Flying High With The Birds

I have arrived at Bosque del Apache in New Mexico for the annual Festival of the Cranes week. I was honored to be asked to be one of the speakers presenting programs and workshops through the week.  Thousands of people come for this special event, to view and experience the thousands of snow geese and sandhill cranes who migrate through this area.

The fall migration is massive. The birds are attracted here because of the large ponds and surrounding fields that provide much needed food.

This shot was taken at the dawn liftoff of snow geese. As if responding to a silent signal, they all lift off together at sunrise, creating a cacophony of sounds. The sheer mass of life is awe-inspiring.  The sound of their honking and wing beats surrounds you, envelops you, and the entire show lasts all of 45 seconds before they are gone, flying off to the fields to feed for the day.

It is an amazing show and one that is exciting day after day. It is a treat to be here, both for the Festival and for my private bird photography workshop that starts next week.

TECH SPECS
1/1000 sec. at f/11, ISO 800. Canon 500mm lens on Canon 5D Mark III body. Gitzo tripod with ball head and Wimberley Sidekick.

TODAY QUOTE: "Birds are a miracle because they prove to us there is a finer, simpler state of being which we may strive to attain."  --Douglas Coupland

Brown Bears of Alaska

This world class Alaska brown bears photo trip is one of the very best offered! We photograph bears up close and personal every day. Limited to only 8 photographers, we have an entire classic Alaska lodge to ourselves. We have our own private bear guide who takes us and all our gear on an ATV and gets us very close to where the bears are. No slogging through hip-deep water, no long hikes, no daily flights to get to the bears. We are RIGHT where the bears are each and every day.

The lodge is lovely and has its own chef who prepares all our meals. Each day we have opportunities to photograph moms and cubs, cubs playing and fighting, clamming, nursing, and bears traversing the fields and the streams.

AND we also take half a day to travel by boat to a puffin breeding island. We spend several hours photographing these beautiful and comical birds.

Read details about this exciting trip here  

http://awakethelight.com/brown-bears/

It doesn't get any better than this - bears AND puffins!

ONLY 4 SPACES LEFT

July 15 - 21, 2019 

Call or email me for more details, or to register. 

I'm happy to answer any questions you might have.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "To those devoid of imagination, a blank place on the map is a useless waste; to others, the most valuable part."  --Aldo Leopold

Daylight Savings Time - Nice While It Lasted

I love the last couple of weeks before Daylight Savings Time ends because it means the sun rises as late as it ever does during the year. I love sunrise, but it just comes too darned early!

The sunrise colors at this time of year can be spectacular. Magenta, purple, blue, yellow, all combine for a beautiful scene. The oceanfront gazebos silhouetted against the colors add extra visual interest, and the line of dark clouds stretching across the sky provide a finishing touch. The dark foreground creates a powerful base to the entire image.

So enjoy your extra hour of sleep tonight! And please VOTE on Tuesday. Having the privilege of voting is a vital element of democracy, but often we take it for granted and think our vote does not matter. It always matters - make your voice heard.

TECH SPECS
1/120 sec. at f.2.2, ISO 40.   4.15mm lens iPhone 6.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "The vote is the most powerful instrument ever devised for breaking down injustice, and destroying the terrible walls which imprison people because they are different from others."  --Lyndon B. Johnson  

Happy Halloween!

Wishing you a very Happy Halloween!

This autumn image was created in Iceland. The fall color was spectacular, and the moving water traced a lacy design over the rocks. I'm often asked how to show the movement of water, and the answer is "it depends."

It depends on how fast the water is moving, and whether it is moving toward you or across your field of view. The best way to get the look you want is to use a variety of shutter speeds. Then after you have downloaded the images, choose the ones that look the best to you.

Fast moving water can look very silky at a shutter speed as fast as 1/8 sec., while slower moving water might require a shutter speed of several seconds. So experiment with different slow shutter speeds every time you are photographing moving water.

To give yourself the best chance of getting a slow shutter speed, set your camera to 100 ISO, and close your lens down as far as it will go (f/32 or f/22). 

If it is a bright day and you cannot get a slow enough shutter speed, you can use a polarizing filter which will reduce exposure by about two-and-a-half stops. Or you can use a neutral density filter (also called a black filter) which comes in various strengths, generally from 3 to 10 stops. I prefer a 10-stop to get the most effect. There are also variable neutral density filters which include all the various options, but can be costly.

A word of caution on neutral density filters:  do not be tempted to get an inexpensive one. They are quite poor optically, and often result in unacceptable images. Also, some neutral density filters cause a noticeable color shift, again resulting in unacceptable images. Even highly respected manufacturers who claim that their filters have no color shift, do indeed have a negative effect on the colors. I have tested several brands, and have found that the Breakthrough brand  https://breakthrough.photography/  is the best available. There is no color shift, and the optics are excellent. And they offer an excellent guarantee and free shipping, so order directly from the manufacturer.

Photographing moving water in all its forms - waterfalls, flowing streams, the ocean - is a creative and pleasant experience. So go play, and see what you can create.

