Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Stuff

After a sunny Saturday the photography weather returned to perfect: completely cloudy bright skies with the best ever Black-legged Kittiwake nest with a fluffy white 2 1/2 week old chick in the nest with mom and a west wind in the afternoon. A baby puffin swimming in the same small pond where I had photographed one several years ago, put a fine ending to the Farnes Island portion of the IPT. With predation by the large gulls being at an all time high, it was the first one that we laid eyes.

Today, Monday, July 10, is a something of a get-away day for us; we leave our wonderful cottages in Seahouses, UK and head up to Dunbar, Scotland where we will be spending two nights before flying home on Wednesday. Weather permitting we will enjoy another session with the gannets before we depart for the other side of the pond.

I was glad to learn this morning that Erik Hagstrom sold his Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Contemprary lens for Canon EF in excellent plus condition for $699 in early July.

Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens for Canon EF

Price Reduced $200 on June 25, 2017.

Multiple IPT veteran Brent Bridges is also offering a used Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports lens for Canon EF in near-mint condition for only $999 (was $1199). The sale includes the original product box, a LensCoat, the instruction manual, the lens strap & hood, and insured ground shipping by major courier to US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Brent by e-mail or by phone at 770-565-5012 (Eastern time).

Lots of folks on recent IPTs have been using this relatively new Sigma lens with excellent results. artie

Sigma TC-1401 1.4x Teleconverter for Canon EF

Multiple IPT veteran Brent Bridges is also offering a used Sigma Sigma TC-1401 1.4x teleconverter for Canon EF in near-mint condition for a ridiculously low $129. The sale includes the original product box, and insured ground shipping by major courier to US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Brent by e-mail or by phone at 770-565-5012 (Eastern time).

The Streak

Just in case you have not been counting, today makes 22 days in a row with a new educational blog post 🙂 There will be few or no new blog posts for a week while I am in Alaska as we move the BAA Blog to a new server.

Via e-Mail from Warren Hatch

Hi Artie, I just wanted to drop you a quick note to say thanks for everything you’ve done to help my photography. The lessons I’ve learned from The Art of Bird Photography I and II, through your daily blogs, and on a pair of IPTs (spaced 20 years apart), have been invaluable. They’ve influenced my shooting profoundly and I know I am a better photographer as a result. This week one of my images won an Audubon award (People’s Choice in the 2017 photography competition). Your inspiration and teachings played as large a part in the formation of the image as my hitting the shutter button. At a minimum, the official scorer should show you with an assist. So, thanks! Hopefully it won’t take another 20 years before I capture something special again. Kind Regards, Warren

Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on the sunny Saturday afternoon of July 8 on the 2017 UK Puffins and Gannets IPT with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop off the blue sky 30 degrees above the horizon: 1/2500 sec. at f/7.1 in Manual mode. Daylight WB. iFrame. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: zero. Though Center Large Zone/AI Servo/Shutter Button AF was active at the moment of exposure no AF point or points were illuminated in red on the RAW file. This is due either to an anomaly or to a camera malfunction. Atlantic Puffin landing with killer background

My Deteriorating Flight Photography Skills

Given the fact that this flight image is very sharp, nicely designed, and has a very pleasing background might lead some to think that the title of the subhead here, My Deteriorating Flight Photography Skills, is either inaccurate or something of a joke. It is neither. I made many hundreds of flight images on this trip that were simply nowhere near sharp. Why? I was simply unable to acquire the subject in the frame and unable to acquire and maintain focus as the bird approached. Why? The deteriorating strength, stamina, and hand-eye coordination that comes with age. For the non-believers, I will share a collection of such out-of-focus images with you here soon; most were made in absolutely perfect situations where more skilled folks would have cashed in on these outstanding flight opportunities.

I failed hand holding the 500 II with the 5D IV and the hood removed from the lens. I failed with the 500 II and the 1.4X III and the 5D IV on the tripod. I failed with either the 5D IV or the 1DX II on the hand held 100-400 II. And most surprisingly I failed with the 100-400 II with the 1D X II on the gannet boat; it would be difficult to find easier flight photography subjects than the gannets …

I did fairly well with the hand held 5D IV/70-200 f/4 L IS combo — can you say smaller and lighter ?

The truth, as I have been saying here for years, is that I have never been a very good flight photographer. My knowledge of the wind and the light and of the birds’ flight patterns and habits, along with a very large — make that huge — dose of determination, has usually enabled me to come away with a decent flight image or two from each good session. On this trip, my percentage of good flight images was noticeably pathetic at best.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Obviously folks attending the IPT will be out in the field early and stay late to take advantage of sunrise and sunset colors. The good news is that the days are relatively short in October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

The Fort DeSoto 2017 Fall IPT/September 22 (afternoon session) through the full day on September 25, 2017. 3 1/2 FULL DAYs: $1649. Limit 8.

Fort DeSoto, located just south of St. Petersburg, FL, is a mecca for migrant shorebirds and terns in fall. There they join hundreds of egrets, herons, night-herons, gulls, and terns who winter on the T-shaped peninsula that serves as their wintering grounds. With luck, we may get to photograph two of Florida’s most desirable shorebird species: Marbled Godwit and the spectacular Long-billed Curlew. Black-bellied Plover and Willet are easy, American Oystercatcher almost guaranteed. Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Tricolored Heron are easy as well and we will almost surely come up with a tame Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or two. We should get to do some Brown Pelican flight photography. And Royal, Sandwich, Forster’s, and Caspian Terns will likely provide us with some good flight opportunities as well. Though not guaranteed Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork would not be unexpected.

Folks who sign up for the IPT are welcome to join us on the ITF/MWS on the morning of Tuesday, September 26 as my guest. See below for details on that.

On the IPT you will learn basics and fine points of digital exposure and to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, how to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them, to understand and predict bird behavior, to identify many species of shorebirds, to spot the good situations, to choose the best perspective, to see and understand the light, and to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system. And you will learn how and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).

There will be a Photoshop/image review session after lunch (included) each day. That will be followed by Instructor Nap Time.

This IPT will run with only a single registrant (though that is not likely to happen). The best airport is Tampa (TPA). Though I have not decided on a hotel yet — I will as soon as there is one sign-up — do know that it is always best if IPT folks stay in the same hotel (rather than at home or at a friend’s place).

A $500 deposit is due when you sign up and is payable by credit card. Balances must be paid by check after you register. Your deposit is non-refundable unless the IPT sells out with ten folks so please check your plans carefully before committing. You can register by calling Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand or by sending a check as follows: make the 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, gear advice, and instructions for meeting on the afternoon of Friday, September 22.

Fort DeSoto in fall is rich with tame birds. All of the images in this card were created at Fort DeSoto in either late September or early October. I hope that you can join me there this October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

BIRDS AS ART In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session (ITF/MWS): $99.

Join me on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for 3-hours of photographic instruction at Fort DeSoto Park. Beginners are welcome. Lenses of 300mm or longer are recommended but even those with 70-200s should get to make some nice images. Teleconverters are always a plus.

You will learn the basics of digital exposure and image design, autofocus basics, and how to get close to free and wild birds. We should get to photograph a variety of wading birds, shorebirds, terns, and gulls. This inexpensive afternoon workshop is designed to give folks a taste of the level and the quality of instruction that is provided on a BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-tour. I hope to meet you there.

To register please call Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand to pay the nominal non-refundable registration fee. You will receive a short e-mail with instructions, gear advice, and meeting place at least two weeks before the event.

BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT.

Fort DeSoto Site Guide

Can’t make the IPT? Get yourself a copy of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide. Learn the best spots, where to be when in what season in what weather. Learn the best wind directions for the various locations. BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. You can see all of them here.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack.

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).

Stuff

It’s nice when you make a plan and it works perfectly down to the very last detail. Based on the weather forecast, I switched our gannet boat trip from Thursday to Friday. As noted previously, Thursday afternoon was fantastic to say the least. And our gannet boat trip, with clouds thank you very much, was beyond anyone’s imagination. Jacke McCurdy (1000 images), here along with sister Arden (2000) –both real troupers!, described it well when she said, “Even though you told us what to expect, I’ve never seen anything like that in all of my 83 years. Good friend and BPN moderator Peter Kes, who has traveled the world photographing birds and animals, said that it was the most amazing wildlife spectacle he had ever seen. Peter created 6308 images in two hours. Newbies Tony Zeilinsky and Chris Loffredo made 2750 and 3500 respectively. Recidivist Phil Frigon made 5500 and multiple IPT vet Loren Waxman made “about 3,000.”. Anita North who has been on too many IPTs to count, was not feeling well and created a very low (for her) 3020. Having been several times, I wound up being somewhat more selective than most with only 1150 images, mostly of single gannets in flight and diving. When we return on Monday afternoon, weather willing, I will do some video.

