Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

Stuff

I met Lee Sommie and Noel Heustis early on Saturday for a morning of bird photography. It was not a great morning but we finished up by spending two hours with a very tame and photogenic juvenile Piping Plover. Then a great lunch at the Neptune Grill in Gulfport. No swim. No exercise. Yes nap 🙂

Sunset was tougher than the morning had been with east winds and a clear western sky. There had been a pretty big group — about 20 — of mostly young woman sitting on a rock wall enjoying the sunset. As we walked by one of the ladies asked, “Any good pictures?” I said, “You asked the right person.” I shared a few half-way decent blasting highlights images on the back of the camera. We wound up chatting for a bit and we learned that they were a Girl Scout group from Indian Rocks Beach. I went back to the car for a business card and grabbed my laptop as well. Next thing you know my Macbook Pro was sitting atop one of those big rubber garbage cans and I was doing a slide show for the girls. Everyone was pretty much captivated. The whole thirty minutes represented a wonderful and magical connection.

If you did not chime in on Thursday’s blog post, please do so now by clicking here; the blog is designed to be interactive. As always, the more folks who participate, the more everyone will learn. And yes, that includes me 🙂

The Streak

Today makes one hundred seven days in a row with a new educational blog post! This one took less than an hour to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not …), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of 480 … Good health and good internet connections willing.

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

This 5-frame in-camera multiple exposure was created early on the morning of Thursday, November 9, 2017 down by the lake near my home at Indian Lake Estates, FL. I used the hand held Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 1.4X III (at 476mm) and my favorite bird aquatic wildflower photography camera body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/160 sec. at f/11 in Manual mode. AWB in bright early morning sunlight with clear skies. Flexi-zone Single rear button AF in Live View (for mirror lock) with the 2-second-timer. Click here to see the latest version of the Rear Focus Tutorial. No LensAlign/FocusTune Micro-adjustment is needed or applied when you focus in Live View via contrast off the sensor. Pickerelweed, 5-frame multiple exposure

Pickerelweed Multiple Exposure: one frame, five images …

To create this multiple exposure I chose On:Func/Ctrl (see more below) and set the number (of exposures) to 5. Then I went to Live View, set the 2-second timer, rear button focused, and figured the correct exposure using the live histogram in conjunction with Exposure Simulation. After I made the first image, I shifted the lens slightly; the really neat thing about using Live View for Multiple Exposures is that when you shift the lens and half-press the shutter button, you will see the resulting image before you even press the shutter button. Make the second image and then repeat for the next three images for a total of five.

Image Design Question

Why do I wish that I had lowered the position of my lens six inches?

Free 5D Mark IV User’s Guide Free Excerpt

Below is a free excerpt from the 5D Mark IV User’s Guide (in progress). Folks might be wondering “What’s taking him so long?” I want everyone to see the amount of detail, checking, and re-checking that goes into each section of the guide, into each item entry. I need to be 100% sure that 100% of the information is accurate, and that the directions are clear, concise, simple, easy to follow, and completely accurate. That involves first trying to decode the information in the camera body Instruction Manual and then working to understand the implications of each setting wth regards to nature, wildlife, and bird photography. Oftentimes I need to head into the backyard or down to the beach to give the various settings a test drive. Anyway, enjoy, and when you see some nice patterns, follow the directions and create a few multiple exposures.

Note: If you are confused by anything in the excerpt or note any errors or typos, please get in touch via e-mail.

Multiple Exposures

You can create in-camera multiple exposures with your 5D Mark IV. It is easier to access Multiple Exposure (ME) shooting by pressing the Creative Photo button) than by accessing it via the menu item. The Creative Photo button (I call it the “artist’s brush” button) is the topmost button in the vertical row of five buttons to the left of the large LCD on the back of the camera; it looks like an artist’s brush inside a rectangle. Once you press it, turn the thumb wheel clockwise once so that the Multiple exposure icon –the one in the middle — is highlighted in orange. Then press the Set button and proceed as directed below.

Here’s how to create Multiple Exposures:

Hit the Set button to bring up the ME menu. If you wish to check the look of the merged image as you proceed, or if you wish to save all the frames, choose Func/Ctrl (Function and Control Priority). The continuous shooting frame rate will decrease noticeably. If you are in Live View with On:Func/Ctrl set you can see the way the image will look when it merges with the next image in the series before you push the shutter button. This is very helpful when creating pattern multiple exposures or soft/sharp multiple exposures. In On:Func/Ctrl you have a choice on the menu as to whether you wish to Save source images. I always do by setting All images. If you do not want to save all the images set Result only.

