Very Late for Brunch on a Dark Cloudy Morning

ILE Baby Crane and Eagle In-the-Field Sessions

Right now, I have five tame baby cranes and two baby eagles here at ILE. Timing for a great learning and photo session has never been better. $300 for two solid hours of detailed photographic instruction from this Saturday onwards. If you are interested in joining me, please get in touch via e-mail.

Stick Marsh In-the-Field Session

I am offering what might be a final Stick Marsh In-the-Field Sessions on Friday: $300 for two solid hours of detailed photographic instruction. I have two folks for Friday morning — still have room for one or two more folks. There are many, many reasons to attend this session. If you are at all interested in learning why or in joining me, please get in touch via e-mail immediately.

Galapagos 2023 Opening

Due to a cancellation, I have an opening for a single male photographer on the Galapagos 2023 Photo-Cruise of a Lifetime IPT, the world’s finest photographic cruise of the famed archipelago. I am offering the spot with a substantial discount. If you are interested in joining a great group, or have questions, please get in touch via e-mail ASAP.

Iceland

My decades-long dream of spending time on Grimsey Island, Iceland, with the puffins — 13 days in this case!, will be realized this coming July. I am doing back-to-back trips as a participant. If anyone would like information on the world’s greatest Iceland/Atlantic Puffin trip this coming July, please contact me via e-mail.

What’s Up?

It was cold and windy with brisk north wind and an occasional drizzle at 8:30am. I put five ounces of butternut squash in the oven at 375° figuring that I would be back soon. More than two hours later, I made it back to my home. Fortunately, Jim had taken the squash out of the oven. Learn why I was so late for brunch in today’s blog post below.

Today is Thursday 16 March 2023. House guest Mike Gotthelf and I will be leaving early for a Stick Marsh session. We will be meeting up with IPT veteran Nancy Fischer. This blog post took about 90 minutes to prepare and makes three hundred fifty-one days in a row with a new educational post written just for you. Wherever you are and whatever you are doing, I hope that you too have a great day.

My plan is to continue to post every day until the streak reaches one year and one day and then begin posting every other day. It won’t be long now!

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Mike’s Magical ILE Tour

Old friend and multiple IPT veteran Mike Gotthelf arrived at 1:00pm on Wednesday. He is doing the two Stick Marsh mornings with me and staying in my guest room for two nights. As it was still cloudy, I took him down to the lake for a quick tour. We hit a grand slam. The two chick family was where I had left them in the morning. The small colt was foraging in its favorite spot. The brand new, tiny two-chick family was on the edge of the marsh. And amazingly, all four Bald Eagles were at the nest tree, one ripping something apart in the nest, and both adults and the second eaglet were perched above and to the right of the nest. I headed back for a nap and a swim and Mike had a ball.

This image was created on 15 March 2023 down by the lake near my home at ILE. Working from the driver’s seat of my SUV, I used the BLUBB-supported Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS lens and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined via Zebra technology with ISO on the Thumb Dial. ISO 2500. 1/1000 sec. at f/2.8 (wide-open) in Manual mode. When evaluated in RawDigger, the raw file brightness was determined to be dead-solid perfect (ho hum). AWB at 8:56:48am on cloudy dark morning. Tracking: Spot S AF-C with Bird Face/Eye detection enabled performed to perfection. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a high-res version. Image #1: Sandhill Crane family foraging

Not Expecting Much

I drove down to the lake with the wind blowing, dark clouds, occasional light rain, and not much hope of taking even a single image. That changed quickly when I found the two week old chicks foraging with their parents on the South Peninsula. As I predicted yesterday, they had come out of the marsh for the first time. I worked them from the car for quite a while. Then I drove north to check on the nearly-a-month old crane colt and stopped along the way to check on the new crane nest that I had found in the reeds. I knew the exact spot but could not find the bird either on the nest or nearby. That meant that either the nest had failed or that the chicks had hatched,

This image was created on 15 March 2023 down by the lake near my home at ILE. Working from the driver’s seat of my SUV, I used the BLUBB-supported Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS lens and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined via Zebra technology with ISO on the Thumb Dial. ISO 2000. 1/2000 sec. at f/2.8 (wide-open) in Manual mode. When evaluated in RawDigger, the raw file brightness was determined to be dead-solid perfect (ho hum). AWB at 9:46:36am on cloudy dark morning. Tracking: Spot S AF-C with Bird Face/Eye detection enabled performed to perfection. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a high-res version. Image #2: Bald Eagle recently fledged and flying juvenile

