- BOSQUE END OF NOVEMBER REPORT
- CANON REBATES!
- THE BLOG IS THE BOMB
- NIK COLOR EFEX PRO 4.1
- IPT UPDATES
no images were found |
|
Snow Geese and pre-dawn sunrise colors: 6:41 am on 11/29/2011, Bosque del Apache NWR, San Antonio, NM. This image was created with the tripod-mounted Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM Autofocus Lens (see the $170 Instant Rebate on this lens in Item 2 below) and the Canon EOS 5D Mark II Digital Camera. ISO 400. Center-weighted Average metering -1/3 stop: 1/200 sec. at f/4 in Av Mode. The camera body was mounted on the Giottos MH 1302-655 (Tiny) BallHead via a Wimberley P-5 camera body plate. The ballhead sat atop the lightweight tripod that I have been looking for all of my life. Complete details will be announced in about a week. If you cannot wait, please e-mail. A Double Bubble Level in the hot shoe ensured that the camera was square to the world. Rear Focus AI Servo AF release and recompose. (Rear focus is great for birdscapes and for landscapes.) Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. For a greater appreciation of the image, click on the photo. Then click on the enlarged version to close it. |
BOSQUE END OF NOVEMBER REPORT
As you can see by looking at the images here and those that I have been posting on the blog for the past two weeks, Bosque has continued to offer very good to excellent photographic opportunities on most days. There are above average numbers of both white geese and Sandhill Cranes. My understanding is that Coors Brewing Company donated a very big pile of spent barley that was trucked down to the refuge by the farmers who planted the failed corn fields. The barley is being spread in various fields and for the past ten days or so both the geese and the cranes have been loving it. The temporary Tour Loop has pretty much been a bust for photography since it was first opened on November 21. The North Railroad Pond (Unit 11) is effectively off limits for photography. I will share lots more Bosque info in the next BAA Bulletin. And I hope to get a Bosque Site Guide update out before I head to Long Island on 8 DEC. In the meantime the current Bosque Site Guide will serve you quite well.
no images were found |
|
White and blue form Snow Geese feeding on spent barley, Bosque del Apache NWR, San Antonio, NM. This image was created with the tripod-mounted Canon 800mm f/5.6L IS lens, the 1.4X III TC, and the EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1/3: 1/500 sec. at f/14 set manually. As I wrote in ABP II, “I work wide open or close to it most of the time unless I can verbalize a reason for stopping down.” Here, I wanted to have both birds rendered sharply so I went to f/14. It worked well. And with the cottonwwod background 300 yards behind the birds I did not need to worry about bringing up any unwanted background detail. Central Sensor (by necessity)/AI Servo Rear Focus on the neck of the Blue Goose and re-compose. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Lens/camera body Micro-adjustment: +4. For a greater appreciation of the image, click on the photo. Then click on the enlarged version to close it. The Bosque Site Guide will direct you to the only place on the refuge where you can make images like this. |
CANON REBATES
|
no images were found |
To take advantage of the instant Canon Rebates that you see above click here or on the image above. In addition to getting your hands on great gear at low prices you will be supporting our tireless educational efforts here and on the BAA Blog. And best of all, purchases in excess of $1,000 earn free entries into the BIRDS AS ART 1st International Bird Photography Competition: 11 great categories and prize pools totaling more than $20,000. For more on earning free entries with your B&H purchases, click here.
no images were found |
|
Sandhill Cranes sunset silhouette, Bosque del Apache NWR, San Antonio, NM. This image was created with the tripod-mounted Canon 800mm f/5.6L IS lens and the EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 2/3 stops in Av mode. Central Sensor/AI Servo Rear Focus active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Lens/camera body Micro-adjustment: +2. For a greater appreciation of the image, click on the photo. Then click on the enlarged version to close it. The Bosque Site Guide will put you in position to make images like this on most afternoons. |
THE BLOG IS THE BOMB
I continue to put in 20+ hours a week towards making the blog informative, timely, and beautiful. Most of the educational features that formerly appeared in BAA Bulletins now grace the BAA Blog. If you have a problem subscribing, please contact us via e-mail. If you are not subscribed, you are missing a ton of great stuff almost daily. You can subscribe to the blog posts by clicking here. Below are links to recent posts of interest.
