Lots to Learn -- Perfect Technique & Preparation Leads to Abject Failure for artie. Spectacular Success for Anita North

Just for the Record

Both Homer 2026 IPTS are nearly sold out via personal invitation by e-mail despite the fact that they have not been formerly announced. If you are seriously interested in joining me, please get in touch via e-mail immediately (or sooner).

What’s Up?

On Wednesday morning Anita North and I headed early to Lakeland hoping for another fabulous morning with the American White Pelicans. I was working hard to finish the last blog post. I was not quite done when we arrived. I was glad to see about 50 AWPEs on the bulkhead wall. I saw a nice image of a pelican and a Cypress Tree trunk so I grabbed my 300mm f/2.8 with the a-1 ii, made a very few images, and then returned to the vehicle to finish the Wednesday’s blog post. Almost done, I noticed that two women had parked behind me and figured that they were photographers. Unfortunately, they were.

I exited the vehicle for a second time, ready to set up my big lens on the tripod. I noticed that most of the pelicans had left. I asked Anita what happened. She told me that she had approached the birds carefully and was seated on the grass when she sensed the two women standing right behind her. Both were using hand held Canon 100-500mm lenses. She turned to them and said quietly, “Please stay low and move slowly so as not to scare the birds.” One of them replied, “We live nearby and come here all the time. The birds will be fine.” Within minutes, they had scared all but a handful of the birds off the bulkhead wall and left to pursue other subjects.

When you see a bird photographer seated and actively photographing it is 100% rude to walk up behind them without getting their attention and asking if it would be OK to join them. That done, proper field ethics call for a very slow approach. I will find the article on field ethics and re-post it here soon as there are many new folks who simply have no idea how to conduct themselves when photographing with others.

We decide to head to a nearby lake and see what was about. We did not find much. Our streak of fabulous morning sessions had come to an end.

In today’s post, you will learn how I managed to come up empty in spite of the fact that I had been perfectly prepared for the take-off shot while Anita North hit the nail squarely on the head. Including the time spent on the image optimizations, this post took more than three hours to prepare.

Today is Friday 4 March 2025 and we will be headed down to the lake just before sunrise. Whatever you plan on doing, I hope that you too opt to have a wonderful day. Do remember that happiness is a choice — Byron Katie, The Work.Com.

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.

Supporting My Efforts Here

If you enjoy and learn from the blog, are all set for gear, or live overseas, consider leaving a BAA Blog Thank You Gift here.

If you enjoy and learn from the blog, please consider using one of my affiliate links when purchasing new gear. It will never cost you a single penny. To support my effort here, please order from B&H by beginning your search here. Or, click here, to order from Bedfords and enter the discount code BIRDSASART at checkout to receive 3% cash back to your credit card and enjoy free Second-Day Air Fed-Ex shipping. It is always best to write for advice via e-mail.

In many cases, I can help you save some serious dollars. And/or prevent you from purchasing the wrong gear from the wrong shop.

This image was created on 13 March 2025 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Seated in the front seat of my SUV I used the BLUBB-supported Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 2x Teleconverter, and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a-1 II Mirrorless Camera. The exposure was determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear wheel — ISO 2000. 1/1600 second at f/8 (wide open) in Manual mode. RawDigger showed that the exposure was dead-solid perfect. AWB at 8:20:04am on a clear sunny morning. Tracking: Zone/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy the high-res version. Be sure to click on the image to view a larger high res version. Image #1: Red-shouldered Hawk on The Perch II Image courtesy of and copyright 2025: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

A Slow Morning

Early on an unseasonably chilly Thursday morning there was a ton of fog on the South Canal. As the sun rose, fire-in-the mist conditions were perfect but for the lack of subjects. All three of Bob Eastman’s perches on the South Peninsula were empty so we headed back north. The Perch II had been vacant when we first got down to the lake so I was pleased to see a handsome red-shouldered Hawk on it when we re-checked it. As my first instinct is to go for clean, tight, and graphic, with lots of pixel on the subject, I added the 2X TC to my 600 and Anita did the same. With both rigs on the BLUBBs I approached slowly to get on sun angle. Working at 1200mm, we both me some fine images. Image #1, above, was my favorite.

