The Amazing Canon 300mm F/2.8L IS USM Lens/Part I of a Series: The Prime Lens Alone

Great Contest News

We decided retroactively that all the folks who paid to enter the BIRDS AS ART 2nd International Bird Photography Competition would receive a complementary 3-month BPN Membership. Bird Photographers.net is an amazing resource; a staff of skilled moderators offer honest critiques done gently. You can check out the hugely popular (49,252 threads, 445,962 replies) Avian Forum here. There is a wealth of free tutorials available in the Educational Resources Forum and you can have your questions answered there as well. And BPN is not just birds. Other forums of note include General Photography Discussion, Digital Photography Workflow, Eager to Learn, Macro and Flora, Wildlife, Landscapes, Cityscapes and Travel, and Out Of The Box, In Camera and Post Processing Techniques. You can find a complete list of the Forums and a link to each including those mentioned immediately above by clicking here.

A User account has been be created for each paying contest entrant if they were not previously part of BPN. Forum Participants were automatically upgraded to BPN Member with a 3 month expiration date. Existing BPN members received a 3 month extension.

If you have any questions or did not receive your e-mail, please contact Peter Kes via e-mail.

DeSoto Help Needed

If anyone knows of any good restaurants in St. Petersburg or of a decent motel that is close to the park either in St. Pete or on St. Petersburg Beach, please let me know via e-mail.

Used Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM Lens for Sale/Price Reduced $200!

Multiple IPT veteran Bill Wingfield is offering a Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM lens in excellent condition for $1225! The glass is clean and the lens is in perfect working condition. The sale includes the lens hood, the fabric case, and insured shipping by UPS Ground to US addresses only. Personal checks only; your new lens will be shipped after your check clears.

See more used camera gear below.

Pleasing Blurs Voting Extended One Day

Join in the fun by voting on the Pleasing Blurs Category of the BIRDS AS ART 2nd International Bird Photography Competition by clicking here. It seems likely that this will be the first category in which the public’s favorite will not match the judge’s first choice. Though only 7 images made it to the final round in this category, they are all remarkably strong images. Do take a peek. The deadline for voting on this category is be 6am Thursday, May 15. The winners and the results of the public vote will be announced in tomorrow morning’s blog post.

The Streak Continues: 165

This post marks 165 consecutive days with a new educational blog post. With so many folks getting in the habit of using our B&H links and our Amazon logo-links why quit now? April was a record month! To show your appreciation for my efforts here, we do ask that you use our the B&H and Amazon affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially Gitzo tripods, Wimberley tripod heads, and the like. We sell only what I used, tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know the tools that you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And we are always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

You can find the following items in the store: Gitzo tripods, Mongoose M3.6 and Wimberley heads, plates, low feet, and accessories, flash brackets, , Delkin e-film Pro Compact Flash Cards, LensCoat products, and our unique line-up of educational materials including ABP I & II, Digital Basics, Site and Set-up e-Guides, Canon and Nikon Camera Users and AF e-Guides, and MP-4 Photoshop video tutorials among others.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and visiting the BAA Online store as well.

This post took 2 1/2 hours to put together. Enjoy!

This image was created at 7:12pm on the last afternoon of the Fort DeSoto IPT with the hand held Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 400. Evaluative metering -1/3 stop off the blue water in late afternoon light: 1/3200 sec. at f/4 in Manual Av mode. AWB. Central Sensor/AI Servo-Surround/Rear Focus AF on the bird’s right foot as originally framed was 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. Image #1: Breeding Plumage Laughing Gull braking in flight

Physical Limitations

As we age, we may encounter physical problems that place restrictions on the gear that we carry into the field. With my left knee still bothering me and my right shoulder chronically sore–lots more on that in a coming post, I left the Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens and my Gitzo 3532 LS carbon fiber tripodin the back of my Sequoia on 2 of our 6 photo sessions at DeSoto. On those occasions I headed out with only the 300II in hand and both TCs in my vest pocket.

The 200-400 also languished in the rear storage area of my SUV for 2.79 very good reasons; the new 300 is 2.79 pounds lighter than the vaunted and more versatile 200-400. I had so much fun the first time that I went out hand-holding the 300II that I wound up stashing it in the large rear pouch of my Xtrahand vest on several occasions when I ventured forth with the 600II and the tripod. And I unpacked and used it often. You can learn more about my great vest here or by shooting me an e-mail with the words Xtrahand Vest Info Please cut and pasted into the subject line.

