on the road... Riding Mountain National Park, Manitoba

Greetings from Siesta Internet Cafe in Wasagaming, Manitoba.

I'm on a photo trip through the Canadian Prairies and Rockies right now, currently shooting in Riding Mountain National Park (Manitoba) before heading to the grasslands of southern Saskatchewan.

Riding Mountain has some pretty good wildlife photo opportunities - for moose, beaver, elk and especially bison. The bison herd is in a massive enclosed prairie area that you can drive through - it's a pretty easy shoot if you can put up with the long dusty road to get there.

Riding Mountain is known for its diversity with three ecozones present in the park. Although the scenery is subtle, one of my favorite photos from here so far was taken a couple nights ago when driving back to camp. With the crescent moon low in the sky, I was able to frame it with the silhouettes of dead trees against the sunset afterglow.



Technicals:
EOS 1Ds m2
Bison: with EF 600/4 lens
Trees/Moon: with 70-200/2.8 lens and Singh-Ray Gold & Blue Polarizer

More to come when internet is available!
cheers,

In Awe of Panoramic Photos

A few months back I presented at a conference in New York. One of the other presentors was a photographer named Joe Lefevre, who blew the crowd away with his panoramic photos. Not only were his photos outstanding, but he also shared his technique (which anyone with basic gear can do) for stitching panos together from series of 35mm or digital images. His presentation was clear, easy to follow and best of all - Joe's passion for nature photography shone through. This guy isn't afraid to hike to the top of a mountain in the dark to be there at first light.

For some panoramic inspiration, be sure to check out Joe's website:
www.joelefevrephoto.com/Home.html

Well now I can't stop thinking about panos. I'm constantly looking for opportunities to shoot series of images that I can be stitch together on my computer. Expect to see many panos from me in the future!

Happy shooting!
Ethan-

Presentation this weekend

Geez, have I ever been pathetic at posting here on the blog. Life has been busy lately. Expect to see more once fall arrives... I'll be finished some big projects and will have more free time on my hands.

If you're in Toronto this weekend, be sure to check out the Toronto Camera Conference (google it for info).... I'll be presenting on both Saturday and Sunday mornings.

All the best!
Ethan-

A great book!

I just finished reading a fantastic book called 'The Future of Life' by E.O Wilson. Wilson is a world-renowned ecologist, and his book highlights global biodiversity, the challenges that face it and real solutions for preserving it. In an age of 'doom-and-gloom' stories about the environment, this book left me refreshed and inspired.

If you're looking for something to do after the sun is down and your camera gear is stashed away for the day, give this book a consideration. It will inspire you to spend more time photographing
nature!

cheers,
Ethan-

wildflowers, birds and Singh-Ray filters

I must be a fool starting a blog right at the beginning of spring - the time of year when there's barely time to sleep, let alone sit at my computer and blog - when instead I can be out chasing warblers and wildflowers.

Spring photography is going well. I've been to Point Pelee National Park and Rondeau Provincial Park a couple times shooting migrant songbirds, with very good success (watch for some photos later). And with the unseasonably warm weather in late April - early May, many wildflowers are out a couple weeks early and in profusion. My yard is full of white & red trilliums, plus an assortment of other species - so that's keeping me busy. You can never have enough trillium photos!

I'm a big fan of Singh-Ray filters, which I've been using for years. The folks at Singh-Ray recently asked me to test some filtering techniques and give them my feedback, so you'll be the first to hear about the results here on the blog, or on my website. Three days after receiving the filters, I bagged a magazine cover shot with their large-sized ND grad. That's definitely my fastest turnaround time for a cover!

Hope you're having a great spring so far!
cheers,
Ethan-

Sponsor Ethan's birdathon (conservation fundraiser)!

Hello friends,

You all know that I am crazy about birds. Every now and then I put this obsession to a good cause... specifically an annual fundraiser called the Baillie Birdathon that supports Bird Studies Canada, with a portion going to the Bruce Peninsula Bird Observatory. Both groups are doing great things for bird conservation. Check out their websites, listed at the bottom of this email.

In late May, I'll spend about 20 straight hours (from 2am to 10pm) on one day, racing between habitats on the Bruce Peninsula to identify (by seeing or hearing) as many different species of birds as possible. This is known as a 'Birdathon' although I prefer to call it 'Bird-Racing', because that sounds much more hip.

I've been doing this for many years with my bird-nut friends, Mark Wiercinski and John Haselmayer. In 2004 we set the Bruce Peninsula Big Day record of 174 species. This year we have our sights set (actually our binoculars) on 180 species.

To sweeten the competitive aspect of the event, I've challenged Mark and John to see who can raise the most sponsorship money. With your help, I know they haven't got a chance!

I'm asking you to please sponsor my birdathon. You can pledge a lump sum, or a per-species amount. All you have to do is email me at info@ethanmeleg.com (telling me how much $$) and I won't harrass you for money until after the birdathon is complete in late May (will send you an email). Best thing, Bird Studies Canada will send you a charitable tax receipt for all pledges over $20.

As an added bonus: I'll put the names of all who sponsor me into a hat, and draw 3 prizes of an autographed 11x17" photo (of your choice) by... well, you can probably guess.

Thank you from me..... and the birds!

Bird Studies Canada

Bruce Peninsula Bird Observatory

Digital Slide Show Software

I do a ton of slide presentations for nature and camera clubs. Over the past couple years, I've been working on digitizing all my shows by scanning the slides, and of course adding new images that I've shot digitally.

For a long time, I was using PowerPoint software for my digital shows, but I recently shifted to some excellent slide show software called Pictures to Exe. It's dead simple to use, has smooth transitions, syncs very easily to music and best of all - it's cheap. And for some reason (it may be that my digital technique is just improving) , the photos look much better to me with this program.

Once you've laid your show out, you hit one button and it creates a stand-alone Exe. program for your entire show. To play the show, you simply launch the Exe file - and voila.... your show runs smoothly and reliably.

I love the simplicity of this software and the high-calibre results I'm getting from it.

Many photographers are using another program called ProShow Gold. This software has more bells and whistles than Pictures to Exe, and it costs about twice as much. It's a good alternative if you want to do more complex shows with a greater array of special effects.

Have fun sharing your photos!

Welcome to my new Nature Photogrpahy blog

Welcome Nature & Outdoor Photographers!
Here's my blog to share facts, opinions and miscellaneous ramblings about nature photography, photo techniques, camera gear and whatever else comes to mind.... all in an informal way.
Happy shooting!
cheers,
Ethan Meleg