Pelican over rocks; what's not to love? More on SONY a9 ii AF ... And lots of new Used Gear listings

What’s Up?

I was glad to learn on Friday afternoon that the second Homer Bald Eagle IPT is now sold out. There are two slots open on the first IPT. If you are at all interested in making this IPT please get in touch asap via e-mail or by cell phone: 863-221-2372; you might be shocked at the size of the late-registration discount that I am offering.

It was a lot cooler here on Friday than it had been on Thursday. The pool was down only a single degree from yesterday but the air temperature was down about 15 degrees. I swam my 50 lengths without my neoprene vest and was shivering when I got out.

Long-time BAA friend and supporter John LeClair and his wife Tricia will be joining me at Gatorland for an In-the-Field session and working brunch on Sunday as the updated weather forecast for Sunday (ENE winds at 16 rather than NE at 8) looked a bit better. Wish us luck 🙂

On Friday, I spent a lot of time working on the big SONY Camera User’s Guides. Patrick has sent me links for the last 3 camera videos so that I can review them. This will be the best User’s Guide I have ever produced, in part, because the SONY cameras are so complex and offer so many options.

Homer Bald Eagle Photography Lessons

Click on the play triangle to learn about getting the right exposure for black and white subjects in sunny conditions or on cloudy or snowy days, the best lenses for eagle photography in Homer, creating pleasing blurs, basic and advanced composition, and tons more in this free video. Click on the little broken white square lower right next to YouTube to view the video full screen. Hit Escape to exit full screen. Enjoy!

Florida Learning Opportunities

DeSoto Last-second 2-DAY IPT. Afternoon session on TUES FEB 11th through the morning session on Thursday FEB 13, 2020. 2 DAYS (2 half and one full): $1099.00. Limit 3/Openings 2.

On the last morning, there might be an option to do the super-tame American White Pelicans in Lakeland. Working brunch (included) with image review on WED and THURS. The tides are perfect and the long-range weather forecast looks pretty good FWIW 🙂

If you would like to join us, please get in touch immediately either via e-mail or by cell phone: 863-221-2372.

Morning In-the-Field Session: Thursday FEB 13, 2020

Join me at DeSoto or in Lakeland to photograph tame American White Pelicans and lots more; right now the location is your call. Morning session (6:30-9:30am) plus a working brunch: $250.00.

IPT Updates

• The Greatest-ever Bald Eagle Experience IPTs:
• IPT #1: FEB 25 through the full day on MAR 1, 2020. Six full days: $4799.00 (Please e-mail for late-registration discount info). Limit 5 photographers/Openings:2.
• IPT #2: MAR 3 through the full day on MAR 7, 2020. Five full days: $3999.00. Limit 5 photographers/Sold out.
• The 2020 Hooptie Deux/Roseate Spoonbill Boat 3 1/2 DAY IPT — MAR 19 thru the morning session 22 MAR 2020: $2599.00. Limit: 5 photographers/Sold out
• The GALAPAGOS Photo Cruise of a Lifetime IPT/The Complete Galapagos Archipelago Photographic Experience. August 17-31, 2021 on the boat. 13 FULL and two half-days of photography: $14,999.00. Limit: 12 photographers/Openings: 6.

San Diego II Picking Your Keepers Instructional Video

San Diego II Picking Your Keepers Instructional Video

$20 via electronic download. Order your copy from the BAA Online Store by clicking here.

Today’s featured image was a keeper in the San Diego II folder. In this one hour, sixteen-minute Capture One screen capture video, sit beside me as I pick my keepers from an almost 800-image folder entitled San Diego II. Learn what makes one image better than other very similar ones. Learn the minutiae of head angle and light angle and the compositional fine points (including the importance of using diagonal lines to your images) that make one image a keeper and others in the series insta-deletes. Learn more about wing positions and flight poses and tons more. In the video, I comment on my image optimization plans for many images and throw in some in-the-field and capture tips as well. With today’s digital camera bodies offering superb autofocus accuracy, fast frame rates, and often ridiculously large image files, learning to edit (pick your keepers) tightly is an important skill to develop.

