Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Stuff

I woke just before the alarm on Saturday morning at 2:50am. I showered, finished packing my bags, filled the tank, made a quick stop at Southwest curbside check-in, returned my rental car, took the shuttle to Terminal 4, enjoyed TSA pre-check, and was at the gate early. The nonstop flight to Orlando was fast and uneventful but very bumpy. My bags came out quickly and I was home at 2:06pm eastern time.

Life Goes On …

They say that for a plane to crash, about a dozen things have to go wrong in just the right order. When I got home I took a nice nap. I decided to take a swim despite the fact that the pool temps had dropped eight degrees during the two weeks that I was gone. I got in the pool at 5pm. My rehab had gone great and I was feeling better overall physically than I had in probably four or five decades, maybe more. I swam my 50 lengths, a bit more than half a mile. I forgot to bring my bathrobe and a big towel out to the deck so instead of getting in my robe on the pool deck and drying off a bit, I was anxious to get to my bedroom for my robe. I stripped in the hallway outside of my bedroom and left my suit and my snorkeling caps and my booties and my snorkeling vest and my shirt in a big wet pile on the tile in the hall. I got into my robe and dried off a bit, grabbed the wet pile, and took it to the dryer where I grabbed my favorite large green towel. I never turned on the hallway light. I was getting ready to do my physical therapy exercises, still feeling great. I head to my bedroom to get dressed. As I turned, I slipped on the wet puddle left by the swim stuff. I crashed hard on my left arm and heard a large crack. At best, I knew that I had messed up my left shoulder pretty badly. But I did not have any sharp pain and was able to lift my arm directly overhead so I knew that I had not dislocated my shoulder or broken my collar bone.

I called Amy Novotny, the physiotherapist who had helped me so much over the past ten weeks, and was lucky to get her. She advised 20 minutes of ice alternating with an hour off and urged me to keep the shoulder joint moving while blowing up my balloons. I did that but the shoulder has tightened up tremendously with some accompanying pain as expected. By 9:00pm the range of motion in my left shoulder was severely restricted. I will be off to bed soon. If I have not damaged any rotator cuff muscles — I do not think that I have — I should be good to go in short order. Time will tell.

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 and use your BIRDSASART coupon code for your online order. Patrick Sparkman saved $350 on a recent purchase!

The Streak

Today makes two hundred twenty-three 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.

The Used Gear Page

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

Canon EOS 40D/EF 28-135mm IS Zoom Lens Kit (with extras)

David Solis is offering a Canon EOS 40D/EF 28-135 mm IS USM kit with both items in excellent condition for the amazing low price of $349.00. With the camera body the sale includes the original box, the front body cap, LCD screen protectors, and one Delkin 16 GB (60 MB/s, 450x) compact flash card. With the lens the sale includes the front lens cap, the lens hood — EW-78B II — in good condition, a B+W 72mm 010 (UV) filter, a Tiffen 72mm circular polarizer filter, a Tarmac soft pouch 3-filter holder, the user manuals, the EOS Digital Solution Disk, four Canon BP-511A camera batteries, two Canon CG-580 battery chargers, the interface & video cables, a new Canon camera strap, and the BG-E2n battery grip, the 6-AA-battery magazine — BGM-E2 — as an alternative to using two camera batteries, and insured ground shipping via UPS to U.S. addresses only. Photos 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.

The 40D was Denise Ippolito’s favorite camera body. She rued the day that she sold it to get the original 7D. The 40D has an excellent AF system and produces clean 10.1 megapixel files. The 28-135 was the forerunner of the two versions of the 24-105L IS zooms. I used my 28-135 for many years to create a variety of B-roll images, most notably was one of a baby Common Raven in a nest below the roadway of a bridge in Nome, AK. Several folks held my ankles as I hung over the side to get the image. This kit would make a great starter rig for photographers of any age. 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 at the Gilbert Water Ranch Riparian Preserve in Gilbert Arizona on the morning of March 9, 2018. 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 f6.3 in Manual mode. Cloudy WB at 7:26am on a cloudy bright morning. One AF point above and one to the left of the center AF point/d-9 Shutter Button AF. The selected AF point right on the base of the bird’s open bill, right on the same plane as the bird’s eye. AF Focus peaking Fine-tune +4. Pied-billed Grebe calling

