park during the month of September.

Bear Boat/Bears Catching Salmon IPT: September 1-8, 2015 from Kodiak, AK/6 FULL & 2 1/2 DAYS: $6699. Happy campers only! Maximum 8/Openings: 5. Plus the leader: Arthur Morris.

If I do not have four deposit checks in hand by 1/31/2015 I reserve the right to scrap this trip so please do not purchase your plane tickets until you hear from me. 🙂 Only one to go.

Join me in Katmai National Park, AK for seven days of photographing Coastal Brown Bears (grizzlies) catching salmon, fattening up for the long winter. Other subjects will include Mew and Glaucous-winged Gulls in flight and dip-feeding on salmon roe. Did I mention that we live on a boat and that the food is great? Most of our photography will be done in a variety of famed locations: Geographic Harbor, Kinak Bay, and Kukak Bay. We once had 39 bears fishing the creek at Kukak….

It is mandatory that you be in Kodiak no later than the late afternoon of August 31, 2015 September to avoid missing the float planes to the boat on the morning of September 1. With air travel in AK being what it is, with the chance of fog or other bad weather–being on Kodiak on August 30 is an even better plan). I be on Kodiak on August 30 to avoid any potential disaster. That said in my nearly a dozen bear boat trips I was delayed only once but since I was day early as noted above there was no harm, no foul.

We will take one or more float planes to the boat mid-morning on September 1. We will photograph bears fishing that afternoon and every day for the next six days (weather permitting of course). We should have bears catching salmon every day. In addition, we will get some nice stuff on Mew Gull and Glaucous-winged Gulls dining on roe and the remains of predated salmon. We may–depending on where the concentrations of bears are–get to photograph Harbor seals and some hauled out Steller’s Sea Lions (an endangered species). Halibut fishing (license required) is optional. On September 8, our last morning on the boat, those who would like to enjoy one last photo session will do so. The group returns to Kodiak via float plane midday. Most folks will fly to Anchorage and then continue on red-eye flights to their home cities.

The eight days will consist of six full days (Sept 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, & 7) of photography featuring lots of Coastal Brown Bears catching salmon as above plus a variety of other natural history subjects plus some nice scenic photography that I forgot to mention above. Plus the first afternoon and the last morning.

What’s included? 8 DAYS/7 NIGHTS on the boat as above. All meals on the boat. (The food is quite excellent.) National Park fees. One night’s double occupancy lodging on Kodiak; arrive: Sept 1/depart: Sept 2. The thank-you-in-advance dinner on Sept 1. In-the-field photo tips, instruction, and guidance. An insight into the mind of a top professional; I will constantly let you know what I am thinking, what I am doing, and why I am doing it. Small group image review, image sharing, and Photoshop instruction on the boat.

What’s not included: Your round trip airfare to and from Kodiak, AK (almost surely through Anchorage). All necessary lodging other than the cost of your double occupancy room on the night of August 31 should you opt to arrive early–we can arrange that in advance for you. We will let you know the cost of a single supplement for the one night if so desired. The cost of the round-trip float plane to the boat on September 2 and back to Kodiak on September 9. The cost of a round trip this year was $500. The suggested crew tip of $210.

Is this an expensive trip? Yes, of course. But with 6 full and two half days, a wealth of great subjects, and the fact that you will be walking with the bears just yards away (or less….) it will be one of the great natural history experiences of your life. Most folks who take part in a Bear Boat IPT wind up coming back for more.

A $2,000 per person non-refundable deposit by check only made out to “Arthur Morris” is required to hold your spot. Please click here to read our cancellation policy. Then please print, read, and sign the necessary paperwork here and send it to us.

Your deposit is due immediately. That will leave a balance of $4699. The next payment of $2699 will be due on February 15, 2015. The final payment of $2000 is due on May 1, 2015.

I hope that you can join us for this wondrously exciting trip.

By e-mail from Bill Keown, veteran of three bear boat trips!

Hi Artie, What a great trip! With the exception of the one bright sunny day it was just great. Very different from my first trip in June where we only had the bears clamming; the fishing bears were amazing! As always I learned a lot and enjoyed the group immensely. All the Best, Bill

Fort DeSoto in spring can be bird photographer’s heaven. And most of the birds are stupid tame.

Fort DeSoto in Spring/Breeding Plumage IPT: April 24-26, 2015. 3 FULL DAYs: $1099. Limit 8/Openings: 7.

Meet and Greet at 8pm on Thursday, April 23.

Join me at Fort DeSoto at the height of the breeding season for many of our target species: Laughing Gull, Royal Tern, Sandwich Tern, dark and light morph Reddish Egret, Great Egret, Tricolored Heron, and Yellow-crowned Night-Heron. In addition, we will have a good shot at photographing a variety of arctic-bound shorebird species in breeding plumage. We should have good chances with a variety of courtship behaviors including courtship feeding, courtship displays, pre-copulatory stands, and copulation.

On this IPT you will the learn basics and fine points of digital exposure and how 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 learn how and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).

At lunch (included) we will review my images–folks learn a ton watching me edit–why keep this one and delete that one. If you opt to bring your laptop, we will take a look at five of your best images from the morning session. We will process a few of my images in Photoshop after converting them in DPP. That followed by Instructor Nap Time.

A $499 non-refundable deposit is required to hold you spot. The balance, $600 will be due on February 7, 2015. Please click here to read our cancellation policy. Then please print, read, and sign the necessary paperwork here and send it to us.

Facebook

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

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

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

…..

Amazon.com

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

Amazon Canada

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

Typos

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

The Streak Continues: 365

With enjoyed a big fly out with friends on Saturday morning, headed to the crane pools, and ended with some Gambel’s Quail photography. I worked a bit more on getting images together for the Canon Digital Learning Center bird photography video project. After two 1/2 days of work, I still have lots to do.

We met the IPT group at 3pm, covered a lot of material, and headed down to the Ed Kranepool where only we were in perfect position to create silhouettes of the landing cranes….

Coming soon: a free Bosque Site Guide update for all: The State of the Bosque…. Today’s blog post, the 365th in a row, took about an hour to assemble (including the time for the DPP 4 RAW conversion). This blog post was published from my hotel room in Socorro, NM at 4:19am. Tomorrow is the first full day of the 4-Day Bosque IPT.

Canon EOS-7D Mark II Back in Stock at B&H and Now Shipping

B&H has a limited supply of Canon EOS-7D Mark II bodies in stock. They are ready to ship you one today. Take part in the revolution. Need reach along with a great AF system and superb image quality? Order yours today by clicking on the logo link below.

If what you’ve learned here on my blog about the Canon EOS-7D Mark II has inspired you to purchase this great new camera body, please consider using the logo link above to support our efforts here in bringing you the latest, greatest educational materials on daily basis.

