Chains upon my feet...

...from the "musings" department

I've said this before: if you want to learn how to set up a photo, watch TV. Or movies.

Last night it struck me again. I was doing something on the computer and although I don't normally watch NCIS Los Angeles (I do admit to watching the original NCIS and New Orleans, though), it was on in the background behind me. I turned around and saw a scene where the curly blond haired guy was sitting, talking to the old, short lady (his boss? – told you I don't watch it!) – and the scene made me come to a stop. It was outstanding.

The subjects were perfectly lit – they were in a dark room, on a staircase, with a doorway in the background and some light that appeared to be sunlight dappling the floor in front of the doorway. The lighting, the composition, the depth of field, the textures, were absolutely outstanding. If you took a still from that shot and entered it in an international Salon level competition, you would win, hands down. Then she walked away, through the dappled light, while the camera stayed focused on the guy's face. What a visual story!

But it's not just this shot, it's pretty well ALL of them. Go switch on your TV. Doesn't matter what you watch, a talk show, a sit-com, a commercial, a movie, a football or hockey game: it's perfect. Look at it and try to figure out why!

These are the big guys. The people who make big bucks doing photography and videography. They have unlimited budgets, all the equipment you dream about, and a staff that includes set designers, lighting experts, makeup artists, etc., as well as graphic designers and people who sit there and design and storyboard the shots. Do they do a better job than you can with shot setup, design and execution? You bet they do, better than I can or anyone that I know.

Sure there are differences between stills and video.  So hit "Pause" on your PVR and look at the still. Is there any question in your mind what the subject is of the picture? Is the subject in the middle or off-centre? Is it too flat or too contrasty? What about colour balance? Is it in focus? Is the exposure too bright or too dark? I can't see what you're looking at but I'm pretty sure I know the answers to those questions.

Use it as a learning experience. Sure, you don't have a team to set up your shots, you don't have an unlimited equipment budget... but there are tons of things they do that you could also do. One of those things is to stop and study a scene (if you're doing landscapes) BEFORE you press the shutter, even before you take out your camera. It's called "Pre-Visualization".

99% of the pictures I see, whether on Social Media, in competitions... would be instantly rejected by these big guys. Everyone is trying to emulate them, with little success (I was going to say 'varying success' but a 99% reject rate is not 'varying'). I may not be good enough to get in that 1% very often, but that isn't going to stop me from trying. I need to take more time to think about it. How about you?

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Gales of November Workshop

The Rock Island Lodge 

I've been invited to several workshops this year. Exotic places like Cuba, Costa Rica, Africa, Iceland, Yellowstone. You know what they all have in common? They're all THOUSANDS of dollars. US dollars to boot. The Gales workshop IS in an exotic location: the Canadian Wilderness, on the shores of Lake Superior, where the Group of Seven wandered and expressed what they saw in their art. And it's NOT thousands of dollars.

There's only room for a dozen people (although if demand is high, I can do a second session). It's already about half full. Think about it. If there's any chance you might be able to make it up to  Wawa next October, PLEASE go to this webpage and take two minutes to do the short questionnaire and leave me your name so I can keep you in the loop.

PS: I'm still working on the web page. Bottom line? It's a 3 or 4 day field experience for intermediate or advanced photographers who want some fresh ideas and an opportunity to experience some outstanding landscapes and express themselves in the company of other talented people.

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Topaz Labs year-end special

They're at it again! Topaz Labs is offering a 35% discount on any and all products until the year-end. If you've been waiting to take the plunge or add some more of their outstanding plug-ins, now's the time!

Some of the newer Topaz products require a higher graphics functionality to work. If you're not sure it will work on your computer, download the free trial before finalizing your purchase. Be sure to complete the transaction before the year-end, though.

Here's the link to their site. Enter the coupon code "TOPAZ2015" at checkout to get the discount.

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Triggertrap update

They've been listening! I love my TriggerTrap but one thing I've run into is the drain on the iPhone battery. Even if you turn the brightness all the way down, you still only get about 90 minutes out of an iPhone6. So I ordered (but haven't yet received) an external battery pack for the phone. This is not something TriggerTrap can fix (other than to remind you to turn your screen brightness down when doing time lapses).