The editing teaser was done in Photo Mechanic, the main video in Capture One. But it does not matter whether you use one of those programs or Bridge in Photoshop or Lightroom to pick your keepers; it is the principles that are involved in making each keep-or-reject decision that will prove to be invaluable.

During IPTs, editing sessions like the one in the video are extremely popular; everyone always learns a ton — why didn’t I see that? — and folks often clamor for more.

$20 via electronic download. Order your copy from the BAA Online Store by clicking here.

Selling Your Used Photo Gear Through BIRDS AS ART

Selling your used (or like-new) photo gear through the BAA Blog is a great idea. We charge only a 5% commission. One of the more popular used gear for sale sites charged a minimum of 20%. Plus assorted fees! Yikes. They went out of business. And e-Bay fees are now up to 13%. Please understand that e-Bay prices are bogus. And the same is true of the prices of used gear including my dear friends at B&H and the other mega-outfits. They offer you pennies and then try to sell the stuff to ignorant folks for ridiculously high prices. With their huge international exposure, they occasionally find someone …

The minimum item price here is $500 (or less for a $25 fee). If you are interested please scroll down here or shoot us an e-mail with the words Items for Sale Info Request cut and pasted into the Subject line :). Stuff that is priced fairly — I offer pricing advice to those who agree to the terms — usually sells in no time flat. Over the past year, we have sold many many dozens of items. Do know that prices on some items like the EOS-1D Mark IV, the 5Ds and 5Ds R, the old Canon 500mm, the EOS-7D, the Canon 200-400 with internal extender, and the original 400mm DO lens have been dropping steadily. Most recently the price of used Canon 600mm f/L IS II lenses have been dropping like a rock with the introduction of the 600 III. The prices garnered for used Canon gear has tanked completely as demand has dropped tremendously. It is ironic that for decades Canon gear had very strong resale value …

Note: all BAA Used Gear sales include insured ground shipping via UPS to lower 48 US addresses only. Others who live elsewhere are invited to e-mail the seller for shipping surcharge info. Sellers should charge you only the difference between shipping to the farthest US location from their home and the charge to a non-lower-48 address.

New Listings

Canon EOS 7D Mark II dSLR

Kenneth Fraser is offering a Canon EOS 7D Mark II camera in near-mint condition for a BAA record-low $647.00. The sale includes one battery, the charger, the front lens cap, the strap, the original product box,, and insured ground shipping via Fed-Ex or UPS to lower-48 US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Kenneth via e-mail or by phone at 336-288-9025 (Eastern time zone).

Both Patrick Sparkman and I used and loved the 7D Mark II until about four years ago when we both committed to using full-frame Canon bodies. We both made some truly great images with it. Two of my three 2016 Nature’s Best honored entries were created with the 7D II, one still, and one video. One thing is for sure: the 7D Mark II is the greatest value ever in a digital camera body. artie

Canon 100-400 L IS II Lens

Kenneth Fraser is also offering a Canon 100-400 L IS II lens in near-mint condition for $1099.00. The sale includes the front lens cap, the tough fabric carrying case, the hood, the original product box, and insured ground shipping via Fed-Ex or UPS to lower-48 US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Kenneth via e-mail or by phone at 336-288-9025 (Eastern time zone).

This incredibly versatile lens with its .98 meter close focus, was my favorite Canon lens. artie

Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM Lens

Karl Schneck is offering a Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM Lens in excellent plus condition for a very low $5399.00. The sale includes the rear lens cap, the lens trunk, the original tough front lens cover, the lens strap, a LensCoat, the original product box, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower-48 US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Karl via e-mail.

The 600 II has been the state of the art super-telephoto for birds, nature, wildlife, and sports for many years. When I was using Canon and could get it to my location, it was always my go-to weapon. It is fast and sharp and deadly alone or with either TC. With a new one going for $11,499, you can save an incredible $6100 by grabbing Karl’s lens today. artie

Canon EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II Lens

Karl Schneck is also offering a Canon EF 400mm f/4 DO IS II in excellent plus condition for a very low $3799.00. The sale includes the rear lens cap, the lens trunk, the original tough front lens cover, the lens strap, a LensCoat, the original product box, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower-48 US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Karl via e-mail.