This image was created at 9:18m on the clear morning of Saturday, NOV 29, 2015 at Bosque del Apache NWR. I used the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod), the Mongoose M3.6 head, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and the Canon EOS 7D Mark II. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1/3 stop as framed: 1/2500 sec. at f/6.3 in Av mode. AWB. Central sensor/AI Servo surround Rear Focus AF on the curve of the bird’s breast was active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Gambel’s Quail

High-stepping with the Canon EOS-7D Mark II

Sitting behind my lowered tripod effectively moved the background farther from the subject. A 40 pixel Gaussian blur on its own layer fine-tuned with a Regular Layer Mask did the rest. If you keep your eyes open you can find these fast moving little birds. It was my first time photographing this rather elusive species at Bosque.

In 2015, we are offering a 3-DAY IPT before Thanksgiving and a 4-DAY IPT after the holiday. You can attend either and spend Thanksgiving Day with your family. Sign up for both and we will be glad to apply a $100 discount to your balance. We know that there are lots of less costly workshops being offered these days. Please remember that you get exactly what you pay for. If you want the finest in photographic instruction and want to be assured of being in the right spot at exactly the right time, do join us.

Bosque del Apache 2015 BIRDS AS ART/A Creative Adventure Instructional Photo-Tour (IPT). 3-FULL DAY IPT: NOV 22-24, 2015. $1149. Meet and greet and introductory slide program after dinner on your own at 7:00pm on SAT NOV 21.

Tens of thousands of Snow Geese, 10,000 Sandhill Cranes, ducks, amazing sunrises, sunsets, and blast-offs. Live, eat, and breathe photography with two of the world’s premier photographic educators at one of their very favorite photography locations on the planet. Top-notch in-the-field and Photoshop instruction. This will make 21 consecutive Novembers at Bosque for artie. This will be denise’s 7th workshop at the refuge. Nobody knows the place better than artie does. Join us to learn to think like a pro, to recognize situations and to anticipate them based on the weather, especially the sky conditions, the light, and the wind direction. Every time we make a move we will let you know why. When you head home being able to apply what you’ve learned on your home turf will prove to be invaluable.

This workshop includes 3 morning and 3 afternoon photography sessions, an inspirational introductory slide program after dinner on your own on Saturday, 11/21, all lunches, and after-lunch digital workflow, Photoshop, and image critiquing sessions.

There is never a strict itinerary on a Bosque IPT as each day is tailored to the local conditions at the time and to the weather. We are totally flexible in order to maximize both the photographic and learning opportunities. We are up early each day leaving the hotel by 5:30 am to be in position for sunrise. We usually photograph until about 10:30am. Then it is back to Socorro for lunch and then a classroom session with the group most days. We head back to the refuge at about 3:30pm each day and photograph until sunset. We will be photographing lots of Snow Geese and lots of Sandhill Cranes with the emphasis on expanding both your technical skills and your creativity.

A $449 non-refundable deposit is required to hold your slot for this IPT. Your balance, payable only by check, will be due on 7/25/2014. If you cancel and the trip fills, we will be glad to apply a credit applicable to a future IPT for the full amount less a $100 processing fee. If we do not receive your check for the balance on or before the due date we will try to fill your spot from the waiting list. Whether or not your spot is filled, you will lose your deposit. If not, you can secure your spot by paying your balance.

Please print, complete, and sign the form that is linked to here and shoot it to us along with your deposit check (made out to “Arthur Morris.”) You can also leave your deposit with a credit card by calling the office at 863-692-0906. If you register by phone, please print, complete and sign the form as noted above and either mail it to us or e-mail the scan. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me via e-mail.

In 2015, we are offering a 3-DAY IPT before Thanksgiving and a 4-DAY IPT after the holiday. You can attend either and spend Thanksgiving Day with your family. Sign up for both and we will be glad to apply a $100 discount to your balance. We know that there are lots of less costly workshops being offered these days. Please remember that you get exactly what you pay for. If you want the finest in photographic instruction and want to be assured of being in the right spot at exactly the right time, do join us.

Bosque del Apache 2015 BIRDS AS ART/A Creative Adventure Instructional Photo-Tour (IPT). 4-DAY IPT: (three full and two 1/2 DAYS) NOV 28-DEC 2, 2015. $1499. Meet and greet at 3pm on SAT NOV 28 followed by an afternoon photo session at the crane pools and the introductory slide program after dinner on your own.

Tens of thousands of Snow Geese, 10,000 Sandhill Cranes, ducks, amazing sunrises, sunsets, and blast-offs. Live, eat, and breathe photography with two of the world’s premier photographic educators at one of their very favorite photography locations on the planet. Top-notch in-the-field and Photoshop instruction. This will make 21 consecutive Novembers at Bosque for artie. This will be denise’s 7th workshop at the refuge. Nobody knows the place better than artie does. Join us to learn to think like a pro, to recognize situations and to anticipate them based on the weather, especially the sky conditions, the light, and the wind direction. Every time we make a move we will let you know why. When you head home being able to apply what you’ve learned on your home turf will prove to be invaluable.

This workshop includes 4 afternoon (11/28through 12/1), 4 morning (11/29 to 12/2) photography sessions, an inspirational introductory slide program after dinner on your own on Saturday, 11/28, all lunches, and after-lunch digital workflow, Photoshop, and image critiquing sessions.

There is never a strict itinerary on a Bosque IPT as each day is tailored to the local conditions at the time and to the weather. We are totally flexible in order to maximize both the photographic and learning opportunities. We are up early each day leaving the hotel by 5:30 am to be in position for sunrise. We usually photograph until about 10:30am. Then it is back to Socorro for lunch and then a classroom session with the group most days. We head back to the refuge at about 3:30pm each day and photograph until sunset. We will be photographing lots of Snow Geese and lots of Sandhill Cranes with the emphasis on expanding both your technical skills and your creativity.

A $599 non-refundable deposit is required to hold your slot for this IPT. Your balance, payable only by check, will be due on 7/25/2014. If you cancel and the trip fills, we will be glad to apply a credit applicable to a future IPT for the full amount less a $100 processing fee. If we do not receive your check for the balance on or before the due date we will try to fill your spot from the waiting list. Whether or not your spot is filled, you will lose your deposit. If not, you can secure your spot by paying your balance.

Please print, complete, and sign the form that is linked to here and shoot it to us along with your deposit check (made out to “Arthur Morris.”) You can also leave your deposit with a credit card by calling the office at 863-692-0906. If you register by phone, please print, complete and sign the form as noted above and either mail it to us or e-mail the scan. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me via e-mail.

BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo Tours (IPTs)

For a listing of all currently offered IPTs, click here.

Click here for BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-Tour (IPT) General Information.

Click here for BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-Tour (IPT) Deposit and Cancellation Policies.

Click here for BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-Tour (IPT) Registration and Release Forms.

