Spring Wildlife: Black Bear, American Woodcock, Varying Hare

It's an early, warm spring and I've been enjoying the head start on my peak photography season. Leaves are almost out, wildflowers are 2-3 weeks ahead of time and many birds are already on nesting territories. It's an exciting and busy time of year!

Tonight I was following up on a tip about a red fox den, when I saw this black bear on the roadside. In 10 years of living on the Bruce Peninsula, I've only twice before captured reasonably close shots of these typically shy bears... I was excited!

Photo 1: Black Bear, Dyers Bay, Bruce Peninsula
Canon EOS 1Ds mark III, 500mm f/4 lens & 1.4x teleconvertor.
Photographed from car window with lens resting on mirror.

My friend found this well-camouflaged American Woodcock sitting on a nest. Although it's a fairly common bird, stumbling across a nest is like finding a needle in a haystack. I've made a few brief visits to capture photos, without distubing the bird. 

Photo 2: American Woodcock, near Tobermory, Bruce Peninsula

Canon EOS 5D mark II; 70-200mm f/4 lens  

My bird feeders have been packed with all kinds of action - from the expected species of birds, to a pair of Mallards (strange to see ducks on your lawn) and two Varying Hares (aka Snowshoe Hares).

Photo 3: Varying Hare, Tobermory, Bruce Peninsula, Ontario

EOS 1Ds mark III; 500mm f/4 lens & 1.4x teleconvertor.

Photographed while lying on the ground using a "Skimmer" ground pod and Wimberley Head. 

My face on a Singh-Ray filter (with Canon G11)

I carry a point & shoot camera with me pretty much everywhere I go and find it especially useful for capturing behind-the-scenes shots when I'm out photographing. My latest p&s is a Canon G11, which has surprisingly good file quality for a compact camera. I've only had it for a few weeks and already love it.

The other morning I was out photographing the shoreline in Bruce Peninsula National Park to test out a new Singh-Ray Z-pro sized sprocket LB polarizer (it's fantastic!). While getting a few images of the filter setup,  I noticed the reflection of my face on the ND grad. I quickly passed the camera to my friend who caught this creative portrait of me!

Local landscapes and playing with the Canon 800mm f/5.6

I've been shooting a grab bag of images over the last week. First, I received a new Singh-Ray filter... an LB warming polarizer sprocket type to fit a Z-pro holder. This filter is very welcome in my camera bag. It allows me to shoot wide angle photos using a Z-pro filter holder which is large enough to avoid vignetting, yet still fits my Singh-Ray 4x6" ND grads (rather than hand-holding them). The first photo below is a teaser with this combo; expect to see a full report soon.

Photo 1 (below): Sunrise at Halfway Log Dump in Bruce Peninsula National Park
Canon EOS 5D mark II; 24mm TSE II lens; Singh-Ray LB warming polarizer & 2-stop "Daryl Benson" Reverse ND grad; I love how sharp the new 24 tilt-shift is.... razor sharp, corner to corner.

My friends have just opened a lens rental business called Lens Rentals Canada. They have an incredible selection of pro lenses (mostly Canon, but a few Nikon too) ranging from super-telephotos and medium-telephotos, to tilt-shifts and wide-angle. They ship them all across the country. I'm lucky to close by (the business is based out of FotoArt camera store in Owen Sound, Ontario - the place I buy most of my camera gear). I couldn't resist picking up the new Canon 800mm f/5.6 supertelephoto for a few days. Holy cow, it is the mother of all lenses... a dreamy piece of glass!!!

Photo 2 (below): That's me shooting with the Canon 800mm f/5.6 lens. I set up the photo, sucked in my gut and my friend Craig Blair (of http://www.canonrumors.com/ notoriety) clicked the shutter.

Canon EOS 5D mark II; EF 70-200mm f/4 lens

Photo 3 (below): Sandhill Crane, Dyers Bay, Bruce Peninsula

Canon EOS 1Ds mark III; EF 800mm f/5.6 lens & 1.4x teleconverter

I shot this from my car window with the lens supported on a "Blubb" beanbag.

Photo 4 (below): Lesser Scaup at sewage pond, Bruce Peninsula.

Canon EOS 1Ds mark III; EF 500mm f/4 lens & 1.4x teleconverter

I was hanging at the local sewage pond (no kidding, isn't nature photography glamorous?) and was frustrated that these scaup were on the opposite side of the pond. Just for fun I decided to try calling them in with my iPod (playing their call) and they instantly flew over to me. I photographed them full frame out of my car window, with my lens resting on the Blubb beanbag. 