TECH SPECS
2.5 seconds at f/32, ISO 100. Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS lens set to 200mm, on Canon 5D Mark III body. Gitzo tripod with Really Right Stuff ballhead.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it."  --  Vincent van Gogh

Magic Macro

The by-invitation-only Women's Creativity Retreat ends tomorrow, and what a blast we have had. Today was devoted to macro and abstracts. I was not planning to shoot since I wanted to be ready to help anyone who needed it. But each person easily got in the zone and began quietly creating exquisite images. They worked for over 2 hours with hardly a word, so I decided to do some playing myself.

This image was created with a beautiful cut glass bowl that one of the participants brought all the way from Minnesota. I placed a small sequined fabric from a dollar store underneath the bowl which provided the colors. It was shot with window light on an overcast day. It was a very simple setup that produced an appealing burst of color, motion, and line.

TECH SPECS
1/60 sec. at f/4, ISO 800. Canon 100mm f/2.8L macro lens on Canon 7D Mark II body. Handheld.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see."  -- Henry David Thoreau

Skillful Flyer

Eagles are amazing fliers. We were whale-watching aboard a private yacht along the Inside Passage of Alaska, and also attracting eagles. We were treated to some incredible aerial displays like this one. Eagles can swoop and dive, never taking their eyes off their target. They almost defy gravity. We photographed them for hours, treated by all their moves.

Conditions were perfect with dramatic mist and dark moody trees. The action was fast and furious, and we were handholding our long lenses to keep track of their movements. The lenses got a bit heavy after awhile, but the action was so exciting that we barely noticed.

TECH SPECS
1/1000 sec. at f/11, ISO 1600. Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-6.3L IS II lens set at 140mm on Canon 7D Mark II. Handheld.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Whoever said money can't buy happiness simply didn't know where to go shopping."  -- Gertrude Stein

SPECIALS FROM HUNT'S PHOTO
If you need to shop for photo gear, here are some specials from Hunt's Photo. They are available only until Monday, October 22. Hunt's is a great resource, will give you good information and good customer service. Tell them I sent you for even better service. Here are the specials, which last only a few days:

-  Trade in any electronic device in any condition to save on the purchase of any new camera.

 -  Purchase a camera with a final price under:
 $250- Save $15
 $500- Save $20
 $750- Save $35
 $1000- Save $50
 $1500- Save $75
 $2000- Save $100
 $3000- Save $150

 -  All Canon 5D IV, 6D II, and 7D II, bodies and kits will come with a $200 Hunts gift card this weekend only! This can be combined with the electronic trade in bonus savings mentioned above.

-  The brand new Canon EOS R kit with 24-105mm lens has a $200 bonus savings. This can be combined with the electronic trade in bonus savings mentioned above.

-  The Canon Pixma Pro-10 printer is on sale $379.99, comes with two free packs of 13x19" paper and has a $250 mail in rebate. Bringing the final price down to $129.99 after mail in rebate.

-  Special prices on the Panasonic G9 and 100-400mm lens.

-  Tamron 100-400mm lens is on sale for $749 and has a bonus mail in rebate of $25. Please contact Gary for savings on other lenses, too.

-  All Freehands gloves are 25% off.
https://www.huntsphotoandvideo.com/searchresult.cfm?sortby=score%20desc&manufacturer=Freehands&criteria=freehand%20gloves&startrow=1&SP=rbUWf

 -  The Magmod Wildlife flash extender is on sale for $59.99
https://www.huntsphotoandvideo.com/detail_page.cfm?productid=MMBEAMW01&mfg=MagMod&show=yes&sp=qgCOj

-  The Promaster LED120SS led light is on sale for $49.99.
https://www.huntsphotoandvideo.com/detail_page.cfm?productid=PRO8289&mfg=Promaster&show=yes&sp=bNyMo

-  Save 20% off all Walkstools.
https://www.huntsphotoandvideo.com/searchresult.cfm?sortby=score%20desc&manufacturer=Walkstool&criteria=walkstool&startrow=1&sp=Z0Pxh

-  See all the specials here  http://specials.huntsphoto.com/2018-annual-hunts-show/

Contact Gary at Hunt's with any questions you may have    gfarber@huntsphoto.com

Separation Anxiety

A basic rule in wildlife photography is to separate subjects as much as possible. Sometimes full separation is best, and at other times just keeping the heads or faces separated works well. That is the case with this image of Snow Geese taken at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico.

Their bodies overlap, but their heads are separated, AND they are just above the horizon line of the distant mountain, which separates them from the background.

Shooting birds in flight is done best by setting your camera on Rapid Burst, and using AI or Continuous Focus so that as the bird moves closer or farther away from your camera, you can still maintain reasonably sharp focus.