DPP 4 eGuide 7D II Update

If you have purchased the DPP 4 eGuide and have purchased a 7D II, please request the free update by shooting Jim an e-mail with the words DPP 4 7D II Update cut and pasted into the Subject Line. You must include some sort of proof of purchase; a cut and paste of page 2 of the current guide will suffice. If you send your request without including proof of purchase your updated eGuide will not be sent 🙂

Facebook

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

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

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

…..

Amazon.com

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

Amazon Canada

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

Typos

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

The Streak Continues: 363

With clear skies and barely any wind Denise Ippolito and I again went a bit out of the traditional Bosque box by starting our day at the Ed Kranepool. I went 16-35 for the goose blast off. That was followed by the best morning of the year for departing Sandhill Crane flight photography as the breeze came up from the north/northeast. I killed at first with the 600 II/1.4X III/7D II combo but ditched the TC after a while as the birds were getting too big in the frame.

I spent pretty much a full day’s work getting images together for the Canon Digital Learning Center bird photography video project. I still have a ton of work to do. They need about seventy 16:9 images. So far I have delivered only 18 :(. Hard work. I stayed in for only the second afternoon of the trip to watch some of the NFL games while optimizing new images for the videos. And for the blog.

Coming soon: a free Bosque Site Guide update for all: The State of the Bosque…. Today’s blog post, the 363rd in a row, took 1 1/2 hours to assemble (including the time for the DPP 4 RAW conversion and the creation of the animated GIF). This blog post was published from my hotel room in Socorro, NM at 3:45am. We will continue our busman’s holiday tomorrow. We meet the 4-Day Bosque IPT group on Saturday afternoon.

Bosque 2015

Denise and I will again be collaborating on two Bosque IPTs in 2015, one before Thanksgiving and one after. Dates and rates will be announced here soon. If you would like to receive early notice, please shoot me an e-mail with the words “Bosque 2015” in the Subject Line. We already have several interested folks.

Amazing Black Friday Sale

Save $300 on the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens for APS-C Bodies

In a recent blog post here, I discussed the need for special short zoom and fixed focal length lenses for those who like to go wide with APS-C sensor camera bodies. With their 1.6X crop factors, cameras like the Canon EOS-7D Mark II, the EOS-7D, and the EOS-40 and 50D bodies, make it impossible to go wide and ultra wide. Right now, the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM lens is on sale for an absolutely silly $299, $300 off the regular price of $599. 17-85mm translates to the equivalent of 27-136mm on a full frame camera, approximating the hugely popular Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM lens.

I am not sure how long the sale lasts….

Click on the logo link above for more insane Black Friday Specials

Please Help Support My Work on the BAA Blog

Thanks a Stack! The last six weeks have been great!

The last six weeks have been quite rewarding with more and more folks making it a habit to use my B&H links especially for their major gear purchases. It is great to feel appreciated. Thanks a stack to all who used our links for purchases large and small.

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

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

Canon EOS-7D Mark II Back in Stock at B&H and Now Shipping

B&H has a limited supply of Canon EOS-7D Mark II bodies in stock. They are ready to ship you one today. Take part in the revolution. Need reach along with a great AF system and superb image quality? Order yours today by clicking on the logo link below.

If what you’ve learned here on my blog about the Canon EOS-7D Mark II has inspired you to purchase this great new camera body, please consider using the logo link above to support our efforts here in bringing you the latest, greatest educational materials on daily basis.

This image was created at 3:54pm on the clear afternoon of November 17, 2014 at Bosque del Apache NWR. I used the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod), the Mongoose M3.6 head, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and the Canon EOS 7D Mark II. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop as framed: 1/2000 sec. at f/5.6 in Av mode. AWB. Central sensor/AI Servo Rear Focus AF on the bird’s neck was active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Northern Shoveler hen

Things were just ducky…

I created this image while one of seven educational segments for a bird photography video was being filmed. The project is sponsored by the Canon Digital Learning Center. The videos should be on the Canon website in about a month. Scroll down to see my very strange blind.

Yours truly on a video set near Ed Kranepool at Bosque del Apache NWR. Image courtesy of and copyright 2014 Tom Debrayanna.

World’s strangest blind…

I created the shoveler image that opened this blog post while on set on the South Loop. I was going through a litany of talking points for one of the seven video segments when this handsome hen swam by so I took a short break and made a few frames.

The segments will include:

Creating Pre-Dawn Blurs
What’s in the Gear Bag (aka The Junk in the Trunk)
Understanding Light, Wind & Perspective
Setting up for Flight
Using Tele-Extenders
AI Servo AF
Exposure Control

Thanks a stack to Tom Debrayanna for sending me a few images for the blog. Like this one, they were all quite well done.

The Image Optimization

First I converted the image in DPP 4. I leveled it by connecting the centers of the pupils with the Ruler Tool and hit Command + Question Mark, my personalized keyboard shortcut for Image > Rotate > Arbitrary. Next was dust spotting and some Eye Doctor work. Note how much better the pupil looks in the optimized image.

With their always-wet heads, images of dabbling ducks are rife with specular highlights on the face and the bill. I almost always opt to clean up such messes as to me, the small to tiny over-exposed highlights are simply butt-ugly. Working large I used the Spot Healing Brush and the Patch Tool. The clean-up work here took me more than twenty minutes.

Digital Basics

Everything that I did to optimize today’s image is covered in detail in my Digital Basics File–written in my easy-to-follow, easy-to-understand style. Are you tired of making your images look worse in Photoshop? Digital Basics File is an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. It includes my complete digital workflow, dozens of great Photoshop tips (including the Surface Blur settings as taught to me by Denise Ippolito), details on using all of my image clean-up tools, the use of Contrast Masks, several different ways of expanding and filling in canvas, all of my time-saving Keyboard Shortcuts, Quick Masking, Layer Masking, and NIK Color Efex Pro basics, Contrast Masks, Digital Eye Doctor techniques, using Gaussian Blurs, Tim Grey Dodge and Burn, a variety of ways to make selections, how to create time-saving actions, and tons more.

APTATS I & II

Learn the details of advanced Quick Masking techniques in APTATS I. Learn Advanced Layer Masking Techniques in APTATS II. Mention this blog post and apply a $5 discount to either with phone orders only. Buy both APTATS I and APTATS II and we will be glad to apply at $15 discount with phone orders only. Please call Jim or Jennifer at 863-692-0906 weekdays to order.

The Bosque Site Guide

All BAA Site Guides are designed so that with a bit of study you can show up at a great place and know exactly where to be at what time on what wind and in what lighting conditions. With a Site Guide on your laptop you will feel like a 20-year veteran even on your first visit. Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. If you plan on visiting the refuge it would be foolish to make the trip without having this guide in hand. Why spend money on gear and travel and then spend days stumbling around in the wrong spots? If you have visited previously, and are still unsure of where you should be at this time of day with that wind, this guide will prove invaluable to you as well.

