Having a Blast at Bosque with the Canon 200-400 with Internal Extender

This image was also created at Bosque del Apache NWR on the very early morning of November 22, 2013 with the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod, the Mongoose M3.6 head, the Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Lens with Internal 1.4x Extender (with the internal TC in place at 560mm) and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 1250. Evaluative metering +1/3 stop as framed in Tv Mode (with ISO Safety Shift). Central sensor/AI Servo/Surround–Rear Focus AF as framed active at the moment of exposure. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Having a Blast at Bosque with the Canon 200-400 with Internal Extender

I am co-leading Denise Ippolito’s A Creative Adventure Bosque workshop. She has a great group 10 folks. Despite less than ideal conditions yesterday we got off to a great start. We taught the group to create pleasing blurs in the pre-dawn darkness using Tv mode and either Auto ISO or ISO safety shift and then dialing in some plus compensation. Note that in the image above with lots of land and trees and not a whole lot of sky I was at only +1/3 stop but in the image below with lots of sky I was at +1 1/3 stops. Had I been working against totally grey skies without the light bright strip I would have been at +2 or more. Everyone in the group caught on quickly and during our image review session all were able to share some great images with Denise and me.

This image was created at Bosque del Apache NWR on the very early morning of November 22, 2013 with the Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripod, the Mongoose M3.6 head, the Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Lens with Internal 1.4x Extender (with the internal TC in place at 436mm) and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1 1/3 stops as framed in Tv Mode (with ISO Safety Shift). Central sensor/AI Servo/Surround–Rear Focus AF as framed active at the moment of exposure. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Zoom Lenses for Blast-Offs

Intermediate zoom telephoto lenses have always been great for blast-offs. These include but are not limited to the much-maligned Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM lens, the Canon 70-200mm IS lenses (along with comparable lens from Nikor), and the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR Lens. Yesterday morning as I was–by force of habit–mounting my Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II for the morning fly-in, I thought, why not the 200-400? So that is the way I went. Things worked out perfectly. I began without the TC in place but as the birds were way in the back of the main impoundment I simply moved the lever downward to engage the internal 1.4X. This gave me a focal length range of from 280-560mm. It took a bit of practice to get used to zooming in and out with the heavy gloves on but in short order I had things down pat.

Using Tv Mode Techniques to Set a Fast Shutter Speed

Above you saw us using Tv mode with Auto ISO or ISO Safety Shift to have precise control over the blur speed in pre-dawn conditions. With the low light/heavy cloud conditions I showed folks how to use the same set-up to ensure a minimum fast shutter speed by setting 1/1000 sec. as the shutter speed and dialing in +2 stops to photograph the geese and cranes in the dreary light. Things were difficult with the 30-40 mph north winds but at least we had the clouds going for us….

Your Favorite Image?

Please take a moment to leave a comment and let us know which of the three images is your favorite. And let us know why. It is 5:51am on the 23; we will be a the refuge with the group in 5 minutes. The forecast is for 4-6 inches of snow tonight. We are praying that the forecast is an accurate one….

Bosque IPTs/Late Registration Discounts Increased

It’s Getting Late!

Register now; apply a $1000 discount to the 7-DAY IPT!

For information on both the 7-Day and the recently announced short version of the 2013 Bosque IPTs please scroll down here. If you would like to join us for the first 3 or 4 days of this IPT please shoot me an e-mail. Please call Jim at 863-692-0906 or e-mail for late registration discount info.

BIRDS AS ART 2nd International Bird Photography Competition

Learn more and enter the BIRDS AS ART 2nd International Bird Photography Competition here. Twenty-five great prizes including the $1000 Grand Prize and intense competition. Bring your best.

Amazon

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Typos

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

IPT Info

Many of our great trips are filling up. You will learn more about how to make great images on a BAA IPT than anywhere else on the planet. Click here for the schedule and additional info.

Kitty Kono from her Bear Boat Book

I couldn’t finish this little book without a special thank you again to Art Morris and Denise Ippolito. When I first became serious about taking wildlife photographs, my Philadelphia based teacher Owen Biddle suggested I read and memorize Art’s seminal book “The Art of Bird Photography.” That was six years ago. I got the book, read every word, and have followed his blog ever since. I fell in love with what this man can do with a camera. Through Art’s blog, I met the equally talented Denise Ippolito. I invited her to come and speak to my local camera club. Since that time I have had the utmost pleasure of spending days on end with these two consummate professionals. They have given me a glimpse of what it is truly like to live your passion. It shows in every one of their magnificent images. Thank you Art and Denise. I’m looking forward to the next adventure.