The Streak

Just in case you have not been counting, today makes 20 days in a row with a new educational blog post 🙂

Via e-Mail from Warren Hatch

Hi Artie, I just wanted to drop you a quick note to say thanks for everything you’ve done to help my photography. The lessons I’ve learned from The Art of Bird Photography I and II, through your daily blogs, and on a pair of IPTs (spaced 20 years apart), have been invaluable. They’ve influenced my shooting profoundly and I know I am a better photographer as a result. This week one of my images won an Audubon award (People’s Choice in the 2017 photography competition). Your inspiration and teachings played as large a part in the formation of the image as my hitting the shutter button. At a minimum, the official scorer should show you with an assist. So, thanks! Hopefully it won’t take another 20 years before I capture something special again. Kind Regards, Warren

Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on the fabulous afternoon of Day 3 of the 2017 UK Puffins and Gannets IPT with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 2X III, and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2 1/3 stops as framed: 1/320 sec. at f/16 in Manual mode. Daylight WB. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -7. I chose an AF point that was two to the right and two rows up from the center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF and was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was on eye of the fish behind and just below the (unseen in this image) base of the bill. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a spectacular larger version. Atlantic Puffin with baitfish in heaven

Atlantic Puffin with baitfish in heaven

There is a wall around the lighthouse on Inner Farnes. At times, especially when it is cloudy, you can position the wall closest to you in front of a puffin sitting on a more distant wall. This can give you the puffin in heaven look. You will however need to choose the exact perfect perspective. I lucked out in that this bird with its huge beakful of fish was perched near the corner of the wall and when I got as tall as possible with my tripod, was just visible.

Depth of Field and Choosing an AF Point

Depth of field becomes most important when you are close to the minimum focusing distance of your lens and are at point-blank range with the subject. Here, I raised my ISO to 800 to maintain a decent shutter speed while stopping down to f/16. I focused just this side of the base of the bill, halfway between the plane of the puffin’s eye and the plane of the nearest fish tail. The depth of field was just enough to cover both.

Your Critique

What do you like about this image? What don’t you like about this image? Could I have done better in the field? Could I have done better with the processing? Feel free to be frank.

The Image Optimization

After converting the image in DPP 4, I worked on the snout of the last fish facing to our right, the one that I focused on just below and behind the base of the bill. The puffin had apparently ripped the nose off the fish as it was being captured. That it was hanging down seemingly no longer connected to its owner, really bugged me. I used the Clone Stamp Tool and a series of small Quick Masks to make the repair. One of those QMs needed to be flopped. I ran my NIK 25/25 recipe on the whole image; there was no need to worry about it affecting the 246/247/248 white sky that have been color corrected by decreasing the saturation of both the BLUE and the CYAN channels. The NIK 25/25 left the face just a bit too dark so I created a complete new lawyer, pull the curve up a bit, added an Inverse Layer Mask, and painted in the lighter WHITEs on the face as needed. Lastly I added two points of black to the Neutrals and added two points of black to the Blacks in Selective Color.

Everything above plus tons and tons more is detailed in the new BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. Learn more and check out the free excerpt in the blog post here. Justso you know, the new e-Guide reflects my Macbook Pro/Photo Mechanic/DPP 4/Photoshop workflow.

You can learn how and why I and other discerning Canon shooters convert nearly all of their Canon digital RAW files in DPP 4 using Canon Digital Photo Professional in the DPP 4 RAW conversion Guide here. And you can learn advanced Quick Masking and advanced Layer Masking techniques in APTATS I & II. You can save $15 by purchasing the pair. Folks can learn sophisticated sharpening and (NeatImage) Noise Reduction techniques in the The Professional Post Processing Guide by Arash Hazeghi and yours truly.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack.

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).

Stuff

On Wednesday, July 5, the IPT group enjoyed a perfect day for bird photography in Northumberland, UK. We had cloudy bright skies, dozens of tame Atlantic Puffins with fish, landing puffins, point blank Razorbills and Shags, and a single Common Murre that posed for 30 minutes with a lovely fish in its bill. Not to mention hundreds of Arctic Terns with young of all ages. I created just under 1,000 images and several of the participants did more than double that. The weather, which has basically terrible here for several weeks, is looking grim for both Thursday and Friday as the predicted fair weather high pressure system disintegrated upon the approach of another low front …

Ending the Free Update Confusion

When the publication of the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) was announced in the blog post here, and as it states plainly in the BAA Online Store, “DB II represents a stand-alone purchase; there will be no updates. From time to time however, I will share new Photoshop techniques on the blog that will be announced as a Free-to-All Digital Basics II Updates.” So when I ran the “Filling in Added Canvas by Judiciously Stretching the Pixels” item in yesterday’s blog post, that was exactly what it said, a free-to-all update.

Thus, there is no need to call Jim for your free update. The free update was there in the blog for all to enjoy. Thanks to the many who have purchased the new e-Guide.

The Streak

Just in case you have not been counting, today makes 18 days in a row with a new educational blog post 🙂

Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on the same morning as the Snowy Egret with shrimp image shared here recently, both made on the 2106 Fort DeSoto Fall IPT, this one with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 2X III, and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/640 sec. at f/9 in Manual mode. AWB. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -5. Two rows up and one to the right of the center AF point/AI Servo/shutter button AF was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was right on the young night-heron’s pupil. Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, head portrait of juvenile

In the “Free-to-all Update to the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II): Filling in Added Canvas by Judiciously Stretching the Pixels” blog post here, I posted this:

Photoshop Hanky Panky

Can you spot the Photoshop Hanky Panky? Once you do, be sure to include your proof with your comment.

Do note that Dave K. posted this comment:

I am going with the water droplet was added. Where the droplet is forming at the bill the line looks a little harsh and un natural to me. Also when I scroll over the picture it says “added bill tip and droplet” but you could be trying to throw us off 🙂

Others agreed that the drop was unnatural, that the drop was reflecting stuff that was not there, and that the drop should have reflected the photographer. Others were positive that the eye color was wrong, or that I had messed with the orientation of the eye …

This is a Photo Mechanic cut and paste of the RAW file for the Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, head portrait of juvenile image …

The RAW File …

As anyone can plainly see by comparing the RAW file with the Photoshop Hanky Panky? image that I originally posted in the “Free-to-all Update to the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II): Filling in Added Canvas by Judiciously Stretching the Pixels” blog post here, was pixel for pixel identical to the RAW file.

It has always been my contention that when you are told what has been done where in Photoshop that everyone is a genius at spotting the telltale signs that a repair has been made. In this case, I purposely misled folks by captioning the image as I did, knowing that at least a few folks would be tricked. Several in fact took the bait. And again as I have long contended, when there have been no major repairs some folks will invent such repairs and gladly offer the “proof.” I once saw an image on BPN with a hard, straight line in the image, an obvious clone stamp mark. Obvious that it until I saw the RAW file. I apologized profusely. Simply put, it is very difficult today to know the truth of an image. That is why I — almost always 🙂 — let folks know what I have done with or to an image in Photoshop. In the future, folks will need to be wary of the Wickedly Tricky Blogger.

This is the optimized image that I created here in the UK early on the morning of July, 6, 2017.

The Optimized Image

After converting the RAW image in DPP 4, I did a bit of bill clean-up and then moved the bird back in the frame using one of the APTATS tutorials. That was about it. I did not monkey with the eye or the eye color and I added neither the bill tips or the drop of water. I tried to do the majority of bill clean-up work with Content Aware Fill but after 10 minutes I gave up and started from scratch working large and using mostly the Patch Tool and a bit of the Spot Healing Brush. Why did I quit with Content Aware Fill? I had made things a mess with Content Aware Fill …

Everything above plus tons and tons more is detailed in the new BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. Learn more and check out the free excerpt in the blog post here. Justso you know, the new e-Guide reflects my Macbook Pro/Photo Mechanic/DPP 4/Photoshop workflow.

You can learn how and why I and other discerning Canon shooters convert nearly all of their Canon digital RAW files in DPP 4 using Canon Digital Photo Professional in the DPP 4 RAW conversion Guide here. And you can learn advanced Quick Masking and advanced Layer Masking techniques in APTATS I & II. You can save $15 by purchasing the pair. Folks can learn sophisticated sharpening and (NeatImage) Noise Reduction techniques in the The Professional Post Processing Guide by Arash Hazeghi and yours truly.

The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) will teach you an efficient Mac/Photo Mechanic/Photoshop workflow that will make it easy for you to make your images better in Photoshop (rather than worse). That true whether you convert your images in DPP 4 or ACR. See the blog post here to learn lots more and to read a free excerpt. You can order your copy from the BAA Online Store here, by sending a Paypal for $40 here, or by calling Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-692-0906 with your credit card in hand.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Obviously folks attending the IPT will be out in the field early and stay late to take advantage of sunrise and sunset colors. The good news is that the days are relatively short in October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

The Fort DeSoto 2017 Fall IPT/September 22 (afternoon session) through the full day on September 25, 2017. 3 1/2 FULL DAYs: $1649. Limit 8.