But they did address the other issue, which is that brightly coloured and white screen glow which can affect your images if you're not careful. So their update 4.1 includes a "night mode". Much better!

Also they included a ND filter conversion calculator in the Timed Release mode: just enter your base shutter speed, the ND filter strength, and TT does the rest! I had printed out a table on a laminated card, then I lost it somewhere... no more mental arithmetic.

If you want to know how TriggerTrap works without paying anything, simply download the app (for iPhone or Android) for free and try it! To make it work with your camera, you need the hardware, which you can buy from a European or North American source. Free shipping until the end of the year! Here's the link to their site. There's also a bunch of useful video tutorials on their site under Inspiration→howto. Give it a looksee!

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Are we having fun yet?

It sure is a lot easier (for me) in Photoshop and Impression! MUCH harder with brushes and canvas and oil paints! Two of my oil painting works-in-process.

Chippewa Falls, Lake Superior. It's a tighter crop than the last version, from much the same vantage point as J.E.H. MacDonald painted it. I didn't paint this one plein air, I came back to it and did another painting. This is oil paint on board, 9x12.

South Lake Road, Minden Ontario. This is in process; I want to change what the tree looks like but have to wait for the paint to dry a bit before I go over it. You saw a black-and-white version of the original photo in last week's blog, I'm happy with a lot of this image, especially the foreground, but not the tree.  Painted in oils on canvas paper, 9x12.

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Winter has finally arrived

...at least I think so. The forecast for Monday is warm and rainy, so I'm not counting my chickens. But the world looks so much nicer with a blanket of clean white snow than muddy brown!

I did take the opportunity to get my ATV out with the snowplow for the first time this year. We had about 4" of snow (I was going to say about 6" but then I would be open for all those off-colour jokes...). And new this year, "Chains upon my Feet". What a difference! In fact, my 4WD wasn't working yesterday (it's mysteriously back today) and I actually had difficulty on a slippery surface until I put on the chains! It feels unstoppable (I know enough not to get too cocky, though).

Putting the chains on wasn't too difficult, although I threw one after my first attempt. It was easier when I figured out that using the motorcycle jack to lift the tire off the ground was the trick. I need to get some heavier duty bungee cords to hold them tight. And with them on, no playing around doing donuts or they're likely to come off and damage something.

I didn't do much to this image. Almost straight out of camera... well it is a 5-exposure HDR processed in Nik HDR Efex Pro 2, I did a radial filter to add haze to the background, then I added the yellow light to the headlights which were actually off... all right, I'm lying, but really only about 10 minutes work, all in Lightroom!

This is the original SOOC 

And this shot is just the way I saw it... in my mind!  Among other things, I added a masked motion blur layer to give it a sense of motion (I know, doesn't make sense since it's obviously not being driven), blurred the background and treated it with Topaz Impression, then Texture Effects to give it a vintage feel 

"Waiting for Hard Water". Every year I do a picture of the ice fishing huts at the Red Umbrella Inn, waiting to go out on the ice. Well as you can see, despite the fact that it's December 20th, no ice yet. I think it'll be some weeks before they can go out, but I could be wrong. This is one of their smaller, older huts; the one at left in the foreground is brand new and 4x the size.  

— 30 —

If I only save one life...

Do you use protection?

What do you think I'm going to talk about? Latex things? Wrong.

This blog is about photography. Did you think I was going to talk about using filters on your lens? Nah, that subject has been beaten to death (bottom line: 50% of photographers I surveyed use UV filters on their lenses. The other half are smart enough to know that (a) digital sensors are not sensitive to UV like film was, (b) the filters, especially cheap ones [under $100] degrade picture quality and cause excessive lens flare, (c) you're not protecting a $2500 lens, you're protecting the front glass which is factory replaceable at reasonable cost, (d) a lens hood provides much better protection and (e) camera stores make HUGE profits on filters. They buy them for $1 and sell them for $20 or $30, that's why the salesman tells you that you need one. LOL)

No, I'm talking about your computer. Background: I have a friend whose computer was just eaten by a mean and nasty virus or trojan (trojan. protection. hmmm.). I'm not going to lecture him again about clicking on unknown links in email, even email that seems to come from someone you know. I already did. I love this guy but he's so incredibly naïve... and there's no sense in making him feel worse. I'm going to make a few points and if they're really obvious to you, then feel free to skip down to the next subject. But if not... then at least think about it.