Need help - your favourite photography websites?

I'm about to have my website redesigned... big bucks, professional designer and all. My goal is simple... to have one of the best, most kick ass photography sites on the net!  

I've been searching out other sites for inspiration. What are your favourite websites? And why? Please share them here. Productive tips will lead to gratuitous praise and good karma!

Thanks!
Ethan

Used Carbon Fiber Tripods for Sale

My friend in Ottawa (Ontario, Canada) has two used tripods for sale... both have been well cared for. Contact him directly if you are interested. His name is Bhupendra and his email is  bvsingh@lightoncanvas.com

If you don't own a carbon fiber tripod, you don't know what you're missing! This is a chance to upgrade at a really good deal, so contact him quickly before someone beats you to it. Here's the info he sent me about them: 

Tripod 1: Gitzo 1548
Known for its stiffness and weight carrying capacity. This is a big tripod, rock solid, even in a strong wind, ideal for your Supertelephoto. This is the one I left my Wimberley II on full time. Comes with wrench to dis-assemble it. All legs were always covered with padding for ease of carrying, and therefore are in good condition. Price $300 cdn. Buyer pays for shipping.

Tripod 2: Benro c-458n6
Nearly new tripod, very rarely used. This tripod had a small compass, which fell off and there is a minor scratch on the top metal part, happened when two tripods were put together in the trunk. Bought it for travel. Price $350 cdn.  Also have additional small central column for using it with long lenses, asking $50 for it. Buyer pays shipping. Comes with carrying case, rubber & spike legs and  tools.

Sunrise through Icicles

After my previous icicle shoot (see last blog post), I went back a couple days later to photograph the last of them before they had melted. I hiked out in the dark to be on location and setup for the sunrise-through-icicles photos I had in my mind. In the first photo (below) the sun was barely up, so I used a splash of fill-flash to light up the icicles. A few minutes later when the sun was higher, there was plenty of warm light shining through the icicles to reveal  the detail of their texture.

Both photos were taken with an EOS 5D mark II, EF 24-70/2.8 lens; Singh-Ray L ColorCombo polarizer.

I can't get enough icicles!

Photo 1 (above): EOS 5D mark II, EF 14mm/2.8 L lens (from http://www.lensrentalscanada.com/)

What do you get when you add a soaked hiking shoe in freezing temps, a wipe out that almost costs you a brand new 24mm tilt-shift lens and a couple of hours laying beneath a ridge of ice that weighs about a ton and could collapse on you at any time? A great morning photo shoot!! 

While hiking yesterday with friends, I found a few lingering ridges of ice that had the best concentration of icicles I've ever seen. The light was dull and the time was ticking - they would melt within a couple of days. I scouted out potential photos and plotted the return trip.

I invited my friend Craig along (he's the mastermind behind the popular website http://www.canonrumors.com/) and we hit the trail in predawn darkness this morning. Mostly overcast conditions crushed the dream  photo I had pre-visualized, but even in dull light the icicles were great. Soon the clouds parted to reveal some blue sky. Nothing beats the contrast of sparkling icicles against a blue sky!

Photo 2 (below): Canon EOS 5D mark II; EF 17-40 L lens, Singh-Ray LB ColorCombo polarizer

Photo 3 (below): EOS 5D mark II, EF 14mm/2.8 L lens (from http://www.lensrentalscanada.com/)

Photo 4 (below): Canon EOS 5D mark II; EF 17-40 L lens, Singh-Ray LB ColorCombo polarizer

 

Photo 5 (below): That's me. The wide-angle distortion stretched out my torso, making me look skinner than I really am. Excellent! Canon EOS 5D mark II; EF 17-40 L lens, Singh-Ray LB ColorCombo polarizer; Canon 580EX II for fill flash

Photographing waterfalls & moving water

It's an in-between season right now where I live in central Ontario..... the snow has melted but the lush green vegetation is still a month or so away.  It can be difficult to find inspiring  scenes to shoot so I look for great light or  smaller details to focus on. When my friend and I went out to photograph the other day, I knew this small waterfall would be perfect in the overcast conditions.

These are some of my first photos with the Canon 70-200 f/4 IS L lens that I recently picked up. I finally traded in the f/2.8 version to save considerable weight and space in my camera pack. Since I'm almost always shooting on a tripod, the faster f/2.8 lens isn't really necessary. And the f/4 lens is reputedly sharper. Sounds good to me!