Fort DeSoto, located just south of St. Petersburg, FL, is a mecca for migrant shorebirds and terns in fall. There they join hundreds of egrets, herons, night-herons, gulls, and terns who winter on the T-shaped peninsula that serves as their wintering grounds. With luck, we may get to photograph two of Florida’s most desirable shorebird species: Marbled Godwit and the spectacular Long-billed Curlew. Black-bellied Plover and Willet are easy, American Oystercatcher almost guaranteed. Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Tricolored Heron are easy as well and we will almost surely come up with a tame Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or two. We should get to do some Brown Pelican flight photography. And Royal, Sandwich, Forster’s, and Caspian Terns will likely provide us with some good flight opportunities as well. Though not guaranteed Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork would not be unexpected.

Folks who sign up for the IPT are welcome to join us on the ITF/MWS on the morning of Tuesday, September 26 as my guest. See below for details on that.

On the IPT you will learn basics and fine points of digital exposure and to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, how to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them, to understand and predict bird behavior, to identify many species of shorebirds, to spot the good situations, to choose the best perspective, to see and understand the light, and to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system. And you will learn how and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).

There will be a Photoshop/image review session after lunch (included) each day. That will be followed by Instructor Nap Time.

This IPT will run with only a single registrant (though that is not likely to happen). The best airport is Tampa (TPA). Though I have not decided on a hotel yet — I will as soon as there is one sign-up — do know that it is always best if IPT folks stay in the same hotel (rather than at home or at a friend’s place).

A $500 deposit is due when you sign up and is payable by credit card. Balances must be paid by check after you register. Your deposit is non-refundable unless the IPT sells out with ten folks so please check your plans carefully before committing. You can register by calling Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand or by sending a check as follows: make the 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, gear advice, and instructions for meeting on the afternoon of Friday, September 22.

Fort DeSoto in fall is rich with tame birds. All of the images in this card were created at Fort DeSoto in either late September or early October. I hope that you can join me there this October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

BIRDS AS ART In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session (ITF/MWS): $99.

Join me on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for 3-hours of photographic instruction at Fort DeSoto Park. Beginners are welcome. Lenses of 300mm or longer are recommended but even those with 70-200s should get to make some nice images. Teleconverters are always a plus.

You will learn the basics of digital exposure and image design, autofocus basics, and how to get close to free and wild birds. We should get to photograph a variety of wading birds, shorebirds, terns, and gulls. This inexpensive afternoon workshop is designed to give folks a taste of the level and the quality of instruction that is provided on a BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-tour. I hope to meet you there.

To register please call Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand to pay the nominal non-refundable registration fee. You will receive a short e-mail with instructions, gear advice, and meeting place at least two weeks before the event.

BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT.

Fort DeSoto Site Guide

Can’t make the IPT? Get yourself a copy of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide. Learn the best spots, where to be when in what season in what weather. Learn the best wind directions for the various locations. BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. You can see all of them here.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack.

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).

Stuff

The 2017 UK Puffins and Gannets IPT is off to a great start. We photographed Bamburgh Castle with great clouds late on Monday afternoon. It is early Tuesday morning as I type and it looks as if our boat trip today will be called off because of a light drizzle. Better yet, was breakfast. I filled a coffee pot with water, figured out how to turn the burner on, and two minutes later noticed a huge toxic cloud over range. There was a boiling mass of plastic that appeared as a light grey cloud. The cottage was filled with the toxic fumes so after we got the coffee pot off the stove (with long strings of dripping black plastic hanging off it) we turned off the burner. The coffee pot was an electric one that is designed to be placed onto a heater base. Oops. It looks as if we will be able to clean the melted plastic off the range top; we are waiting for it to cool.

If you have ever had an embarrassing “duh!” moment, please do consider sharing by leaving a comment below.

Photoshop Hanky Panky

If you missed the big question on yesterday’s blog post you might wish to play detective here. Some folks are on the right track …

The Streak

Just in case you have not been counting, today makes 16 days in a row with a new educational blog post 🙂

Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on the first afternoon of the 2017 UK Puffins and Gannets IPT with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 1600. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/160 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode. Daylight WB. Manual Selection single AF point/one row up and four AF points to the right of the center AF point/AI Servo/rear button AF was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was on the center of the flower. flower?

What is It?

The flowers smelled like licorice so we thought that it might be some type of anise but an online search came up empty. If you know what type of flower is featured in today’s image please do share. Is the flower a wild or a domesticated flower? I think the latter. And I think that it might be a composite type of flower that is made up of many tiny blossoms, or not. Any and all help would be appreciated.

Bingo!

Huge thanks to Iain Lowson for correctly identifying the plant as Echinops ritro. It appears that the plant grows wild in parts of Europe but is a common garden plant in the UK.

Echinops ritro is a clump-forming, 4-foot tall plant with golf ball sized blue flower heads atop stiff, rigid stems clad with deeply lobed, dark green, thistle-like foliage. Globular, thistle-like, deep steel blue flower heads (1-2” diameter) bloom at the stem tops in summer. Coarse, spiny, deeply-dissected, gray-green leaves are white tomentose beneath. Basal leaves grow to 6-8” long, but stem leaves grow shorter.

Genus name comes from the Greek words echinos meaning a hedgehog and ops meaning appearance in reference to the flower heads.

‘Veitch’s Blue’ grows slightly smaller (3-3.5’ tall) and features darker blue flowers and more abundant flowering than the species.

Seeing the Shot and the Right Tool for the Job

Several folks in the group got excited when we saw the stand of pink/purple blossoms so we hung a u-turn and got our gear. There were some nice backlit blossoms but the backgrounds were less than pleasing as there were none that were consistently sharp enough. I was glad that I had enough room to take the 100 macro. Several folks were using their 100-400 IIs. Many were hand holding so I suggested that in the low light a tripod would be a good idea. For my favorite image (above) I would up photographing a shaded flower with an asphalt road background …

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack.

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).

Stuff

I spent about 8 hours on Saturday micro-adjusting my lightweight Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM lens with three camera bodies and two different 1.4X III TCs. And each of those must be done wide and tight. That’s a lot of work. All for six hours of gannets in flight photography … Is it worth it? I made some more amazing breakthroughs in terms of creating consistently sharp clusters. During the three recent days of micro-adjusting I have learned a ton. After a nap and packing my camera bag (44 1/2 pounds) I took my latest half-mile swim of the week. And again, I ate well.

I packed one checked bag (50 pounds) after dinner. I packed my second check bag (48 1/2 pounds, so far) on Sunday morning. Next was my laptop bag. All that I need to do now is add my frozen gel packs and my insulin and head up to Orlando. I fly from MCO this afternoon up to Newark and then from EWR to EDI. I meet the group and our driver in Edinburgh tomorrow morning at about 8:30am if all goes as planned. Then it will be puffins and gannets and more. For eight days!

Lots of folks have tried to answer the first question that I posed in yesterday’s blog post. It is a relatively simple exposure question and best (or worst?) of all, I have given the answer in many recent blog posts. If you’d like to take a crack at it, click here and scroll down to question 1.

Mongoose M3.6 Heads Sold Out

For the first time in months, we had seven Mongoose M3.6 heads in stock last week. They are all gone. Your best bet is to call Jim at 863-692-0906 right now to order yours. We will not bill your card until we receive our next back-order and ship yours.

The Streak

Just in case you have not been counting, today makes 15 days in a row with a new educational blog post 🙂

Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

Apropos Price Reduction

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM Zoom Lens (the old 24-105)

Price Reduced $100 on June 25, 2017.

Multiple IPT veteran Dr. Gil Moe is also offering a Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM zoom lens in excellent plus condition for $449 (was $549). The sale includes the front and rear lens caps, the lens hood, the soft lens pouch, and insured ground shipping via UPS or FEDEX to U.S. Addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made. Please contact Dr. Gil Moe via e-mail or by phone at 909-732-1456 (Pacific time).

I rarely make a trip or head out to the beach without my 24-105 in my Xtra-hand vest. Whenever I leave this versatile B-roll lens behind, I wind up regretting it. I use it for bird-scapes, photographer-scapes, landscapes, mini macro scenes like bird feathers, dead birds, and nests with eggs (the latter only when and if the nest can be photographed without jeopardizing it) and just about anything else that catches my eye. While I am nowhere near as good as Denise Ippolito with this lens, I have made lots of good and saleable images with mine, the old version. artie

ps: It was the perfect lens for creating today’s featured image; I sure am glad that I did not leave it in the car!

This image was created on the 2016 Fort DeSoto Fall IPT with the hand held “old” 24-105mm (now replaced by the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS II USM lens (at 24mm) and my favorite bird photography camera, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 500. Evaluative metering +1 stop: 1/80 sec. at f/4 in Tv mode. Daylight WB. Center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/rear button focus on the bird’s eye and re-compose. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Sea Purslane (Sesuvium portulacastrum)

Step One: Seeing the Image

There were lots of birds on the beach on the morning that I made this photograph. But when I glanced at the plant’s lovely colors and its beautiful pattern, I knew that I had to photograph it. So I grabbed my “old” 24-105 out of the milk crate on my Wheeleeze beach cart, removed the 100-400 II from the 5D IV, and mounted the wide angle B-roll lens in its place. Then it was a matter of getting almost on top of the subject by straddling it without getting my feet in the image. By doing that I was best able to parallel the subject. I braced my elbows into my sides to steady the lens while re-composing. In retrospect, I could have chosen an AF sensor just below center and kept that active at the moment of exposure. As for the exposure, it was pretty much perfect at “only” +1. The RAW file, however, did not look to inspiring … See more below.