This image was also created on the last afternoon of the Fort DeSoto IPT, this one at 7:16pm. Again I used the hand held Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 400. Two clicks open from the Laughing Gull image above: 1/2000 sec. at f/4 in Manual Av mode. AWB. Central Sensor/AI Servo-Surround/Rear Focus AF on the middle of the bird’s neck as originally framed was 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. Image #2: Great Blue Heron in flight/full downstroke wing position

The Prime Lens Alone

I have rarely used the 300 II alone. In fact, I cannot remember ever doing so. Do note that as my Dad used to say, “My memory is not such good.” For most bird and nature photography applications it is most commonly used with either the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III or the Canon Extender EF 2X III. Folks who photograph large mammals, especially those who work in low light, may find themselves using the naked lens quite often.

On our last afternoon, there were Laughing Gulls landing and bathing at close range so I took off the 2X TC and began photographing them in flight with just the 300II and the 1D X. They were soon joined by two Great Blue Herons. They hinted at performing their age-old threat display but never became fully engaged. They did however chase each other around quite a bit. And as you can see above and below, they provided some nice flight and landing opportunities.

The 300 II is light enough for me to hand hold for extended shooting sessions. Hand holding offers huge advantages in mobility. It is far easier to stay on a drunken-sailor-dancing Reddish Egret and to stay low while working a flock of shorebirds feeding along the Gulf than to be lugging a big lens and having to set up your tripod each time that you get in position. And I find that following the action when hand holding is far easier than when using a tripod-mounted super-telephoto lens. Not to mention that the prime lens alone so sharp as to be barely believable.

Image Question

I wrote above that I went “two clicks open from the Laughing Gull image above” for the Great Blue Heron. That means that I needed more light for the GBH image to be properly exposed than I did for the Laughing Gull to be properly exposed. Opening up two clicks meant that I went from 1/3200 sec. at f/4 to 1/2000 sec. at f/4. The 2 clicks slower shutter speed meant that I added 2/3 stop of light to the exposure.

Why did the Laughing Gull image need less light than the GBH image?

You guessed it. This image was also created on the last afternoon of the Fort DeSoto IPT, this one at 7:26pm. Again I used the hand held Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens and the Canon EOS-1D X. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop off the light blue water: 1/3200 sec. at f/2.8 in Manual Av mode. AWB. One sensor to the right of the central Sensor/AI Servo-Surround/Rear Focus AF on the base of the bird’s left wing was 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. Image #3: Great Blue Heron landing wing spread

Your Favorite?

Please take a moment to leave a comment and let us know which of the three images presented here today is your favorite. And be sure to let us know why you think that it is stronger than the other two.

Inspired?

If reading this post or subsequent posts in this series inspires you to purchase a 300II, please use one of the product-specific links in each image caption or use the logo link below. Your doing so would of course be greatly appreciated.

I hope that you can join us on this great trip. The vertical puffin image was created by David Tipling. The rest–almost all from the UK, are mine :).

UK Puffins and Gannets IPT July 2-9, 2014. 5 full days of puffins and two half-days of gannet boat photography: $4,999 USD. Limit 10 + the 2 leaders.

Desperately needed: 1 female and 1 male roommate. Please inquire as to the roommate-needed discount.

Fly to Edinburgh (say “ED-in-BUR-row”), Scotland on a red eye flight on July 1st arriving on the early morning of July 2 or certainly before 10am. UK folks who plan on driving please contact me via e-mail immediately.

There are direct flights to Edinburgh from both Philadelphia and Toronto. If you learn of any others please advise via e-mail so that I may share with all the interested folks. Fly home mid-morning on July 9. UK locals and our many European friends are of course welcome.

With the needed 5 deposits in hand, this trip is a go; you can buy your flights now :).

What’s included:

5 full DAYS on the best UK puffin boat; trips to 2 different islands–all dependent on decent weather, i.e, no major storms. Seabirds including scads of Atlantic Puffin both in flight and perched, Razorbill, Great Cormorant, Shag, and others likely. The trip is times to maximize the opportunities for photographing the puffins bringing fish back to the nests. All boat fares and landing fees are included. The boat leaves at 9:30am. We have two hours on the first island. We are then picked up and head to the 2nd island for a 2+ hour session. The weather is typically cloudy bright.

