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Birds As Art Bulletin #317
February 22, 2010
Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART, PO Box 7245 4041
Granada Drive, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855. Telephone: 863-692-0906.
Computer fax: 877- 265-6955
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FEATURES:
THE SW FLA PRESIDENTS DAY
IPT REPORT
SW FLA IPT KUDOS
BPN FRACTALIUS LINKS
THE BIRDS AS ART
BLOG/SHARPENING TUTORIALS & THE GREAT LAPTOP MIRACLE
POSSE NEWS/JIM NEIGER
POSSE NEWS/JAMES SHADLE &
JIM NEIGER/BEST OF FLORIDA WORKSHOPS
VERY IMORTANT
NOTE: If you are responding to a
Bulletin via e-mail please take the time to delete all irrelevant text and
images. Thanks.
Great Blue Heron, White Pelicans, &
shorebirds, Ding Darling NWR, Sanibel, FL
Image copyright 2010/Arthur Morris/BIRDS
AS ART
Canon 70-200mm f/4 L IS lens at 155mm with the
EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering -1/3 stop: 1/640 sec. at
f/6.3.
I would love to have placed the sun on the
right hand side of this image but a stand of mangroves prevented me from
moving to my right. The wide range of framing options available with the
70-200 lenses make them one of my favorites when creating bird scapes.
Here I used the Giotto's tiny ball head that I prefer when doing landscape
work:
https://store.birdsasart.com/shop/item.aspx?itemid=59
THE SW FLA
PRESIDENTS DAY IPT REPORT
Despite nearly relentless northwest winds and
unseasonably cold temperatures, the recently concluded SW FLA President's Day
IPT was a huge success. The group was a mix of experienced and
intermediate photographers and everyone got along famously; many new
friendships were formed. IPT veterans inlcuded Jon Sostarich, Carl
Zanoni, Paul Wollam, James White, and 88 year young Rita Matthews. (See
the FEB zz blog post about Rita here: www.BIRDSASART-Blog.com)
The repeat offenders <smile> were joined by George Secor, birder James E.
Brown, Nancy Bell, Dutchman Clemens Vanderwerf, and husband and wife team
Jackie and David Labovitz. Though the DAY 1 photographic opportunities
at the Venice Rookery, the traditional first morning location, were poor
overall, several folks created some very nice pre-dawn blurs and some
excellent flight images later in the morning. For a complete report on
the state of the rookery, again check out the FEB zz blog entry here: www.BIRDSASART-Blog.com. We
had a great afternoon photographing Brown and White Pelicans at a location
about 40 minutes south of the rookery. See the SW FLA Site Guide for
details on this great spot:
https://store.birdsasart.com/shop/item.aspx?itemid=73
White Pelican incoming
flight, Placida, FL
Image copyright 2010/Arthur Morris/BIRDS
AS ART
Canon 400mm f/4 IS DO lens with the EOS-1D Mark
IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering + 1 1/3 stops: 1/1000 sec. at f/4.
In relatively low (and sweet) light I went
with the wide open aperture to ensure a fast shutter speed. See the SW FLA
site guide link to learn everything that you need to know about
photographing both pelican species at this great location.
.....
On DAY 2 we visited Ding Darling and enjoyed a
backlit feeding spree in the morning and a loverly sunset that same evening.
We headed to Little Estero Lagoon on the overcast morning of DAY 3 and had a
ton of fun creating intentional blurs. Co-leader Denise Ippolito
provided instructions for creating pleasingly blurred images and inspired
folks who took the time to check out her images on the back of the camera.
The forecast of a big deluge for that afternoon was accurate so we spent the
whole afternoon enjoying the Photoshop excellence of Tim Grey who was along as
one of four--no--make that five--no, six excellent co-leaders. Tim's
clear, conscise explanations of a variety of realy cool, not too complicated
techniques were punctuated frequently by his dry sense of humor. He
would often show us a great technique that obviously needed at least one more
step to be completed. Tim would deadpan, "Amazing technique; looks
great doesn't it?" and pretend to go on to the next order of business until
someone would ask, "What about the big red ring around the bird?"