Join me on this year’s Fall Fort DeSoto IPT to learn to see the shot and learn a ton of Photoshop as well.

Sea Purselane

This low growing plant plays an important role in dune creation. It is salt tolerant and sets it roots just above the high tide line. Its leaves catch windswept sand that helps build dunes and in time, other plants catch on and a new dune is formed.

The Image Optimization

If I’ve said it here once I’ve said it here a thousand times: “If they are properly exposed with data well into the rightmost histogram box, light-toned images should look washed out both on the rear LCD and on your computer monitor.” It is your job to bring them to life during post-processing.

After converting the image in DPP 4, I brought the TIFF into Photoshop. I increased the Vibrance about 50 points and the saturation about 10 points.Then, a simple Levels adjustment got me most of the way there. Next I added a 40% layer of Auto Contrast. At that point I loved the tonality but there was a significant color cast. I tried reducing the Saturation of both the BLUE and the CYAN channels and though that helped, I was not where I wanted. Next I tried the Curves Adjustment Color Balancing technique and that turned out to be bingo. (Concept by Denise Ippolito, expanded concept and text by Arthur Morris).

Everything above plus tons more is detailed in the new BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. Learn more and check out the free excerpt in the blog post here Juts so you know, the new e-Guide reflects my Macbook Pro/Photo Mechanic/DPP 4/Photoshop workflow.

You can learn how and why I and other discerning Canon shooters convert nearly all of their Canon digital RAW files in DPP 4 using Canon Digital Photo Professional in the DPP 4 RAW conversion Guide here. And you can learn advanced Quick Masking and advanced Layer Masking techniques in APTATS I & II. You can save $15 by purchasing the pair. Folks can learn sophisticated sharpening and (NeatImage) Noise Reduction techniques in the The Professional Post Processing Guide by Arash Hazeghi and yours truly.

The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) will teach you an efficient Mac/Photo Mechanic/Photoshop workflow that will make it easy for you to make your images better in Photoshop (rather than worse). That true whether you convert your images in DPP 4 or ACR. See the blog post here to learn lots more and to read a free excerpt. You can order your copy from the BAA Online Store here, by sending a Paypal for $40 here, or by calling Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-692-0906 with your credit card in hand.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Obviously folks attending the IPT will be out in the field early and stay late to take advantage of sunrise and sunset colors. The good news is that the days are relatively short in October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

The Fort DeSoto 2017 Fall IPT/September 22 (afternoon session) through the full day on September 25, 2017. 3 1/2 FULL DAYs: $1649. Limit 8.

Fort DeSoto, located just south of St. Petersburg, FL, is a mecca for migrant shorebirds and terns in fall. There they join hundreds of egrets, herons, night-herons, gulls, and terns who winter on the T-shaped peninsula that serves as their wintering grounds. With luck, we may get to photograph two of Florida’s most desirable shorebird species: Marbled Godwit and the spectacular Long-billed Curlew. Black-bellied Plover and Willet are easy, American Oystercatcher almost guaranteed. Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Tricolored Heron are easy as well and we will almost surely come up with a tame Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or two. We should get to do some Brown Pelican flight photography. And Royal, Sandwich, Forster’s, and Caspian Terns will likely provide us with some good flight opportunities as well. Though not guaranteed Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork would not be unexpected.

Folks who sign up for the IPT are welcome to join us on the ITF/MWS on the morning of Tuesday, September 26 as my guest. See below for details on that.

On the IPT you will learn basics and fine points of digital exposure and to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, how to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them, to understand and predict bird behavior, to identify many species of shorebirds, to spot the good situations, to choose the best perspective, to see and understand the light, and to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system. And you will learn how and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).

There will be a Photoshop/image review session after lunch (included) each day. That will be followed by Instructor Nap Time.

This IPT will run with only a single registrant (though that is not likely to happen). The best airport is Tampa (TPA). Though I have not decided on a hotel yet — I will as soon as there is one sign-up — do know that it is always best if IPT folks stay in the same hotel (rather than at home or at a friend’s place).

A $500 deposit is due when you sign up and is payable by credit card. Balances must be paid by check after you register. Your deposit is non-refundable unless the IPT sells out with ten folks so please check your plans carefully before committing. You can register by calling Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand or by sending a check as follows: make the 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, gear advice, and instructions for meeting on the afternoon of Friday, September 22.

Fort DeSoto in fall is rich with tame birds. All of the images in this card were created at Fort DeSoto in either late September or early October. I hope that you can join me there this October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

BIRDS AS ART In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session (ITF/MWS): $99.

Join me on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for 3-hours of photographic instruction at Fort DeSoto Park. Beginners are welcome. Lenses of 300mm or longer are recommended but even those with 70-200s should get to make some nice images. Teleconverters are always a plus.

You will learn the basics of digital exposure and image design, autofocus basics, and how to get close to free and wild birds. We should get to photograph a variety of wading birds, shorebirds, terns, and gulls. This inexpensive afternoon workshop is designed to give folks a taste of the level and the quality of instruction that is provided on a BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-tour. I hope to meet you there.

To register please call Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand to pay the nominal non-refundable registration fee. You will receive a short e-mail with instructions, gear advice, and meeting place at least two weeks before the event.

BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT.

Fort DeSoto Site Guide

Can’t make the IPT? Get yourself a copy of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide. Learn the best spots, where to be when in what season in what weather. Learn the best wind directions for the various locations. BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. You can see all of them here.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack.

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).

Stuff

I started micro-adjusting my 500 II with all three camera bodies early on Thursday morning. By 11:30am I was headed into town to have my teeth cleaned, pick up two new pairs of reading glasses — I recently lost two pairs in the field, and pick up 1,500 British pounds from the bank to pay for the gannet boat trips. I did a meditation walk in Publix, that followed by a bit of shopping and a visit to the chiropractor. I was home by 3:30 and was quickly back at the micro-adjusting. By 5pm I had finished up with the 500 II alone with all three camera bodies, and, the 500 II with both of my 1.4X III TCs on all three camera bodies. Most of those were re-checks so they did not take too long. If the combo has already been micro-adjusted I will simply run an AFC consistency test in FocusTune using the old value. All of those tests were either still perfect or within one. No worries — if you have no clue as to what I am talking about it will all be in the new LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjusting e-Guide. That should be done by early August at the very latest. Or possibly a lot sooner than that.

At 6pm I got in the pool and enjoyed my half-mile swim. And again, I ate well.

Mongoose M3.6 Heads Sold Out

For the first time in months, we had seven Mongoose M3.6 heads in stock last week. They are all gone. Your best bet is to call Jim at 863-692-0906 right now to order yours. We will not bill your card until we receive our next back-order and ship yours.

The Streak

Just in case you have not been counting, today makes 15 days in a row with a new educational blog post 🙂

Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on the 2016 Fort DeSoto Fall IPT with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 2X III, and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 1600. Evaluative metering +1 stop: 1/1600 sec. at f/8 in Manual mode. Daylight WB. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -5. Three AF points up from the center AF point/AI Servo/shutter button AF on the side of the bird’s neck was active at the moment of exposure. Sanderling, double overhead wingstretch

Sometimes You Just Need to Take a Chance …

When this bird stretched both wings overhead I struggled to acquire focus and then pressed the shutter button. At that moment I figured that my chance of success was about one in 100. But heck, it’s digital, so I took a shot at it. What would have happened if the image was not sharp? I’d delete it. But in this case, my long shot came in. Remember, you can’t win it if you’re not in it.

The Image Optimization

This image needed some counter-clockwise rotation. How did I know? I used the Ruler Tool (my personalized shortcut R) and drew a line from the tip of the bill of the actual bird to the tip of the bill in the reflection. Then go Image > Rotate > Arbitrary. Better yet, learn to set up and use my personalized keyboard shortcut, Command + /. Then I used John Heado Content Aware Fill to fill in the added triangles of canvas. It did a pretty good job with the wings in the upper right so I did my best at cleaning that up a bit. Otherwise there was not much to do after I converted the image in DPP 4.

Everything above plus tons more is detailed in the new BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. Learn more and check out the free excerpt in the blog post here Juts so you know, the new e-Guide reflects my Macbook Pro/Photo Mechanic/DPP 4/Photoshop workflow.

You can learn how and why I and other discerning Canon shooters convert nearly all of their Canon digital RAW files in DPP 4 using Canon Digital Photo Professional in the DPP 4 RAW conversion Guide here. And you can learn advanced Quick Masking and advanced Layer Masking techniques in APTATS I & II. You can save $15 by purchasing the pair. Folks can learn sophisticated sharpening and (NeatImage) Noise Reduction techniques in the The Professional Post Processing Guide by Arash Hazeghi and yours truly.

