Sunday morning was shaping up to be a dud. I was about ready to head home before 7:30, but I paused when I stepped off the pier hoping that something good might fly by. Something did and I made the most of it. Then I got on the ground on Park Avenue and let the Wild Turkey poults come to me. That worked well too.
Today is Monday 27 June 2022. The forecast is for partly cloudy with an east breeze. You will find me on the pier early. 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 one Dalmatians in a row. Oops, I mean one hundred one days in a row with a new post.
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!
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 the insured ground shipping to the lower 48 states. Weekday phone orders only: 863-692-0906.
Please Remember
You can find some great photo accessories (and necessities, like surf booties!) on Amazon by clicking on the Stuff tab on the orange/yellow menu bar above. On a related note, it would be extremely helpful if blog-folks who, like me, spend too much money on Amazon, would get in the habit of clicking on the Amazon logo link on the right side of each blog post when they shop online. As you might expect, doing so will not cost you a single penny, but would be appreciated tremendously by yours truly. And doing so works seamlessly with your Amazon Prime account.
Please remember that if an item — a Delkin flash card, or a tripod head — for example, that is available from B&H and/or Bedfords, is also available in the BAA Online Store, it would be great, and greatly appreciated, if you would opt to purchase from us. We will match any price. Please remember also to use my B&H affiliate links or to earn 3% cash back at Bedfords by using the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout for your major gear purchases. Doing either often earns you free guides and/or discounts. And always earns my great appreciation.
Brand-New and As-Good-As-Ever Bedfords BAA Discount Policy
Folks who have fallen in love with Bedfords can now use the BIRDSASART coupon code at checkout to enjoy a post-purchase, 3% off-statement credit (excluding taxes and shipping charges) on orders paid with a credit card. The 3% credit will be refunded to the card you used for your purchase. Be sure, also, to check the box for free shipping to enjoy free Second Day Air Fed-Ex. This offer does not apply to purchases of Classes, Gift Cards, or to any prior purchases.
Money Saving Reminder
Many have learned that if you need a hot photo item that is out of stock at B&H and would like to enjoy getting 3% back on your credit card along with free 2nd Day Air Fed-Ex Air shipping, your best bet is to click here, place an order with Bedfords, and enter the coupon code BIRDSASART at checkout. If an item is out of stock, contact Steve Elkins via e-mail or on his cell phone at (479) 381-2592 (Central time). Be sure to mention the BIRDSASART coupon code and check the box for Free Shipping. That will automatically upgrade to free 2nd Day Air Fed-Ex. Steve has been great at getting folks the hot items that are out of stock at B&H and everywhere else. The waitlists at the big stores can be a year or longer for the hard-to-get items. Steve will surely get you your gear long before that. For the past year, he has been helping BAA Blog folks get their hands on items like the SONY a 1, the SONY 200-600 G OSS lens, the Canon EOS R5, the Canon RF 100-500mm lens, and the Nikon 500mm PF. Steve is personable, helpful, and eager to please.
Important Note
As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small percentage when you purchase from Amazon after using any of the Amazon links on the blog (including the logo-link on the right side of each blog post page). My affiliate link works fine with Amazon Prime and using it will not cost you a single cent. Huge thanks, BTW 🙂
If You Enjoy the Blog …
Please, if you enjoy and learn from the blog, remember to use one of my two affiliate programs when purchasing new gear. Doing so just might make it possible for me to avoid having to try to get a job as a Walmart greeter and will not cost you a single penny more. And if you use Bedfords and remember to enter the BIRDSASART code at checkout, you will (still!) save 3% on every order and enjoy free second-day air shipping. In these crazy times — I lost about fifty thousand dollars in income due to COVID 19 — remembering to use my B&H link or to shop at Bedfords will help me out a ton and be greatly appreciated. Overseas folks who cannot order from the US because of import fees, duties, and taxes, are invited to help out by clicking here to leave a blog thank you gift if they see fit.
Gear Questions and Advice
Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of photographers whom I see in the field and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear, especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. If you are desperate, you can try me on my cell at 863-221-2372. Please leave a message and shoot me a text if I do not pick up.
