October 14th, 2012

BIRDS AS ART BULLETIN #421

  • NYC Seminar Door Prizes!
  • Bosque del Apache IPT Late Registration Discount Announcement
  • How’d He Do Dat?
  • Bosque/Albuquerque Thanksgiving Buffet Invite
  • The Lens Align Mark II Non-tethered Tutorial
  • Lots of Used Camera Gear for Sale
  • BIRDS AS ART/A Creative Adventure Barnegat Jetty IPT
  • BIRDS AS ART on Social Media
  • Woman Roommates Needed
  • Posse News: Robert O’Toole
  • IPT Updates

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NYC Seminar Door Prizes!

Wow! We have put together a killer collection of door prizes for the NYC Seminar. If you live in the northeast and are not yet registered click here to join us and have a chance at winning some of the great and valuable loot below.

From ThinkTank: an Airport AirStream™ Rolling Camera Bag; meets all International carry- on regulations. A $324.75 value.
From LensCoat: a Standard LensCoat® RainCoat. A $79.99 value.
Manfrotto/Gitzo will be contributing one or more items.
From Delkin: a 32 gb 700X Compact Flash Card plus give-aways. The card is a $134.99 value.
NIK has sent a gift certificate for one copy of NIK Color Efex Pro, the Photoshop filter plug-in that has changed my digital workflow. Enter the code BAA at checkout to save 15%.
Topaz is sending a gift certificate for their black and white effects filter program.
Micheal Tapes at RAW Workflow has chipped in with a Lens Align Mark II. A $79.95 value.
You might also win a copy of The Art of Bird Photography II by Arthur Morris or a copy of A Guide to Pleasing Blurs by Arthur Morris and Denise Ipplito.

Thanks a stack to all of our generous sponsors.

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Are IPTs expensive? Of course they are. For good reason. The most experienced, knowledgeable, and hardest working leaders. Great Photoshop instruction. Great folks. And great food. For a greater appreciation of the composite image, click on the photo. Click on the enlarged version to close it.

Bosque del Apache IPT Late Registration Discount Announcement

With four openings on this IPT and me headed out of town till 11/11 we are glad to announce a healthy late registration discount for this great IPT. Please call Jim weekdays from 9-5 eastern time at 863-692-0906 for details and leave a message if he is at the post office.

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Nobody alive or dead knows Bosque better than I do. Do consider joining us for the educational experience of a lifetime. For a greater appreciation of the composite image, click on the photo. Click on the enlarged version to close it.

BOSQUE del APACHE 2012 IPT: “The Complete Bosque Experience.” NOV 21-27, 2012. 7-FULL DAYS: $3399. Co-leaders: Denise Ippolito, landscape photography expert Jim Heupel, and Photoshop expert Mike Hannisian. Introductory Slide program: 6:30 pm on 11/20. Limit: 12/Openings 4.

Tens of thousand of Snow Geese, 10,000 Sandhill Cranes, ducks including point-blank American Wigeon and Wood Duck, amazing sunrises, sunsets, and blast-offs. Live, eat, and breathe photography with one of (if not the) world’s premier photographic educators at one of his very favorite locations on the planet. Top-notch Photoshop instruction. This will make 18 consecutive Novembers at Bosque for me. Nobody knows the place better than I do. Join us to learn to think like a pro, to recognize situations and to anticipate them based on the weather, especially the light and the wind direction. Every time we make a move we will let you know why. When you head home applying what you learned will prove to be invaluable. The cast of co-leaders includes Denise Ippolito, Jim Heupel, and Mike Hannisian.

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This image of an adult dark morph (Blue) Snow Goose was created on last year’s Bosque del Apache BAA Instructional Photo-tour with the Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM Autofocus lens, Canon 1.4x EF Extender III (Teleconverter), and the unfortunately discontinued EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering -1/3 stop: 1/1250 sec. at f/9 in Manual mode.