It's a breeze to shoot blurred water scenes like this. Compose your scene, use a tripod and slow the shutter speed down to 1/15s or slower. Really simple, eh! There are many ways to achieve a slow shutter speed: use a small aperture (which I like for the depth-of-field anyway), set your ISO speed lower, shoot in low light or use an ND filter (I have the Singh-Ray Vari- N-Duo). Of course, a tripod is needed to keep everything steady during the slow exposure. And be sure to check the histogram to make sure the white water is not blown out.

For this series of photos, all I had to do was use low ISO, dial in a small aperture... and voila, perfect shutter speeds for blurred water. I shot these with a Canon EOS 5D mark II, EF 70-200 f/4 L lens at ISO 100; Exposure was 1/4s at f/32.

Happy spring!
Ethan-

Inspiration... In memory of my sister Karla

Of all the things that have inspired me in life... to pursue photography, to travel, to never leave anything unsaid, to eat oreos instead of salad..... it was the loss of my sister Karla when I was 20 years old that had the greatest impact. She was three years older than I and would have turned 40 this past Saturday. There's nothing like losing someone close to you to give you a kick in the ass to live life fully!

My cousin Tonya writes a family blog and just told the story about Karla in the post linked below. It's a very personal read, but it gives you a sense of who she was and the impact she had on others.
http://paulinescookbook.wordpress.com/2010/03/22/no-justice-to-karla-on-her-40th-birthday/

Coincidentally, I'd received my first SLR camera (a hand-me-down) about the same time that Karla was killed. I became hooked on photography and in hindsight realize that it provided the positive outlet to get through those tough times. Even today, many years later, the memory of Karla still inspires me everytime I take a photo.

Last of the Icicles on the Georgian Bay shoreline

Unseasonably warm weather put a quick end to the great icicles along the Georgian Bay shoreline that I'd been photographing last week. I made it out for only one more shoot before they had melted away... see photos below (taken with an EOS 5D mark II, EF 70-200/2.8 L IS lens and Singh-Ray LB polarizer). Thanks to my friend Don Wilkes for clicking the shutter on the second one while I smiled! 

Today I finally traded in my trusty 70-200/2.8 IS lens for the lighter and reputedly sharper f/4 version of the lens. I'm looking forward to the significant weight savings (my camera pack is heavy!). I'll be hitting the trails over the next while to test it out. 

Icicles on cliffs near Tobermory, Ontario

Georgian Bay sunset through icicles, near Tobermory, Ontario.
EOS 1Ds mark III; 17-40mm lens; Singh-Ray LB ColorCombo polarizer; ISO 200; 0.4s @ f/22. Mirror lock-up & cable release.

It was a warm & sunny day, so after being stuck inside cleaning the house and working on photo submissions, I was dying to get out for a shoot. There's a scenic, rocky cove about 10 minutes from my place with great access to the shoreline. I trekked out along the waters edge and found incredible icicles hanging from a small, rocky overhang. There was just enough room to scramble under the overhang to get behind the icicles and shoot out towards the bay. The rocks were completely coated in wet ice, making it extremely slick and treacherous (I'd forgotten my ice cleats). I had to brace both myself and the tripod against the rocky crevice to stop from sliding all over the place. It was well-worth it to get this unusual perspective!

Warm days and cold nights are ideal conditions for making icicles... so you can bet I'll be going out there often over the next couple of weeks! Here's a shot of me in behind the icicles - a self-portrat taken with my point & shoot camera.

Darwin Wiggett article on filters for landscape photography

Top landscape photographer, and fellow Canadian Darwin Wiggett, has just contributed a great article about filters for landscape/outdoor photography to the Singh-Ray blog.  Darwin's use of polarizers and ND grads is the same technique I use for virtually every landscape photo I shoot. This article is a must-read if you're an outdoor photographer...  check it out here: 
http://singhray.blogspot.com/2010/03/essential-filters-for-controlling.html

WIN A SPOT - Best of the Bruce Landscape Photography Workshop

I'm leading the "Best of the Bruce" landscape photography workshop this fall on the Bruce Peninsula, based out of the incredible E'Terra luxury ecolodge and featuring gourmet meals. Details about the workshop are coming soon, but in a nutshell the 3-day workshop will be Sept 17-20, 2010 (this fall) and the price will be approx $2500. This is the ultimate landscape photo workshop with custom charted boat excursions to photograph sunrise and sunset at amazing landscapes only reachable by boat!  

Here's the best part.... you can enter to win a spot on the workshop plus a fantastic prize package (total value is $6164 CD). The contest is open to members of the Canadian Geographic Photo Club. If you're not a member, it's easy and free to join. Click here for contest details: Best of the Bruce - Contest.

