Sony Alpha a1 Shines from Dawn to Dusk. And the Sony Alpha a1 Set-Up and Info Subscription Updates

Via blog post comment by Barry Barfield

Sony Alpha a1 Set-Up and Info updates

Will you be creating a Users Guide for the Sony Alpha a1? I bought the Guides for the A9ii and the A74R from you and have loved my Sony bodies – I may just upgrade the A74R though …

My response:

Hi Barry, Good question. After just two days of working with the Alpha a1 — with its superb image files (see below) and a better AF system than the a9 ii, I can firmly state that it instantly obsoletes all a7r series bodies and all a9 series bodies. Its $6498.00 price tag will be prohibitive for many who will enjoy bargain prices on some great SONY used gear.

At this point, having almost completed the R5 Camera User’s e-Guide, I am pretty sure I will never do a formal Alpha a1 Camera User’s guide. Too much work, too few folks using the camera. The options with the a1 are similar to what is available on the a7r series bodies and all a9 series bodies but the menu system is both confusing and different. And then there are the AF options … My early thoughts are that the Face/Eye Subject: Bird technology on the Alpha a1 performs better than Face Detection plus tracking on the Canon EOS R5 (and R6). The new SONY technology performs in a totally different manner than the Canon technology. They are quite similar in that neither is perfect: at times both may fail to detect and track a perfectly visible bird’s eye.

All who purchased their Alpha a1 bodies via a BAA affiliate link will be subscribed to my Sony Alpha a1 Set-Up and Info updates. This same service may be purchased by anyone with an a1 body via a $150.00 Paypal to birdsasart@verizon.net indicating payment for Alpha a1 Info Updates. All getting the updates will be encouraged to shoot me questions with the answers copied to all in the group.

What’s Up?

Clemens, Donna, and I had a great day on Friday. We started in Lakeland, had a fast food breakfast on the run, and found a good wine shop on the way home. After my nap, neighbor Ron called to say that he had re-located the sole surviving chick (of the four hatched this year). Clemens and Donna headed down to the lake, found the chick, and had some fun. After they took a short break, they went back down to the lake to search for the chick. That found it but were unable to photograph it. They picked me up at 6:05pm and with the perfect conditions — a somewhat muted sun and a northeast wind, we had some great action right around sunset. Then it was up to the pool deck where we dined on grilled bone-in rib-eye steaks, a huge salad, and some fine wine provided by Donna. I hit the sack fairly early and woke at 2:45am to work on this blog post.

Today is Saturday 13 March 2021. We are leaving at 5:30am for Stick Marsh near Vero Beach with Clemens’ boat in tow. We are hoping to photograph Roseate Spoonbills and possibly other wading birds in flight. The forecast is for clear skies and north/northeast winds. Not bad for flight photography but not good … Wherever you are and whatever you are doing, I hope that you have a great day.

This blog post took about two hours to prepare and makes eighty-two days in a row with a new one. Please remember to use my B&H affiliate links or to save money at Bedfords by using the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout.

Canon EOS R5 Camera User’s e-Guide

Two weeks ago, I sent out about a dozen copies of the almost finished Canon EOS R5 Camera User’s e-Guide for review to folks who had previously gotten free copies of the R5/R6 AF e-Guide by using my affiliate links to purchase their Canon mirrorless gear. In the same vein, I contacted everyone who purchased the R5/R6 AF e-Guide last week. More recently, folks who purchased the R5/R6 AF Guide were offered the opportunity to purchase a copy the pre-publication guide for review. Many folks have responded with thoughtful reviews, most recently, IPT veteran Warren Howe. And Bruce Dudek has continued to be a valuable resource.

Because the camera and the Menus are so complex, this guide has required a ton of research, a lot of time, and a lot of effort (and will continue to do so until it is complete). It should be finished by the first week in March. 2021. The final update of the R5/R6 AF e-Guide has become part of the complete Camera User’s e-Guide; it has already been revised and expanded.

The complete Camera User’s guide will sell for $75.00. Folks who purchased their Canon gear using my links will receive a $65.00 discount; the guide will cost them a nominal $10.00. Folks who spent more than $7500.00 on Canon mirrorless gear using either of my affiliate links (B&H or Bedfords), will receive the Camera User’s e-Guide for free. Folks who purchased the R5/R6 AF e-Guide will receive a $10.00 discount on the User’s e-Guide. The best news is that the end is in sight.