Tim Grey, Little Estero Lagoon, Fort
Myers Beach, FL
Image courtesy of and copyright
2010/Denise Ippolito
It was great having Tim along. Once I
check the tides and the dates for the 2011 San Diego IPT, I will try to
arrange having Tim back for a second go-round.
.....
On the morning of DAY 4 we returned to Ding
Darling and were largely disappointed. A very cooperative Burrowing Owl
at Cape Coral eased the pain <smile> that afternoon. On the morning of
DAY 5 it was back to Estero in the morning with excellent results despite the
continuing cold north winds. That afternoon Alfred Forns and one-day
guest co-leader James Shadle took part of the group back to Cape Coral for a
second owl-fix while the rest of the group joined Fabs, Denise, and me on a
shorebird-strewn Sanibel beach. Storms had left the beach covered with a
variety of fresh dead mollusks that provided on almost endless feast for
hordes of Sanderlings, Black-Bellied Plovers, Ruddy Turnstones, and a
variety of gulls among others.
Sanderling foraging on shell-strewn beach,
Sanibel, FL
Image copyright 2010/Arthur Morris/BIRDS
AS ART
Canon 800mm f/5.6L IS lens with the 1.4X II TC and
the EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1 stop: 1/400 sec. at f/8.
While I love the foraging posture, the pink
shell, and the sharpness of the bird there are three foreground elements that
I consider distracting: #1: the dark shell by the bird's front foot; #2: the
yellowish bit of weed (?) in the lower right corner; #3: the large, o-o-f
whitish yellow shell in front of the bird's rear foot. All in all, however, I
still like it. <smile>
SW FLA IPT KUDOS
I received this e-mail from mulitple IPT veteran Carl
Zanoni:
Dear Artie, Thank you for an excellent SW FL IPT last week. The
photo sites and opportunities were awesome. The leaders and support staff
were of the highest level of expertise, enthusiasm, and responsiveness to
any request or question. I learned many useful capture and post
processing techniques to enhance my photography skills. In addition,
the participants were a joy to meet, to share the learning experiences with,
and to share the photographic opportunities with. On balance, it was a
terrific IPT. Thanks to you, Tim, Alfred, Fabs, and Denise. If you run
this one again, next year, sign me up! With kind regards, Carl
And from Carl's friend James E. Brown:
Art, I echo everything Carl says in his note. I was the only amateur in
the group in spite of dozens of birding trips and maybe 100,000 bird photos,
but I have learned so much from you, your colleagues and my fellow
travelers. I agree with your dictum, "It ain't the camera and it ain't the
lens" or as Pogo once said, "I have met the enemy and it is I."
Attached is a pelican that I just worked on. I wanted to share it with you.
The original was darker; the wings left the frame and the space below
the bird was greater than that above it. I cropped a bit to move the higher
wing to the corner and move the birda bit to the right. There was no noise
reduction done, some sharpening of the eyes and the beak, and some general
sharpening. I lightened the eyes and belly and darkened the bill. All
in Lightroom. Thanks for everything. JimBB.
After I replied I received this from him:
Thanks for the Pelican critique. I did not expect to hear from you so
soon but hoped you would give me some feedback. That was way-generous of
you. I will try Topaz DeNoise. Your colleague Jim Litzenberg is
shipping me the ABP/ABP II Combo; I hope to learn more about exposure there.
I was so wrapped up in getting my act together that I did not write down
enough of your exposure advice. Best and thanks again, JimB.
And this just in from Jackie Labovitz:
Art-- David and I have spent the last few days in Florida looking
at birds in a completely new way. Thanks for a life-changing experience. All
the goals that we set for ourselves were achieved and a wide range of new
goals has emerged. Histogram, histogram, histogram tops the long list.