The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) will teach you an efficient Mac/Photo Mechanic/Photoshop workflow that will make it easy for you to make your images better in Photoshop (rather than worse). That true whether you convert your images in DPP 4 or ACR. See the blog post here to learn lots more and to read a free excerpt. You can order your copy from the BAA Online Store here, by sending a Paypal for $40 here, or by calling Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-692-0906 with your credit card in hand.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Obviously folks attending the IPT will be out in the field early and stay late to take advantage of sunrise and sunset colors. The good news is that the days are relatively short in October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

The Fort DeSoto 2017 Fall IPT/September 22 (afternoon session) through the full day on September 25, 2017. 3 1/2 FULL DAYs: $1649. Limit 8.

Fort DeSoto, located just south of St. Petersburg, FL, is a mecca for migrant shorebirds and terns in fall. There they join hundreds of egrets, herons, night-herons, gulls, and terns who winter on the T-shaped peninsula that serves as their wintering grounds. With luck, we may get to photograph two of Florida’s most desirable shorebird species: Marbled Godwit and the spectacular Long-billed Curlew. Black-bellied Plover and Willet are easy, American Oystercatcher almost guaranteed. Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Tricolored Heron are easy as well and we will almost surely come up with a tame Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or two. We should get to do some Brown Pelican flight photography. And Royal, Sandwich, Forster’s, and Caspian Terns will likely provide us with some good flight opportunities as well. Though not guaranteed Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork would not be unexpected.

Folks who sign up for the IPT are welcome to join us on the ITF/MWS on the morning of Tuesday, September 26 as my guest. See below for details on that.

On the IPT you will learn basics and fine points of digital exposure and to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, how to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them, to understand and predict bird behavior, to identify many species of shorebirds, to spot the good situations, to choose the best perspective, to see and understand the light, and to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system. And you will learn how and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).

There will be a Photoshop/image review session after lunch (included) each day. That will be followed by Instructor Nap Time.

This IPT will run with only a single registrant (though that is not likely to happen). The best airport is Tampa (TPA). Though I have not decided on a hotel yet — I will as soon as there is one sign-up — do know that it is always best if IPT folks stay in the same hotel (rather than at home or at a friend’s place).

A $500 deposit is due when you sign up and is payable by credit card. Balances must be paid by check after you register. Your deposit is non-refundable unless the IPT sells out with ten folks so please check your plans carefully before committing. You can register by calling Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand or by sending a check as follows: make the 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, gear advice, and instructions for meeting on the afternoon of Friday, September 22.

Fort DeSoto in fall is rich with tame birds. All of the images in this card were created at Fort DeSoto in either late September or early October. I hope that you can join me there this October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

BIRDS AS ART In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session (ITF/MWS): $99.

Join me on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for 3-hours of photographic instruction at Fort DeSoto Park. Beginners are welcome. Lenses of 300mm or longer are recommended but even those with 70-200s should get to make some nice images. Teleconverters are always a plus.

You will learn the basics of digital exposure and image design, autofocus basics, and how to get close to free and wild birds. We should get to photograph a variety of wading birds, shorebirds, terns, and gulls. This inexpensive afternoon workshop is designed to give folks a taste of the level and the quality of instruction that is provided on a BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-tour. I hope to meet you there.

To register please call Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand to pay the nominal non-refundable registration fee. You will receive a short e-mail with instructions, gear advice, and meeting place at least two weeks before the event.

BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT.

Fort DeSoto Site Guide

Can’t make the IPT? Get yourself a copy of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide. Learn the best spots, where to be when in what season in what weather. Learn the best wind directions for the various locations. BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. You can see all of them here.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack.

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).

Stuff

I was busy on Wednesday morning working on a few of my images and a really neat bee-eater image that I saw on BPN. I hope to share that image with you here at some point. Now that DB II is finished, it is possible that the LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-adjusting Tutorial will be available for purchase soon … My plan is to do some serious micro-adjusting on Thursday and Friday.

I continued to eat well and enjoyed my midday half-mile swim and an afternoon nap. The late afternoon was spent working on this blog post. That took about 3 1/2 hours. The best part? It does not seem like work to me.

Folks did a great job responding the the questions in yesterday’s Pelican Wingstretch Editing Help Needed blog post here. My answers and opinions here soon.

Mongoose M3.6 Heads Sold Out

For the first time in months, we had seven Mongoose M3.6 heads in stock last week. They are all gone. Your best bet is to call Jim at 863-692-0906 right now to order yours. We will not bill your card until we receive our next back-order and ship yours.

The Streak

Just in case you have not been counting, today makes 14 days in a row with a new educational blog post 🙂

Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Obviously folks attending the IPT will be out in the field early and stay late to take advantage of sunrise and sunset colors. The good news is that the days are relatively short in October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

The Fort DeSoto 2017 Fall IPT/September 22 (afternoon session) through the full day on September 25, 2017. 3 1/2 FULL DAYs: $1649. Limit 8.

Fort DeSoto, located just south of St. Petersburg, FL, is a mecca for migrant shorebirds and terns in fall. There they join hundreds of egrets, herons, night-herons, gulls, and terns who winter on the T-shaped peninsula that serves as their wintering grounds. With luck, we may get to photograph two of Florida’s most desirable shorebird species: Marbled Godwit and the spectacular Long-billed Curlew. Black-bellied Plover and Willet are easy, American Oystercatcher almost guaranteed. Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Great Blue Heron, and Tricolored Heron are easy as well and we will almost surely come up with a tame Yellow-crowned Night-Heron or two. We should get to do some Brown Pelican flight photography. And Royal, Sandwich, Forster’s, and Caspian Terns will likely provide us with some good flight opportunities as well. Though not guaranteed Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork would not be unexpected.

Folks who sign up for the IPT are welcome to join us on the ITF/MWS on the morning of Tuesday, September 26 as my guest. See below for details on that.

On the IPT you will learn basics and fine points of digital exposure and to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, how to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them, to understand and predict bird behavior, to identify many species of shorebirds, to spot the good situations, to choose the best perspective, to see and understand the light, and to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system. And you will learn how and why to work in Manual mode (even if you’re scared of it).

There will be a Photoshop/image review session after lunch (included) each day. That will be followed by Instructor Nap Time.

This IPT will run with only a single registrant (though that is not likely to happen). The best airport is Tampa (TPA). Though I have not decided on a hotel yet — I will as soon as there is one sign-up — do know that it is always best if IPT folks stay in the same hotel (rather than at home or at a friend’s place).

A $500 deposit is due when you sign up and is payable by credit card. Balances must be paid by check after you register. Your deposit is non-refundable unless the IPT sells out with ten folks so please check your plans carefully before committing. You can register by calling Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand or by sending a check as follows: make the 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, gear advice, and instructions for meeting on the afternoon of Friday, September 22.

Fort DeSoto in fall is rich with tame birds. All of the images in this card were created at Fort DeSoto in either late September or early October. I hope that you can join me there this October. Click on the composite to enjoy a larger version.

BIRDS AS ART In-the-Field/Meet-up Workshop Session (ITF/MWS): $99.

Join me on the morning of Tuesday September 26, 2017 for 3-hours of photographic instruction at Fort DeSoto Park. Beginners are welcome. Lenses of 300mm or longer are recommended but even those with 70-200s should get to make some nice images. Teleconverters are always a plus.

You will learn the basics of digital exposure and image design, autofocus basics, and how to get close to free and wild birds. We should get to photograph a variety of wading birds, shorebirds, terns, and gulls. This inexpensive afternoon workshop is designed to give folks a taste of the level and the quality of instruction that is provided on a BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-tour. I hope to meet you there.

To register please call Jim or Jennifer during weekday business hours at 863-692-0906 with a credit card in hand to pay the nominal non-refundable registration fee. You will receive a short e-mail with instructions, gear advice, and meeting place at least two weeks before the event.

BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT.

Fort DeSoto Site Guide

Can’t make the IPT? Get yourself a copy of the Fort DeSoto Site Guide. Learn the best spots, where to be when in what season in what weather. Learn the best wind directions for the various locations. BAA Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. You can see all of them here.

This is the DPP 4 screen capture for today’s featured image.

The Mega-Underexposure …

As it was very late in the day and I was working at 1000mm. The tripod was on soft sand so I was reluctant to go to a shutter speed slower than 1/125 sec. and reluctant to go up to ISO 3200. The result? The huge under-exposure that you see above. I wound up moving the Brightness slider to +1.48. I cannot in recent history remember having to open up an image more than 5/6 of one stop (+.83).

This image was created on the last afternoon of the 2106 Fort DeSoto Fall IPT with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 2X III, and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 1600. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/125 sec. at f/8 in Manual mode. AWB. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -5. Three AF points up from the center AF point/AI Servo/rear button focus on the bird’s eye and re-compose. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. Roseate Spoonbill in the last light of day

The Story

We enjoyed several relatively tame spoonbills on the last DeSoto Fall IPT, but this very copacetic bird, standing in yellow water just before the sun disappeared behind a cloud that was just above the horizon, provided a memorable ending to a great IPT. My big mistake was not switching the 2X III TC for the 1.4X III TC.

