Meet the Game Changer, the Sony 300mm f/2.8 GM Lens. With a Sony a-1 of Course, and either Teleconverter

This Just In!

Many multiple IPT veteran Joe Barranco signed up for both Homer 2025 IPTs. Best not to tarry as there are now only two spots left on each IPT. I’d advise you to sign up for both today!

The Sony 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens is a Real Game Changer

I fully expected this lens to be fantastic. It has, however, exceeded all of my expectations. It will quickly become a real game changer. Especially for folks like me who are looking to go lighter and lighter. It is so light that I can handhold it all day long without any strain at all. I used it alone a ton on our first fabulous day with the eagles. I handheld it with the 2X TC for eight hours of songbird photography on Thursday and did quite well. And on Friday, I handheld it for another eight great hours of eagle flight photography.

Expect to see more than a few Sony 400mm f/2.8 and 600m f/4 GM lenses for sale fairly soon. You will be seeing lots more 300mm/f/2.8 images here soon.

The First Ever BIRDS AS ART Lens Guide

Use either my Bedfords or B&H affiliate link to purchase your Sony 300mm f/2.8 GM lens and shoot me your receipt via e-mail and request a copy of the first-ever BAA Lens Guide. It will be published sometime in late March as I have a lot more to learn about this amazing new lens.

Calls

Which is your favorite of today’s five 300mm f/2.8 featured images? Why?

By a small margin, I liked the Sanderling image in the last blog post best because of the lovely flight pose and the soft light. Funny that they are the same reasons that I liked the cormorant shot.

What’s Up?

Day one of the first Homer IPT got off to an incredible start. With cloudy skies and an 18mph southeast wind, we enjoyed pretty much perfect flight photography conditions. Whether we photographed from the boat or landed on one of several productive spits, we were pretty much inundated by incoming eagles. And there was just enough snow cover to illuminate the eagle’s undersides. Multiple IPT veteran Chris Loffredo who had been away too long, summed things up nicely after creating more than 12,000 images during our first session when he said, “I could never have even imagined so many eagles so close. I created more images today than I did on a two week African photo safari.” The rest of the group was beyond thrilled as well.

Our day two sailing was cancelled because of high winds and 10 foot seas so we visited a local feeder set-up and enjoyed a spectacular session with Pine Grosbeaks, Boreal Chickadees, Pine Siskins, Red-breasted Nuthatches, both cross bills!, and a single cooperative Gray Jay.

On Friday we had sun to work with for most of the day. We photographed for more than eight hours and were doing great until folks began running out of memory! When we got back to the harbor, we were greeted by a flock of close to 1000 Rock Sandpipers (along with a single wintering Dunlin). We spent nearly 30 minutes working them as Gabe jockeyed the boat in so close that I was photographing single birds with the 300mm/2X TC! That was a first.

Today is Saturday 24 February 2024. With everyone in the group beyond exhausted with tens of thousands of images to cull and facing a horrible morning forecast — 30 knot winds and 10-foot seas, we are taking the morning off. That despite the fact that the forecast fizzled. Wherever you are and whatever you are doing, have fun.

If you would like to enjoy some incredible, world class photography, do yourself a favor and grab one of the three remaining spots on the two 2025 Homer Bald Eagle IPTs. Better yet, save $1000.00 by signing up for both! It will likely be my last ever Homer trip … They will surely fill soon. Scroll down for the details.

Please remember to use the B&H links that are found on most blog pages and to use the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout when purchasing your new gear from Bedfords to get 3% back on your credit card and enjoy free second-day air FedEx. Please, also, consider joining a BAA IPT. You will be amazed at how much you will learn!

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.

Save 15%!

If you’d like to try out a new lens or if you need a lens for a specific trip or project (or for an IPT), LensRentals.com is the only way to go. To save 15%, simply click on the logo link above, arrange for your rental, and type in BIRDSASART15. If you type the gear you are looking for in the search box, it will pop right up. LensRentals.com offers affordable insurance. You can decline it, opt for LensCap: Damage Only, or select LensCap: Damage & Theft. Then hit PROCEED TO CHECKOUT. After you enter all of your info but before completing your order, be sure to scroll down to Promo Code box and enter the BIRDSASART15 code to save 15%.

