BIRDS AS ART BIRDS AS ART BULLETIN 209

BIRDS AS ART BIRDS AS ART BULLETIN 209

SEPTEMBER 18, 2006

Visit: www.birdsasart.com

KENYA AUG-SEPT 2006 PHOTO SAFARI REPORT

KENYA SEPT 2007 PHOTO SAFARI ANNOUNCEMENT

NATURESCAPES.NET IOW GALLERY

BOSQUE IPT OPENINGS

TOY LENS FOR SALE

SITE GUIDE KUDOS

BREEZEBROWSER VS ACR CONVERSIONS

AOL NOTICE

A PERSONAL NOTE

ALBUQUERQUE SEMINAR/GROUP DISCOUNT

DELKIN e-FILM PRO COMPACT FLASH CARDS/CRAZY LOW PRICES

IPT UPDATEs

Contact us by phone at 863-692-0906 (Eastern Time Zone) or by e-mail at birdsasart@att.net or birdsasart@verizon.net. The att e-mail address is best from overseas.

We gladly accept credit card orders by phone 8am till 9pm Eastern Time.

You can use the Paypal links on the web site to order anything. Just type in the item(s) and the amount. If using your own Paypal account, please send to either of the e-mail addresses above.

African Lion, big, black-maned male, Maasai Mara, Kenya

Canon 100-400mm IS L zoom lens and EOS-1Ds Mark II handheld at 310mm. ISO 320.

Evaluative Metering +2/3 stop: 1/160 sec. at f/5.6.

Several vans were moving along with this big male. We got into good position when the old man decided to check out our van. I was photographing from the open safari van window so as to enjoy a lower perspective than is offered from the roof hatch. The lion walked into the shade of our van and posed, staring right through the open window at me from no more than four feet away. Then he let out a big roar scaring the heck out of Annie Katz and me… Though I no longer own a 100-400, I always borrow one from Canon Professional Services for my Africa trips; it is a great safari lens. (I will make sure to have one at Bosque also…)

Photographic Theme: Amy favorite images from the recently concluded Kenya Photo-Safari.

Cheetah family, lick-fest, Samburu, Kenya

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens with 2X II TC and EOS-1Ds Mark II on Todd-Pod. ISO 800.

Evaluative Metering +1/3 stop: 1/160 sec. at f/8. Fill flash with Better Beamer at -2 stops.

We had several Cheetah families this year. Most times they were protected from harassment by overly aggressive van drivers and photographers, so excellent long lens technique was a big plus.

You can learn about the advanced sharpness techniques that I use in The Art of Bird Photography II (936 pages on CD only): http://www.birdsasart.com/ABPII.htm

KENYA AUG-SEPT 2006 PHOTO SAFARI REPORT

Todd Gustafson and I were met in Nairobi by ten lucky nature photographers. Two of the couples, Forrest and Carol Sue Roberts and Steve and Rachel Kent had been with us on last year’s Kenya safari, and Brutus Östling (a multi-IPT veteran) of Sweden and Cliff Slater of Hawaii had been to Tanzania with us previously. First-timers Michael and Annie Katz (husband and wife) and Alex Tawil (from NYC), all three fairly new to nature photography, were eager to learn, anxious to soak up as much photographic knowledge and lore as possible, and simply thrilled to be in Africa with Todd and me. We began at Lake Naivasha, where—with the extremely low lake level, the grounds were superb for bird photography. On Crescent Island, where hiking is permitted, the creek that had held large numbers of water birds in previous years was dry. We did, however, have some great chances with the Wildebeests, Common Zebras, and Defassa Waterbucks. The highlight of the visit was a four-day old giraffe. We spent an afternoon at Elsemere where the big attractions were the tame Colobus Monkeys. We drove back to Nairobi and hopped a flight to Samburu where many of the specialty species awaited us. These included Grevy’s Zebra, Reticulated Giraffe, Gerenuk, Oryx, Somali Ostrich, Golden-breasted Starling, and Vulturine Guinea-Fowl. We had several Leopards as well as lots of lions and Cheetahs. We had a Cheetah kill and a Leopard kill. We flew directly from Samburu to Maasai Mara. We stayed at Samburu Sopa where the grounds were dry and hot. I built a combination water drip and feeder; within a day we had lots of great action with several species of bush passerines. The next Bulletin will feature both the set-up and the results.

