Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

What’s Up?

Again co-leader Denise Ippolito and I had our group positioned perfectly for sunrise, and again, the birds put on a great show. There was another photo group two hundred yards to our right but our chances were far better than theirs for a hundred reasons. Everyone else was completely in the wrong place. After the blast-off/flyout (still no fly-ins) we moved quickly to our next location and did very well with the cranes. There are several other photography groups at the refuge right now and I love the approach of the other leaders; I call it the tripods-in-cement approach. They put the group in one spot and an hour later nobody has moved their tripod once. The BAA/A Creative Adventure group on the other hand has moved more than half a dozen times, each with a purpose that is explained to the group; nearly all of our moves paid off handsomely.

We did our critiquing session at lunch and most everyone had some great images to share. We are headed back for our Tuesday afternoon session as I type. Our final morning session with the group is on Tuesday. We check out and drive to Albuquerque that afternoon and fly back east early on Thursday morning.

Strange EXIF…

When I looked at this image I would never have thought ISO 1600 as the image is bright and clean and the colors so rich… And the shutter speed of 1/100 sec. was a bit puzzling as well. In any case, everything worked beautifully.

The Image Optimization

After converting this image in DPP I brought it into Photoshop and applied a 50% layer of my NIK Color Efex Pro 50-50 recipe to the entire bill and the head. This enriched the colors and detail and toned down the light grey on the bill. Then I again used the Quick Selection Tool, this time to select the distal end of the bill. Then I applied a Contrast Mask to that layer as I was a bit short of depth-of-field.

Digital Basics

Are you tired of making your images look worse in Photoshop? Everything that I did to optimize today’s image and tons more is covered in detail in my Digital Basics File, an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. It includes my complete digital workflow, setting up BreezeBrowser and Downloader Pro, dozens of great Photoshop tips, the use of Contrast Masks, several different ways of expanding canvas, all of my time-saving Keyboard Shortcuts, the basics of Quick Masking, Layer Masking, and NIK Color Efex Pro, my killer image clean-up techniques, Digital Eye Doctor, creating time-saving actions, and lots more.

APTATS I & II

Learn the details of advanced Quick Masking techniques in APTATS I. Learn Advanced Layer Masking Techniques in APTATS I. Mention this blog post and apply a $5 discount to either with phone orders only. Buy both APTATS I and APTATS II and we will be glad to apply at $15 discount with phone orders only. Please call Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-221-2372 to take advantage of this offer. I am pretty sure that we have extended that offer to the BAA Online Store as well… No time to check right now. 🙂

The DPP 4 eGuide (PDF)

The Ideal Companion to the 7D Mark II User’s Guide

Learn how and why I and many other discerning photographers choose and use only DPP 4 to convert their Canon RAW files in the DPP 4 RAW Conversion Guide by Arash Hazeghi and yours truly. The latest version supports all of the newer Canon camera bodies and several older models including the EOS-7D and the EOS-1D Mark IV. A free update that will cover most of the newly added cameras will be sent as soon as I get it from Arash.

7D Mark II User’s Guide

You can purchase your copy right now in the BAA Online Store here for $59. Or call Jim or Jennifer at 863-692-0906 and place a phone order. This is the highest priced user’s guide ever, surpassing the 5D II User’s Guide that is priced at $50. Why? I did twice as much work preparing the 7D II Guide. It required many days of writing, many dozens of hours of study and research, not to mention hundreds of hours in the field trying to figure out the best 7D II setting while doing what I love to do best, photographing birds and nature. The camera is quite complex. Many thanks to both Rudy Winston and Chuck Westfall of Canon USA for their help in getting me through the stickiest parts.

The guide contains 23,196 words in 516 paragraphs. There are 24 photos and screen captures interspersed in the main body of the text and a gallery of 23 additional 7D II images that show what the camera is capable of with a variety of lens and lens/TC combinations. We would love your feedback.

The Great Strength of the 7D Mark II User’s Guide

The very great strength of the 7D Mark II User’s Guide is the coverage of the autofocus system. I review in detail all of the items on the five pink AF Menus. Most important of these is the Custom Case setting (at AF 1) that I have developed over time and currently use for all of my bird photography. On the recently concluded Hooptie Deux Spoonbills and more IPT John Johnson of Naples, FL mentioned that he was having trouble producing sharp flight images. I set up my Custom Case on his camera, and within minutes he was amazed at the sharp results that he was getting…. While skill, strength, fine motor control, and superior hand eye coordination are all factors that will influence your success as a flight photographer, you can have all of the preceding in spades but if your camera is not set up properly much of your effort will be in vain….

What Else is in the Guide?

In the 7D Mark II User’s Guide you will learn everything that I know about the important topics listed below, and better yet, I explain the options for each along with my reasons for choosing a specific setting in a specific situation.

Handling the WHITEs
The top LCD and all camera control buttons
7D Mark II drive modes
How to manually select an AF sensor
Choosing an AF Area Selection Mode; how and why (includes extensive detail)
Moving the AF point or Zone
The creation of in-camera Multiple Exposures and in-camera HDR images (includes extensive detail)
Live View Shooting and AF choices (all new in the 7D II)
Menu Item Access
Coverage of almost all Menu Items and Custom Functions including the following: Image Quality, Auto Lighting Optimizer, Lens aberration corrections settings, Highlight Tone Priority, AF Configuration Tool (as above, this includes details on the custom setting that I use), Acceleration/deceleration tracking, Tracking sensitivity, Lens drive when AF impossible, Orientation linked AF point (I love this feature), Highlight alert, Histogram display–do you know how to access both histograms at once?, Auto rotate, Image Jump, LCD Brightness, Info button display options, Custom Shooting Modes set-up, ISO Safety shift, using the Q button, setting up rear focus, and setting up your My Menu feature (among others).

The guide is–of course–written in my informal, easy-to-follow style.

Please note: Some Menu items are not covered in this guide for one of several reasons:

They deal only with the creation of movies (not covered)
They are irrelevant to nature photography.
After spending hours studying the 7D II Instruction Manual and consulting others I have no clue as to the purpose or the reason for the existence of a given feature.

Though I recommend that the irrelevant and confusing items be left at the default settings, I do, in most cases, I refer you to the relevant page in the 7D II Instruction Manual. If you follow up, it just might turn out that you are a lot smarter than me. In those cases I would love to hear from you via e-mail. So far none of the above have prevented me from creating many spectacular images with my 7D II.

Please note that this guide does not contain a table of contents or an index. To search the document for a given topic simply hit Control F to search. When the Find box pops up, simply type the term that you are looking for into the field and hit Next. This will allow you to find what you are looking for quickly and efficiently.

If you purchase the 7D II UG and it helps you to create better images, please feel free to send no more than two 1200 pixel wide or 900 pixel tall sharpened JPEGs to me via e-mail along with your comments. I will be glad to do a short critique if so requested.

Otherwise, feedback via e-mail or blog comment is always appreciated.

Click here and scroll down for a free 7D Mark II User’s Guide AF Point Auto Switching Excerpt.

See the “Many Many Lessons including: why I chose the 300 II/1D X in low light conditions, the 7D II viewfinder level, a short 7D II User’s Guide Viewfinder Display excerpt, adding green (marsh grass) to your images, and why to love hazy sun” blog post here and scroll down for a short excerpt on the 7D II Viewfinder Display.

2016 San Diego 4 1/2-DAY BIRDS AS ART Instructional Photo-Tour (IPT) JAN 8 thru the morning of JAN 12, 2016: $1899 (Limit: 10/Openings; 2)

Meet and Greet at 7:00pm on the day before the IPT begins
Two great leaders: Arthur Morris and Denise Ippolito

Join us in San Diego to photograph the spectacular breeding plumage Brown Pelicans with their fire-engine red and olive green bill pouches; Brandt’s and Double-crested Cormorants in breeding plumage with their amazing crests; breeding plumage Wood and Ring-necked Duck; other species possible including Lesser Scaup, Redhead, and Surf Scoter; a variety of gulls including Western, California, and the gorgeous Heerman’s, all in full breeding plumage; shorebirds including Marbled Godwit, Willet, Sanderling and Black-bellied Plover; many others possible including Least, Western, and Spotted Sandpiper, Whimbrel, Black and Ruddy Turnstone, Semipalmated Plover, and Surfbird; Harbor Seals (depending on the current regulations) and California Sea Lions likely; and Bird of Paradise flowers. And as you can see by studying the two IPT cards there are some nice landscape opportunities as well.

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

The San Diego Details

This IPT will include five 3 1/2 hour morning photo sessions, four 2 1/2 hour afternoon photo sessions, five lunches, after-lunch image review and Photoshop sessions, and a thank you dinner. To ensure early starts, breakfasts will be your responsibility.