If you wish to create a multiple exposure of a moving subject, you must choose ContShtng (Continuous shooting priority); the frame rate will not slow down. Important note: if you select ContShtng, only the multiple exposure will be saved. You will not be able to save all the images in the sequence. See page 268 in the camera instruction manual for a list of operations the will be disabled during this type of shooting.
Be sure to select Disable when you are done creating multiple exposures. You can also cancel Multiple exposure shooting by turning the camera off and then back on again.

For Multi-expos ctrl (Multiple exposure control) I recommend setting Average after setting the correct exposure compensation for a single frame. After creating the first multiple exposure image, you can check the histogram for the final result and adjust your exposure compensation as needed.

For No. of exposures (number of exposures) set the number of images that you wish to include in your final image. You can choose from 1-9 images. To set the number, first hit the Set button, then scroll up or down with the thumb wheel, and then hit Set again to register your choice.
As mentioned above, at Save source imgs (Save source images), selecting All images gives you great flexibility after the fact. If you do not get the image you want, you can assemble your own multiple exposures in Photoshop during post-processing using Layers. In addition, you might love one of the series as a stand-alone image. Remember, if you set ContShtng (Continuous shooting priority) at the outset, only a single image will be saved.

At Continue Mult-exp (Continue Multiple-exposures) set Continuously unless you wish to create only a single multiple exposure and then go back to normal shooting.

For more information and to check out the really fine details and restrictions that are in place when on creating multiple exposures, see pages 268-272 of the camera instruction manual.

Select image for mult. Expo.

If you would like to create a multiple exposure image on top of an image already recorded on the card, you must have Multiple Exposure active with all of your menu choices set and must of course have some images on the card. Then scroll down to Select image for multiple exposure at the bottom of the Multiple exposure sub-menu. Note: the base image must be a full-sized RAW file created with the 5D Mark IV without Highlight Tone Priority (HTP) enabled. You may, for example, wish to put an image of a large moon created with a long telephoto lens into a scenic image to be created with a wide angle lens. There are of course lots of other possibilities here for those with creative minds. The camera indicates Only compatible img’s displayed but that is a lie. ☺ If you do select an image that was created with HTP enabled it will show as Unselectable image.

First set On: Funct/Ctrl. If you wish to shoot only one image on top of your selected image, make sure that you have set the No of exposures to 2. If you wish to shoot multiple exposures on top of your base image then the No of exposures should be set to 3 or more.

Now select Select image for mult. Expo. Then hit the Set button. The images on the card will be displayed. Scroll with the Thumb Wheel to the image to that you wish to use as the base image, press Set, and the scroll to OK and press Set again. Now create the next image of the multiple exposure sequence. If you have set the No of exposures to 2, then you are finished. You can review the image by hitting the Replay (image review) arrow. If you have set the No of exposures to 3 or more, the number of remaining images will be shown near the upper right of the LCD. Continue until you are done. Again, there is lots of room here for creativity and plain old messing around.

Recent Fort DeSoto Images From bottom left clockwise back to center: Great Egret, blasting sunrise highlights; Black Skimmer, winter plumage in pre-dawn light; Roseate Spoonbill foraging; Brown Pelican, juvenile landing; hybrid heron X egret; American Oystercatcher feeding; Royal Tern, worn juvenile; Great Blue Heron from below.

Fort DeSoto Early Winter IPT. 3 1/2 days: $1599

Saturday DEC 2 (afternoon session) through the full day on Tuesday DEC 5, 2017. Meet and Greet Introduction on SAT DEC 2, 2017

With no water in Estero Lagoon, Corkscrew Swamp and Anhinga Trail total busts for many years, and Ding Darling NWR managed into oblivion, Fort DeSoto has emerged as the premier bird photography location in the state. Join me in early winter to escape the cold weather and photograph lots of tame terns, gulls, herons, egrets (including Reddish Egret), shorebirds (including and especially Marbled Godwit), Osprey, and Brown Pelican. Long-billed Curlew, Wood Stork, and Roseate Spoonbill all range somewhere between likely and possible.

Learn to get the right exposure every time, to approach free and wild (and often tame!) birds, and to design a pleasing image. And learn the location of my new Fort DeSoto hotspot along with my favorite sunset location (sky conditions permitting). To register call Jim or Jen at the office at 863-692-0906 or shoot me an e-mail.

DeSoto IPT Details

This IPT will include four 3 hour afternoon sessions, three 3 1/2 hour morning sessions, three lunches, and after-lunch image review and Photoshop sessions. To ensure early starts, breakfasts will be your responsibility. Dinners are on your own so that we can get some sleep.

Because of the narrow time frame, your $499 non-refundable deposit can be paid not by credit card. Call Jim or Jennifer at the office with a credit card at 863-692-0906 to register. Your balance must be paid by check once you sign up. The balance check (made out to “BIRDS AS ART) should me mailed to us at BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL, 33855. Please print, complete, and sign the form that is linked to here and shoot it to us along with your balance check. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me via e-mail.

