Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Stuff

On Saturday I did my usual two rounds of Postural Restoration exercises, worked on this blog post, took a nap, and got some more work done on the Nikon Focus Fine-tune Guide. And that afternoon as my range of motion and freedom of movement kept on improving, I was feeling good enough for the first time since the fall that I had realistic hopes of making a complete recovery … Time will tell. I was feeling so good that I turned into a 100% couch potato for four hours after my short nap. 🙂 I got back to work at about 6:30pm.

The Streak

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

Money Saving Reminder

If you need a hot photo item that is out of stock at B&H, would enjoy free overnight shipping, and would like a $50 discount on your first purchase, click here to order and enter the coupon code BIRDSASART at checkout. If you are looking to strike a deal on Canon or Nikon gear (including the big telephotos) or on a multiple item order, contact Steve Elkins via e-mail or on his cell at (479) 381-2592 (Eastern time) and be sure to mention your BIRDSASART coupon code and use it for your online order. Patrick Sparkman saved $350 on a recent purchase!

The Used Gear Page

Action on the Used Gear Page recently has been fantastic. You can see all current listings here.

Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM Lens

BAA Record-Low, Shock-the-world priced

Greg Morris is offering a barely used EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens in mint to like-new condition with extras for the BAA record low price of $9394.00. The sale includes the LensCoat that has protected this lens since day one, a RRS stuff foot (installed), the original foot, the lens trunk, the original box and everything that came in it: front cover, rear cap, manuals, & the rest, and insured ground shipping via major courier to US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your personal or certified check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Greg via e-mail or by phone at 1-580-678-5929 (Central time).

WMD: Weapon of Mass Destruction!

The 600 II is the state of the art super-telephoto for birds, nature, wildlife, and sports. When I could get it to my location, it was my go-to weapon. It is fast and sharp and deadly alone or with either TC. With a new one going for $11,499, you can save a cool $2,005.00 by grabbing Walt’s might-as-well-be-new lens right now. artie

Fujifilm XF 50-140mm f/2.8 R LM OIS WR Lens

Price dropped $200 on 17 MAR 2018

Joel Williams is also offering a Fujifilm XF 50-140mm f/2.8 R LM OIS WR lens in like-new condition for $749 (was $949). The sale includes the original box, and everything that came with the lens, and insured ground shipping via UPS, to US addresses only. The lens will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Joel via e-mail.

This versatile lens sell new for $1499 so you can save a nifty $550 by grabbing it. artie

Fujifilm XF 16-55 f/2.8 R LM WR lens

Price dropped $100 on 17 MAR 2018

Joel Williams is also offering a Fujifilm XF 16-55 f/2.8 R LM WR lens in like-new condition for only $549 (was $649). The sale includes the original box and everything that came in it and insured ground shipping via UPS to US addresses only. The lens will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Joel via e-mail.

A standard-length zoom built to handle harsh conditions, this weather-sealed lens offers the 35mm focal length equivalence of 24-82.5mm for versatile wide-angle to portrait length perspectives. With a constant f/2.8 maximum aperture, it is effective in low light conditions and able to control focus placement with a shallow depth of field. Compatible with all Fujifilm X-mount mirrorless digital cameras, it features a sophisticated lens design, internal focusing and a Twin Linear Motor AF system for exceedingly fast and near silent autofocus operation. The lens sells new for $1049. B&H

Novoflex Adapter for Leica M Mount Lenses to Fujifilm X Mount Digital Cameras

Price dropped $20 on 17 MAR 2018

Joel Williams is also offering a Novoflex Adapter for Leica M Mount Lenses to Fujifilm X Mount Digital cameras bodies in like-new condition for only $79 (was $99). The sale includes the original box and everything that came in it and insured ground shipping via UPS to US addresses only. This item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Joel via e-mail.

One of the most appealing aspects of mirrorless cameras like those of the Fujifilm X series is the availability of a wide range of compatible interchangeable lenses, including non-Fuji lenses. The Adapter for Leica M Mount Lenses to Fujifilm X Mount Digital Cameras from Novoflex makes it possible to mount a Leica M lens to your Fujifilm X-Pro1, XE-1 and XM-1 Mirrorless Digital Cameras. This precision mechanical adapter does not transfer functions from the camera to the lens, such as automatic focus, however automatic exposure metering in aperture priority and stop-down metering is possible. The lens will focus to infinity using this adapter. This item sells new for $206.25. B&H

Sony Vario-Tessar T FE 16-35 f/4 ZA OSS Lens

Price dropped $120 on 17 MAR 2018

Joel Williams is also offering a Sony Vario-Tessar T FE 16-35 f/4 ZA OSS lens in like-new condition for only $629 (was $749). The sale includes the original box and everything that came in it and insured ground shipping via UPS to US addresses only. The lens will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Joel via e-mail.

A compact and weather-resistant option, the Vario-Tessar T* FE 16-35mm f/4 ZA OSS lens from Sony will satisfy nearly all the wide-angle needs of full-frame E-mount shooters. It also features a constant f/4 aperture for consistent performance and illumination throughout the zoom range. Ensuring optimal image quality, the lens design incorporates five aspherical elements, including one Advanced Aspherical (AA), three extra-low dispersion elements, and the Zeiss T* anti-reflective coating. This combination delivers images that are free from aberration and flare. The lens sells new for $1248.00 B&H

Sony FE 70-200 f/4 G OSS Lens

Price dropped $150 on 17 MAR 2018

Joel Williams is also offering a Sony FE 70-200 f/4 G OSS lens in like-new condition for only $829 (was $979). The sale includes the original box and everything that came in it and insured ground shipping via UPS to US addresses only. The lens will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Joel via e-mail.

Capture more distant subjects while keeping your kit lightweight with the FE 70-200mm f/4 G OSS Lens from Sony. This full-frame lens is designed for use with mirrorless E-mount cameras where it delivers an excellent telephoto zoom range. It also uses a maximum aperture of f/4 to keep size and weight down. Incorporated into the optical design are a series of specialized elements to ensure aberrations are suppressed, this includes two extra-low dispersion elements, one super extra-low dispersion element, two advanced aspherical elements, and one aspherical element. Along with these capabilities, a Nano AR coating will help minimize the appearance of flare and ghosting. The lens sells new for $1398.00 B&H

Booking.Com

Several folks on the Spoonbill IPTs used the Booking.Com link below and got great rates and saved a handsome $25.00 in the process. If you too would like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and to earn a $25 reward on your first booking. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks whom I see in the field, and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and/or lens choices and decisions.

This image was created at La Jolla Shores Beach on the afternoon of January 17, 2018. I was standing behind my Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/640 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode. Cloudy WB at 4:43pm. One to the left and two rows up from the center AF point/AI Servo/Surround AF was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was on the back of the base of the bird’s neck on the same plane as the bird’s eye. LensAlign/FocusTune AFA micro-adjustment: -1. Western Gull on clean, grey sand

The Situation

I love clear sunny afternoons for La Jolla Shores Beach. (Learn when and how to photograph at LJSB and the rest of the great San Diego hotspots in the San Diego Site Guide.) When we finished our Photoshop session and poked our heads out the door it was totally foggy. Several folks decided to skip the afternoon against my advice. When we first began photographing it was pretty much +3 stops everywhere in the thick fog. But not longer after we arrived the sun struggled to break through and did to some degree. With dark clouds in the east and gentle sun on the birds from the west conditions were spectacular; I love the dark grey wet sand background in today’s featured image.

My Bad Weather Strategy

• #1: Don’t even bother looking at the weather forecast the night before. I have seen many evening forecasts that guarantee horrific weather from 5 to 10am the next day only to wake to clearing or even clear skies …
• #2: Even if it is pouring rain when you head out, head out. Even if you are driving only ten minutes the weather might be better at your destination. If it is pouring rain when you get there, be patient. At times the rain may let up just enough for you to get in some photography. I always bring my laptop so that I can get some work done in the car if the bad weather continues.
• #3: It is often fun and productive to use fill flash after the rain subsides. I need to get a flash for my Nikon system … Any suggestions?
• #4: As you have seen here often, foggy conditions are great as long as you are using digital capture.
• #5: The same goes here for snow. When it is precipitating, be sure to make provisions for protecting your gear from the elements.
• #6: Likewise, strong winds, even winds from the wrong direction, can provide different and exciting photographic conditions.
• #7: If you are good with apps on your cell phone, the weather radar stuff can be helpful though I have seen that be very wrong too …
• #8: One thing is for sure, if you cancel a nature photography outing because of bad weather, you will not make any good photographs.

If you remember a time when a lousy forecast or just plain bad weather resulted in some great photography please share by leaving a comment below.

You Will Need to Put Your Thinking Caps On to Figure This One Out …

If you can figure out what is wrong with this image, please leave a comment. Note: the beach was perfectly clean in the RAW file; no shells, no pebbles, no nothing. Thus, there was no beach clean-up needed.

An Angle of Declination Note

When you are standing at full height behind your tripod and working at 840mm your angle of declination is not bad. If you pull out the leg tab on the forward-facing leg and then pull the leg out, you can get a foot or two lower quickly without have to adjust the length of the legs. Depending on your height and physique and the height of your tripod, you can now get lower by squatting down a bit, bending at the waist, or kneeling. This is a quick method of reducing your angle of declination quickly.

If you read the fine print in this blog post you can figure out why kneeling might not have been a good idea and why sitting might have been disastrous. If you do, please share by leaving a comment.

Early Spring Photo Opportunities at ILE

BIRDS AS ART First-ever Master Class

Master Class. Two Full and two Half Days/Friday afternoon, March 30 through lunch on Monday, April 2, 2018. Limit: 4/Openings 3.