Phoenix Farewell, for now …

On my last morning in Phoenix, I went to Gilbert hoping to get some good images of Pied-billed Grebe and drake Ruddy Duck in breeding plumage. Several of the former and one of the latter had been hanging out in the same spot. One out of two ain’t bad. I love the soft light here and the soft, watercolor background offset by the sharpness of the bird’s feathers. I kept an even dozen grebe images but this one with the bird calling was my favorite by far. All of the images were created in Manual mode with the bird set against a variety of backgrounds ranging from reflected white sky to reflected dark green vegetation. The correct exposure for the bird did not change with as the bird swam in and out of the different backgrounds as the light was constant. There will be a follow-up blog post on this topic using these images.

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 Thursday morning, armed with more info, we drove to Veteran’s Oasis Park to give that location another go. We were hoping to see and photograph jackrabbit, roadrunner, and Burrowing Owl. We saw all three but only got photos of the really tall rabbits with the big ears. But we did run into wildlife biologist Ryan Olinger whom we had met and hung out with the day before at Gilbert. He volunteered to show us the Burrowing Owls at Zanjero Park. After we were done photographing the owls we ran into a silly tame pair of Greater Roadrunners and spent and hour with them. I had dinner with friends at the DC Steakhouse in Chandler.

Thanks to all who commented on the duck feeding issue questions.

The Streak

Today makes two hundred twenty-one 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 at Fort DeSoto on the evening of April 21, 2017 at 6:38pm while sitting on the beach. I used the hand held Canon EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II USM lens with the Canon Extender EF 2X III and the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering at zero: 1/640 sec. at f/10. AWB on a sunny afternoon. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -16. AI Servo/shutter button/Expand AF: three AF points to the right and one up from the center AF point; the selected AF point was just below the bird’s eye. Be sure to click on the image to see the spectacular larger version. Laughing Gull in breeding plumage: head portrait

The Under-appreciated Laughing Gull

Sabine’s Gull in breeding plumage is on my top ten most wanted list. It is both beautiful and rare. If Laughing Gull were a rare bird, it too would be highly sought after by birders and bird photographers. But on the East and Gull Coasts it is so common as to be classed a “dirt bird.” As today’s featured image shows, breeding plumage Laughing Gull is a drop-dead gorgeous species. We will have lots of opportunities to photograph this species in breeding plumage in a variety of settings doing lots of neat things on both DeSoto IPTs.

400 DO II

The Canon EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II USM lens is an incredible tool. I miss mine. Either bare or with the 1.4X TC it makes a great flight lens. With the 2X TC it gives you 800mm of hand held full frame reach. It is best used on a tripod in low light especially when a TC is added. At this time, Nikon has nothing that compares with the 400 DO II. The Nikon 200-500, though a great value that offers the advantages of a zoom lens, is a full stop slower. The two lenses are very close in weight. In competent hands, however, both are capable of creating very sharp images.

Important Teleconverter Notes

Do understand that in almost all cases it is inadvisable to use a 2X teleconverter with and f/5.6 lens, especially with the very popular Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II and the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR lenses. The 1.4 TCs and TC-Es should do just fine with those and other f/5.6 lenses as the last few generations of digital camera bodies off AF down to f/8.

LensAlign FocusTune Micro-adjustments

Many folks complain that they cannot make sharp images with their 2X teleconverters. But few take the time to properly micro-adjust their lenses with each TC. Notice with today’s featured image that the LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment was -16. If I created the image at the default value, zero, this image would have been totally soft. Remember that a high positive or negative AFA number does not mean that your lens or your camera or your TC is faulty. You are simply fine-tuning the focus to ensure that the great majority of your images are acceptably sharp.

If you are in the dark about micro-adjusting, check out the The LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-Adjusting Tutorial e-Guide here. The LensAlign Mark II/FocusTune package requires a separate purchase.