A $499 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 11/1//2015. 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 our Affiliate Links 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you use our the B&H and Amazon affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your purchases. B&H is recommended for you major photography gear purchases, Amazon for your household, entertainment, and general purpose stuff. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod heads, Gitzo tripods, Wimberley heads and plates, LensCoats and accessories, and the like. 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 we are always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. I just learned that my account was suspended during my absence; it should be up and running by Monday at the latest.

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 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 visiting the BAA Online store as well.

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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. Many thanks to those who have written.

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 :).

What’s Up

Co-leader Denise Ippolito and I had the group in perfect position for a big white geese fly-in the extremely overcast conditions. After that there was tons of great teaching and not a lot of great photography except for a huge group of blackbirds that entertained us for 15 minutes. When I went back to the car to grab my 100-400II I missed the mother of all blackbird blast-offs; I had my back to the situation and thought that a truck had crashed or that a plane had landed on the tour loop road. Just another case of you snooze, you lose 🙂

Bosque Current Conditions Update

I hope to have a short Bosque Current Conditions Update finished by next weekend. It will be sent free to all who have previously purchased the Bosque Site Guide and will also be available as a separate purchase.

Geese along the tour loop road…

Late on Saturday afternoon the second IPT group was thrilled to see large numbers of geese blasting off at the north end of the tour loop road. We taught folks to work in Tv mode with Auto ISO (or ISO Safety Shift) as detailed in our various camera User’s Guides and to set the exposure compensation so that they wound up with properly exposed pleasing blurs. Most folks did great even though for many it was their first attempt.. On Sunday morning, there were some large groups of geese far back in the first field after the left turn. Time will tell as far as Sunday afternoon goes….

A Guide to Pleasing Blurs

In our A Guide to Pleasing Blurs by Denise Ippolito and yours truly, we discuss just about every technique ever used mankind to create pleasingly blurred image. Ninety-nine point nine percent of pleasing blurs are not happy accidents. You can learn pretty much everything that there is to know about creating them in this instructive, well written, easy to follow guide.

The Palouse IPTs

Rolling farmlands provide a magical patchwork of textures and colors, especially when viewed from the top of Steptoe Butte where we will likely enjoy spectacular sunrises and possibly a nice sunset. We will photograph grand landscapes and mini-scenics of the rolling hills and farm fields. We will take you to some really neat old abandoned barns and farmhouses in idyllic settings. There is no better way to improve your compositional and image design skills and to develop your creativity than to join us for this trip. Two great leaders: Denise Ippolito and Arthur Morris. Photoshop and image sharing sessions when we have the time and energy…. We get up early and stay out late and the days are long.

After 6 days of back-breaking scouting work in early June 2014 we found all of the iconic locations and, in addition, lots of spectacular new old barns and breath-taking landforms and views. On three additional scouting days in 2015 we discovered several more truly amazing locations. We will teach you what makes one situation prime and another seemingly similar one a waste of your time.

What’s included: In-the-field instruction, guidance, lessons, and inspiration, our newfound but very extensive knowledge of the area, all lunches, motel lobby grab and go breakfasts, and Photoshop and image sharing sessions when possible. There will be a meet and greet at 7:30pm on the evening before each workshop begins.

You will learn and hone both basic and advanced compositional and image design skills. You will learn to get the right exposure every time. You will learn to develop your creative eye. You will learn the basics of HDR (high dynamic range) photography. You will learn a variety of in-camera creative techniques. Most importantly you will learn to see the situation and to create a variety of top-notch images. Do see both of our blogs for lots more on that in the coming weeks. You will learn how the quality and direction of light combine to determine the success of your images. And–please don’t gasp–we will be working quite a bit with sidelight when creating landscapes. Lastly, we will be doing some infrared photography.

To Sign Up

A non-refundable $699 deposit is due now. The balance will be due on February 15, 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. Whether or not your spot is filled, you will lose your deposit. If not, you can secure your spot by paying your balance.

With the spectacular success that we enjoyed in 2015 it seems quite likely that this one will fill up very quickly. Please let me know via e-mail that you will be joining us. Then you can either call Jim or Jennifer at 863-692-0906 during business hours or send us a check to leave a deposit; the latter is preferred. If by check, please make out to “Arthur Morris” and mail it to: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL, 33855. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us via e-mail: artie or denise.

Travel Insurance Services offers a variety of plans and options. Included with the Elite Option or available as an upgrade to the Basic & Plus Options. You can also purchase Cancel for Any Reason Coverage that expands the list of reasons for your canceling to include things such as sudden work or family obligation and even a simple change of mind. You can learn more here: Travel Insurance Services. Do note that many plans require that you purchase your travel insurance within 14 days of our cashing your deposit check. Whenever purchasing travel insurance be sure to read the fine print carefully even when dealing with reputable firms like TSI.

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Support the BAA Blog. Support the BAA Bulletins: Shop B&H here!

We want and need to keep providing you with the latest free information, photography and Photoshop lessons, and all manner of related information. Show your appreciation by making your purchases immediately after clicking on any of our B&H or Amazon Affiliate links in this blog post. Remember, B&H ain’t just photography!

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use this link:

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. Many thanks to those who have written.

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 :).

What’s Up?

Other than a few minutes of bumps due to some rough air going in and out of Denver last week, my flights to ABQ on the 20th were long, exhausting, and thankfully un-eventful. I began working on this blog post during my layover in Denver and finished it in Socorro a week later, on the afternoon of the day after Thanksgiving.

Please Remember to shop the BAA Online Store, and to use our Affiliate Links 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you use our the B&H and Amazon affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your purchases. B&H is recommended for you major photography gear purchases, Amazon for your household, entertainment, and general purpose stuff. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod heads, Gitzo tripods, Wimberley heads and plates, LensCoats and accessories, and the like. 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 we are always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. I just learned that my account was suspended during my absence; it should be up and running by Monday at the latest.

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 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 visiting the BAA Online store as well.

More than anyplace on the planet…

Bosque is like a good golf course. To do your best, you have to use all the clubs in your bag. I always bring a ton of gear to the refuge and I surely broke all records this year. More than anyplace on the planet you can make great images with lenses of any focal length. Today’s opening image is the wide version of yesterday’s “Mega-nuclear Sunrise.” If you missed that one, click here.

Exposure Question

Why did the image above need -1/3 stop EC while yesterday’s tighter shot was perfect at +1/3 stop?

Bosque Gear Bag

Once I decided to ship the 600 II and the 200-400 w/Internal 1.4X Extender to the IPT hotel via UPS Ground, the only choice I had to make was whether to bring the 100-400 II or the 70-200 f/2.8 L IS II that had served me well here for so many years…. Read on. I’d be glad to answer an Bosque gear questions that you have.

Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM Lens The 600mm focal length lenses are perfect for photographing single cranes in flight in many situations and, with the addition of a 1.4X tele-converter, often perfect for photographing single geese in flight. I can increase versatility and focal length coverage by choosing either the 1D X or the 7D II according to the situation.

I learned recently that the latest version of the Nikon 600, the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 600mm f/4E FL ED VR lens, (8.4 pounds) is actually (and finally) a bit lighter than the Canon 600 II (8.65 pounds). The last two versions of the Nikon 600s were absurdly heavy; in this age of “lighter and smaller” serious Nikon bird photographers should be thrilled.

Canon EF 200-400mm f/4L IS USM Lens with Internal 1.4x Extender. I have brought this great lens with me to Bosque ever since I got my hands on one several years ago. With its focal length range of from 200-560 (the latter available in an instant by engaging the internal TC), it is my absolute favorite for the pre-dawn geese fly-ins and fly outs.

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens. This versatile lens will be on my shoulder every time I get out of the car with either a full frame body or the 1.6 crop factor 7D II via a Black Rapid RS-7 strap. I finally remembered to bring a second RS-7 strap to Bosque so that I will have one less rig lying in the dirt at the farm fields and elsewhere. The 100-400 focal length fits nicely with the 600II and will be a perfect blast off lens.

Gear Question #1

What is the single huge advantage that the 200-400 f/4L IS lens w/internal extender (7.98 lbs) has over the 100-400II (3.5 lbs) for the pre-dawn fly-ins and blast offs?

Gear Question #2

For those who will be using the 100-400II as their daytime blast-off blur lens why is the smaller aperture (f/5.6 at 400mm) a non-factor as compared to the larger f/4 aperture of the the 200-400 f/4L IS lens w/internal extender?

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens I am sure that I might miss this intermediate telephoto zoom lens on occasion, especially when creating bird-scapes in low light on a tripod….But heck, there is just so much room in the trunk of our rental car.

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM Lens. This all-purpose B-roll lens will be at hand for two weeks. It will spend a lot of time in my Vested Interest Xtrahand vest where it can be grabbed when needed.

I am bringing the Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM lens for south wind blast-offs and big sky images.

I am also bringing the old 15mm fish eye lens, now replaced by the “circle” lens, the Canon EF 8-15mm f/4L Fisheye.

