September 30th, 2022 What’s Up?
Thankfully, not much.
Today is Friday 30 September 2022. I will be heading down to the lake early for a walk. Wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, I hope that you too have a great day. This blog post took about 90 minutes to prepare and makes one hundred eighty-nine days in a row with a new one.
Please remember to use the B&H and Amazon links that are found on most blog pages and to use the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout when purchasing your new gear from Bedfords to get 3% back on your credit card and enjoy free second-day air FedEx. Please, also, consider joining a BAA IPT. You will be amazed at how much you will learn!
ILE After Hurricane Ian
We never lost power. There was no damage to my home or my property. We were lucky. With the high winds and historic flooding, the property damage, wreckage, and destruction at Fort Myers Beach, Fort Myers, and points north in Charlotte and Lee Counties and beyond is staggering. Two point six million folks are without electricity.
I drove down to the lake at 4:00pm, and was surprised that there were only a few small puddles along Park Drive. I was astounded as I passed the various canals: the backyard boathouses, docks, and decks were under two feet of water. No homes that I saw were flooded.
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iPhone 11 Image
Image #1: The ILE pier on Thursday afternoon
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The Pier
When I exited my vehicle, the still strong northwest wind slammed the door open. With diminishing rains last week, the lake had been down about two inches. On Thursday afternoon, well after Hurricane Ian had passed, the water levels in Lake Weohyakapka were unprecedented. The water was less than a foot below the deck of the boardwalk. Three to five feet is about normal. Waves were breaking over the “T” at the end of the pier, and most of the deck was wet. Though neither persons nor property were in jeopardy, it was an astounding sight.
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iPhone 11 Panorama
Image #2: The ILE boat ramp
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South on Banyan Drive
I opted to walk south on Banyan Drive along the eastern edge of the South Field so that I could check out the eagle nest tree and the Vulture Trees. About halfway down the block, you walk past the ILE boat ramp. The bass and pontoon boats that launch there into the canal have easy access to the lake and some great largemouth bass fishing. Enlarge the image and check out the dock just to the right of the submerged roadway. Normally, you can step onto the dock from dry land!
The eagle nest tree is hidden in the stand of pines on the right. The green strip in the distance is the South Peninsula.
I made a u-turn and headed south toward the end of the road. As the eagle nest tree came into view, I saw that much of the dead-branch canopy above the nest had been knocked off. While the young eagle had disappeared a month after fledging, the adults have been hanging around and roosting in the nest tree. Recently, I saw one of the adult eagles fly at the Vulture Trees and land in one of the live pine trees. Most of the vultures panicked. The eagle grabbed a small branch, turned upside down, and fell intentionally toward the earth. Its weight ripped the branch free from the limb. The bird flapped hard, righted itself, turned left, and headed back to the nest tree with its prize. If the Bald Eagle pair nests again this winter, photographic opportunities, especially for incoming flight, will be spectacular.
At the Vulture Trees, the Candelabra Tree was intact. The wind, however, had ripped many branches from the other dead pine. If the birds continue to roost at this site, photography should be improved with the cleaner playing field.
Neat iPhone Trick
I learned that by doing a horizontal panning pano at the wide angle setting, 1/2X, the resulting image will be just a bit wider than three by two, even when your pan approaches 180 degrees. When creating iPhone panos at 1X or 2x, the images are many times wider than they are tall.
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The iPhone Photography e-Guide
To order your copy of the The iPhone Photography e-Guide please click here.
The PDF is sent link by e-mail for downloading: the file is relatively huge at 216 MB.
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Hard to Believe
Yes, Cliff has a great eye and wonderfully creative vision. Yet it is still hard for me to believe that he can make so many great images with “just“ an i-phone. Almost more amazingly Cliff captures with his iPhone and does all of his post-processing on the phone! In this great new e-Guide written for BIRDS AS ART you will learn to set up your iPhone quickly and efficiently and how to to use it. In addition, there are dozens and dozens of tips on Cliff’s favorite apps and his favorite gear. Scroll down to the bottom to see the Table of Contents.
The iPhone Photography e-Guide: $20.00.
To order your copy of the The iPhone Photography e-Guide please click here.