• You need to have backups. When I said to my friend, "just reload your Quickbooks from your backup..." I had a feeling... Now some of us don't have the resolve to stick to a routine, or the resources to do this perfectly, but at least try!

The 3-2-1 rule says have 3 copies of your data on at least 2 different media and at least 1 copy off-site. That means for example, hard disk, flash drive, DVD, cloud. Go buy a couple more external hard drives (they're cheap!) and keep one in your safe deposit box at the bank. Regularly make an extra backup of your data and rotate that drive to the box. If your house burns down or is burglarized, your life's work is still safe.

For the record, I have some of my stuff on a hard drive at my mom's apartment in Thornhill, but it's been a while since I rotated a new copy there. My really critical files (not my pictures: my financials, etc) are backed up to the Cloud via Dropbox every couple of days.

by the way, I just saw a new Lexar SDXC card that holds an incredible 512Gb. A TeraByte is only one step away. Incredible. 

• Keep your virus protection up to date. And check for MalWare as well: the virus programs miss stuff.

I run Microsoft Security Essentials every night at 3am. I also run Malwarebytes (look it up) whenever I think of it. If my computer starts doing silly things, it's my go-to reaction and sometimes, it finds stuff. 

•  Stop clicking on links in emails. Sure it's easy: "click here to upload the latest update..." but stop and think. Instead, go to the developer's website and search for the update there. It takes an extra effort but it can save you a lot of grief.

The one I've been reluctantly clicking on is the "click here to unsubscribe" link. Every time I do, I wonder if I'm being smart, but I'm so tired of the spam. Do as I say, not as I do!

This subject also came up in an online discussion. Remember, you don't need to have a plan in case your hard drive fails, you need to have a plan for WHEN your hard drive fails, because it's going to.

OK, off my soapbox. If I only saved one life, it was worth it!

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I think I figured out why my painting sucks.

I attended some sessions with a talented painter (Harvey Walker) who creates a painting in an hour or two. I just realized that it doesn't work that way for everyone. Mind you, he's got years of experience. I can't just say, "OK, now I'm going to paint those rocks" and an hour later, I'm done.

Here's a link to an essay by Robert Bateman on Painting. He doesn't just slap paint on canvas. It's worth a read if you're an artist (and even if you're not!). I'll wait right here.

I've been trying to "express myself" by just going for it: painting a tree with huge impasto strokes in a few minutes. I finally get that it might not work that way for everyone, especially when I don't know what I'm doing. I'm going to keep trying. Watch this space.

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Topaz is about to Rock your World (again!)

It's been quiet down in the land of Topaz Labs. That's because they've been working on something special. Their latest program is Topaz Texture Effects. Here's a quote from them:

"Texture Effects allows users to create a variety of textured, toned, and lighting effects in a fraction of the time it takes in other editing software. The program includes a library of over 150 expertly crafted effects, an extensive collection of texture assets (275+ high-resolution assets!), and instant access to effects other Topaz users have shared with the new Topaz Community. That means no more scouring the web for a look that inspires you. With Texture Effects, inspiration is only a click away!"

example image from Topaz Labs.  

another example image 

...and one more.  

Full disclosure: I haven't worked with it seriously yet, they've just released it and as I write this, the full version isn't even out (by the time you read this, it will be!). As a Topaz Affiliate, they've given me a pre-release version to test. And as an affiliate, I receive some compensation if you purchase it through the links on this blog.