One late-afternoon (2 July) and one early morning (probably 8 July) trip on a gannet photography boat where the birds are fed and dive very close to the boat. Both are dependent on good weather but we do have some flexibility. Boat fares and the cost of the fish are covered. Each will consist of a one hour outbound ride, two hours of diving Northern Gannet photography (with 6 boxes of fish) and the one hour return trip.

The tentative, weather-dependent itinerary:

July 2: airport pick-up no later than 10am UK time. Lunch on your dime. Drive to hotel. Afternoon gannet boat trip/time TBD.
July 3, 4, 5, 6, & 7: Full Day Puffin Boat trips as noted above.
July 8: early morning Gannet Boat trip. Afternoon: Small group Image review and Photoshop sessions. Pack for the trip home.
July 9: early morning departure for Edinburgh Airport (EDI).

The itinerary is subject to change to ensure the best possible photographic opportunities.

A super-telephoto lens is not required on this trip. The 300mm f/2.8s are ideal. I will be bringing one along with my 200-400mm with Internal Extender, my 70-200 f/2.8L IS II, and a shorter zoom lenses. Plus three 1.4X and two 2X TCs, a Gitzo 3532 LS Carbon Fiber tripod, and my Mongoose M3.6. I may go tripod-less on the puffin trips at times…. Or not…. All photography on the gannet boat will be hand held. It is likely that the 70-200s will be ideal for the gannets.

7 nights lodging in an older but excellent hotel just a few minutes from the puffin boat dock with about a 70 minute ride to the gannet boat. Double occupancy will be the rule though we might be able to offer a single supplement at an exorbitant price. See the hotel info here.

All breakfasts and dinner (at the hotel) from dinner on July 2 through dinner on July 8. And breakfast on our get-away day unless we need to leave earlier than they serve to make our flights home…

Airport pick-up until 10am on July 2–this should not be a problem as there are lots of red-eye flights from the US to Edinburgh.

All ground transportation. Airport return on the early morning of July 9. We may be getting up very early on July 9th.

Two great leaders; Denise Ippolito and yours truly will provide personalized and small group in-the-field instruction. As usual, the closer you stay to us and the more questions that you ask the more you will learn. We will of course point out the best situations. You will learn to see these great situations for yourself, to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, to work in Manual mode, and to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system. You will learn the basics of photographing birds in flight and how the relationship between light direction and wind direction impacts the photography of both birds in flight and perched puffins. And tons more.

We will be conducting informal, small group image review and Photoshop sessions after dinner. All are invited to bring their laptops. Image critiques of your five best images will be done after the trip upon request.

Early morning castle photography right near the hotel is an option for the early risers. In the event of inclement weather or stormy seas there is the possibility of bird photography along the coast. Early evening bird photography along the coast is also optional.

Not included: all lunches–for the most part we will need to pack lunches for the puffin trips, or you may opt to skip lunch. Your round trip airfare from home to Scotland. Booze, wine, and any other beverages other than coffee and tea at breakfast.

A non-refundable deposit of $2,000 USD is required to hold your spot so please check on flights and your schedule before committing. The balance will be due on 15 May so you may wish to pay the whole thing at once. Overseas folks may e-mail for wire transfer info. Our $15 wire transfer fee will be added to your balance.

Trip insurance is highly recommended as your deposit (less a $200 cancellation fee) will not be refunded unless the trip fills completely. I, and my family, use Travel Insurance Services.

After letting us know via e-mail that you will be coming, please send your deposit check made out to “Arthur Morris” to us as follows:

Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART
PO Box 7245 (US mail) or 4041 Granada Drive (if by courier).
Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855

My friend David Tipling, with multiple BBC honored images and the author of dozens of photo illustrated books, helped with the planning and arrangements for this trip.

If you have any questions, please contact me via e-mail.

Selling Your Used Photo Gear Through BIRDS AS ART

Selling your used (or like-new) photo gear through the BAA Blog or via a BAA Online Bulletin is a great idea. We charge only a 5% commission. One of the more popular used gear for sale sites charges a minimum of 20% plus assorted fees! Yikes. The minimum item price here is $500 (or less for a $25 fee). If you are interested please e-mail with the words Items for Sale Info Request cut and pasted into the Subject line :). Stuff that is priced fairly–I offer free pricing advise, usually sells in no time flat as did Dennis Cassidy’s 500 II recently on the blog. Larry Master’s 400 DO and his 800 f/5.6 sold within a week. From Larry via e-mail: Thanks for helping me sell the lenses so quickly!