The Young Eagles Favorite Pine Tree

As soon as I headed north, I came across the lighter of the two eaglets (I call its sibling “Blackie”) sitting the same branch in the very same pine tree that his brother or sister from the previous brood had perched one year ago. Strange how that works. Though I had the 600mm f/4 on the passenger seat to my right, I went wider with the 400mm f/2.8 so as to frame the bird nicely with the pine boughs. And yes, I am quite blessed to own both of these great lenses, not to mention that I am first on the list to get the Sony 300mm f/2.8 lens that Sony had announced.

This image was created on 13 September 2022 down by the lake near my home at ILE. Seated on wet muck, I used the knee-pod technique with the handheld Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS lens and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined via Zebra technology with ISO on the Thumb Dial. ISO 1600. 1/1000 sec. at f/2.8 (wide-open) in Manual mode. When evaluated in RawDigger, the raw file brightness was determined to be perfect (ho hum). AWB at 9:58:30am on cloudy dark morning. Tracking: Spot S AF-C with Bird Face/Eye detection enabled performed to perfection. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a high-res version. Image #3: Sandhill Crane chick getting fed

The Big Wonderful Surprise

After checking on the small colt at the north end of the North Field, I drove back to check on the 2-chick family. On my way to the eagle nest tree, I searched again for the bird that I had found on the nest last week. No luck. Then I checked The Perch II. Nothing there. Then I drove back to check on the small colt. I had wanted to call Jim to have him check on my squash in the oven but had left my phone on the charger. At about 9:45am I decided to check on the two-chick family one last time. I passed on those as the family was foraging in high grass along the edge of the canal. I decided to head home at last, I was shocked to see two adult cranes and two very tiny chicks, no more than two or three days old, foraging along the edge of the marsh. I spent a wonderful hour with them.

I sat on the muck for an hour watching the two tiny chicks get fed. The relatively tall grasses made things difficult, but it was a ton of fun watching them gobble up big mole crickets. When the mother crane laid down in marsh grasses, I knew that she wanted to brood the two chicks. I was in perfect position. One of the chicks ran toward the adult bird. I was so excited that I could barely stand it. Eye AF performed perfectly, but just as the chick got near its parent I was struck down by the dreaded “battery exhausted.” So home I went.

Your Call?

Which of today’s three featured images do you like best? Why?

Fort DeSoto in spring is rife with tame birds, many in full breeding plumage. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version. Clockwise from upper left around to center: Laughing Gull landing on head of Brown Pelican, Laughing Gull in flight, Reddish Egret sunrise silhouette, Great Blue Heron with needlefish, Yellow-crowned Night Heron with ghost crab, Roseate Spoonbill, Sanderling in breeding plumage, and white morph Reddish Egret in glorious breeding plumage.

The 2023 Spring Fort DeSoto Instructional Photo Tours (IPTs)

Spring Fort DeSoto IPT #1: Tuesday 28 March through the morning session on 31 March 2023. 3 1/2 Days: $1899.00 includes three working brunches. Limit six photographers/Openings: five.

Spring Fort DeSoto IPT #2: Tuesday 11 April through the morning session on 14 April 2023. 3 1/2 Days: $1899.00 includes three working brunches. Limit six photographers/Openings: four.

Spring Fort DeSoto IPT #3: Tuesday 9 May through the morning session on 12 May 2023. 3 1/2 Days: $1899.00 includes three working brunches. Limit six photographers. /Openings: five.

Fort DeSoto, located just south of St. Petersburg, FL, is a mecca for terns and gulls, wading birds, and shorebirds in spring. Many of the birds will be in full breeding plumage. Simply put, DeSoto is the new Ding Darling. Migrant shorebirds are in abundance, and many are exceedingly tame. We should have great chances on Royal and Sandwich Terns and both white- and dark-morph Reddish Egrets. Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, Tricolored Heron, and White Ibis are easy as well and we will almost surely come up with a tame Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or two along with some American Oystercatchers. We will enjoy lots of great flight photography, especially with the Brown Pelicans.