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 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 🙂

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

It was a rare morning in Phoenix: cloudy for the most part. I was sort of lost without the sun and blue skies. I wound up keeping ten images, more than half of those of a single male Anna’s Hummingbird. Then therapy and more Ring-necked Ducks in flight. Just another day in Phoenix.

The Streak

Today makes two hundred nineteen 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 on the morning of Friday, February 16, 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 blazingly fast AF king, the Nikon D5 DSLR (Dual XQD Slots). ISO 400. Matrix metering at about – 1 2/3 stops: 1/2500 sec. at f/7.1 AUTO0 WB at 7:52am on a clear day. Nikon Focus Peaking fine-tune value: +8. See the Nikon AF Fine-tune e-Guide here. Center Group (grp) Shutter Button AF as originally framed. Be sure to click on the image to see the larger version. Image #1: Roseate Spoonbill taking flight

Another Surprising Revelation and the Demise of My Nikon D5 …

This is the bird that put a cap on the 2nd 2018 Spoonbill IPT when it flew in, landed in front of the group, bathed and flapped and preened and preened and flapped. After 30 minutes of that it looked around and took a step forward. In a whisper, I cautioned the group: “It is gonna take off.” It did. When the smoke had clear I had created almost 500 images of the bird. Three of the last four were the take-off images. All but one was more than sharp enough for me. Today’s featured image, the last one, is my favorite although the lift-off image –very similar to this one — is pretty darned good. I kept only 26 of the almost 500. Most folks would die for at least half of those that I got rid of. Such is my wonderful life.

Anyway, getting back to the point. Once I saw those image on my laptop I decided that I would keep my Nikon D5. As much as I love my D850 I was firmly convinced that for birds flying right at me — emphasis on the me — that the D5 outperformed the D850. That despite the two bodies having the identical AF system. The next day I was Focus Fine-tuning the D5 with my new 80-400 VR. I got a strange message on the back LCD. When I looked at the top LCD it said, and I quote, “ERR.” I took out the battery, cleaned the contacts, and put in a fresh battery. It still showed ERR. When I un-mounted the lens I noted that the shutter was jammed open. I packed it up and returned it to B&H for a full refund.

I am having another one delivered this week. That will have me doing lots more AF fine-tuning and give me the opportunity to get the new guide done. My plan at present is to use the D5 in pure flight situations. I may wind up with two D850s as I always make big international trips with three camera bodies.

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 :).

This Just In!

If you would like to purchase a Nikon D850 tomorrow and have it shipped overnight for free and delivered on Wednesday (with a $50 discount to boot!), click here to order and enter the coupon code BIRDSASART at checkout (to get your $50 “first order” discount). In addition, you will qualify for a free copy of my upcoming Nikon D850/D5 Focus Fine-tune Guide. Be sure to save your receipt. Also in stock are the Nikon MBD-18 Vertical Grip, the BL5 Battery Door, and the ENEL18B battery that will get you up to 9 frames per second with your brand new D-850.

Also arriving very soon are the Sony Alpha a7 III Mirrorless Digital Camera (Body Only) or the Sony Alpha a7 III Mirrorless Digital Camera with 28-70mm Lens. Click here to order and enter the coupon code BIRDSASART at checkout (to get your $50 discount) and free overnight shipping the moment the product arrives.

If you have questions on your order or 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.

Stuff

Saturday morning was pretty poor at best. We met up with physiotherapist Amy Novotny and friends Bryan Holliday and Kim at Gilbert. They added lots of water to the best ponds … We did get some nice flight images of Ring-necked Ducks.

We had a great dinner at Rodizio Grill, The Brazilian Steakhouse in Mesa. We had a very nice chat with the general manager, the delightful and — at only 28 years old — amazingly polished, Shawna Fitzgerald.

