Loggerhead Shrikes

I spent a very overcast morning today shooting Loggerhead Shrikes. Tomorrow we're heading out on an airboat to photograph Snail Kites - I can't wait!

All with EOS 1D2n; 500/4 IS (some with 1.4x convertor); 580EXII (fill flash).






That's me in central Florida pinewood forest yesterday, shooting Pine Warblers:

Florida birds...

I'm sitting in a hotel parking lot hijacking their WIFI connection.... so will keep this short. Shooting is great - having a blast with the 500/4IS lens - this is my first serious bird photography trip with that lens and it's incredible.

Here are a few shots from the past couple days. I have so many more to post... next time I find a good internet connection.
Happy holidays!
Ethan-

Wood Stork (at Loxahatchee NWR):


Turkey Vulture (at TM Goodwin marsh):


Tricolor Heron reflection (at Loxahatchee NWR):


Pine Warbler (at Three Lakes WMU):


Carolina Wren (at Three Lakes WMU):

Key Deer to Green Cay

Today was an incredible day of shooting, starting with more Key Deer and ending at Green Cay with some of the best wetland bird photography I've experienced. I'm tired and have barely started to process the birds - more to come soon!

Key West

I've been having lots of fun here in Key West - a mix of photography, suntanning with my Ipod cranked and eating tons of seafood. I certainly wouldn't consider Key West a great destination for nature photography (underwater excluded). There are a few tame waterbird opportunities and the requisite palm trees on the beach, but otherwise it's over-developed. Not to mention all the crazy hippies, who gravitate towards big lenses and don't stop talking. The culture is interesting down here, to say the least.

Tomorrow we head north and I'm looking forward to some very good bird photo spots.

Here are a few I shot yesterday and today.

1) Palm trees: EOS 1DmIIn; 17-40mm; Singh-Ray Warming Polarizer LB

2-3) Black Skimmers in flight: EOS 1DmIIn; 500f4IS

4-5) Double-crested Cormorant stretching wings: EOS 1DmIIn; 500f4IS with Singh-Ray Warming Polarizer LB (retrofitted to Canon drop in polarizer).

Happy shooting!

Ethan

Key Deer - southern Florida

Hello everyone - it's been a long time since my last post. Sorry! I've been consumed with moving (to the Midland, Ontario area) and getting my life and office back in order.

I escaped the snow today and flew to Florida to join my folks for a holiday trip. We're in Key West for a few days then off to central Florida, a hub for many great bird photo locations.

Driving to Key West this afternoon we stopped to look for Key Deer, a small endangered deer endemic to the southern Florida Keys. Our timing was perfect, the deer were active at sunset feeding along the roadsides. I only had about a half hour of shooting, but was pleased to get these - my first photos of the species.

Techs:
EOS 1DmIIN (loaner from Canon); 500/4IS
Prepared on a brand-new, uncalibrated laptop. Let me know if they look ok.

Keep your eyes out for many more posts over the holidays!
cheers,
Ethan-

River Otters - still there!

I went back again this morning, hopeful that the otters would be there, and indeed they were. The light was a bit better than last night (although still overcast). At one point the curious otters swam almost right up to me. The vertial portait above is full-frame, the others (2 otters in frame) I cropped a bit. 500/4IS; 1.4x; Rebel XTi; ISO 400
Photographing otters is a great way to start a day!

River Otter

I lucked out this evening to stumble across two otters popping up through holes in the ice, close to shore. The light was fading fast and my heart was beating like mad - this was the best otter photo opp I've ever had. I set up the gear in seconds and waited for them to resurface. The otters were backlit and it was getting dark, so I had to shoot at ISO 800 and accept slow shutter speeds. Out of about 100 shots, only a handful were sharp. Lucky for me, this was one of them - with the otter looking right at me. I'll definitely be back checking this spot over the next few days!

Techs:
500/4IS; Rebel XTi (still waiting for my new bodies); ISO 800; 1/15s at f4

Porcupine and Argentina photos

Since getting back from Argentina I've been busy with with work, getting ready to move next weekend and buying new camera gear to replace the stuff that was stolen on the trip. I've barely had a chance to get out shooting, although I lucked into this cooperative porcupine near my place recently.

Below that are some Argentina pics (I'm finally starting to process the raw files from the trip). The first photo is of what Argentina is famous for - beef. There are cows everywhere, and often on the roads, so you have to be ever vigilant when driving.

The second shot is my dad and I at the farmhouse where he lived in central Argentina, until moving to Canada at age 4. The house is now abandoned, but visiting it was a trip highlight and very nostaligic.

The last photo is classic Argentine scenery in the northwest - high-altitude desert on the edge of the Andes. I can't wait to get back there again and spend some quality photography time in those hills.

Hope all is well, and happy shooting!

Bohemian Waxwings - 500mm handheld !

I was out birding today and lucked into a flock of about 250 Bohemian Waxwings. I've been wanting to shoot this northern species for years, but have never had a good chance. The birds were jumpy, so I decided to try to stalk the flock with my gear handheld. With a slow and cautious approach, I was able to get very close. This was the first time I've seriously tried the 500IS handheld, and I was amazed to get sharp photos in the overcast light, especially given the effective focal length of 800mm (factoring in the 1.6x factor of my temporary Rebel XTi body). There's no way I could have done this without an Image Stabilized lens.

