Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART
February 1st, 2022

Understanding Depth-of-Field with Telephoto Lenses

What’s Up?

My MacBook Pro (and the almost surely messed-up back-up drive) are on the way to the data recovery outfit in California by Fed-Ex Overnight Priority. I should find something out late today or early on Wednesday. My fingers still crossed. I will spare you the details when I learn more.

If you need to get in touch with me before I get my laptop back, please shoot an e-mail to staffbaa@att.net with the “ATTN: artie” as the Subject Line. Or try me on my cell at 863-221-2372.

Today is Tuesday February 1 2022. It is 10 degrees warmer than it was yesterday with clear skies and little wind. Though I have no place to put my images right now, I will head down to the lake by 7:30am. Wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, I hope that you too have a great day. This blog post took about ninety minutes to prepare and makes 81 days in a row with a new one.

Please remember that 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.

Sony Alpha 1 Bodies in Stock at Bedfords/free card offer!

Steve Elkins of Bedfords let me know recently that he had several Sony a1 bodies in stock. If one of them has your name on it, please click here and be sure to enter the BIRDSASART coupon code check the box for free shipping to enjoy free Second Day Air Fed-Ex. Right now, in lieu of the 3% credit refunded to the card you used for your purchase, you will receive a Sony 160GB CFexpress Type A TOUGH Memory Card, a $399.99 value!

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.

Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens

BIRDS AS ART Record Low Price

Good friend and multiple IPT veteran Mark Hardymon is offering a Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS lens in near-mint condition for the BAA record-low price of $1,348.00. The sale includes the front and rear lens caps, the factory soft case, the strap, the original box, the manuals, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower 48 U.S. addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Mark via e-mail

The versatile 70-200mm f/2.8 lenses have long been big favorites of many nature photographers. They are great for landscapes. I have used this lens with Canon and Nikon and SONY. I used my Canon version to photograph granddaughter Maya’s dance recitals and to create bird-scapes and pre-dawn blast-off blurs at Bosque del Apache NWR in New Mexico. They are fast and sharp and have 1,000 uses. The 70-200 f/2.8 lenses are a specialty lens for bird photographers. Like the bad little child, when they are good, they are really, really good! I’ve used mine mostly for flight photography at point blank range where their performance is unmatched, especially in low light. I’ve killed with these lenses on the gannet boat in the UK, in Homer for eagles, for pre-dawn and blizzard blast-offs at Bosque, and at Merritt Island on single birds from huge feeding sprees right next to the road.

This super-fast lens weighs only 3.26 pounds and is easily hand holdable by just about everyone. As it sells new right now for $2,298.00, you can save a cool $800.00 by grabbing mark’s lens asap. artie

ps: To see what the 70-200 zoom lenses can do, see below, and also see the images in the blog post here. artie

This image was created on 15 January 2022 at La Jolla, CA. I used the hand held Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter (at 280mm) and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera.. The exposure was determined via Zebras. ISO 640: 1/320 sec. at f/4 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 7:11:54am before the sun came over the hill to the northeast.

Tracking: Spot S AF/C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy a high-res version.

Image #1: Brown Pelican sitting on dirt ridge on cliff

The Consensus Favorite

In the Eight Seconds Later and 165mm Wider blog post here, I posted the image above and the image below. Everyone who commented preferred the large-in-the-frame pelican image above to the habitat shot of the same bird below. Several folks trashed Image #2:

  • With the small in frame (subject), the bird seems to be lost.
  • #1 because I want to see the bird, not a busy, out-of-focus environmental shot.
  • #1, for the exact same reasons as the previous poster.

I actually liked Image #2 a lot, for several reasons. It helps to tell the whole story. It gives viewers a good idea of the setting. It gives the viewer an idea of the distance from the subject to the background. It shows the great versatility of all 70-200mm lenses. I thought that the o-o-f birds on the far wall provided an interesting background, and did not find the background very distracting at all. Lastly, when presented with Image #1 above, I saw the opportunity to teach a good lesson on depth-of-field, a topic that many bird photographers have serious misconceptions about.

Do understand that I respect the thoughts of the folks who did not like Image #2, and as always, am glad that they posted a comment. Above I am just sharing my two cents on the image.

This image was created on 15 January 2022 at La Jolla, CA. I used the hand held Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II lens with the Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter (at 115mm) and The One, the Sony Alpha 1 Mirrorless Digital Camera.. The exposure was determined via Zebras. ISO 640: 1/320 sec. at f/4 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 7:12:04am before the sun came over the hill to the northeast.