I checked on renting a Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II lens for a week. The cost is only $122.00. LensCap: Damage Only coverage can be added for a very low $18.00. Going with LensCap: Damage & Theft would be $27.00. The shipping charge varies. They offer an interesting program called Lensrentals HD. By signing up for this shipping discount program ($99.00/year), you’ll get free Standard Shipping on all the orders you place.

Renting a Sony 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens for a week will cost you $536.00. The two coverage options come in at $76.00 or $114.00. Less your 15% discount when you enter the BIRDSASART15 code into the Promo Code box at checkout and enter the BIRDSASART15 codeine the Promo Code box at checkout to save 15%.

Remember, to save the 15% on your rental you must start your search by clicking on the logo above, or on this link: LensRentals.com

B&H

To ensure that I get credit for your B&H purchases, you can always click here. The tracking is invisible but greatly appreciated. And, you can use your PayBoo card. You must use the website to order. B&H will reopen on Fri April 14. Thanking me for the past 4000 educational blog posts could not be any easier and will not cost you one penny. Please shoot me your B&H receipt for major purchases.

Many folks have written recently stating that they purchased a Sony a1 from B&H and would like their free membership in the Sony 1 Info and Updates Group, a $150.00 value. When I check my affiliate account, their orders have not been there. When I let them know that they get credit for B&H purchases only if they use one of the many B&H affiliate links on the blog or begin their searches with this link, they are always disappointed. If in doubt, please contact me via e-mail and request a BH link. I am always glad to help and to guide you to the right gear.

Bedfords Simplified

Click here to start your search. Choose standard shipping, and when you get to the payment page, enter BIRDSASART in the discount code box and hit apply. You will be upgraded to free second day air Fed-Ex and receive 3% cash back on your credit card once your stuff ships. Either is greatly appreciated by yours truly.

Bedfords Amazing 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, prior purchases.

Visit the Bedfords website here, shoot Steve Elkins an e-mail, or text him on his cell phone at (479) 381-2592.

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. And the same is true in spades when ordering new camera bodies or lenses. My advice will often stave you some serious money and may help you avoid making a seriously bad choice. 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 21 February 2024 at Kachemak Bay, AK on a Homer Bald Eagle IPT. I used the handheld Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens (Sony E) 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. 1/3200 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 11:33:42am on blessedly cloudy morning. Zone: 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: Bald Eagle in flight on final approach

The Sony 300mm f/2.8 GM Lens, the Sony a-1 Mirrorless Camera, and Homer, AK: a Three-Way Match Made in Heaven

Huge thanks to Sony’s Mark Weir who arranged for a loaner 300mm f/2.8 to coincide with my Homer trip. My copy should be arriving from Bedfords soon after I get back to Florida. And boy, I cannot wait to get my hands on it.

With low light conditions not uncommon in Homer, the 300 f/2.8 might be the perfect lens but for the fact that it is often a bit too long. It is the perfect companion to the Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II lens. Both of these lenses performs extraordinarily well with either TC. I used the prime lens alone to create Image #1 and barely fit the whole bird into the frame. It was so tight — but not clipped on either side, that I added a bit of canvas left, right, and above. With the perfect conditions and soft light, I advised the group to strive for images with a strip of beach grass at the bottom of the frame.

This image was also created on 21 February 2024 at Kachemak Bay, AK on a Homer Bald Eagle IPT. I used the handheld Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens (Sony E) and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined via Zebra technology with ISO on the Thumb Dial. ISO 3200. 1/2500 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 11:33:41am on blessedly cloudy morning. Zone: 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 screaming in flight

Too Long a Lens!

Here, I clipped the eagle’s right wing but wound up loving the result after a crop from our left and below. Images of eagles screaming in flight are quite rare.

This image was also created on 21 February 2024 at Kachemak Bay, AK on a Homer Bald Eagle IPT. I used the handheld Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens (Sony E) and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined via Zebra technology with ISO on the Thumb Dial. ISO 3200. 1/2500 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 10:59:54am on blessedly cloudy morning. Zone: 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: Bald Eagle flight with dark cliff background and falling snow

When the snow flurries began, I called out to the group, “Shoot them in flight against the dark wall of the cliff. A fast shutter speed will render the snow as pinpoints.”