You can order yours here or check out all of our site guides here.

Canon Telephoto Lens Specifications, Info, and Links; Bookmark This Page!

I have added the 100-400II to the chart here. Bookmark this page and consult it often as it makes comparing different lenses an easy chore. The chart includes weight in both pounds and kilograms, MFDs in feet and inches and in meters, magnification, filter size, and the year of introduction.

IPT Updates

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

Morro Bay offers a wealth of very attractive natural history subjects in a variety of attractive settings.

2015 Morro Bay 5-DAY BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-Tour (IPT): MAR 14 thru MAR 18, 2015: $1999 (Limit: 8/Openings: 8.)

Meet and Greet after dinner on your own at 8:00pm on MAR 13.

Join me in one of the most beautiful and scenic places on the planet to photograph a large variety of birds of the sea and shore. As above, the star of the show will be Long-billed Curlew. There will be lots of Marbled Godwits and Willets as well as lots of the smaller shorebird species. Black Oystercatcher is likely and we should get to photograph large flocks of Western Sandpipers in flight over the bay. With any luck we should enjoy some great sunrise and sunset photography. There are lots of gulls including Western, California, and Mew. There is one good location where we should get to photograph Western, Clarke’s, Eared, and Pied-billed Grebe, Lesser Scaup, and Common Loon. We may get to photograph some passerines including Anna’s Hummingbird, Brewer’s Blackbird, and White-crowned Sparrow. And we have a chance for several species of raptors. Yikes, I almost forgot California Poppy. And California Ground Squirrel. Sea Otters are also possible.

This IPT will include five 3 1/2 hour morning photo sessions, five 2 1/2 hour afternoon sessions, five lunches, after-lunch image review and Photoshop sessions, and of course tons of great in-the-field instruction and photographic instruction. To ensure early starts, breakfasts will be your responsibility.

A $499 non-refundable deposit is required to hold your slot for this IPT. You can send a check (made out to “Arthur Morris) to use at BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL, 33855. Or call Jim or Jennifer at the office with a credit card at 863-692-0906. Your balance, payable only by check, will be due on 12/1//2014. If the trip fills, we will be glad to apply a credit applicable to a future IPT for the full amount less a $100 processing fee. If we do not receive your check for the balance on or before the due date we will try to fill your spot from the waiting list. If your spot is filled, you will lose your deposit. If not, you can secure your spot by paying your balance. Please print, complete, and sign the form that is linked to here and shoot it to us along with your deposit check. If you register by phone, please print, complete and sign the form as noted above and either mail it to us or e-mail the scan. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me via e-mail.

See lots more Morro Bay images here.

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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 :).

The Streak Continues: 361

Denise and I finished up Day 2 of our Bosque Creative IPT at the crane pools with a decent sunset and lots of very good silhouette opportunities. At Bosque even the clear sunsets can be great if you know where to be. We went out of the box in the pre-dawn foregoing the traditional strategies to go for cranes in orange as detailed in my Bosque Site Guide.

Coming soon: a free Bosque Site Guide update for all: The State of the Bosque…. Today’s blog post, the 361st in a row, took 4 hours to assemble (including the time for the DPP 4 RAW conversions and the image optimizations) and was published from my hotel room in Socorro, NM at 4:21am. We will be enjoying a busman’s holiday until we meet the 4-Day Bosque IPT on Saturday afternoon.

Bosque 2015

Denise and I will again be collaborating on two Bosque IPTs in 2015, one before Thanksgiving and one after. Dates and rates will be announced here soon. If you would like to receive early notice, please shoot me an e-mail with the words “Bosque 2015” in the Subject Line.

Please Help Support My Work on the BAA Blog

Thanks a Stack! The last six weeks have been great!

The last six weeks have been quite rewarding with more and more folks making it a habit to use my B&H links especially for their major gear purchases. It is great to feel appreciated. Thanks a stack to all who used our links for purchases large and small.

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

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

Canon EOS-7D Mark II Back in Stock at B&H and Now Shipping

B&H has a limited supply of Canon EOS-7D Mark II bodies in stock. They are ready to ship you one today. Take part in the revolution. Need reach along with a great AF system and superb image quality? Order yours today by clicking on the logo link below.

If what you’ve learned here on my blog about the Canon EOS-7D Mark II has inspired you to purchase this great new camera body, please consider using the logo link above to support our efforts here in bringing you the latest, greatest educational materials on daily basis.

This image was created at Bosque del Apache NWR at 6:40am, also on November 24, 2014 on Day 1 of the 2-Day Creative Workshop with the with the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod, the Mongoose M3.6 head, the Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Lens with Internal 1.4x Extender (at 329mm) and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop as framed in Av Mode: 1/400 sec. at f/4. Color Temperature: 8000K. Central sensor/AI Servo/Surround–Rear Focus AF as framed active at the moment of exposure. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #1: Orange/pink Bald Eagle

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Crane Pools

After a huge fly out against so-so color we ran into a Bald Eagle on a nice perch tree just as the color developed. I enhanced the colors a bit with the Adjust Image Colors tab in DPP 4.

This image was created at Bosque del Apache NWR at 7:58am on November 24, 2014 on Day 1 of the 2-Day Creative Workshop with the with the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod, the Mongoose M3.6 head, the Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Lens with Internal 1.4x Extender (with the internal TC in place at 533mm) and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 100. Evaluative metering +1 stop off the yellow grasses in Manual Mode. 3-stop drop-in (0.9) ND filter. We hope to have more info for you on the Singh-Ray 3-stop drop-in (0.9) ND filter soon. 1/30 sec. at f.5.6. AWB. Central sensor/AI Servo/Surround–Rear Focus AF as framed active at the moment of exposure. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #2: Blackbird Blastoff

Blackbird City

We have enjoyed some great blackbird blastoff action most every day at the north end of the Farm Loop. For many in the group it was their first time attempting to create pleasing blurs. Everyone did better than just fine.

Singh-Ray Filters

Singh-Ray filters have been used by the world’s top photographers for many decades. Who? Art Wolfe, Tony Sweet, John Barclay, my new friend Ian Plant, my BFF and oft-business partner, Denise Ippolito, Nevada Weir, Brenda Tharp, Cole Thompson, Chuck Kimmerle, and the late Galen Rowell among others. Singh-Ray has been and is the name in quality filters. I often use their 77mm warming polarizer set to dark at Bosque to get to a slower shutter speed in too-bright conditions and to tone down that fierce sun. BIRDS AS ART is working with Singh-Ray to produce a 5-stop Neutral Density filter to to fit the filter drawers of Canon Super-telephoto lenses. Staye tuned for info on that.