I have been very lucky with spoonbills on the last few IPTs. 🙂

This is the before and after animated GIF. Please pardon the posterized colors in the background, a result of creating the animated GIF.

Image Questions

Concentrating on the Before image in the animated GIF, take a shot at this question:

#1: Why should I have taken two big steps back or have switched the 2X III TC for the 1.4X III TC?

#2: Why did I expand canvas both in front of and below the bird. Note: the perfect answer will have two parts.

The Image Optimization

I loaded my saved 5D IV/ISO 1600 recipe and then brightened this image nearly 1 1/2 stops during the RAW conversion in DPP 4. Then I expanded canvas in front of and below the bird. I used John Haedo Content Aware Fill to fill in the added canvas. It did an admirable job but I needed to use the Clone Stamp Tool and a series of small Quick Masks to repair the shape of the added parts of the legs. I removed the line of debris by the feet using Divide and Conquer followed by several rounds of Content Aware Fill (after making my selections with the Patch Tool). I was surprised by how well that worked. I also used Content Aware Fill on the windblown covert feathers as they really bugged me. Again, that went better than expected. I selected the head and bill with the Quick Selection Tool (QST), applied my NIK 30-30 recipe, upped the Saturation, and applied a Contrast Mask (all on the same layer!) The last thing I did was to run NeatImage Noise Reduction on the whole image to eliminate the noise on the legs. Total time in Photoshop? Less than ten minutes.

Everything above plus tons more is detailed in the new BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. Learn more and check out the free excerpt in the blog post here Juts so you know, the new e-Guide reflects my Macbook Pro/Photo Mechanic/DPP 4/Photoshop workflow.

You can learn how and why I and other discerning Canon shooters convert nearly all of their Canon digital RAW files in DPP 4 using Canon Digital Photo Professional in the DPP 4 RAW conversion Guide here. And you can learn advanced Quick Masking and advanced Layer Masking techniques in APTATS I & II. You can save $15 by purchasing the pair. Folks can learn sophisticated sharpening and (NeatImage) Noise Reduction techniques in the The Professional Post Processing Guide by Arash Hazeghi and yours truly.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack.

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).

Stuff

On Monday I spent the better part of the day (finally) finishing the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide. I had been working on the guide only in fits and starts, but when I woke on Monday I thought that if I devoted the whole day to the project I could finish it. And that is exactly what happened. The new work is subtitled Digital Basics II so it will likely become known as DB II. See below for the publication announcement and/or to order.

Now that DB II is finished, it is possible that the LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-adjusting Tutorial will be available for purchase soon …

In addition, I did manage to do some work on the blog, took a nice nap, continued eating well, and skipped my swim. I will be back in the pool today. The first (and last free) update of the The Professional Post Processing Guide that reflects the NeatImage V8.2 release (by Arash Hazeghi and yours truly) should be available some time this week.

Tennis Elbow Miracle Cure

I continue to be amazed by how many folks have e-mailed for the Tennis Elbow Miracle Cure info. Please understand that the cure will only work for tennis elbow or the closely related Gitzo steel tripod elbow as tennis elbow only develops when the forearm is twisted while gripping down hard. Those with other elbow or shoulder pain (or with back, knee, or hip pain as well) are directed to Pete Egoscue’s Pain Free. To learn more or to purchase, click on the logo-link below.

Those who have been carrying their big glass on a tripod resting on their shoulders for too many decades (like me) are referred to Active Isolated Stretching by Aaron Mattes. I still do the exercises in this book fairly regularly. Heck, I had the pleasure of meeting and being treated (tortured) by Aaron Mattes when he was still practicing in Sarasota, FL years ago. That thanks to dear friend Patty Ardoin of Lafayette, AL who with late-husband Wes used to host the Lake Martin Spoonbill IPT. The rookery there was pretty much destroyed single-handedly by a local who set off huge amounts of fireworks one evening in hopes of promoting his tours of the rookery by boat. Oops. Thousands of birds abandoned their nests and as far as I know, have not returned to this day.

Mongoose M3.6 Heads Sold Out

For the first time in months, we had seven Mongoose M3.6 heads in stock. They are all gone. Your best bet is to call Jim at 863-692-0906 right now to order yours. We will not bill your card until we receive our next back-order and ship yours.

Do Know …

Do know, as we have seen here for years, that the blog is intended to be interactive. The more folks that respond, the more everyone learns. And yes, that includes me. If you would like to chime in on yesterday’s Keep or Delete Cluttered Pelican Image? question, please click here.

The Streak

Just in case you have not been counting, today makes 13 days in a row with a new educational blog post 🙂

Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) will teach you an efficient Mac/Photo Mechanic/Photoshop workflow that will make it easy for you to make your images better in Photoshop (rather than worse). That true whether you convert your images in DPP 4 or ACR. Scroll down to read a free excerpt. You can order your copy from the BAA Online Store here, by sending a Paypal for $40 here, or by calling Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-692-0906 with your credit card in hand.

Publication Announcement

The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II): $40

BIRDS AS ART Books is proud to announce the publication of The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II). The original Digital Basics was — with more than 6,000 copies sold — a huge best seller. Since I switched to Mac in May of 2014, many folks have been clamoring for a new version of Digital Basics that better reflects my current Macbook Pro/Photo Mechanic/DPP 4/Photoshop/Neat Image workflow. The new e-guide also includes a section on making RAW conversions in Adobe Camera RAW. This nearly 19,000 word, 88+ page PDF is solid-packed with on-point how-to writing. My specialty. With only 12 screen captures and zero photographs this is a no-fluff publication. All you need to do to improve is follow the simple written directions, all written in the clear, concise, easy to follow style that have made all BAA publications and the blog so popular. Your PDF will be sent either by e-mail or by Hightail.

DB II represents a stand-alone purchase; there will be no free updates. From time to time, I will share new Photoshop techniques on the blog that will be announced as a Free-to-All Digital Basics II Updates. At some point, those might be consolidated and possibly a new version might be available for purchase. Might. There is no discount available for folks who purchased the original Digital Basics. As there is lots of information in Digital Basics that is not covered in the new guide, we will offer a money saving bundle for new purchasers: DB and DB II for only $50. What from Digital Basics is not included in the new guide? Lots, but especially the many advantages of digital capture, the extensive sections on understanding histograms and (digital) exposure, my PC workflow, file management, setting up and using Downloader Pro and BreezeBrowser, and lots of Photoshop stuff that I no longer use regularly.

To Order

You can order your copy of The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) from the BAA Online Store here, by sending a Paypal for $40 (with DB II mentioned) here, or by calling Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-692-0906 with your credit card in hand.

The DB/DB II Bundle

New purchasers who do not want to miss anything and those who need the BreezeBrowser Pro/Downloader Pro information, may wish to save $15 by ordering the Digital Basics/Digital Basics II Bundle for only $50 by clicking here, by sending a Paypal for $50 (with DB/DB II mentioned) here, or by calling Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-692-0906 with their credit card in hand.

Thanks!

Thanks to multiple IPT veteran Mike Gotthelf who kindly reviewed an unfinished draft of DB II. Aside from catching some great typos, here is what he had to say:

You really did a great job on the new current digital workflow guide. It’s great to have coverage of your Photo Mechanic, DPP 4, ACR, and Photoshop workflow in one place. The discussion is detailed, but concise and very clear. There is a lot of information in the guide for both beginners and more advanced users. Many of your tricks are shared, and there are a ton of timesavers. I especially liked the description of how you decide on very basic adjustments as a starting place for your RAW conversions whether in DPP 4 or ACR. And the advanced enhancement tips are terrific. Congratulations on another invaluable resource for your fans. Though I am an experienced user, I sure picked up a lot of useful tricks.

So What Is Included in DB II?

• Photo Mechanic basics including ingesting and detailed editing (choosing your keepers) instructions
• My filing system
• Why RAW capture/JPEGs OK for some
• Simple DPP 4 conversions
• ACR RAW conversions (for Photoshop and Lightroom users)
• Stuff you need to know before optimizing your images in Photoshop
• Keyboard shortcuts and creating personalized keyboard shortcuts
• My Photoshop workspace.
• A great tip on working large
• Making selections
• The Quick Selection Tool
• The Magic Wand Tool
• The Lasso Tool
• Making Color Range selections
• Quick Masking techniques
• Layer Masking for dummies
• Cropping fine points
• Dust spotting
• Adding canvas
• Filling in canvas
• Leveling an image
• Using the Ruler Tool
• The image rotation shortcut
• John Haedo Content Aware Fill
• Dealing with whites
• Making a Color Range Selection for the Bright Whites
• Restoring Detail in the Whites
• Dealing With Image Tonality
• Making Levels adjustments
• Making Curves adjustments
• Tim Grey Doge and Burn
• Denise Ippolito Brush Opacity Magic
• Image Clean-up Techniques
• The Patch Tool
• Nik Color Efex Pro
• The Spot Healing Brush
• My NIK 25/25, 30/30, and 50/50 Detail Extractor/Tonal Contrast recipes
• Making Color Balance adjustments
• Making Hue-Saturation adjustments
• Making Selective Color adjustments
• A Selective Color Trick for super-saturated reds
• The Average Blur Color Balance technique
• The RGB Curves Adjustment Color Balancing technique
• Digital Eye Doctor techniques
• Selective Sharpening via Contrast Mask
• Fast and Dirty NeatImage Noise Reduction (only for folks who own the Professional Post-Processing Guide)
• Saving your master file
• Sharpening basics
• Sharpening for print
• Creating JPEGs

Note: The topics above that were included in the original Digital Basics have been checked for Mac compatibility, re-checked for accuracy, in some cases clarified, re-written, and expanded.