In addition, there was a great group of people especially the leader.
Hope your travel to NANPA was flawless. Jackie.
Sunflower, greenhouse, NJ
Image courtesy of and copyright
2010/Denise Ippolito
Denise, who lives on the Jersey shore, offers individual and small group
photographic and Photoshop instruction; you can learn more here: (http://deniseippolito.smugmug.com/)
Sanderling, Sanibel, FL
Image courtesy of and copyright 2010/Denise Ippolito
Denise used Fractalius' Impressions 1 as a starting point.
She created the image above from what was originally quite a cluttered
photograph. When she was done moving the sliders she saved the
settings as "High Key Sketch." Now if she has an image that she
thinks will work with the same settings all that she needs to do is click
on that pre-set and she will start with a similar look. If you would like
to join the Fracting fun, please click on this link to purchase:
https://www.plimus.com/jsp/buynow.jsp?contractId=1720292&referrer=birdsasart.
BPN FRACTALIUS LINKS
American Alligator, close-up of rear
flank, Wakodahatchee Wetlands, Boynton Beach, FL
Image copyright 2010/Arthur Morris/BIRDS
AS ART
Canon 800mm f/5.6L IS lens with the 1.4X II TC
and the EOS-1D Mark IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1/3 stop: 1/500 sec.
at f/8.
This is a two frame stitched
panorama. I started with the Impressions 1 pre-set in Fractalius and
tweaked the settings. Being in the process of teaching myself the program
(with help from Denise) I have found that by moving each slider from one end
of the scale to the other gives me a good idea of what that slider does.
You are then better able to create the look that you want. If
you would like to join the Fracting fun, please click on this link to
purchase:
https://www.plimus.com/jsp/buynow.jsp?contractId=1720292&referrer=birdsasart.
THE BIRDS AS ART
BLOG/SHARPENING TUTORIALS & THE GREAT LAPTOP MIRACLE
Visit the blog at
www.birdsasart-Blog.com to check
out the free excerpt from Digital Basics in the February 18th post; there are
more misconceptions about sharpening than any other facet of digital imaging.
This Sharpening tutorial will set you straight and put you on the road to
successfully and pleasingly sharpening all of your images--from small JPEGs to
huge prints. As for "The Great Laptop Miracle," it is a hard one to
believe. This morning, in the February 19th post I added a simplified
suggesting for sharpening your 800 wide JPEGs. As always, you will find
lots of great free info with a personal touch on the blog.
Brown Pelican (swallowing two tiny fish),
Little Estero Lagoon, Fort Myers Beach, FL
Image copyright 2010/Arthur Morris/BIRDS
AS ART
Canon 800mm f/5.6L IS lens with the EOS-1D Mark
IV. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1/3 stop: 1/2000 sec. at f/6.3.
I created a pleasing five-frame sequence of
this bird swallowing some tiny baitfish.
POSSE NEWS/JIM NEIGER
Flight School Photography in Osprey Heaven, Lake Blue Cypress (east of Vero
Beach, Florida):
May 13-17, 2009 and May 20-24, 2009. (Limit:
5): $1300.
Jim has spent the
past several years perfecting his techniques for photographing birds in flight
using large telephoto lenses hand held. The focus of these workshops
will be learning Jim�s hand held, long lens techniques for photographing birds
in flight and in other action. The workshops will be held in some of the
most beautiful, wild, and unspoiled wilderness areas of central Florida. Lake
Blue Cypress is a gem, a spot rife with Ospreys and gorgeous scenic
opportunities. (Note from artie: Corbis grabbed many of my scenic images
that I made at this location with Jim as well as a slew of Osprey images...)
Please contact Jim Neiger of Flight School Photography for additional
information: phone: 407-247-5200. e-mail:
jimn@cfl.rr.com. Or visit www.flightschoolphotography.com for
more info or to register.
