What’s Up?
After seven failed attempts due to our slower-than-a-snail WiFi, I finally downloaded and installed Word and Excel for Mac on the new machine. The rest of the day went smoothly: Photo Mechanic, Photoshop, Raw Digger, Camtasia, and DPP 4 were all downloaded and installed seamlessly. More, including and especially Topaz DeNoise AI & Sharpen AI, will fall tomorrow. I headed down to the lake just before sunset. It was not very good. I Ingested my first images on the new machine using Photo Mechanic (as I always do) and kept four not very good ones.
Today is 10 February 2022. The Lakeland forecast for this morning is for clear skies with a northwest breeze. It had been showing northeast all day 🙁 Anyhoo, I am meeting good friend and a1 Group member David Puglsely and a friend at about 7:15am.
Wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, I hope that you too have a great day. This blog post took about 90 minutes to prepare and makes 89 days in a row with a new one.
You can find some great photo accessories (and necessities, like surf booties!) on Amazon by clicking on the Stuff tab on the orange/yellow menu bar above. On a related note, it would be extremely helpful if blog-folks who, like me, spend too much money on Amazon, would get in the habit of clicking on the Amazon logo link on the right side of each blog post when they shop online. As you might expect, doing so will not cost you a single penny, but would be appreciated tremendously by yours truly. And doing so works seamlessly with your Amazon Prime account.
Please remember that if an item — a Delkin flash card, or a tripod head — for example, that is available from B&H and/or Bedfords, is also available in the BAA Online Store, it would be great, and greatly appreciated, if you would opt to purchase from us. We will match any price. Please remember also to use my B&H affiliate links or to earn 3% cash back at Bedfords by using the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout for your major gear purchases. Doing either often earns you free guides and/or discounts. And always earns my great appreciation.
Sony Alpha 1 Bodies in Stock at Bedfords/free card offer!
Steve Elkins of Bedfords let me know recently that he had several Sony a1 bodies in stock. If one of them has your name on it, please click here and be sure to enter the BIRDSASART coupon code check the box for free shipping to enjoy free Second Day Air Fed-Ex. Right now, in lieu of the 3% credit refunded to the card you used for your purchase, you will receive a Sony 160GB CFexpress Type A TOUGH Memory Card, a $399.99 value!
Brand New and As-Good-As-Ever Bedfords BAA Discount Policy
Folks who have fallen in love with Bedfords can now use the BIRDSASART coupon code at checkout to enjoy a post-purchase, 3% off-statement credit (excluding taxes and shipping charges) on orders paid with a credit card. The 3% credit will be refunded to the card you used for your purchase. Be sure, also, to check the box for free shipping to enjoy free Second Day Air Fed-Ex. This offer does not apply to purchases of Classes, Gift Cards, or to any prior purchases.
Money Saving Reminder
Many have learned that if you need a hot photo item that is out of stock at B&H and would like to enjoy getting 3% back on your credit card along with free 2nd Day Air Fed-Ex 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 check the box for Free Shipping. That will automatically upgrade to free 2nd Day Air Fed-Ex. Steve has been great at getting folks the hot items that are out of stock at B&H and everywhere else. The waitlists 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 a 1, 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.
Important Note
As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small percentage when you purchase from Amazon after using any of the Amazon links on the blog (including the logo-link immediately above). My link works with Amazon Prime and using it will not cost you a single cent. Huge thanks, BTW 🙂
Please Remember Also
Please, if you enjoy and learn from the blog, remember to use one of my two affiliate programs when purchasing new gear. Doing so just might make it possible for me to avoid having to try to get a job as a Walmart greeter and will not cost you a single penny more. And if you use Bedfords and remember to enter the BIRDSASART code at checkout, you will (still!) save 3% on every order and enjoy free second-day air shipping. In these crazy times — I lost about fifty thousand dollars in income due to COVID 19 — remembering to use my B&H link or to shop at Bedfords will help me out a ton and be greatly appreciated. Overseas folks who cannot order from the US because of import fees, duties, and taxes, are invited to help out by clicking here to leave a blog thank you gift if they see fit.
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. If you are desperate, you can try me on my cell at 863-221-2372. Please leave a message and shoot me a text if I do not pick up.
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This image was created by blog regular Adam Rubenstein. He used the tripod-mounted Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM lens with the Canon Control Ring Mount Adapter EF-EOS R, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and the highly-touted Canon EOS R5 Mirrorless Digital Camera body. ISO 6400: 1/250 sec. at f/5.6. Click on the image to enjoy a hi-res version. Image courtesy of and copyright 2022: Adam Rubenstein.
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Adam’s Snowy Owl on Ice
When I first saw this image, I thought, “What a cool image?” Who would’a thunk that there would be so much ice in Connecticut!
Adam has been active on the blog for more than a year. I always find his comments interesting. Sometimes we disagree. But each of us usually winds up learning something good. See the excellent rolling shutter article below; Adam sent me the link via e-mail.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ice Shoves
An ice shove, also known as an ice surge, ice push, ice heave, shoreline ice pileup, ice piling, ice thrust, ice tsunami, ice ride-up, or ivu in Inupiat, is a surge of ice from an ocean or large lake onto the shore. Ice shoves are caused by ocean currents, strong winds, or temperature differences pushing ice onto the shore and creating piles up to 12 meters (40 feet) high. Ice shoves can be caused by temperature fluctuations, wind action, or changing water levels and can cause devastation to coastal Arctic communities. Climate change will also play a role in the formation and frequency of ice shove events; a rise in global temperatures leads to more open water to facilitate ice movement and low pressure systems to destabilize ice sheets and send them shoreward.