Be sure to click on the screen cap to view a larger high res version. Image #2: A Photo Mechanic screen capture of the same bird made with the 600 and the 1.4X TC. Image courtesy of and copyright 2025: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Getting There

After making a few tight portraits I decided to try for the take-off shot so I switched out the 2X for the 1.4X. Anita went with the bare 600mm. After making an image or two (as above), I realized that Anita was right — 840mm was too much lens for the take-off image so I removed the 1.4X.

Note how far to the right the raw file is exposed. Keep reading.

Be sure to click on the screen cap to view a larger high res version. Image #3: A Photo Mechanic screen capture of the same bird made with the 600 alone. Image courtesy of and copyright 2025: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

The Perfect Preparation and Set-Up

I had the 600 alone on the BLUBB. There was lots of room for the bird to raise its wings and take off in any direction. I made sure that the Direct Manual Focus (DMF) switch on the lens was set to OFF to prevent accidentally throwing off the focus. I had time to add (Non-tracking: Wide) to my AF options vi May Menu and set that as it is the best AF method when trying the wide take-off shot. Then, again via My Menu, I upped the Pre-Capture time from my usual .2 seconds to a full 1.0 seconds, the max. With my right index finger half-pressing the shutter button and actively focusing, I was ready of the take-off. After five minutes the bird was still sitting on the perch and my right shoulder was beginning to hurt. There was one thing left to do to make my life easier …

I reached into the console and grabbed the Vello RS-S2II Wired Remote Switch for Select Cameras with Sony Multi-Terminal Connector that I keep there. (I have a second one in my fanny pack.) With my rig perfectly balanced on the BLUBB and the photo framed perfectly as you see in Image #3, adding the remote switch (cable release) allowed me to keep the shutter button half-pressed with my hand resting on my lap. Not having to keep my right arm raised completely eliminates shoulder fatigue (and the resulting pain). I use this same technique often in the field when working on a tripod and waiting for a take-off or for some interesting behavior.

The Key to Abject Failure

So, everything was perfect. I could not miss. And still the bird sat. For another four minutes. Because I had failed to angle the car correctly and my head had been turned hard left, my neck began to ache. As I turned my head to the right for a quick relaxing stretch, I heard Anita fire off a long burst. I knew I was toast. After minutes of good luck, preparedness, and hard concentration, I had managed to miss everything. The key to abject failure was one second of inattention.

This image was created on 13 March 2025 by Anita North down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Seated in the back seat of my SUV she used the BLUBB-supported Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a-1 II Mirrorless Camera. The exposure was determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear wheel — ISO 2500. 1/5000 second at f/8 (stopped down 2 stops in error) in Manual mode. RawDigger showed that the exposure was about 1/2 stop short of dead-solid perfect — in other words, not bad at all. AWB at 8:29:56am on a clear sunny morning. Tracking: Zone/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy the high-res version. Be sure to click on the image to view a larger high res version. Image #4: Red-shouldered Hawk leaving The Perch II Image courtesy of and copyright 2025: Anita North Image Optimization by Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Pre-Capture Rocks!

The small hawk had given no indication that it was about to take off for the smaller perch to our right. So, even though Anita had been right on the action, Pre-Capture recorded the first two images in the sequence for her. As she had the shot framed a bit too high to begin with, she clipped the wings in the previous frame, the wings fully raised shot. But she nailed both the leaving-the-perch shot above and the money shot, Image #5, below.

Anita was thrilled as this was her first time photographing this species.

Aperture Question

How did Anita wind up at f/8 (with a relatively high ISO) rather than at f/4 (with a six-clicks lower ISO)?