Topaz has put together a bunch of really good effects and ideas. If you've played with Russell Brown's "Paper Textures" inside Photoshop, this goes further. Ditto, Nik (Google) Analog Efex Pro: you can add a world of effects to give your images an antique character and change the mood completely. Oh, and it runs both as plug-ins to the Photoshop suite or standalone.

 But they've also incorporated some of their better tools; their masking brushes work a lot like ReMask. Some of the sliders feel like Impression, but different effects, of course. They've also made it easy to save your own custom effects so you can give a consistent feel to multiple pictures AND they've set up an online cloud community where you can share your effects with the world. Here's a video clip that says it much better than I can.

 All very exciting but caution, this is a high end piece of software, you won't be running it on a lower end computer. System Requirements: Mac OSX 10.8+; Windows 7/8/10 x 64bit + OpenGL 3.2.  And it's HUGE. The download is 1.4Gb! Be prepared. As usual, you can download and try it before buying, to make sure it works on your system. It's a pretty big download, by the way. I think this is going to be one of my go-to plugins when I'm feeling creative and I have a vision how I want an image to feel. 

Here's the link to the Texture Effects page. It's on sale for $49.95 ($20 off) between now and November 20th. Use this coupon code – TEXTUREFX –  at checkout.

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UPDATE: I just installed the full version. First impression? It's SICK. It's blown my mind. I figured that a huge program like that was going to be slow on my lousy system but it FLIES. Everything works in real time. Topaz: my hat's off to you!

There's a quick pass at my latest aurora picture at the bottom of this blog.

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Dry Spell

I'm in a bit of a dry spell. There are two times of year I don't find inspiring: spring, right after the snow is out and before life returns to the forest, and now, when everything is dead and not yet covered with a blanket of snow. The world has two colours: brown, and grey. To get out of this rut, I need to unleash some other genres. So, people; events; and out comes the light tent to do some macros and still life shots.

I like to cook. 

As a bachelor, one kind of has to! And I like to do it the easy way, especially so that I don't have a big cleanup afterwards. My ideal meal is made in one pot, and uses one plate to eat it! The down side is that it's hard to cook for one, so often either these are two-day meals or I eat too much. Back on my diet as of this morning, I have to shed some of this extra weight. Most people don't agree with how I diet, so I'm not going to elaborate on it.

I also haven't seriously approached photographing these creations, but I will a bit more as winter makes it less hospitable to shoot outside (you have downloaded my "Winter Wonderland" eBook on taking better pictures in winter, right? If not, click that "Newsletter" link at top right and I'll send it to you, free). Where was I.

Oh yes, cooking. In addition to my BBQ, which I use year-round, I've settled on some pretty rugged cooking hardware. I use a lot of cast iron, skillets and pots, but my favourite is my cast aluminium wok. One pot, one meal and it cleans up by rinsing it out (it's never seen soap and nothing sticks!)

Chicken stirfry. Kind of my go-to meal, not fattening and as I said, easy cleanup. My own recipe, I'm not going to make MasterChef Canada with it, but it's easy. 

This one's pretty easy too. Take some chicken, some rice, some broccoli, cream of chicken or mushroom soup, some chicken broth and some shredded cheddar cheese. After pre-cooking the chicken, mix everything together except the cheese and put your trusty cast-iron skillet in the oven for a while. Then add the cheese and eventually turn on the broiler to brown the top. 10 minute prep, 40 minutes to cook, 5 minutes to clean up!

Where'd I get the recipe? Shhh. Google is your friend! By the way, I won't be making this for a while, not until after the diet!

As I said, I'll try to photograph better (these are iPhone shots, no special lighting). The challenge is how to shoot a skillet that's 350°F in the light tent without burning the house down!

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I shot this "zombie" picture last weekend using my little ringlight as fill-in flash because my SB-600 flash is dead. It's not very powerful, just adds a touch of highlight and a little catchlight in the eyes. (I did some work in LR to isolate her from the background. The flash wasn't strong enough). I'm amazed at how much texture and detail it adds, though. Theoretically it shouldn't, it should provide flat lighting because it comes directly from the camera. Mystery. Here's proof: 

This is the same shot, zoomed in to 100%. Check out those textures! The catchlight should be much larger, you need to be shooting from closer up, maybe with a wider lens. This was shot with my 105mm prime, 1/250 sec at f/7.1, ISO 400. 