This image was created on 26 June 2022 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Standing just left of the pier, I used the handheld Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 2.0x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined accurately using Zebra technology. ISO 1600. 1/3200 sec. at f/5.6 (wide open) in Manual mode. When evaluated in RawDigger, the raw file brightness was determined to be perfect. AWB at 7:28:51am on a sunny morning.
Tracking: Zone AF-C with Bird Face/Eye detection enabled performed perfectly. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a high-res version.
Osprey with matted grasses for its nest
79 Images in Three Seconds
I saw an Osprey fly over the marsh to the left of the pier and was surprised when another Osprey appeared to my left and dove into the marsh grasses with its talons outstretched. I knew that it was going in to grab some nesting material as I have seen them do this before. I got on the bird and fired off a long burst. When the smoke cleared, I had created 79 images in about three seconds. I kept ten. My three favorites are featured in this blog post.
This image was created on 26 June 2022 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Standing just to the left of the bade of the pier, I used the handheld Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 2.0x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined accurately using Zebra technology. ISO 1600. 1/3200 sec. at f/5.6 (wide open) in Manual mode. When evaluated in RawDigger, the raw file brightness was determined to be perfect. AWB at 7:28:52am on a sunny morning.
Tracking: Zone AF-C with Bird Face/Eye detection enabled performed perfectly. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a high-res version.
Osprey with matted grasses for its nest
Questions
Which is the best image of the three? Why? Which image has the worst wing position? Could it be that the image with the worst wing position is the best image?
This image was created on 26 June 2022 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Standing just to the left of the bade of the pier, I used the handheld Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 2.0x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined accurately using Zebra technology. ISO 1600. 1/3200 sec. at f/5.6 (wide open) in Manual mode. When evaluated in RawDigger, the raw file brightness was determined to be perfect. AWB at 7:28:53am on a somewhat hazy but sunny morning.
Tracking: Zone AF-C with Bird Face/Eye detection enabled performed perfectly. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a high-res version.
Osprey with matted grasses for its nest
Right Place, Right Time, and Dumb Luck? Or Not?
As I walked off the pier and decided to hang out for five minutes, I asked myself, “What bird is most likely to fly by?” The obvious answer: “Osprey.” I set the shutter speed to 1/3200 second for flight, and the aperture to f/5.6. I use the wide-open aperture for 99% of my flight photography as the distance to the bird will almost always provide enough depth of field to cover the entire subject. As for the ISO, I had previously been shooting the Osprey in flight on sunny days at 1/3200, f/5.6 at ISO 1250. With the haze, I added 1/3 stop of light by going to ISO 1600. When the first Osprey flew by, I framed the distant, small-in-the-frame subject, half-pressed the shutter button, and checked for Zebras. With just a few, I knew that the exposure I had set would be perfect.
Yes, I was at the right place at the right time. And I was glad (and lucky) that the action occurred right in front of me and right down light angle. But had I not been ready for Osprey flight, my good luck would have gone for naught. In this and most instances, being prepared was much more important that being lucky.
Lots of folks think along those lines.
“Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.” Alexander Graham Bell.
“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” Benjamin Franklin
“I believe luck is preparation meeting opportunity. If you hadn’t been prepared when the opportunity came along, you wouldn’t have been lucky.” Oprah Winfrey
“Only I have no luck any more. But who knows? Maybe today. Every day is a new day. It is better to be lucky. But I would rather be exact. Then when luck comes you are ready.” Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea
Click on the image to better see the green eye-AF boxes in action.
Sony Alpha 1 Flight Photography AF Points!
The SONY Alpha a1 Set-up Guide and Info Group: $150.00 (or Free)
The SONY Alpha a1 Set-up Guide and Info Group is going great guns as more and more folks chime in with thoughtful questions and experience-based answers. As the a1 is becoming more readily available, more and more folks are getting their hands on this amazing body. By June 1, 2022, the group was up to an astounding 124 lucky and blessed folks. (More than a few folks own two or more a1 bodies! Early on, we discussed the myriad AF options. I gave my opinion as to the best one for flight and general bird photography. The best news is that everyone in the group receives an e-mail that includes a .DAT file with my a1 settings on it, and explicit directions on how to load my settings onto your a1; talk about convenience! I am now offering a .DAT file compatible with firmware update 1.20. Your entry into the group includes a consolidated Sony a1 CAMSETA2 INFO & GUIDE. New a1 folks will now receive six e-mails instead of the previous 28! You will receive new e-mails as they are published. Simply put, this e-mail guide is an incredible resource for anyone with an a1.