Tracking: Spot S AF/C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy a high-res version.

Image #2: Brown Pelican sitting on dirt ridge on cliff/bird-scape

Trying Yet Again to Explain the Relationship Between Depth of Field and Focal Length

In the Eight Seconds Later and 165mm Wider blog post here, I wrote:

Though I was standing in just about the same spot when I created both images, why are the birds in the background so much more sharply defined in Image #2 than in Image #1?

The question generated a series of comments (in part, below):

Adam: January 28, 2022 at 10:05am

To your question about DOF, the answer is that assuming you didn’t change the distance to the subject or aperture, the absolute DOF remains the same. The apparent DOF appears greater because you are zoomed out and smaller images appear sharper because they are more numerous and contrast is more apparent. However, if you were to enlarge/crop the second image to match the first image, the background would appear nearly the same.

Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART: January 28, 2022 at 2:34 pm

Thanks for commenting, Adam. You wrote, in part:

“To your question about DOF, the answer is that assuming you didn’t change the distance to the subject or aperture, the absolute DOF remains the same”

That would be true if and only if the size of the subject in the frame was the same. Cropping will not get you there. You are missing something important 🙂 with love, artie

Adam: January 28, 2022 at 4:24pm

Yes, how could I forget focal length? It must have been Covid-brain?

Next up was good friend and a many multiple IPT veteran John Dupps: January 28, 2022 at 3:49pm

You changed the focal length so the depth-of-field changed.

Morris/BIRDS AS ART: January 28, 2022 at 3:51pm

Hi John, I am glad that someone has been paying attention :).
with love, artie

John is of course, correct. Standing in roughly the same spot, the d-o-f increased dramatically. How dramatically? With a full frame camera body and an aperture of f/4, and assuming that I was about 10 feet from the subject, the d-o-f behind the bird for image #1 was about .48 inches. From the same spot, zooming out from 280mm to 115mm, the d-o-f behind the bird increased to 6.36 inches. Thus, the d-o-f increased by a factor of 13.25. And that explains why the birds on the far wall were more sharply defined than the few birds in the background in Image #1.

Some suggested that they might have liked Image #2 better had the birds on the far wall been in sharp focus. That shows a complete lack of understanding of d-o-f with telephoto lenses. The smallest aperture available with the gear in question is f/32. Going to f/32 would have required a much higher ISO along with a tripod and a much slower shutter speed. But here is the bigger problem: the far limit of d-o-f would have been about 12.7 feet, but the wall behind the birds was well more than 150 feet away. As they say frequently in Japan, “Not possible!”

The data above is from the excellent PhotoPills website here.

The Main Lesson

If you are at a given aperture and work at two different focal lengths, the d-o-f will be identical if and only if the subject is the exact same size in the frame. If you are at 400mm and you get twice as close to the bird working at 200mm, the d-o-f will be identical.

The angle of view, however, will change. Your frame will include much more background at the shorter focal length; being a lot wider, the image will look totally different, but the degree of sharpness of the background will be identical..

Related Telephoto Depth-of-Field Lessons

Probably 90% or more of my bird photography is done at the wide open aperture. Why? I love those creamy, dreamy backgrounds. Consider the following advice:

  • 1- Unless you can verbalize a specific reason for stopping down to a smaller aperture, shoot wide open.
  • 2- That said, understand that when you wish to create those smooth backgrounds, the distance from the subject to the background is at least as important as the f/stop.
  • 3- Since depth-of-field is a function of the distance to the subject, the time to work with smaller apertures is when you are working near the minimum focusing distance of the lens with a large-in-the-frame subject.
  • 4- Remember that WYSIWYG: what you see is what you get. If the whole subject looks completely sharp in the viewfinder, that means that it is covered by the d-o-f. In those case, there is no need to stop down at all.
  • 5- That said, do understand that in such situations with long focal lengths d-o-f is measured in tiny fractions of an inch. Stopping down, therefore, will not help a ton.
  • 6- As flying birds are generally a good distance away, you should — as a general rule, shoot flight at the wide open aperture so that you can maximize shutter speed at a given ISO.

As always, questions and comments are welcome.

Typos

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

January 31st, 2022

The Things That I Hate About the World's Best Bird Photography Camera, the Sony Alpha 1

What’s Up?

I was unable to get my MacBook Pro (and the almost surely messed-up back-up drive) for shipment to the data recovery outfit by Fed-Ex Overnight on Saturday afternoon; the Fed Ex depot in Lake Wales was closed when I got there. It will ship today. Fingers still crossed. I will spare you the gory details until I learn more.