As I said, my flash died: the Nikon SB-600 won't power up. It's happened before, but now it's really toast, I think it's the switches on the back. I ordered a Yongnuo YN-568ex from B&H for only $100 (the Nikons are 4 or 5 times that price!) so let's see how it works out. I'll  post some pix after I get it in a couple of weeks.

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I did take the ATV out the other day, but didn't find much inspiration on the trail in the woods. However there was an interesting pastel sunset going on. I forgot my tripod, so this is handheld:

Here's a "selfie" from the same spot:

It's the first week of deer hunting season. I wear my orange vest when out on my ATV this time of year. Without a tripod, I rested my camera on my bag and set the timer to do this shot. In hindsight, that beach has some interesting textures and shadows, but I didn't see it until I got home.

My favourite shot from that afternoon. It's actually the same boat I shot a couple of years ago, covered with a dusting of snow (from a different angle and in fact, facing the other way!), that won a bunch of awards and was published several times. What I like about this one is the subtle colour palette, the strong diagonal and the sunlit board that draws the eye and adds to the story. 

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Parting Shot

As usual, I like to save the best for last. Last night, I headed out to shoot the Aurora Borealis: the aurora prediction was extremely high a couple of days ago and still high last night; and we had some clear weather. So out I went! I chose the same spot I've been going to recently, I just like the visibility, North and South, and the shape of the hills. The only thing missing is a foreground subject.

When I first got there, I couldn't see any aurora. Not unusual: the camera sees it a lot better than my eyes. So rather than waste the trip, I turned around and set up a time lapse sequence on the Milky Way. Not the best time of year for it, the galactic centre isn't above the horizon, but still...

A "little" post-processing! I liked it until I applied the Watercolour filter in Impression. Now I love it! 

No visible aurora, but there was something else going on: the Taurids meteor showers. It's a bit different from the other ones, because the meteors are bigger and fatter than most, so the trails are brighter and light up the sky! Of course when I pointed the camera North, I saw one to the East. So I pointed it East. Oh, there's another one, to the West! I didn't really get a still photo (one...wait for it!) but I did count several meteorite events on a time lapse, taken over about 45 minutes.

You know how the Seinfeld show is about "nothing"? So this video is also about nothing. Look carefully, you'll see half a dozen airplanes and seven meteorites. Here's the link.

Also while I was out there filming, I was treated to a 10-minute serenade from a pack of howling wolves. And something big jumped in the water right beside me! It was a fabulous evening.

Here's what the eye saw:

and here's what it looked like after a bit of Lightroom editing:

Since I enjoy creating impressionist images, here's what I came up with:

Impression/Liquid Pencil, then I added some Paper Textures in Photoshop (can't wait to try this again with the new Topaz Texture Effects)!  Then I though, "Hmmm. Foreground object". That's what Photoshop is for! And look! There's a meteorite trail to the left. Click the picture to view it fullscreen.

First quick pass using Topaz Texture Effects. Mind blowing. 

— 30 —

A quiet week, photographically.

The past couple of weeks have been busy, mostly spending time with friends, the usual Toronto trek and without a camera in my hands! But you know me, I never stop shooting pictures. The camera club, planning events, thinking about what's going on next month...(If you're an HHCC member, think "Algonquin Park", fall colours, October 5th), But before I get started,

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Last week I expressed my concern over a proposed generating plant proposal from Orillia Power which would have dramatically affected the beautiful white water rapids in the Minden Wildwater Preserve.

I'm delighted to announce that the Minden Town Council has unanimously voted AGAINST the proposal and it is now effectively dead. Congratulations to the council for their insight and foresight.

I'd like to think that the letter I wrote played some small part in that decision but I guess I'll never know. 

