July 11th, 2012

BIRDS AS ART BULLETIN #415

Condolences
Florida Bird Photography in July
NIK Radio Interview
Outdoor Photography Article
Canon EOS-5D Mark III User’s Guide Pre-Publication Version Available Now!
New York City Weekend Nature Photography Seminar December 8-9, 2012
Posse News
IPT Updates

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This image of a just-out-of-the-nest Brown Pelican was created on the Hooptie Deux with James Shadle with the tripod-mounted Canon 800mm f/5.L IS lens and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/200 sec. at f/5.6 in Av mode.

I manually selected a sensor to fall on the bird’s face/Expand AF area/AI Servo Rear Focus active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image for a larger version.

Condolences

Condolences to my right-hand man Jim Litzenberg who lost his Mom this week. He is on his way to her funeral in Indiana. She was 90. Jennifer and I are sending love, strength, and energy his way. If you would like to write Jim you can e-mail him at staffbaa@att.net. Some orders may be delayed a few days.

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This flight image of a just-out-of-the-nest egret in fresh juvenal plumage–I think that it is a Snowy Egret–was created at Gatorland with the hand-held Canon 500mm f/4L IS II lens and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1/3 stop: 1/2500 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode.

Central sensor/Expand AF area/AI Servo Rear Focus active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image for a larger version.

Florida Bird Photography in July

The word on the street is that there is no good bird photography in Florida in the month of July. No birds. Too hot. Well, it can be hot during the midday hours but by getting out early and staying out you can take advantage of some great bird photography in the Sunshine State. Below are my suggestions. Check out the variety of images in this Bulletin: each was made in central Florida between July 4th and July 9th. And be sure to note the locations. Denise Ippolito and I did not travel far but we had lots of very good opportunities. You can see some of her work from the week on her blog here. Denise has room on her July 14-15 Nickerson Beach Workshop that is coming up this weekend; learn more or register here. There will be lots of skimmer, oystercatcher, and Common Tern chicks.

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This image of a post-breeding adult White Ibis created a recent Hooptie Deux trip with James Shadle with the tripod-mounted Canon 800mm f/5.L IS lens and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 500. Evaluative metering +1 2/3 stops: 1/1000 sec. at f/5.6 in Av mode.

Central Sensor/Expand AF area/AI Servo Rear Focus active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image for a larger version.

#1: Get Out on the Hooptie Deux with Captain James Shadle for a Morning at Alafia Banks in Tampa Bay.

There are scads of young birds around, all in fresh juvenal plumage: Brown Pelicans, White Ibises, Little Blue and Tricolored Herons and Snowy Egrets. The flight photography was great when we headed out to Alafai Banks on his custom photography pontoon boat, the Hooptie Deux, replete with a new, more powerful engine. The next week or two should continue to be excellent. Call or e-mail James in advance to inquire about dates and rates. You can get in touch with him for additional info or to schedule a trip via e-mail, by cell phone at (813) 363-2854 or on his home phone (early evenings best) at (813-689-5307). If by cell phone it is best to call back rather than to leave a message. Learn more about James and the Hooptie Deux here.

If you have not been on the boat before, you will want to check out “Hooptie Deux Practicalities” by scrolling down here.

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This Wood Stork in fresh juvenal plumage was photographed from the tower at Gatorland with the tripod-mounted Canon 800mm f/5.L IS lens, the 1.4X III TC, and the Canon EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering -1/3 stop: 1/640 sec. at f/8 in Av mode.

If you are not sure why I needed 1/3 stop of underexposure here, see “Exposure Theory” in the original The Art of Bird Photography(in softcvoer) and “Exposure Simplified” in ABP II (916 pages on CD only). Most beginning bird photographers are taking advantage of the complete education offered in these two classic works and saving $10 by purchasing them together here.

Central sensor (by necessity) AI Servo/Rear Focus AF on the bird’s face and recompose. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image for a larger version.

#2: Get to Gatorland Soon!

Early morning and late afternoon have been superb. There are lots of fledged young around: Snowy, Great, and Cattle Egrets, Tricolored Herons, and Wood Storks. Most amazingly there are several Great Egrets in pretty nice breeding plumage building nests and copulating. This activity is usually seen in March and early April. You can get in early on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday though July 27-29. For details scroll down here. If you’ve been to Gatorland this year or plan on getting there soon do check out their great photography contest here.

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This White Ibis in fresh juvenal plumage was photographed at Alafia Banks with the Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS II lens, the 1.4X III TC (hand held at 205mm), and the Canon EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 2/3 stops: 1/1250 sec. at f/4 in Manual mode.

Central sensor/AI Servo/Rear Focus AF on the bird’s face active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image for a larger version.

In a two-frame sequence, this image had the perfect wing position. The next image had a slightly sharper head. I used a warped Quick Mask as described in detail in APTATS I along with a regular Layer Mask as described in Digital Basics along with my complete Digital Workflow and dozens of great Photoshop tips.