Gear Question #3

Why would it be great to have either the 16-35 f/4 or the old 15mm fisheye lens on a 5D III for farmfield blastoffs at the cornfields on south winds?

Camera Bodies

EOS-1D X. I will use my rugged pro body both with the 600 II and with the 100-400 II, the latter in low light situations. The more powerful 1D X battery makes it better choice when I am working at 1200mm w/the 600II and the 2X III TC (with either a full frame body or the 7D II (rarely for the latter). As I needed to have the sensor professionally cleaned I have only a single 1DX on this trip.

5D Mark III. I will use the 5D III on the 100-400 II in low light blur and bird-scape situations to enjoy the larger file size.

EOS-7D Mark II. After the great success I enjoyed with the 7D II on the Falklands/South Georgia trips I am brought both of mine to Bosque this year.

The 5D II that was converted to IR by Kolari Vision was sent in advance by UPS Ground along with the two big lenses. Learn more about Kolari Vision and IR here or here.

Yikes!

Talk about last but not least, I borrowed a Canon EOS 5DS R from B&H and after not trying it for a few days, have totally fallen in love with it. I am buying at least one as soon as I get home…. See here for my first impressions.

TCs

I will be making this trip with two Canon 1.4X III TCs and one 2X III TC. I lost one of my two 2X III TCs on Bleaker Island in the Falklands…. I need to replace it. Why so many TCs? With my style of bird photography–tight, clean, and graphic–I cannot afford to be without both TCs in the event of an accident or malfunction–or loss. 🙂 Most common in the malfunction category would be that the locking pin sticks occasionally. When that happens, there is a risk of having your camera body hit the ground….

Questions Welcome

If you have a question about any of my gear choices, or yours, please feel free to leave a comment. Do you disagree with any of my choices? What would you be brining to Bosque. And why?

Think Tank Rolling Bags

I will be using the larger of my two Think Tank rolling bags, the Airport Security™ V 2.0 Rolling Camera Bag. Except for the Singh-Ray polarizer and the two super-telephoto lenses that were shipped, everything above fits easily into my Airport Security™ V 2.0 Rolling Camera Bag. It tipped the scales at only 39 pounds; the legal limit for US flights is 40 pounds. Nearly all countries in the world give you slack as far as the 40 pounds goes on the way back to the US.

Think Tank Urban Disguise Laptop Shoulder Bag

Both denise and I use and love this amazing bag as it has tons of room and enables us to bring tons of extra stuff. It is like one of those circus Volkswagons….

Please click on my Think Tank affiliate link here to earn a free gift when you purchase a Think Tank Rolling Bag.

Delkin Flash Cards

As always, I will have a 64gb Delkin e-Film Pro Flash Card in each camera body so that I never have to change cards in the field thus reducing the risk of losing a card…. Please note the new lower prices here. I do have a few extra 32 and 64gb cards in a Delkin CF Memory Card Tote, mostly to protect against operator errors….

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Support the BAA Blog. Support the BAA Bulletins: Shop B&H here!

We want and need to keep providing you with the latest free information, photography and Photoshop lessons, and all manner of related information. Show your appreciation by making your purchases immediately after clicking on any of our B&H or Amazon Affiliate links in this blog post. Remember, B&H ain’t just photography!

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use this link:

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. Many thanks to those who have written.

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 :).

What’s Up?

I wrote most of this blog post on Thanksgiving Day after a really short but really wonderful morning photo session. With the heavy cloud cover and the strong east wind, I knew that there was only one spot on the refuge that might offer some quality chances. I had been there the day before and it was dead. But on Thursday morning, it paid off in spades. As I said, it was the only game in town. (See Image #2.)

I felt much, much better on Thursday, the best I’ve felt in weeks. I had dinner with two friends at the El Camino Restaurant on the main drag in Socorro. My turkey special was quite good, so good that I ate much too much including a small piece of pumpkin pie for dessert.

How good did I feel? I went back to the refuge and photographed for four hours, almost all Infrared with my Kolari Vision converted 5D Mark II. With lots of dramatic clouds and a swirling flock of blackbirds I had a ton of fun in the sun. The sunset turned out to be a fizzle.

No dinner for me 🙂

Bosque Being Bosque…

Bosque was really dead before we arrived. Then it was OK for a day or three. Then pretty lousy again. For the six days I have been here, I would rate it 3.5 out of ten as far as photographic opportunities. Now don’t get me wrong, everyone on the first IPT enjoyed lots of great chances and learned a ton, in part because of two great instructors and in part because after 21 years, I know where to be when with these sky conditions and that wind.

It is a very strange year for a variety of reasons. Aside for the first session, there has not been the traditional early morning fly-in. Numbers of geese are clearly down, possibly due to a lack of food on the refuge, and they are roosting in distant pools way north and east of the main impoundment. When they blast off, the head straight north. And disappear. There have been very few geese anywhere near the north tour loop road for the past few days. One afternoon we drove both the north and south loops and saw a grand total of one Snow Goose. But we wound up having a great afternoon anyway.

Bosque being Bosque; it can disappoint one day and leave you in tears the next….

ISO Challenge

What do you think the ISO was for image #1? What do you think it was for image #2?

Your Favorite?

Which image is your favorite? And why?

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Support the BAA Blog. Support the BAA Bulletins: Shop B&H here!

We want and need to keep providing you with the latest free information, photography and Photoshop lessons, and all manner of related information. Show your appreciation by making your purchases immediately after clicking on any of our B&H or Amazon Affiliate links in this blog post. Remember, B&H ain’t just photography!

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may click on the logo-link immediately 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. Many thanks to those who have written.

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 :).

What’s Up?

I am feeling lot better as I type early on the morning of Wednesday November 25, 2015. I am much less congested but the dry hacking coughing spells that I had off and on yesterday were not fun. My plan is to get a chest X-ray done today.

I will be heading out for sunrise in a few and follow that up with a day of rest. The next IPT group begins on Saturday afternoon. The first group had a ball despite overall bad luck and relatively poor conditions so far. There were lots of goodbye hugs at the crane pool last night….

If…

If you are inspired to purchase a 5DS R by what you read or see here on the blog over the next few weeks please remember to use my B&H product specific links to purchase yours from B&H. Many thanks, and happy bird-day tomorrow.

Enjoy the Blog?

Do you enjoy reading the blog? Do you learn something on most visits? Are you all set as far as gear goes? If yes to all of those, please consider making a BAA Blog Thank You Donation by clicking here. And if you do need some new gear, please use my affiliate links, most especially, the B&H affiliate logo link just to the right of this text. Simply click and begin your search and shopping spree :). Note: web orders only. Also, there will be no indication that your purchases will be tracked to BAA. The tracking is invisible. That’s why we ask folks to send us their B&H receipts for major purchases via e-mail. Please remember: no phone orders…. Many thanks for considering these requests. a

Induro $50 Instant Rebate

The Induro $50 instant rebate will last only until the end of this year. Click on the logo-link above to save $50 on our favorite tripods. On our recent grueling trip to the Southern Ocean Denise loved her new GIT 304 and I love my new GIT 304L. Both performed flawlessly in the mud, snow and ice.

Induro GIT 404L Super Sale Correction!

For a limited time only the Induro GIT 404L is being offered for the ridiculously low price of $470 (including the $50 instant rebate). I apologize for the $370 typo that appeared in yesterday’s blog.) The best news is that the $470 price will be offered for at least a few days more.

The Induro GIT 404L is a 4-leg section Grand Series tripod. It is slightly bigger and one pound heavier than the GIT 304L; it is the perfect tripod for those using big glass who would like a bit more stability.

Canon EOS-5DS R for Birds: An Overview

I borrowed a full frame 50.6 megapixel EOS-5DS R from B&H for the Bosque trip and used it for the first time on Monday afternoon. To say that I was impressed is an understatement. For those coming from a 5D III or a 7D II there is virtually no learning curve (though there were a few quirky items). AF is surprisingly quick and sure and the AF system is pretty much the same as on the two previously mentioned cameras. Five frames/second seems a bit clunky as compared to the 1D X but for my style of bird photography where I rarely hold the hammer down the slower frame rate is not much of a hindrance. And having what amounts to a medium format DSLR for sports and nature photography is hard to comprehend.

I have been using the 5DS R with my 600 ever since I saw the first image files and right now I am planning on buying a 5DS R as soon as I get home…

I’ve never seen image files like these…

At lunch on Tuesday I shared a head portrait of a young blue morph Snow Goose at 100% with the group; everyone gasped when they saw the fine feather detail and the incredible resolution. Some folks were breathless. I have never seen images files with detail like a sharply focused 5DS R image file. I will be sharing lots more 5DS R images with you here in the near future.

5DS R AF

I was pleasantly surprised by the speed and accuracy of the AF system and AF tracking accuracy. Lots more to come on this topic.