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But the Town of Minden Hills gets one of these too. At the end of June or beginning of July, the town prepped Red Umbrella Road for repaving (they'll say "top coating", not repaving). And they said they'd finish it by the end of July. It's now September.

Why am I complaining? Every time a car drives by, a huge dust storm rises of the graveled road especially when the wind is from the lake as usual. So much that the front yard of my house, the table and chairs in the gazebo are coated with dirt. You can't sit outside. All summer I've only eaten al fresco twice, when the wind was from the east.

Every now and then a water truck comes and sprays the road. That keeps the dust down for, oh I don't know, 30 minutes? Today was 30°C and I had to keep my house closed up tight to prevent the dust from coming in.

First the delay was because of the PanAm Games. Yeah, they've known about that for, like, two years. Then it was because of the weather. I spoke with the road superintendant mid-August. He PROMISED it would be done within a couple of weeks and apologized for the delay. I emailed him today and got this response:

The road will be sealed up soon, the contractor is saying within the next two weeks. Please try to understand that surface treatment contractors work across Ontario and cover tens of thousands of kilometers per season. When they are rained out in one area it has a domino effect on everybody else. 

On Sunday, the Inn is having a RibFest, with live music and everything. I hope for their sake the wind isn't coming from the East that day. You dust ribs with spices and BBQ sauce, not road dirt. Stay tuned.

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Back to painting again

It's so much harder than taking pictures! And I really can't draw or sketch, as I confirmed when Janie and I tried sketching the same scene (from the picture above). I painted it, though – twice! The better one is when I just went for it, with loaded brushes and heavy strokes.

Can you tell from the picture that I put gobs of paint on it? I think I captured the feeling of the rushing water, but I know I got the perspective wrong. Mixing paint colours is a challenge for me too. 

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Reminder: Topaz ReMask 5 is on sale until September 18th, $20 off. If you don't have it and you've ever tried to select something out of an image, you need it! Read last week's blog for more details or go to the Topaz site.

Here's the link to the ReMask product page. You can try it out for free... but complete your purchase before the 18th to take advantage of the sale price. At checkout, enter the code. "GetReMask5". 

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Lambs and Ivy

 Cheryl was up from Oshawa way and we spent the afternoon shooting some pictures. We also tried for a sunset, but the skies didn't cooperate, not too exciting.

Inside the barn at Lambs and Ivy, low light!

I took that picture at Lambs and Ivy, an antiques barn where they have no problem with us taking pictures. It was pretty dark in there and I didn't feel like bringing in a flash or reflector. The D800 does a great job at high ISO. Also, I limited myself again to the 105mm lens. It's so flexible except that you have to zoom with your feet!

Focus on the eyes, they say! 

Loved this old typewriter. Again it was hard to get back far enough to fit it in. And the big problem here was that the backgrounds were always cluttered and busy. We could have spent hours in there, though! 

Lambs and Ivy have some fabulous gardens. Here are some examples:

Processed with Topaz Glow and Impression. 

Sunflower macro. I did one even closer but I liked the symmetry and pattern in this one. 

My favourite, I think. Topaz Impression, "Turner Afternoon" preset. 

Carden Plain

On the way back from Toronto a few days ago, I decided to see what was going on at Carden Plain.

Nothing.

I don't think I saw more than two birds, and none close enough to shoot. I walked down the Sedge Wren Marsh trail, again nothing. I did take the 105 macro with me, so I got a few shots.

Forgive me. I know people are tired of the "Twirl" but this brilliant red leaf (it's coming!!!) lent itself perfectly to this treatment. Here's the original picture:

This flowering plant is called bugloss, or blue weed. This is actually two images focus stacked together. 

After leaving Carden Plain (well, technically I was still there, on Victoria Road), I saw this gentle sunset and managed to capture it:

The unprocessed shot looked pretty good but since I can't leave well enough alone, I of course opened it in Topaz Impression to make it a bit more surreal. 

All in all, not an exciting week, photographically, but I think I made the best of it.

— 30 —

I shot a LOT of pictures over the past couple of weeks!