Central Sensor (by necessity)/AI Servo Rear Focus and re-compose. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

How’d He Do Dat?

To see the original capture for the image above see “How’d He Do Dat?

Bosque/Albuquerque Thanksgiving Buffet Invite

For the past ten years or so I have hosted a midday Thanksgiving Day meal, in part to honor the memory of my late-wife, Elaine Belsky Morris, and in part because I love meeting others who love Bosque as I do. At first it was held at the wonderful and relatively elegant Val Verde Steak House in Socorro, now defunct. Then it was held at the lovely and historic Luna Mansion. Luna Mansion closed a few years ago and recently re-opened but will no longer serves Thanksgiving Day. In 2009 we had fun and a fine meal at the Stage Door Grill but that wonderful little joint recently bit the dust also. Socorro is a tough place for businesses to survive. In 2010 we went a bit upscale and dined in the New Mexico Ballroom at the Hilton Albuquerque hotel. There was tons of food and it was all delicious.

The Hilton is now a Crowne Plaza and the good news is that they are having the buffet again this year as they did in 2011. I will be picking up the tab for the IPT group, but as always, all visiting birders and photographers are invited to join us. If you would like to take part in the fun and camaraderie this year please send a check for $45.00 per person made out to “”Arthur Morris”” to cover the cost of the buffet that will include all the traditional items plus lots more as well as tax and tip. Drinks are on you. Please mark ““Thanksgiving Buffet” on your check and mail it to; BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 4041, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855. Be sure to include your e-mail address on your check and in a short note. Sorry, no PayPals or credit cards for this. I do hope that you can join us.

I have group reservations for Thanksgiving Day (of course). Those joining us will need to be at the hotel at 11:30 am sharp. It is located at 1901 University Blvd NE, Albuquerque, NM 87102, about an hour up I-25 from the Super 8 Motel in Socorro where I have stayed happily with my groups for well more than a decade. I do hope that you can join us.

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This image of a crescent moon was created on last year’s Bosque del Apache BAA Instructional Photo-tour with the Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM Autofocus lens, Canon 1.4x EF Extender III (Teleconverter), and the unfortunately discontinued EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering -4 stops: 1/20 sec. at f/11 in Manual mode.

How did I wind up at -5 stops? With the black sky background I knew enough to start at -3 stops but still had some blinkies. It took 6 more shutter speed clicks to eliminate all the blinkies, thus -5 stops. If you would not have started at -3 stops you are directed to the chapter on exposure in the original “The Art of Bird Photography” and to the section entitled “Exposure Simplified” in “The Art of Bird Photography II” (ABP II: 916 pages on CD only).

Here’s what David Pugsley had to say about ABP II: “It should be required reading for anyone who is serious about avian photography.”

Central Sensor (by necessity)/AI Servo Rear Focus and re-compose. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

The Lens Align Mark II Non-tethered Tutorial

After many months of planning, I finally finished the Lens Align Mark II Non-tethered Tutorial. You can read it on the blog here.

Lots of Used Camera Gear for Sale

Denise Ippolito

Denise Ippolito is offering a Canon EOS-1D Mark III in very good condition for $1200.00 and a Canon EOS-5D Full Frame Sensor 12 mp Digital SLR Camera in excelent condition for $800.00. Please contact Denise via e-mail.

Bob Hawkins

Bob Hawkins is offering a used Canon 400mm f/5.6L lens–my old “toy lens,” killer for flight, in like-new condition for $1,000 including ground shipping in the continental U.S. The lens was used for only 2-3 hours. Guaranteed payment or a cleared check is required before making shipment. You can reach Bob via e-mail or try him on his cell at 727-363-1687. If no answer try his wife’s cell at 727-385-1658.

Steve Vige

Steve Vige is offering the following used gear for sale:

Canon 70-200 f4L IS lens (price reduced!) in excellent condition includes pouch and original Canon box: $899 buyer pays shipping.

