Sandhill Crane Chicks One-a-Day Images. Which Lens is Best for the Tiny Chicks? And the One Negative of the SONY 100-400mm GM ...

What’s Up?

I had planned to be at Fort DeSoto by now for a week or ten days by now, but with the crane chicks that hatched recently, I am not going anywhere. I’ve been living at ILE for nearly two decades and there has never been a crane family with tiny chicks that was 100% accepting of my presence. The opportunity is simply too good and too amazing to drive away from. A nice benefit of the pandemic 🙂

On my Thursday afternoon walk, I had an ILE first-ever Least Tern fly over the boardwalk. That was followed by the first decent sunset in about ten days. While photographing the chicks every morning and most afternoons, I have learned a ton about crane behavior. Most surprisingly is that they wandered more than 200 yards from the nest just one day after the second chick hatched. And yesterday they expanded that to more than 300 yards and wound up in North Field and then in the marsh north of the pier. The nest is in the marsh about 200 yards south of the pier. My thighs are quite sore again as I spent a good deal of time picking up trash left and right of the pier where the new crane family has been hanging out for the past few days.

The forecast for this morning — Friday 15 MAY 2020 is for northeast winds with clouds developing early. That is pretty good for bird photography.

Thanks to the many who continue to order a variety of educational materials and gear & accessories from the BAA Online Store. Your patronage is appreciated in these unique times. This blog post took more than three hours to prepare including the time spent on the image optimizations.

It is a tough call for sure, but do attempt to pick a favorite from among today’s five featured images. And please let us know why you made your pick. Comments on the good and bad of all of the images are welcome.

Important Note

Blog posts — never more than one every other day — that deal with the current situation in the US (and the world), will include the words Alert: Non-photography-related Post in the title. If you do not wish to read about or discuss the current issues, simply do not open such blog posts. Nobody is forcing you to read the blog. I have lots more important stuff to share and lots more questions to ask. As for those who are disappointed in me or have lost respect for me that is about them. Only I can disrespect myself.

Those who wish to paint me as some sort of conspiracy theorist can keep their heads buried in the sand, ignore solid information from many knowledgeable folks (including doctors), obey all government orders, wait for the COVID-19 vaccine (that is never coming), and line up to have their chips implanted. For those who state that they will never again come to the BIRDS AS ART Blog for the free photography instruction that I have provided for I don’t know how many years — 3044 posts before this one — I wish them only the best.

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Click on the image to enjoy a larger version. The SONY e-Guide by Patrick Sparkman and Arthur Morris

The Sony Camera e-Guide (PDF) and videos Info

Yesterday I prepared the final PDF for the Sony Camera e-Guide. It will not be available in the store until early next week but you can order yours right now. The cost of the SONY e-Guide is $100.00 US and will include one of the four (4) camera set-up videos — we offer one video each for the a7r iii, the a7r iv, the a9, and the a9 ii — and the written guide with the galleries. Additional camera videos are $25.00 each The guide is now done.

If you would like to order the e-Guide now, please send a Paypal for $100 US to birdsasart@verizon.net and be sure to include the words “SONY e-Guide” in the Paypal e-mail along with the name of your camera or cameras so that you can receive the correct video or videos. Note: please add $25 for each camera video after the first. And please be sure to type your e-mail address into your Paypal order. Then be sure to send a copy of the Paypal transaction to me via e-mail.

SONY 200-600 Update

Steve Elkins now has five SONY 200-600s in stock; one of them surely has your name on it. Contact Steve as below to save $50.00.

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 10 MAY 2020 at Indian Lake Estates, FL. I used the Induro GIT 404L/FlexShooter Pro-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens, the Sony FE 1.4xteleconverter, and the 61-MP Sony Alpha a7R IV Mirrorless Digital Camera Body. ISO 1000. Exposure determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear dial: 1/800 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode. AWB at 12:32am on a (wonderfully) cloudy day. Tracking Flexible Spot (M) AF-C was active at the moment of exposure and performed to perfection. Image #1: Sandhill Crane one-day old chick standing near adult on the nest

May 10 — Day One, the Mother’s Day Miracle

If you missed the Mother’s Day Miracle Crane Chick V-log video, click, here to view it and learn the story of that amazing day of excitement and discovery. It is a rare day that I head down to the lake three times …

This image was created on 11 MAY 2020 at Indian Lake Estates. I used the handheld Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS lens (at at 277mm) and the 61-mega-pixel monster, the Sony Alpha a7R IV Mirrorless Digital camera body. Exposure determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear dial. ISO 640: 1/1000 sec. at f/7.1 in Manual mode. AWB at 7:27pm on a sunny afternoon. Tracking Flexible Spot (M) AF-C was active at the moment of exposure and performed almost miraculously with the AF point holding on the adult crane’s head! Image #2: Sandhill Crane with 1- and 2-day old chicks.

