Late Afternoon Sunset Quickies

Your Favorite?

Which of today’s two featured images is the strongest? Please leave a comment and let us know why you made your choice.

A Late Afternoon Quickie

I am blessed in that I can run down to the lake most afternoons to enjoy short, but often productive shooting sessions. Today’s featured images were created in a 22-minute window!

What’s Up?

On Sunday morning I spent some quality time with the vultures and some quality time with a Great Egret on The Perch. After lots of NFL games fast-forwarded on TIVO, I did get down to the lake for a short sunset session as well. The wind from the west precluded any landing silhouettes so I tried a new tack by hanging out on the pier for some fly-by photography. I got a few nice ones.

Today is Monday 27 December 2021. The forecast for this morning is for cloudy early followed by clear skies. That usually translates to dead clear at dawn so I will be heading early to the lake.I peeked out at the eastern sky at 6:54am to see that it is a bit foggy. I love working in the fog so I am outta here now! 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, including the time spent on the two image optimizations. This post makes 47 consecutive days with a new one.

Please remember that 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 save 3% 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.

Your Pick In-the-Field Sessions

The beauty of the Your Pick In-the-Field Sessions plans below are that I am free most days from now till mid-January. We can schedule sessions to coincide with the perfect weather forecast. They are ideal for central Florida locals or folks visiting the region for whatever reason. Interested? Get in touch via e-mail or better yet, try my cell at 863-221-2372. Please leave a message and shoot me a text if I do not pick up. Inquire for couples and group rates.

Joe Casey and his wife, visiting from Texas, will be joining me tonight and Tuesday morning for two In-the-Field sessions plus a pool deck dinner. We are all looking forward to having fun.

Indian Lake Estates In-the-Field Sessions

Two hours of intensive instruction: $300.00. Add a working brunch with image review: $100.00. Sunset shoot: $100.00. Guest room lodging available. Mix and match.

Sunny mornings with east winds are best. Likely subjects include ridiculously tame Sandhill Cranes along with Black and Turkey Vultures, Crested Caracara, Limpkin, Great Egret, Great Blue Heron, and more. Bald Eagle possible; chicks coming soon.

Lakeland or Circle B Bar Preserve

Two hours of intensive instruction: $325.00. Add a working brunch with image review: $100.00. Mix and match.

Sunny mornings with east winds are best at Lakeland. Likely subjects include point-blank American White Pelican, Anhinga, Limpkin, Common Moorhen, White Ibis, a variety of wintering ducks including Ring-necked and Wood Ducks, and lots more.

Cloudy mornings or afternoons (shooting session only) are best at Circle B Bar Preserve. Likely subjects include Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Little Blue Heron, Snowy Egret, Tricolored Heron, White Ibis, Common Moorhen, Osprey, Red-shouldered Hawk, American Alligator, Wild Boar, and more. If you wish to mix and match, loving at ILE is available.

Sony Alpha 1 Bodies in Stock at Bedfords/free card offer!

Steve Elkins of Bedfords let me know late yesterday 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 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 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.

This image was created on 24 December 2021 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Working from my stepladder, I used the no-longer available GIT305XXL Grand Series 5 Stealth Carbon Fiber Tripod/Levered-Clamp FlexShooter Pro-mounted-Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens, the Sony FE 2.0x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). Multi-metering +2 stops/Auto ISO set ISO 800. 1/2000 sec. at f/11 (stopped down one stop) in Shutter Priority mode. AWB at 5:14:20pm on a clear afternoon. Tracking: Zone AF-C Bird Face/Eye detection performed to perfection. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a higher-res version. Image #1: Great Egret on The Perch at sunset

Relatively Early Means Lots of Light

On dead clear days, the sun is still well above the horizon 30 minutes before the time of sunset. Thus, there is a ton of light when compared to later on a clear evening (see Image #2 below), or when compared to the same time frame with some light clouds or haze on the horizon. Though I did not leave the house till after 5pm, the sun was still relatively high in the sky. I chose a spot on the slope that leads down to the lake where I could get a dark strip at the bottom of a vertical frame while still working the sky below the sun. Here you can see that the sun was out-of-frame upper left. With more light than usual, I opted to work at f/11 rather than wide open at f/8.

This image was created on 24 December 2021 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Working from my stepladder, I used the no-longer available GIT305XXL Grand Series 5 Stealth Carbon Fiber Tripod/Levered-Clamp FlexShooter Pro-mounted-Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens, the Sony FE 2.0x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). Multi-metering +1.7 stops/Auto ISO set ISO 1600. 1/1250 sec. at f/8 (wide open) in Shutter Priority mode. AWB at 5:36:44pm right after sunset on a clear afternoon. Tracking: Zone AF-C Bird Face/Eye detection performed well enough. As this is a healthy crop and two birds were removed from the frame, let’s call this one a photo illustration. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a higher-res version. Image #2: Cattle Egret landing at evening roost

Relatively Late Means Less Light

When the Great Egret left the scene, I threw my gear into the back of my SUV, drove a few hundred yards north to the sunset roost spot, set up the stepladder, and went back to work. As this image was made just a minute or so after the sun dipped below the horizon, there was a lot less light than there was for Image #1. Therefore, I cheated a bit on the shutter speed (dropping from 1/2000 to 1/1250), and I cheated just a bit more on the amount of plus compensation (dropping from +2 to +1.7). As noted above, this is a healthy crop and two birds were removed from the frame. Thus, Image #2 fits my definition of a photo illustration.

Typos

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