Rejoinder: the material in DB II needs to be studied and then practiced. It cannot be absorbed by osmosis.

Once you receive your copy I would love to receive feedback by e-mail.

Free Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) Excerpt

Before We Get into the Basic Workflow

Before we get into my basic workflow, I will teach you the basics of making selections, using Regular Layer Masks and Inverse Layer Masks and the basics of painting (creating) and using Quick Masks.

Working Large

To quickly and easily enlarge any area in an image, hit Z for the Zoom Tool and then left-click and draw a box around the area you wish to enlarge. When you release the cursor the area within the box will be enlarged so as to fill most of the screen. This technique works best in the framed view.

Making Selections

With virtually every image that I process, I often need to make changes to only a small portion of the image. To do that, I must first select that portion so that I can make targeted changes. There are many, many ways of making selections. Below are the ones that I use regularly.

The Quick Selection Tool

The Quick Selection Tool lies with the Magic Wand Tool. The default keyboard shortcut for both is W. Since I use both of these fairly often I changed my keyboard shortcut for the Magic Wand Tool (MWT) to M. Both work well when you need to select well-defined, high contrast areas. I almost always use the QST when attempting to select the subject or part of the subject and use the MWT when selecting a sky or other plain background. You can learn lots more about the QST in the NIK Color Efex Pro/On the Bird Only section that follows later on in this guide.

The Magic Wand Tool

The Magic Wand Tool is great when you need to select large areas of a uniform background bordered by areas with contrast. Let’s say that you have an image of a dark bird in flight and the exposure for the bird is perfect. Most likely the sky will look much lighter than it appeared when the image was made. You would like to darken the sky without making the bird darker. To do this, it is best to use the Magic Wand Tool to select the sky.

Click on the Magic Wand Tool symbol on the tool palette or better yet, use the default keyboard shortcut, M. The cursor looks sort of like a Fourth of July sparkler. Next, check to see that the number 30 appears in the Tolerance window (on the Tool Options Bar). Place the cursor (which will look like a sparkler) anywhere on the background and left click. A rolling dotted line will appear around the selected portion of the image to indicate the selected area; most folks call this line “marching ants.” Check to make sure that no part of the subject was selected. If it was, hit Command D to lose the selection and then start again, this time typing a smaller number, say 25, in the Tolerance window. (Repeat if necessary, lowering the tolerance each time until only the background is selected.)

To Order

You can order your copy of The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II) from the BAA Online Store here, by sending a Paypal for $40 (with DB II mentioned) here, or by calling Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-692-0906 with your credit card in hand.

2017 in San Diego was a very good year ….

2018 San Diego 4 1/2-DAY BIRDS AS ART IPT: Monday, JAN 15 thru and including the morning session on Friday, JAN 19, 2018: 4 1/2 days: $2099.
Limit: 10: Openings: 4

Meet and Greet at 6:30pm on the evening before the IPT begins; Sunday, Jan 14, 2018.

Join me in San Diego to photograph the spectacular breeding plumage Brown Pelicans with their fire-engine red and olive green bill pouches; Brandt’s (usually nesting and displaying) and Double-crested Cormorants; breeding plumage Ring-necked Duck; other duck species possible including Lesser Scaup, Redhead, Wood Duck and Surf Scoter; a variety of gulls including Western, California, and the gorgeous Heerman’s, all in full breeding plumage; shorebirds including Marbled Godwit, Whimbrel, Willet, Sanderling and Black-bellied Plover; many others possible including Least, Western, and Spotted Sandpiper, Black and Ruddy Turnstone, Semipalmated Plover, and Surfbird; Harbor Seal (depending on the current regulations) and California Sea Lion; and Bird of Paradise flowers. And as you can see by studying the two IPT cards there are some nice bird-scape and landscape opportunities as well. Please note: formerly dependable, both Wood Duck and Marbled Godwit have been declining at their usual locations for the past two years …

San Diego offers a wealth of very attractive natural history subjects. With annual visits spanning more than three decades I have lot of experience there….

With gorgeous subjects just sitting there waiting to have their pictures taken, photographing the pelicans on the cliffs is about as easy as nature photography gets. With the winds from the east almost every morning there is usually some excellent flight photography. And the pelicans are almost always doing something interesting: preening, scratching, bill pouch cleaning, or squabbling. And then there are those crazy head throws that are thought to be a form of intra-flock communication. You can do most of your photography with an 80- or 100-400 lens …

Did I mention that there are wealth of great birds and natural history subjects in San Diego in winter?

Though the pelicans will be the stars of the show on this IPT there will be many other handsome and captivating subjects in wonderful settings.

The San Diego Details

This IPT will include five 3 1/2 hour morning photo sessions, four 2 1/2 hour afternoon photo sessions, four lunches, and after-lunch image review and Photoshop sessions. To ensure early starts, breakfasts will be your responsibility. Dinners are on your own so that we can get some sleep.

A $599 non-refundable deposit is required to hold your slot for this IPT. You can send a check (made out to “Arthur Morris) to us at BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL, 33855. Or call Jim or Jennifer at the office with a credit card at 863-692-0906. Your balance, payable only by check, will be due on 9/11//2016. If we do not receive your check for the balance on or before the due date we will try to fill your spot from the waiting list. Please print, complete, and sign the form that is linked to here and shoot it to us along with your deposit check. If you register by phone, please print, complete and sign the form as noted above and either mail it to us or e-mail the scan. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack.

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).

Stuff

Nothing too exciting on Saturday. I worked on blog posts, enjoyed a nice, easy, early 1/2 mile swim, a short nap, and I continued eating well. And I started reviewing Arash Hazeghi’s update of the The Professional Post Processing Guide so as to reflect the NeatImage V8.2 release. The original guide was based on V7.6. The two versions are quite different. I

I was glad to learn of the sale of Marina Scarr’s Canon EOS 1D Mark IV and that the sale of Brent Bridges’ 5D Mark III & 28-135IS package, 7D II, old 100-400, 1.4X III TC, and Induro CT 304 became pending, all of the above on the first day of listing.

I was more than thrilled to learn that San Diego IPT veteran and Galapagos 2017 Photo-Cruise of a Lifetime registrant Loren Waxman signed up for the 2017 UK Puffins and Gannets IPT that is now sold out.

Tennis Elbow Miracle Cure

If there is anyone out there in pain from tennis elbow or from the closely related Gitzo steel tripod elbow, please click shoot me an e-mail by clicking here. I learned this simple exercise from the brilliant Dr Cliff Oliver of San Diego. 31 folks in pain have tried it, including me. Though the exercise seems to make no sense at all, 30 folks were completely and miraculously healed in 2-3 days. The other one did not do the exercises 🙂

Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens for Canon EF

Price Reduced $200 on June 25, 2017.

Multiple IPT veteran Brent Bridges is also offering a used Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports lens for Canon EF in near-mint condition for only $999 (was $1199). The sale includes the original product box, a LensCoat, the instruction manual, the lens strap & hood, and insured ground shipping by major courier to US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Brent by e-mail or by phone at 770-565-5012 (Eastern time).

Lots of folks on recent IPTs have been using this relatively new Sigma lens with excellent results. artie

One Mongoose M3.6 Head still in Stock …

For the first time in months, we had Mongoose M3.6 heads in stock. We got our hands on six the other day; three were already accounted for and we sold another two this week … Call Jim at 863-692-0906 weekdays to order the last one. We have ordered more.

The Streak

Just in case you have not been counting, today makes 12 days in a row with a new educational blog post 🙂

Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar, Scotland, so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

This image was created on the 2017 San Diego IPT with the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III, and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/400 sec. at f/9 in Manual mode. AWB. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: +5. Center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was on the side of the bird’s breast just in front of the bend of the wing, right on the same plane as the bird’s eye. Black Turnstone, winter plumage

100-400 II/1.4X III/5D Mark IV Deadly in LaJolla

The hand held 100-400 II/1.4X III/5D Mark IV combo is deadly on the cliffs of La Jolla, both on the pelican cliffs and the low cliffs. In general, you do not need the 1.4X TC for the pelican as they are so tame and so close. Being able to zoom in and out while hand holding a lightweight lens is hugely advantageous when you are trying to frame a pelican head throw, wing stretch, or squabble. And the 1.4 is a great flight lens for large birds. When going after the smaller shorebirds at 560mm you gain a ton in maneuverability while losing a bit of reach (as compared to the 500 II or the 600 II with a TC). Having to move the tripod to stay on sun angle or to keep up with the birds as they forage is a big pain. It is conceivable that one could do the whole San Diego IPT with just a 100-400 II. With a 1.4X TC in their pocket. And that goes double for folks using a 7D Mark II.