The Streak

Today makes two hundred sixteen 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 February 17, 2018 at Gatorland with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR lens (at 500mm) and the mega mega-pixel Nikon D850 DSLR.. ISO 800. Matrix metering probably at +1/3 stop as originally framed: 1/1600 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode. WB: AUTO0 at 9:02am on a foggy morning. Center Group/Shutter Button AF as originally framed; the diamond pattern was on the male’s shoulder. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version. Image #1: Great Egret pair copulating at the nest

Image Design

Note that though I chose the center AF cluster that the bird is nicely back in the frame, that in part due to a crop from below and from our right. As I often do, I opted to maintain the 3X2 proportion of the original by hitting C for the Crop Tool, selecting 2X3, and then flopping that to 3X2 by hitting the two-way arrow.

New Policies, New Possibilities

The new early entry policy at Gatorland — now four days a week, and earlier entry times — opens up some great photographic possibilities for those who know where to be when. Join me at Gatorland to learn my early morning strategies and allow me to share the rest of my BIRDS AS ART Gatorland knowledge with you.

This image was created at Gatorland on the morning of February 22, 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 1250. Matrix metering +2/3 stop as originally framed: 1/500 sec. at f6.3. Cloudy WB at 7:28am in the shade. Center Group (grp) shutter Button AF with the AF cluster centered on the bird’s neck. 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: Great Egret with single egg in nest

Your Favorite?

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

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

The early mornings in Phoenix are still quite chilly. Thus, there was a bit of fire in the mist on Thursday but few birds to silhouette … With the constantly changing water levels knowing where to be at the Gilbert Water Ranch Riparian Preserve is a challenge. The water level in the spot that was great two days ago has gone down so now the birds are now much farther away. And there were not many birds in my backup pond early so I took a long walk to check out another spot: way high water and no birds. So I backtracked and had some decent chances with Black-necked Stilts (zero keepers), American Avocet (1 keeper), drake Green-winged Teal (1 keeper), and a handsome male Hooded Merganser (10 keepers). I will be sharing a neat behavioral image from that series with y’all here soon.

On Thursday afternoon we found a spot to photograph Ring-necked Ducks with absolutely killer reflections … We did great and will be back there again soon.

The Streak

Today makes two hundred fourteen 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.

New Listings

Canon 300mm f/2.8 L IS Lens

Jeff Guettinger is offering a Canon 300mm f/2.8 L IS lens (the original version) in mint condition for $2,699.00. The sale includes the original lens trunk, the front leather cover, the rear lens cap, the strap, and insured ground shipping via major courier to continental US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Jeff via e-mail or by phone at 715.379.6302.

The older version of the Canon 300mm f/2.8L IS is a super sharp lens that is great for hand held flight and action photography and great with both teleconverters. It has long been the favorite focal length of the world’s best hawk photographers. Jeff’s immaculate lens is priced to sell quickly. 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 Thursday, February 24 — Day 2 of the second 2018 Spoonbill IPT. I used the hand held Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR lens (at 500mm) and the inexpensive 1.5X crop factor camera body, the Nikon D500. ISO 800. Matrix metering +2/3 stop: 1/2000 sec. at f/6.3. AUTO2 WB at 5:14pm on a partly cloudy afternoon. Center d-72 Shutter Button AF. The selected AF point was on the bird’s right wing (as originally framed). Click on the image to enjoy a larger version. Brown Pelican braking to land with tiny stick for nest

My Brief D500 Experience

James Shadle owns and uses his D500 quite often, often with his 600m f/4. He asked me if I would like to try it out and I said “Yes.” It was a very windy afternoon and to photograph the landing pelicans we were anchored near a point completely exposed to the west wind. The boat was really rocking. Because of the tough conditions I found it difficult to frame the flying and landing birds. Had it been calmer, and had I been more accustomed to zooming the “wrong way” with my Nikon gear, I am pretty sure that I would have used the combination of the D500 and the 2-5 a lot more effectively. I did, however, manage to get a few very nice frames.

Priced at only $1,896.95, and teamed with the 2-5 at a ridiculously low $1,396.95, this combo, like the Canon 7D Mark II and the 100-400 II, makes and amazing starter rig for beginning bird and nature photographers. Both can be used with a 1.4X TC and both would do very well on an Induro tripod topped with a Mongoose M3.6.1.