Canon lens rentals are available on a limited basis: 600 II, 500 II, 400 DO II, and 200-400 f/4 with Internal TC.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

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

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).

More Blog Subscription Problems 🙂

It appears that our server was recently spammed by AOL and possibly by several other (AOL-related?) e-mail providers. AOL was the first to do that to BPN more than a decade ago and we eventually solved the problem. But, they are back on our case. If you suddenly stopped receiving BAA Blog notices please click here to learn the easy work-around.

Stuff

If you did not chime in on yesterday’s blog post, please do so now as the blog is designed to be interactive. As always, the more folks who participate, the more everyone will learn. And yes, that includes me 🙂

I was glad to learn early on Thursday that Peter Noyes’ Nikon D-810 Digital SLR sold for $1499 just two hours after it was listed and that Multiple IPT veteran Shelly Goldstein sold his Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS USM Super Telephoto Lens (the “old five”) in excellent condition for the $3899 a week after it was listed. I did lots more work on the 5D IV Guide on Thursday. I swam 3/4 mile. Did lots of positional exercises and cardio stuff and answered lots of e-mails; business as usual.

The Streak

Today makes one hundred five days in a row with a new educational blog post! This one took more than two hours to prepare. With all of my upcoming free time (or not …), the plan right now is to break the current record streak of 480 … Good health and good internet connections willing.

Booking.Com

Booking.Com came through for me twice again recently with both the DeSoto Fall IPT and next July’s UK Puffins, Gannets, and Bempton Pre-trip room reservations. And all the rates were great. If you’d like to give Booking.Com a shot, click here and you will earn a $25 reward. Thanks to the many who have already tried and used this great service.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of folks 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.

This image was created on a zodiac photo-cruise at Hope Bay, Antarctica with the hand held Canon EF 300mm f/2.8L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 2X III, and the EOS-1DX (now replaced by the blazingly fast Canon EOS-1D X Mark II.) ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 2/3 stops as framed: 1/1250 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode. AWB in slightly overcast conditions. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: +5. Two AF points above the center AF point/AI Servo/Expand/Rear Button AF was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point fell on bird’s face below and to the right of it’s eye where the white and black meet. Adelie Penguin on ice floe with wings raised, Hope Bay, Antarctica Be sure to enjoy an enlarged version by clicking on the image.

Why and How to Stand Up in a Zodiac …

Why is it often necessary to stand up in a Zodiac? The most common reason is so that you can have a clear line of sight to the subject over the folks kneeling in front of you. On well-run zodiac photo-cruises, most of the folks on the subject side of the zodiac will be kneeling (if it is physically possible for them to do that). Folks on the opposite side, the side away from the subject, will usually need to stand so that they can enjoy good photographic opportunities. On well-run zodiac photo-cruises experienced drivers will turn the boat around completely after a good pass so that the standing folks kneel and the kneeling folks stand.

With today’s image, there was another big reason for me to stand. What was it?

If you are in decent shape with relatively good balance, the physical process of standing up in a zodiac is not a big challenge. Before standing make sure that the area around your feet is clear of any gear that has been placed on the floor, and most importantly, ask the zodiac driver for permission to stand. This ensures that the driver will not move the zodiac unexpectedly. Have fun. And be safe.

May I be frank? If you are making a trip to Antarctica, South Georgia, and even the Falklands without having a copy of the Southern Ocean Photography Guide on your laptop and studying it at length, you are making a huge mistake. 🙂

The Southern Ocean Photography Guide: $100, via download link

The Southern Ocean Photography Guide (SOPG) e-book is complete and is available for purchase here for $100.00. Or, you can call us at 863-692-0906 Mondays through Fridays with your credit card in hand. A link to your PDF will be sent ASAP (Monday through Friday). This guide is one hundred twenty-eight pages, 21,500 words, and contains 158 inspirational photographs each accompanied by an educational caption.

Why a Photography Guide rather than a Site Guide? The SOPG includes a ton of information on the complex logistics of a voyage to South Georgia and/or Antarctica. The information in this guide will help you select the right trip, to prepare for your trip properly in terms of clothing and photography gear, and will teach you about the various forms of photographic opportunities that you will have including landings, zodiac cruises, photographing from the ship while underway, and ship cruising. The logistics of getting your gear and yourself safely ashore are covered in detail. For those considering such an expedition, there is a frank discussion about the physical demands of a Southern Ocean voyage.

