Long, Spectacular, and Exhausting 1445 Image Day

These Marbled Godwits were photographed at Fort Desoto with the tripod-mounted Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon 1.4x EF tele-extender III, and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1 2/3 stops as framed : 1/200 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode. Central sensor Surround/AI Servo/Rear Focus AF on front bird’s eye and re-compose. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Long, Spectacular, and Exhausting 1445 Image Day

On Friday, April 5 the Fort Desoto/Hooptie Deux Short Notice IPT II started at Fort Desoto and ended on the Hooptie Deux at the Dit Dot Dash Rookery on the Bradenton River. I have all five mix and match participants with me all day. And what a day it was. We began with the dependable Long-billed Curlew posing in the surf. The two Marbled Godwits in the image above flew in to join him and walked towards us. I explained to the group that the bird with the longer bill with the pink base was a female in winter plumage and that the bird with the short bill with the orange base was a male beginning to come into breeding plumage, the bill color being the only indication of that. I said, “It would be nice if the two of them stood side by side for a nice comparison shot.” A minute later, they did just that.

Want to learn tons more like the stuff above about shorebirds? Get yourself a copy of my Shorebirds; Beautiful Beachcombers.

This image of a pretty sweet dark morph breeding plumage Reddish Egret was created at with the Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens and the Canon EOS-1D X Digital SLR camera. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2 stops as framed: 1/1600 sec. at f/4 in Manual mode. 61-Point/AI Servo/Rear Focus AF active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Ted Thelin, who signed up at the last minute for FRI/SAT/SUN and flew down to join us, was fervently hoping to see a Reddish Egret. He got his wish granted in spades. We walked to his regular haunts but he was elsewhere. Two minutes later he flew in. He was absolutely unconcerned with us as we followed him for more than two hours. He gave us a good workout as he flew one hundred yards at a clip looking for the best fishing spot.

I dreamed that the bird would stand still for a few minutes and pose for tight head portraits.

This tight vertical portrait was created with the tripod-mounted Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon 2x EF Extender III (Teleconverter), and the Canon EOS-1D X Digital SLR camera. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1 1/3 stops as framed: 1/320 sec. at f/14 in Manual Mode. Central sensor (by necessity) Expand/AI Servo/Rear Focus AF on the bird’s left eye and re-compose. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version. You cannot beat the 600II/2XIII TC combo for reach (with phase detection AF).

So of course, he did. I was sitting in the water behind my lowered tripod for the image above.

This image was created at the Dit Dot Dash Rookery on the Bradenton River aboard the Hooptie Deux with the hand held Canon 500mm f/4L EF IS II lens, the Canon 1.4x EF tele-extender III, and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 400: 1/2500 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode confirmed in advance via histogram check. IS Mode 2. Central Sensor Surround/AI Servo/Rear Focus AF active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image for a larger version. Learn everything that I know about the great AF system of the 1D X in our 1D X AF Guide here. Learn how and why I am converting all of my images in Canon DPP (Digital Photo Professional) in our DPP RAW Conversion Guide here.

With a roaring west/northwest wind conditions were amazing as we enjoyed practically non-stop flight photography with Wood Stork, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, White Ibis, Cattle Egret, and Roseate Spoonbill.

This Roseate Spoonbill image was also created at the Dit Dot Dash Rookery on the Bradenton River aboard the Hooptie Deux with the hand held Canon 500mm f/4L EF IS II lens, the Canon 1.4x EF tele-extender III, and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 400: 1/2000 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode confirmed in advance via histogram check. IS Mode 2. Central Sensor Surround/AI Servo/Rear Focus AF active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image for a larger version. Learn everything that I know about the great AF system of the 1D X in our 1D X AF Guide here. Learn how and why I am converting all of my images in Canon DPP (Digital Photo Professional) in our DPP RAW Conversion Guide here.

We had an amazing chance with this gorgeous bird returning to its nest. Though I was happy with this image I mis-framed two spectacular poses as after more than two hours fatigue had set in….