Do note however, that I firmly believe that if you can swing the money for either of the mid-range full frame bodies, the Nikon D850 or the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV, you will be much better off doing without the crop factor body and going the cropped image route …

Photo Mechanic/NEF + JPG Help Needed

Unbeknownst to me, the D500 that I borrowed from Froggie was set up to capture NEF (Nikon RAW) + JPG. When I hit Command + E (my Open in Photoshop keyboard shortcut), the JPG opened directly in Photoshop. I could not get the NEF file to open in Camera RAW … (With plain NEF files I simply hit Command + E and the file opens in Camera RAW. If you know a workaround, please leave a comment. Many tanks.

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 :).

Stuff

My flight was a piece of cake and mercifully the seat belt sign was rarely on so I was able to get up and walk around frequently. My hotel is only five minutes from the Gilbert Water Ranch Riparian Preserve and I did well with both drake Northern Shoveler and American Avocets. There is great potential with the former species in flight and with the latter species flying, fighting, and hopefully — copulating.

I had the first of my nine consecutive postural restoration therapy sessions on Tuesday afternoon (after a great lunch at Cafe Zupas.

The Streak

Today makes two hundred twelve 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.

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 a rookery in Brandon,FL on the free pre-spoonbill #2 IPT afternoon session 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-20E III, and the 9fps mega mega-pixel Nikon D850. ISO 800. Matrix metering -1/3 stop: 1/2000 sec. at f/10. SUNNY WB at 4:42pm on a sunny afternoon. Upper left of center d-9 Shutter Button AF. AF Focus peaking Fine-tune -5. Wood Stork yawning

The Laughing Wood Stork Focal Length Answer

Though lots of folks danced around the clues, only Bryan Holliday put two and two together and came up with the correct answer: 1200mm (as per the EXIF above). He commented on the original blog post here: 1200mm. Your new 600 plus the 2x. You are demonstrating how sharp the Nikon 2X actually is, and you usually stop down a bit to f10 with that combo.

Folks who were thinking 840mm commented “Why f/10? as that would bring up the background?”, something that I rarely would do. Kudos to Bryan for figgering it out.

As I learned this morning at the Gilbert Water Ranch, the oft-maligned Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-20E III is more than capable of creating razor sharp images with f/4 super-telephoto lenses. There will be lots more 1200mm images coming very soon …

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 :).

Stuff

The last morning of the second Spoonbill IPT began very slowly as there were few birds up and about despite a nice pre-dawn orange glow. We got in the water into good position but there were not many spoonbills or pelicans flying around. Then three pelicans, and adult and two young birds landed right in front of us. After a few frames a gorgeous adult Roseate Spoonbill flew in an landed as close as any had all week and began bathing. With everyone listening to my instructions carefully we got closer by moving forward and left, the latter to get more on sun angle. After the bath the bird began preening and flapping its wings almost continuously. Spectacular. The bird was 100% comfortable with our presence and paid us no mind. After 30 minutes and many thousands of frames — I created about 500 myself — the bird looked around and took one step toward us. “It’s gonna take off right toward us” I whispered. And it did.

What a bird. What a thrill. And what a finale. Photos soon.

I fly to Phoenix this afternoon for nine more Postural Restoration physical therapy sessions.

The Streak

Today makes two hundred ten 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.

Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS USM Lens (the “old five”) with Extras!

Jim Brennan is offering a used 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. The lens is in beautiful condition with no dings, dents, scratches or paint chips and the glass is immaculate. There is a small blemish on the lens hood knob and a small blemish on the black rubber trim on the lens hood. The sale includes the lens trunk with key, the leather front lens cover, the rear lens cap, the lens strap, the manual and registration card, a RRS LCF-50 B replacement foot (with hex key and original packaging), a Realtree Max 4 LensCoat, and Hoodie, and insured ground via UPS to U.S. addresses only (signature required). Photos are available upon request. Personal checks only unless other arrangements are made. Your new lens and extras will not ship until your check clears.

