photoartflightSwan Babies
Posted on December 3, 2013
It is getting colder here in New Jersey, so I was going back through the archives to clean out files. I found these images of this Mute Swan nest and the Swan Cygnets from the Celery Farm Natural Area in Allendale NJ. I used a Canon 20D with a 1.6X crop with the Sigma 300-800mm f/5.6 zoom which gave the reach I needed to photograph the Swan Babies on the nest. With the 1.6 crop sensor it has an effective focal length of 1280mm. I used a -0.33 exposure compensation with aperture priority so I would not blow out the whites on the Swans. In some of the photos you can see the egg pieces from a freshly hatched cygnet. Hope ou enjoy them.
Canon 20D, Canon 100-400mm f/4-5.6 @ 100mm, effective focal length 160mm
Polarized Ice
Posted on December 2, 2013
Photographing ice over the weekend and found this piece of ice on a small branch in the water. We tried a few shots and then noticed that adding a polarizing filter added a rainbow of colors in the ice. It might be a little overdone, but I thought it was still interesting. Sometimes you just have to experiment and try different ways to photograph your subjects. You never know what you might come up with. Canon EOS 1D MkIV with Canon 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DO lens.
Alternate versions
A Different View
Posted on November 30, 2013
Sometimes when I am out in the field, I try different crops or angles of familiar subjects that I am used to seeing. Here I am using Mute Swans as an example. I like photographing Mute Swans. They are large, so even if they are out in the distance I can get good images of them. They are usually always moving, taking flight quite often also so you have a lot of photo opportunities. The large white bird can be tricky in bright light to get proper exposures, so you have to be careful and check your histograms. But after a while you find your images begin to look the same as the ones you took before. So try different angles, positions and crops. Even try closeup details to add interest for a different look. You can also add them to a series to help show your subject in a different way and show visually a more complete story of your subject.
Leaf above Ice
Posted on November 25, 2013
Going over files from last year and found this one. When the weather starts getting colder, I like looking for interesting ice patterns in streams or along lakes and hopefully with an item in the composition for a focal point. I found this leaf stuck in a small twig above this ice formation. I liked the early morning low sun backlighting the leaf, adding warmth, highlighting textures & patterns in the ice. Photographed with a Canon Eos 1D MkIII with a Canon 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 DO IS USM @ 300mm, 1/100 @ f/8, ISO 400. I also used High Pass Sharpening in Photoshop to help bring out details & textures in the ice and leaf.
Autumn Swan Taking Flight
Posted on November 23, 2013
I used this series of selected images from one Swan’s takeoff to make one art print. I liked this Swan’s takeoff against the colorful Fall background, showing changing wing positions and the splashing of it’s feet trying to get airborne. I started with more wing positions, but the print got too long so I limited it to six images. Even at 6 images the final print was 96″ x 14″. Placing it on a black background also made the images really stand out and I used a gradated grey text as a subtle title accent so it did not detract from the images.
Red-tailed Hawk Fly By
Posted on November 21, 2013
This is a Red-tailed Hawk that was sitting in a tree off in the distance. It took off and flew right by me. I shot a burst of frames as it passed by and I liked this one because of the wing position out of the series. Photographed with a Canon EOS 1D MkII with a 400mm f/4 DO lens. Exposure 1/1250 @ f/6.3, ISO 400.
A Little Different Macro – Canon MP-E 65mm
Posted on November 18, 2013
I went out to The Celery Farm Natural Area to photograph very small dried wildflowers. I took along my Canon MP-E 65 mm 1-5X Macro. This is a very specialized macro lens that starts at 1X and goes to 5X magnification. It is more like a lens with a variable extension tube zooming out for the increased magnification. I decided to add a 1.4X teleconverter to add a little more working distance. This adds just a little bit more working distance, in some cases the front element is less than an inch away from your subject, but every bit helps. With the 1.4X Teleconverter it makes this a 91mm f/4. I was using a Canon Macro Ring Flash MR-14 EX to light these subjects as I was shooting handheld. My camera body was a Canon 1D MkIV camera body, so with the 1.3 crop of the sensor, this also adds to the lens, making it 1.3X to about 6X. For the wildflowers I left it at 1.3X for most, then later I shot some areas of the wooden lookout tower at various magnifications to show the different magnifications. I used aperture priority for some where I wanted to get some background detail, while the ones I have with dark backgrounds I used Manual exposure to darken the background and let the flash light the subject.
Full image for an idea of scale and subject
One of the smaller dried wildflowers @ 1.3X, lit with ring lash, no ambient light, for darker background
Larger Dried Wildflower @ 1.3X, handheld, lit with ring flash for main exposure, ambient light for background 1/10 of a second
Dried Wildflower @ ~3X, handheld, lit with ring flash for main exposure, 1/80 sec ,positioned for dark background
Dried Wildflower Bud @ ~2X, handheld, lit with ring flash for main exposure, ambient light for background 1/60 of a second
Reference shot for examples of scale
~ 2X Magnification, Carriage bolt magnification detail
~ 4X Magnification,, Carriage bolt magnification detail
~ 6X Magnification, Wood grain and with slight crack in wood grain around Carriage bolt
Swans FlyBy
Posted on November 16, 2013
One from the achieves, a pair of Mute Swans flying together. I used a Fuji S2 with a Nikkor 80-400mm zoom. With the Swans flying across from left to right, I used a little slower shutter speed, but panned along with the moving swans. This gives the background a streaking out of focus look while keeping the swans relatively sharp.It takes some practice, but it is worth the effort and comes in handy to make your images look a little different. I liked how the swans seem to be gliding by. close above the water, casting a shadow below them to add depth to the image.
Walk in the Woods
Posted on November 14, 2013
I took a leisurely walk around the Celery Farm Natural Area in Allendale, NJ on Sunday looking for Fall Still Life images. I found a few I liked and also a few general interest Fall images as I was walking along the path. Here are some of what I found. I used my 1D MkIV with the Canon 70-300mm DO lens for the longer zoom range which comes in handy for a wider range of images, especially if you do not know what you will come across while on your walk. It also works well with extension tubes for closeup images when you come across them. The 70-300mm DO makes a great walk around lens especially with the Image Stabilization. I usually carry a 12mm & 20mm extension tubes with me, along with 12″ silver/gold collapsable reflector & 12″ diffuser for either reflecting light into a subject or for diffusing harsh sunlight.
Milkweed Two Image Panorama
Autumn Mute Swans
Posted on November 10, 2013
2 Mute swans flying into a colorful Autumn background. I liked the formation flying these 2 Mute Swans were keeping as they flew few laps around this small lake. They flew lower for the first go round, then on the second lap they gained a little altitude and flew across the colorful fall background. I thought the pair of white swans contrasted nicely with the reddish leaves and the darker grayish area on the right made it look like a B&W image blending into color as the swans flew into it. This was shot with a Canon EOS 1D MkII with a Canon 100-400mm zoom @ 400mm with a Canon 1.4X teleconverter giving an effective focal length with the 1.3 crop of the camera and 1.4X of the Teleconverter of 728mm @ f/8. I usually stop down a little more when using a teleconverter, but using a lens that was @ f/5.6 and with the Teleconverter making it f/8, I chose an f/stop of f/11 to help sharpen it up a little but still give me a shutter speed fast enough to stop the action of the flying birds.
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