Dr. Cliff Oliver
Dr. Cliff Oliver is an award-winning photographer, former photography instructor for the San Diego Natural History Museum, cutting-edge integrative health care professional, and international workshop leader. He created and taught the first 5-day immersion iPhone photography workshop at Hollyhock, Canada’s premier Leadership Learning Center. He teaches quarterly iPhone photography classes at the Athenaeum Music & Arts Library School of the Arts (these include Art on the iPhone, iPhoneography, Portraits and Selfies, and Practicing in the Field). His images have been on the cover of WildBird magazine, on display at Scripps Oceanography Institute, and been honored with multiple first-place finishes in the International Exhibition of Photography Del Mar. The San Diego Natural History Museum’s, “Birds of the World” centennial exhibit featured several of his images. One of his iPhone images received an honorable mention in the Athenaeum 23rd annual juried exhibition. He has displayed images at Art Speaks: Expressions of Hope and Healing and has produced a series of books, called Zen I, II, III, IV, V, VI and VII that feature original images that promote inner peace. The last 4 books feature only images taken on the iPhone. He teaches individuals and groups the skills of capturing iPhone/mobile photographs and then how to create personalized works of art.
Learn more about Cliff and what he does on his Center for Balance website here. And don’t forget, if I had never met Cliff I would be pushing up daisies somewhere. To request my Health Basics File that contains the whole story, please shoot me an e-mail by clicking here..
You can learn how I got interested in iPhone photography and see some of Cliff’s great iPhone images in the 2018 blog post here.
Typos
With all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors.
September 29th, 2022 After Hurricane Ian at Indian Lake Estates, FL
When I hit the sack last night at about 9:30pm — late for me, the forecast for ILE was for winds as strong as 77mph peaking at midnight. I slept pretty well and never heard the wind. I woke twice during the night and was surprised to see that we still had power. With more than 2.5 million Floridians without power this morning, we were and are quite blessed. Not wanting to jinx myself, I do understand that we might still lose power due to flooding. Ian was quite different from Hurricane Irma in 2017 when the house shook all night, a large tree fell, and we were without electricity for more than two weeks.
Fort Myers Beach got creamed and seemed to be completely underwater late yesterday afternoon. I am anxiously awaiting reports on Sanibel, Fort Myers, Cape Coral (where good friend Bill Schneider lives), and points north to Sarasota and Tampa. Good luck with the house, Bill. And I just learned that a section of the causeway leading to Sanibel was wiped out by the remnants of Ian early this morning. See the storm damage photos and learn more here. And there has been unprecedented flooding in Orlando.
Today is Thursday 29 September. It continues to pour here. Wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, I hope that you too have a great day. This blog post took about three hours to prepare and makes one hundred eighty-eight days in a row with a new one.
Please remember to use the B&H and Amazon links that are found on most blog pages and to use the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout when purchasing your new gear from Bedfords to get 3% back on your credit card and enjoy free second-day air FedEx. Please, also, consider joining a BAA IPT. You will be amazed at how much you will learn!
Instagram
Follow me on Instagram here. I am trying to feature both new and old images, especially images that have not appeared recently on the blog. Or search for birds_as_art.
BIRDS AS ART Image Optimization Service (BAA IOS)
Send a PayPal for $62.00 to birdsasart@verizon.net or call Jim at 863-692-0906 and put $62.00 on your credit card. Pick one of your best images and upload the raw file using a large file sending service like Hightail or DropBox and then send me the link via e-mail. I will download and save your raw file, evaluate the exposure and sharpness, and optimize the image as if it were my own after converting the raw file in Adobe Camera Raw. Best of all, I will make a screen recording of the entire process and send you a link to the video to download, save and study.
Induro GIT 304L Price Drop
Amazingly, we have two, brand-new-in-the-box Induro GIT 304L tripods in stock. They are $699.00 each (were $799.00) and the price now includes insured ground shipping to the lower 48 states. Weekday phone orders only: 863-692-0906. Order yours here.
Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 500mm f/5.6E PF ED VR Lens (with an extra)
BAA Record-low Price!
Price reduced $200.00 on 9/28/22
John Armitage is offering a Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 500mm f/5.6E PF ED VR lens in excellent condition for a for a BAA Record Low $2296.95 (was $2496.95). The sale includes the original lens foot, a RRS stuff foot, the front and rear caps, the lens strap, the soft case, the original box, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower-48 US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.