More On Understanding Rolling Shutter
After mentioning rolling shutter in the A Real Showstopper of an Image! blog post here, several folks sent links to explanatory articles accompanied by videos. All but one of those was confusing and at least in part, inaccurate.
Blog regular Adam Rubenstein sent me a link to a pretty good article by Lynn Puzzo on the Mosaic website. It is entitled The effects of rolling shutter vs global shutter camera. You can read it here.. Mosaic is — in their own words — a 360° camera hardware and services company based in Prague, Czech Republic. Most of the article is crystal clear with great illustrative GIFs, but I did get lost in a few spots (that mostly on me).
From the technically brilliant Arash Hazeghi via text message
Shutter speed has no effect on rolling shutter phenomena, but since the wings become blurry at slow speeds, this artifact may be hidden behind the blur.
In other words, increasing the shutter speed used with Sasan’s great bee-eater image (here, again) from 1/3200 to 1/5000 or even 1/6400 second would not have reduced or eliminated the rolling shutter artifacts.
Arash’s Qualifications
Arash Hazeghi, Ph.D. is a principal electron device engineer. He received his Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering in 2011, from Stanford University, Stanford, California. His pioneering research on Carbon Nanotubes has been cited many times. In the past decade, Arash Hazeghi has been a major contributor to the research and the development of some of the most cutting-edge technologies introduced by Silicon Valley’s most reputable names including Intel and Apple.
In addition, Arash is an incredibly skilled photographer. He specializes in hand held flight photography, often with the Sony 600mm f/4 GM lens, the 2X TC, and an Alpha 1. He is a skilled, valuable, helpful, and much-appreciated moderator in the Avian Forum on BPN. And a good friend.
Unsolicited, via e-mail, from Fernando Ramos
The excellent Canon EOS R5/R6 Camera User’s e-Guide is unlike anything I’ve encountered. Your detailed instruction supported by excellent reasoning is exactly what I needed to help me set-up my Canon EOS R5. Thank you for sharing your expertise with me; as a result, you saved me immeasurable time. Fernando
Unsolicited, via e-mail, from Joel Eade
Thank you so much for the R5/R6 guide and I am honored to have had an image included! It is a wonderfully written, extremely comprehensive document that would benefit any R5 user. It is evident that a tremendous amount of time and effort was required to create it. After reading through, I can say it that flows in a logical fashion and that each item is carefully described in a way that is not difficult to follow. I agree with 99% of your set up suggestions 🙂 Joel
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Cover Image courtesy of and Copyright 2021 Brian Sump (Sump scores!) The BIRDS AS ART Canon EOS R5 Camera User’s e-Guide |
The BIRDS AS ART Canon EOS R5 Camera User’s e-Guide: $75.00
Purchase your RF body and or lenses using either my B&H links or from Bedfords, using the BIRDSASART code at checkout, and enjoy a discount on this great guide. You’ll earn a $1 discount for very $10 you spend.
The guide is 82 pages long: 21,458 words. There are more than 50 DPP 4 Autofocus-depicting screen captures. And a 31 minute 44 second educational video. This guide took three and a half months of hard work and a ton of help from at least seventeen very helpful and generous folks.
The guide covers — in great detail — all Menu Items that are relevant to bird, nature, and wildlife photography. It does not cover video. The section on AF methods and the AF Gallery has been expanded from the R5/R6 AF e-guide. It remains one of the great strengths of this guide. I share my thoughts on what I am sure is the single best AF Method for photographing birds in flight. As most of you know, the guide includes a simple and easy way to change AF Methods that was introduced to me by Geoff Newhouse. In the AF Gallery you will see exactly how Face Detection plus Tracking AF works. In the Educational R5 Gallery video, I share my favorite R5 images along with dozens of bird photography tips and techniques.
In addition, I teach you how to get the best exposures with your R5. Detailed instructions on using the great In-camera HDR and Multiple Exposure features will be appreciated by creative folks who like to have fun. The three shutter modes are explained in detail as well. Bruce Dudek solved the can’t-get-to-Auto ISO problem that had stumped everyone at Canon. This information is of course shared in the guide. You will learn how to set up your EVF (Electronic Viewfinder) and Screen toggle options. Not to mention that the mysterious performance of the Q Button is revealed and simplified. Brian Sump’s images reveal how well you can do when using the R5 with EF lenses using one of the three Canon EF-EOS R Mount Adapters (as Donna did with Image #1 below). You will learn how I use Customize Dials to put either ISO or EC on the Thumb Dial and how to set up and save Custom Shooting Modes (C1-C3) that can remember both your Customize Dial and Customize Button settings! That is something that none of the SONY bodies do. 🙁 Near the end of the guide I share my all-important MY MENU items with you.
Like all BAA educational materials, the R5 guide is written in my informal, easy-to-follow style. I am quite proud of this guide and look forward to hearing your thoughts on our hard work.
You can purchase your copy of the BIRDS AS ART Canon EOS R5 Camera User’s e-Guide for $75.00 here in the BAA Online Store or by calling Jim in the office weekday afternoons at 863-692-0906 with your credit card in hand.
Typos
With all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors.
Always good to see you – enjoyed it! Have a blast in Homer.