We spent a single night at Keekorok Lodge in the Mara. It was a lovely lodge with excellent grounds and a hippo pool. The food was the best that I had ever had in Africa. And there were lots of great photographic opportunities within a short drive of the lodge. We liked Keekorok so much that we shall be spending three nights there next September (see below for details.) Ooops, I almost forgot to mention the Leopard with two cubs… We moved to Mara Serena hard by the Mara River in hopes of getting to photograph some good crossings and we did just that. We had really good luck with the crossings (the animals are eventually headed south towards their birthing grounds in Tanzania) for the first two days and then we had some bad luck. Several times we had large numbers of Wildebeest (as many as 10,000) ready to cross, heading down to the water and acting quite frantic, only to have a safari van loaded with tourists drive right up to the edge or the river and ruin everything… The experienced drivers know that the best strategy is to stay many hundreds of yards from the river as the animals are massing and then to move slowly into position once they have started crossing On two other occasions we had great crossings in progress when a safari van on the opposite side of the river (the animals were crossing towards us) drove right into the midst of the herd… All in all it was quite frustrating, but made us appreciate our earlier good fortune.

As there were more than a million Wildebeest in the park, several of us decided to do an early morning balloon flight. Todd talked me into it and I was glad that I went (even though the landing was a bit more exciting than I would have preferred…) We were lucky to catch a clear morning and the views that we enjoyed were simply breath-taking. In the future I will do a balloon ride every chance that I get. I came across a well written New York Times article by a gent taking his first balloon flight from Keekorok in 1984: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=travel&res=9B04EFDE1039F93BA25750C0A962948260. Aside from the Wildebeests we had a wealth of photographic subjects: several big prides of lions and several groups of Cheetahs, some giraffes, lots of Common Zebras, Topi, and some cooperative Hartebeest, the latter species which is usually quite shy. Three of our four vans watched a lioness take down a six month old Wildebeest so that her offspring could practice killing it. For almost 30 minutes the young lions played with the young gnu which tried over and over again to rise up and escape. Before we knew it, our safari was over and we were boarding our bush flight from the Mara back to Nairobi. The next day one of our vans watched a female lion take down a zebra.

At the suggestion of retired pilot Forrest Roberts, I flew business class on Ethiopian Airlines and was delighted to save more than $5,000 off the cost of a first class ticket on KLM. They fly in and out of Dulles so I got to see my new grandson Ilyas the day before I flew to Addis Ababa (with a refueling stop in Rome). From there it was a short hop down to Nairobi. I flew with a 40+ pound roll aboard, a 20+ pound computer bag, my vest, and two 50 pound checked bags. On my flight out of Dulles they took my hand soap claiming that I might use it to blow up the plane. I tried—without success--to reason with them. I was, however, able to get back my tiny bottle of Visine which they had originally confiscated. Other than that, I was not hassled at all with either my carry-ons or my checked bags. The more things change the more they stay the same, at least for now…

African Lion, young male, Maasai Mara, Kenya

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens with 1.4X II TC and EOS-1Ds Mark II on Todd-Pod. ISO 800.

Evaluative Metering +2/3 stop: 1/200 sec. at f/5.6.

On our first afternoon at Mara, we came across a large pride of lions on the move just before sunset.

KENYA SEPT 2007 PHOTO SAFARI ANNOUNCEMENT

Todd and I will be returning to Kenya again in 2007, leaving the US on September 10. We never take more than 15 photographers so that we are limited to five vans. Three photographers per van. Period. We already have eight slots filled. Here are the basics:

Kenya 2007 Gustaphoto/BIRDS AS ART Photo-Safari/Sept. 11-27, 2007: 16 days on the ground in Kenya: $9,499.00. A non-refundable $1,000 deposit is required. A second payment of $4,499.00 is due by March 1, 2007, and the final payment of $4000.00 is due June 1, 2007. All deposits and payments should be sent to: Todd Gustafson, 2122 Elmira Ave, Des Plaines, IL 60018. Please make the checks out to “Todd Gustafson.” Thanks <smile>. We cannot guarantee a single supplement at this time but do contact us if you are interested.