May 11 — Day Two

I went to the 100-400 in hopes of making a decent image that showed the tiny chicks with one or both parents to illustrate how tiny they are. I did not give myself much chance. To improve the artistic merit of this image, it underwent extensive clean-up. The natural history of the image, however, is unchanged: two tiny chicks walking in the marsh with one of their parents. I will share the before image with you here at some point for comparison.

This image was created on 12 MAY 2020 at Indian Lake Estates, FL. I used the Induro GIT 404L/FlexShooter Pro-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens, the Sony FE 1.4xteleconverter, and the 61-MP Sony Alpha a7R IV Mirrorless Digital Camera Body. ISO 800. Exposure determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear dial: 1/800 sec. at f/8 in Manual mode. AWB at 7:20pm on a clear sunny aftrenoon. Tracking Flexible Spot (M) AF-C was active at the moment of exposure and performed to perfection. Image #3: Sandhill Crane 2- or 3-day old chick wading

May 11 — Day Three

Choosing one of my SONY telephoto lenses with which to photograph the still-tiny chicks is a decision based on many factors. With the chicks so, so tame, the 200-600 is always left in my SUV as the minimum focus distance (MFD) of the 100-400 — .98 meters or just over three feet — is a huge plus. In the very early morning or the late afternoon (as with Image #3), the 100-400 does not work for the close-up work if the sun is out because my shadow will fall upon the subjects. It was a thrill to get this bird wading in the deep blue water. Sometimes I head away from the Sequoia with the 600/1.4X on the tripod and the 100-400 on my shoulder via a Black Rapid Curve Breathe Strap. The best of both worlds!

This image was created on 13 MAY at Indian Lake Estates. I used the handheld Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS lens (at at 394mm) and the AF King, the Sony Alpha a9 II Mirrorless Digital camera body. Exposure determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear dial. ISO 1600: 1/250 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode. AWB at 6:55am before the sun got on the birds on what would become a clear sunny morning. Tracking Flexible Spot (M) AF-C was active at the moment of exposure. I placed the AF point on the right-hand chick’s head and re-composed. Image #4: Sandhill Crane 3- and 4-day old chicks with the adult on a bed of decaying mayfly carcasses

May 12 — Day Four

I have been mentioning the huge mayfly hatches that have left many tens of thousands of dead ones covering exposed mudflats. The adult cranes, perhaps sensing that one or both of the chicks is tired, will often plop down anywhere inviting them to climb into her feathers — usually from the rear — for a short nap. That is exactly what the adult here was doing when it lay down on a bed of mayflies. I am guessing that the chicks were more hungry than tired as they opted for snacking on dead mayflies rather than resting.

This image was created on 14 MAY 2020 at Indian Lake Estates. I used the handheld Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS lens (at at 382mm) and the 61-mega-pixel monster, the Sony Alpha a7R IV Mirrorless Digital camera body. Exposure determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear dial. ISO 800: 1/640 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode. AWB at 9:41am on a partly cloudy morning. Tracking Flexible Spot (M) AF-C was active at the moment of exposure and performed perfectly. Image #5: Sandhill Crane chick tight with 1- and 2-day old chicks.

May 13 — Day Five

I am so, so blessed to have been able to photograph these two tiny, too-cute creatures every day for almost a week now that it is hard to believe. They are so tame that when it is cloudy or the chicks are in the shade, the 100-400 is by far the best lens for the job; partial body images of a tiny chick — are you kidding me? It is 1/3 stop faster than the 200-600 at the long end and the MFD of the 1-4 kills that of the 2-6. In addition, as the family is often moving about, the light weight and the small size of the handheld 100-400 allows me to change position quickly and get down on my butt quickly as needed.

The One Negative of the SONY 100-400mm GM Lens

The one negative of the SONY 100-400mm GM lens is that the zoom mechanism — the lens length changes as you zoom in or out — is not at all smooth. Pretty much every SONY 1-4 that I have handled sticks a bit at about 300mm. It is very difficult to use if you are trying to create a zoom blur. And since the problem has to do with the design of the lens, it cannot be fixed or repaired. The internal zoom mechanism of thee 200-600 G on the other hand, is as smooth as butter.

Note however that the incredibly small minimum focusing distance, the f/5.6 aperture at the long end, and the 100-400’s small size and light weight make it a must-own lens for me. Not to mention flower photography!

If In Doubt …

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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.

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Typos

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