A Creative Adventure/BIRDS AS ART friend Kitto Kono sold her Nikon 500 to a Blog subscriber in less than a week. Janet Horton’s 7D sold this week after a $100 price reduction. Denise Ippolito’s 100-400 and her 100 macro sold in one day. Peter Kes sold his 70-200 f/2.8L IS II and his 400 DO through BAA in ten days. In the past two months we have sold a Canon 800, a Canon 500 II, 3 400 DO lenses, a Nikon 500mm, and lots more. If you are interested in using our services, please e-mail.

Fort DeSoto Site Guide

The Fort DeSoto Site Guide describes several locations where you can look for today’s featured species. I had checked this spot in the morning for naught, but in the afternoon the second time was the charm. You can get yourself a copy of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide here. Learn the best spots, where to be when in what season in what weather. Learn the best wind directions for the various locations. BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. You can see all of them here. I am hoping to get a short update of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide done within the next two weeks.

Used Nikon Super-Telephoto Lens for Sale

Nikon AF-S 400mm f/2.8G ED VR AF Lens

The first is a used Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 400mm f/2.8G ED VR AF lens for $5999.00. This lens sells new from B&H for $8999.00. The price includes UPS insured Ground shipping to the continental US. The lens comes with just about everything that came with the original purchase including the lens trunk, monopod collar, front lens cover, rear lens cap, slip on HK 33 Lens Hood, Slip-in Filter Holder, 52mm screw-in NC Filter, and LN – 1 Strap. The lens is in excellent condition with some minor blemishes and scratches on the exterior body and lens hood. Photos upon request. Potential buyers can contact Kitty via e-mail or by phone: 610-995-2339. Your check must clear before the lens is shipped.

The 400 f/2.8 is superb for large mammals, for birds at close range, and for work at bird feeders. Priced at $3,000 less than new this one should sell quickly.

Used Canon Gear for Sale

Used Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM Lens for Sale/Price Reduced $100!

Multiple IPT veteran Bill Wingfield is offering a Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM lens in excellent condition for $1325! The glass is clean and the lens is in perfect working condition. The sale includes the lens hood, the fabric case, and insured shipping by UPS Ground to US addresses only. Personal checks only; your new lens will be shipped after your check clears.

For more than a decade I used the 100-400 to create hundreds of sharp, sale-able image. It is a very versatile lens.

You can reach Bill via e-mail or by phone at 843-729-6670.

Used Canon 800mm f/5.6L IS Lens for Sale

Multiple IPT veteran, the too-kind Jim Bicket, is offering a Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM lens in excellent condition for $8750. The lens is like new except for some wear on the bottom of the lens hood near the forward edge when the hood is reversed. The sales includes the LensCoat that has protected the lens since day 1, the leather hood, the original hard case and key, and insured shipping via UPS Ground to US addresses only. Personal checks only; your new lens will be shipped only after your check clears.

This great lens, my favorite for 3 years, sells new at B&H for $13,999.00. A month ago B&H was offering one in mint condition for a ridiculous $10,249.90; it sold overnight. Go figure. Jim’s lens will save you a ton of dough and you will have a great lens with lots of reach.

Interested folks can contact Jim via e-mail or try him at 501-915-9336.

Used EOS-5D Mark II for Sale/Price Reduced $100!

Doug Bolt’s 400 DO sold early last week. Doug is offering a used EOS-5D Mark II in very good to excellent condition for $1099! There is a shallow scratch on the body and a faint smudge on the top LCD. The sale includes a RRS L-plate, an off-brand vertical grip, and the original box and all the stuff that came in it. The seller will pay shipping to US addresses only. This one is a great body for flowers and landscapes. Mine saved me on a Southern Oceans cruise when I trashed two EOS-1D Mark IV bodies in a rainstorm; it was a great back-up camera body. The item will ship only when the check clears.

Please contact Doug for a link to photos of the camera and for additional info via e-mail or try him by phone at home: at 301-937-3112 or on his cell at 301-537-8073.

Used Canon EOS-7D for Sale

Doug Bolt loves his 5D Mark III so much that he is also offering a used EOS-7D camera body for $799. The sale includes a RRS camera body plate. The seller will pay shipping to US addresses only. This one is a great starter body. The item will ship only when the check clears.

Please contact Doug for additional info via e-mail or try him by phone at home: at 301-937-3112 or on his cell at 301-537-8073.

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Typos

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