The registration fee includes food, lodging, ground transportation and airport transfers, driver guides, game park entry fees, and our round trip flight from Nairobi to Mara. Not included are the Kenya Visa fee ($50.00 US), personal items, all beverages, driver and staff tips, and phone, fax, e-mail or laundry charges. There is no “no-photographer” rate.

Below is our tentative itinerary. Please note that the leaders reserve the right to change the itinerary at any time, even on safari, when changes are at times necessary to ensure the photographic opportunities of the group are maximized. (All lodgings and meals will be comparable.)

September 10: fly from US.

September 11: Fly Nairobi/ Overnight at the Jacaranda.

Sept 12 Early flight to Mara Serena. Meet drivers there. Check in and lunch. PM game drive overnight at Mara Serena.

Sept 13 AM and PM game drives at Mara Serena.

Sept 14 AM and PM game drives at Mara Serena.

Sept 15 AM game drive Mara Serena. After breakfast, transfer to Keekorok for PM game drive and overnight.

Sept 16 AM and PM game drives Keekorok.

Sept 17 AM game drive. Mid day: fly from Keekorok to Nairobi and transfer to Lake Naivasha. PM boat ride. Overnight at Naivasha CC.

Sept 18 AM Crescent Island. PM Elsemere for Colobus Monkeys/ Overnight at Naivasha CC.

Sept 19. AM Crescent Island. PM Fisherman’s Camp for Fishers Lovebirds / Overnight Naivasha CC

Sept 20 AM photograph on the grounds. Transfer to Lake Baringo CC. PM photograph on the grounds or at the cliffs.

Sept 21 AM Boat ride on Lake Baringo. 3 people per boat-5 boats. PM photograph on the grounds (or drive to Lake Bogoria if the flamingoes are in). Cliff hike optional.

Sept 22 AM Boat ride on Lake Baringo. 3 people per boat-5 boats Transfer to Lake Nakuru for lunch and PM game drive. Overnight Lake Nakuru Lodge.

Sept 23 AM and PM game drives Lake Nakuru. Overnight at Lake Nakuru Lodge.

Sept 24 AM and PM game drives Lake Nakuru. Overnight at Lake Nakuru Lodge.

Sept 25 AM and PM game drives Lake Nakuru. Overnight at Lake Nakuru Lodge.

Sept 26 AM and PM game drives Lake Nakuru. Overnight at Lake Nakuru Lodge.

Sept 27 AM game drive/transfer to Nairobi. Lunch at Carnivore. We will have 9 day-rooms at the Jacaranda Hotel. Transfer to airport for flight from Nairobi.

This trip will most likely sell out in short order so if you are serious about joining us please do not hesitate.

Bearded Gnu (Wildebeest) blur, Maasai Mara, Kenya

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens with 1.4X II TC and EOS-1Ds Mark II on Todd-Pod. ISO 200.

Evaluative Metering +1/3 stop: 1/15 sec. at f/20 in Tv Mode.

If, after a few days in Africa, you began to think, “What, I already have enough Wildebeest images,” you will be missing many wonderful opportunities. On our Photo-Safaris Todd and I try to teach folks to see the image and to think outside the box (just as I do on my IPTs). By working in Tv Mode, you can maintain total control over the blur speed, and with digital, you can see how your images look by viewing them on the LCD and then adjusting the shutter speed to taste.

NATURE-SCAPES.NET IOW GALLERY

If you would like to see some truly great (even humbling) photography, click here:

http://www.naturescapes.net/phpBB2/viewforum.php?f=12 (You may need to register to view the gallery but registration is free.)

Nature-Scapes.net is and has been for some time the premier educational nature photography site on the planet. The link above takes you to the current Image of the Week Gallery where the moderators have chosen the best single image from each gallery for each week. From the link above, you can of course access the Avian Gallery (my favorite). Do take a few minutes to visit each of the galleries which are packed with great photographs and some good critiquing. (As with many on-line sites there are a bit too many “great shots” and “that’s the best image I’ve ever seen” comments and not quite enough honest critiques, but still there is tons to learn and lots of great images to enjoy. Congrats to Gregory, Heather, and E.J. for creating this great site.