All who purchased their Alpha 1 bodies via a BAA affiliate link — B&H or Bedfords — will receive a free Sony Alpha a1 Set-Up Guide and free entry into the Info Updates group after shooting me their receipts via e-mail. (Note: it may take me several days to confirm B&H orders.). Others can purchase their guide here in the BAA Online Store.
Typos
With all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors.
I got down to the pier early and was glad I did as there was some nice sunrise silhouette color. And a Little Blue Heron foraged in just the right spots. Next, I created a few Osprey images. Then it clouded over completely, and the wind died to nothing, so I headed home to do some wildflowers in my front yard.
Today is Sunday 26 June 2022. The forecast for this morning if for sunny with increasing cloudiness and a breeze from the northwest. I will be heading down to the lake early to see what’s up. 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 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!
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 the insured ground shipping to the lower 48 states. Weekday phone orders only: 863-692-0906.
Sunrise Silhouette Strategy from the Pier in June
Discovering New Stuff
Though I’ve been photographing at Indian Lake Estates (ILE) for more than two decades, I did not realize that there were some good sunrise silhouette possibilities from the pier during the warmer months when the sun rises north of east. The more you photograph at a given location, the more you will discover and learn.
If I am out on the pier in the vicinity of B, and there is a bird or two in the vicinity of A, I can move east or west as needed to place the bird in the sunrise color (and make some nice images). Even on dead clear days, there may be some nice color just before or after sunrise. And if there are some light clouds on the eastern horizon, or some fog or haze, there can be some very good opportunities. All that I need to do is get down to the lake by 6:15am at the latest.
For more than two decades, I assumed that there simply were very few if any good sunrise situations at ILE. Go figure.
This image was created on 25 June 2022 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Standing on the pier, I used the handheld Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 2.0x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined accurately using Zebra technology. ISO 2000. 1/500 sec. at f/5.6 (wide open) in Manual mode. When evaluated in RawDigger, the raw file brightness was determined to be dead-solid perfect. AWB at 6:53:06am with some light clouds on the eastern horizon just after sunrise.
Tracking: Zone AF-C with Bird Face/Eye detection enabled performed perfectly. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a high-res version.
Little Blue Heron adult fishing
What Makes a Good Sunrise Situation on the Pier?
1- First, you need a subject. If there are no birds in the water close to the pier, you will go home empty-handed even with spectacular sunrise color.
2- Mornings with little or no wind will maximize the color (if any).
3- You need at least some sunrise color reflected in the water. As noted above, some light clouds or fog or haze can be your best friends.
4- There is some freshwater vegetation in the area denoted by the A in the diagram above. Sometimes including the vegetation in the frame can be a plus, but it often detracts. With today’s featured images I was glad to have the bird in open water.
This image was created on 25 June 2022 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Standing on the pier, I used the handheld Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM OSS lens with the Sony FE 2.0x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined accurately using Zebra technology. ISO 2000. 1/500 sec. at f/5.6 (wide open) in Manual mode. When evaluated in RawDigger, the raw file brightness was determined to be dead-solid perfect. AWB at 6:53:06am with some light clouds on the eastern horizon just after sunrise.
Tracking: Zone AF-C with Bird Face/Eye detection enabled performed perfectly. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a high-res version.
Little Blue Heron adult striking
The Gear and How I Used It
Most mornings, I head onto the pier with the handheld 400mm f/2.8 GM lens with the 1.4X TC and an Alpha 1 attached. The 2X TC is in my fanny pack, along with the TC caps, in case I want to go to the bare lens alone. If I see a Green Heron or two on the small pilings to the north of the pier, I will usually bring the tripod along. On some mornings — don’t ask me why, I will bring the 600mm f/4 GM lens along with both TCs and the tripod. I am always happy with my choice. Why? Because happiness itself is a choice. (Byron Katie — www.The Work.com)
Anyhoo, on Saturday morning I mounted the 2X TC as the possibility for some sunrise color existed. There was some very nice color early on, but the sun was a bit too bright, and the bird was fishing in the vegetation. But the time it made its way into clear water, there was just a hint of color left. Resting my left forearm and the pier railing I set the shutter speed at 1/500 second and increased the ISO until I had some Zebras on the water. With my Zebra values set perfectly, this ensures a perfect or dead-solid perfect exposure. In a span of about seven seconds, I created more than 40 images. The herons and egrets will almost always give you a sign that they are about to strike by retracting the feathers on their head and neck. At that point, I hold the shutter button down to take advantage of the a1’s 30 frames per second. So, that is exactly what I did. I kept two of the seven images that showed the splash. The fish was a tiny one.