If you need to get in touch with me, please shoot an e-mail to staffbaa@att.net with the “ATTN: artie” as the Subject Line. Or try me on my cell at 863-221-2372.

The favored Kansas City Chiefs destroyed the upstart Cincinnati Bengals in the first half, leading 21-3. They botched the last few seconds of the second quarter, leaving a bit of a sour taste in fans’ mouthes, but what could go wrong? Well, pretty much everything. Led by cocky young gunslinger Joe Burrow, the Bengals took the lead late in the game. The quarterback of the “Dynasty of One,” Patrick Mahomes, led the Chiefs to a trying field goal at the end of the fourth quarter. Ominously for the Bengals, the Chiefs won the overtime coin toss as they had in their miraculous come-from-behind win over the Buffalo Bills last weekend. But the Bengals intercepted a deflected Mahomes’ pass and drove for the point-blank game-winning field goal.

The Bengals are on to their first Super Bowl since 1988 to face the Los Angeles Rams. The Rams beat their long-time rivals, the San Francisco 49ers, with the second second-half comeback of the day. San Fran had beaten the Rams in the last six games they had played over the past three seasons. So much for winning streaks.

In the Super Bowl, to be played on Sunday February 13, I will be pulling for the cocky young gunslinger. I fly to Anchorage for the Homer IPTs on the 15th.

Today is Monday 31 January 2022. Wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, I hope that you too have a great day. It finally got below freezing here today: 30 degrees! It is supposed to warm up this week. This blog post took about two hours to prepare and makes 80 days in a row with a new one.

Again, please realize that having three back-ups of your images should be mandatory (he said after the horses may have escaped from the barn …)

My Recent Comment at the “Disaster Pending” blog post here:

Thanks all for your comments and suggestions. I may be getting back to some of you for help when the smoke clears. As far as the expense of data recovery, that is fortunately pretty much irrelevant to me. The laptop should be fine, unless the Fed Ex plane crashes.

Mentally, I am in pretty good shape and will be, no matter the outcome, that thanks to The Work of Byron Katie. As far as cloud storage and backup, one of the problems here at ILE is that we have very slow internet with lots of promises but zero options at present. Please correct me if upload and download speeds have nothing to do with cloud storage.

with love, artie

This image was created on 18 October 2021 at Sebastian Inlet. I used the hand held 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 (while standing –double gasp!). ISO 1000. Exposure determined via Zebras with ISO on the rear dial: 1/3200 sec. at f/5.6 (wide open) in Manual mode. RawDigger showed that this exposure was perfect. AWB at 8:58am on a variably sunny morning.

Tracking: Zone AF-C was active at the moment of exposure and performed perfectly. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Image #2A: Osprey rising after missed strike — re-crafted as a vertical!

The Things That I Hate About the World’s Best Bird Photography Camera, the Sony Alpha 1

I love the quality of color of the Sony a1 raw files. I love the fine-feather detail of the sharp 51MP images. And most of all, I love that the remarkable AF system of the a1 with its Bird Eye/Face Detection feature has enabled me to become both a better flight photographer, and a better all-around bird and nature photographer as well.

There are however, several things that I strongly dislike about this great mirrorless camera body. Keep reading to learn about my pet a1 peeves.

Your Favorite Camera Body

If anything really bugs you about your favorite camera body, consider leaving a comment and sharing that information with us. Be sure specify your camera system and the particular body you use, and let us know what pisses you off.

Tied for First: Why Image Playback Forever?

When you press the Playback button to review an image, you must either press the Playback button again or half-press the shutter button to get back to active Shooting mode. If you forget to press the Playback button again or half-press the shutter button, you will see the image in the viewfinder when you raise the camera to your eye. Then you must either press the Playback button again or half-press the shutter button to clear the viewfinder. If you were after an action shot, sorry Bud, you missed it. If you were after a particularly nice pose that lasted only an instant, you were screwed again.

I first complained to Sony about this with the a9 and then with the a9 II. The folks at Sony said, “Don’t worry about it. It will become second nature.” Well, three years later, it has not. It continues to happen to me several times during most shooting sessions. I have suggested often to Sony that a simple Firmware update could give users the option of having the reviewed image turn off automatically after three, five, or even 10 seconds. Or Never, if anyone out there would like that option. Obviously, I could never understand why anyone would want the reviewed image to be displayed forever, or understand why that is the default in the first place.

Tied for First: What AF Method Was I Using?