Please contact Steve on his cell at 661-305-0307 or via e-mail. Note: Steve will be away from 10/18/12 until 11/1.

Shelly Goldstein

Multiple IPT-veteran and all around nice guy Sheldon Goldstein is offering the following Canon lenses for sale; each of them has recently been checked and cleaned by Canon Jamesburg. Wire transfers preferred or wait until your check clears. All sales include shipping and insurance.

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens in excellent condition with LensCoat, the RRS LCF-50 Arca style replacement foot, the original foot with all the screws, and all the original stuff including the lens trunk and leather hood. This one is an absolute steal at $6899. It will likely sell in minutes as we have sold others recently with less extras for more.

Canon 600mm f/4L IS lens in near-mint condition with LensCoat, the Wimberley Replacement Foot for Canon 600 f4 & 400 f2.8 and all the original stuff including the lens trunk and leather hood. This one is another steal at $7499. It was my workhorse lens for more than six years.

Canon 100-400mm IS L zoom lens in very good condition with the Wimberley P-20 plate and the heavy duty fabric case that it came in: $1100.

Canon 70-200 f/2.8 L IS zoom lens in very good condition with the Wimberley P-20 plate and the heavy duty fabric case that it came in: $1100.

Contact Shelly by phone at 1-646-423-0392 or via e-mail.

Cindy Cox

Cindy Cox is offering the following used gear for sale:

Canon EOS 5D Full Frame Sensor 12 mp Digital SLR Camera in excellent condition for $750.00 (mirror recently replaced by Canon). Buyer pays shipping.
Canon 24-105mm f/4L IS EF USM AF lens in excellent condition for $750.00. Buyer pays shipping. (This is artie’s favorite B-roll lens; he never leaves home without it.)

Please contact Cindy via e-mail.

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This drake Harlequin Duck image was created with the Canon EF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM Autofocus lens, Canon 1.4x EF Extender III (Teleconverter), and EOS-1D Mark III–see one for sale above by Denise Ippolito. ISO 800. Evaluative metering -1/3 stop (to prevent burning the WHITEs): 1/250 sec. at f/8 in Manual mode.

If you would not have under-exposed this a bit you are directed to the chapter on exposure in the original “The Art of Bird Photography” and to the section entitled “Exposure Simplified” in “The Art of Bird Photography II” (ABP II: 916 pages on CD only).

Here’s what David Pugsley had to say about ABP II: “It should be required reading for anyone who is serious about avian photography.”

Central Sensor (by necessity)/AI Servo Rear Focus and re-compose. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image to enjoy a larger version.

BIRDS AS ART/A Creative Adventure Barnegat Jetty IPT

Barnegat Jetty IPT, Barnegat Light, NJ: 2 1/2 DAYS. DEC 20 (1:30pm), 21, and 22, 2012: $999. Limit 8. Includes 5 photo-sessions, both lunches, introductory slide program (DEC 20), Photoshop session (DEC 21), and image sharing at lunch DEC 22.

Join Arthur Morris and Denise Ippolito for a 2 1/2 Day Instructional Photo-Tour at the infamous Barnegat Jetty in Barnegat Light, New Jersey. Artie and Denise will teach you how to get close to the ducks and shorebirds that frequent this famed winter birding and photography hotspot, how to get the right exposure every time, and how to see, understand, and tackle a variety of photographic situations. Each will conduct a killer Photoshop session. We should have some excellent chances with Harlequin Duck and Purple Sandpiper, the two headliner species. With any luck we should get to photograph most of these species: Long-tailed Duck (formerly Oldsquaw), Common Loon, Red-throated Loon, Red-breasted Merganser, Surf Scoter, Black Scoter, Common Eider, Brant, Dunlin, Ruddy Turnstone, Black-bellied Plover, and Sanderling . Great Black-backed, Herring, and Ring-billed Gulls are also likely. Sunning Harbor Seals are possible. With the right winds we may have some good flight photography also.