High ISO with the 5DS R

I have not done much with the higher 5DS R ISOs yet. The lack of background noise in this crane landing silhouette noise is impressive. After the trip I will get a bunch of 5DS R Raw files to Arash to see what he thinks about the noise. And about the fine feather detail.

What Do You Think?

What do you think of the 5DS R images? Which of the three is your favorite? Why?

Mid-Morning Update from the ER

Two things that I had wanted to mention:

1-Though I never filled the buffer–I rarely do–I did notice that when I took two or three images in a row that it took a few seconds to be able to view the histogram via image review.

2-Seeing the JPEGs here cannot give you any idea of the incredible detail that you see when viewing a sharp image at 100% on a Macbook Pro with retina display.

Facebook

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Support the BAA Blog. Support the BAA Bulletins: Shop B&H here!

We want and need to keep providing you with the latest free information, photography and Photoshop lessons, and all manner of related information. Show your appreciation by making your purchases immediately after clicking on any of our B&H or Amazon Affiliate links in this blog post. Remember, B&H ain’t just photography!

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may click on the logo-link immediately 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. Many thanks to those who have written.

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 :).

What’s Up?

I wrote most of this blog post on the ship and am finishing it up early on the morning of Sunday November 22, 2015. I have been working since 2:30am, after sleeping fitfully for five hours. It was a rough night as, with a mega-stuffed nose, I peeked at the clock every 20 minutes or so…. Happily, still no sore throat. But I have begun feeling pretty lousy 🙂

We have our first morning Bosque IPT session in exactly one hour. This blog post took several hours to assemble, that with lots of help from Pauline Carr. Many thanks Pauline.

Getting Older and Seeing the Situation…

The expedition staff let us know that the hike to the grey-headed nest would be long and arduous. I knew right off the bat that the long, steep climb through tussock grass and mud was physically beyond me. And beyond several others in the BAA group. As we landed I saw lots of Grey-headed and Light Mantled Sooty Albatrosses flying over a bluff just above the beach. Expedition staff leader team Tim Carr had found a nest of the latter species just beyond the bluff. I asked for and received permission to make the moderate climb to the top of the bluff and hang out waiting for some albatrosses and giant petrels to fly by. The going was tough at first but those who joined me and persisted enjoyed some very good chances.

Tight Flight Miracle

When photographing birds in flight I encourage folks to try to keep shooting as the birds get closer. Maintaining accurate focus on the face as they approach point blank range is difficult. Properly framing the image so as to get the tail in the frame is a near-impossibility. If, however, you do not try, it is guaranteed that you will never succeed.

The story of a critically endangered albatross species…

Grey-headed Albatross is a critically endangered species; the epicenter of their population is centered around Elsehul and several other nearby islands in South Georgia. Most fatalities are the result of long line fishing for swordfish and tuna. Lines with tens of thousands of baited hooks, some as long as 40 nautical miles (and even triple that length!), are deployed. As the lines are tossed overboard many species of albatross grab the bait and those that are hooked succumb quickly.

To reduce mortality fishing within 200 miles of in South Georgia and a massive surrounding area, active fishing is permitted only at night, the long lines are weighted to sink the bait more quickly, distracting streamer lines are employed, the dumping of offal while the lines are being set is not permitted, and each ship has an observer aboard. Because boats that catch six birds of any species must stop fishing and leave the protected area the crews are very, very careful and bird deaths have been greatly reduced.

The stark numbers reveal that there are now about 16,000 pairs of Grey-headed Albatross down from 84,000 pairs in the early 1990s.

As noted previously, everything above in italics is courtesy of Pauline Carr via personal comment on the ship. (See more on Pauline and Tim Carr here.)

GALAPAGOS Photo Cruise of a Lifetime IPT/The Complete Galapagos Photographic Experience. August 8-22, 2017 on the boat. 13 FULL and two half-days of photography: $12,499. Limit: 12 photographers plus the two leaders: Denise Ippolito and yours truly. Openings: 8.

Same great trip; no price increase!
Four slots filled already; this trip needs nine to run; in the unlikely event that it does not, all payments to BAA will be refunded in full.

My two-week Galapagos Photo-Cruises are without equal. The world’s best guide, a killer itinerary, a great boat (the Samba), and two great leaders with ten Galapagos cruises under their belts. Pre-trip and pre-landing location-specific gear advice. In-the-field photo instruction and guidance. Jeez, I almost forgot: fine dining at sea!

The great spots that we will visit include Tower Island (including Prince Phillips Steps and Darwin Bay), Hood Island (including Punta Suarez, the world’s only nesting site of Waved Albatross, and Gardner Bay)—each of the preceding are world class wildlife photography designations that rank right up there with Antarctica, Africa, and Midway. We will also visit Fernandina, Puerto Ayora for the tortoises, Puerto Egas—James Bay, and North Seymour for nesting Blue-footed Boobies in most years, South Plaza for Land Iguanas, Floreana for Greater Flamingoes, and Urbina Bay, all spectacular in their own right. We visit every great spot on a single trip. Plus tons more. And there will be lots of opportunities to snorkel on sunny mid-days for those like me who wish to partake.

It is extremely likely that we will visit the incredible Darwin Bay and the equally incredible Hood Island, world home of Waved Albatross twice on our voyage. The National Park Service takes its sweet time in approving such schedule changes.

We will be the first boat on each island in the morning and the last boat to leave each island every afternoon. If we are blessed with overcast skies, we will often spend 5-6 hours at the best sites. And as noted above, mid-day snorkeling is an option on most sunny days depending on location and conditions. On the 2015 trip most snorkeled with a mega-pod of dolphins. I eased off the zodiac to find hundreds of dolphins swimming just below me. Note: some of the walks are a bit difficult but can be made by anyone if half way decent shape. Great images are possible on all landings with either a hand held 70-200mm lens and a 1.4X teleconverter or an 80- or 100-400. I bring a longer lens ashore on most landings as they better fit my style. I generally bring only one of these as my big lens: the Canon 300mm f/2.8L IS, the new Canon 400mm DO lens, or the Canon 200-400mm f/4 L IS with Internal Extender.

An Amazing Value…

Do know that there are one week Galapagos trips for $8500! Thus, our trip represents a tremendous value; why go all that way and miss half of the great photographic locations?

The Logistics

August 6, 2017: We arrive a day early to ensure that we do not miss the boat.

August 7, 2017: There will be an introductory Galapagos Photography session and a hands on exposure session at our hotel.

August 8, 2017: We fly to the archipelago and board the Samba. Heck, on the 2015 trip some people made great images at the dock in Baltra while our luggage was being loaded!

August 22, 2017: We disembark late morning and fly back to Guayaquil midday; most will overnight there.

Most will fly home on the early morning of July 23 unless they are staying on or going elsewhere (or catching a red-eye flight on the evening of the 22nd).

$12,499 includes just about everything: all transfers, guide and park fees, all food on the boat, transfers and ground transportation, your flights to the archipelago, and three nights (double occupancy) in a top notch hotel in Guayaquil. If you are good to go, a non-refundable deposit of $5,000 per person is due immediately. The second payment of $4,000 is not due until 11/1/16. The final payment of $3449 per person will be due on 2/1/17. A $200 discount will be applied to each of the balances for couples or friends who register at the same time.

Purchasing travel insurance within 2 weeks of our cashing your deposit check is strongly recommended. On two fairly recent cruises a total of 5 folks were forced to cancel less than one week prior to the trip. My family and I use Travel Insurance Services and strongly recommend that you do the same.

Not included: your round trip airfare from your home to and from Guayaquil, beverages on the boat, phone calls, your meals in Guayaquil, personal items, and a $600/person cash tip for the crew and the guide—this works out to roughly $40/day to be shared by the 7 folks who will be waiting on us hand and foot every day for two weeks. The service is so wonderful that many folks choose to tip extra.

Please e-mail for the tentative itinerary or with questions. Please cut and paste “Galapagos 2017 Tentative Itinerary Please” into the Subject line.

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Support the BAA Blog. Support the BAA Bulletins: Shop B&H here!

We want and need to keep providing you with the latest free information, photography and Photoshop lessons, and all manner of related information. Show your appreciation by making your purchases immediately after clicking on any of our B&H or Amazon Affiliate links in this blog post. Remember, B&H ain’t just photography!

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may click on the logo-link immediately 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. Many thanks to those who have written.

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 in bed by 8:30pm on Thursday night and not feeling too bad. I fell asleep in minutes as I usually do. I woke at 2:20am unable to breath through my nose at all; in just a few hours my congestion had become a full fledged head cold. I am grateful that I do not have a sore throat. In any case I tried unsuccessfully to get back sleep so I got up and went to work on the new Southern Ocean Photography Guide. I am, in fact, feeling pretty good despite my runny nose. It is 9:15am as I type in the car on the way to MCO flying from Orlando to Denver where I meet my friend and Bosque co-leader Denise Ippolito. From there we take the short flight to ABQ. Tomorrow morning we make an early morning scouting run to Bosque and then meet the first group after dinner. The first IPT is one-over-the-limit sold out.

