JWilsonphoto wrote:
Jeremy Holt in his "Pegasus", his other ride is a B52 with the 307th out of Barksdale.............
What an epic shot, Jim!!
I received the dual gimbal head and my second Sony A1II which I will use to shoot video on the dual setup. But the USPS is a big mess this time of the year, the L bracket for the second camera still hasn't been delivered, so I couldn't try the dual setups. Anyways, here are some selected shots of a food fight sequence two days ago.
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens591mmf/7.11/2500s500 ISO-1.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens597mmf/8.01/2500s500 ISO-1.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens597mmf/8.01/2500s500 ISO-1.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens597mmf/8.01/2500s500 ISO-1.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens600mmf/8.01/2500s500 ISO-1.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens611mmf/8.01/2500s500 ISO-1.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens619mmf/8.01/2500s500 ISO-1.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens626mmf/8.01/2500s640 ISO-1.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens667mmf/8.01/2500s640 ISO-1.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens681mmf/8.01/2500s500 ISO-1.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens685mmf/8.01/2500s200 ISO-1.7 EV
I received the dual gimbal head and my second Sony A1II which I will use to shoot video on the dual setup. But the USPS is a big mess this time of the year, the L bracket for the second camera still hasn't been delivered, so I couldn't try the dual setups. Anyways, here are some selected shots of a food fight sequence two days ago.
Fantastic Douglas!
You and Ted(Ellis) sure make shooting eagles look eazy!
Today was a great day. James and I got an early start and we were rewarded with beautiful light and a deeply touching time together. When I caught up with him after I captured this composition, he just looked at me and said, "Papa, when I was surrounded by all those birds I felt something that I can't really explain, I don't know the words.........." We talk a lot about light and composition, the beauty of Creation, but I think that this was the first time it moved him to his core, he's still processing the experience.
I received the dual gimbal head and my second Sony A1II which I will use to shoot video on the dual setup. But the USPS is a big mess this time of the year, the L bracket for the second camera still hasn't been delivered, so I couldn't try the dual setups. Anyways, here are some selected shots of a food fight sequence two days ago.
beautiful sequence and lighting, Douglas. I'm always very pleased when I capture one of these with the fish floating somewhere between the birds. You got them nice and tight together. Well done!
JWilsonphoto wrote:
Today was a great day. James and I got an early start and we were rewarded with beautiful light and a deeply touching time together. When I caught up with him after I captured this composition, he just looked at me and said, "Papa, when I was surrounded by all those birds I felt something that I can't really explain, I don't know the words.........." We talk a lot about light and composition, the beauty of Creation, but I think that this was the first time it moved him to his core, he's still processing the experience.
A very fun photo Jim! Better let JIII know to let the geese fly in front of him or his head will become a "drop zone" for some unpleasant "droppings". I know from past experiences and I am bald!!!! .
Great composition.
Dan
Danpbphoto wrote:
Fantastic Douglas!
You and Ted(Ellis) sure make shooting eagles look eazy!
How were the temps at the dam?
Dan
Thank you Dan! It was cold by the water. My toes were numb because I forgot to bring the toe warmers.
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gerov wrote:
beautiful sequence and lighting, Douglas. I'm always very pleased when I capture one of these with the fish floating somewhere between the birds. You got them nice and tight together. Well done!
Thank you Gero!
here a sequence from the same day.
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens681mmf/8.01/3200s320 ISO-1.3 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens715mmf/8.01/3200s250 ISO-1.3 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/3200s250 ISO-1.3 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/3200s250 ISO-1.3 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/3200s500 ISO-1.3 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/3200s500 ISO-1.3 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/3200s500 ISO-1.3 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/3200s500 ISO-1.3 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/3200s500 ISO-1.3 EV
JWilsonphoto wrote:
Today was a great day. James and I got an early start and we were rewarded with beautiful light and a deeply touching time together. When I caught up with him after I captured this composition, he just looked at me and said, "Papa, when I was surrounded by all those birds I felt something that I can't really explain, I don't know the words.........." We talk a lot about light and composition, the beauty of Creation, but I think that this was the first time it moved him to his core, he's still processing the experience.