No other filter manufacturer comes close to matching the quality of Singh-Ray’s optical glass that is comparable to that used by NASA. And they continue to pioneer the most innovative products on the market like their ColorCombo polarizer, Vari-ND variable and Mor-Slo 15-stop neutral density filters. When you use their filters, you’ll create better, more dramatic images and, unlike other filters, with absolutely no sacrifice in image quality. All Singh-Ray filters are handcrafted in the USA.

Best News: 10% Discount/Code at checkout: artie10

To shop for a Singh-Ray 5-Stop ND filter (for example), click on the logo link below, click on Neutral and color density on the menu bar and then click on Mor-Slo 5, 10, 15 and 20-Stop Solid Neutral Density Filters. I go for the 77mm thin-ring 4.6mm (no front threads). This filter fits the 77mm lenses like the 70-200 f/2.8L IS and the 100-400. It is perfect for getting down to shutter speeds in the 1/8 to 1/30 sec range in Bosque’s seemingly omnipresent bright sun while working at relatively wide apertures. Now add to your cart and then checkout. At checkout, type artie10 into the “Have a coupon? Click here to enter your code” box, and a healthy 10% discount will be applied to your total. In addition to enjoying the world’s best filter at 10% off you will be supporting my efforts here on the blog.

This image was created at Bosque del Apache NWR at 7:58am on November 24, 2014 on Day 1 of the 2-Day Creative Workshop with the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod, the Mongoose M3.6 head, with the Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens and the Canon EOS 7D Mark II . ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1/3 stop off the blue sky 30 degrees up from the horizon: 1/3200 sec. at f/7.1 is the equivalent of our oft-recommended settings for bright whites in full sun: ISO 400, 1/2000 sec. at f/8 for and check your histogram. Some bodies might need 1/2500 sec. at f/8. Others rarely might need 1/3200 sec. at f/8. Shutter button AF for nearly all pure flight situations. Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #3: Snow Goose landing

Bad Wind….

With the wind from the west/northwest decent flight opportunities were few and far between. When they came along the 7D II was more than up to the task.

7D II for Reach

Whenever I need additional reach, I reach for my 7D Mark II. AF has proven to be superb.

This image was created at Bosque del Apache NWR at 10:54am on the sunny morning of November 24, 2014 on Day 1 of the 2-Day Creative Workshop with the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens (hand held at 80mm) and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 50. Evaluative metering +1/3 stop as framed: 1/15 sec. at f/13. Cloudy White Balance. Singh-Ray 77mm 3-stop (0.9) Neutral Density filter allowed me to get down to 1/15th sec. in full sun without having to work at a tiny aperture that would have maximized dust bunnies. One sensor up from the central AF point/AI Servo/Surround–Rear Focus AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #4: Snow Geese/Half-assed blastoff…

Half-assed…

We waited nearly 3 solid hours for the massive blastoff that seemed a near-certainty at 8:45am. It never happened…. This half-assed blast off was the best that the hungry birds could manage. Where is a coyote when you need one? We stayed were pretty darned patient but gave up at 11:30am and headed back to Socorro for lunch.

This image was created at Bosque del Apache NWR at 3:37pm on the partly cloudy afternoon of November 24, 2014 on Day 1 of the 2-Day Creative Workshop with the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens (hand held at 155mm) and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 50. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/8 sec. at f/4. Color temperature: 8000K. Central sensor/AI Servo/Surround–Rear Focus AF on a tree in the center of the frame, release, re-frame lower, and pan vertically upwards during the exposure. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #5: trees/vertical pan blur

Trees in the afternoon…

Many on the Creative IPT were hot for trees so we obliged. We discussed a variety of techniques including vertical pan blurs (as here), zoom blurs, and shiver blurs.

Learn the secrets of creating contest winning images in our “A Guide to Pleasing Blurs.”

A Guide to Pleasing Blurs

While lying in bed in the middle of last night and thinking of finishing this blog post, I realized that the two oof bird images were actually de-focused blurs, one of the many categories that we discuss and detail in our great eGuide, A Guide to Pleasing Blurs by Denise Ippolito and yours truly.

Pleasing Blurs are not accidents. Learn pretty much everything that there is about creating them in this instructive (as always) guide.

This image was created at Bosque del Apache NWR at 5:00pm on November 24, 2014 on Day 1 of the 2-Day Creative Workshop with the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 2X III (hand held at 178mm) with the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 2500. Evaluative metering -2/3 stop: 1/500 sec. at f/5.6. Color temperature: 8000K. One sensor up from the Central AF point/AI Servo/Surround–Rear Focus AF as framed was active at the moment of exposure. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #6: More fire in the sky

Earth on Fire?

As the sun set in the west behind the Chupaderas it seemed as if the earh behind them had caught fire. Birds in the color were frustratingly few and far behind.

Image Question

Why -2/3 EC for this one?

Your Favorites?

Which of today’s six images float your boat? Which do not? Either way, let us know why.

IPT Updates

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

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

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Amazon Canada

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

Typos

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

The Streak Continues: 359

We had our fourth in a row Wonderful Festival of the Cranes Early Morning Workshop group and everyone learned a ton; we rocked ’em again. Learn more about our amazing weather day below and more in a coming blog post.

Coming soon: a free Bosque Site Guide update for all: The State of the Bosque…. Today’s blog post, the 359th in a row, took 1 1/2 hours to assemble and was published from my hotel room in Socorro, NM at 3:24am. Tonight, we meet our 2-DAY Creative Workshop group.

The Mac PDF Mystery Resolved–Sort Of…

Arash sent me the updated DPP Guide via e-mail to my gmail account. It opened easily with a single click in Adobe Acrobat Reader for Mac. Thanks to all who offered help and thoughts. The mystery remains as to how the file, sent as an e-mail attachment to my samandmayas att address, became corrupted….

Please Help Support My Work on the BAA Blog

Thanks a Stack! The last six weeks have been great!

The last six weeks have been quite rewarding with more and more folks making it a habit to use my B&H links especially for their major gear purchases. It is great to feel appreciated. Thanks a stack to all who used our links for purchases large and small.

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

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

This image was created at 6:42am on Sunday, November 23 at Bosque del Apache NWR, San Antonio, NM. I used the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod), the Mongoose M3.6 head, the Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM lens with Internal 1.4x Extender (at 200mm), and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop as framed: 1/125 sec. at f/10 in Av mode. Central Sensor Expand AI Servo/Rear Focus AF on the row of cranes and recompose. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. The Calm Before the Wind

The Calm Before the Wind…

Despite the Armageddon-like forecast for Sunday morning, the day dawned with relatively calm shifting winds. We had a great flyout and then, seeing the color develop in front of us we moved south past the flight deck to find some birds to put in front of the color. It was the same old lesson that folks fail to get. Everyone photographing north of the Flight Deck stayed put.