Wildebeest herd migrating, Maasai Mara, Kenya

Canon 24-105mm IS L lens with EOS-1Ds Mark II (handheld at 35mm). ISO 400.

Evaluative Metering +2/3 stop: 1/200 sec. at f/4.

Todd, who had been in a balloon several times, suggested that I bring my new 24-105mm IS and my 70-200 f/2.8 IS. His suggestions were right-on.

BOSQUE IPT UPDATE

Due to cancellations, there are single openings on Bosque IPT #1 and Bosque IPT #2. (Both had been long-sold out.) If you would like to register, please e-mail or call first and then send your deposit check.

Here are the details:

Bosque #1: "The Fall Color IPT" NOV 14-16, 2006. 3-DAY: $929. Slide Program on the evening of NOV 13. (One opening.) This IPT should feature a better chance for a day or two of the rare south winds that drastically improve flight photography and will definitely feature the brightest fall-color cottonwoods.

Bosque #2: "The Pre-Thanksgiving IPT" NOV 19-21, 2006. Slide Program on the evening of NOV 18. 3-DAY: $929. (One opening.) This and the next IPT have sold out for the past eight years. If you are interested in attending the Thanksgiving Day luncheon in Las Lunas, please contact us via e-mail. This IPT will feature increasing numbers of geese and cranes with lots of great opportunities.

Bosque IPTs #3 & #4 are sold out with short waiting lists.

Sacred Ibis, head & shoulders portrait, Lake Naivasha Country Club, Mara, Kenya

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens 1.4X II TC and EOS-1Ds Mark II Gitzo 1325 tripod with V-2 Wimberley head. ISO 200.

Evaluative Metering at zero: 1/640 sec. at f/8.

I had been at Naivasha Country Club only once, in 1998 on my first trip to Kenya. Knowing that the Sacred Ibis on the lawn there were somewhat tame, I was eager to return and to make images like this with digital which is far better able to deal with the bright whites and the black blacks than film. Here, a quick check of the histogram ensured that I would maintain detail in the white highlights while revealing detail in the crinkly black skin.

SITE GUIDE KUDOS

I received this e-mail from subscriber Georgina Salup:

Hi Artie, This is a quick note just to thank you for the San Diego Site Guide. If not for your guide, I would have missed the three best spots in La Jolla! What a paradise! I am ready to visit it again. Best, Georgina

You can learn about all five of our Site Guides here: http://www.birdsasart.com/siteguides.htm

Now is the perfect time to order your Site Guide if you will be visiting Bosque or San Diego for the first time or traveling to Florida this winter.

TOY LENS FOR SALE

Subscriber Peggy Flood is offering a like-new Canon 400mm f/5.6L lens for sale for $850.00. The lens is 1 ½ years old and was only used once. The sale includes all original materials and the case. The buyer plays shipping & insurance. Please contact Peggy Flood (Ridgeland, MS.) by e-mail at pwf789@bellsouth.net or by phone at 1-601-853-3514 or 1-601-278-1437 (cell). In addition to being the world’s best flight photography lens, the 400 f/5.6 would make a great started lens for someone with a 1.6 multiplier effect camera body.

Silver-backed Jackal with Wildebeest skin from kill, Samburu, Kenya

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens with EOS-1Ds Mark II on Todd-Pod. ISO 400.

Evaluative Metering +2/3 stop: 1/1000 sec. at f/4.

When we came across an old kill with several vultures hanging around we noticed two jackals joining them. Though my heart was pounding, I was able to make a wonderful image.

BREEZEBROWSER VS ACR CONVERSIONS

I have been making about 80% of my RAW conversions with Adobe Camera Raw for the past six months or so, but have not been thrilled with the color (as compared with Breezebrowser conversions). I have gone to ACR mainly to take advantage of the speed and the color temperature slider. In addition, I like being able to click on Previous Conversion in the Settings box when converting similar images consecutively. Many of the images converted in ACR, like the jackal image above, appear too red to my eye. I have come up with a fairly good fix: click on the Calibrate Tab. Reduce the Red Saturation 20 points to -20. Reduce the Blue Saturation 10 points to -10. Now click on the right-pointing drop-down menu arrow to the right of the Settings box and click on Save Settings… Name the settings group and then click on Save. (I named this group “Reduced Calibration Saturation.”) Once Photoshop is open, this setting will come up conversion after conversion. If you are just opening Photoshop, you may or may not have to select your saved settings from the drop-down menu.