I put the finishing touches on this blog post at the airport in Denver. I am not feeling too, too bad. 🙂

Bosque IPT #2: Next to Last Chance: $200 Late Registration Discount Offer!

Try Jim in the office on Monday to sign up for the last spot on the second Bosque IPT. We have room for either one photographer or for a couple. See the complete details here.

Selling Your Used Photo Gear Through BIRDS AS ART

Selling your used (or like-new) photo gear through the BAA Blog or via a BAA Online Bulletin is a great idea. We charge only a 5% commission. One of the more popular used gear for sale sites charges a minimum of 20%. Plus assorted fees! Yikes. The minimum item price here is $500 (or less for a $25 fee). If you are interested please e-mail with the words Items for Sale Info Request cut and pasted into the Subject line :). Stuff that is priced fairly–I offer free pricing advice, usually sells in no time flat. In the past few months, we have sold just about everything in sight. Do know that prices on some items like the EOS-1D Mark IV, the old Canon 500mm, the EOS-7D, and the original 400mm IS DO lens have been dropping steadily.

Used Gear Cautions

Though I am not in a position to post images of gear for sale here or elsewhere, prospective buyers are encouraged to request for photos of the gear that they are interested in purchasing via e-mail. Doing so will help to avoid any misunderstandings as to the condition of the gear. Sellers are advised to take care to photograph their used gear with care against clean backgrounds so that the stuff is represented accurately and in the best light; please pardon the pun :).

New Listings

Canon 500mm f/4L IS Lens (“the old five”)/Lowest-ever BAA Price for this item

Multiple IPT veteran Pat Fishburne is offering a used Canon 500mm f/4L IS Lens (“the old five”) in excellent condition for sale for only $3799, the lowest-ever BAA price for this item. The sale includes the lens trunk, a LensCoat, the ET-138 Hood, the big leather E-163 Lens Cover, the rear cap, a Wimberley P-40 lens plate, the lens manual, all originally included accessories, and insured shipping via FedEx Ground.  Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made. Please contact Pat by e-mail or by phone at 919-593-0709 or 919-537-8006 (Eastern time zone). Photos available upon request.

As regular readers know the “old five” was the world’s most popular super telephoto lens for many years. I owned and used one for more than a decade. Pat’s lens is priced to sell immediately. artie

Canon 500mm f/4L IS Lens (“the old five”)/Lowest-ever BAA Price for this item

Multiple IPT veteran Stokes Fishburne is offering a used Canon 500mm f/4L IS Lens (“the old five”) in excellent condition for sale for only $3799, the lowest-ever BAA price for this item. The sale includes the lens trunk, a LensCoat, the ET-138 Hood, the big leather E-163 Lens Cover, the rear cap, a Wimberley P-40 lens plate, the lens manual, all originally included accessories, and insured shipping via FedEx Ground.  Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made. Please contact Stokes by e-mail or by phone at 919-593-0709 or 919-537-8006 (Eastern time zone). Photos available upon request.

As regular readers know the “old five” was the world’s most popular super telephoto lens for many years. I owned and used one for more than a decade. Pat’s lens is priced to sell immediately. artie

Featured Item

Canon 200-400mm f/4L IS lens with Internal 1.4X Extender

Kenton Rowe is offering a used Canon 200-400mm with Internal 1.4X Extender in Very Good condition for $9,799. The sale includes the Canon PL-C 52mm drop-in Circular Polarizing filter (a $240 value), the Canon E-145C Lens Cap (actually a lens hood made of tough synthetic fabric, the rear lens cap, the ET-120 Lens Hood, the lens trunk, and insured shipping via UPS Ground. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Kenton via e-mail or by phone at 406.465.6707 (Mountain time).

The 200-400 is a killer lens when you are working with tame birds or large mammals; can you say the Galapagos and Africa, the Southern Ocean, or Florida? artie

King Cormorant’s Many Aliases

The cormorants of the Southern Ocean can be a confusing group. In different locations the local names for what are actually different species are often the same. Many species have several or even many different common names. On top of all that you can throw in the fact that the scientists often re-classify the varies species sometimes lumping them into a large super-species comprised of various races and then a year or two later splitting them into distinct species each with a given set of characteristics that often include various DNA markers. Whatever the state of the scientific species mumbo jumbo, each then-agreed-upon species has it own distinct scientific (Latin) name that always includes both the genus name and the species name. Sometimes a subspecific Latin name is added to form a trinomial species name.

The bird in today’s featured image is most commonly called King Cormorant in the Falklands where both of today’s images were created. Others might know the bird as King Shag, Imperial Cormorant, Imperial Shag, Blue-eyed Cormorant or Blue-eyed Shag.

You get the picture 🙂 In any case, today’s bird is Phalacrocorax atriceps.

King Cormorant: Sun versus White Sky

Please leave a comment and let us know if you like the bright sun version, Image #1, or the high key/white sky version, Image #2. And be sure to let us know why. Which image features the nicest light? Which image features the nicest pose?

Induro $50 Instant Rebate

The Induro $50 instant rebate will last only until the end of this year. Click on the logo-link above to save $50 on our favorite tripods. On our recent grueling trip to the Southern Ocean Denise loved her new GIT 304 and I love my new GIT 304L. Both performed flawlessly in the mud, snow and ice.

Induro GIT 404L Super Sale!

For a limited time only the Induro GIT 404L is being offered for the ridiculously low price of $470 (including the $50 instant rebate). The Induro GIT 404L is a 4-leg section Grand Series tripod. It is slightly bigger and one pound heavier than the GIT 304L; it is the perfect tripod for those using big glass who would like a bit more stability.

Gura Gear Backpack Blowout

I do not use a backpack. But many of my and denise’s clients who do have long raved about the Guru Gear backpacks. As have many professionals. These great photo backpacks are being phased out and will not be replaced in their present form. Take advantage of the huge price reductions on three popular models, the Bataflae 26L, the Bataflae 32L, and the Bataflae 18L, and enjoy a superbly high quality backpack that with its sturdy, high end zippers and durable fabric will serve you well for many years.

Facebook

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

Support the BAA Blog. Support the BAA Bulletins: Shop B&H here!

We want and need to keep providing you with the latest free information, photography and Photoshop lessons, and all manner of related information. Show your appreciation by making your purchases immediately after clicking on any of our B&H or Amazon Affiliate links in this blog post. Remember, B&H ain’t just photography!

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may click on the logo-link immediately 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. Many thanks to those who have written.

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 :).

Enjoy the Blog?

Do you enjoy reading the blog? Do you learn something on most visits? Are you all set as far as gear goes? If yes to all of those, please consider making a BAA Blog Thank You Donation by clicking here. And if you do need some new gear, please use my affiliate links, most especially, the B&H affiliate logo link just to the right of this text. Simply click and begin your search and shopping spree :). Note: web orders only. Also, there will be no indication that your purchases will be tracked to BAA. The tracking is invisible. That’s why we ask folks to send us their B&H receipts for major purchases via e-mail. Please remember: no phone orders…. Many thanks for considering these requests. a

ps: think that I am being too cheeky? I put in about 15 to 30 hours per week on the blog; it is my part time job 🙂

What Was Up?

The text immediately below was written on the morning of Thursday, November 5, 2015 while I was on the Ortelius somewhere off South Georgia.

After a rough, nearly 3 day crossing from The Falklands to South Georgia–can you say Force 10 Gale?, we made our first landing at Undine Harbor, South Georgia on the afternoon of Wednesday, November 4. As I work on this blog post, the wind is still howling and the snow is still blowing. Our Thursday morning landing has been canceled due to the harsh conditions and we have pulled anchor and set sail back to Elsehul in hopes of landing early this afternoon and making the climb up to see some nesting Grey-headed Albatrosses.

Our first landing was very wet and very cold, with most folks soaked with icy seawater both on the ride into our landing and the ride back to the ship. Only those with the heaviest duty raingear did not have to hang everything in their cabins in an attempt to dry out them out overnight. Neither denise nor I were in that group (even though her outer shell cost more then $300.) I am happy to report that–with the help of a scopalamine patch, denise survived the crossing in fine fashion. As for me, I have not–knock on wood–gotten seasick since I worked on Ron Grandinetti’s charter boat out of Montauk, Long Island for 17 days in the mid-1970s after getting laid off from teaching. My writing career had begun just before that writing stories for the weekly rag, “The Long Island Fisherman.”

What’s Up Now?

I am feeling a lot better today. Tomorrow is packing day. I fly to Albuquerque on Friday and meet denise at the airport just before dinner. After a morning of scouting we meet the 1st Bosque group late on Saturday.

Note: after the rough start and some harsh weather for the first few days (as noted above) things calmed down nicely and the Cheesemans’ OCT 2015 South Georgia Expedition was a huge success for all who were fortunate enough to be aboard.