I love when I make an image that I had pre-visualized.

This image was also created on 21 February 2024 at Kachemak Bay, AK on a Homer Bald Eagle IPT. I used the handheld Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens (Sony E) and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined via Zebra technology with ISO on the Thumb Dial. ISO 3200. 1/2500 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 1:59:47am on still blessedly cloudy morning. Zone: 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 #4: Juvenile Bald Eagle in flight

Don’t Stop Shooting!

With today’s amazing mirrorless camera bodies, do not quit shooting when a bird flies right at you and gets larger and larger in the frame. DSLR AF had very little chance in those situations. Though mirrorless does not nail focus perfectly every time, it succeeds more often than not. And like the bad child when it is good, mirrorless AF can be very, very good with birds flying at you at point blank range. This image is so, so sharp that you can see the blood vessels in the young eagles’ eyes.

This image was created on 22 February 2024 at Anchor Point, AK on a Homer Bald Eagle IPT. I used the handheld Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens (Sony E) with the Sony FE 2x Teleconverter and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined via Zebra technology with ISO on the Thumb Dial. ISO 1250. 1/1000 sec. at f/5.6 (wide open) in Manual mode. When evaluated in RawDigger, the raw file brightness was determined to be perfect (ho hum). AWB at 9:33:40am on barely sunny morning. Tracking Expand Spot/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 #5: Pine Grosbeak eating Mountain Ash berries

A Lightweight, Hand-holdable 600mm F/5.6 Lens

Adding the 2X TÇ to the new Sony 300mm f/2.8 lens yields a lightweight 600mm f/5.6 lens with deadly fast and accurate AF. The resulting images are tack sharp and feature the crisp eye-skins that I love. Hand-holding this rig while everyone in the group was on a tripod most of the time enabled me to move quickly to get right on sun angle for the various perches. And that is just what I did to create Image #5.

I have not yet had a chance to use the new lens with the 1.4X TC but I would bet my life that the images will be beyond amazing.

This image was also created on 23 February 2024 at Kachemak Bay, AK on a Homer Bald Eagle IPT. I used the handheld Sony FE 300mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens (Sony E) 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. 1/2500 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 8:40:17am on dead clear morning. Tracking: Expand-Spot/AF-C with Animal Face/Eye detection enabled performed to perfection. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a high-res version. Image #6: Sea Otter with its wake in pink, pre-dawn reflections.

Small in the Frame Sea Otter!

After checking out the forecast and consulting with Captain Gabe, we left the dock super-early, crossed Kachemak Bay, and enjoyed the pink/purple/blue skies that you will see the world over in the western sky (opposite the sunrise) on crisp, clear mornings. We had dozens of eagles in the air all around the boat well before the sun was anywhere near coming over the mountains behind us. I kept calling out, “Look for the pink backgrounds!” Someone called out, “There’s a Sea Otter swimming toward us.” It was far from us so I had time to get into Tracking: Zone and switch from Bird-Eye to Animal-Eye AF. I adjusted the exposure by getting lots of Zebras on the pink water and then got lucky when the otter turned its head to the left.

My new workflow transformed the pale, washed out raw file into a colorful, very fine, very subtle, and very different image. Who would have thought that a small in the frame Sea Otter shot would work so well. After the sun came up, we enjoyed some great flight photography. After 1 1/2 hours, another eagle photo tour boat crossed from the spit, albeit quite a bit late — they had missed 90 minutes of wondrous photography.

All images from Homer or Kachemak Bay, AK

No Homer IPT Price Increase!

Despite that fact that the hourly boat fee has been increased by 33%, I have decided not to raise the price of the 2025 Homer IPTs. Note that similar trips with 40% less time on the boat cost $5800!

2025 Homer/Kachemak Bay Bald Eagle IPTs

IPT #1: FRI 14 FEB 2025 through the full day on TUES 18 FEB 2025. Five days/20 hours on the boat: $5500.00. Limit 5 photographers/Openings 2.

IPT #2: WED 19 FEB 2025 through the full day on SUN 23 FEB 2025. Five days/20 hours on the boat: $5500.00. Limit 5 photographers/Openings 2.