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

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 a neat $5400 by grabbing Jim’s pristine copy of the “old five” plus extras (including a 1.4X III TC!) right now. artie

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM Lens (The “old 1-4”)

Rajat Kapoor is offering a Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM lens (first edition) in near-mint condition for $649. The sale includes the front & back lens caps, the original box, the lens case, a LensCoat Hoodie (Black), and insured ground shipping via UPS to US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Rajat Kapoor via e-mail or by phone at 502-751-8470 (Eastern time).

The old 100-400 was and is superb. I made hundreds of sale-able images with mine including the one used on the front cover of Scott Weidensaul’s “Return to Wild America”. Contrary to reports by the internet idiots, this lens is — in competent hands —
sharp at all focal lengths and all apertures. It is extremely versatile and would make a great starter lens for those interested in bird, wildlife, and general nature photography. Today it is rare to find a near-mint copy like Rajat’s. artie

Canon Canon EOS 7D Mark II (with battery grip!)

Gary Meyer is offering a Canon EOS 7D Mark II in near-mint condition for $798. The sale includes the front lens cap, the strap, the original battery, an extra battery, the vertical grip, and insured ground shipping to US addresses only by UPS.

Please contact Gary via e-mail or by phone or text at 1-612-221-0150 (Central time).

Both Patrick Sparkman and I used and loved the 7D Mark II until about two years ago when we both committed to using full frame Canon bodies. We both made some truly great images with it. Two of my three 2016 Nature’s Best honored entries were created with the 7D II, one still, and one video. One thing is for sure: the 7D Mark II is the greatest value ever in a digital camera body. With a new one going for $1499 you can save a cool $500 by grabbing Sangeeta’s lens. 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 the morning of Thursday, 22, 2018 at Gatorland. 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 +1/3 stop as framed: 1/1000 sec. at f/8. AWB at 7:41am with some sweet early morning light. d-25 upper left shutter Button AF with the selected AF point on the bird’s eye. Focus Peaking micro-adjustment: +5. (See Focus Fine Tune Guide item below). Image #1/Version A: Great Egret in breeding plumage

Gorgeous Blemished Bird

Above is version A of a gorgeous breeding plumage Great Egret. I did some bill clean-up, evened out the background with Content Aware Fill and some Patch Tool work, and then smoothed the repairs out with a 70-pixel Gaussian Blur painted back via a Hide-all (Black or Inverse) layer mask. All of the above plus tons more as detailed in the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II).

For this version I opted to leave the large brown blemish on the lores.

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 🙂

This image was created on the morning of Thursday, 22, 2018 at Gatorland. 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 +1/3 stop as framed: 1/1000 sec. at f/8. AWB at 7:41am with some sweet early morning light. d-25 upper left shutter Button AF. Image #2/Version B: Great Egret in breeding plumage

Gorgeous Un-blemished Bird

For this version I opted to remove the large brown blemish on the lores. This was done easily in one step with the Patch Tool. As detailed plus tons more in the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II).

Your Call?

Do you prefer Image #1/Version A or Image #2/Version B? Before you answer, consider that neither version would be acceptable for entry into nearly all of the major international photography competitions. Please let us know why you made your choice.

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/Openings 4.

(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

We were hoping that Saturday morning on the spoonbill boat would be as great as Friday morning had been. We actually did better in the pre-dawn with blurs but after a good start, the spoonbills disappointed. And the pelicans were not much better. We did very well with flight on both species of vultures while learning a lot about exposing the undersides shots correctly on a sunny blue sky day.

Very few folks took a stab at figuring out the focal length use for yesterday’s laughing Wood Stork image. There are lots of clues both in the EXIF and in my response to Adam’s comment. All are invited to re-visit and see if they can figure things out … Put on your thinking caps and click here to give it a much appreciated try.

The group enjoyed our Thank You dinner at the fabulous Thai Legacy Restaurant in Brandon on Saturday evening.

The Streak

Today makes two hundred nine 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.

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.

Mongoose Warning

Right now the BAA Online Store has just two Mongoose M3.6.heads in stock. A price increase is coming. You can figure out the rest.