I owned and used and loved the 400 DO II when I shot with Canon and found a way to take it on most trips. I took it to Scotland and Nickerson Beach and San Diego. It served me well as my (lighter!) big gun several Galapagos and Southern Ocean (the Falklands and South Georgia) trips. It is a killer for flight photography with or without the 1.4X III TC. It is razor-sharp with the 2X on static subjects and skilled folks have had amazing success hand holding it with the 2X III TC for flight and for action. artie

Canon Extender EF 1.4X III (teleconverter)

Sold on the first day of listing

Barry McKenzie is offering a Canon 1.4X III TC in very good condition with a single “ding” for a very low $160.00. The sale includes the front and rear lens caps, the lens pouch, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower-48 US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Barry via e-mail.

As regular readers know, I depended so much on TCs when I shot Canon that I always traveled with two spare 1.4Xes and one spare 2X TC. artie

Canon Extender EF 2X III (teleconverter)

Barry McKenzie is also offering a Canon 2X III TC in excellent plus condition for a very low $219.00. The sale includes the front and rear lens caps, the lens pouch, the original box, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower-48 US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Barry via e-mail.

As regular readers know, I depended so much on TCs when I shot Canon that I always traveled with two spare 1.4Xes and one spare 2X TC. artie

Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM Art Lens for Canon EF)

Barry McKenzie is also offering a Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM Art Lens for Canon E in like-new condition for a very low $449.00. The sale includes the hood, the rear cap, the front lens cap, the original, the soft case, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower-48 US addresses only. Photos available on request. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Barry via e-mail.

As part of the Art line within Sigma’s Global Vision series, this lens is designed to achieve truly notable optical performance and is ideally suited for creative and artistic applications. Wide-to-normal zoom is designed for APS-C-format Canon EF-mount cameras likee the 7D Mark II and provides a 28.8-56mm equivalent focal length range. The impressively bright constant f/1.8 maximum aperture is well-suited for working in low-light conditions and also provides greater control over the focus position when using shallow depth of field techniques. Five Special Low Dispersion (SLD) elements are featured in the optical design and help to reduce color fringing and chromatic aberrations for improved clarity and color accuracy.Four aspherical elements are used to help limit distortion and spherical aberrations and also contribute to greater overall sharpness and accurate rendering. A Super Multi-Layer Coating has been applied to lens elements in order to minimize lens flare and ghosting and contribute to producing contrast-rich and color-neutral imagery, even in backlit conditions. Integrated HSM (Hyper Sonic Motor), along with an internal focusing system, realizes quick and quiet autofocus, which is further complemented by an optimized AF algorithm to produce smoother focusing performance. The HSM also permits full-time manual focus control simply by rotating the focus ring at any time.The rounded nine-blade diaphragm contributes to a smooth and pleasing bokeh quality. Constructed using a Thermally Stable Composite (TSC) material for greater precision and use in wide temperature variations. Additionally, a brass bayonet affords improved mounting accuracy and rigidity.. B&H

This high-quality landscape lens sells for $639.00; you can save a handsome $190.00 by grabbing Barry’s lens ASAP. artie

Canon EOS 7D Mark II dSLR

Paul Abravaya is offering a Canon EOS 7D Mark II camera in like-new condition for a very low $650.00. The camera has < 20,000 actuations (rated at 200,000 actuations). It recently underwent a clean and check at CPS. The sale includes the original product box and evereything that came in it: one battery, the charger, the front lens cap, the strap, the user manuals and sooftwre, and insured ground shipping via Fed-Ex or UPS to lower-48 US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made. Please contact Paul via e-mail.

Both Patrick Sparkman and I used and loved the 7D Mark II until about four years ago when we both committed to using full-frame Canon bodies. We both made some truly great images with it. Two of my three 2016 Nature’s Best honored entries were created with the 7D II, one still, and one video. One thing is for sure: the 7D Mark II is the greatest value ever in a digital camera body. artie

An All-Time Bargain!

Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS III USM Lens

Price dropped $600 on 6 FEB 2020!

