Support BIRDS AS ART with your Everyday Online Shopping
Using the BAA Tip Jar Costs You Nothing
If you are like me, you enjoy the convenience of shopping online at Amazon without having to drive into town. The prices are competitive, and you can return anything you purchase for any reason (as long as you have not wrecked it).
If you enjoy learning from from the blog posts, the YouTube videos, and the Instagram posts, or simply love being inspired by the images, the simplest and easiest way to support my efforts at BIRDS AS ART at no cost to you, is to use my generic Amazon link:
Whenever you make your routine household purchases — from groceries and coffee to backup batteries and household supplies, clicking the link immediately above or on any of the product specific links below helps keep things running smoothly here.
Important Note
As an Amazon Associate I earn a small percentage from qualifying purchases whenever you use my Amazon links. Please make it a habit. 🙂
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Easy-on-Your Skin Silicone Foam Dressings
Thin Skinned Like Me?
I bump into a doorway and my forearm looks as if you used a stiletto on it. So, I clean the wound and put a regular bandaid over it. The next day when I remove the bandaid, my skin rips again — the new wound from removing the protective strip is often worse than the original one. Good friend Dr. Greg Gulbransen recommend silicone foam dressings as they can — unlike regular bandaids and tape, be removed easily. For me, they have been a Godsend.
Click here to shop. Mepilex is the top of the line and the logo above shows my two favorite sizes. Click on the preceding link for additional shopping options. Thanks for using my links 🙂
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Simms Surf Booties
When I might need to be walking in the water be it at ILE, Fort DeSoto, La Jolla Shores Beach, Nickerson Beach, or anywhere else, I always have a pair of Simms Surf Booties on. The are comfortable but rugged, add a bit of warmth on cold days, keep your feet cool on warm days, prevent cuts from shells, broken glass, and the like, and give some degree of protection against sting rays. And the lugged soles prevent slipping on wet mud or muck. For years I used a pair of Neo-Sport Booties as below. But I wore them out in six months and had to replace them. I tried a pair of more expensive Simms Surf Booties and found the top of the heap brand.
Use a forceful hose to spray the zipper after each beach use to keep the sand out and follow that with a good spray of WD 40 and the zipper will operate smoothly pretty much forever.
You can order a pair of Simms Surf booties by clicking here. They tend to run a very small. I wear a size 10 1/2 or 11 wide sneaker and needed a size 13. I wish they carried half sizes as a 12 1/2 would have been perfect. That said, I wear them with socks and they are a huge improvement over the Neo-Sport Booties that I wore out constantly.
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Surf Booties
When I might need to be walking in the water be it at ILE, Fort DeSoto, La Jolla Shores Beach, Nickerson Beach, or anywhere else, I always have a pair of surf booties on. The are comfortable, add a bit of warmth on cold days, keep your feet cool on warm days, prevent cuts from shells, broken glass, and the like, and give some degree of protection against sting rays. And the rugged soles prevent slipping on mud.
I’d advise the 3mm thickness if you will be walking in warm water, or the 5mm thickness for cold water. Be sure to pick a pair that goes above the ankles to protect against Sting Rays.
You can order a pair of surf booties by clicking here: They tend to run a bit small. I wear mine with socks. You do not need split toe booties. Neo-Sport was my favorite brand before I switched to Simms — you will find lots of options when you click on the link.
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The Lowepro Trekker Lite HP 100 Hip Pack (Black) is roomy and offers protection against rain and sand as long as you remember to zip it up. |
Lowepro Trekker Lite HP 100 Hip Pack (Black): Where Have You Been All My Life?
For well more than a decade I had been using a cheap fanny pack to hold my TCs and a spare battery. About two year ago, the bag in tatters, the zipper finally failed. I looked online but it was too difficult to figure out which of 50 or so fanny packs might be best for me. I actually ordered two that seemed right but they weren’t so I returned them. When I went to see Billy Joel’s final show at Madison Square Garden in the summer of 2024 I believe, I drove into the city early for a quick stop at B&H in search of the perfect fanny pack.