That said, I have been noticing that in addition to better shadow detail, Breezebrowser conversions offer better highlight detail as well. Right now I am beginning to go back to Breezebroswer for truer color and better shadow and highlight detail… Is the speed of ACR worth producing images of slightly lesser quality??? Stay tuned.

The best news of all is that the workflows for converting images in both Breezebrowser and Adobe Camera Raw are included in our Digital Basics File: http://www.birdsasart.com/digitalbasics.htm. I hope to be updating Digital Basics before I head to Bosque in November. The update will include some great new stuff that I have learned about making Color Selections, enriching the color and detail in highlight areas, and lightening dark backgrounds (and lots, lots more). We encourage folks to own both “The Art of Bird Photography II (936 pages on CD only) and the Digital Basics file as the latter includes free updates every six to twelve months.

White-backed Vulture, Maasai Mara, Kenya

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens with 1.4X II TC and EOS-1Ds Mark II handheld. ISO 160.

Evaluative Metering +1/3 stop: 1/500 sec. at f/5.6.

A fairly stiff east wind blows most mornings at the Mara. If you can find a fresh kill in mid-morning, you will be in for some great flight photography. Here, with many vultures circling uncharacteristically overhead, I took the 500 off the Todd-Pod and pointed it towards the heavens. Not sure why I had set ISO 160 as I would have preferred a faster shutter speed, but all’s well that ends well.

AOL NOTICE

When folks write complaining that they are unable to open or receive Bulletins, Site Guide PDFs, or the Digital Basics PDF, 99% of the time the folks complaining have aol e-mail addresses. As a former aol use, I can state unequivocally that aol is the worst e-mail provider on the planet. They should give aol a Nobel Prize for advertising; they have the worst service and the most subscribers… Whenever we send a Bulletin, aol blocks all of my sending addresses for roughly 24 hours. All e-mails that I send, whether from our att account or our verizon account, are kicked back to us, making it impossible to correspond with friends, clients, and customers for roughly one full day. We do make an effort to re-send the blocked e-mails but are not always successful.

I highly recommend that all aol customers immediately switch to another e-mail provider, and that goes double for anyone who relies on e-mail for doing business. Those who do switch will be amazed at the ease of using their new service and will be astonished at the number of convenient features offered by all other providers that are not provided by aol. When I let folks know how I feel about aol many of them respond by saying, “You are right. I hate aol, but it is too hard to change.,” do understand that changing your e-mail provider and your e-mail address is no big deal… And let this notice serve as your inspiration to switch.

If you write me privately, I will tell you how I really feel about aol. If you contact us and do not receive a prompt response, it is likely that you have an aol address…

Hartebeest in early morning light, Maasai Mara, Kenya

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens with 2X II TC and EOS-1Ds Mark II on Todd-Pod. ISO 400.

Evaluative Metering +2/3 stop: 1/500 sec. at f/10.

Taking advantage of a rare chance to get close to this species, I went with the 2X TC so that I could create a front-end vertical portrait.

A PERSONAL NOTE

After flying back to the states from Nairobi, I got back to my office/home in Indian Lake Estates, FL on Thursday, September 7. Early the next morning, older daughter Jennifer drove me to an outpatient surgery clinic in Sebring, FL where I underwent surgery to repair the inguinal hernia that I had discovered the day before I flew to Ecuador in late June. The doctor stated that is was a large hernia; he had used a mesh patch to repair it. Though I cannot remember ever taking a pain pill in my life, I quickly realized as we headed home that I would need to take them in this case… Jennifer was kind enough to stay with me on Friday night. My recovery is proceeding apace and I am feeling great. I hope to get out to DeSoto in a week or two at most. As a precaution I will probably just take a hand-holdable lens and see what I can do.