New and Better Bedfords Discount Policy!

You can now save 3% on all of your Bedfords photo gear purchases by entering the BIRDSASART coupon code at checkout. Your discount will be applied to your pre-tax total. In addition, by using the code you will get 2nd day air shipping via Fed Ex.

Grab a Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-14E III and save $14.99. Purchase a Canon EOS R5 and your discount will be $116.97. Purchase a Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens and save a remarkable $389.94! Your Bedford’s purchase no longer needs to be greater than $1,000.00 for you to receive a discount. The more you spend, the more you save.

Money Saving Reminder

Many have learned that if you need a hot photo item that is out of stock at B&H and would enjoy free second-day air shipping, your best bet is to click here, place an order with Bedfords, and enter the coupon code BIRDSASART at checkout. If an item is out of stock, contact Steve Elkins via e-mail or on his cell phone at (479) 381-2592 (Central time). Be sure to mention the BIRDSASART coupon code and use it for your online order to save 3% and enjoy free 2nd-day air shipping. Steve has been great at getting folks the hot items that are out of stock at B&H and everywhere else. The wait lists at the big stores can be a year or longer for the hard to get items. Steve will surely get you your gear long before that. For the past year, he has been helping BAA Blog folks get their hands on items like the SONY a9 ii, the SONY 200-600 G OSS lens, the Canon EOS R5, the Canon RF 100-500mm lens, and the Nikon 500mm PF. Steve is personable, helpful, and eager to please.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs (remember those?) 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 12 March 2021 at my #1 morning location in Lakeland. I used the Induro GIT 404L/Levered-clamp FlexShooter Pro-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 2.0x Teleconverter and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless digital camera. ISO 1000. Exposure determined with ISO on the Thumb Wheel. The exposure was confirmed as perfect by RawDigger: 1/2000 sec. at f/8 (wide open). AWB at 8:07am on a clear morning. Zone/AF-C was active at the moment of exposure and performed perfectly. Click on the image to see a version that fits in your browser window. Image #1: American White Pelican with bill open

A Bad Start Turns Around …

We arrived plenty early at my favorite Lakeland morning location but rather than sitting on their favorite bulkhead, the American White Pelicans were scattered around the lake. Working at 1200mm we were able to get some nice stuff on floating pelicans in pleasingly colored water. I headed east for a bit working on some pelicans, a Wood Stork, and a few Anhingas. I saw that Donna and Clemens were working a single cooperative pelican that had made its way onto the bulkhead. There are usually 15 to 20 of the huge birds on the bulkhead and isolating a single bird is difficult. Yesterday, with just one bird, doing that was very easy.

This image was created on 12 March 2021 at my morning back-up location in Lakeland. I used the hand held Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS Lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter (at 840mm) and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless digital camera. ISO 640. Exposure determined with ISO on the Thumb Wheel. The exposure was confirmed as perfect by RawDigger: 1/1000 sec. at f/10 (stopped down 1/3-stop). AWB at 9:02am on a clear morning. Zone/AF-C was active at the moment of exposure and performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version. Image #2: Wood Duck drake resting

Let’s Make a Wiggle

At about 8:30, I suggested that we make a wiggle. Clemens and Donna agreed so we headed to my Lakeland back-up morning location in search of Anhinga, Limpkin, and some ducks. We found a handsome Anhinga right on the steps where The BAA Middle of Florida Photographic Site Guide says that you will find them. We worked that bird for a while. I glanced to my right and said, Wood Ducks coming! We were all astounded when a pair of woodies climbed up on the steps right in front of us. We switched tracks and worked them at point blank range for another 30 minutes. When the swam off they were replaced by a pair of Lesser Scaup, a tame Common Gallinule, and a hen Ring-necked Duck. All in all it had been a great morning.

It was my first opportunity to work with the Alpha a1’s Face/Eye Subject: Bird technology. I was pretty much astounded and interestingly enough, it works in a totally different manner than the R5’s Face Detection plus Tracking. So not only did I make lots of wonderul images, I learned a ton about my new camera.