Please contact John via e-mail.
Yes, I loved this even now hard-to-get lens a ton when I used Nikon gear. The Nikon PF series telephoto lenses are tremendously popular as they are relatively small and light and offer great reach. Both do well with the Nikon AF-S Teleconverter TC-14E III. On my bucket list trip for the Emperor Penguins, I brought two D850 bodies, the 500 PF, and the Nikon 80-400 VR lenses! The 500 PF is still hard to come by and sells new for $$3,296.95. At $2296.95, John’s lens is a steal as you save an even $1000.00. artie
Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 300mm f/4E PF ED VR Lens with extra
BAA Record-low Price!
Price reduced $200.00 on 9/28/22
John Armitage is offering a Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 300mm f/4E PF ED VR lens in excellent condition for a BAA record low $1195.95 (was $1,395.95). The sale includes the original tripod mount, a Lens Collar Support Tripod Mount Ring RT-1 for Nikon AF-S 300mm f/4E PF ED VR lens (a $29.99 value), the soft case, the front and rear caps, the original box, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower-48 US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.
Please contact John via e-mail
The skilled and venerable Anita Gail Erica North owned and used this lens a lot on her international travels when she shot Nikon. It is light in weight and focuses quickly and accurately. artie
Canon EF 300mm f/4L IS USM Lens
Price reduced $100.00 on 9/28/22
John Armitage is offering a Canon EF 300mm f/4L IS USM lens in excellent condition for a very low a BAA record-low $399.00 (was $499.00). The sale includes the front and rear lens caps, the tripod mount ring, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower-48 US addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.
Please contact John via e-mail.
When I shot Canon, I loved my 300 f/4L IS lens. With its 4.92′ (1.5 meter) minimum focusing distance and impressive 0.24X magnification, it was great for large flowers, dragonflies, butterflies, and frogs. With or without the 1.4X TC it makes a great auxiliary/flight, or starter lens for any bird photographer. It does very well on birds in flight and in action. I preferred it to my old toy lens, the 400mm f/5.6L lens as it offered Image Stabilization and greater reach at f/5.6 with the 1.4X TC. This great lens is no longer in production. artie
Before Hurricane Ian at Indian Lake Estates, FL
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This image was created on 28 September 2022 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lakes Estates, FL. Working from the front seat of my SUV, I used the BLUBB-supported Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless digital camera. ISO 1000. The exposure was determined via Zebras with ISO on the rear dial: 1/160 sec. at f/4 (wide open). AWB at 10:38:38am on a windy, cloudy morning.
Tracking: Spot S/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy the larger version.
Image #1: Adult Red-shouldered Hawk perched in pine tree
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Down to the Lake. Or Not?
It was dark and very windy and raining hard early on Wednesday morning. I skipped my walk. With the brisk northeast wind, I knew that I could comfortably shoot from the car with the wind (and the wind-driven rain) behind me. While getting set up at the Vulture Trees, I saw a red-shouldered fly up from the South Field and land in the pine trees on the east side of the road. I headed north, hooked a u-turn, and almost missed the bird sitting in the open on a relatively clean perch. So I went to work.
DMF OFF when on the BLUBB
Sony folks using large GM lenses on a BLUBB, are reminded to turn the Direct Manual Focus switch to the FFF position. Doing so eliminates the possibility of inadvertently throwing off the focus when framing the shot.
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This image was also created on 28 September 2022 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lakes Estates, FL. Working from the front seat of my SUV, I used the BLUBB-supported Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera.. ISO 1600. The exposure was determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear wheel: 1/800 second at f/5.6 (wide open) in Manual mode. RawDigger showed that the exposure was perfect. AWB at 10:52:30am on cloudy, windy morning.
Tracking: Spot S/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy the high-res version.
Image #2: Turkey Vulture struggling in wind
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Wind Lessons
With the Vulture Trees west of Banyan Drive, I opted to head down to the lake only because of the wind direction: northeast. I could angle the car to keep the wind behind me and stay dry at the same time. By Thursday morning, the wind had swung to the northwest; the decision to stay warm and dry at home was a no-brainer. If I headed to the Vulture Trees this morning, all the birds would be facing away, and the rain would be blowing right at my lens and into the car (not to mention my face).