The Master Classe will be a small group — strictly limited to four photographers — with the first folks who register having the option of staying at my home ($50/night) or at a chain motel in nearby Lake Wales. Live, think, and breathe photography from Friday afternoon through lunch on Monday (late-morning); all meals included. There will be three afternoon photo sessions (FRI – SUN) hopefully with glorious sunsets like the ones you saw one the blog in December we should have good opportunities with the cranes even in the afternoon. We will enjoy three morning photography sessions (SAT – MON) with the main subjects being tame Sandhill Cranes almost surely with chicks or colts. Also vultures and Cattle Egrets and more. Limpkins are possible. Intermediate telephoto lenses are fine for the cranes, even the chicks at times. A 500 or 600mm lens would be best for many of the situations that we will encounter.

During the day we will sit together around my dining room table and pick everyone’s keepers and enjoy guided Photoshop sessions. On Monday before lunch, folks can make a single large print of their favorite image from the weekend. If you so choose, I will micro-adjust one of your lenses (at one focal length with your #1 camera body–Canon or Nikon) during a group instructional session. All will be welcome to practice what they have learned during the breaks using my set-up and my lighting gear.

To register, please first shoot me an e-mail to check on availability. Then you will be instructed to call Jim or Jen at 863-692-0906 during weekday business hours (except for Friday afternoons) to leave you non-refundable (unless the session sells out) $500 deposit. Only the deposit may be left on credit card. Balances must be paid by check immediately after you register (unless you wish to pay by credit card plus 4% to cover our fees).

I hope that you can join me on this new adventure.

with love, artie

ps: bring your bathing suit if you would like to try my pool.

Tame birds in breeding plumage and chicks are great fun.

Gatorland IPT #2. Sunrise: 6:48am. Sunset: 7:58pm.

3 1/2 DAYs: THURS 26 APR through and including the morning of SUN 29 APR. $1599. Limit 5 photographers/Openings: 3.

Must purchase Gatorland Photographers Pass. Click here for details. All early entry. Late stays Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Gatorland IPT #2 should have lots of chicks, and lots of birds in breeding plumage. We will get to photograph Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Tricolored Heron, and Wood Stork. The Cattle Egrets in full breeding plumage will be present in good numbers. Learn my Gatorland strategy, to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret Gatorland spots, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations.

Help Support the Blog

Please help support my (stupendous) efforts here on the blog by remembering to click on the logo link above each time that you shop Amazon. That would be greatly appreciated. There is no problem using your Prime account; just click on the link and log into your Prime account. With love, artie

If In Doubt …

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

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

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

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

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

Facebook

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

Typos

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

Stuff

The shoulder is getting a little bit better each day but abduction of the left arm is greatly restricted and when I try, the pain is a pain 🙂 Especially at night, even when I am doing nothing. My replacement D5 arrived today. Two folks have signed up for Gatorland #2 so we will have late stay for that Thursday night. More reason to join. See the details below.

The Streak

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

Money Saving Reminder

If you need a hot photo item that is out of stock at B&H, would enjoy free overnight shipping, and would like a $50 discount on your first purchase, click here to order and enter the coupon code BIRDSASART at checkout. If you are looking to strike a deal on Canon or Nikon gear (including the big telephotos) or on a multiple item order, contact Steve Elkins via e-mail or on his cell at (479) 381-2592 (Eastern time) and be sure to mention your BIRDSASART coupon code and use it for your online order. Patrick Sparkman saved $350 on a recent purchase!

The Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide

I will start working on the Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide tomorrow. There is lots of mis-information out there on Nikon Automatic AF Fine-tune. Working with Patrick Sparkman, we developed a way of using that feature effectively. Patrick was on a roll and perfected a method for using the Focus Peaking feature available only on the D850 to quickly and accurately micro-adjust all lenses and TC-Es with your D-850. Both Nikon Automatic AF Fine-tune and D850 Focus Peaking AF Fine-tune require a LensAlign Mark II kit so that you can obtain accurate results. I learned recently that the Nikon D500 DSLR does offer Automatic AF Fine-tune.

Folks who use one of my links to purchase a Nikon D850, a Nikon D5 DSLR Camera (Body Only, Dual XQD Slots), a Nikon D500 DSLR , or any Nikon gear totaling more than $2,000 will receive the new guide free. I hope to have it finished in two weeks but don’t hold me to it 🙂

The Used Gear Page

Action on the Used Gear Page recently has been fantastic. You can see all current listings here.

Fujifilm X-Pro2 Mirrorless Digital Camera plus two-lens package!

Top BAA Used Gear page seller Jim Keener is offering a Fujifilm X-Pro2 Mirrorless Digital Camera in like-new condition ($1699 new), a Fujifilm XF 23mm f/2 R WR (Black) Lens in like-new condition ($449 new), and a Fujifilm XF 50mm f/2 R WR (Black) Lens (also $449 new) in like-new condition for the amazing low giving-it-away price of $1699.00. The sale includes the front cap, five Fujifilm batteries, the charger, the original box, the camera strap, and insured ground shipping via major courier to the 48 contiguous states only. The camera will not ship until your check clears. No PayPal.

Please contact Jim via e-mail or by phone at 310-741-7435 (9am-9pm Mountain time).

The long-awaited successor to Fujifilm’s first X-series mirrorless digital camera, the X-Pro2 sports a high-resolution X-Trans CMOS III sensor and redeveloped X-Processor Pro, along with the tested rangefinder-inspired design now synonymous with the X-Pro system. Now weighing in at 24.3MP, the APS-C CMOS sensor incorporates the proprietary X-Trans technology and its randomized pixel array to afford a high degree of sharpness and accurate color reproduction, along with high expanded sensitivity to ISO 51200. When paired with the X-Processor Pro, the camera is capable of recording stills at up to 8 fps and Full HD 1080p video at 60 fps, along with quick focusing and overall performance speeds. Unique among camera designs, the X-Pro2 is also heavily characterized by its Advanced Hybrid Multi Viewfinder that blends both optical and electronic viewing methods into a single, switchable finder, giving you the best of both worlds in regard to clear viewing and the ability to preview exposure settings prior to shooting. Cementing its place as a professional tool, the X-Pro2 also features a robust, weather-sealed body design accented by a range of physical controls for intuitive handling in any condition. B&H

With this package going for $2597.00 new grabbing it now will save you nearly $1K! With the body in like-new condition it’s as if you are getting the two lenses free. artie

Booking.Com

Several folks on the Spoonbill IPTs used the Booking.Com link below and got great rates and saved a handsome $25.00 in the process. If you too would like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and to earn a $25 reward on your first booking. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks whom I see in the field, and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and/or lens choices and decisions.

This image was created on Cayman Brac on February 12, with the Induro GIT 204/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR lens, the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-14E III, and the Nikon D850. ISO 400. Matrix metering at zero: 1/640 sec. at f/11. AUTO0 WB at 5:12pm on a sunny afternoon. Live View Touch Shutter AF. The LV AF box was on the lower mandible just forward of the bird’s eye. Brown Booby, large chick yawning

The Situation

The beach where these birds nested was strewn with jagged limestone rocks. Getting down on your belly was not possible. Sitting required you to clear an area of rocks to avoid puncturing your butt. But when I was seated, the background was plain ugly: green grass interspersed with white limestone rocks and boulders. Along with lots of plastic trash, more than I have seen anywhere in the world. I knew that I needed to get lower to take advantage of the gorgeous green background provided by a relatively distant beach bush. What to do?

How I Got Low When I Could Not Get Low …

I came up with a plan that involved trying something that I had never tried before. First I set my exposure manually. Then I lowered my Induro GIT 204 tripod so that the lens was about six inches off the ground. Then I pulled out the large (moveable) rear LCD screen and tilted it up. Next I turned on Live View and set up Touch Shutter by tapping the visible icons upper left. I framed the shot, tightened the tripod controls a bit, and began making photos by tapping the rear LCD where I wanted to focus. I am not sure how I wound up at f/11 but it turned out to be a blessing. For the most part the big chick was just sitting there. When it yawned, its head came up a bit so I raised the lens just a bit and tapped the rear LCD to focus and fire. I nearly clipped the upper mandible in the NEF file but was easily able to add canvas above and right using John Haedo Content Aware Fill (as detailed in Digital Basics II). The small aperture helped to ensure that the eye was sharp even though the system focused where I tapped, on the lower mandible. And the bush was far enough away to remain pleasingly out of focus. This technique is great with static subject but less than elegant or ideal when the bird moves. I got lucky with today’s featured image. I love to put on my thinking cap in the field and come up with effective new techniques. 🙂

The Induro GIT 204

I recently discovered the Induro GIT 204, the smaller, lighter cousin of the GIT 304L. The 204 folds down to 21 inches for easy packing and at 4.2 pounds (but rated to hold 44 pounds of gear), makes an ideal travel tripod for folks using intermediate telephoto lenses like the Canon 100-400 II, the Canon 300mm f/4L IS, the Nikon 80-400mm VR, and the Nikon 200-500. All of those and the rest of the versatile intermediate telephoto lenses available today do best when your tripod is topped by a Mongoose M3.6. And the GIT 204 is priced at only $525.00, $124 less than its larger, six-inch taller cousin, the GIT 304L. I brought the 204 to Cayman Brac and used it with the 200-500 most often with the TCE-14III and always once the sun had disappeared behind the taller houses each afternoon; it performed superbly. The booby chicks were so cute that we often stayed to photograph them until well after sunset. I will be bringing the 204 on my next Southern Oceans adventure, (October 2018) for the Emperor Penguin chicks — we hope. B&H does not carry the GIT 204; you can order yours by clicking here right now; there are only four left in stock.