Colobus Monkey, Elsemere, Naivasha, Kenya

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens with 2X II TC and EOS-1Ds Mark on Gitzo 1325 tripod with V-2 Wimberley head. ISO 640.

Evaluative Metering +1/3 stop: 1/125 sec. at f/8. Fill flash with Better Beamer at -2 stops.

Elsemere, once the home of Joy Adamson of 'Born Free' fame, is the best place in Africa to photograph this normally shy species. In addition to the monkeys, we had some good chances with the songbirds that were attracted to the flowers, Purple Grenadier and Bronze Sunbird. Here, the sky is overexposed and detail-less to allow for detail in the black fur.

ALBUQUERQUE SEMINAR/GROUP DISCOUNT

We still have room for lots more folks. The Albuquerque “The Art of Nature Photography; It Ain’t Just Birds” Weekend Seminar will take place at the Park Plaza Hotel, 2500 Carlisle Boulevard NE in Albuquerque on December 2-3, 2006. Saturday will be devoted to learning the techniques needed to create pleasingly designed, technically perfect images of natural history subjects. Saturday topics will include getting the right exposure, advanced composition and image design, making sharp images, creating effective motion and zoom blurs, using flash as fill and as main light, and tips for getting close to free and wild birds and animals. Sunday will be devoted entirely to Digital Photography and Photoshop with much of the time being spent on live Photoshop demonstrations. On our IPTs I see many great photographs that are ruined because folks have no clue as to how to effectively optimize their images. Join us to learn how to make your images look great in minutes.

We are now accepting registrations. Paypal is best but we will be glad to take your credit card information by phone (863-692-0906) or to cash your check. If sending a check, please make it out to “Arthur Morris” and send it to us at BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 7145, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855. Be sure to include your snail mail and e-mail addresses and your day, evening, and cell phone numbers. The cost of the weekend seminar is $159. The cost of either single day is $99. Register with a friend or spouse and take $10 off each registration. Register with three or more friends and take $20 off of each registration. Here is our Cancellation Policy: If for any reason you need to withdraw, please notify us ASAP. Once we receive your e-mail, phone call, or written notice of your cancellation the following fees apply: cancel before September 2, 2006 and your fee will be refunded less a $20.00 cancellation fee; cancel by November 2, 2006 and your fee will be refunded less a $50.00 cancellation fee; cancel after November 2, 2006 and there will be no refund.

Gray-headed Gull, Naivasha Country Club, Kenya

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens with 1.4X II TC and EOS-1D Mark IIN on Gitzo 1325 tripod with V-2 Wimberley head. ISO 400.

Evaluative Metering +1 1/3 stops: 1/320 sec. at f/5.6. Fill flash with Better Beamer at -2 stops.

This elegant gull is another species that I remember from my 1998 visit. Here, I used One-Shot AF, focused on the bird’s eye, and recomposed. We will be returning to Naivasha in 2007; in 2006 we had lots of great opportunities down by the boat dock.

DELKIN e-FILM PRO COMPACT FLASH CARDS/CRAZY LOW PRICES

As most of you know, I have used Delkin e-Film Pro Compact Flash Cards for more than 3 ½ years now and have found them to be fast and dependable. I have been using the Delkin 2gb and 4gb cards exclusively now for more than two years and have experienced one card failure, that with a very old 2gb card about a month ago. Delkin promptly replaced the card. Do remember that I take tens of thousands of images in a given year. We have joined with Delkin to ensure that we can offer you the great e-Film Pro Cards at very low prices in any quantity that you might need:

1gb Delkin e-film Pro Card: $44.98

2gb Delkin e-film Pro Card: $74.98

4gb Delkin e-film Pro Card: $154.98

8gb Delkin e-film Pro Card: $299.98

Please add $7.00 per order shipping and handling. Florida residents please add 7% sales tax to the cost of the cards only.

Leopard eating Vervet Monkey, Samburu, Kenya

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens with 2X II TC and EOS-1Ds Mark II on Todd-Pod. ISO 800.

Evaluative Metering at zero: 1/125 sec. at f/8.