...I don't just mean I ran my shutter count 'way up, I shot a bunch of different venues:

• I was at Carden Plain twice, first with Dr. Ron and Mark and Dan Busby and Bill Bunn, and then on my own on my way into Toronto the following weekend.
• Ron and Mark had a "concept shoot" in mind. Wendy Evenden from the Haliburton Highlands Camera Club volunteered as a model. I admit I was exhausted and couldn't concentrate on this one by the time we got out there to shoot.
• The HHCC had an outing to Wintergreen for brekkie then on to some interesting venues. I haven't even LOOKED at those pictures yet!
• I drove around during the week looking for those elusive turtles that are supposed to be on the roads. 
• I was at the Canadian Raptor Conservancy in Vittoria, Ontario (north shore of Lake Erie, near Port Dover). I've looked through some of these pictures but I'm not done yet.
• On the way home, I set up a shot at a wind farm south of Hamilton.

Phew! I'm going to break this into more than one blog post so I can do justice to some of the images. But before we start...

A different Medium

OK, look at the trees on the left in the header picture. Then look at this:

Painted with my own hot little hands with a brush and oil paint on canvas.   

Big thanks go out to Harvey Walker who is a great artist and an able teacher! Anyone who could teach me to paint has to be good. Obviously I didn't achieve the nuances of shape and shadow that he does but every artist does things his or her own way, right? I still need to do the sky (without messing up the trees!) and I might add a rock in the lower right foreground for balance. the bush on the right was added out of my imagination. See, you can do that when you paint! Artist's license...

Birds, birds, birds!

You know those photographers you see running around out there wearing camo and toting howitzer-sized lenses and heavy duty gimbal mount heads on sturdy tripods? There's a method in their madness. It's hard to get those shots without all that gear. When I went to Carden Plain with Ron & Mark et al, Mark loaned me a Tamron 150-500mm lens and I have to say, I'm sure the lens was better than I was but I didn't get much usable stuff. You need practice with these long lenses.

You also have to know how to spot the birds you're hearing. I didn't do too well! Nevertheless, here are a few shots from that day, all at 500mm.

Male red-winged blackbird making himself heard 

Here's another one (not at Carden, on Highway 48 near Bolsover) catching his lunch. I normally wouldn't post a blurred image but what a great story! He took off from a power line in pursuit of this bug.

Same bird, after his snack, making his presence known to the ladies. 

We were at the Osprey nest on Highway 48. Weird things going on there: THREE birds, not two. Odd... 

I got some tree swallow shots but not much else that day. Dan's pictures blew me away, I'm not posting mine! When I came back the next week, there were a few more birds around: I noted a total of 12 species. Here are some pictures:

Tree swallow. Nowhere near Dan's but this is unedited, straight out of the camera. 

Wilson's Snipe. It's a pretty tight crop, I only had my 70-200mm plus 1.7x converter and I shoot full-frame. 

Barn Swallows. I shot from inside the blind on Wylie Road (all the shots were on Wylie Road). They weren't quite so close together, I used content-aware-scale to bring them in. The guy with the twigs hung onto them for the longest time. In hindsight, I wonder if the nest was in the blind and he couldn't come in because I was there. 

This Spotted Towhee was down near the end of the road. According to the book, the Eastern Towhee is uncommon (saw some of those too, but no usable photos) and the Spotted one is even rarer. Again, a pretty tight crop, he was far away. 

Carden Plain, or the Carden Alvar is not just about birds. This is Wylie Road about 5 or 6 km in. A charcoal sketch done with Topaz Impression. 

On my way out, I spotted this Kildeer. He was closer but flew off when I brought up the camera, so this distant shot was the best I could manage. Apparently there were Bobolinks in the same field but I couldn't spot them. 

Ron's Concept Shoot

As I said, I was really tired and couldn't buy into the concept shoot Ron (and Mark) were trying to achieve. A musician in the woods. Anyway, I did a couple of shots while we were there:

Wendy, Mark and Ron. 

Perhaps as Leonardo da Vinci might have envisioned it 

Stay tuned until next week! And just as a teaser,

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