Tame birds in breeding plumage are great fun.

Gatorland IPT #2. Sunrise: 6:48am. Sunset: 7:58pm.

3 1/2 DAYs: THURS 26 APR through and including the morning of SUN 29 APR. $1599. Limit 5 photographers/Openings 3.

(2 1/2 DAY option) FRI 27 APR through and including the morning of SUN 29 APR. $1199.

Must purchase Gatorland Photographers Pass. Click here for details. All early entry. Late stays Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Gatorland IPT #2 should have lots of chicks, and lots of birds in breeding plumage. We will get to photograph Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Tricolored Heron, and Wood Stork. The Cattle Egrets in full breeding plumage will be present in good numbers. Learn my Gatorland strategy, to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret Gatorland spots, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations.

Early Spring Photo Opportunities at ILE

BIRDS AS ART first-ever Master Class

Master Class. Two Full and two Half Days/Friday afternoon, March 30 through lunch on Monday, April 2, 2018. Limit: 4/Openings 3.

The Master Classe will be a small group — strictly limited to four photographers — with the first folks who register having the option of staying at my home ($50/night) or at a chain motel in nearby Lake Wales. Live, think, and breathe photography from Friday afternoon through lunch on Monday (late-morning); all meals included. There will be three afternoon photo sessions (FRI – SUN) hopefully with glorious sunsets like the ones you saw one the blog in December we should have good opportunities with the cranes even in the afternoon. We will enjoy three morning photography sessions (SAT – MON) with the main subjects being tame Sandhill Cranes almost surely with chicks or colts. Also vultures and Cattle Egrets and more. Limpkins are possible. Intermediate telephoto lenses are fine for the cranes, even the chicks at times. A 500 or 600mm lens would be best for many of the situations that we will encounter.

During the day we will sit together around my dining room table and pick everyone’s keepers and enjoy guided Photoshop sessions. On Monday before lunch, folks can make a single large print of their favorite image from the weekend. If you so choose, I will micro-adjust one of your lenses (at one focal length with your #1 camera body–Canon or Nikon) during a group instructional session. All will be welcome to practice what they have learned during the breaks using my set-up and my lighting gear.

To register, please first shoot me an e-mail to check on availability. Then you will be instructed to call Jim or Jen at 863-692-0906 during weekday business hours (except for Friday afternoons) to leave you non-refundable (unless the session sells out) $500 deposit. Only the deposit may be left on credit card. Balances must be paid by check immediately after you register (unless you wish to pay by credit card plus 4% to cover our fees).

I hope that you can join me on this new adventure.

with love, artie

ps: bring your bathing suit if you would like to try my pool.

Help Support the Blog

Please help support my (stupendous) efforts here on the blog by remembering to click on the logo link above each time that you shop Amazon. That would be greatly appreciated. There is no problem using your Prime account; just click on the link and log into your Prime account. With love, artie

If In Doubt …

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

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

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

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

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

Facebook

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

Typos

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

Stuff

I am finishing this blog post on Tuesday evening in hopes of sleeping late on Wednesday. The shoulder felt a lot better as Tuesday wore on. I got lots of work accomplished with travel plans for the lucky Falklands IPT (sold out for forever) group and will be doing the same for the long sold out UK Puffins and Gannets IPT over the next few days.

I spoke to Cliff Oliver and described what was going on with my left arm and shoulder. He felt that it was likely that I have a tear in one of the four rotator cuff muscles. He suggested a few alternative treatments and is 100% sure that I can heal up without surgery. I spoke to Amy Novotny on FaceTime and she had me try a few different test positions and feels that it is very likely that my rotator cuff is intact and that I just need to keep icing and keep up with my ballon exercise protocol. Both conversations buoyed me.

The Streak

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

Money Saving Reminder

If you need a hot photo item that is out of stock at B&H, would enjoy free overnight shipping, and would like a $50 discount on your first purchase, click here to order and enter the coupon code BIRDSASART at checkout. If you are looking to strike a deal on Canon or Nikon gear (including the big telephotos) or on a multiple item order, contact Steve Elkins via e-mail or on his cell at (479) 381-2592 (Eastern time) and be sure to mention your BIRDSASART coupon code and use it for your online order. Patrick Sparkman saved $350 on a recent purchase!

The Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide

I will be working on a Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide soon as my replacement D5 arrives provided that my shoulder continues to improve. There is lots of mis-information out there on Nikon Automatic AF Fine-tune. Working with Patrick Sparkman, we perfected a method of using the Focus Peaking feature available only on the D850 to quickly and accurately micro-adjust all of your lenses and TC-Es with your D-850. Both Nikon Automatic AF Fine-tune and D850 Focus Peaking AF Fine-tune require a LensAlign Mark II kit so that you can obtain accurate results. I learned recently that the Nikon D500 DSLR does offer Automatic AF Fine-tune.

Folks who use one of my links to purchase a Nikon D850, a Nikon D5 DSLR Camera (Body Only, Dual XQD Slots), a Nikon D500 DSLR , or any Nikon gear totaling more than $2,000 will receive the new guide free. I hope to have it finished in two weeks but don’t hold me to it 🙂

The Used Gear Page

Action on the Used Gear Page recently has been fantastic. You can see all current listings here.

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

Jim Brennan is offering a used Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens in excellent plus condition for only $1,219.00. The sale includes the front and rear lens caps, ET-87 Lens Hood, LZ1326 Lens case and strap, Lens Quick Guide, Warranty card, CD, and the original box and packaging. I am the original owner and bought the lens new in November of 2012. I am a non smoker, the glass is free of scratches, haze, and fungus. The body is in beautiful condition with no dents, dings, scratches, or paint chips missing. There are minor signs of wear on bottom of lens foot, and signs of wear around a couple of the screws where lens collar rotates around body. All switches function as they should and zoom ring rotates smoothly. This lens is very sharp. Photos are available upon request. The sale includes insured shipping via UPS ground to US addresses only. I will only accept personal checks or a certified check unless other arrangements are made. The items will not ship until buyer’s check clears my bank; signature required upon delivery.

Please contact Jim e-mail or by cellphone: 1-(609) 432-9210 (Eastern time).

The 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II is an amazingly versatile lens; I made a zillion great images with it when I was using Canon. It works well with both the 1.4X III and the 2X III TCs, even with the 7D II! It is easily hand holdable. It is great for tame birds, landscapes, urbex, indoor stuff likes concerts and recitals, and just about anything you want to photograph. A new 70-200 II currently sells for $1,949 so you can save a cool $730 by buying Jim’s lens at a great low price. artie

This image was created at the Gilbert Water Ranch Alafia Banks on the morning of Friday, March 9, 2018. The camera was the Nikon D850. ISO 800. Matrix metering at zero: 1/125 sec. at f/6.3. AUTO2 WB at 7:48am on a cloudy morning. Click on the image to see a larger version. Anna’s Hummingbird, male with gorget lit up

The Questions

In the Sharpness and Image Quality, Focal Length, and Cropping Quiz … blog post here I asked the following:

What focal length do you think was used to create today’s featured image?

What percentage of the original pixels do you think the image above represents?

• a- 10.3%< (a huge crop)/li>
• b- 24.7% (a very large crop)
• c- 39.5% (a large crop)
• d- 53.1% (a very healthy crop)

The full frame original …

The Answers

Immediately above is the full frame original image capture. More than a few folks correctly thought that I was using the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4E FL ED VR lens and the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-14E III, with the Nikon D850. And they were correct.

As for the crop, I trapped almost everyone by putting the seemingly impossible correct answer as choice a- 10.3%< (a huge crop). Only Galapagos Photo Cruise veteran Dietmar Haenchen nailed the crop answer when he posted: Since we are dealing with a very small bird, I guess you used the long end of the 80-400 and used a huge crop (a). If my guess is right, I would say that the image quality is amazingly good. This would be a great statement for the camera and lens. Overall, not considering the my guessed crop factor, the sharpness and image quality still is very good.

Though he guessed the wrong lens his guess was not a bad one. Why? The magnification of the Nikon 600mm is 0.14X. The magnification of the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR lens is 0.2X. All that I needed to do was get closer — perched hummers are often ridiculously tame — and the bird would have occupied a larger part of the original frame. If you are having trouble understanding how a 400mm lens can have a greater magnification than a 600mm lens the answer lies in the minimum focusing distances of the two lenses: 1.75 meters (5.74 feet) for the 80-400, and 4.4 meters (14.4 feet) for the 600mm.

Dietmar was 100% correct with his comments on the sharpness and image quality; even I was amazed.

The Pixel Math

The pixel dimensions of the converted, flattened 8-bit TIFF file are 8526 px X 5504 px = 130 M. The pixel dimensions of the cropped flattened 8-bit TIFF file are 2647 px X 1764 px = 13.4 M. So the cropped file represents only 10.3% of the original file. It is hard to believe how well image quality held up when 89.7% of the original pixels were cropped away and discarded …

This image was created by friend/client Muriel McClellan on a recent Antarctica photo cruise with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 400mm) and the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering (probably at about -1/3 stop as framed: 1/2000 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode. The EXIF shows Custom WB; I have no idea where that came from … Image #1: Humpback Whale tail with texture from Daily Textures’ wildlife package

My Favorite Whale Tail

Thanks again to multiple IPT veteran Muriel McClellan for sharing her whale tale images with the group. Like many of the folks who commented I liked them both. By I felt that Image #1 (above) was by far the stronger image. Why? I liked the tighter framing of the tale and the water dripping off the tail is fabulous. But the magical, almost mystical mood created in part by Muriel’s choice of texture and her handling of the background tonalities put #1 over the top for me. Lots of folks who commented agreed with me and almost as many preferred Image #2. If you missed the original A Whale of a Tale. Or the Tails of Whales? blog post you can click here to see both images.