The new guide does include specific tips for many of the popular landings. In South Georgia these include the landings at Elsehul, Fortuna Bay, Right Whale Bay, Hercules Bay, Grytviken, Stromness Harbor, Godthul, Undine Harbor, and Cooper Bay, as well as the famed landing sites at Salisbury Plain, Gold Harbor, and the mind-boggling St. Andrews Bay. In Antarctica you will–weather permitting–likely land at Brown Bluff, Jougla Point, Petermann Island, Neko Harbor, Danco Harbor, Hannah Point, and for the extremely lucky, Bailey Head. There is lots of zodiac cruising down by the continent at locations that include the ice- and Humpback Whale-filled Cierva Cove, Paulet Island (where landings are possible but not likely), Hope Bay, and lots more. You will learn what to expect on a zodiac cruise and how best to maximize your opportunities while protecting your gear.

Scroll down here for a free excerpt.

Why So Expensive?

Actually, if you consider the value of the information in the PDF that you will receive, the SOPG is cheap. I have spent well more than $70,000 out of pocket on my five Southern Ocean trips. You will likely be spending $10 to $20K or more on your trip. And you will likely be bringing $10 to $20K or more worth of gear on your trip. $100? That is a huge bargain.

As above, the info in this guide will prove invaluable. It will help you be prepared; it will help you to dress properly so that you can stay as warm and as dry as possible; it will help you keep your gear safe and dry; it will help you to maximize your photographic opportunities. And, if you follow the safety tips, it might even save your life.

From Ted Cheeseman

Ted Cheeseman was the Expedition Leader on two of my three Cheesemans’ Ecology Safari voyages. He is skillful, dedicated, and extremely knowledgeable. He is as passionate about ice and penguins as I am about bird photography. I recently sent him a review copy of the SOPG. Here is what he had to say:

Thank you for sharing this. I had no idea you were putting so much work into the guide. It was really fun to see your images. I have, of course, seen many of them, but many more I had not. I read a lot of it, not comprehensively but spent about an hour. Great stuff Artie. Your introduction is solid, honest, appropriate, and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the experience from your perspective. Ted

Recent Fort DeSoto Images From bottom left clockwise back to center: Great Egret, blasting sunrise highlights; Black Skimmer, winter plumage in pre-dawn light; Roseate Spoonbill foraging; Brown Pelican, juvenile landing; hybrid heron X egret; American Oystercatcher feeding; Royal Tern, worn juvenile; Great Blue Heron from below.

Fort DeSoto Early Winter IPT. 3 1/2 days: $1599

Saturday DEC 2 (afternoon session) through the full day on Tuesday DEC 5, 2017. Meet and Greet Introduction on SAT DEC 2, 2017

With no water in Estero Lagoon, Corkscrew Swamp and Anhinga Trail total busts for many years, and Ding Darling NWR managed into oblivion, Fort DeSoto has emerged as the premier bird photography location in the state. Join me in early winter to escape the cold weather and photograph lots of tame terns, gulls, herons, egrets (including Reddish Egret), shorebirds (including and especially Marbled Godwit), Osprey, and Brown Pelican. Long-billed Curlew, Wood Stork, and Roseate Spoonbill all range somewhere between likely and possible.

Learn to get the right exposure every time, to approach free and wild (and often tame!) birds, and to design a pleasing image. And learn the location of my new Fort DeSoto hotspot along with my favorite sunset location (sky conditions permitting). To register call Jim or Jen at the office at 863-692-0906 or shoot me an e-mail.

DeSoto IPT Details

This IPT will include four 3 hour afternoon sessions, three 3 1/2 hour morning sessions, three lunches, and after-lunch image review and Photoshop sessions. To ensure early starts, breakfasts will be your responsibility. Dinners are on your own so that we can get some sleep.

Because of the narrow time frame, your $499 non-refundable deposit can be paid not by credit card. Call Jim or Jennifer at the office with a credit card at 863-692-0906 to register. Your balance must be paid by check once you sign up. The balance check (made out to “BIRDS AS ART) should me mailed to us at BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL, 33855. Please print, complete, and sign the form that is linked to here and shoot it to us along with your balance check. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me via e-mail.

Canon lens rentals are available on a limited basis: 600 II, 500 II, 400 DO II, and 200-400 f/4 with Internal TC.

If In Doubt …

If in doubt about using the BAA B&H affiliate link correctly, you can always start your search by clicking here. Please note that the tracking is invisible. Web orders only. Please, however, remember to shoot me your receipt via e-mail.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And please remember that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Amazon.com

Those who prefer to support BAA by shopping with Amazon may use the logo link above.

Amazon Canada

Many kind folks from north of the border, eh, have e-mailed stating that they would love to help us out by using one of our affiliate links but that living in Canada and doing so presents numerous problems. Now, they can help us out by using our Amazon Canada affiliate link by starting their searches by clicking here.

Facebook

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

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).