Last Year’s Grand Prize winning image by Lou Coetzer
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Contest Deadlines Extended!
BIRDS AS ART 2nd International Bird Photography Competition
New Entry Deadline: January 31, 2014; see additional details below
Big News
With so many folks signing up at the last minute and with so many folks having trouble uploading their images due to server overload the deadline for entering the contest (registering and paying) has been extended until January 31, 2014 and the deadline for uploading images has been extended until midnight Eastern time on February 10, 2014. Take advantage of this extension to have a crack at the great prizes.
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.
Register and Pay
To register click here.
To learn of payment options, click here.
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Please click on the image to see a larger version. |
Assorted Educational Follow-ups
Snow Goose Image Optimization/Need Your Help/Opinion
In the Snow Goose Image Optimization/Need Your Help/Opinion post I asked: Why do I wish that I had panned the camera up and left a bit more?
The flock was really zooming, flying erratically, so I had trouble panning with them. Had I pointed the camera up and left a bit more I would have gotten some empty space in front of the flock.
I like the tighter crops in Versions I and III better than the wider crop in Version II because it puts more emphasis on the really cool looking birds. In Version I I did not like the upper right corner as I felt that I had overdone the Tonal Contrast; that area looked to bright and a bit splotchy. My favorite was Version III (above) where I toned down the contrast a bit (on its own layer) and then painted out the upper left corner on a Regular Layer Mask. I may try a fourth version that is punched up a bit more.
There are two lessons here:
1-It pays to make and compare several versions of the same image.
2-If you like more than one version it is fine to save several of them.
Lastly, I have responded to each comment on this post.
The #1 Reason that it is Mandatory, Imperative, and Vitally Important that you Work in Manual Mode for Flight Photography
In The #1 Reason that it is Mandatory, Imperative, and Vitally Important that you Work in Manual Mode for Flight Photography post I asked:
#1: If I had been using the 5D Mark III for this image what would I have had to have done differently?
Answer: with the 5D III being a full frame camera and the 7D being a 1.6 crop factor camera I would have had to zoom in to create the same framing.
#2: Why did I selectively apply a 100% layer of NIK Detail Extractor and a small Linear Burn to this image?
Answer: to tone down and restore detail to the brightest whites in the the breaking wave and on the pelican’s head. Note: in soft light even with the WHITEs having no RGB values over 235 after conversion the whites may appear relatively detail-less. Such images are not over-exposed.
I have responded to each comment on this post.
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I know where to make images like this on most mornings. Do you? The 2014 Bosque Quick Start Guide/Current Conditions Update tells you exactly where and when to be…. On most but not all mornings of course. And if the situation is not there, you will be in the right place anyway! Image #1: Snow Goose Flapping After Bath |
2014 Bosque Secrets Revealed
In 2014 Bosque Secrets Revealed my favorite image was Image #1: Snow Goose Flapping After Bath (above).
The bird in Image #4 is a winter or basic plumage Greater Yellowlegs, most likely an adult.
I have responded to each comment on this post.
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This afternoon seminar is 100% free and open to the public. |
Free Afternoon Seminar
Join Denise Ippolito and me on the afternoon of January 28, 2014 at 1:00pm in the Boca Grande Community Center for a free two-part nature photography seminar entitled “Birds and Blooms.” At 1:00pm I will be presenting “A Bird Photographer’s Story” (updated with lots of my favorite new images). Denise will follow with her hugely popular “Bloomin’ Ideas.” The venue is located at 131 First Street West, Boca Grande, FL 33921.
Suggestion
Join us for the free seminar and then for the Venice Rookery IPT the following day.
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Do join us on the Venice Rookery IPT, or better yet, for the whole South Florida Composite IPT. Scroll down or click here for complete details. |
The 2014 South Florida Mini-IPTs
Because of our intense travel schedule that includes a trip to Japan I will not be running the traditional SW FLA IPT. In addition, in an effort to give some folks a chance to get a taste of our teaching and our passion for bird photography, Denise Ippolito and I have organized a series of short IPTs that may be combined into one wonderful experience or enjoyed piecemeal.
Jan 29 (WED): Venice Rookery In-the-Field: all day: (Limit 14/Openings 10): $399. Introductory slide program 7pm, Jan 28.
30 (THURS) -Venice am only. (Limit 14/Openings 10):: $249
You can sign up for one or more of the short IPTs and/or one or more of the add-on days or you can opt to sign up for the all the sessions. Those signing up for the whole shebang will be having all lunches and dinners with us most every day.
A $500 non-refundable deposit is required to hold your slot for this IPT. For the short segments that are less than $500 payment in full is due at the time of registration. 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. Best to call Jim or Jennifer with a credit card in hand to register. Credit cards are not accepted for balances. Alternatively you can send a check for $500 made out to Arthur Morris to us at PO Box 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL, 33855. Please include a note with your e-mail address and be sure to let us know what you are signing up for.
Only a Few Hours Left for Free Shipping
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 info on the Anhinga Trail IPT. Click here for info on the Estero Lagoon IPT. Click here for info on the just announced San Diego Short Notice IPT–only 1 slot left on that one. And click here to learn about the just-announced 2014 Bosque IPTs. You will find additional IPTs and general info here.
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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. 🙂
I appreciate the educational follow-ups (ie answers) to your previous questions. Great way of learning thanks
Hi, Artie. Typo: “If you like more version it is fine to save several…” instead of “…more than one version…”. I do that sometimes. I didn’t comment on these images but I do like them, blurs and all. I was struck yesterday at Bosque by the importance of wind and light (which, of course, you’ve told us all many times). There was a stiff northeast breeze yesterday afternoon and so the white geese were landing with the sun behind them. Not what I’d normally have chosen, but the sunlight from behind made their red feet really stand out as the light shone through them, and I was able to get a few pleasing images.
Thanks. Where were the geese landing?
They were landing in a cornfield a little past the Farm Deck on the North Loop. (They also were landing in the South Crane Pond, but I wasn’t there; I was there when they all blasted off from there about 45 minutes before sunset.)
Thanks. It sounds as if they started knocking down corn in the next field…
Yes, the corn was down. Also in the field at the Farm Deck, but for some reason the geese there were 100 yards away, maybe more.
Actually I know the reason; the edge of the standing corn was closer in the field where I was photographing. In the Farm Deck field the edge was 100 yards away.