Osprey landing, tight, Lake Blue Cypress,
FL
Image copyright Jim Neiger/Flight Schoool
Photography
Osprey pair, male with fish, Lake Blue
Cypress, FL
Image copyright Jim Neiger/Flight
Schoool Photography
Barred Owl, Lake Blue Cypress, FL
Image copyright Jim Neiger/Flight
Schoool Photography
POSSE NEWS: JAMES SHADLE & JIM NEIGER/BEST OF
FLORIDA WORKSHOPS
Roseate Spoonbill, Alafia Banks, Tampa Bay, FL
Image
copyright 2009/James Shadle
o:p>
Snail
Kites copulating, Lake Toho, Kissimmee, FL
Image
copyright 2009/Jim Neiger/Flight School Photography
BEST OF FLORIDA
WORKSHOPS
Capt. Jim Neiger of
�Flight School Photography� and Capt. James Shadle of �In the Field Workshops�
are proud to present the �Best of Florida� workshop series � the best time of
year, the best weather, the best species, the best colors, the best group size
and the best instruction of its kind.
These eight day
workshops will feature the unsurpassed avian opportunities of both central and
west central Florida during peak season. Four days of learning and photography
in central Florida with Jim Neiger and four days of learning and photography
in west central Florida with James Shadle. This unique arrangement allows you
to be exposed to widest range of subjects and habitats imaginable. The
subjects and habitats are not the only thing that has a wide range. You will
also be exposed to very qualified yet different instructional
styles.
Come experience
Florida at its very best! The main focus of these distinctive workshops will
be solely on you. Class size is drastically reduced for maximum comfort, and
the individual attention provided will be without equal. Your needs will take
center stage during this unique experience. Weather permitting,
all sessions
except for one afternoon Great Horned Owl foray on the central Florida segment
will be pontoon boat trips.
In keeping with our
main focus (you), each workshop segment will be limited to only four (4)
participants. This insures that everyone may photograph in comfort and receive
as much personalized instruction as they need. While our workshops could
easily accommodate more than 4 participants per segment, we keep the group
size very small to ensure that you will have unparalleled access to the
workshop leader and to make sure that you will not miss a photographic
opportunity because somebody is in your way.
Best of Florida Workshop #1: March 21-28, 2010: 2
openings / $300 last minute discount.
Best of Florida Workshop #2: April 5-12, 2010: 4
openings / $250 late registration discount.
Best of Florida Workshop #3: April 29-May 6, 2010:
4 openings / $200 late registration discount.
The cost of the Best
of Florida 8-DAY workshop is $2500 per person. A $1000 non-refundable deposit
is required for the workshops. The remaining $1500 is due 30 days before the
start date of the workshop. If you are unable to attend the workshop after
paying the balance your balance will be refunded only if your spot can be
filled--on short notice--from the waiting list. All workshop payments must be
made by check or money order. Credit cards are not accepted.
For more info or
questions about the Central Florida segment please contact Jim Neiger of
Flight School Photography: phone: 407-247-5200. e-mail:
jimn@cfl.rr.com.
Flight School website:
www.flightschoolphotography.com. Jim will be happy to
provide you with any additional information.
For questions about
the West Central Florida segment: please contact James Shadle of In The Field
Workshops: phone: 813-363-2854. e-mail:
james@wildflorida.net
Web sites:
www.wildflorida.net
and www.inthefieldworkshops.com.
James will be happy to provide you with any additional information.
Note
from Artie: As you can see by the images here, both Jim and James are not only
highly skilled photographers, but each of them is able to adeptly position
their pontoon boat right down sun angle and in the very best position for
photography. Images like the ones that you see here do not happen by
luck or accident. Kissimmee Jimmy lives on Lake Toho and knows the birds
there better than anyone alive or dead. Captain James Shadle (aka
"Froggie") know the birds of the Alafia Banks better than anyone living or
dead. Both Jims have an intimate knowledge of how wind and light (and
the tides in Tampa Bay) affect bird photography and will not only share that
knowledge with you but will use it to put the group in the right spot at the
right time every day.
