Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

This Just In!

Steve Elkins of Bedfords texted me with great news. He has a Sony 400mm f/2.8 GM lens and a Sony 600mm f/4 GM lens in stock. Remember to use the BIRDS AS ART code at check-outland get 3% back on your credit card and free second day air shipping. Hurry.

For those looking for The Sony 400 f/2.8 there is good new and bad news. The bad news is that I just bought the one in stock. The good news is that Steve is getting another one next week. Have at it. If you are seriously interested in either lens it would best to e-mail Steve at selkins@bedfords.com or text him at 1-479-381-2592.

What’s Up?

On Wednesday I enjoyed yet another beautiful and interesting morning. I marked the Killdeer nest to protect it from the ruthless mowers and e-mailed the folks at ILE to let them know. There was another big mayfly hatch. Even the Mottled Ducks were partaking! I made some nice images of the rapidly growing baby crane, a Cattle Egret atop a bush catching mayflies, and the duck pair catching mayflies. I had another good chance on one of the fledged and flying Killdeer in the small field to the south of the pier. Then, the Limpkin family showed up next to the pier again so I spent some quality time with them. Then, I decided to make one last swing around the North Field. I saw a brown form in the grass at a distance and was unsure of what it was. As I got closer, I identified it easily; it is quite a distinctive creature. I spent ten intimate minutes with it before it headed slowly back to the marsh. I made some wonderful images and will share my favorite with you here tomorrow.

Today is Thursday 19 May 2022. The forecast for this morning at ILE is again calling for sunny and still (with a light breeze from the SW developing by 9am). I will be heading down to the lake early again. 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 sixty-nine days in a row with a new one.

Enjoy today’s new YouTube video. As a late registration enticement, I will include the ride with me for free for the first two folks to sign up for each Jacksonville IPT. Please get in touch via e-mail with any questions.

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. 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.

Wanting a Nikon Z9?

The best way to get your hands on a Z9 is to join NPS (Nikon Professional Services) and then send your member number to Steve Elkins at Bedford via e-mail. Nikon insists that Z9s (and other hard to get stuff) go to NPS members. You can get one from B&H, but they have a huge wait list …

And 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 immediately above). My link works with Amazon Prime and using it will not cost you a single cent. Huge thanks, BTW 🙂

Please Remember Also

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.

Cute & Beautiful: Photographing Chicks in Jacksonville, FL

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 year. As this video shows, photographing the chicks is relatively easy in the summer. And there is tons of great flight photography as well.

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.

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 three 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. After the first lunch there will be an introductory program. On days two and three 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.

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.

And 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.

What’s Up?

The forecast for Monday morning had been for clear skies with a breeze from the west, bad for bird photography. The reality was that it was totally sunny at 7:00am with no wind at all. By 7:15, a breeze from the south/southeast had developed — excellent for bird photography. I spent most of an hour trying to get in position to make some good images of a of three large almost-flying Limpkin chicks. They did not make it easy for me as they foraged first on one side of the pier and then on the other. I surprised myself by creating a small number of very nice images.

Kudos to the New York Rangers who came from a three games to one deficit to eliminate Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburg Penguins from the Stanley Cup Playoffs in overtime of Game 7. And good riddance to the Phoenix Suns, the alleged “best team in the NBA.” The Suns were vanquished by the Dallas Mavericks who also overcame a three games to one deficit and prevailed in Game 7. The Mavs were led by the incomparable Slovenian, Luka Dončić. Did I mention that the final score was 123-90? The truth is that it was not really that close!

Two things on today’s content:

1- Even if you do not like blurs, the Photoshop techniques detailed below will enable you to improve your photography.

2- Digital Basics II will teach you how to use the Photoshop Tools efficiently and outline the techniques that I have used and developed over the past two decades. As I did twice below with today’s featured image, there will be many times when you solve image optimization problems by coming up with new ways to use the tools, by inventing new techniques. DB II will teach you the basics so that you are well-equipped to bring your Photoshop game to new levels.

Today is Tuesday 17 May 2022. The forecast for ILE for this morning is calling for sunny skies with a soft breeze from the NNW. I will be heading down to the lake early as usual. 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 sixty-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. 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.