With camera bodies from every major camera manufacturer that I know of, you are able to examine a raw file on your computer and determine what AF Method was used. Period. And simple. Sony’s Imaging Edge software, though a pain to use, allows you to see the location of the active AF point, but it does not tell you whether you were using Spot S, Tracking: Zone, or Tracking Spot S. How are you supposed to learn about the AF system of the a1 (or the AF systems of any of the other Sony bodies for that matter), if you are not able to determine after the fact which AF Method you used to create a given image?

This situation is utterly ridiculous; Sony should be embarrassed.

Third: Why Can’t Custom Key Settings Be Saved With Memory Recall?

Like most camera bodies, the a1 allows you to register different groups of settings that can be recalled almost instantly by choosing 1, 2, or 3 on the mode dial. On most cameras, this is a great time-saving feature that allows you to switch tracks quickly and easily. Like this, from the Sony a1 Help Guide:

Memory Recall (MR): Recall Camera Settings. You can call up frequently used modes and numerical value settings that have been registered in advance.

The huge Memory Recall problem with the a1 is that you cannot save Custom Key Settings when using MR. When I go from shooting in M (Manual mode) to working in S (Shutter Priority Mode), as I do often when creating pleasing blurs (or trying to), I first set AUTO ISO and then go to Custom Key Settings and assign Exposure Compensation to the Thumb Wheel. When I go back to working in Manual Mode I need to retrace my steps by going back to Custom Key Settings and assign ISO to the Thumb Wheel.

It would be nice, not to mention super-convenient, to be able to save both of the above configurations as say MR 1 and MR 2 so that that could be accessed by turning the mode dial. But Sony MR does not save Custom Key Settings. This is not something that I would expect or hope for with a $6500.00 camera body.

Fourth: Why No Vertically Tilting Rear Monitor?

I love shooting ground level images using the tilted rear monitor (especially when I have my reading glasses with me). I’ve done this with the camera body and/or the lens on the ground, with my rig mounted on a Panning Ground Pod or a splayed tripod, using the ankle-pod technique, or recently, in San Diego, simply holding the camera below me in midair while I was seated. With the a1, however, you are pretty much restricted to working in horizontal format. There have been dozens of times when I’ve wished that the a1 had an articulating screen that could be used to shoot both horizontals and verticals at ground level.

Fifth: Why Only +/- Two Stops on the Analog Exposure Scale in Manual Mode?

When you are working in an automatic exposure mode like S (shutter priority), A (Aperture Priority), or P (Program), the analog exposure scale at the bottom of the viewfinder is active from -5 stops to + five stops. When you are working in M (Manual mode) as I do for more than 95% of my bird photography, the analog exposure scale is active only for -2 to +2 stops. If you are at +2 stops and you add one click more of light, the indicator jumps to off scale plus with the right-facing triangle on the right end of the scale flashing to indicate more than 2 stops of over-exposure (rather than indicating the exact amount from +2 1/2 to +5 stops).

Why? Again, this makes zero sense to me and seems like something that could easily be fixed with a firmware update.

Sixth: Shutter Closing on Power Off Too Slow

The a1 offers a great Menu item that gives users the option to have the camera close the shutter when it is turned off. This helps keep the sensor clean. The problem is that it takes five seconds (and sometimes longer, possibly related to the battery power), for the shutter to close. So when you are in a situation where you need to add or remove a teleconverter right now, this instant, folks will often forget to wait to hear the soft clunk that signifies that the shutter has closed. Summing up, this is a great feature. I just wish that it were a lot faster, perhaps instantaneous.

Seventh: A Recommendation for the Manufacturers of all Digital Camera Bodies

I have thought of this one for well more than a decade. When you are working in an automatic exposure mode such as Tv (time value or shutter priority), or Av (aperture value or priority), all camera bodies record the Exposure Compensation (EC). You know if you were working at +2 stops or -1/3 stop. At present, however, it is not possible to know the EC when you are working in Manual mode (unless you happened to be looking at the analog exposure scale at the moment the image was made and either remembered or wrote down the EC value).

When you are working in Manual mode, all digital and mirrorless camera bodies know the exact difference between the exposure suggested by the camera and the actual exposure at the instant each and every photograph is created. If the cameras could record the data from the analog exposure scale and record it in the EXIF, users could access that information and learn more about exposure than ever before. Just a thought.

Typos

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

January 30th, 2022

Very Important News & Sony Used Gear For Sale

What’s Up?

I am in the throes of a potentially major computer disaster. I may or may not be able to get a blog post done for the next few days. I will do my best. I sent my MacBook Pro (and a probably messed up back-up drive) to a data recovery outfit by Fed-Ex Overnight on Saturday afternoon. Fingers crossed.