Laughing Gull & immature Brown Pelican, Alafia Banks,
Tampa Bay, FL
Image copyright 2008/James Shadle
Snail Kites, adult female feeding young, Lake Toho,
Kissimmee, FL
Image copyright 2009/Jim Neiger/Flight School
Photography
IPT UPDATES
MIDWAY ATOLL IPTs:
Two trips, early March, 2010 (from Oahu, HI)
7-FULL DAYS OF PHOTOGRAPHY: $6395 ALL INCLUSIVE FROM OAHU.
There may be a single opening on either or both of these trips. Please
e-mail or see the complete information including registration information
click here:
http://www.photosafaris.com/photography-trips-2010/midway-photo-tour/.
(This second BAA trip was added by popular demand.)
BOSQUE del APACHE
2010 IPT: �The Complete Bosque
Experience.� NOV 20-26, 2010. Slide program on the evening of
Friday, NOV 19. 7-FULL DAYS: $3199. (Non-refundable deposit:
$500; see details below.) Limit: 10/Openings; 7.
Co-leaders: Robert O�Toole, Jim Heupel., and multiple BBC Wildlife
Photographer of the Year honoree Chris Van Rooyen of South Africa (http://www.wildlifephotography.co.za/). 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.
Plus great co-leaders and top-notch Photoshop instruction.
A non-refundable deposit of $500 is required to
hold a spot for this IPT. Deposits may be paid by check, PayPal, or credit
card. Payment in full (by check or money order only) is due four months
before the start of each trip and is non-refundable unless the IPT sells out.
You will be required to sign a statement of understanding to this effect.
Travel insurance is of course highly recommended. Travel Insurance
Services offers a variety of plans and options. Included with the Elite
Option or available as an upgrade to the Basic & Plus Options, you can also
purchase Cancel for Any Reason Coverage, which expands the list of reasons for
your canceling to an infinite list, from a sudden work or family obligation to
a simple change of mind. My family and I use and depend on the great
policies offered by TIS whenever we travel. You can learn more here:
Travel Insurance Services. Do note that many plans require that
you purchase your travel insurance within 14 days of our cashing your deposit
check of running your credit card. We regret that we must implement this
new policy but we have been plagued by last minute cancellations that make it
impossible for others to participate and deprive us of essential income.
Important note: please print, fill out, and sign
the registration and release forms and include them with your deposit check
(made out to "Arthur Morris." ) If you use a credit card to register,
please fill out, sign, and mail the two forms asap. Your registration
will not be complete until we receive your paper work. You can find the
forms here: IPT Registration and Release Form.
.....
The 2011 San Diego IPT will run in January,
2011. I will announce the exact dates once I can get a look at a tide
table. The big news here is that the brilliant Tim Grey will likely be
joining me as co-leader. Here are the basics:
San Diego
IPT JAN, 2011. 5 Full Days: $2495
(Limit 8/Openings: 5) Slide
program on the evening before the first day of the IPT. A fully refundable
$500 deposit now will hold your spot until the dates are announced.
Once the dates are announced let me know either way. If you opt in,
then your deposit will become non-refundable and you will be asked to
complete the registration and release forms. Brown Pelicans, Wood and
Ring-necked Ducks, Western and Heerman's Gulls, Marbled Godwits, and lots,
lots more.
Best and great
picture-making,
artie
Note:
Arthur Morris has been a Canon contract photographer, part of the Explorers of
Light program, since 1996 and continues in that role today. Hunt's Photo
of Boston, MA is a BAA sponsor as is Delkin Devices. Back issues of all
BAA Bulletins can be found in the Bulletin Archives which may be accessed
here:
http://www.birdsasart.com/bn.html