Bosque #2

With just two openings left, we are raising the later registration discount to $200. See yesterday’s blog post for details. Then call Jim or Jen in the office at 863-692-0906 tomorrow to register. Time is short. And so is life 🙂

Induro $50 Instant Rebate

The Induro $50 instant rebate will last only until the end of this year. Click on the logo-link above to save $50 on our favorite tripods. On our recent grueling trip to the Southern Ocean Denise loved her new GIT 304 and I love my new GIT 304L. Both performed flawlessly in the mud, snow and ice.

Induro GIT 404L Super Sale!

For a limited time only the Induro GIT 404L is being offered for the ridiculously low price of $470 (including the $50 instant rebate). The Induro GIT 404L is a 4-leg section Grand Series tripod. It is slightly bigger and one pound heavier than the GIT 304L; it is the perfect tripod for those using big glass who would like a bit more stability.

Gura Gear Backpack Blowout

I do not use a backpack. But many of my and denise’s clients who do have long raved about the Guru Gear backpacks. As have many professionals. These great photo backpacks are being phased out and will not be replaced in their present form. Take advantage of the huge price reductions on three popular models, the Bataflae 26L, the Bataflae 32L, and the Bataflae 18L, and enjoy a superbly high quality backpack that with its sturdy, high end zippers and durable fabric will serve you well for many years.

Capturing the Essence: It’s a Tough Life…

Sometimes a single image can tell a whole story. This simple, graphic image succinctly tells the story of our first South Georgia landing. Denise first spotted this subject and created a wonderful image of the whole bird by working a bit wide and placing the sleeping penguin in the upper left of a vertical frame (thus putting more emphasis on the mud nest than I did with my similar images). I helped her by suggesting that she get closer and a higher so as to place the penguin’s head against a background of white snow rather than black mud. When she was done I moved in a bit closer and created today’s featured image. Teamwork is a wonderful thing.

You can see denise’s stunning wider version of today’s featured subject in her South Georgia trip report blog post by clicking here. It is the fourth of 33 wonderful images. All are invited to leave a comment there or here and let me know your favorite denise image from the trip. See especially the two creatively filtered images at the bottom of the post.

NIK Silver Efex Pro Full Dynamic Smooth

While the original image that opens this blog post did not show much color, there are significant red tones in the black feathers. When I wish to create a black and white version I bring the image into Silver Efex Pro and try the pre-sets that look as if they might have potential. With this image, Full Dynamic Smooth was the clear choice for me.

Your Favorite?

Please take a moment to leave a comment and let us know if you prefer the color version or the B&W version. And do of course let us know why you made your choice.

Facebook

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

Support the BAA Blog. Support the BAA Bulletins: Shop B&H here!

We want and need to keep providing you with the latest free information, photography and Photoshop lessons, and all manner of related information. Show your appreciation by making your purchases immediately after clicking on any of our B&H or Amazon Affiliate links in this blog post. Remember, B&H ain’t just photography!

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may click on the logo-link immediately 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. Many thanks to those who have written.

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 :).

What’s Up?

Me. Early on Tuesday morning.

I arrived in Miami 30 minutes early on Monday morning at 4:45am. The 8 hour flight was not too bad. I lucked out by getting seat 30K on a big Boeing jetliner: emergency row with ten feet of bulkhead legroom and it even reclined! Many emergency row seats do not recline… Poor man’s first class. I probably slept more than 4 hours, most of it in one fell swoop. I did get up often to walk around and get some more water. And I did leg exercises when I was awake at my seat. If you missed the DVT (deep vein thrombosis) blog post that might save your life, be sure to check it out here.

After clearing customs and dropping my two checked bags at re-check, I was off in search of a McDonald’s for two breakfast burritos. And my gate. “There is a McDonald’s on the D Concourse” said the friendly TSA lady whom I had asked so I took the train partway (and then still had a very long walk to Gate D27). As it turned out, there was no Mickey D’s anywhere on the D concourse but I did see a huge sign on the way down the escalator from the train: Centurion Lounge: free with your Platinum AMEX card. Gate D12. So decided to head to it in search of a free breakfast.

Bingo! Spanish eggs with chicken. I added some slivered almonds, a tablespoon of craisons, and a dollop of sour cream. The only thing missing was a bit of salsa. But it was yummy and relatively healthy. What a pleasant surprise. See more below.

My flight to MCO was not until 10:30am so I hung out at the lounge and enjoyed the free internet. Jim met me as usual and after our customary stop at Publix we were home by 1pm. After lunch I napped and napped and napped. After my dinner salad I fell asleep on the couch in front of Monday night football. I officially got into bed at about 10:30 and slept yet another five hours. I no longer feel like a zombie. I fly to Bosque on Friday! We got two sign-ups the last two days but we still have room for one or two more. (As per the website we always reserve the right to go with one over the limit.) See more below.

Though I am still a bit congested I continue to feel fine 🙂

Induro $50 Instant Rebate

The Induro $50 instant rebate will last only till 2016. Click on the logo-link above to save $50 on our favorite tripods. On our recent grueling trip to the Southern Ocean Denise loved her new GIT 304 and I love my new GIT 304L. Both performed flawlessly in the mud, snow and ice.

AMEX Centurion Lounges

From the LoungeBuddy website:

American Express offers some of the most diverse airport lounge benefits of any credit card issuer through its flagship Platinum Card®. A complimentary membership to Priority Pass™ Select opens the door at over 600 clubs worldwide, and you can also flash your Platinum Card to gain access to other lounges operated by Airspace and Delta Air Lines. But not everyone knows that American Express operates its own airport lounges and is expanding that network within the U.S.

The most recent attention has been given to the American Express Centurion Lounges, beginning with Las Vegas (Concourse D, served by United Airlines), Dallas/Fort Worth (Terminal D, served by American Airlines and international departures), New York-LaGuardia (Terminal B, Landside), San Francisco (Terminal 3 Concourse F, served by United Airlines), and Miami (North Terminal Concourse D, served by American Airlines). The Centurion Studio, an extension of the Centurion Lounge network in a smaller setting, is available in Seattle (Concourse B, served by Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, and Virgin America). All lounges are located airside and can be accessed from other terminals via inter-terminal trains or walkways, with the exception of the LaGuardia location, which is before security.

Remember, passengers with a valid ticket may usually access other areas of the airport even if their flight uses a different terminal. Just be sure to leave time to exit and re-clear security before your departure!

The Centurion Lounges are truly a notch above most domestic U.S. lounges, which reflects their association with a premium card issuer like American Express. Guests can partake of a gourmet taco bar for breakfast and lunch at the 9,000-square-foot location in Dallas/Fort Worth as well as other rotating menu choices imagined by Chef Dean Fearing. Since the menus for each Centurion Lounge are designed by a different gourmet chef, guests will also be able to feast on the culinary delights of Scott Conant (in Las Vegas), Cedric Vongerichten (in New York-LaGuardia and San Francisco), and Michelle Bernstein (in Miami). Relax on one of the lounge chairs, catch up on work with the complimentary WiFi, or reserve the complimentary meeting room. A children’s room with video games and other toys is also available.

The most amazing thing about the Centurion Lounges is that all of these benefits are included in the entry fee, which is waived for Platinum and Centurion Cardholders. (Other American Express Cardholders must pay $50 per person.) Yes, that means even treatments at the Exhale Spa in Dallas/Fort Worth and Miami, providing chair massages, skin treatments, and manicures – all performed by excellent professionals.

You can learn more here.

A new species: Moseley’s Rockhopper Penguin

On our day trip out of Stanley on Saturday, October 31, we visited a really neat Rockhopper Penguin on the northern coast. The rookery was located on a rocky hillside with orange sea lichen (Caloplaca) in abundance. I spent the first hour using both my 25-105 and my 16-35mm f/4 L lens doing bird-scapes.

Our driver-guide for the day told us that there was a Northern Rockhopper Penguin in the rockhopper colony. We learned that this is a slightly larger version of the run of the mill rockhoppers with a much longer shaggy. Northern rockhopper nests on a speck of an island in the South Atlantic; Tristan da Cuhna that is actually closer to South Africa than it is to Brazil. After a while she spotted the bird and pointed it out to us. It was standing on a rock well up on the hillside. I had been using the 100-400 II and decided to go back to the truck for the 400 DO II and both teleconverters. The bird was still standing on the flat rock when I got back but as soon as I pointed the lens at it it decided to walk off its perch… I said to denise, who was using her 70-200 f/2.8L IS lens/2X III TT/7D II combo, “Let’s be patient.” So we were.