Techs: ISO 400; f/4; 1/500s

Finally time for a post!

Sorry - I haven't been very active with this blog since returning from my Argentina trip! I've been working on getting my replacement gear, and preparing to move at the end of the month. I'll be relocating to the east side of Georgian Bay (Midland area), which strategically places me in a more central location for access to tons of great photo spots (Algonquin, Awenda, Killbear, Killarney, Georgian Bay Islands NP.... all will be within reach)!

As always, I've also been keeping up with stock photo requests. This has been a banner year for me, continuing the annual growth trend in my stock photo business. My mantra these days is to 'work smarter, not harder' which I'm achieving by shooting in-demand subjects, and focusing my business efforts on a small, but high-quality group of clients. Why didn't I think of that a few years ago when I would regularly work all night on photo submissions that paid so little!

The best news is that I've been enjoying a bit of down-time lately (this is rare for me)! I read a fantastic book this week that I simply could not put down. "Let My People Go Surfing" by Yvon Choinard (the founder of the outdoor gear company Patagonia) is hands- down one of the finest books I've ever read. I'll be giving copies to lots of my friends this year for the holidays.

Today we had our first big snowfall of the year. I hate to bid farewell to autumn (my favorite season), but I don't have a choice. Here are a couple of fall shots from near my house.

Happy shooting!

Fall colors in my yard

There are some pockets of fall colors still hanging on around my place, especially the staghorn sumacs which are in peak condition. I shot these in my yard this evening to test out my new Singh-Ray Colorcombo filter (a combination of the LB Warming Polarizer and LB Color Intensifier). This is a dream filter for vividly saturated fall colors.

EOS Rebel XTi; 70-200/2.8; mirror-lock up and self-timer; 4s at f/9

Argentina photos

Here's a couple from this morning - shot in the Quebrada de Cafayate..... a striking canyon in the Andes. The scenery in the northwest of Argentina is some of the finest in the world - a dream for landscape photography. I'm amazed this place isn't on the radar of North American travelers. More photos soon!

Shot with EOS Rebel XTi; 18-55mm lens and 70-200/2.8; Singh Ray ND grads.

Bad luck today.

I'm in Argentina right now and had a life "first" today...... robbed at gunpoint. No kidding. We were scared shitless and thought we might be killed. Obviously we're ok, hence the blog posting. But I've just made a significant contribution to the Argentine economy - a good chunk of my camera system. I'll be scrambling for gear to make it through the rest of the trip.

It was a pretty scary robbery - we were driving slowly, just pulling onto an Expressway in Beunos Aries, when two guys with pistols ran out of the ditch and stopped our car. They tried smashing the driver window and made us open up and give our up our stuff. We were actually quite lucky not to lose all of our stuff, and most importantly our lives!

After this, it can only be a great trip! More to follow later.....

Outdoor Photography Canada magazine & Singh Ray blog

Check out the latest issue of Outdoor Photography Canada to see my cover shot/story on fall photography in Algonquin Provincial Park. For all of us patriotic Canucks, it's worth subscribing to support this excellent magazine. Credit to the publisher Roy Ramsay for his hard work to launch and establish the mag! www.outdoorphotographycanada.com



And if you find yourself surfing the net, stop by the Singh-Ray blog to check out my tips for using the Singh-Ray Gold'N'Blue polarizer. http://singhray.blogspot.com/

Hope everyone is having a great autumn - happy shooting!
Ethan-

Landscape photo tour

Just caught up on sleep after hosting my Bruce Peninsula landscape workshop/tour this past weekend. Thanks to Clara, Pat, Mara, Steve, Michael, Wendy, Sylvia, Brian and Craig for good company and great photos! We had some outstanding shooting conditions and everyone left with fantastic photos.

Sylvia Fletcher caught this photo of me getting smashed by a huge wave. I was trying to shoot waves crashing into the shoreline and got a bit overzealous. I turned at the last second, saving the camera from almost certain destruction by sheltering it close to my body - fun!
[the wave almost knocked me off my feet]



Dreamy conditions at Halfway Log Dump.
EOS 1DSm2; 70-200/2.8; Singh-Ray warming polarizer LB and ND grads.




Sunset over sand ripples at Singing Sands.
EOS 1DSm2; 17-40/4; Singh-Ray Gold'n'Blue polarizer and ND grad.



Happy shooting!

More Algonquin photos

My trip to Algonquin Park a couple days ago was unusually productive for such a short amount of time (one night). I shot the loons (previous post) in the evening and these landscapes the next morning.

First 3 landscapes:
EOS 1DSm2; 17-40mm; Singh-Ray Blue n Gold polarizer plus ND grads

Fisherman on misty river:
EOS 1DSm2; 70-200/2.8; Singh-Ray Warming Polarizer

Common Loons (first photos with new lens)

I bought a 500/4 IS lens on Friday to replace my older (non IS) 600mm. Naturally I had to test it out, so I headed to Algonquin Park for a couple days. These are the first photos I shot with it.... taken from my kayak using a small tripod that fits in the cockpit and a Wimberley head.
All I can say is WOW - why did I wait so long to buy this lens?

EOS 1DSm2; 500/4IS; 1.4x TC