Register for both trips to maximize your travel dollars and enjoy a $1000 discount while you are at it. In 2024, three of the five participants did both trips!

This trip features non-stop flight photography as well as many opportunities to create both environmental and point-blank portraits of one of North America’s most sought-after avian subjects: Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus). Other reliable subjects will include Sea Otter, Glaucous-winged and Short-billed (formerly Mew) Gulls.

In addition, we should see Common Murre, Black Guillemot, Pelagic Cormorant, two or three species of loons, and a smattering of ducks including two species of merganser, all three scoters, Common and Barrow’s Goldeneyes, Bufflehead, Harlequin, and Long-tailed Ducks. Close-range photographic chances for these species will require some good luck. Some of these species, especially when in flocks, can, however, often be used effectively when pleasing creating bird-scapes.

If we need to be out early, we will be the first boat out. If the conditions are great, we will stay out. And when there is a chance for sunset silhouettes, we will be in the right spot.

We will be traveling through gorgeous wilderness country; landscape and scenic opportunities abound.

Also featured is a professional leader, often referred to as the world’s most knowledgeable bird photography trip leader and instructor. He is conversant in Canon, Nikon, and Sony. You will learn practical and creative solutions to everyday photographic problems. You will learn to see the shot, to create dynamic images by fine-tuning your compositions, to best utilize your camera’s AF system, and how to analyze the wind, the sky conditions, and the direction and quality of the light. This is one of the very few trips Homer trips available where you will not be simply put on the birds and told to have fun. You will learn to be a better photographer.

All images from Kachemak Bay in 2022!

What You Will Learn

You will learn practical and creative solutions to everyday photographic problems. You will learn to see the shot, to create dynamic images by fine-tuning your compositions, to best utilize your camera’s AF system, and how to analyze the wind, the sky conditions, and the direction and quality of the light. This is one of the very few trips Homer trips available where you will not be simply put on the birds and told to have fun. You will learn to be a better photographer.

You will learn to get the right exposure when it is sunny, when it cloudy-bright, when it is cloudy, when it is cloudy-dark, or when it is foggy. Not to mention getting the right exposure when creating silhouettes. You will learn to make pleasing blurs working in manual mode and to create silhouettes working in Shutter Priority mode. Most importantly, you will learn to pick your best flight photographs from tens of thousands of images.

You will enjoy working with the best and most creative boat captain on his sturdy, photography-spacious, seaworthy, open-deck watercraft.

There will be only five photographers (not the usual six), plus the leader.

Small group Photoshop, Image Review, and Image Critiquing sessions.
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All images from Homer or Kachemak Bay, AK

What’s Included

One four hour or two two-hour boat trips every day (weather permitting), all boat fees and boat-related expenses (excluding tips), ground transportation to and from the dock and back to the hotel each day, in-the-field instruction and guidance, pre-trip gear advice, small group post-processing and image review sessions, and a thank you dinner for all well-behaved participants.

What’s Not Included

Your airfare to and from Homer, AK (via Anchorage), the cost of your room at Land’s End Resort, all personal items, all meals and beverages, and tips for the boat captain and/or the first mate.

Important Note

On great days, the group may wish to photograph for more than four hours. If the total time on the boat exceeds 20 hours for the five-day trips the group will share the additional expense at a rate of $300.00/hour. The leader will pay for the bait.

Some folks may wish to rent their own vehicle to take advantage of local photographic opportunities around Homer. In 2024 those included Moose, Sea Otter, a variety of sea ducks in the harbor, and Great Grey and Short-eared Owl.

Deposit Information

A $3000 non-refundable deposit/trip is required. You may pay your deposit with credit card or by personal check (the latter made out to BIRDS AS ART) and sent via US mail only to Arthur Morris. PO Box 7245. Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855. Your balance, due 90 days before the date of departure, is payable only by check.

In Closing

I have been going to Homer off and on for close to two decades. Every trip has been nothing short of fantastic. Many folks go in mid-March. The earlier you go, the better the chances for snow. The only way to assure that you are on the best of these two trips is to sign up for both of them. If you have any questions, or are good to go for one or both of these great trips, please let me know via e-mail or give me a call on my cell phone at 863-221-2372.

Typos

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