Another last minute FRI/SAT/SUN sign-up, George Golumbeski, asked me why someone would own both the 600 II and the 500 II. “At times I need the 500II for hand holding for flight in situations where I simply could not hand hold the 600 II for extended periods of time.” Note: as above, hand holding the 500 II is not a walk in the park for me.

Your Favorite?

Please take a moment to let us know which of the five images above is your personal favorite, and why.

Tanzania Photo Safari with Todd Gustafson and Arthur Morris

Africa/Tanzania/Serengeti Summer Migration Safari: 12 full and two half-days of photography: $12,999/person double occupancy. Limit: 12/Openings: 3.

Leaders: Todd Gustafson (he does use Nikon gear) and Arthur Morris. Leave the US AUG 3, 2013. Fly home from Arusha, Tanzania on the evening of August 18. Day 1 of the safari is August 5. Our last morning of photography is August 18. We will be visiting Tarangire National Park, Seronera Lodge–aka Leopard City!–twice, an exclusive mobile tented camp in the Serengeti, and at the end, the spectacular wildlife spectacle that is Ngorongoro Crater. Please e-mail for itinerary.

Please click here for complete IPT info.

Announcing the 2013 Bosque IPT

BOSQUE del APACHE 2013 IPT: “The Complete Bosque Experience.” NOV 26-DEC 2, 2013. 7-FULL DAYS: $3399. Co-leader: Denise Ippolito. Introductory Slide program: 6:30 pm on 11/25. Limit: 12.

Tens of thousand of Snow Geese, 10,000 Sandhill Cranes, ducks including point-blank American Wigeon and Wood Duck, amazing sunrises, sunsets, and blast-offs. Live, eat, and breathe photography with one of (if not the) world’s premier photographic educators at one of his very favorite locations on the planet. Top-notch Photoshop instruction. This will make 19 consecutive Novembers at Bosque for me. Nobody knows the place better than I do. Join us to learn to think like a pro, to recognize situations and to anticipate them based on the weather, especially the sky conditions, the light, and the wind direction. Every time we make a move we will let you know why. When you head home applying what you learned will prove to be invaluable. Includes all lunches and the Thanksgiving Buffet at the Crowne Plaza in Albuquerque. I hope that you can join me for what will be an unparalleled learning experience.

A $500 non-refundable deposit is required to hold your slot for this IPT. Your balance is due 4 months before the date of the IPT and is also non-refundable. If the trip fills, we will be glad to apply a credit applicable to a future IPT for the full amount less a $100 processing fee. If we do not receive your check for the balance on or before the due date we will try to fill your spot from the waiting list. If your spot is filled, you will lose your deposit. If not, you can secure your spot by paying your balance.

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

EOS-1D X AF Guide

You can learn exactly how I set up and use this camera’s great new AF system in our EOS-1D X AF Guide. And you can learn about our other camera User’s Guides here.

Typos

On all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or leave a comment regarding any typos, wrong words, misspellings, omissions, or grammatical errors. Just be right. 🙂

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LensCoats. I have a LensCoat on each of my big lenses to protect them from nicks and thus increase their re-sales value. All my big lens LensCoat stuff is in Hardwood Snow pattern.
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Gitzo GT3532 LS CF Tripod. This one replaces the GT3530LS Tripod and will last you a lifetime. Learn more about this great tripod here.
Mongoose M3.6 Tripod Head. Right now this is the best tripod head around for use with lenses that weigh less than 9 pounds. For heavier lenses, check out the Wimberley V2 head.
Double Bubble Level. You will find one in my camera's hot shoe whenever I am not using flash.
The Lens Align Mark II. I use the Lens Align Mark II pretty much religiously to micro-adjust all of my gear an average of once a month and always before a major trip. Enjoy our free comprehensive tutorial here.
BreezeBrowser. I do not see how any digital photographer can exist without this program.
Delkin Flash Cards. I use and depend on Delkin compact Flash Cards and card readers most every day. Learn more about their great 700X and 1000X cards here or about my favorite Delkin card here.