And while you're on the CG Photo Club site, be sure to check out the interview with me in their Close-ups section.  

If you're at the Outdoor Adventure Show in Toronto this weekend (Feb 26-28) drop by one of my "Best of the Bruce" presentations (see previous blog post for details) to get a taste of the photo opps we'll have on the workshop. You can also get details about the workshop in the "E'Terra" booth.

Upcoming Presentations including Toronto Outdoor Adventure Show

I'll be presenting a number of photo shows over the next few months at various locations in Ontario. A full listing, regularly updated, is posted on my website here:   http://www.ethanmeleg.com/inpublic.htm

Or here's a sample of what is upcoming. If you make it out to one of the show, be sure to say hello!

February 27 (Saturday) - Toronto Outdoor Adventure Show
"Photographing the Best of the Bruce Peninsula"
sponsored by Canadian Geographic & Ontario Tourism
3:45pm in The Great Ontario Outdoor Adventure Theatre
http://www.outdooradventureshow.ca/toronto/

February 28 (Sunday) - Toronto Outdoor Adventure Show
"Photographing the Best of the Bruce Peninsula"
sponsored by Canadian Geographic & Ontario Tourism
12:00pm in The Great Ontario Outdoor Adventure Theatre
http://www.outdooradventureshow.ca/toronto/

March 2 (Tuesday) - Barrie, Ontario
"Freedom 35 - A Photographer's Adventure"
Barrie Users Group
7:30pm at Eastview High School
For details, visit: http://www.barrieusersgroup.org


March 4 (Thursday) - Midland, Ontario
"Freedom 35 - A Photographer's Adventure"
Midland District Camera Club
7:00pm at Len Self Blvd., Midland Ontario (North Simcoe Sports and Recreation Centre)
For details, visit: http://www.midlandcameraclub.com/

May 5 (Wednesday) - Cornwall, Ontario
TBD but likely "The Passion of Nature Photography"
St. Lawrence River Institute of Environmental Sciences
17th Annual International Conference
7:00pm at Aultsville Theatre
Details to be posted here:
http://www.riverinstitute.com/events/Conference%202010/index2010.html


June 1 (Tuesday) - Southampton, Ontario
"The Best of the Bruce Peninsula"
Chantry Institute Lecture Series
7:00pm at Bruce County Museum & Cultural Centre
details to be posted.

June 8 (Tuesday) - Hamilton, Ontario
Bell *Arte Camera - Customer Appreciation Day
details TBD

Win 7 Days on Georgian Bay - The Great Ontario Outdoor Adventure of a Lifetime

Click here to enter a contest to win a 7 day trip on Georgian Bay for you and three guests! The prize value is about $20,000 and includes cameras, binoculars, return airfare from anywhere in Canada or the Continental US... and more (see the link for details)!

I shot some of the photography for the campaign and will be guiding parts of the adventure on the Bruce Peninsula. The trip would be great for photographers..... visiting some of the most scenic spots in eastern Canada.

More Panama photos: Tanager, Bat Falcon, Soberania National Park sunrise

I'm still alive and back safely in Ontario after a fantastic trip to Panama! Sorry for the gap in posts, I was en route to home and then buried with photo business upon arrival.

I have so many photos from Panama to share.... here are a few more. Will post more as I catch up on processing of the raw files. Check back soon!

Photo 1: Bat Falcon, Soberania National Park, Gamboa, Panama
Canon EOS 1Ds mark III; 500mm f/4 lens & 2x teleconvertor
A pair of Bat Falcons were roosting in the town of Gamboa and obliged for this photo at sunrise, shortly before taking off to hunt.

Photo 2: Lemon-rumped Tanager at Canopy Lodge, Panama
EOS 1Ds mark III; 500mm f/4 lens & 1.4x teleconvertor
The fruit feeders at Canopy Lodge are one of the best places I've ever photographed birds... it was a constant stream of tanagers and other colorful birds!

















Photo 3: Sunrise over Soberania National Park from the Canopy Tower, Gamboa, Panama
EOS 5D mark II; 70-200mm f/2.8 lens; Singh-Ray LB ColorCombo polarizer & 2 stop hard edge ND grad

Panama - part 3 (Pacas, Aracaris, Euphonias, Motmots... life is good!)

Having a great time down here... with some outstanding photo opps! First three photos are from the Soberania National Park area in Gamboa. The mammal is a Paca - a rarely photographed jungle animal. It was coming into the grounds of the research station where I was staying at night to feed. I laid down on the ground to get this eye level portrait and had someone shine a flashlight on it so there was enough light to focus.