Our rock star penguin continued to play hard to get hiding behind this rock and that. We were thrilled when he walked back up to the flat rock above the colony. But, he immediately began kissing up on a female rockhopper below. Denise got one nice image out of that but with the 400 D0II/2X III/1D X combo I had way too much focal length and again came up empty. Then the bird walked right towards us and began to head downhill I was wishing that I had still had my 100-400 II… Denise was hand holding her outfit and was of course able to zoom in and out as needed. Though we were really scrambling in the fierce winds, fierce only if you consider gusts to 70mph to be fierce, denise made lots of excellent images. At risk of life and limb on the loose rocks, we managed to get downhill and ahead of the bird several times. I managed to switch the 2X III for the 1.4X III and was very happy to create today’s featured image with a distant orange/yellow lichen background.

I learned from Joe Kaplan on the ship that the Northern Rockhopper was very recently accorded full species status and is now called Moseley’s Rockhopper Penguin.

The Before and After Animated GIF

The before and after animated GIF above clearly shows the bill clean-up and the lightening of the eye and the shaded portion of the face, the latter which brings the image to life. The RAW file, which was converted in DDP 4, was well darker the converted TIFF. I move the very effective Shadow slider to +3 during the conversion.

Digital Basics

Nearly everything that I did to optimize today’s image is covered in detail in my Digital Basics File–written in my easy-to-follow, easy-to-understand style. Are you tired of making your images look worse in Photoshop? Digital Basics File is an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. It includes my complete digital workflow, dozens of great Photoshop tips, details on using all of my image clean-up tools, the use of Contrast Masks, several different ways of expanding and filling in canvas, all of my time-saving Keyboard Shortcuts, Quick Masking, Layer Masking, and NIK Color Efex Pro basics, Contrast Masks, Digital Eye Doctor techniques, using Gaussian Blurs, Tim Grey Dodge and Burn, a variety of ways to make selections, how to create time-saving actions, the Surface Blur (background noise reduction) settings and Brush Opacity Magic both taught to me by Denise Ippolito, and tons more.

APTATS I & II

Learn the details of advanced Quick Masking techniques in APTATS I. Learn Advanced Layer Masking Techniques in APTATS I. Mention this blog post and apply a $5 discount to either with phone orders only. Buy both APTATS I and APTATS II and we will be glad to apply at $15 discount with phone orders only. Please call Jim or Jennifer weekdays at 863-221-2372 to take advantage of this offer. I am pretty sure that we have extended that offer to the BAA Online Store as well…

The DPP 4 eGuide (PDF)

Learn how and why I and many other discerning photographers choose and use only DPP 4 to convert their Canon RAW files in the DPP 4 RAW Conversion Guide by Arash Hazeghi and yours truly. The latest version supports all of the newer Canon camera bodies and several older models including the EOS-7D and the EOS-1D Mark IV. The DPP IV Guide is the ideal companion to the 7D Mark II User’s Guide, a runaway best seller.

DPP 4 Kudos

From Richard Gollard via e-mail:

I have been doing tons of studying the books and PDFs that I have purchased from BIRDS AS ART. And I have to say that after reading the DPP 4 conversion guide that you did with Arash Hazeghi I tried DPP 4 and was blown away with the difference from the conversions that I made with Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom. Thanks for the consistently great information.

The DPP 4 eGuide (PDF) Updated for 1D Mark IV and the original 7D

The DPP 4 eGuide was recently updated to include the luminance and chrominance noise reduction values for both the 1D Mark IV and the original 7D. If you purchased your copy from BAA please e-mail Jim and request the DPP 4 1d IV/7D update. Please be sure to cut and paste page 1 into your e-mail as proof of purchase.

The Bosque Site Guide

If you can’t make or afford one of the two Bosque IPTs, be sure to get yourself a copy of our Bosque Site Guide. All BAA Site Guides are designed so that with a bit of study you can show up at a great place and know exactly where to be at what time on what wind and in what lighting conditions. And on what wind. With a Site Guide on your laptop you will feel like a 22-year veteran on your first visit. Site Guides are the next best thing to being on an IPT. If you plan on visiting Bosque it would be foolish to make the trip without having this guide in hand. Why spend money on gear and travel and then spend days stumbling around in the wrong spot? If you have visited previously, and are still unsure of where you should be at this time of day with that wind, this guide will prove invaluable to you as well. Even folks visiting Bosque for the tenth time will learn a ton as I share my secrets and hold nothing back….

Bosque del Apache 2015 BIRDS AS ART/A Creative Adventure Instructional Photo-Tour (IPT). 3-FULL DAY IPT: NOV 22-24, 2015. $1149. Two great leaders: Denise Ippolito and Arthur Morris. Meet and greet and introductory slide program after dinner on your own at 7:00pm on SAT NOV 21.

Sold Out with a waiting list.

In 2015, we are offering a 3-DAY IPT before Thanksgiving and a 4-DAY IPT after the holiday. The first has been sold out for a while. There is some room on the second. See below for details.

We know that there are lots of less costly workshops being offered these days. Many of them are downright cheap. Please remember that you get exactly what you pay for. With us you will have two full time pros there for you every minute we are in the field. Together they have more than 28 seasons of experience at the refuge. If you want the finest in photographic instruction and want to be assured of being in the right spot at exactly the right time every day, do join us.

Bosque del Apache 2015 BIRDS AS ART/A Creative Adventure Instructional Photo-Tour (IPT). 4-DAY IPT: (three full and two 1/2 DAYS) NOV 28-DEC 2, 2015. $1499. Two great leaders: Denise Ippolito and Arthur Morris. Meet and greet at 3pm on SAT NOV 28 followed by an afternoon photo session at the crane pools and the introductory slide program after dinner on your own.

Mention the blog and a $100 Late Registration Discount will be applied to your balance. Just 1 spot left.

Tens of thousands of Snow Geese, 10,000 Sandhill Cranes, ducks, amazing sunrises, sunsets, and blast-offs. Live, eat, and breathe photography with two of the world’s premier photographic educators at one of their very favorite photography locations on the planet. Top-notch in-the-field and Photoshop instruction. This will make 21 consecutive Novembers at Bosque for artie. This will be denise’s 7th workshop at the refuge. Nobody knows the place better than artie does. Join us to learn to think like a pro, to recognize situations and to anticipate them based on the weather, especially the sky conditions, the light, and the wind direction. Every time we make a move we will let you know why. When you head home being able to apply what you’ve learned on your home turf will prove to be invaluable.

This workshop includes 4 afternoon (11/28through 12/1), 4 morning (11/29 to 12/2) photography sessions, an inspirational introductory slide program after dinner on your own on Saturday, 11/28, all lunches, and after-lunch digital workflow, Photoshop, and image critiquing sessions.

There is never a strict itinerary on a Bosque IPT as each day is tailored to the local conditions at the time and to the weather. We are totally flexible in order to maximize both the photographic and learning opportunities. We are up early each day leaving the hotel by 5:30 am to be in position for sunrise. We usually photograph until about 10:30am. Then it is back to Socorro for lunch and then a classroom session with the group most days. We head back to the refuge at about 3:30pm each day and photograph until sunset. We will be photographing lots of Snow Geese and lots of Sandhill Cranes with the emphasis on expanding both your technical skills and your creativity.

A $599 non-refundable deposit is required to hold your slot for this IPT. Your balance, payable only by check, will be due on 7/25/2015. If you cancel and the trip fills, we will be glad to apply a credit applicable to a future IPT for the full amount less a $100 processing fee. 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. Whether or not your spot is filled, you will lose your deposit. If not, you can secure your spot by paying your balance.

Please print, complete, and sign the form that is linked to here and shoot it to us along with your deposit check (made out to “Arthur Morris.”) You can also leave your deposit with a credit card by calling the office at 863-692-0906. 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 after July 29.

Facebook

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Support the BAA Blog. Support the BAA Bulletins: Shop B&H here!

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Amazon.com

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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. Many thanks to those who have written.

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 :).

What’s Up?

Please note that I originally worked on this blog post just after dinner on Friday, October 30, 2015 in Stanley, The Falklands.

We have a day trip to a Rockhopper Penguin colony and board the Ortelius tomorrow afternoon. Our visits to Bleaker–where today’s featured image was created–and to The Rookery on Saunders Island, were great. We flew back to Stanley, capital of the Falklands, this morning. The internet is not bad at the Malvina house so I am hoping that this and several other new blog posts will be published from the cloud during my time aboard ship.

While traveling in the Southern Ocean I will be 100% without internet from 1-14 NOV. Jim will be in the office doing his usually stellar job of minding the store and Jen will be here to help with with all things IPT related. You can reach either of them by phone at 863-693-0906. You can reach Jim by e-mail or Jen at e-mail (the latter with Attn. JEN in the Subject line).

Please refrain from e-mailing me from 23 OCT through 15 NOV. Fat chance on that. 🙂

What’s Up Update!

Denise and I were back in Stanley on Friday. We fly to Santiago, Chile on Saturday afternoon for our nearly full day layover there… If everything goes smoothly, I should be in Orlando just before lunch on Monday, 16 NOV. Our three week trip was amazing but I was feeling quite knackered on Friday evening. I was feeling quite well on Saturday.