Early Spring Photo Opportunities at ILE

BIRDS AS ART first-ever Master Class

Master Class Session 2. Two Full and two Half Days/Friday afternoon, March 30 through lunch on Monday, April 2, 2018. Limit: 4/Openings 3.

The Master Classe will be a small group — strictly limited to four photographers — with the first folks who register having the option of staying at my home ($50/night) or at a chain motel in nearby Lake Wales. Live, think, and breathe photography from Friday afternoon through lunch on Monday (late-morning); all meals included. There will be three afternoon photo sessions (FRI – SUN) hopefully with glorious sunsets like the ones you saw one the blog in December we should have good opportunities with the cranes even in the afternoon. We will enjoy three morning photography sessions (SAT – MON) with the main subjects being tame Sandhill Cranes almost surely with chicks or colts. Also vultures and Cattle Egrets and more. Limpkins are possible. Intermediate telephoto lenses are fine for the cranes, even the chicks at times. A 500 or 600mm lens would be best for many of the situations that we will encounter.

During the day we will sit together around my dining room table and pick everyone’s keepers and enjoy guided Photoshop sessions. On Monday before lunch, folks can make a single large print of their favorite image from the weekend. If you so choose, I will micro-adjust one of your lenses (at one focal length with your #1 camera body–Canon or Nikon) during a group instructional session. All will be welcome to practice what they have learned during the breaks using my set-up and my lighting gear.

To register, please first shoot me an e-mail to check on availability. Then you will be instructed to call Jim or Jen at 863-692-0906 during weekday business hours (except for Friday afternoons) to leave you non-refundable (unless the session sells out) $500 deposit. Only the deposit may be left on credit card. Balances must be paid by check immediately after you register (unless you wish to pay by credit card plus 4% to cover our fees).

I hope that you can join me on this new adventure.

with love, artie

ps: bring your bathing suit if you would like to try my pool.

Help Support the Blog

Please help support my (stupendous) efforts here on the blog by remembering to click on the logo link above each time that you shop Amazon. That would be greatly appreciated. There is no problem using your Prime account; just click on the link and log into your Prime account. With love, artie

If In Doubt …

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

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

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

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

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

Facebook

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

Typos

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

Stuff

Surprisingly, I slept for four hours right off the bat on Saturday night, but after that it was fitful rest at best as I could not find a comfortable position. When I woke on Sunday morning the damaged shoulder had tightened up considerably; I had very little range or motion with my left arm. Amy Novotny’s advice was to “ice it for 20 minutes all day long with a one hour break in between and keep it moving (without causing pain).” I did my postural exercises with the balloons and applied ice for 20 minutes as instructed. I talked with Amy and then with Cliff. Amy thinks that I may have some type of fracture somewhere. Dr. Oliver thought that the chances of at least a small fracture were greater than 50%. I decided to head into town for an x-ray.

By the time I left for the Emergency Room at Lake Wales Hospital after lunch I was able to move the arm a bit in several planes. I spent four hours on Sunday afternoon in the ER to learn that “no fracture is visible at this time.” That is not as good news as it sounds because in many cases a small fracture can be a lot better than damage to the rotator cuff. Only time will reveal what is actually going on as the body’s normal reaction is to tighten the muscles surrounding the shoulder joint to protect against further damage.

I had more pain sleeping on Sunday night than I had on Saturday night, but when I woke on Sunday morning, range of motion had increased as compared to when I woke on Saturday. If all goes well I hope to be back in the pool (and photographing again) in 10 days to 14 days. Thanks to all who left get-well-soon messages on the blog yesterday. They seem to be working.

Money Saving Reminder

If you need a hot photo item that is out of stock at B&H, would enjoy free overnight shipping, and would like a $50 discount on your first purchase, click here to order and enter the coupon code BIRDSASART at checkout. If you are looking to strike a deal on Canon or Nikon gear (including the big telephotos) or on a multiple item order, contact Steve Elkins via e-mail or on his cell at (479) 381-2592 (Eastern time) and be sure to mention your BIRDSASART coupon code and use it for your online order. Patrick Sparkman saved $350 on a recent purchase!

The Streak

Today makes two hundred twenty-four days in a row with a new educational blog post! This one took about two hours to prepare (with lots of help thank you very much from Amy Novotny and of course, from Muriel McClellan. With all of my upcoming free time (or not…), the plan right now is to try to break the current record streak of 480 … Good health and good internet connections and my continuing insanity willing.

The Used Gear Page

Action on the Used Gear Page recently has been fantastic. You can see all current listings here.

This image was created by friend/client Muriel McClellan on a recent Antarctica photo cruise with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 400mm) and the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering (probably at about -1/3 stop as framed: 1/2000 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode. The EXIF shows Custom WB; I have no idea where that came from … Image #1: Humpback Whale tail with texture from Daily Textures’ wildlife package

A Whale of a Tale

If someone told you that they could eliminate your knee, ankle, hip, shoulder, hand and arm, and back pain by teaching you to blow up a ballon while doing a series of postural exercises, you would likely think them daffy. Try this one on for size:

When Muriel McClellan took up photography six years ago, she signed up for several Instructional Photo Tours that were co-led by Denise Ippolito and yours truly (and a great teaching team we were). With Denise’s help, Muriel became quite good with filters and effects. Muriel was scheduled for knee replacement surgery in August, 2016 to eliminate the bone-on-bone/arthritic pain in her left knee that had been plaguing her for two years and playing havoc with her photographic plans. Like me, Muriel got to bone-on-bone as a result of having arthroscopic knee surgery. I had two, both on my left knee. When Muriel attended an Arizona Highways weekend photo event dinner in March of 2016, she met physio-therapist Amy Novotny. Amy was co-leading the trip. After hearing Muriel’s story, Amy advised Muriel to see a physical therapist. Later that night, Muriel asked Amy what she did for a living; she said, “I am a physical therapist.” Muriel saw Amy early that summer after a trip to Venice with the aforementioned Ms. Ippolito. At her first appointment, Amy told Muriel about postural restoration therapy that involved blowing up balloons. Understandably, Muriel was quite skeptical; in fact, she thought Amy was crazy. But she decided to give it a try. Knee replacements begin with cutting off the top of your femur with a hacksaw …

After the third session Muriel asked Amy, “How soon do some folks see improvement?” Amy answered, “Sometimes in just a few days.” Muriel said to her, “My knee pain is much much better.” After two weeks of sessions Muriel canceled her knee replacement surgery. In a few weeks her pain was gone completely and a year later it is still very gone. Recently, Muriel did an Antarctica photo cruise and had no pain at all despite some long, tough walks. And she was easily able to get in and out of the zodiacs without any ill effects. All that with no anti-inflammatory drugs.

Muriel continues to do her exercises about three times per week while knowing that the should be doing them more often. In addition, she sees Amy once a week when she is not traveling.

Inspired by Muriel’s success, I have made two trips to Phoenix and done 17 sessions with Amy over the past two months. I will share my story along with Amy’s comments with you here soon. On my first visit Amy stated clearly that I was in as bad shape posture- and joint-wise as any patient she had ever encountered …

This image was created by friend/client Muriel McClellan on a recent Antarctica photo cruise with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens (at 400mm) and the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 2000. Evaluative metering (probably at about -1/3 stop as framed: 1/2000 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode. Image #2:Humpback Whale tail (with friend). With texture from Daily Textures’ wildlife package

The Tails of Whales

Despite having made six Southern Ocean photo cruises, I do not have any humpback tail images that compare at all with Muriel’s. Please leave a comment and let us know which image you like best.Please include your reasons. As is often the case, though I like them both, I have a clear favorite and will let you know which one it is an why in a future blog post.

Links

You can visit Daily Texture by clicking here.

Click here to learn about applying textures and effects in Denise Ippolito’s e-book, A Guide to Creative Filters & Effects II.

Help Support the Blog

Please help support my (stupendous) efforts here on the blog by remembering to click on the logo link above each time that you shop Amazon. That would be greatly appreciated. There is no problem using your Prime account; just click on the link and log into your Prime account. With love, artie

If In Doubt …

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

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

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

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

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

Facebook

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

Typos

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

Stuff

It was another cloudy morning and photography was very slow a first. My last asp spot turned up some cooperative Pied-billed Grebes and American Avocets. I took a friend to the airport at 9am. After my last therapy session of this visit, I headed to Gilbert for my last duck-baiting session with only the 80400 VR. There had been too many folks feeding so the ducks were not eager to fly. Speaking of flying, I head home tomorrow on the 6:15am Southwest nonstop to Orlando.

Thanks again to all who commented on the duck feeding issue questions. Please remember that I am fine with folks disagreeing politely; snarky comments or replies will be deleted at my discretion. Please continue to play nicely.

Reminder

If you need a hot photo item that is out of stock at B&H, would enjoy free overnight shipping, and would like a $50 discount on your first purchase, click here to order and enter the coupon code BIRDSASART at checkout. If you are looking to strike a deal on Canon or Nikon gear (including the big telephotos) or on a multiple item order, contact Steve Elkins via e-mail or on his cell at (479) 381-2592 (Eastern time) and be sure to mention your BIRDSASART coupon code. Patrick Sparkman saved $350 on a recent purchase!

The Streak

Today makes two hundred twenty-two days in a row with a new educational blog post! This one took about 30 minutes to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not…), the plan right now is to try to break the current record streak of 480 … Good health and good internet connections and my continuing insanity willing.