This image was created on the second morning of the second spoonbill IPT, Saturday, February 24, 2018. I used the hand held Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 200-500mm f/5.6E ED VR lens (at 500mm) and the and the blazingly fast professional digital camera body, the Nikon D5 DSLR camera body with dual XQD slots). ISO 1800. Matrix metering +1.0 stops: 1/30 sec. at f/5.6 in S mode — (Shutter priority, TV mode in Canon). K 7690 at 6:43am with clouds on the eastern horizon. Group/Shutter Button AF. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version. Double-crested Cormorant pre-dawn blur

Necessity, the Mother of Invention

If you want to try to create sharp images in the pre-dawn, you will be working with ISOs in the 4,000 to 25,600 plus range. In general: not pretty. Learning to create pleasing blurs on the other hand allows you to work with much more manageable ISOs. Heck, on Saturday morning I wound up all the way down to ISO 400. As there is no ISO Safety Shift with Nikon, you need to use Auto ISO in these situations. You pick the shutter speed and set the EC and the camera sets the ISO. You must remember to turn off Auto ISO with Nikon else you will mess yourself up badly. This does not occur with Canon as long as you are properly using ISO Safety Shift (as detailed in our Canon camera body User’s guides.

Om most IPTs folks are thrilled to learn the techniques used to create pleasing per-dawn blurs, and are often amazed and thrilled with the results. For many, learning to create this one type of pleasing blurs is a really eye opener.

The ACR Defaults for today’s featured image

Plus One Stop Was a Huge Underexposure. Why?

So why did I have the EC set to only plus one stop when it is obvious with the grey sky — (see the ACR default screen capture above) that more than plus two stops would have been correct? Simple. It was a compromise. We had some orange in the sky and at +2 stops it was well over-exposed. We had lots of birds (like this one) flying against dull grey skies where +2 or even plus more would have been perfect. And we had birds behind us in the blue/pink purple where +2 would have been right on. So I went with +1 as a compromise because the birds were fling all over the place and coming from every which way. After I bit, I upped my compromise EC to +1 1/3 stops. In addition, as I would be creating silhouettes against a bright sky, that noise would not be much of a problem.

Note that even with my new gear I still have problems keeping the bird in the center of the frame when panning.

My ACR settings for today’s featured image

ACR

It has been great getting back to using ACR for my NEF files. One major change is that I usually start with the White slider. But with well underexposed images like today’s featured photo, I have found that it is best to first brighten things up by moving the Exposure slider to the right and then adjusting the White and Black sliders. Click on the screen capture above so that you can study the fine print to see where I went with the various sliders. Once I converted and cropped the image the only thing of note that I did was to tone down a bright orange patch on the bird’s gular region. We did that by painting a small Quick Mask of the area, going back into ACR (hit Filter > Camera RAW filter), and then going to the HSL tab and reducing the Luminance and Saturation of the Orange channel.

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

A Guide to Pleasing Blurs

In our A Guide to Pleasing Blurs by Denise Ippolito and yours truly, we discuss just about every technique ever used mankind to create pleasingly blurred image. Ninety-nine point nine percent of pleasing blurs are not happy accidents. You can learn pretty much everything that there is to know about creating them in this instructive, well written, easy to follow guide.

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

We left at 5:36am on Thursday morning and made it to Gatorland just before 7am. We had some very good chances for the first 90 minutes. Once it got really sunny we concentrated on birds in flight. Jake Levin of Montreal joined us to hang out. As I type, we are on the way to Brandon to meet the second Spoonbill IPT group. I threw in a free afternoon at a local rookery for the first one and did the same thing on Thursday.

On Monday I fly to Phoenix for my second round of nine Postural Restoration therapy sessions.