Click on the image to better see the green eye-AF boxes in action.
Sony Alpha 1 Flight Photography AF Points!
The SONY Alpha a1 Set-up Guide and Info Group: $150.00 (or Free)
The SONY Alpha a1 Set-up Guide and Info Group is going great guns as more and more folks chime in with thoughtful questions and experience-based answers. As the a1 is becoming more readily available, more and more folks are getting their hands on this amazing body. By June 1, 2022, the group was up to an astounding 124 lucky and blessed folks. (More than a few folks own two or more a1 bodies! Early on, we discussed the myriad AF options. I gave my opinion as to the best one for flight and general bird photography. The best news is that everyone in the group receives an e-mail that includes a .DAT file with my a1 settings on it, and explicit directions on how to load my settings onto your a1; talk about convenience! I am now offering a .DAT file compatible with firmware update 1.20. Your entry into the group includes a consolidated Sony a1 CAMSETA2 INFO & GUIDE. New a1 folks will now receive six e-mails instead of the previous 28! You will receive new e-mails as they are published. Simply put, this e-mail guide is an incredible resource for anyone with an a1.
All who purchased their Alpha 1 bodies via a BAA affiliate link — B&H or Bedfords — will receive a free Sony Alpha a1 Set-Up Guide and free entry into the Info Updates group after shooting me their receipts via e-mail. (Note: it may take me several days to confirm B&H orders.). Others can purchase their guide here in the BAA Online Store.
The BAA Middle of Florida Photographic Site Guide
You can purchase your copy here in the BAA Online Store.
The BAA Middle of Florida Photographic Site Guide
126 pages, 87 photographs by Joe Przybyla and Arthur Morris.
The PDF for this e-Guide is an electronic download sent via e-mail.
I had thought about doing a guide to some of the great but little-known photo hotspots around central Florida for about a decade, but those plans never came to fruition. I met Joe online in the Avian Forum at BirdPhotographer’s.Net about two years ago. Joe’s photography has improved tremendously over the past few years; he credits the BAA blog, my books and PDFs, and his participation on BPN. The one thing that I learned right from the get-go about Joe is that he is a hard and tenacious worker, always striving to improve his skills and to grow his knowledge base. As he knew of more than a few good spots in central Florida, I broached the idea of us doing a photographic site guide that covered many of the little-known photographic hotspots from Brandon to Lakeland to Joe Overstreet Road to Indian Lake Estates (my Florida home for the past 20 years or so). After more than many, many dozens of hours of effort, The BIRDS AS ART Middle of Florida Photographic Site Guide is now a reality. Thanks to Joe’s wife Dottie for her review of our writing. We all learned once again that writing is a process, a back-and-forth process. All thanks to the white pelicans of Lakeland. Here are the locations that are detailed in this e-Guide:
Indian Lake Estates: Sandhills Cranes with chicks and colts, lots of vultures, and Ospreys up the kazoo!
Gatorland, Kissimmee: Learn to make great images of wading birds in a cluttered rookery.
The Brandon Rookery: Great for nesting Wood Storks, Great Egrets, and more.
Circle Bar B Reserve, Lakeland: Here you will find a great variety of avian subjects in a great variety of habitats.
Lake Morton, Lakeland: There are lots of silly tame birds here including and especially American White Pelican during the colder months.
Lake Mirror, Lakeland: Tame Anhingas, Limpkins, and a zillion White Ibises at times.
West Lake Parker, Lakeland: Here you will have a chance for two difficult birds, Snail Kite, and Purple Gallinule.