Again, Fort DeSoto in spring is rife with tame birds, most in breeding plumage. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version. Clockwise from upper left around to center: Laughing Gull in flight, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, Sandwich Terns copulating, Roseate Spoonbill, Great Egret with reflection, breeding plumage Short-billed Dowitcher, American Oystercatcher, Royal Tern, white morph Reddish Egret, and Snowy Egret in marsh.

In Addition!

We should also get to photograph a variety of other shorebirds including Black-bellied, Semipalmated, Wilson’s, Snowy, and Piping Plovers, Willet, Dunlin, Short-billed Dowitcher, Marbled Godwit, and most especially, Red Knot, with many individuals in their handsome breeding plumages. In spring the T-shaped peninsula and the newly formed sandbar, Outback Key, are literally packed with avian treasures.

With just a bit of luck, we may get to photograph one of Florida’s most desirable species: Roseate Spoonbill. And we will surely get to do some Brown Pelican flight photography. With luck, they will have Laughing Gulls landing on their heads. And though not guaranteed, Wood Stork might well be expected. And we will be on the lookout for a migrant passerine fallout in the event of a thunderstorm or two.

Yes, Fort DeSoto in spring is rife with tame birds, most in breeding plumage. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version. Clockwise from upper left around to center: breeding plumage Dunlin, dark morph Reddish Egret displaying, Laughing Gull vertical front-end portrait, Laughing Gull with prey item, landing on head of Brown Pelican, breeding plumage Royal Tern displaying, Royal Terns — pre-copulatory stance, Laughing Gulls copulating, Laughing Gull head portrait, breeding plumage Sandwich Tern with fish, and a rare treat, a breeding plumage White-rumped Sandpiper.

What You Will Learn on a DeSoto IPT

• 1- The basics and fine points of digital exposure; how to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure (or before if you are using SONY gear).
• 2- How and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).
• 3- How to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them.
• 4- Lots about bird behavior and how to use that knowledge to help you create better images.
• 5- To age and identify many species of shorebirds including various sandpipers, plovers, dowitchers, and possibly yellowlegs.
• 6- To spot good situations and to choose the best perspective.
• 7- To see, evaluate, and understand the light.
• 8- To design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system.
• 9- And perhaps most importantly, to evaluate wind and sky conditions and understand how they affect bird photography.
• 10- More than you could ever imagine.

You got it by now! Fort DeSoto in spring is rife with tame birds, most in breeding plumage. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version. Clockwise from upper left around to center: Roseate Spoonbill, immature Brown Pelican in flight, the heron/egret hybrid, American Oystercatcher feeding, immature Royal Tern on railing, Great Egret morning silhouette, Black Skimmer in surf, and underside head portrait of Great Blue Heron.

The Details

Morning sessions will run two and one-half to three hours; afternoon sessions about two. There is never a set schedule on an IPT — we adapt to the conditions. On cloudy mornings with the right wind, we may opt to photograph till noon and skip the afternoon session. That especially when the afternoon weather is looking iffy. We may opt to visit a great North Tampa rookery if conditions warrant that.

There will be a Photoshop/Image Review session before and after brunch (included) each of the three full days. That will be followed by Instructor Nap Time. Each of these IPTs will run with only a single registrant as I do not like disappointing anyone. The best airport is Tampa (TPA). Once you register, you will receive an e-mail with lodging information. Do know that it is always best if IPT folks stay in the same general area (rather than at home or at a friend’s place a good distance away).

Folks attending this IPT will be out in the field as early as possible and stay out late to take advantage of sunrise and sunset colors; this is pretty much a staple on almost all BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-Tours. Doing so will often present unique photographic opportunities, opportunities that will be missed by those who need their beauty rest and those who need to get home for a proper dinner. I really love it when I am leaving the beach at 9:30am on a sunny morning after a great session just as a carful or two of well-rested photographers are arriving … We will be getting wet.

Your $599 deposit is due now. Credit cards are OK for that. You can register by calling Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand. Once you leave a deposit, you will receive an e-mail with your balance statement and instructions for sending your balance check three months before the trip begins. If you wish to pay in full right off the bat, you can make your check out to BIRDS AS ART and send it via US mail here: BIRDS AS ART, PO BOX 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855. You will receive a confirmation e-mail with detailed instructions, and clothing and gear advice two months before the trip. Please shoot me an e-mail if you plan to register or if you have any questions.

IPT veterans and couples or friends signing up together may e-mail for discount information.

Typos

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