By 9:00 the wind was about 20mph from the NW. By 11:00am it was a solid 25-30 from the NW with gusts to 47. Nice. Can you say wind against sun? When the gusts strengthened, you needed to turn around to avoid being blinded by the blowing sand and grit. I had as many as four rigs set up with three of them on the ground resting on an old scarf. Everything quickly became covered in dirt, dust, and grit. We had found lots of geese, far away at first. Big numbers wound up right by the tour loop road and we stayed with them despite the horrific conditions.

I saw the potential; we stayed till noon in the bright sunshine, and eventually, those who persevered, were greatly rewarded. In addition, I had a revelation that I will share with you here soon.

The Image Conversion

The RAW file was converted in DPP 4. I moved the Shadow slighter 5 to the right to open up the dark areas and the Highlight slider 2 to the left to darken the brightest YELLOWs. The only thing that I did in Photoshop was a slight Curves adjustment to further open up the darker areas and tone down the highlights, both only a bit. Otherwise the image is right out of camera with not a pixel altered.

IPT Updates

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

All of the images in the bear boat card above were created in Katmai National Park during the month of September.

Bear Boat/Bears Catching Salmon IPT: September 1-8, 2015 from Kodiak, AK/6 FULL & 2 1/2 DAYS: $6699. Happy campers only! Maximum 8/Openings: 5. Plus the leader: Arthur Morris.

If I do not have four deposit checks in hand by 1/31/2015 I reserve the right to scrap this trip so please do not purchase your plane tickets until you hear from me. 🙂 Only one to go.

Join me in Katmai National Park, AK for seven days of photographing Coastal Brown Bears (grizzlies) catching salmon, fattening up for the long winter. Other subjects will include Mew and Glaucous-winged Gulls in flight and dip-feeding on salmon roe. Did I mention that we live on a boat and that the food is great? Most of our photography will be done in a variety of famed locations: Geographic Harbor, Kinak Bay, and Kukak Bay. We once had 39 bears fishing the creek at Kukak….

It is mandatory that you be in Kodiak no later than the late afternoon of August 31, 2015 September to avoid missing the float planes to the boat on the morning of September 1. With air travel in AK being what it is, with the chance of fog or other bad weather–being on Kodiak on August 30 is an even better plan). I be on Kodiak on August 30 to avoid any potential disaster. That said in my nearly a dozen bear boat trips I was delayed only once but since I was day early as noted above there was no harm, no foul.

We will take one or more float planes to the boat mid-morning on September 1. We will photograph bears fishing that afternoon and every day for the next six days (weather permitting of course). We should have bears catching salmon every day. In addition, we will get some nice stuff on Mew Gull and Glaucous-winged Gulls dining on roe and the remains of predated salmon. We may–depending on where the concentrations of bears are–get to photograph Harbor seals and some hauled out Steller’s Sea Lions (an endangered species). Halibut fishing (license required) is optional. On September 8, our last morning on the boat, those who would like to enjoy one last photo session will do so. The group returns to Kodiak via float plane midday. Most folks will fly to Anchorage and then continue on red-eye flights to their home cities.

The eight days will consist of six full days (Sept 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, & 7) of photography featuring lots of Coastal Brown Bears catching salmon as above plus a variety of other natural history subjects plus some nice scenic photography that I forgot to mention above. Plus the first afternoon and the last morning.

What’s included? 8 DAYS/7 NIGHTS on the boat as above. All meals on the boat. (The food is quite excellent.) National Park fees. One night’s double occupancy lodging on Kodiak; arrive: Sept 1/depart: Sept 2. The thank-you-in-advance dinner on Sept 1. In-the-field photo tips, instruction, and guidance. An insight into the mind of a top professional; I will constantly let you know what I am thinking, what I am doing, and why I am doing it. Small group image review, image sharing, and Photoshop instruction on the boat.

What’s not included: Your round trip airfare to and from Kodiak, AK (almost surely through Anchorage). All necessary lodging other than the cost of your double occupancy room on the night of August 31 should you opt to arrive early–we can arrange that in advance for you. We will let you know the cost of a single supplement for the one night if so desired. The cost of the round-trip float plane to the boat on September 2 and back to Kodiak on September 9. The cost of a round trip this year was $500. The suggested crew tip of $210.

Is this an expensive trip? Yes, of course. But with 6 full and two half days, a wealth of great subjects, and the fact that you will be walking with the bears just yards away (or less….) it will be one of the great natural history experiences of your life. Most folks who take part in a Bear Boat IPT wind up coming back for more.

A $2,000 per person non-refundable deposit by check only made out to “Arthur Morris” is required to hold your spot. Please click here to read our cancellation policy. Then please print, read, and sign the necessary paperwork here and send it to us.

Your deposit is due immediately. That will leave a balance of $4699. The next payment of $2699 will be due on February 15, 2015. The final payment of $2000 is due on May 1, 2015.

I hope that you can join us for this wondrously exciting trip.

By e-mail from Bill Keown, veteran of three bear boat trips!

Hi Artie, What a great trip! With the exception of the one bright sunny day it was just great. Very different from my first trip in June where we only had the bears clamming; the fishing bears were amazing! As always I learned a lot and enjoyed the group immensely. All the Best, Bill

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

…..

Amazon.com

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

Amazon Canada

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

Typos

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

The Streak Continues: 357

Denise and I rocked ’em again on our second Festival Early Morning In the Field workshop. We had fifteen folks. The pre-dawn sky offered a bit more color than the day before but was still pretty boring but everyone learned a ton. The crane pool was only so-so but everyone learned a ton. Then we re-visited the new flooded field but that was not very good either. But everyone learned a ton. Despite a crummy overall morning but everyone learned a ton. Again we were plagued by the seemingly omnipresent northwest breeze. Everyone received lots of individual attention and everyone went home very happy.

Mike Cohen of southeast Florida was in the Friday morning group. At the end of the session he came up to me and said, “That was great. I learned so much. And I am glad that I came and met you in person. Before today, I did not like you. But you are actually charming.” I said, “You’ve heard bad stuff about me from others? Heard that I am arrogant and do not care if you learn? And heard that I will push you out of the way to get my shot.?” He said, “Yeah, in part.” I said, “Please remember that 99% of those folks have never been on an IPT or in a class, have never met me.” He said, “But also a bit from your manner on the blog and in e-mail. But I was amazed to find out that you are a really nice guy.” “Thanks,” I said, “I really am a teddy bear….”

My keynote presentation, “A Twenty Year Love Affair with Bosque” was warmly received by a large crowd. It was a pleasure having 14-year Bosque manager Phil Norton in the audience. He kindly contributed some back story on the state of the refuge since he left and later retired from the refuge system.

The like-new Canon 200-400 lens offered yesterday sold instantly. Today’s blog post, the 357th in a row, took 2 hours to assemble and was published from my hotel room in Socorro, NM at 3:50am.