If you need to get in touch with me, please shoot me an e-mail to staffbaa@att.net with the “ATTN: artie” as the Subject Line. Or try my cell at 863-221-2372.

Today is Sunday 30 January 2022. Wherever you are, and whatever you are doing, I hope that you too have a great day. This blog post took about ten minutes to prepare and makes 79 days in a row with a new one.

ps: please consider that having triple back-ups is strongly advised (he said after the horses may have escaped from the barn …)

Selling Your Used Photo Gear Through BIRDS AS ART

Selling your used (or like-new) photo gear through the BAA Blog is a great idea. We charge only a 5% commission on items priced at $1,000 or more. With items less than $1000, there is a $50 flat-fee. One of the more popular used gear for sale sites charged a minimum of 20%. Plus assorted fees! Yikes. They went out of business. And e-Bay fees are now up to 13%. If you are interested, please click here, read everything carefully, and do what it says. To avoid any misunderstandings, please read the whole thing very carefully. If you agree to the terms, please state so clearly via e-mail and include the template or templates, one for each item you wish to sell. Then we can work together to get your stuff priced and listed.

Stuff that is priced fairly — I offer pricing advice only to those who agree to the terms — usually sells in no time flat. Over the past years, we have sold many hundreds of items. Do know that prices for used gear only go in one direction. Down. You can always see the current listings by clicking here or on the Used Photo Gear tab on the orange-yellow menu bar near the top of each blog post page.

Sony a9 Mirrorless Camera Body

BIRDS AS ART Record Low Price
Sale Pending the first day of listing

Good friend and multiple IPT veteran Mark Hardymon is offering a Sony A9 Mirrorless Camera Body in near-mint condition for a BAA record-low $1,847.00 The sale includes the body cap, the strap, the original box, books, the USB cable, the charger with one battery, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower 48 U.S. addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Mark via e-mail

The a9, the original AF king, offers superb autofocus that absolutely kills for bird photography; virtually every image is sharp on the eye. Many feel that the AF system on the a9 ii is no better. As the a9 ii sells new for $4498.00 you can save an incredible $2651.00 by grabbing Mark’s a9 right now! artie

Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS Lens

BIRDS AS ART Record Low Price

Good friend and multiple IPT veteran Mark Hardymon is offering a Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS lens in near-mint condition for the BAA record-low price of $1,348.00. The sale includes the front and rear lens caps, the factory soft case, the strap, the original box, the manuals, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower 48 U.S. addresses only. Your item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Mark via e-mail

The versatile 70-200mm f/2.8 lenses have long been big favorites of many nature photographers. They are great for landscapes. I have used this lens with Canon and Nikon and SONY. I used my Canon version to photograph granddaughter Maya’s dance recitals and to create bird-scapes and pre-dawn blast-off blurs at Bosque del Apache NWR in New Mexico. They are fast and sharp and have 1,000 uses. The 70-200 f/2.8 lenses are a specialty lens for bird photographers. Like the bad little child, when they are good, they are really, really good! I’ve used mine mostly for flight photography at point blank range where their performance is unmatched, especially in low light. I’ve killed with these lenses on the gannet boat in the UK, in Homer for eagles, for pre-dawn and blizzard blast-offs at Bosque, and at Merritt Island on single birds from huge feeding sprees right next to the road.

This super-fast lens weighs only 3.26 pounds and is easily hand holdable by just about everyone. As it sells new right now for $2,298.00, you can save a cool $800.00 by grabbing mark’s lens asap. artie

ps: To see what the 70-200 zoom lenses can do, see the images in the blog post here. artie

Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS Lens

BIRDS AS ART Record Low Price
Sale Pending the first day of listing

Good friend and multiple IPT veteran Mark Hardymon is offering a Sony FE 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 GM OSS lens in near-mint condition for a BAA record-low $1,297.00. The sale includes the front and rear lens caps, factory soft case, strap, original box, books, and insured ground shipping via major courier to lower 48 U.S. addresses only.

Item will not ship until your check clears unless other arrangements are made.

Please contact Mark via e-mail

This versatile, mega-close-focusing lens is easily hand holdable by most folks; it is much lighter than the 200-600 G lens. It is great for bird photography. I used mine often for flight photography, for head shots of silly-tame birds, and for large flowers, butterflies, frogs, and the like. It sells new for $2498.00 so you can save a handsome $1,2001.00 by grabbing Mark’s lens today. artie