Learning from the Comments and Replies …

There is often a ton of learning available to those who make it a habit of reading the comments and the replies (at times including mine) 🙂

BAA friend Noel Heustis posted this as follows: March 9, 2018 at 7:14 am.

Artie – I love these Laughing Gulls as well. Today’s image is a beautiful head shot with a nice clean BG. I’ve been photographing a lot of these recently and haven’t been able to get the eyes as bright as you’ve gotten here. There is no shortage of entertainment when photographing these awesome subjects. Thanks for sharing this one today.

I replied:

Thanks Noel. Here is a great lesson for you and the gang; most folks do not grasp this concept: we are exposing for the WHITEs. That means that the middle tones will be one stop too dark and the dark tones will be 1 1 2/3 to 2 stops too dark … The solution is to do the Eye Doctor work using Tim Grey Dodge and burn as detailed in the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) here. Furthermore, serious students who want to learn the exposure theory mentioned above are directed to the section on Exposure Theory in the original The Art of Bird Photography here.

with love, artie

The Used Gear Page

Action on the Used Gear Page recently has been fantastic. You can see all current listings here.

Booking.Com

Several folks on the Spoonbill IPTs used the Booking.Com link below and got great rates and saved a handsome $25.00 in the process. If you too would like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and to earn a $25 reward on your first booking. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks whom I see in the field, and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and/or lens choices and decisions.

This image was created at the Gilbert Water Ranch Alafia Banks on the morning of Friday, March 9, 2018. The camera was the Nikon D850. ISO 800. Matrix metering at zero: 1/125 sec. at f/6.3. AUTO2 WB at 7:48am on a cloudy morning. Click on the image to see a larger version. Anna’s Hummingbird, male with gorget lit up

Sharpness and Image Quality

How would you rate the image quality and sharpness of the image above? To me the image looks very sharp and the image quality is excellent.

Focal Length

What focal length do you think was used to create today’s featured image?

Cropping Quiz

Take a wild-ass guess: what percentage of the original pixels does the image above represent?

• a- 10.3%< (a huge crop)/li>
• b- 24.7% (a very large crop)
• c- 39.5% (a large crop)
• d- 53.1% (a very healthy crop)

Answers early next week; I will post a JPEG that represents the full frame original image capture.

Registering for an IPT

To register for any of the IPTs below call Jim or Jen in the office at 863-692-0906 from Monday morning through Friday lunch with your credit card in hand to leave your $500 non-refundable deposit. Balances may not be paid by credit card so you will be asked to send a check for your balance along with the signed paperwork that you will find here.

Great Egrets in breeding plumage are quite beautiful

Gatorland IPT #1. Sunrise: 7:25am, Sunset: 7:40pm

3 1/2 DAYs: THURS 22 March through and including the morning of SUN 25 MAR. $1599. Limit 5 photographers.

(2 1/2 DAY option) FRI 23 March through and including the morning of SUN 25 MAR. $1199.

Must purchase Gatorland Photographers Pass. Click here for details. All early entry. Late stays Friday and Saturday. Thursday late-stay is under discussion. Gatorland IPT #1 is best for killer breeding plumage Great Egrets. With chicks. Also Wood Stork and Cattle Egret. Surprisingly, there are already more than a few Snowy Egrets and Tricolored Herons in breeding plumage! Learn to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret Gatorland spots, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations.

Tame birds in breeding plumage are great fun.

Gatorland IPT #2. Sunrise: 6:48am. Sunset: 7:58pm.

3 1/2 DAYs: THURS 26 APR through and including the morning of SUN 29 APR. $1599. Limit 5 photographers.

(2 1/2 DAY option) FRI 27 APR through and including the morning of SUN 29 APR. $1199.

Must purchase Gatorland Photographers Pass. Click here for details. All early entry. Late stays Friday and Saturday. Thursday late-stay is under discussion. Gatorland IPT #2 should have lots of chicks, and lots of birds in breeding plumage. We will get to photograph Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Tricolored Heron, and Wood Stork. The Cattle Egrets in full breeding plumage will be present in good numbers. Learn my Gatorland strategy, to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret Gatorland spots, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations.

Large Tricolored Heron chicks (lower left) are to die for!

Gatorland #3. Sunrise: 6:33am. Sunset: 8:10pm.

3 1/2 DAYs: THURS 17 MAY through and including the morning of SUN 20 MAY. $1599. Limit 5 photographers.

(2 1/2 DAY option) FRI 18 MAY through and including the morning of SUN 20 MAY. $1199.

Must purchase Gatorland Photographers Pass. Click here for details. All early entry. Late stays Friday and Saturday. Thursday late-stay is under discussion. Gatorland IPT #3 is best for medium sized chicks of the following species: Cattle Egret, Snowy Egret, and Tricolored Heron. Head portraits of handsome fledged Great Egrets are pretty much guaranteed. Learn to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret Gatorland spots, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations.

Help Support the Blog

Please help support my (stupendous) efforts here on the blog by remembering to click on the logo link above each time that you shop Amazon. That would be greatly appreciated. There is no problem using your Prime account; just click on the link and log into your Prime account. With love, artie

If In Doubt …

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

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

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

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

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

Facebook

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

Typos

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

Stuff

On Wednesday morning we drove to Veteran’s Oasis Park but did not know exactly where to go so we gave up and headed to Gilbert. It was deader than dead there so we scooted out 30+ miles to Boyce Arboretum State Park for alleged hummingbird photography. We did see some Anna’s and a male calliope in the parking lot and lots of hummers on the property but there were zero photo opps. That’s why they call it nature photography …

There was not much going on on a cloudy Wednesday afternoon but a great meal at BJ’s Brewhouse in Mesa eased the pain 🙂

The Streak

Today makes two hundred twenty days in a row with a new educational blog post! This one took about 40 minutes to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not…), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of 480 … Good health and good internet connections and my continuing insanity willing.

The Used Gear Page

Action on the Used Gear Page recently has been fantastic. You can see all current listings on the Used Photo Gear page here.

Very Recent Sales …

Rajat Kapoor sold his Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM lens (the “old 1-4”) in near-mint condition the first day is was listed for $649.
Jim Brennan sold his Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS USM lens (the “old five”) in near-mint condition and a Canon EF 1.4 III teleconverter in very good condition for $3,599.00 right after listing them in early March.
Gary Meyer sold his Canon EOS 7D Mark II in near-mint condition for $798 soon after it was listed in early March.

Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS USM Lens “The Old Five” with lots of extras

David Solis is offering a Canon EF 500 mm f/4L IS USM (the “old five”) in excellent plus condition with perfect glass for the BAA record low price of $3399.00. The sale includes the original box, the lens trunk (Canon Lens Case 500 with two keys0, the instruction sheet, the front leather lens cover (EF-183), the rear lens cap; the original lens foot, the 4th Generation Designs CP-51 replacement low foot (an $84.95 value), an OpTech USA Pro Loop strap in camo –a $22.75 value), a LensCoat –Realtree Advantage HD –, a $99.99 value, a LensCoat hoodie — XXX large, Realtree Max 4 HD — a $22.99 value, a LensCoat TravelCoat — Realtree Max — a 64.99 value, a Don Zeck C8 hard plastic front lens cap — a $74.95 value, and insured ground shipping via UPS to U.S. addresses only. Canon Professional Services cleaned and checked this lens on Feb. 23, 2018. Photos are available on request. Your item will not ship until your check clears the bank.

Please contact David via e-mail or phone at 1-(505) 699-4968 (Mountain time Zone). No text messages please.

The 500mm f/4 lenses have been the world’s most popular telephoto lenses for birds, nature, wildlife, and sports for many decades. I owned and used and loved my “old five” for many years. If you don’t have the cash for the 500 II and can handle the additional 1 1/2 pounds, then this is your best super-telephoto option. Most everyone can produce sharp images with this lens and a 1.4X TC. Folks with good to excellent sharpness techniques can do the same with a 2X TC. With the new 500 II selling for $8,999 you can save $5600 by grabbing David’s lens with lots of extras. artie

Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM Lens (with lots of extras)

David Solis is also offering a Canon EF 300 mm f/2.8L IS USM (the original version) lens in excellent plus condition for $2399.00. The sale includes the lens trunk (Canon Case 300) with two keys, the lens instruction sheet, the leather lens cap (E-145), the rear lens cap, the lens strap, the original lens foot, a Wimberley B61-D Arca-Swiss style quick release replacement foot (a $52 value), a Don Zeck C3 hard plastic front lens cap (a 74.95 value), a Lightware 300 lens case with carrying strap a $149.95 value, a LensCoat (Realtree Max) — a $99.99 value, a LensCoat hoodie (Realtree Max) –a $20.95 value, at LensCoat Travel Coat (Realtree Max) a $54.99 value, and insured ground shipping via UPS to U.S. addresses only. Canon Professional Services cleaned and checked the lens on Feb. 23, 2018.
Photos of the lens are available on request. Your purchase will not ship until your check clears the bank.

Please contact David via e-mail or phone at 1-(505) 699-4968 (Mountain time Zone). No text messages please.

Sanho Memory Card Backup

David Solis is also offering a brand new Sanho HyperDrive Colorspace UDMA 3 1 TB wireless photo/video memory card backup for $399.00. It sells new for $648.99. This item has the following features: 1 TB internal storage capacity; 320 x 480 TFT 3.5 inch color LCD display; it is compact flash/SD/SDHC/SDXC memory cards compatible; has WI-FI functionality and multiple photo file format compatibility; USB 3.0 interface; USB external device support; integrated rechargeable battery; soft protective pouch; user’s manual and cables; accepts JPG and RAW photos. It allows you to backup, organize, view, sync, recover, & wirelessly share photos/video..