Joe Overstreet Road, Kenansville: Crested Caracara, meadowlarks, Loggerhead Shrike, and much more on the fenceposts and barbed wire.
Each location includes a map, a detailed description of the best spots, best season, light and time of day instructions, the expected species, and an educational and inspirational gallery that is designed to open your eyes as to the possibilities.
You can purchase a copy here in the BAA Online Store.
Typos
With all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors.
Which of today’s two featured images do you like best? Why?
July 4th Weekend in Central Florida
If you live or will be in South or Central Florida (or anywhere near Duval county) on the long July 4th weekend and would like to explore the possibility of doing some amazing photography with me on a shared-cost basis, please get in touch with me immediately via e-mail.
What’s Up?
After my sunrise trip to Coleman Landing — see below, I headed down to the lake. I made some decent images of the usual cast of characters: Sandhill Crane, Mottled Duck, Osprey, Limpkin, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, and Little Blue Heron.
Today is Saturday 25 June 2022. The forecast for ILE this morning is calling for partly cloudy with an almost imperceptible breeze from the northwest. Wherever you are and whatever you are doing, I hope that you too have a great day. This blog post took more than an hour to prepare and makes ninety-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!
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 the insured ground shipping to the lower 48 states. Weekday phone orders only: 863-692-0906.
Tracking: Zone/Bird-Face-Eye Detection AF-C was active at the moment of exposure and performed well. Click on the image to see a high-res version.
Image #1: Tricolored Heron fishing
Fun in the Dark
I was up very early (as usual) on Saturday morning. The forecast was calling for clear skies with a W/SW wind. At 5:45am, I headed to Coleman Landing because if offers a clear view of the north eastern sky and the sun rising over the lake. Heading east on SR 60, I was pleased to see some haze above the horizon. First, I created some creek/sky scenics with the tripod-mounted 70-200mm f/2.8 II lens. The best of those was less than inspiring. I moved 75 yards to my left, leveled the /Levered-clamp FlexShooter Pro and set up for blurs. There was a Great Blue Heron fishing in the marsh but there were no silhouette opportunities as the bird was buried deep in the grasses. I was hoping to have some large wading bird flocks fly by in the pre-dawn color so that I could create some pleasing blurs. Nada on that. There was a small pool of clear water at the bottom of the boat ramp. By luck, a Tricolored Heron flew in and began fishing in the pool. I stayed at 1/15 second, raised the ISO until I had some Zebras on the water, and fired whenever the bird danced in the clear water.
You know that it is dark when you are shooting at 1/15 second at ISO 2000!
The water was white in the raw file. My plan was to process it by juicing up the color and then rendering the bird totally black. Experimenting, I moved the Highlight Slider to the right and liked the resulting funky look with just a bit of revealing light on the bird’s face and belly.
This image was also created on 24 June 2022 Coleman Landing at Shady Oaks on the south shore of Lake Kissimmee. I used the Induro GIT-204L/Levered-clamp FlexShooter Pro-mounted BLUBB-supported Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens, the Sony FE 2.0x Teleconverter, and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera). The exposure was determined via Zebra technology with ISO on the thumb dial. ISO 1250. 1/320 sec. at f/8 (wide open) in Manual mode. When evaluated in RawDigger, the raw file brightness was determined to be less over-exposed in the R channel. AWB at 6:35:15am on clear morning with a layer of haze on the horizon.
Manual Focus. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy a high-res version.
Image #2: Haze-muted sun ball
Two Conversions Needed
In the first conversion, I pulled the Exposure and the Blacks down to dramatize the sky. But I lost the layered effect at the bottom of the frame. So I ran a lighter conversion that revealed the two heavily vegetated islands. I painted a Quick Mask of the bottom of the frame, dragged it atop the first frame using the Move Tool (V), and worked on the edges of the upper trees. I liked the result.
Flight Photography at Jacksonville Till You Can’t Lift Your Lens! with Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART
Join me on the beach at Huguenot Memorial Park to learn about photographing terns in flight. 8,000 pairs of Royal Terns nest there and there are birds in the air all the time, often carrying all kinds of fish and crabs for their young. Learn about how the relationship between the wind and the sun impacts flight photography and about the best gear for shooting birds in flight. Join me on a workshop at Jacksonville this summer.