If you missed yesterday’s blog post, be sure to check it out here.

The BIRDS AS ART Blog and You

To show your appreciation for my efforts here, we do ask that you use our the B&H and Amazon affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your purchases. Doing so won’t cost you a penny and is the best way to thank me for the 15-20 hours I put in to bring you fresh and free educational material most every day. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the BIRDS AS ART Online Store. We sell only what I use and depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And we are always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail (unless I am traveling without internet!)

You can find the following items in the store: Mongoose M3.6 and Wimberley heads, plates, low feet, and accessories, flash brackets, , Delkin e-film Pro Compact Flash Cards, LensCoat products, and our unique line-up of educational materials including ABP I & II, Digital Basics, Site and Set-up e-Guides, Canon and Nikon Camera Users and AF e-Guides, and MP-4 Photoshop video tutorials among others.

And we still have a few Gitzo tripods in stock. I imagine that we will be phasing those out soon….

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 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 visiting the BAA Online store as well.

Selling Your Used Photo Gear Through BIRDS AS ART

Selling your used (or like-new) photo gear through the BAA Blog or via a BAA Online Bulletin is a great idea. We charge only a 5% commission. One of the more popular used gear for sale sites charges a minimum of 20%. Plus assorted fees! Yikes. The minimum item price here is $500 (or less for a $25 fee). If you are interested please e-mail with the words Items for Sale Info Request cut and pasted into the Subject line :). Stuff that is priced fairly–I offer free pricing advice, usually sells in no time flat. In the past few months, we have sold just about everything in sight. Do know that prices on some items like the EOS-1D Mark IV, the old Canon 500mm, the EOS-7D, and the original 400mm IS DO lens have been dropping steadily.

You can see the complete listings by clicking here or always by clicking on the Used Photo Gear tab on the right end of the navigation bar at the top of each blog post page.

After a lull in September, things have really heated up lately:

Alan Walther sold his 500mm f/4L IS for $3900 in mid-October.
IPT veteran Larry Master sold his 300mm f/2.8L IS II lens for $4750 on October 22, 2015.
Canon 500mm f/4L IS (the “old five”) was sold by Glen Shellhammer for $4250 in mid-October, 2015.
Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens was sold instantly by Walt Anderson for $4750 in mid-October, 2015.
Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS USM lens (the “old five”) was sold by Dane Johnson for $4150 in early October 2015.
Sigma 300-800mm f/5.6 zoom lens (Canon mount) was sold by Beth Starr for $4,999 in early October 2015.
Canon EOS-1D X in excellent condition was sold by Patrick Sparkman for $3650 in early October, 2014.
Canon EF 100-400 f 4.5-5.6 L IS USM lens was sold for $699 by Sean Traynor on October 7, 2015.
Canon 100-400 L IS zoom lens (the old 1-4) was sold by Susan Carnahan for $675 in mid-October, 2015.

You can find the complete listings here.

Why Not? You’ve Come All This Way: Al-BLUR-tross Lesson…?

You travel many thousands of miles to a great location. It is cloudy dark and the wind in the Falklands is howling. You set up on a nice Black-browed Albatross nest and figure the exposure, being sure to work in Manual mode so that the amount of black or the amount of white will not affect the meter as it would if you were in an automatic exposure mode.

ISO 1600 gets you to a decent shutter speed for static portraits: 1/60 sec. When the big bird starts flapping many folks might think: “I cannot make a sharp image so why bother?”

Here is what I say: “It’s digital. It won’t cost you a penny. Your gear likely costs a minimum of $3,000 and possibly as much as $15,000, that for a single rig. Get over the old film mind set and, as I stated in The Art of Bird Photography II, When unexpected action occurs, push the shutter button. Do not worry about the shutter speed or the exposure. Just push the button.”

I did that and created today’s featured image.

The Image Optimization

While I love the degree of blurring in today’s image, the eye showed a good deal of motion blur. I painted a small Quick Mask of the much sharper eye from another image in the series, brought it into the featured image, and moved and rotated it slightly into place. Then I added a Regular Layer Mask to paint away most everything but the sharper eye. Bingo. Most bird and wildlife blurs work better with at least the eye sharp.

GALAPAGOS Photo Cruise of a Lifetime IPT/The Complete Galapagos Photographic Experience. August 8-22, 2017 on the boat. 13 FULL and two half-days of photography: $12,499. Limit: 12 photographers plus the two leaders: Denise Ippolito and yours truly. Openings: 8.

Same great trip; no price increase!
Four slots filled already; this trip needs nine to run; in the unlikely event that it does not, all payments to BAA will be refunded in full.

My two-week Galapagos Photo-Cruises are without equal. The world’s best guide, a killer itinerary, a great boat (the Samba), and two great leaders with ten Galapagos cruises under their belts. Pre-trip and pre-landing location-specific gear advice. In-the-field photo instruction and guidance. Jeez, I almost forgot: fine dining at sea!

The great spots that we will visit include Tower Island (including Prince Phillips Steps and Darwin Bay), Hood Island (including Punta Suarez, the world’s only nesting site of Waved Albatross, and Gardner Bay)—each of the preceding are world class wildlife photography designations that rank right up there with Antarctica, Africa, and Midway. We will also visit Fernandina, Puerto Ayora for the tortoises, Puerto Egas—James Bay, and North Seymour for nesting Blue-footed Boobies in most years, South Plaza for Land Iguanas, Floreana for Greater Flamingoes, and Urbina Bay, all spectacular in their own right. We visit every great spot on a single trip. Plus tons more. And there will be lots of opportunities to snorkel on sunny mid-days for those like me who wish to partake.

It is extremely likely that we will visit the incredible Darwin Bay and the equally incredible Hood Island, world home of Waved Albatross twice on our voyage. The National Park Service takes its sweet time in approving such schedule changes.

We will be the first boat on each island in the morning and the last boat to leave each island every afternoon. If we are blessed with overcast skies, we will often spend 5-6 hours at the best sites. And as noted above, mid-day snorkeling is an option on most sunny days depending on location and conditions. On the 2015 trip most snorkeled with a mega-pod of dolphins. I eased off the zodiac to find hundreds of dolphins swimming just below me. Note: some of the walks are a bit difficult but can be made by anyone if half way decent shape. Great images are possible on all landings with either a hand held 70-200mm lens and a 1.4X teleconverter or an 80- or 100-400. I bring a longer lens ashore on most landings as they better fit my style. I generally bring only one of these as my big lens: the Canon 300mm f/2.8L IS, the new Canon 400mm DO lens, or the Canon 200-400mm f/4 L IS with Internal Extender.

An Amazing Value…

Do know that there are one week Galapagos trips for $8500! Thus, our trip represents a tremendous value; why go all that way and miss half of the great photographic locations?

The Logistics

August 6, 2017: We arrive a day early to ensure that we do not miss the boat.

August 7, 2017: There will be an introductory Galapagos Photography session and a hands on exposure session at our hotel.

August 8, 2017: We fly to the archipelago and board the Samba. Heck, on the 2015 trip some people made great images at the dock in Baltra while our luggage was being loaded!

August 22, 2017: We disembark late morning and fly back to Guayaquil midday; most will overnight there.

Most will fly home on the early morning of July 23 unless they are staying on or going elsewhere (or catching a red-eye flight on the evening of the 22nd).

$12,499 includes just about everything: all transfers, guide and park fees, all food on the boat, transfers and ground transportation, your flights to the archipelago, and three nights (double occupancy) in a top notch hotel in Guayaquil. If you are good to go, a non-refundable deposit of $5,000 per person is due immediately. The second payment of $4,000 is not due until 11/1/16. The final payment of $3449 per person will be due on 2/1/17. A $200 discount will be applied to each of the balances for couples or friends who register at the same time.

Purchasing travel insurance within 2 weeks of our cashing your deposit check is strongly recommended. On two fairly recent cruises a total of 5 folks were forced to cancel less than one week prior to the trip. My family and I use Travel Insurance Services and strongly recommend that you do the same.

Not included: your round trip airfare from your home to and from Guayaquil, beverages on the boat, phone calls, your meals in Guayaquil, personal items, and a $600/person cash tip for the crew and the guide—this works out to roughly $40/day to be shared by the 7 folks who will be waiting on us hand and foot every day for two weeks. The service is so wonderful that many folks choose to tip extra.

Please e-mail for the tentative itinerary or with questions. Please cut and paste “Galapagos 2017 Tentative Itinerary Please” into the Subject line.

Facebook

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

Support the BAA Blog. Support the BAA Bulletins: Shop B&H here!

We want and need to keep providing you with the latest free information, photography and Photoshop lessons, and all manner of related information. Show your appreciation by making your purchases immediately after clicking on any of our B&H or Amazon Affiliate links in this blog post. Remember, B&H ain’t just photography!

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may click on the logo-link immediately 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. Many thanks to those who have written.

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 :).