Please contact David via e-mail or phone at 1-(505) 699-4968 (Mountain time Zone). No text messages please.

Booking.Com

Several folks on the Spoonbill IPTs used the Booking.Com link below and got great rates and saved a handsome $25.00 in the process. If you too would like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and to earn a $25 reward on your first booking. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks whom I see in the field, and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and/or lens choices and decisions.

Photo A: sign at the Riparian Preserve at Gilbert Water Ranch, Phoenix, AZ

Photo B: Duck and Goose Feed

Moral and Ethical Bird Photography Questions …

• 1-If you saw the sign in Photo A would you feel comfortable going to a pet store and buying a bag such as the one featured in Photo B and then feeding the ducks (where clearly permitted) in order to create some flight images?

  Yes or no, please explain why.

• 2-If you saw a small child with his or her mom feeding bread to the ducks, would you caution them that feeding bread is not permitted?
• 3-What are your thoughts on photographers who employ this duck feeding strategy to get some great images?
• 4-Should images created using this duck feeding strategy be allowed in major international photographic competitions?
• 5-If you feel that altering the behavior of by baiting them with healthy stuff is wrong and you came upon another photographer feeding them would you partake of the opportunity?
• 6- How about simply photographing swimming ducks in a pond where they regularly visit to be fed; right or wrong?

Spring at DeSoto is often magical

DeSoto IPT #1 Sunrise: 7:07 am. Sunset: 6:22pm.

3 1/2 DAYS: SUN 15 APR thru the morning session on WED 18 APR: $1599. Limit 5 photographers/Openings: 4.

You must purchase a season Parking Pass in advance for early entry. Click here and scroll down for info. If you are not a local, the six month pass if fine. Best to order by mail. Join me to photograph a wide variety of birds of the shore including pelicans, gulls, terns, sandpipers, oystercatchers, heron, egrets, and night-herons. Many in full breeding plumage. Most are ridiculously tame. Osprey likely. Learn to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret DeSoto locations, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations. Enjoy some great sunrises and sunsets.

Which will offer better opportunities, Desoto #1 or DeSoto #2? I have no idea. Both have the potential to be great.

DeSoto is one of the very few bird photography hotspots that can be great any given day of the year/strong>

DeSoto IPT #2. Sunrise: 6:41am. Sunset: 8:12pm.

SUN 13 MAY thru the morning session on WED 16 MAY: 3 1/2 DAYS: $1599.

You must purchase a season Parking Pass in advance for early entry. Click here and scroll down for info. If you are not a local, the six month pass if fine. Best to order by mail. Join me to photograph a wide variety of birds of the shore including pelicans, gulls, terns, sandpipers, oystercatchers, heron, egrets, and night-herons. Many in full breeding plumage. Most are ridiculously tame. Osprey likely. Learn to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret DeSoto locations, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations. Enjoy some great sunrises and sunsets.

Which will offer better opportunities, Desoto #1 or DeSoto #2? I have no idea. Both have the potential to be great.

Help Support the Blog

Please help support my (stupendous) efforts here on the blog by remembering to click on the logo link above each time that you shop Amazon. That would be greatly appreciated. There is no problem using your Prime account; just click on the link and log into your Prime account. With love, artie

If In Doubt …

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

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

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

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

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

Facebook

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

Typos

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

Stuff

Things got a bit better on Monday morning at the Gilbert Water Ranch Riparian Preserve. I had some great chance with Black-necked Stilts in very early morning light with dark green water backgrounds. And I made a few nice frames of a displaying Snowy Egret. Then I tried another spot and did well with both Northern Shoveler and drake Cinnamon Teal. The males shovelers are exceedingly difficult to photograph as their dark green heads look black with most head angles but seem to light up to a uniform green only when they are turned slightly away from you and the light.

We had a ball photographing ducks in flight on Monday afternoon. And the dinner in the room and early to bed.

The Streak

Today makes two hundred eighteen days in a row with a new educational blog post! This one took about 40 minutes to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not…), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of 480 … Good health and good internet connections and my continuing insanity willing.

The Used Gear Page

Action on the Used Gear Page recently has been fantastic. You can see all current listings on the Used Photo Gear page here.

Booking.Com

Several folks on the Spoonbill IPTs used the Booking.Com link below and got great rates and saved a handsome $25.00 in the process. If you too would like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and to earn a $25 reward on your first booking. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks whom I see in the field, and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and/or lens choices and decisions.

This image was created last spring on the Fort DeSoto IPT on April 20, 2017. I used the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted BLUBB-supported Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 2X III, and the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering plus about one stop as framed: 1/1250 sec. at f/9 in Manual mode. AWB. 9:14am on a clear day. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -10. Three AF points to the right and one row up from the center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter Button AF was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was placed on the bird’s eye. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version. Royal Tern in breeding plumage with shaggy crest

1200mm Advantage to Canon. Learn Why …

As I have said before, though I am able to create sharp images with the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4E FL ED VR lens, the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-20E III, and the Nikon D850, I am not nearly as confident with the rig as I was with my similar Canon set-up. That may come with time but I am not sure of that. One of the big problems with the Nikon 600/2XTC/D850 rig is that as you move the focus points away from the center AF point the camera has more difficulty focusing. And once you get to the outer AF points the camera is pretty much blind.

My feeling right now is that I need a lot faster shutter speeds to make sharp images at 1200mm with Nikon than I did with Canon. I am not sure if that is because of any differences between Nikon’s Vibration Reduction (VR) system and Canon’s Image Stabilization (IS) system or if it is due to any presently unknown factors … Time will tell.

Royal Tern in Breeding Plumage

Royal Tern in breeding plumage is a splendidly handsome bird with its jet-black crest and bright orange bill. At times, getting close is a snap and you can make head portraits with an intermediate telephoto lens. At other times, especially when they are actively courting a mate, you will need your longest lens and a teleconverter. Fort DeSoto in spring is the best place that I know of for getting close to them and making lots of great images.

Spring at DeSoto is often magical

DeSoto IPT #1 Sunrise: 7:07 am. Sunset: 6:22pm.

3 1/2 DAYS: SUN 15 APR thru the morning session on WED 18 APR: $1599. Limit 5 photographers.

You must purchase a season Parking Pass in advance for early entry. Click here and scroll down for info. If you are not a local, the six month pass if fine. Best to order by mail. Join me to photograph a wide variety of birds of the shore including pelicans, gulls, terns, sandpipers, oystercatchers, heron, egrets, and night-herons. Many in full breeding plumage. Most are ridiculously tame. Osprey likely. Learn to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret DeSoto locations, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations. Enjoy some great sunrises and sunsets.

Which will offer better opportunities, Desoto #1 or DeSoto #2? I have no idea. Both have the potential to be great.

DeSoto is one of the very few bird photography hotspots that can be great any given day of the year/strong>

DeSoto IPT #2. Sunrise: 6:41am. Sunset: 8:12pm.

SUN 13 MAY thru the morning session on WED 16 MAY: 3 1/2 DAYS: $1599.

You must purchase a season Parking Pass in advance for early entry. Click here and scroll down for info. If you are not a local, the six month pass if fine. Best to order by mail. Join me to photograph a wide variety of birds of the shore including pelicans, gulls, terns, sandpipers, oystercatchers, heron, egrets, and night-herons. Many in full breeding plumage. Most are ridiculously tame. Osprey likely. Learn to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret DeSoto locations, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations. Enjoy some great sunrises and sunsets.

Which will offer better opportunities, Desoto #1 or DeSoto #2? I have no idea. Both have the potential to be great.

Help Support the Blog

Please help support my (stupendous) efforts here on the blog by remembering to click on the logo link above each time that you shop Amazon. That would be greatly appreciated. There is no problem using your Prime account; just click on the link and log into your Prime account. With love, artie

If In Doubt …

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

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

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

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

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

Facebook

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

Typos

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

Stuff

Sunday morning at Gilbert was definitively not as productive as Saturday which had been poor at best. Again we met up with physiotherapist Amy Novotny and friend Bryan Holliday. They added lots of water to my favorite pond and thus, there were no birds there at all.

The Streak

Today makes two hundred seventeen days in a row with a new educational blog post! This one took about 40 minutes to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not…), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of 480 … Good health and good internet connections and my continuing insanity willing.

Exposure Math Answer

In the Sun or Shade? And Another Exposure Math Quiz blog post here, I asked that folks calculate the difference in the exposure for Image #1 and Image #2.

Image #1 was created at ISO 400. 1/1000 sec. at f/7.1.

Image #2 was created at ISO 800. 1/160 sec. at f/6.3.

From ISO 400 yo ISO 800 is one stop.

From 1 1/1000 sec. down to 1/160 sec. goes like this: 1/160 … 1/320 …1/640 is two full stops. From 1/640 sec. to 1/1000 sec is another 2/3 stop. So 2 2/3stops in all. From f/7.1 to f/6.3 is 1/3 stop. All in the same direction. So in total the difference in exposure was exactly four full stops: 1 + 2 2/3 + 1/3 = 4.

Keith Swindell was the first to answer correctly when he wrote at 9:44am on March 3: Looks to be 4 stops to me (ISO: 1 stop, Tv: 2 1/3 stops, Av: 2/3 stop).

And like me, he preferred the second image, the one in the shade:

I prefer the shot in the shade, birds from directly head-on look awkward to me.

While I do like both images, I absolutely love the watercolor look of the second image, the one made in the shade. That in part because of the greatly reduced contrast.

The Used Gear Page

Action on the Used Gear Page recently has been fantastic. You can see all current listings on the Used Photo Gear page here.