On sunny mornings with a northwest wind, and the light behind you, the birds will be facing and landing and taking off and flying away from you. Bite the bullet and stay home.
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This image was also created on 28 September 2022 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lakes Estates, FL. Working from the front seat of my SUV, I used the BLUBB-supported Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera.. ISO 4000. The exposure was determined by Zebras with ISO on the rear wheel: 1/2000 second at f/5.6 (wide open) in Manual mode. RawDigger showed that the exposure was perfect. AWB at 10:55:08am on cloudy, windy morning.
Tracking: Spot S/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy the high-res version.
Image #3: Turkey Vulture struggling in wind
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Your Call
Which of today’s three featured images do you like best? Please leave a comment and let us know why you made your choice. I have a single favorite.
High ISOs and Large Crops
It is amazing that we can now work at ISOs of 4000 and beyond and then execute large crops without batting an eyelash. I attribute that to three things:
1- The image quality and dynamic range of sharp, properly exposed Sony a1 raw (ARW) files is outstanding.
2- Exposing properly to the right reduces noise dramatically.
3- Topaz DeNoise is remarkable.
Typos
With all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors.
September 28th, 2022
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The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II).
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. Be sure to specify Digital Basics II.
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The BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II)
Everything below, but for the Color Mixer stuff, and tons more great Photoshop tips and techniques — along with my complete digital workflow, Digital Eye Doctor Techniques, and all my personalized Keyboard Shortcuts — is covered in detail in the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. Note: folks working on a PC and/or those who do not want to miss anything Photoshop may wish to purchase the original Digital Basics along with DB II while saving $15 by clicking here to buy the DB Bundle.
Folks who learn well by following along rather than by reading can check out the complete collection of MP 4 Photoshop Tutorial Videos by clicking here. Note: most of the videos are now priced at an amazingly low $5.00 each.
You can learn how and why I converted all of my Canon digital RAW files in DPP 4 in the DPP 4 RAW Conversion Guide here. More recently, I became proficient at converting my Nikon RAW (NEF) files in Adobe Camera Raw. About three years ago I began converting my Nikon and Sony RAW files in Capture One and did that for two years. You can learn more about Capture One in the Capture One Pro 12 Simplified MP4 Video here. The next step would be to get a copy of Arash Hazeghi’s “The Nikon Photographers’ Guide to Phase One Capture One Pro e-Guide” in the blog post here. Today, I convert my Sony raw files in Photoshop with Adobe Camera Raw.
You can learn advanced Quick Masking and advanced Layer Masking techniques in APTATS I & II. You can save $15 by purchasing the pair.
What’s Up?
I walked early and then spent a wonderful hour at Vulture Trees. On the way back to my car on my rope flow walk, I noted several White Waterlilies in bloom. So I grabbed the incredibly versatile Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II lens and a tripod and went to work producing today’s featured image. I got in both of my swims in a gentle rain.
Today is Wednesday 28 September 2022. It was already raining hard here at 4:00am and Hurricane Ian is headed right at ILE. Wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, I hope that you too have a great day. This blog post took about two hours to prepare and makes one hundred eighty-seven days in a row with a new one.
Please remember to use the B&H and Amazon links that are found on most blog pages and to use the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout when purchasing your new gear from Bedfords to get 3% back on your credit card and enjoy free second-day air FedEx. Please, also, consider joining a BAA IPT. You will be amazed at how much you will learn!
Instagram
Follow me on Instagram here. I am trying to feature both new and old images, especially images that have not appeared recently on the blog. Or search for birds_as_art.
BIRDS AS ART Image Optimization Service (BAA IOS)
Send a PayPal for $62.00 to birdsasart@verizon.net or call Jim at 863-692-0906 and put $62.00 on your credit card. Pick one of your best images and upload the raw file using a large file sending service like Hightail or DropBox and then send me the link via e-mail. I will download and save your raw file, evaluate the exposure and sharpness, and optimize the image as if it were my own after converting the raw file in Adobe Camera Raw. Best of all, I will make a screen recording of the entire process and send you a link to the video to download, save and study.