Cute & Beautiful: Photographing Chicks in Jacksonville, FL with Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART
There is an amazing beach near Jacksonville, FL where 8,000 pairs of Royal Terns and 12,000 pairs of Laughing Gulls (along with a few other species) breed each summer. As this video shows, photographing the chicks is easy in the summer. And there is tons of great flight photography as well. If you want to improve your bird photography skills, consider joining me on an Instructional Photo-Tour (IPT).
Click on the composite image to enjoy the incredible quality of the hi-res JPEG.
Clockwise from upper left clockwise and back around to the center: Royal Tern in flight with squid for chick; Royal Tern chick on beach; Royal Tern in flight with shrimp for young; Royal Tern chick — double overhead wing stretch; Royal Tern landing with greenback for chick; Royal Tern in flight with juvenile mahi mahi for chick; Brown Pelican — large chick preening; Laughing Gull in fresh juvenal plumage; Royal Tern chick begging; Many Royal Terns with many chicks on face of dune.
Jacksonville IPT: 4 FULL DAYS — the afternoon of FRI 15 JULY thru the morning of TUES 19 July 2022: $2099.00 (Limit 6 photographers/Openings: 5)
I first visited the breeding bird colony at Jacksonville in late June 2021. I was astounded. There were many thousands of pairs of Royal Terns nesting along with about 10,000 pairs of Laughing Gulls. In addition to the royals, there were some Sandwich Terns nesting. And there are several dozen pairs of Brown Pelicans nesting on the ground. Flight photography was non-stop astounding. And photographing the tern chicks was relatively easy. Folks could do the whole trip with the Sony 200-600, the Canon 100-500 RF, or the Nikon 500 PF or 200-500 VR. With a TC in your pocket for use on sunny days. Most of the action is within 100 yards of where we park (on the beach). As with all bird photography, there are times when a super-telephoto lens with either TC is the best tool for the job.
Morning sessions will average about 3 1/2 hours, afternoon sessions about 1 1/2 hours. On cloudy mornings with favorable winds, we may opt to stay out for one long session and skip the afternoon, especially when the afternoon forecast is poor. Lunch is included on the first three days of the IPT and will be served at my AirBnB. We will do image review and Photoshop after lunch.
We will be based somewhere west and a bit north of Jacksonville where there are many AirBnB possibilities. The deposit is $599.00. Call Jim at the office any weekday at 863-692-0906 to pay by credit card. Balances must be paid by check.
Click on the composite image to enjoy the incredible quality of the hi-res JPEG.
Clockwise from upper left clockwise and back around to the center: Royal Tern feeding chick; Royal Tern/4-week-old chick; ink-stained Royal Tern in flight with squid for chick; Royal Tern/3-week-old chick begging; Brown Pelican in flight on white sky day; fresh juvenile Laughing Gull on clean beach; Laughing Gulls stealing fish from Royal Tern; tight shot of Royal Tern in flight with fish for young.
What You Will Learn on a Jacksonville IPT
1- First and foremast you will learn to become a better flight photographer. Much better.
2-You will learn the basics and fine points of digital exposure. Nikon and Canon folks will learn to get the right exposure every time after making a single test exposure, and SONY folks will learn to use Zebras so that they can be sure of making excellent exposures before pressing the shutter button.
3- You will learn to work in Manual exposure mode even if you fear it.
4- You will learn to evaluate wind and sky conditions and understand how they affect bird photography, especially the photography of birds in flight.
5- You will learn several pro secrets (for each system) that will help you to become a better flight photographer.
6- You will learn to zoom out in advance (because the birds are so close!) 🙂
7- You will learn how to approach free and wild birds without disturbing them.
8- You will learn to spot the good and the great situations.
9- You will learn to understand and predict bird behavior.
10- You will learn to design pleasing images by mastering your camera’s AF system.
11- You will learn to choose the best perspective.
12- You will learn to see and control your backgrounds.
13- You will learn to see and understand the light.
14- You will learn to see and create pleasing blurs in pre-dawn situations.
15- You will learn to be ready for the most likely event.
The best news is that you will be able to take everything you learn home with you so that you will be a better photographer wherever you are and whenever you photograph.
Typos
With all blog posts, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors.