Festival of the Cranes Early Sunday Morning Photography In-the-Field Workshop

Festival of the Cranes Early Sunday Morning, NOV 23. In-the-Field Photography Workshop: 5:50-10:30am. Limit 16/Openings 5. $125. After sellouts on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday there are still a few openings for the Sunday offering. Sign up at the Festival Info Table in the Bosque Visitor Center.

Join full time professional photographers Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART and Denise Ippolito/A Creative Adventure for four 1/2 hours of fun and learning at the refuge. You will learn how to create pleasingly blurred images in the low predawn light, to spot the good situations, to understand the effects of wind speed and direction on bird (especially in flight) photography, to photograph individual cranes in flight, to see and understand the light, to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, and to design pleasing images. In addition you will learn and live Artie’s early morning Bosque del Apache strategies, strategies based on over two decades of experience at the refuge. This is a caravan event and a refuge pass will be provided. Dress with layers for warmth and bring snacks and plenty of water. Workshop leaves sharply at 6:00 AM.

By e-mail from Friday Participant and Blog Regular David Policansky

I’m still replaying the morning in-the-field trip with you and Denise in my head. It was so helpful to watch you in action and hear your explanations of what you were doing and why. I don’t think even your detailed written words can quite take the place of the experience in the field. David

Join Denise Ippolito and Arthur Morris for two great days of photography, fun, and learning at one of our favorite soul places. We will surely be taking you out of the box on this workshop. Please click on the card to enjoy a larger version.

Bosque del Apache 2014 A Creative Adventure/BIRDS AS ART “Creative Photography Instructional Photo-Tour.” (IPT). NOV 24-25, 2014. 2-FULL DAYS: $729. Leaders: Denise Ippolito & Arthur Morris. Introductory Slide program: 7:00pm on Sunday 11/23.

It is still not too late to Get Out of Your Box!

The Creative Bosque IPT is perfect for folks who want to learn to think outside the box, to create new and different images. This workshop is the perfect add-on for folks who attended the Festival of the Cranes. Learn to unleash your creative juices at the wondrous Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in San Antonio, New Mexico with two great leaders including the amazingly talented and creative Denise Ippolito. In-the-field instruction will include tips on gear set-up, on creating a variety of pleasing blurs, on getting the right exposure, and on designing pleasing images. And lots more. From vertical pan blurs to subject motion blurs to zoom blurs to multiple exposures we will cover it all. If conditions are perfect, we will not hesitate to take advantage of them to do some traditional bird photography. This workshop will include an inspirational introductory slide program on Sunday evening, 11/23, after dinner on your own, two morning and two afternoon photography sessions, all lunches, a digital workflow and Photoshop session after lunch on Monday, and an image critiquing session after lunch on Tuesday.

At this late hour, the only way to to sign up is to either find us on the refuge or get in touch via e-mail.

Please Help Support My Work on the BAA Blog

Thanks a Stack! The last six weeks have been great!

The last six weeks have been quite rewarding with more and more folks making it a habit to use my B&H links especially for their major gear purchases. It is great to feel appreciated. Thanks a stack to all who used our links for purchases large and small.

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

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

If what you’ve learned here on my blog about the Canon EOS-7D Mark II has inspired you to purchase this great new camera body, please consider using the logo link above to support our efforts here in bringing you the latest, greatest educational materials on daily basis.

This Sandhill Crane image was created on the clear early evening of November 20, 2014 just after sunset at Bosque del Apache NWR. I used the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod), the Mongoose M3.6 head, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and the Canon EOS 7D Mark II. ISO 800. Evaluative metering + 1 stop as originally framed: 1/1000 sec. at f/5.6 in Av mode. Color Temperature: 8000K. 65-Point Automatic Selection Rear Focus/AI Servo AF selected two sensors, one on the tail and one on the upper back/near wing as originally framed. They were of course active at the moment of exposure. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Sandhill Crane landing Silhouette #1

In the “Canon EOS-1D X, EOS-5D Mark III, EOS-7D Mark II at Bosque del Apache NWR/Which One When and Why?” blog post here, I wrote, and I quote, “When I am focal length challenged I will reach for the 600 II, 1.4X III, and 7D II at least until proven otherwise…. All on the tripod of course.”

Under the heading of Crane Pools for Sunset, I continued, “On a typical late afternoon at the crane pools you will want to go both very long and very wide. You get the idea by now 🙂 I am however, looking forward to using the 600II/1.4X III/7D II combo for the incoming crane silhouettes. AF will be faster than with the 600 II/2X III/1D X and I will have the advantage of being at f/5.6 rather than f/8; this will save me a full stop of ISO across the board. A 16-35 or 24-70II on the Giottos MH 1302-655 BallHead (I call it the tiny ballhead) will rock on many evenings after most folks have gone home too early.”

As the two crane silhouette images here show, I was right on the money as far at the 600 II/1.4X III/7D II combination was concerned. In short, the 7D II continues to amaze me.

This Sandhill Crane image was also created on the clear early evening of November 20, 2014 just after sunset at Bosque del Apache NWR. Again I used the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod), the Mongoose M3.6 head, Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and the Canon EOS 7D Mark II . ISO 1600. Evaluative metering + 1 stop as originally framed: 1/640 sec. at f/5.6 in Av mode. Color Temperature: 8000 K. 65-Point Automatic Selection Rear Focus/AI Servo AF selected and array of three sensors that covered the bird’s head and legs perfectly. (See the screen capture below.) The three sensors were active at the moment of exposure. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. Sandhill Crane landing Silhouette #2

Your Favorite?

Which of today’s two images is your favorite? Please take a moment to leave a comment and let us know why.

This is the DPP 4 screen capture for Image #2.

The DPP 4 Screen Capture

The DPP 4 screen capture for Image #2 shows the array of AF points that were selected by 65-Point Automatic Selection illuminated in red; pretty darned impressive it you ask me. Those with good eyes can see that I lightened the image 1/3 stop (.33) with the Brightness slider on the Perform basic image adjustment tab. For most images I also use the Adjust image detail tab (for NR), and the Perform image lens correction. For the first time ever I used Fine Tune to tweak the sky color.

DPP 4 is completely new and different from the various versions of DPP 3. It handles files only from the following cameras: EOS-1D X, EOS 5D Mark III, EOS-6D, and the EOS-7D Mark II.

Great 7D II/DPP v4.01.0 News

An updated version of Canon Digital Photo Professional that supports RAW files from the EOS-7D Mark II is available for download via the Canon USA website. Though some folks had trouble getting access to the Mac version of DPP v4.1.0.1 I was able to download and install it easily yesterday evening. Hint for Mac folks: after you double click on the downloaded zip file you need to go to your desktop and click on the icon that was magically created there in order to begin the installation.

To download DPP v4.1 first click here and then click on Drivers and Software and follow the prompts.

The Photographers’ Guide to Canon Digital Photo Professional 4.0 by Arash Hazeghi and Arthur Morris is now available. Click here to order.