Induro GIT 304L Price Drop
Amazingly, we have two, brand-new-in-the-box Induro GIT 304L tripods in stock. They are $699.00 each (were $799.00) and the price now includes insured ground shipping to the lower 48 states. Weekday phone orders only: 863-692-0906. Order yours here while they last.
Any Port in a Storm — Tripod on Railing Tips
The Optimization Plans
I knew right out of the box that the image was too warm. The plethora of black and brown spots and blemishes on the lily pads and the flower itself were distracting. I did not like the stick (?) just breaking the surface in the lower right corner, nor did I like the tiny green bits on the heart-shaped lily pad in the center of the frame. I was unsure as to whether I should lose the copulating insects on the yellow in the lower left corner. I liked the overall image design, but envisioned a small crop to tighten things up.
30-Minutes of Clean-up Work!
I knew that the image was too warm, so I used Click White Balance on the brightest Whites of the flower. That lowered the Color Temperature from 5650 to a much more pleasing 5150. I set the White (+7) and Black (+28!) points, pulled down the Highlights (-49), left the Shadow slider at 0, and went with the rest of my standard adjustments. Last before converting the image was some work on the Color Mixer (HSL) tab adjusting the Saturation and Luminance sliders on the Red, Orange, and Yellow sliders. After the raw conversion I ran Topaz DeNoise with the Low Light setting. Next came a solid half-hour of work doing the image cleanup on its own layer. All the black, brown, and white spots were evicted using the Patch Tool, Content-Aware Fill, and the Spot-Healing Brush. In addition, several small Quick Masks, each refined with the Transform Tool and a Regular Layer Mask, were used to remove blemishes that merged with the bugs or with the edges of the lily pads. The final touch was a layer of Auto Tone at reduced opacity.
For me, it was time well spent.
Image Questions
1- Would you have left the copulating bugs or eliminated them? I am still not sure if I should have nixed them.
2- If you have any idea what the red object is, please leave a comment.
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Click on the image to enjoy a high-res version.
Image #2: Iphone image of tripod on railing set-up
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Tripod on Railing Set-up
After roughly framing the image with my handheld rig, I knew that I needed to be on the tripod, and that I needed to get the lens out over the railing and pointing down at the blossom. I placed the lens on the boardwalk so that I could position the tripod properly. I pulled out the stop tabs on the two rear legs and pulled the legs out. Then the tripod was placed on the pier railing and positioned so that the bottom of the forward-facing leg was pressed against the deck of the boardwalk. Though the two rear legs were up in the air, the tripod was perfectly level. Next was to mount the lens and adjust the Levered-Clamp FlexShooter Pro so that the lens was pointed at the scene with the head firmly locked down.
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Click on the image to enjoy a high-res version.
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First note that I use a Wimberley P-10 Plate mounted in reverse on the 70-200 II. This is best for virtually all 70-200 and 100-400 lenses. Mounting the plate in reverse with the anti-twist nubs at the front of the lens allows you to properly balance the lens when teleconverters are added. Using expensive replacement feet with such lenses is insane for three reasons:
1- On average, they cost twice as much as a P-10 Plate.
2- They do not get you any lower.
3- They are not removable thus adding extra weight when you are handholding. Except when doing quasi-macro as above, or when creating landscapes, lenses in this class are most deadly when handheld.
The first step was to loosen the black lever and turn the black housing so that the slot that allows you to point the lens down was lined up with the forward-facing leg of the tripod. Next was to mount the lens while checking on the relative balance. The most important piece to this puzzle is to tighten the silver knob. If you attempt to frame the image and tighten the black lever the lens will move if you have failed to tighten the silver knob.
That done, you can frame the image perfectly and lock the rig in place by tightening the black lever. I first made a series of images with the blossom and the red whatever it is on the same plane. To move them to opposite corners of the frame, I simply loosened the tripod collar and turned the lens counterclockwise in the mount.
With only a slight breeze, 1/125 second produced sharp images and allowed me to work at f/8 at ISO 800.
As noted here previously, I pride myself in my ability to come up with in-the-field solutions to a great variety of unique problems that we encounter often when photographing nature. Consider joining me on an IPT to see just how that works.
Typos
With all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors.
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