If you enjoy bird photography, join me at Bosque del Apache November 19 - 23 for a spectacular workshop. Only 2 spaces left. In addition to birds, we will have a full moonrise during our week there. Details here    https://awakethelight.blogspot.com/2018/07/just-announced-bosque-del-apache-new.html?fbclid=IwAR2os9T8-jeAG9SWRZRXHkWDyqX66ZBHIaHGKWBEKloCfw3EnDOq0FHri7M  

Kick It Up A Notch

You can take a simple subject and kick it up a notch with a few simple creative techniques. These tulips were beautiful, but I wanted something a little different. Using a slow shutter speed AND moving the camera slightly during the exposure created a more stylized look.

Practice with a variety of techniques when you are out shooting. You can zoom the lens during a long exposure, or move the camera up and down during exposure (as in this image), or rotate the camera around a center point.

In addition to moving the camera, I used a ripple filter in Photoshop during post-processing to add a bit of texture.

TECH SPECS
1/4 sec. at f/32, ISO 100. Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS macro lens on Canon 5D Mark III body. Handheld.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "The mystery isn't in the technique, it's in each of us."  --Harry Callahan

Mighty Macro

I am in Hilton Head, SC to give a presentation on Macro photography to a large camera club. Macro is a much broader category of photography than you might think. In the old days it was very narrowly defined as representing a subject at life-size or larger. Also, the conventional thinking was that every element of the subject had to be razor sharp.

Well, that was your grandmother's macro! Today we have much more freedom in how we create macro images. Macro can be a close-up of the subject, but can be smaller than life size. Also, we can be much more creative with shallow depth of field, rendering parts of the subject soft and moody.

The flip side of that thinking, however, is creating images that are sharper than a lens can create on its own, using multiple images and software to blend them together to make every single part of the subject super sharp. Personally I do not used that technique since I prefer a softer more artistic look. But you should find the route that suits you and the subject the best.

Today's image is a water droplet on melting glacier ice in Alaska. Note that it was NOT taken with a macro lens. You can achieve a macro look with other lenses, from wide angle to telephoto if you are careful. Many of today's lenses allow you to focus fairly closely to the subject. Experiment with your lenses to see how close you can be to the subject and still bring parts of the subject into focus. Wide angle lenses will create a very different look from telephoto lenses. My preference, if I am not using a macro lens, is to use a telephoto lens which enables the background to be rendered out of focus, drawing attention to the main subject.

TECH SPECS 1/500 sec. at f/9, ISO 800. Canon 24-105mm f/4L IS II lens, set at 105mm, on Canon 5D Mark III body.  Handheld.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh the thinks you can think up if only you try."  --Dr. Seuss

Think Outside The Box

Today's Blog encourages you to think outside the box. When photographing nature and wildlife, we generally want crisp, sharp images to show the subject at its best. But sometimes we want to show the LIFE of the subject, its movement, its spark, its place in the world.

So while freezing the motion of a living subject certainly has its place, at times allowing the motion to show in your images is a good approach.

These Sandhill Cranes, taken a few years ago during their migration to Bosque del Apache in New Mexico, were moving at a pretty good speed right in front of me. I took many shots with a fast shutter speed to freeze the motion, but I also took some with a slower shutter speed to show their life and their movement.

My recommendation is that when shooting any subject, whether stationary or moving, take some traditional shots to showcase the subject, but also try some creative approaches to show the subject in a more artistic way. Some techniques to try are slow shutter speeds and panning. You can do each separately, or combine the techniques as I did in this image. This was shot at 1/30 sec AND I panned the camera as the birds flew past. A tripod is necessary for best results.

Panning helps to essentially smear the background while at the same time keeping the birds relatively sharp (as long as you pan the camera at about the same speed as the birds are moving). The slow shutter speed enhances the smeared look of the background, and also provides some blur to the wings. The final result is an artistic background, and a feeling of life and motion in the image.

Want to learn more about bird photography? Join me in Bosque del Apache November 19 - 23 for a week of some of the best bird photography anywhere. Details at this link
http://awakethelight.blogspot.com/2018/07/just-announced-bosque-del-apache-new.html

We'll shoot the world famous dawn lift-off of thousands of snow geese, possibly the most awe-inspiring bird event you can witness  -  in about 45 seconds, the snow geese go from sitting peacefully on the large ponds to flying straight up and speeding off to nearby fields to feed. The sounds and the mass of life are truly amazing, and the spectacle is over in less than a minute.

We will also have many opportunities to photograph the elegant and graceful Sandhill Cranes. This will be a great opportunity to get some artistic and creative images.

Bosque del Apache is known for its spectacular sunrises and sunsets, AND we will also photograph a full moonrise. So we should have some superb shooting opportunities during the week. Limited to 12 photographers and ONLY 2 SPACES LEFT. Feel free to call or email me with questions.

TECH SPECS
1/30 sec. at f/8. ISO 400. Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS lens on Canon 40D body (old and now retired, but a great camera in its day). Gitzo tripod with ballhead and Wimberley Sidekick.

TODAY'S QUOTE: "The aim of every artist is to arrest motion, which is life, by artificial means and hold it fixed so that a hundred years later, when a stranger looks at it, it moves again since it is life."  --William Faulkner