NIK Radio Interview

Thanks to Lori Rubin and the rest of my friends at NIK Software and especially to NIK Radios’s Scott Sheppard. I spent more than 2 hours on the phone with Scott about two weeks ago and the result is a fine interview with yours truly. You will need to have iTunes on your computer. If you do not, you will be prompted to download it for free. If I figured out how to install it, anyone can :). In any case, click here. The interview is the 7/5/15 one. Click on “View in iTunes” and then click on NIK Radio/Pro Talk with Arthur Morris. At 51:43 it is the longest interview on the board :). I told Scott at the get-go that I liked to yak.

Doing the interview was lots of fun. We talked a lot about how I got started, what’s up with the business of nature photography today, and where I am now. For most of the interview I was sitting in a very cold tub of 66 degree water so when Scott began the interview and asked how I was doing I answered, “Just chilling here in Florida.”

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This image of a yawning American Alligator was created at Gatorland at 4:38 pm on 7-7-2012 with the Canon 800mm f/5.L IS lens and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 400. Evaluative metering at zero: 1/1000 sec. at f/8 in Av mode.

Sensor two to the left of center and one down–Expand AF area/AI Servo Rear Focus active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image for a larger version.

Click here and scroll down for the complete story of the creation of this image.

Outdoor Photography Article

If you don’t subscribe (you should–I do) and you cannot find a copy of the current issue of Outdoor Photographer on the newsstand, you can check out my article “Long Lens Tips And Techniques” online here.

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This in-camera Snowy Egret head portrait multiple exposure created at Gatorland with the tripod-mounted Canon 800mm f/5.L IS lens and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2 stops: 1/80 sec. at f/10 in Av mode.

The latest pre-publication version of the 5D Mark III User’s Guide contains detailed instructions on using the new multiple exposure feature. Like the rest of this great new camera, the multiple exposure feature is quite complex and offers many options. With help from Denise Ippolito, I went with the simplest option. Simple but effective. Though you would first think of flowers when working with MEs, I have been experimenting with birds. I have a really cool Wood Stork multiple that I will share on the blog soon. If you have an older version of the 5D III UG and would like the latest PDF please e-mail me and include some sort of proof of purchase.

Canon EOS-5D Mark III User’s Guide Pre-Publication Version Available Now!

Save $10

Regular readers here know that I have been loving my 5D Mark III ever since I got my hands on it. I love the light weight, the quality of the image files, and especially the killer new AF system. Right now, the 5D III’s AF system is the best by far on any Canon camera body and that includes the vaunted EOS-1D Mark IV. Don’t get me wrong, I love my two MIV bodies and use then every time I am in the field, but for birds in flight and in action I go with my 5D MIII.

I have been working on the 5D Mark III User’s Guide for more than three months. While the end is in sight, lots of folks have been clamoring to hear what I have to say about setting up the camera and to learn about my autofocus settings and my thoughts on the various AF Selection Area Modes. I have, therefore, decided to offer a pre-publication version of this User’s Guide. When it is complete, the guide will sell for $50. It will be our most expensive camera user’s guide yet because the 5D Mark III is pretty much all-new and the menu is the most extensive ever in a Canon camera. I have put in a ton of work already and still have lots more important stuff to work on.

The pre-publication version is available now for only $40.

Here’s the best news: You will automatically receive the final version at no additional cost when it becomes available. On the off chance that you do not, please e-mail Jim and he will rectify the situation.

Though this pre-publication copy is incomplete, it will help you set up your camera exactly as I have mine set up right now. Almost all of the stuff dealing with autofocus and the various AF Selection Area Modes is included. Even in its present form, this guide is quite extensive. You can learn everything that I know about the following important topics:

5D III exposure fine points
Handling the WHITEs
The top LCD and all camera control buttons
5D Mark III drive modes
How to manually select an AF sensor
Choosing an AF Area Selection Mode; how and why (includes extensive detail)
Menu Item Access
Multiple Exposure settings
My Menu

Coverage of almost all Menu Items and Custom Functions including the following: Image Quality, Auto Lighting Optimizer, Highlight Tone Priority, AF Configuration Tool (includes details on the custom setting that I use), Acceleration/deceleration tracking, Tracking sensitivity, Lens drive when AF impossible, Orientation linked AF point (I love this feature on the 5D III!), Highlight alert, Histogram display, Auto rotate, Custom Shooting Mode set-up, Safety shift, using the Q button, and setting up rear focus.

The guide is–of course–written in my informal, easy-to-follow style.

Important items that are not included in the current pre-publication version (but will of course be included in the final version) include:

HDR Mode
AF Microadjustment
Live View Shoooting

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This flight image of an adult Great Egret carrying a branch for the nest was created at Gatorland with the hand-held Canon 500mm f/4L IS II lens and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/2500 sec. at f/6.3 in Manual mode.

Central sensor/Expand AF area/AI Servo Rear Focus active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image for a larger version.

New York City Weekend Nature Photography Seminar December 8-9, 2012

Join Denise Ippolito and me for a great weekend of fun, learning, and Photoshop. Click here for details or to register.

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This image of a Wood Stork in fresh juvenal plumage was created at Gatorland from the third level of the tower with the tripod-mounted Canon 800mm f/5.L IS lens and the Canon EOS-5D Mark III. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +2/3 stop: 1/2500 sec. at f/5.6 in Manual mode.

Central sensor/Expand AI Servo/Tear Focus active at the moment of exposure. Click here if you missed the Rear Focus Tutorial. Click on the image for a larger version.