The DPP 4 eGuide (PDF)

BIRDS AS ART is proud to announce the release of The Photographers’ Guide to Canon Digital Photo Professional 4.0 by Arash Hazeghi and Arthur Morris: $40.

Artie first went to DPP because he was not happy with the colors he was getting with 1D X and 5D III images from ACR (Adobe Camera Raw). Though less than intuitive, he found it fast and easy to use once he mastered the basics. He collaborated with Arash Hazeghi on the first DPP RAW Conversion Guide. Do understand that the DPP RAW Conversion Guide details the use of various iterations of DPP 3. He calls those the DPP 3.whatever versions. The latest version is DPP 3.14.41.0.

Some time ago Canon released DPP 4.0, completely and utterly new and different from DPP 3. When it was introduced DPP 4 worked only EOS-1D X, EOS-5D Mark III, and EOS-6D images and that is still the case today. It will not work with RAW files from older Canon digital camera bodies. Both authors are hoping that a new version of DPP 4 that will convert EOS-7D Mark II images will be released soon.

In the meantime, DPP 4 performs superbly with his 1D X and 5D III images. When he first opened DPP 4 he felt as if he were in the cockpit of a Boeing 747 and was being asked to fly it. There were so many tabs and buttons and controls that he simply closed the program. He immediately called Arash and asked him if he wanted to work together on a DPP 4 guide. After 100s of hours of work the guide is now ready to teach you to conveniently and easily use DPP 4 to create the finest possible image files from your 1D X, 5D III, and 6D image files. Basically, Arash sent artie a sophisticated outline that he re-crafted into a clear, concise, easily understood, and easy to follow how-to guide written in the BAA style. Arash created all of the charts, diagrams, and graphics.

His charts with recommendations for both Chrominance and Luminance Noise Reduction values for each of the 3 covered cameras at various ISO settings are alone worth the price of the book. He spent many dozens of hours experimenting with high ISO RAW files and shares his findings with you in the DPP 4 Guide. Folks will surely want to create some sort of easily accessible quick reference on their laptops and home computers.

DPP offers a host of great features some but not all of which are reminiscent of ACR. These include the following: Multi-image display, the extremely valuable Before/after Comparison layout, Highlight/shadow warnings, White Balance, and the eight RAW Conversion tabs that include sliders for Brightness, Highlights, Shadows, Contrast, Hue-Saturation, Color Tone, Sharpness, Noise Reduction, HSL (Hue/Saturation/Luminance), Lens Corrections, and Digital Lens Optimizer among others. We teach you how to best utilize each of those and many more. We share our slightly different DPP workflows and dozens of tips that will simply make your life easier. Arash uses DPP4′s rating system for choosing his keepers while artie continues to rely on BreezeBrowser Pro for that. DPP offers a variety of sorting filters. We explain all of the options. In addition, we teach you how to set your preferences and how to arrange your workspace for the greatest efficiency.

Both authors firmly believe that the manufacturer’s conversion algorithms will always out-perform 2nd party software when it comes to preserving image quality, fine detail, and accurate color rendition.

The authors wish to thank Chuck Westfall and Rudy Winston of Canon USA for their help; they are always available to answer our nit-picking questions. Sincere thanks also to Ken Kovak, Bob Schwartz, Dane Johnson, and John Stuhlmuller for their thoughtful and substantive reviews of late drafts of the DPP 4 manuscript.

You can order your copy of the DPP 4 Guide for $40 through the BAA Online Store by clicking here, by calling Jim or Jen in the office at 863-692-0906 with credit card in hand, by sending us a check made out to “Arthur Morris” or a money order for $40 to BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855, or by by sending a Paypal for $40 to e-mail. IN the latter two instances be sure to note DPP 4 Guide so we know what you are ordering :).

Note: the Sharpness and Noise Reduction Charts will be updated to include the recommended values for the 7D Mark II. I have been sending RAW files to Arash for several days. Now Arash has a lot more work to do. For those who have purchased the DPP 4 Guide, the update will of course be free but please be patient.

Those using older Canon camera bodies like the 1D Mark IV, the 7D, the 50D, the 40D, the various Rebels (not highly recommended for serious nature photography), are directed to the original DPP RAW Conversion Guide click here. DPP 3 (the latest version is DPP v3.14.41.0) does a fine job of converting images from the older camera bodies. I used it for several years.

DPP 4 eGuide Kudos via e-mail from Melvin Grey

Artie, Thank you very much for creating and sending the superb new guide and for the excellent service.THANK YOU and ARASH, once again, for an invaluable guide and THANK YOU for your continuing educational blogs. Melvin

Images and card design copyright 2014: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART. Click on the card to enjoy a spectacular larger version.

The 2015 UK Puffins and Gannets IPT

June 29 through July 5, 2015: $5499: Limit 10 photographers/Openings 1. Two great leaders: Denise Ippolito and Arthur Morris.

Here are the plans for next year: take a red eye from the east coast of the US on 28 June arriving in Edinburgh, Scotland on the morning of Monday 29 June (or simply meet us then either at the Edinburgh Airport (EDI) or later in the day at our cottages if you are driving your own vehicle either from the UK or from somewhere in Europe. Stay 7 nights in two gorgeous modern country cottages.

There are 5 days of planned puffin/seabird trips—weather permitting, and 1 full day of gannet photography with 2 sessions on the boat.

Images and card design copyright 2014: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART. Click on the card to enjoy a spectacular larger version.

The Details

We will be staying in upscale country-side cottages that are beyond lovely with large living areas and lots of open space for image sharing and Photoshop lessons. The shared rooms are decent-sized, each with two roomy single beds and a private bathroom. See the single supplement info below.

All breakfasts, lunches and dinners are included. All 5 puffins boat lunches will need to be prepared in advance, taken with, and consumed at your leisure. I usually eat mine on the short boat trip from one island to the other. Also included is a restaurant lunch on the gannet boat day and a farewell fine dining thank you dinner. The cost of your National Heritage Trust is also included; that covers the twice a day landing fees.

Plan to fly home on the early morning of Monday 6 July or to continue your stay or travels.

Images and card design copyright 2014: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART. Click on the card to enjoy a spectacular larger version. Scroll down to join us in the UK in 2015.

Single Supplement Info

The single supplement is $1475. As we will be renting a third cottage the $1475 is due with your deposit and is also non-refundable.

If you are good to go please send your $2,000 deposit check now to save a spot. Please make your check out to “Arthur Morris” and send it to Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL, 33855. If you cancel and the trip fills, we will be glad to apply a credit applicable to a future IPT for the full amount less a $100 processing fee. If we do not receive your check for the balance on or before the due date we will try to fill your spot from the waiting list. Whether or not your spot is filled, you will lose your deposit. If not, you can secure your spot by paying your balance.

We do hope that you can join us.

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