One of our vans found this Leopard with its prey and called the other three vans. We arrived to find somewhat of a traffic jam but with some skillful jockeying about each of our four vans had about three minutes in the perfect spot…It is best to turn the flash off when photographing the cats to avoid green eye…

IPT UPDATES

Bosque #3: "The Post-Thanksgiving IPT" NOV 25-27, 2006. 3-DAY: $929. Slide Program on the evening of NOV 24. (Sold out.) This IPT has sold out for the past eight years as it is scheduled on dates that I consider peak for Bosque. If you are interested in attending the Thanksgiving Day luncheon in Las Lunas, please contact us via e-mail.

Bosque #4: "The Full Moon IPT" DEC 4 (mid-day) through DEC 7 (mid day), 2006. 3-DAY: $929. (Sold out.) Slide Program mid-day on DEC 4. Co-leaders include Manuel Presti, 2005 Wildlife Photographer of the Year, and Robert Amoruso. This IPT includes a half day of photography on the 4th, two full days of photography on the 5th and 6th, and a final half day on December 7th. Limit 14. This IPT has been scheduled to maximize the opportunities to include the rising and setting full (DEC 5) and near-full moon in your images. There will be lots of the usual chances as well, and this time period has provided more than its share of spectacular sunrises and sunsets over the years.

SW FLA Post X-mas IPT: DEC 27-29, 2006. Slide program on the evening of Tuesday, DEC 26. 3 -DAY: $1029. (Limit 14, Openings: 10.) Co-leaders: Robert O’Toole, Alfred Forns, & Robert Amoruso. Sanibel Island, Little Estero Lagoon, Venice Rookery, Cape Coral. Herons, egrets, gulls, terns, skimmers, shorebirds, both pelicans, Osprey, Burrowing Owl, and lots more.

Antarctica, JAN 2007: (Sold out.)

San Diego IPT: FEB 3-6, 2007. 4-FULL DAYS: $1359. Introductory slide program on the evening of Thursday, FEB 2. (Limit 12, Openings: 10.) LaJolla, Shores Beach, Coronado, and Santee Lakes. Brown Pelicans, Heerman’s & Western Gulls, Marbled Godwits & lots more shorebirds, Wood & Ring-necked Ducks & Lesser Scaup. And lots more.

SW FLA President's Holiday IPT: FEB 17-21, 2007. Slide program on the evening Friday, FEB 16, 2007. 5-DAY: $1649. (Limit 14; openings 8.) Co-leaders: Robert O’Toole, Alfred Forns, & Robert Amoruso. Sanibel Island, Little Estero Lagoon, Venice Rookery, Cape Coral. Herons, egrets, gulls, terns, skimmers, shorebirds, both pelicans, Osprey, Burrowing Owl, and lots more.

Fort DeSoto IPT: APR 13-15, 2007. Slide program on the evening of Thursday, APR 12. 3-DAY: $999 (Limit 14: (Sold out.) Co-leaders: Robert O’Toole, Alfred Forns, Robert Amoruso, and Todd Gustafson. Courtship and breeding behaviors of Laughing Gull and Royal and Sandwich Terns. Herons, egrets (including both dark and light phase Reddish Egret), shorebirds (including Long-billed Curlew), gulls, terns, and skimmers among others.

Silver Salmon Creek: August 8-14, 2007. Coastal Brown Bears catching salmon, Horned Puffins, macro, scenics, and fishing (optional): $4999. ( Limit 12: openings: 6) Three leaders, two TBA (plus me <smile>.

Gerenuk, female, Samburu, Kenya

Canon 500mm f/4L IS lens with 1.4X II TC and EOS-1Ds Mark II on Todd-Pod. ISO 500.

Evaluative Metering 1/3 stop: 1/200 sec. at f/5.6. Fill flash with Better Beamer at -2 stops.

Here, I was glad to have a chance to create an image in the BIRDS AS ART style; having the background far from the subject allowed for the soft, out-of-focus pastel background. .

Best and love and great picture-making to all,

artie

Note: Arthur Morris has been a Canon contract photographer since 1994 and continues in that role today. Hunt's Photo of Boston, MA is a BAA sponsor as it Delkin Devices. Back issues of all BAA Bulletins can be found in the Bulletin Archives which may be accessed from the home page at www.birdsasart.com