This image was created on 5 May 2022 at Stick Marsh in Fellsmere, FL. I used the hand held Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS lens (at 422mm) and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless digital camera. ) The exposure was determined using Zebra technology with ISO on the Thumb Dial. ISO 50: 1/30 second at f/8 (stopped down 2/3 stop) in Manual Mode. AWB at 8:02:35am in the shade of a shelter on a clear morning. RawDigger showed the exposure to be a bit beyond perfect, i.e., the brightest WHITEs were over-exposed. Tracking: Zone AF-C with Bird/Eye-Face Detection enabled. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy the high-res version. Image #1: the original for the Roseate Spoonbill incoming blur image

What are the Big Problems With This Image?

• 1- The WHITEs on the upper back of the spoonbill are seriously over-exposed.
• 2- The extra bird and the black squiggles in the lower left corner are distracting at best.
• 3- I don’t care for the pink blur above the inner portion of the far wing.
• 4- The vegetation and the the rock jetty make for a butt-ugly background.
• 5- The eye of the incoming bird could be a lot sharper.

I did, however, love the framing and the degree of blurring and decided to address each of the problems above in Photoshop. The raw file was converted twice. See below for a description of what I did to create the digital painting below.

This image was created on 5 May 2022 at Stick Marsh in Fellsmere, FL. I used the hand held Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS lens (at 422mm) and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless digital camera. ) The exposure was determined using Zebra technology with ISO on the Thumb Dial. ISO 50: 1/30 second at f/8 (stopped down 2/3 stop) in Manual Mode. AWB at 8:02:35am iii the shade of a shelter on a clear morning. RawDigger showed the exposure to be a bit beyond perfect. i.e., the brightest WHITEs were over-exposed. Tracking: Zone AF-C with Bird/Eye-Face Detection enabled. Be sure to click on the image to enjoy the high-res version. Image #1A: the digital creation: Roseate Spoonbill incoming blur

Creating the Digital Painting

1- With the WHITEs on the upper back of the spoonbill seriously over-exposed (to the tune of 50,000 OvExp pixels), I used a new technique that I have been working on to restore detail to the over-exposed highlights. It worked to perfection. Folks who own the Saving the Whites Video are invited to send proof of purchase via e-mail to receive a short tutorial via e-mail detailing this new technique.

2- To begin, the lower left corner was cleaned up with a small crop from the left and from below. Then I used the Clone Stamp Tool (a rarity for me) at 10% Hardness. Lastly, the look of this area was improved when I ran a 65-pixel Gaussian blur on the whole image as detailed below.

3- I eliminated the pink blur above the inner portion of the far wing using the Patch Tool and then cleaned up the edge up with the Clone Stamp Tool (sized to 400 px) set at 50% Hardness.

4- To begin the cleanup of the vegetation and the rock jetty background, I used the Patch Tool, Content-Aware Fill, and again, the Clone Stamp Tool at 10% Hardness. Next, I applied a 65-pixel Gaussian Blur to the whole image, added a Hide-All (Black or Inverse) Layer Mask, and painted in the effect with a white brush — shortcut B, D. Lastly, I made sure to eliminate any spill-over blur from the bird by hitting X and painting the edges of the bird with a small, relatively hard (50%), black brush — shortcut B, D, X.

5- I tried a brand-new Eye Doctor technique: I painted a Quick Mask of a spoonbill eye from a sharp image, moved it into place on the blurred image, and simply reduced the Opacity of the eye layer to 50%. It worked like the proverbial charm.

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.

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

The techniques mentioned above (except for the two new ones) and tons more great Photoshop tips and techniques — along with all of my personalized Keyboard Shortcuts — are covered in detail in the BIRDS AS ART Current Workflow e-Guide (Digital Basics II), an instructional PDF that is sent via e-mail. Learn more and check out the free excerpt in the blog post here. While the new e-Guide reflects my MacBook Pro/Photo Mechanic/DPP 4/Photoshop workflow, folks using a PC and/or BreezeBrowser will also benefit greatly by studying the material on DB II. 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: 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.

You can learn advanced Quick Masking and advanced Layer Masking techniques in APTATS I & II. You can save $15 by purchasing the pair.

Typos

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