Fruit Loops is my favorite cereal, so I was determined to get photos of toucan-family birds on this trip. This Chestnut-collared Aracari (below) was an unexpected bonus - it landed on the perch above the fruit feeder!

There's a National Geogrpahic assignment photographer shooting nocturnal mammals in the forest canopy - so he's rigged a tall scaffolding setup with a platform on top. I climbed up there in early morning to photograph canopy birds, but couldn't resist the beautiful sunrise over the forest.

I'm now staying at the beautiful Canopy Lodge (http://www.canopylodge.com/) in El Valle de Anton, and having incredible success with birds coming into the banana feeders. This is one of the best feeder spots I've ever seen and I'm definitely going to bring a bird photography workshop here in the future. Here are a couple from my first afternoon at the lodge yesterday. I'm tweaking the setup this morning and today's results will be even better!

There are abot a dozen male Thick-billed Euphonias (below) coming to the feeder! 

A Rufous Motmot (below) hangs around the lodge and periodically comes into the feeders. It was so close I couldn't fit the whole bird into the frame, so I opted for a head portrait.

All of these photos have been taken with an EOS 1Ds III; 500/4 IS lens [the Paca was shot with a 70-200/2.8 lens], usually with a 1.4x or 2x teleconvertor. A 580EX II flash has been used for fill light on all of the birds.

Gotta run..... many more birds to photograph!

Panama birds - part 2

Here are a couple of photos I shot today..... common birds that are coming into fruit feeders at the lodge where I'm staying. I put the stick over the feeder and the birds started using it almost immediately. 

Both photos were taken with an EOS 1Ds III; 500/4 IS & 2X teleconvertor; 580EX fill flash

Need sleep.... I'm baked from the heat!

Top photo: Red-legged Honeycreeper
Bottom photo: Blue-gray Tanager

Panama jungle birds!

Here's a quick post from the small town of Gamboa in the Soberania National Park area of central Panama. I've been having a great time photographing tropical birds including a mix of common and difficult to shoot species. My body is still adjusting to the persecuting heat and humidity - especially on the long daily walks in the jungle carring 40lbs of camera gear. The "Balboa" beers at lunch are well-earned and an aspirin after dinner helps to dull the pain in my back and shoulders!

I'm being hosted/guided by Advantage Tours Panama  and my guide Rey is finding lots of cool things to point my lens at. Check back for more photos soon... I have tons to share!

Photo 1 (below): Common Potoo, Metropolitan Park, Panama City
EOS 1Ds mark III; 500mm f/4 IS lens; 580 EX II flash (fill at - 1 2/3); Exposure: ISO 500; 1/80s @ f/7.1
A huge thanks to guide Roberto for leading us to this incredible and well-camouflaged bird! 

Photo 2 (below): Red-rumped Cacique in Metropolitan Park, Panama City

EOS 1Ds mark III; 500mm f/4 IS lens with 1.4x TC; 580EX II fill flash at -1 2/3; Exposure: ISO 640; 1/160s @ f/5.6

Photo 3 (below): Spectacled Owl, Gamboa, Panama
EOS 1Ds mark III; 500mm f/4 IS lens & 1.4x TC; 580EX II fill flash at -1 2/3; Exposure: ISO 640; 1/40s @ f/5.6

Countdown to Panama!

I'm packed and ready to catch a few hours sleep before my early morning flight to Panama. It's stressful traveling as a photographer these days.... so much gear to worry about with new security procedures and baggage regulations. Here's what's going with me:

In the first photo....
The large black dufflebag on the left is my checked luggage which contains clothing, tripod & heads, some camera accessories. The bag is durable, light and fully packed I'm able to just squeeze in under the weight restriction! I use clothes and spare shoes as padding to protect the tripod & other gear.

The black camera pack on the right is my carry-on containing all of my lenses, bodies, binoculars, etc. This is a new pack I just bought this past week - a Gura Gear "Kiboko" bag, which is large enough to fit all of my  basic camera gear (including my 500/4 lens)  yet extremely light so the pack doesn't add much weight. I love this bag! See second and third photos below for closeups of how the camera gear is packed in it.

The third bag (blue daypack) contains my laptop and a few basic travel items(chewing gum, magazine, Blackberry). This  my 'personal item' allowed for carry-on.

I'm off to bed for a short sleep. Check back in a couple of days to see some photos of Panama birds, wildlife and landscapes!