I was glad to learn recently of the following happenings on the Used Gear Page:

Greg Morris sold a Canon EOS-1DX in near-mint condition for the BAA record-low price of $2499.00 and a Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS USM lens (the old five) in very good plus condition for $3447 (was $3700) in mid-February.
Ann Nguyen is sold her Canon 300mm f/2.8 L IS lens (the original version) in excellent plus condition to a friend for $2500 but did not realize that she owed me a check for $73.75, 2 1/2% of the original listing price. A third party inquired about the lens, learned that it had been sold, and notified me. Once I contacted Ann she quickly made things right.
David R. Gibson sold a Canon EOS-1D Mark III on eBay for $519. He cheerfully sent me a check for $25 to cover the minimum listing fees.
Multiple IPT veteran Gil Moe sold a brand new in the box Canon BG-E20 Battery Grip for EOS 5D Mark IV for $259 in early February.
Galapagos IPT veteran Paul Reinstein sold his Canon EF 100mm f2.8 USM macro lens in near-mint condition (but for a speck of dirt near the center of the lens) for $225 on e-Bay in late January and gladly forked over $25 🙂 Thanks Paul!

The Streak

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

This image was created on the morning of Tuesday, February 20, 2018 while standing thigh deep in Tampa Bay next to the Hooptie Deux. 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 1000. Matrix metering +1 stop as originally framed: 1/1600 sec. at f/6.3. K7690 WB at 7:29am with some sweet early morning light. Center Group (grp) Shutter Button AF. Above are the ACR default settings. Brown Pelican scratching in flight

Oops!

When I am using a high Kelvin setting in the field to juice up sunrise or sunset colors, I generally remember to change the WB setting the moment that I turn away from the sun. On Tuesday morning past, I forgot to do that. I did not realize my error until well into the morning session, in part because I am not quite used to the colors on the Nikon LCDs. In yesterday’s blog post, I wrote:

While you can always change the white balance during the RAW conversion, shooting all morning at K7690 can be problematic as most of the images will look over-saturated/over-exposed during a laptop review; apparent sharpness is affected as well. None-the-less I was able to create lovely versions of many of my favorites.

Above you see the horrible yellow cast that resulted from mistakenly being at K7690. The image is as it appeared in ACR with the ACR defaults.

Above are the ACR settings that I made to convert today’s featured image. Click on the image so that you are better able to read the fine print. Brown Pelican scratching in flight

The ACR Corrections

Note that the color has been corrected nicely, that the YELLOW cast has been eliminated, and that the WHITEs and highlights have been toned down. Compare the sliders with the default settings above. I was surprised at the considerable vignetting at f/6.3. I will try f/7.1 this weekend in similar situations. Note that I failed to correct the vignetting during the RAW conversion (using the fx (Effects) tab. I almost always forget to do that in Photoshop with my NEF files because DPP 4 automatically corrected the vignetting when I loaded the appropriate camera body/ISO recipe. Eliminating the vignetting in Photoshop is somewhat of a pain as there are four sliders to adjust in addition to the Amount slider …

This image was created on the morning of Tuesday, February 20, 2018 while standing thigh deep in Tampa Bay next to the Hooptie Deux. 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 1000. Matrix metering +1 stop as originally framed: 1/1600 sec. at f/6.3. K7690 WB at 7:29am with some sweet early morning light. Center Group (grp) Shutter Button AF. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version. Above is the optimized image. Brown Pelican scratching in flight

The Optimized Image

Note as always how well the D850 images stand up to a healthy crop. It took a bit of work to get around the problems caused by K7690 but none of those were insurmountable. And I am hoping that it is a lesson that I will not soon forget. I remembered on Thursday morning at Gatorland. And I had had K7690 set from Wednesday night at ILE … Maybe there is hope for me.

Brown Pelican Scratching in Flight

The funny thing is that I have photographed pelicans a zillion times and can rarely recall seeing one scratching in flight; the scratching in flight posture is very strange. And while I may have seen the behavior a few times in the past 30+ years, I have never had a chance to photograph it. The bird in today’s featured image scratched for only a few seconds at most. An hour after I made this image — the light was still not bad — I was in the process of moving my tripod when a bird at even closer range and not far off sun angle began to scratch. I made no effort to get my tripod back on the ground because I assumed that the bird would quickly quit scratching. As you might have guessed the bird kept scratching and scratching and scratching for about twenty seconds … And I got nothing 🙂

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 :).