Click on the image to view a larger version. Image #2A: Topaz DeNoise on the Wood Duck drake resting image

Topaz DeNoise

As expected, Topaz DeNoise AI on Auto kills with a1 images. Remember that here we need to expose for the WHITEs. Doing that properly will always leave the dark tones about 1 2/3 stops too dark. If you do not get that concept you are referred to the section on Exposure Theory in the original soft cover The Art of Bird Photography. Order yours by phone and let Jim know that you would like me to personalize it for you.

Click on the image to view a larger version. Image #2B: 200% screen capture of the Wood Duck drake resting image

200% Screen Capture

The sharpness and fine feather detail (FFD) of a1 image files is incredible. And don’t forget that this was made with the supposedly inferior SONY 200-600 G lens with the 1.4X teleconverter … If you go for an Alpha a1, be sure to use my B&H affiliate link or Bedfords.

This image was created on 12 March 2021 down by the lake at ILE. I used the Induro GIT 404L/Levered-clamp FlexShooter Pro-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 2.0x Teleconverter and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless digital camera. Auto ISO set ISO 1000. Exposure determined via experience with the situation with Exposure Compensation on the Thumb Wheel. Multi Metering +2/3 stop: 1/2000 sec. at f/8 (wide open) in Shutter Priority (S) mode. AWB at 6:30pm on a clear evening. Wide/AF-C was active at the moment of exposure and performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version. Image #3: Snowy Egret landing at sunset

A Great Ending

Donna and Clemens picked me up right on time at 6:05pm and we were greeted by some nice color with the wind right behind us. We had some good chances. I need to go back and see if I can determine what caused the posterization. I like came with the raw file as a result of the sun being in the frame …

The BAA Middle of Florida Photographic Site Guide You can purchase your copy here in the BAA Online Store.

The BAA Middle of Florida Photographic Site Guide

126 pages, 87 photographs by Joe Przybyla and Arthur Morris.
The PDF for this e-Guide is an electronic download sent via e-mail.

Purchase your copy here in the BAA Online Store.

I had thought about doing a guide to some of the great but little-known photo hotspots around central Florida for about a decade, but those plans never came to fruition. I met Joe online in the Avian Forum at BirdPhotographer’s.Net about two years ago. Joe’s photography has improved tremendously over the past few years; he credits the BAA blog, my books and PDFs, and his participation on BPN. The one thing that I learned right from the get-go about Joe is that he is a hard and tenacious worker, always striving to improve his skills and to grow his knowledge base. As he knew of more than a few good spots in central Florida, I broached the idea of us doing a photographic site guide that covered many of the little-known photographic hotspots from Brandon to Lakeland to Joe Overstreet Road to Indian Lake Estates (my Florida home for the past 20 years or so). After more than many, many dozens of hours of effort, The BIRDS AS ART Middle of Florida Photographic Site Guide is now a reality. Thanks to Joe’s wife Dottie for her review of our writing. We all learned once again that writing is a process, a back and forth process. All thanks to the white pelicans of Lakeland. Here are the locations that are detailed in this e-Guide:

• Indian Lake Estates: Sandhills Cranes with chicks and colts, lots of vultures, and Ospreys up the kazoo!
• Gatorland, Kissimmee: Learn to make great images of wading birds in a cluttered rookery.
• The Brandon Rookery: Great for nesting Wood Storks, Great Egrets, and more.
• Circle Bar B Reserve, Lakeland: Here you will find a great variety of avian subjects in a great variety of habitats.
• Lake Morton, Lakeland: There are lots of silly tame birds here including and especially American White Pelican during the colder months.
• Lake Mirror, Lakeland: Tame Anhingas, Limpkins, and a zillion White Ibises at times.
• West Lake Parker, Lakeland: Here you will have a chance for two difficult birds, Snail Kite, and Purple Gallinule.
• Joe Overstreet Road, Kenansville: Crested Caracara, meadowlarks, Loggerhead Shrike, and much more on the fenceposts and barbed wire.

Each location includes a map, a detailed description of the best spots, best season, light and time of day instructions, the expected species, and an educational and inspirational gallery that is designed to open your eyes as to the possibilities.

You can purchase a copy here in the BAA Online Store.

Typos

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