Booking.Com

Several folks on the Spoonbill IPTs used the Booking.Com link below and got great rates and saved a handsome $25.00 in the process. If you too would like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and to earn a $25 reward on your first booking. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks whom I see in the field, and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and/or lens choices and decisions.

This image was created at Alafia Banks on the morning of February 25, 2018 with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4E FL ED VR lens, the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-14E III, and the Nikon D850. ISO 800. Matrix metering -2 stops: 1/2500 sec. at f/7.1. AUTO0 WB at 7:16am. Nikon Focus peaking AF Fine-tune: +5. (Please see and carefully read Nikon Focus Fine-tune Guide item below). Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #1: White Ibis, immature in red mangroves.

No More Rear Button Focus

I no longer use rear button focus. I tried to figure out how to set that up with my Nikon gear but could not. Instead, I programed the AF-ON button to lock AF; you need to press and hold the button down. It works like a charm when you are on a tripod and it is even better when the bird is standing stock still as in Image #1 or is sleeping as in Image #2.

This image was created at the Gilbert Water Ranch Riparian Preserve on the morning of March 3, 2018 with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4E FL ED VR lens, the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-14E III, and the Nikon D850. ISO 400. Matrix metering -2 stops: 1/2500 sec. at f/7.1. AUTO0 WB at 7:35am. Center d-9 shutter Button AF. Focused on the bird, locked focus by holding the he AF-ON button, and recomposed. Nikon Focus peaking AF Fine-tune: +5. (Please see and carefully read Nikon Focus Fine-tune Guide item below). Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #2: American Avocet, sidelit in black water

Multiple Choice Image Preference Question

Which image is the strongest”

• a-Image #1. Please let us know why you made your choice.
• b-Image #2. Please let us know why you made your choice.
• c-I like them both. Please let us know why.
• d-I do not like either image. Please let us know why.

Light Angle Notes …

Note that in Image #1 my shadow was pretty much pointed right at the bird. I was working on sun angle as I almost always do. With Image #2 I was about 45 degrees off sun angle; the subject was very strongly sidelit. But as the subject was angled about 45 degrees away from me the half of the bird that we see was pretty much directly lit. It is very rarely that I work with side light.

Please Note

I have been getting lots of e-mails below on qualifying for a free Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide (should I ever actually get started on and finish it). “I once met you in San Diego; do I qualify for a free guide? I bought your micro-adjusting guide; do I get a free copy of the Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide? Please read the item below before e-mailing as it clearly states the qualifications for getting the guide for free 🙂

The Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide

I hope to be working on a Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide while I am in Phoenix. There is lots of mis-information out there on Nikon Automatic AF Fine-tune. Working with Patrick Sparkman, we perfected a method of using the Focus Peaking feature available only on the D850 to quickly and accurately micro-adjust all of your lenses and TC-Es with your D-850. Both Nikon Automatic AF Fine-tune and D850 Focus Peaking AF Fine-tune require a LensAlign Mark II kit. If you know for sure whether the very popular Nikon D500 DSLR Camera (Body Only) (or any other of the newer Nikon dSLRs) offer Automatic AF Fine-tune.

Folks who purchase a Nikon D850, a Nikon D5 DSLR Camera (Body Only, Dual XQD Slots), or any Nikon gear totaling more than $2,000 will receive the new guide free. I hope to have it finished in three weeks but don’t hold me to it 🙂

Registering for an IPT

To register for any of the IPTs below call Jim or Jen in the office at 863-692-0906 from Monday morning through Friday lunch with your credit card in hand to leave your $500 non-refundable deposit. Balances may not be paid by credit card so you will be asked to send a check for your balance along with the signed paperwork that you will find here.

Great Egrets in breeding plumage are quite beautiful

Gatorland IPT #1. Sunrise: 7:25am, Sunset: 7:40pm

3 1/2 DAYs: THURS 22 March through and including the morning of SUN 25 MAR. $1599. Limit 5 photographers.

(2 1/2 DAY option) FRI 23 March through and including the morning of SUN 25 MAR. $1199.

Must purchase Gatorland Photographers Pass. Click here for details. All early entry. Late stays Friday and Saturday. Thursday late-stay is under discussion. Gatorland IPT #1 is best for killer breeding plumage Great Egrets. With chicks. Also Wood Stork and Cattle Egret. Surprisingly, there are already more than a few Snowy Egrets and Tricolored Herons in breeding plumage! Learn to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret Gatorland spots, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations.

Tame birds in breeding plumage are great fun.

Gatorland IPT #2. Sunrise: 6:48am. Sunset: 7:58pm.

3 1/2 DAYs: THURS 26 APR through and including the morning of SUN 29 APR. $1599. Limit 5 photographers.

(2 1/2 DAY option) FRI 27 APR through and including the morning of SUN 29 APR. $1199.

Must purchase Gatorland Photographers Pass. Click here for details. All early entry. Late stays Friday and Saturday. Thursday late-stay is under discussion. Gatorland IPT #2 should have lots of chicks, and lots of birds in breeding plumage. We will get to photograph Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Tricolored Heron, and Wood Stork. The Cattle Egrets in full breeding plumage will be present in good numbers. Learn my Gatorland strategy, to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret Gatorland spots, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations.

Large Tricolored Heron chicks (lower left) are to die for!

Gatorland #3. Sunrise: 6:33am. Sunset: 8:10pm.

3 1/2 DAYs: THURS 17 MAY through and including the morning of SUN 20 MAY. $1599. Limit 5 photographers.

(2 1/2 DAY option) FRI 18 MAY through and including the morning of SUN 20 MAY. $1199.

Must purchase Gatorland Photographers Pass. Click here for details. All early entry. Late stays Friday and Saturday. Thursday late-stay is under discussion. Gatorland IPT #3 is best for medium sized chicks of the following species: Cattle Egret, Snowy Egret, and Tricolored Heron. Head portraits of handsome fledged Great Egrets are pretty much guaranteed. Learn to get the right exposure, flight photography techniques, my secret Gatorland spots, how to see the best situations (nobody is better at that than me), and how to make great images in extremely cluttered situations.

Help Support the Blog

Please help support my (stupendous) efforts here on the blog by remembering to click on the logo link above each time that you shop Amazon. That would be greatly appreciated. There is no problem using your Prime account; just click on the link and log into your Prime account. With love, artie

If In Doubt …

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

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

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

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

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

Facebook

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

Typos

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

Stuff

On Friday there was a clear sunrise with zero wind and perfect reflections everywhere. Just not many close birds. So I experimented at 1200mm with my 600 f/4/TC-E20/D850 combo on sleeping avocets. I tried focusing with Live View, turning AF off, setting the 5-second timer, and pressing the shutter button. Then it was a too-long nap for me.

The Streak

Today makes two hundred fifteen days in a row with a new educational blog post! This one took about 30 minutes to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not…), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of 480 … Good health and good internet connections and my continuing insanity willing.

The Used Gear Page

Action on the Used Gear Page recently has been fantastic. You can see all current listings on the Used Photo Gear page here.

Booking.Com

Several folks on the Spoonbill IPTs used the Booking.Com link below and got great rates and saved a handsome $25.00 in the process. If you too would like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and to earn a $25 reward on your first booking. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks whom I see in the field, and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and/or lens choices and decisions.

This image was created on the afternoon of Thursday, March 2, 2018 at the Gilbert Water Ranch Riparian Preserve in Phoenix, AZ. I used the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4E FL ED VR lens, the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-14E III, and the Nikon D850. ISO 400. Matrix metering -1 stop as originally framed: 1/1000 sec. at f/7.1 AWB (AUT02) at 5:40pm in very late afternoon sunlight. Center d-9 upper shutter Button AF with the selected AF point was on the bird’s right upper breast on the same plane as the duck’s eye. Focus Peaking micro-adjustment: +4. (Please see and carefully read Nikon Focus Fine-tune Guide item below). Click on the image to see a larger version. Ring-necked Duck in late afternoon light

In the Sun

Of those created in the sun on Thursday afternoon, this was my favorite. We figured things out very late in the day. I am 100% positive that there are some spectacular images of ring-neckeds in the sun at this particular location. I just have not made them quite yet. Note the exposure compensation in the sun: -1 stop. Why was that much negative EC needed?

This image was also created on the afternoon of Thursday, March 2, 2018 at the Gilbert Water Ranch Riparian Preserve in Phoenix, AZ. I used the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4E FL ED VR lens, the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-14E III, and the Nikon D850. ISO 800. Matrix metering 2/3 stop as framed: 1/160 sec. at f/6.3. AWB (AUTO2) at 6:03pm in the shade. Center d-9 upper shutter Button AF; the selected AF point was on the base of the duck’s neck slightly behind but on the same plane as the its eye. Focus Peaking micro-adjustment: +4. (Please see and carefully read Nikon Focus Fine-tune Guide item below). Click on the image to see a larger version. Image #2: Ring-necked Duck in the shade

In the Shade

Once the sun dipped behind the trees and buildings to the west we were left to raise the ISO and work with slower shutter speeds. The Ring-necked Duck images took on a totally different look. Note the correct exposure compensation for Image #2: +2/3 stop. Compare that with the EC in Image #1 and see if you learn anything …

Your Favorite?

Which of today’s featured images do you like best? Be sure to let us know why. I have a very clear favorite and will share it with you here soon along with my reasons.

Another Exposure Math Quiz

How many stops different was the sun exposure (Image #1) from the shade exposure (Image #2)?