Paul Mckenzie is offering a Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS III USM lens in mint condition (but for a very few minor blemishes on the lens hood) for the BAA record-low-by-far price of 10,399.00 (was $10,999.00). The sale includes the lens hood, the front lens cover, the rear cap, the original product box, the instruction manual, the warranty card, the strap, and insured shipping via FedEx. The sale does not include the LS600 soft case. Your item will ship upon receipt of your wire transfer. All sales are subject to the restrictions noted above.

Please contact Paul via e-mail.

The 600 III is the latest Canon version of my favorite weapon of mass destruction for bird photography. With its super balance, light weight, incredible sharpness, and a five-stop Image Stabilization system, the 600 III is a technological marvel. The lens tips the scale at a relatively svelte 6.71 lb — about one ounce heavier than the SONY 600mm f/4GM OSS lens. It is a fraction under two pounds lighter than the Canon 600 II. Thus, it is eminently hand-holdable for many folks. As this lens sells new for $12,999.00, you can save a neat $2600.00 by being the one to grab Paul’s pretty much new lens. This lens is super-sharp with either TC, one of the great advantages of Canon over Nikon … artie

BIRDS AS ART

BIRDS AS ART is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Money Saving Reminder

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 over $1000.00, click here 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 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 has been great at getting folks the hot items that are out of stock at B&H. Those include the SONY a7r IV, the SONY 200-600, the SONY 600mm f/4 GM, and the Nikon 500mm PF. Steve is eager to please.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of photographers whom I see in the field and on BPN, 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. Those questions might deal with systems, camera bodies, accessories, and/or lens choices and decisions.

This image was created on yet another “flying circus” afternoon, January 15, 2020. I used the Induro GIT 304L/FlexShooter Pro-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens and the blazingly fast AF King, the Sony Alpha a9 II Mirrorless Digital camera body) that features incredibly accurate AF. ISO 2000. Exposure determined by Zebras: 1/2000 sec. at f/4.5 in Manual mode. AWB at 4:33pm on a cloudy afternooon. Center Zone Continuous (C) AF was active at the moment of exposure. Click on the image to see a larger, sharper version. Image #1: Brown Pelican flying low over rocks

What’s Not to Love?

There are many things that I like about this image.

• 1- The painterly look.
• 2- The soft light and the color palette.
• 3- The dorsal view of the pelican (aka, “top shot.”)
• 4- The way the crop framed the seaweed-covered rocks (especially in the upper right corner).
• 5- The two different tones of green seaweed.
• 6- The mixture of aqua water and the breaking waves.

Did I leave anything out? Are there any negatives?

SONY Flight AF Against Backgrounds Other Than Sky

Shooting birds in flight against backgrounds other than skies with Canon and to a lesser degree with Nikon is often problematic as the AF point drops off the subject and grabs the background. Nikon does a lot better than Canon when birds are flying against backgrounds or trees or tall grasses or the ocean or rocks as in Image #1 above. SONY is 100% totally amazing. Once you have locked focus and the system is tracking, it never lets go, it never goes for the background. Keep reading for an astounding example of SONY flight AF in action.

This image was created on January 12, 2020. I used the Induro GIT 404/FlexShooter Pro-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens, the Sony FE 2.0x Teleconverter, and the blazingly fast Sony Alpha a9 II Mirrorless Digital camera body) that features incredibly accurate AF. AUTO ISO: 1600. Shutter Priority +1.7 stops/correct compensation determined by Zebras: 1/1000 sec. at f/8 in Shutter Priority mode with exposure compensation on the rear wheel. AWB at 7:14am on a mostly clear morning with the sun behind some thin clouds on the eastern horizon. Image #2: Double-crested Cormorant pre-dawn flight behind a tree! Click on the image to see a larger, inexplicably sharper version.

Bird Flying Behind a Tree!

This one stunned me. I was shooting flight in pre-dawn light at 1200mm when this cormorant flew directly behind a tree. Yes. At 1200mm. And yes, directly on the other side of the tree. The result? THe flying cormorant was sharp as the system continued to track it accurately even though it flew behind the tree. I know that this is hard to believe but I had seen it before.

If In Doubt …

If you are in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog or Bedfords, for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would, of course, appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links or Bedfords for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, 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 those who regularly visit the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

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Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).