Having at least a 500mm f/4 lens with a 1.4X teleconverter is recommended. Participants should be in good physical condition with a good sense of balance. A $500 per person non-refundable deposit by check only made out to “Arthur Morris” is required to hold your spot. Please click here and then scroll down and read our cancellation policies. Then please print, read, and sign the necessary paperwork here and send it to us with your deposit check. Deposit due immediately. That leaves a balance of $499, due on NOV 20, 2012.

Animated GIF

Notice the extra detail on both the bird and the seaweed-covered rocks provided by a healthy dose of Detail Extractor.

NIK 15% Discount

As regular readers here know, NIK Color Efex Pro has drastically changed my digital workflow. You can save 15% on all NIK products by clicking here and entering BAA in the Promo Code box at check-out. Then hit Apply to see your savings. You can download a trial copy that will work for 15 days and allow you to create full sized images.

BIRDS AS ART on Social Media

All are invited to follow us on Facebook and Twitter by clicking on each of the logo-links above. Re-tweeting is always appreciated.

Woman Roommates Needed

We are looking for single female roommates for both the Galapagos July 2013 trip and the September 2013 Bear Boat/Bears Catching Salmon IPT. See below for details on these two great trips. Please e-mail for additional info and discount info.

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Bald Eagle landing silhouette, Homer, AK
Image copyright 2007/Robert O’Toole Photography

Posse News: Robert O’Toole

Due to a late cancellation, Robert O’Toole has a single opening on his November 12-16, 2012 Homer Bald Eagle trip: $3600 less a $500 late registration discount.

Bald Eagle Workshop

If you missed out on Homer at its prime, this workshop will bring back the magic. You will have lots of great opportunities to photograph eagles both at close range and set against beautiful scenic backgrounds while working legally outside the Homer city limits. Boat trips (tide & weather permitting) are included. Limited to just 5 persons, this trip allows for lots of one-on-one and small group instruction.

Please contact Robert via e-mail and be a bit patient as he is currently on the road with limited internet access.

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8 comments to BIRDS AS ART BULLETIN #421

  • avatar David Strozdas

    Artie,
    I’m transitioning from a PC to a MAC and your mentions of using BB on a MAC have caught my attention, as have your recent “teases” about just how to do that. I’m a huge fan of BB and use it with my workflow, so I’m curious as to how close you are with sharing your information? I’m pretty sure I have it figured out, but I want to see what you have to say and garner any tips from you before I load everything and begin using it on a MAC. Thank you for your time and for all of the information you share with everyone. Safe travels and good shooting!
    Dave Strozdas

  • avatar Mike Williams

    Artie
    FYi I have sent numerous emails to Canon etc but no response at all – hoenstly I dont think they care
    Mike

    • avatar Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

      You may be right. As a good consumer the best tack is to try to work your way up to some of the top folks in customer service at Canon USA. aartie

  • avatar Tom Griffin

    Too busy!

  • avatar Mike Williams

    Artie
    As an explorer of light for Canon and also regarding your comments about the “unfortuantely discontinued” 1D Mk IV (my all time favorite body) do you have any idea what Canon are playing at? It appears to me that the obsession with full frame, a lack of autofocus at F8 on the 1DX etc etc is a slap in the face for all bird photographers heavily invested in Canon equipment, (I have 800mm, 400mm DO, and a myriad of other L Lenses). I feel more than a little betrayed by Canon and I would be interested in your views as it appears Canon are kicking one of their biggest customer bases. I am seriously considering moving to Nikon given they appear to be moving the other way – new 800 autofocus at F8 etc etc

    Best regards Mike Wllliams

    • avatar Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

      Mike. I am on your side. Be a good consumer and let them know your thoughts. I have heard a rumor that originated in Europe saying that there will be a firmware update in DEC enabling AF at f/8 but it there is no basis in fact. artie