Please Note

I have been getting lots of e-mails below on qualifying for a free Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide (should I ever actually get started on and finish it). “I once met you in San Diego; do I qualify for a free guide? I bought your micro-adjusting guide; do I get a free copy of the Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide? Please read the item below before e-mailing as it clearly states the qualifications for getting the guide for free 🙂

The Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide

I hope to be working on a Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide while I am in Phoenix. There is lots of mis-information out there on Nikon Automatic AF Fine-tune. Working with Patrick Sparkman, we perfected a method of using the Focus Peaking feature available only on the D850 to quickly and accurately micro-adjust all of your lenses and TC-Es with your D-850. Both Nikon Automatic AF Fine-tune and D850 Focus Peaking AF Fine-tune require a LensAlign Mark II kit. If you know for sure whether the very popular Nikon D500 DSLR Camera (Body Only) (or any other of the newer Nikon dSLRs) offer Automatic AF Fine-tune.

Folks who purchase a Nikon D850, a Nikon D5 DSLR Camera (Body Only, Dual XQD Slots), or any Nikon gear totaling more than $2,000 will receive the new guide free. I hope to have it finished in three weeks but don’t hold me to it 🙂

Early Spring Photo Opportunities at ILE

BIRDS AS ART first-ever Master Classes

Master Class Session 1. Two Full and two Half Days/Friday afternoon, March 16 through lunch on Monday, March 19, 2018: course fee: $1,999. Limit: 4/openings:3

Master Class Session 2. Two Full and two Half Days/Friday afternoon, March 30 through lunch on Monday, April 2, 2018. Limit: 4/openings:3

The Master Classes will be small groups — strictly limited to four photographers — with the first folks who register having the option of staying at my home ($50/night) or at a chain motel in nearby Lake Wales. Live, think, and breathe photography from Friday afternoon through lunch on Monday (late-morning); all meals included. There will be three afternoon photo sessions (FRI – SUN) hopefully with glorious sunsets like the ones you saw one the blog in December we should have good opportunities with the cranes even in the afternoon. We will enjoy three morning photography sessions (SAT – MON) with the main subjects being tame Sandhill Cranes almost surely with chicks or colts. Also vultures and Cattle Egrets and more. Limpkins are possible. Intermediate telephoto lenses are fine for the cranes, even the chicks at times. A 500 or 600mm lens would be best for many of the situations that we will encounter.

During the day we will sit together around my dining room table and pick everyone’s keepers and enjoy guided Photoshop sessions. On Monday before lunch, folks can make a single large print of their favorite image from the weekend. If you so choose, I will micro-adjust one of your lenses (at one focal length with your #1 camera body–Canon or Nikon) during a group instructional session. All will be welcome to practice what they have learned during the breaks using my set-up and my lighting gear.

To register, please first shoot me an e-mail to check on availability. Then you will be instructed to call Jim or Jen at 863-692-0906 during weekday business hours (except for Friday afternoons) to leave your non-refundable (unless the session sells out) $500 deposit. Only the deposit may be left on credit card. Balances must be paid by check immediately after you register (unless you wish to pay by credit card plus 4% to cover our fees).

I hope that you can join me on this new adventure.

with love, artie

ps: bring your bathing suit if you would like to try my pool!

Help Support the Blog

Please help support my (stupendous) efforts here on the blog by remembering to click on the logo link above each time that you shop Amazon. That would be greatly appreciated. There is no problem using your Prime account; just click on the link and log into your Prime account. With love, artie

If In Doubt …

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

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

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

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

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

Facebook

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

Typos

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

Stuff

It rained overnight from Tuesday into Wednesday and there were some big clouds to the east early on Wednesday. We did OK but not great. We found a few Cinnamon Teal, an adult male and two young males Hooded Mergansers, and lots of Green-winged Teal, but we were missing the gorgeous light and still water that we enjoyed on Tuesday. But heck, Thursday morning will be here soon.

We are having dinner on Wednesday evening in Gilbert with a couple who have been friends with my older sister Ilene for several decades.

The Streak

Today makes two hundred thirteen days in a row with a new educational blog post! This one took about 50 minutes to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not…), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of 480 … Good health and good internet connections and my continuing insanity willing.

New Listings

Action on the Used Gear Page recently has been fantastic. You can see all current listings on the Used Photo Gear page here.

Booking.Com

Several folks on the Spoonbill IPTs used the Booking.Com link below and got great rates and saved a handsome $25.00 in the process. If you too would like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and to earn a $25 reward on your first booking. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks whom I see in the field, and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and/or lens choices and decisions.

This image was created at the Gilbert Water Ranch Riparian Preserve in Gilbert Arizona on the morning of Tuesday February 27. I used the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4E FL ED VR lens, the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-20E III, and the 9fps mega mega-pixel Nikon D850. ISO 800. Matrix metering -2/3 stop: 1/2000 sec. at f/10. AWB2 at 7:57am on a sunny morning. Upper center d-9 Shutter Button AF. The selected AF point was on the base of the ducks green head where it met the white of the flank. AF Focus peaking Fine-tune -5. Northern Shoveler drake Click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-20Es Suck! Or do they?

For many decades Nikon-users (and many of the internet experts who have never used them) have maligned the various iterations of the Nikon TC-20Es, the 2X teleconverters. With the introduction of the latest version — the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-20E III — I heard from a few folks that it Nikon Series III 2X TC was “okay.” But when I first began using the new 2X I did so with an open mind. And I expected the results to be excellent. I can firmly state that in competent hands, the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-20E III when Focus Fine-tuned and used with the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4E FL ED VR lens is more than sharp enough for me.

This image was also created at the Gilbert Water Ranch Riparian Preserve in Gilbert Arizona on the morning of Tuesday February 27. Again I used the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4E FL ED VR lens, the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-20E III, and the 9fps mega mega-pixel Nikon D850. ISO 800. Matrix metering -2/3 stop: 1/2000 sec. at f/10. AWB2 at 7:57am on a sunny morning. Center d-9 Shutter Button AF. The selected AF point was on the front of the shorebird’s neck where it meets the upper breast (directly below and on the same plane as the bird’s eye). AF Focus peaking Fine-tune -5. American Avocet breeding plumage, striding Click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

Shutter Speeds and Photographing Movement and Action

I have been making an effort to keep my shutter speeds up — all three 1200mm images so far were created at 1/2000 sec. In addition I have been working at f/10 rather than at f/9 or f/8. I will be experimenting with slower and slower shutter speeds as time goes on. This morning I raised my ISO from 800 to 1600 in anticipation of a Cinnamon Teal wing flap. The images were sharp at 1/400 sec. Perhaps in time I will become confident that I can consistently make sharp images down to 1/60 sec. at 1200mm … Time will tell.

Early Spring Photo Opportunities at ILE

BIRDS AS ART first-ever Master Classes

Master Class Session 1. Two Full and two Half Days/Friday afternoon, March 16 through lunch on Monday, March 19, 2018: course fee: $1,999. Limit: 4/openings:3

Master Class Session 2. Two Full and two Half Days/Friday afternoon, March 30 through lunch on Monday, April 2, 2018. Limit: 4/openings:3

The Master Classes will be small groups — strictly limited to four photographers — with the first folks who register having the option of staying at my home ($50/night) or at a chain motel in nearby Lake Wales. Live, think, and breathe photography from Friday afternoon through lunch on Monday (late-morning); all meals included. There will be three afternoon photo sessions (FRI – SUN) hopefully with glorious sunsets like the ones you saw one the blog in December we should have good opportunities with the cranes even in the afternoon. We will enjoy three morning photography sessions (SAT – MON) with the main subjects being tame Sandhill Cranes almost surely with chicks or colts. Also vultures and Cattle Egrets and more. Limpkins are possible. Intermediate telephoto lenses are fine for the cranes, even the chicks at times. A 500 or 600mm lens would be best for many of the situations that we will encounter.

During the day we will sit together around my dining room table and pick everyone’s keepers and enjoy guided Photoshop sessions. On Monday before lunch, folks can make a single large print of their favorite image from the weekend. If you so choose, I will micro-adjust one of your lenses (at one focal length with your #1 camera body–Canon or Nikon) during a group instructional session. All will be welcome to practice what they have learned during the breaks using my set-up and my lighting gear.

To register, please first shoot me an e-mail to check on availability. Then you will be instructed to call Jim or Jen at 863-692-0906 during weekday business hours (except for Friday afternoons) to leave you non-refundable (unless the session sells out) $500 deposit. Only the deposit may be left on credit card. Balances must be paid by check immediately after you register (unless you wish to pay by credit card plus 4% to cover our fees).

I hope that you can join me on this new adventure.

with love, artie

ps: bring your bathing suit if you would like to try my pool!

The Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide

I hope to be working on a Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide while I am in Phoenix. There is lots of mis-information out there on Nikon Automatic AF Fine-tune. Working with Patrick Sparkman, we perfected a method of using the Focus Peaking feature available only on the D850 to quickly and accurately micro-adjust all of your lenses and TC-Es with your D-850. Both Nikon Automatic AF Fine-tune and D850 Focus Peaking AF Fine-tune require a LensAlign Mark II kit. If you know for sure whether the very popular Nikon D500 DSLR Camera (Body Only) (or any other of the newer Nikon dSLRs) offer Automatic AF Fine-tune.

Folks who purchase a Nikon D850, a Nikon D5 DSLR Camera (Body Only, Dual XQD Slots), or any Nikon gear totaling more than $2,000 will receive the new guide free. I hope to have it finished in three weeks but don’t hold me to it 🙂

Help Support the Blog

Please help support my (stupendous) efforts here on the blog by remembering to click on the logo link above each time that you shop Amazon. That would be greatly appreciated. There is no problem using your Prime account; just click on the link and log into your Prime account. With love, artie

If In Doubt …

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

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

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

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

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

Facebook

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

Typos

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