Self Critique

I do not have many good images of this West Coast species. Before last year, all of them were made with big glass and TCs. I love everything about this image: a good exposure (see more on that below), the sharpness, the image design with the bird nicely back in the frame, the o-o-f background that comes with having the bird right on the edge of the rock shelf, the soft light that is the result of a light cloud in front of the sun, the raised foot, and the delicious, earth-toned background colors (and the patterns there as well). And how could I almost miss the perfect head angle?

(Sorry Bug Bob — I just could not resist the comma after closing the parens around see more on that below” …)

Did I miss anything good or bad?

The DPP 4 screen capture for today’s featured image

Another Lying Histogram

Note in the DPP 4 screen capture that though there is no data at all anywhere near the rightmost box of the histogram, the RGB values for the brightest WHITEs on the bird’s flank are R = 240, G = 239, B = 229. I certainly would not want to go any brighter with the WHITEs.

So again, what’s the lesson? In situations where middle and dark tones prevail but where there are small areas of WHITE in an image, there may be no data at all in the rightmost box of the histogram even when the exposure is pretty much correct. If and when you get more than a very few blinkies on the WHITEs, you will want to go a click faster on the shutter speed (1/3 stop faster).

ISO Question

Why might ISO 800 been a better choice than ISO 400 for this image. Note that I was crouching …

2017 in San Diego was a very good year ….

2018 San Diego 4 1/2-DAY BIRDS AS ART IPT: Monday, JAN 15 thru and including the morning session on Friday, JAN 19, 2018: 4 1/2 days: $2099.
Limit: 10: Openings: 4

Meet and Greet at 6:30pm on the evening before the IPT begins; Sunday, Jan 14, 2018.

Join me in San Diego to photograph the spectacular breeding plumage Brown Pelicans with their fire-engine red and olive green bill pouches; Brandt’s (usually nesting and displaying) and Double-crested Cormorants; breeding plumage Ring-necked Duck; other duck species possible including Lesser Scaup, Redhead, Wood Duck and Surf Scoter; a variety of gulls including Western, California, and the gorgeous Heerman’s, all in full breeding plumage; shorebirds including Marbled Godwit, Whimbrel, Willet, Sanderling and Black-bellied Plover; many others possible including Least, Western, and Spotted Sandpiper, Black and Ruddy Turnstone, Semipalmated Plover, and Surfbird; Harbor Seal (depending on the current regulations) and California Sea Lion; and Bird of Paradise flowers. And as you can see by studying the two IPT cards there are some nice bird-scape and landscape opportunities as well. Please note: formerly dependable, both Wood Duck and Marbled Godwit have been declining at their usual locations for the past two years …

San Diego offers a wealth of very attractive natural history subjects. With annual visits spanning more than three decades I have lot of experience there….

With gorgeous subjects just sitting there waiting to have their pictures taken, photographing the pelicans on the cliffs is about as easy as nature photography gets. With the winds from the east almost every morning there is usually some excellent flight photography. And the pelicans are almost always doing something interesting: preening, scratching, bill pouch cleaning, or squabbling. And then there are those crazy head throws that are thought to be a form of intra-flock communication. You can do most of your photography with an 80- or 100-400 lens …

Did I mention that there are wealth of great birds and natural history subjects in San Diego in winter?

Though the pelicans will be the stars of the show on this IPT there will be many other handsome and captivating subjects in wonderful settings.

The San Diego Details

This IPT will include five 3 1/2 hour morning photo sessions, four 2 1/2 hour afternoon photo sessions, four lunches, and after-lunch image review and Photoshop sessions. To ensure early starts, breakfasts will be your responsibility. Dinners are on your own so that we can get some sleep.

A $599 non-refundable deposit is required to hold your slot for this IPT. You can send a check (made out to “Arthur Morris) to us at BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL, 33855. Or call Jim or Jennifer at the office with a credit card at 863-692-0906. Your balance, payable only by check, will be due on 9/11//2016. If we do not receive your check for the balance on or before the due date we will try to fill your spot from the waiting list. Please print, complete, and sign the form that is linked to here and shoot it to us along with your deposit check. If you register by phone, please print, complete and sign the form as noted above and either mail it to us or e-mail the scan. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack.

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).

Stuff

Nothing too exciting on Thursday. I worked on blog posts, got some lodging work done for the Bear Boat IPT, enjoyed a nice, easy 1/2 mile swim, and had my chiropractor TJ McKeon work on both shoulders for a bit. Shopped and did my meditation walk at Publix. And again I ate well.

Mongoose M3.6 Heads in Stock

For the first time in months, we have Mongoose M3.6 heads in stock. We got our hands on six the other day; three were already accounted for and we sold another one yesterday. Call Jim at 863-692-0906 to order yours.

The Streak

Just in case you have not been counting, today makes 10 days in a row with a new educational blog post 🙂

Booking.Com

I could not secure the lodging that I needed for the UK Puffins and Gannets IPT in Dunbar so I went from Hotels.Com to Booking.Com and was pleasantly surprised. I found the rooms that I needed with ease at a hotel that was not even on Hotels.Com, and it was a nice hotel that I had seen in person. And the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward.

Canon EOS 80D Questions

Is anyone out there using a Canon EOS 80D? I never heard of it until five minutes ago. If you are using one or know anything about this camera body, I would love for you to leave a comment sharing what you know. How does it compare to the 7D II? How is the AF system for birds in flight? It seems to have a lot of fancy features that I would never use …

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

Please Don’t Forget …

As always–and folks have been doing a really great job for a long time now–please remember to use the BAA B&H links for your major and minor gear purchases. For best results, use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would of course appreciate your business.

New Used Gear Listing

Canon EOS-1D Mark IV

Skilled photographer and BirdPhotographer.Net Avian Forum moderator Marina Scarr is offering a well-used (208,000 actuations) Canon EOS-1D Mark IV in excellent plus condition for the record-low-by-far BAA bargain price of $749. Having been covered by a protector screen, the rear LCD is in perfect shape as is the exterior of the body. There is a scratch on the focusing screen that does not affect the images or the performance of the camera. The sale includes the original box and everything that came in it as well as insured ground shipping via major courier to U.S. addresses. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Marina via e-mail or by phone at 813-263-4040 (Eastern time).

Two dependable, rugged 1D Mark IVs served as my workhorse professional bodies for several years; I really enjoyed their 1.3X crop factors, the fast frame rate, and the excellent image quality. Note: both of my 1D IV bodies had in excess of 300,000 clicks when I sold them years ago. artie

This image was created on the first morning of the Finland IPT from a small blind with the Wimberley V2 Tripod Head-mounted Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens and my favorite bird photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +3 1/3 stops off the snow: 1/320 sec. at f/4.5 in Manual mode. AWB. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -3. Center AF Point/AI Servo/Expand/Shutter button AF was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point was on the top of the folded wing below the upper back, right on the same plane as the bird’s eye. Black Grouse displaying

Plus 3 1/3 Stops Off the Snow?

Yes sir. Yes ma’am. That’s what we needed to get a decent amount of data into the rightmost box of the histogram. Without blowing out any of the white feathers. At times, that yielded a very few blinkies on the snow: perfect. And here is a Manual mode reminder: the huge advantage of working in Manual mode in this situation, with the constant soft light, is that the size of the nearly all blue-black subject in the frame did not matter. If you were in an automatic mode like Av or Tv the size of the subject in the frame would have a huge impact on the exposure reading. When working in Manual mode you can just set it and forget it.

Advantage Wimberley

Some might remember that I decided at the last minute to bring the Wimberley head to Finland along with my beloved Mongoose. What a good call that turned out to be. I knew that in many of the blinds that we would be mounting our tripod heads onto bolts set into the framework of the structures. I could not have imagined the advantage that the Wimberley would provide. With the Mongoose M3.6, the clamp is at a given height and it cannot be moved. For photography on a tripod this is of no concern. After screwing the Wimberley onto the bolt, I was able to raise or lower the clamp — best done without having the lens mounted — to optimize the position of the lens in the blind window. I sacrificed a bit of balance when doing this, but everyone using a Mongoose was envious. At times I was able to raise or lower the clamp in order to improve an image design.

Black and Blue and Black and White and a Splash of Red Yield a Spectacular Image …

While the coldest spring in forever resulted in no Ruff photography, the accompanying snow provided fabulous conditions for photographing the displaying Black Grouse, at least for those who knew how to get the right exposure with the black birds on the pure white snow. Despite editing so stringently I wound up keeping more than 100 male Black Grouse images. I will be sharing a few more of those with you here over time. Remember that in a normal year the snow on the Black Grouse lekking grounds would have been long gone …

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack.

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).