This image was also created on 13 March 2025 by Anita North down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Seated in the back seat of my SUV she used the BLUBB-supported Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a-1 II Mirrorless Camera. The exposure was determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear wheel — ISO 2500. 1/5000 second at f/8 (stopped down 2 stops in error) in Manual mode. RawDigger showed that the exposure was about 1/2 stop short of dead-solid perfect — in other words, not bad at all. AWB at 8:29:56am on a clear sunny morning. Tracking: Zone/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy the high-res version. Be sure to click on the image to view a larger high res version. Image #5: Red-shouldered Hawk taking flight with wings fully raised Image courtesy of and copyright 2025: Anita North Image Optimization by Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Sony a-1/a-1 ii Crop-ability

Sharp raw files from both high-end Sony camera bodies allow for significant cropping while maintaining excellent image quality.

Kudos to Anita for making two fabulous images and allowing me to share them with you here today. The other day, Anita inadvertently grabbed her a-1 body while shooting foraging Cattle Egrets. After I noticed that, she switched to her a-1 ii. Within moments she said, “It is amazing how much better the eye-tracking is with the a-1 ii as compared to the original a-1; I agree but only 100%.

Composite #1: All with the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body. Images copyright Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

The a-1 ii for General Bird Photography

I have found that eye-tracking for general bird photography with the a-1 ii is far, far better than with the original Sony a-1. It grabs the eye and tracks it faster and far more consistently and focus is rarely lost, even with backgrounds other than sky.

Composite #2: All with the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body. Images copyright Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

The a-1 ii for Birds in Flight

For birds in flight, the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body has no equal. As Arash Hazeghi says, “It is better than the a-1.” When I am late getting on a bird in flight, I have consistently been amazed at how often the AF system of the a-1 ii finds and tracks the bird’s eye.

Composite #3: All the result of using Pre-Capture with the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body. Images copyright Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Pre-Capture with the Sony a-1 ii

When it comes to Pre-Capture with the a-1 ii Mirrorless Camera body, Arash and I agree 100%. And with my slower reflexes, Pre-Capture is more important for me than it is for Arash. Understand that in each of the images in Composite #3, I did not push the shutter button until after the bird took flight!

Should You Upgrade to or Purchase a Sony a-1 ii?

I ordered my second a-1 ii six weeks ago and still have not received it 🙁 Every day that I use mine, the more I am amazed by speed and accuracy of the Bird Face-Eye tracking in AF-C and the overall performance of the camera.

Aside from the improved ergonomics as compared to the a-1, other nice features include the fact that the rear screen tilts both ways. Pre-capture has proven to be a huge plus while in my opinion, the Speed Boost feature is a total waste for bird photography. In addition, the resolution on the rear monitor has been improved dramatically. Not to mention that Bird Face-Eye tracking on the a-1 ii is vastly improved as compared to both the a-1 and the a9 iii and that the 51MP files are to die for.

So, the big question is, is the a-1 ii “worth” a gear upgrade. Remembering that I can never know whether or not something is worth it to you, I can say that I was not floored when first using my a-1 ii. The differences between the a-1 ii and the original a-1, seemed to be neither huge nor eye-opening. But over time, I came to realize that I was 100% wrong.

The huge difference between the new camera body and the older a9 iii is, of course, the 51MP a-1 raw files (as compared to the 24MP files rendered by the a9 iii).

With the price of a new a-1 having recently dropped $1500.00 to $4,998.00, the decision for new Sony buyers is a tough one. The a-1 ii sells new for $6,498.00. And the price of used a-1 bodies will continue to drop (but surely not as much as I had thought before using the a-1 ii). But for me, the a-1 ii is clearly far superior for bird photography than the original a-1.

If you do purchase an a-1 ii, be sure to use one of my two affiliate links so that you will receive my a-1 ii settings (in the form of a CAMSEa1ii.DAT file), the Buttons and Dials Guide, and an Info Sheet. Folks who do not purchase their new a-i using my B&H link or from Bedfords here and entering the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout will be able to purchase the a-1 ii guide for $227.43. If you are at all confused and do not want to screw up your order, please get in touch via e-mail.

Typos

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