Learn about young Texas photographer James Fuller here. With lots of great images of course.
I will be entering my favorite new Snow Geese blur in next year’s BBC Contest; see the image in the “Remembering” blog post.
Check out an important lesson for all photographers here.
Learn about the Canon EF 140-400mm f/5.6L IS II/III lens by clicking here.
Like landscapes? Check out this killer lens: Circle.
For Your Critique Image #17 and Image #18.
|
To learn about how I created this image with the Canon EF 8-15mm f/4L Fisheye USM Fisheye Ultra-Wide Zoom Lens see the “All My Life’s a Circle” blog post. Click on the preceding link to enjoy $50 instant savings on the circle lens (expires 11/31/2011). |
NIK COLOR EFEX PRO 4.1
To transform the image above from “blah” to “wow” I ran Color Efex Pro 4.1’s Tonal Contrast on the whole image at 100% and Detail Extractor on everything but the sky. Simply put these two tools have transformed both my digital workflow and the quality of my images. There are lots of other examples in recent blog posts. 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. Best of all: you can download a trial copy that will work for 15 days and allow you to create full sized images. Bet you can’t eat just one!
no images were found |
|
This image was created with the Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II lens, the <2X III teleconverter (hand held at 400mm) with the Canon EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 1/3 stops off the gray sky: 1/1600 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual Mode. Lens/TC/camera body Micro-adjustment: -13. Central Sensor/Rear Focus/AI Servo AF active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. To enjoy viewing a larger sized image, click on the photo. Then click on the enlarged version to close it. I needed to run both a 60% Linear Burn and NIK’s Color Efex Pro Details Extractor to save the whites in this image. I also ran Tonal Contrast at 80% to give the image more pop. |
Shopper’s Guide
Below is a list of the gear mentioned in today’s Bulletin. Thanks a stack to all who have used the Shopper’s Guide links to purchase their gear as a thank you for all the free information that we bring you on the Blog and in the Bulletins. Before you purchase anything be sure to check out the advice in our Shopper’s Guide.
Canon EF 8-15mm f/4L Fisheye USM Fisheye Ultra-Wide Zoom Lens An amazing piece of lens technology that is both a challenge and great fun to use. There is a $50 instant rebate on this lens through 12/31/2011.
Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM Autofocus Lens. This is Canon’s top of the line wide angle zoom lens.
Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II lens. Man, I am loving this lens on my shoulder with the 2X III teleconverter. I also use it a lot with the 1.4X III TC.
Canon 800mm f/5.L IS lens. Right now this is my all time favorite super-telephoto lens.
Canon 1.4X III Teleconverter. Designed to work best with the new Series II super-telephoto lenses.
Canon EOS 5D Mark II Digital Camera. Canon’s lightweight full frame body is perfect for serious landscape photography.
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV professional digital camera body. My two Mark IVs are my workhorse digital camera bodies.
And from the BAA On-line Store:
LensCoats. I have a LensCoat on each of my big lenses to protect them from nicks and thus increase their re-sales value. All my big lens LensCoat stuff is in Hardwood Snow pattern.
LegCoat Tripod Leg Covers. I have four tripods active and each has a Hardwood Snow LegCoat on it to help prevent further damage to my tender shoulders 🙂
Gitzo GT3530LS Tripod. This one will last you a lifetime.
Mongoose M3.6 Tripod Head. Right now this is the best tripod head around for use with lenses that weigh less than 9 pounds. For heavier lenses, check out the Wimberley V2 head.
CR-80 Replacement Foot for Canon 800. When using the 800 on a Mongoose as I do, replacing the lens foot with this accessory lets the lens sit like a dog whether pointed up or down and prevents wind-blown spinning of your lens on breezy days by centering the lens directly over the tripod.
Double Bubble Level. You will find one in my camera’s hot shoe whenever I am not using flash.
Be sure to check out our camera body User’s Guides here.
The Lens Align Mark II. I use the Lens Align Mark II pretty much religiously to micro-adjust all of my gear an average of once a month and always before a major trip. Enjoy our free comprehensive tutorial here.
Canon EOS-1D Mark IV User’s Guide. Learn to use your Mark IV the way that I use mine. Also available for the 7D and the Mark III here.
