{"id":61168,"date":"2019-05-19T05:48:05","date_gmt":"2019-05-19T09:48:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.birdsasart-blog.com\/?p=61168"},"modified":"2019-05-19T06:12:22","modified_gmt":"2019-05-19T10:12:22","slug":"huge-late-registration-birds-as-art-instructional-photo-tour-discounts-made-public-and-if-my-life-depended-on-making-one-great-flight-shot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.birdsasart-blog.com\/baa\/2019\/05\/19\/huge-late-registration-birds-as-art-instructional-photo-tour-discounts-made-public-and-if-my-life-depended-on-making-one-great-flight-shot\/","title":{"rendered":"Huge Late-registration BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-Tour Discounts Made Public. And If My Life Depended on Making One Great Flight Shot …"},"content":{"rendered":"

What’s Up?<\/h3>\n

The weather has finally turned gorgeous here at ILE. Friday morning down by the lake was so-so and after a slow start Saturday offered many excellent chances under clear skies with a developing east wind. With the Nikon 500 PF with a D850 on it, the 500 PF — the subject of today’s blog post — shined and I created a slew of great flight shots of landing Black Vultures and an Osprey landing on nest atop a utility pole. In the last sequence it was carrying a fresh-caught (with the head still on!) bream for its three large, nearly-fledged chicks. Images and story here soon. I enjoyed my 50- and 100-length swims on Friday and Saturday afternoons respectively (88 lengths to the mile).<\/p>\n

As the weather looks perfect for this morning, Sunday, May 19, 2019, I will be heading down to the lake at about 7am. I am continuing to experiment with Nikon single point AF vs. D9 AF and Grouop AF. I will of course share what I have learned here on the blog when I am absolutely sure of what I am learning. <\/p>\n

Huge Late-registration Instructional Photo-Tour Discounts Made Public <\/h3>\n

I an effort to fill a very few remaining slots, I am offering a $3,000 late registration discount on the UK Puffins, Gannets, and Red Kite IPT (one slot) and a $4,000 late registration discount on the Galapagos Photo Cruise of a lifetime (one or two slots) — the world’s very best Galapagos photo trip. We do the three world-class landings twice each: North Seymour, Hood, and Tower … Join us. Click here<\/a> and scroll down for the trip details. Please e-mail<\/a> with questions. <\/p>\n

FlexShooter Pro Updates<\/h3>\n

We’ve now sold six of the 20 FlexShooter Pro<\/a> heads that we will be receiving next Monday or Tuesday. Folks are encouraged to place their orders asap by phone: 863-692-0906. Your card will not be charged until your head ships. Once folks have a chance to play with a friend’s FlexShooter Pro or run across me in the field with my 600 VR, I expect sales to boom. Think that I am full of it? Do you remember when everyone<\/em><\/strong> used Gitzo tripods? Today, all that you see in the world of nature photography are Induro tripods. Folks always gravitate to gear that is better, well made, more efficient, and less expensive …<\/p>\n

I do have one barely used FlexShooter Pro head, the one with the very slightly smaller knob (11\/16″ vs 7\/8″) for sale. If I had not mentioned the difference in the size of the knobs, nobody would have noticed. In any case, if you would like to save $50, I’d be glad to sell it for $549.00. Phone orders only: 1-863-692-0906 Saturday or Sunday afternoon or any weekday. I will be sharing the info on the BigFoot lens feet here soon. Basically, we have BigFeet for most Canon big glass; the BigFeet for Nikon big glass are being re-designed and manufactured as we speak. <\/p>\n

BIRDS AS ART<\/h3>\n

BIRDS AS ART is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.<\/p>\n

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Money Saving Reminder<\/h3>\n

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<\/a> 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<\/a> or on his cell at (479) 381-2592 (Eastern time) and be sure to mention your BIRDSASART coupon code and use it for your online order. Steve currently has several D850s in stock along with a Nikon 600mm f\/4 VR. He is taking pre-orders for the new Nikon 500 P and the Nikon Z6 mirrorless camera body.<\/p>\n

Booking.Com<\/h3>\n

Many IPT folks have been using the Booking.Com link below to get great rates and save a handsome $25.00 in the process. If you too would like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here<\/a> and to earn a $25 reward on your first booking. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service. <\/p>\n

Airbnb<\/h3>\n

I enjoyed another great inexpensive AirBNB on the recently concluded 2019 Fort DeSoto Sandbar Secrets IPT. For the past year, I have been using AirBNB for all of my travel lodging needs. Everyone on the Fort DeSoto Spring IPT stayed at AirBNB properties in Gulfport. Airbnb lists more than 4.5 million homes across 200 countries; you\u2019ll find spacious, affordable options for every occasion. With Airbnb you will travel with confidence as reviews from past guests help you find the right fit. Once you do, their secure messaging makes it easy to coordinate with your host. And Airbnb support teams are available 24\/7. And this morning, I made a 17-day reservation for an Airbnb condo for San Diego, 2020. I am staying with Rick again: his place has lots of room, a full kitchen, two bedrooms, and great WiFi. All for a lot less than the price of a chain hotel. <\/p>\n

Yikes. I almost forgot the best part: Airbnb rates average less than half of even the least expensive chain hotels and motels. If you would like to save $40 on your first booking sign up by using this link: Airbnb<\/a>. Airbnb does charge clean-up and service fees that make short stays less attractive bargains than long stays. <\/p>\n

Those who prefer to stay in a motel or hotel are invited to use the Booking.com<\/a> link above to save $25.00. <\/p>\n


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Gear Questions and Advice<\/h3>\n

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of photographers whom I see in the field and on BPN<\/a>, 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<\/a>. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and\/or lens choices and decisions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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This image was created near Santiago, Chile on the way to the Falklands last December. I used the hand held Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 500mm f\/5.6E PF ED VR lens<\/a> with the Nikon D5 with Dual XQD Slots.<\/a> Matrix metering plus about 1\/3 stop as framed: 1\/2000 sec. at f\/5.6. NATURAL AUTO WB at 9:49am on a cloudy day. <\/p>\n

Nikon Focus Peaking fine-tune value: -1. See the Nikon AF Fine-tune e-Guide here<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Center Group (grp)\/Continuous (C in Nikon\/AI Servo with Canon) AF was active at the moment of exposure. The array was centered right on the bird’s neck. The left-most AF point caught the base of tghe bird’s bill. <\/p>\n

Inca Tern in flight with fish<\/strong><\/h2>\n