The moment I saw the Lowepro Trekker Lite HP 100 Hip Pack (Black) on the shelf, I fell in love with it. It is large enough to fit both TCs, two extra batteries, my car keys, my iPhone 17+, a Vello Remote Release, a soft paintbrush, and some other assorted junk as needed. It is well constructed with tough zippers and fabric. There are two straps on the bottom that can be used to carry an extra shirt or a towel. On drizzly days, there is even room to stuff in an old, dry undershirt.
Sometimes it pays to shop in the store!
Super-Conveneint!
If I had a nickel for every time I asked someone if they had their 1.4X teleconverter with them in the field and was told, “It’s in the car,” I could have bought a Hershey’s with Almonds! Get yourself this great fanny pack get in the habit of wearing it on every outing and you will always be prepared for almost anything.
As I almost always have both the 1.4X TC and the 2X TC with me, it is rare that you see me without the Lowepro Trekker Lite HP 100 Hip Pack (Black) around my waist.
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You will not see me in the field without a DDY Outdoor UPF50+ UV Draped Sun Protection Hat on my head. Ever. |
DDY Outdoor UPF50+ UV Draped Sun Protection Hat for Men & Women
When the sun hat given to my by Alfred Forns in the early aughts finally disintegrated about a decade ago, I searched and searched for something to keep the sun off my face while not restricting my photography in any way. About four years ago I found the DDY Outdoor UPF50+ UV Draped Sun Protection Hat for Men & Women on Amazon. I loved it so much that I purchased eight of them just in case they quit making them.
The first thing that I do is to remove the rear drape because it is pretty much extraneous. When I am walking with the sun behind me, the drape and the drawstring are left behind the hat. When headed at the sun, I put the drape in place to cover my face. And that done on windy days, I will use the drawstring to prevent losing the hat.
A soft brim is a 100% necessity for any type of bird photography. When you see a flight shot opportunity coming your way, it is best to simplyflim the front brim up for instant access to the viewfinder. I always travel with two of these fabulous sun protection hats.
Inevitably, folks ask: You walk on sunny days without a shirt, so why the sun hat? Studies show that folks all things being equal, folks with higher Vitamin D levels live longer than folks with lower levels. And the very best way to raise your Vitamin D levels is to expose as much skin as possible to sunshine. But never to the point of burning. So, my sun walks are rarely longer than 20-30 minutes. Next, why the sun protection hat? When I was younger, I never-ever wore a hat. The result is that much of the skin on my nose, lips, face, ears, and neck have been sun damaged. In addition, I have had Herpes Simplex — cold sores on my lips. The virus that causes that is brought to lift by too much sun (and possibly wind) on my lips.
Remember that it is much better to protect against burning and sun damage using high SPF hat and clothing than it is to use most sunscreens and lotions. Why? Most of those have carcinogenic or toxic ingredients. Or both. The only sunscreens viewed as generally safe and effective are Zinc Oxide and Titanium Dioxide. All of the popular sunscreens and lotions are nothing more than money-making offerings, promoted by most dermatologists in conjunction with the “sun-is-bad-for-you propaganda preached by most dermatologists.
Tired of having Mohs surgery on every small basal or squamous cell skin lesion, I tried a new approach and completely cured two squamous cell lesions. Surgery had been recommended for both. If you are interested in learning about such alternative treatments, please get in touch via e-mail.
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Woolen Watch Caps
I have been using woolen watch caps to store my cameras, small lenses, and teleconverters in my Think Tank bags for several decades. They offer maximum protection from impact damage and moisture (the latter provided you do not drop everything in a lake or the ocean). Each camera is protected by two watch caps. The TCs go in single caps. For the past several years I have been using the Carhartt Men’s Knit Cuffed Beanies in a variety of colors.
You can order yours here.
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Hockey Socks
In a similar fashion, I have been using hockey socks for my intermediate telephoto and telephoto lens when packing them for travel. You need to sew or have the bottoms sewn closed. They work great for many lenses including the 70-200s, the 80- and 100-400s, the 300mm f/2.8s, the 180- and 200-600s, and the 200- and 400-800 zooms as well. I recommend these: EALER HSK Series Multiple Colors Knit Hockey Socks Junior To Senior. Order yours by clicking here.
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Heeta Dry Bags for Zodiac Photography
Available in various sizes and colors. Click here to see the options.