Beautiful story Jim! Middle Creek Wildlife Management Ares, about 2 hours drive from where I live, usually has about 80,000-200,000 snow geese in late Feb and early March. When they blast off it's like a tornado. I didn't go this year because they closed the viewing area due to bird flu.
I went to Conowingo again yesterday. It was a fun day. Around 10:45, about 20 eagles were circling, snatching up small fish mainly about north of the island, and eating them in mid flight, rinse and repeat. This lasted for about 30 minutes. After taking some shots, I decided to just enjoy the moment with my naked eyes instead of looking through the camera. It's like watching the Battle of Midway, the swarm of eagles were like dive bombers, even some great blue herons joined the fray. It was truly a chaotic scene., too bad most of these actions were kind of far away. It's been a really slow season at the dam, except for a few days.
Just received the L bracket for my second A1II, now I can place two cameras on the dual gimbal head to shoot video and still photo at the same time. But the eagle season is ending, not sure if I can make out there to try the new setup.
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2500s2000 ISO-0.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2500s1600 ISO-1.0 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2500s2000 ISO-0.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2500s1250 ISO-0.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2500s1250 ISO-1.0 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2500s2000 ISO-1.0 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2000s1250 ISO-1.0 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2000s1600 ISO-1.0 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2000s2000 ISO-1.0 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2000s1600 ISO-1.0 EV
another beautiful sequence, Douglas. I have had some luck in January the past few years, and with the increasing cold weather we seem to be getting, we may have some luck at the beginning of the year. Your recent sequences of images are yet another reminder of how impressive that Sony glass is in the right hands.
On a different note, I was walking my dog this afternoon and kept noticing something military circling over Baltimore - the Army-Navy football game was at Ravens Stadium this afternoon - apparently because POTUS was attending the game. When I crossed the major street just before getting back to my house, I heard some thing louder and looked up to see 4 Blue Angels flying over that street at a fairly low altitude. No camera, couldn't get my phone out fast enough, but that was OK as the lighting was about as crappy as it could be. Cool to see in any case.
Our weather is a bit dismal today and the mercury is headed way south tonight. I decided that I'd play with the Blad and get more familiar with the settings. These aren't earth shaking obviously, but I can tell that it's going to make a wonderful landscape camera. Portaiture is another niche where it will be outstanding.
I went into this knowing full well that the Hasselblad is a specialty tool. There have already been a couple of cases where I thought that I'd try it, but the R5II ended up being a better choice, partly due to lensing options. I have no doubt that the X2DII will shine and earn its keep in spades, it's just a matter of knowing it's capabilities so well that I can identify exactly where it fits, and where it doesn't.
JWilsonphoto wrote:
How tight are those crops Douglas?
Thank you Jim! For this set, the eagles were doing their thing mostly in mid river, I am terrible at guessing distance. Most of the shots were cropped to about 1/3 - 1/2 of the original frames, which is considered pretty good for recent years. If they fish on the other side of the river, I need to crop away 90-95% of the frame to show anything meaningful..
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gerov wrote:
another beautiful sequence, Douglas. I have had some luck in January the past few years, and with the increasing cold weather we seem to be getting, we may have some luck at the beginning of the year. Your recent sequences of images are yet another reminder of how impressive that Sony glass is in the right hands.
On a different note, I was walking my dog this afternoon and kept noticing something military circling over Baltimore - the Army-Navy football game was at Ravens Stadium this afternoon - apparently because POTUS was attending the game. When I crossed the major street just before getting back to my house, I heard some thing louder and looked up to see 4 Blue Angels flying over that street at a fairly low altitude. No camera, couldn't get my phone out fast enough, but that was OK as the lighting was about as crappy as it could be. Cool to see in any case....Show more →
Thank you Gero! I have seen quite a few folks using the Canon 200-800 at Conowingo, If the light is good, F9 (or F8 for the Sony 400-800) isn't a problem, given today's noise reduction apps. The more obvious effect is the bokeh, if the eagles are kind of close to the background, the bokeh does look kind of messy, as shown in some of my shots. I haven't shot the 600 F4 for a while. Those big primes sure make buttery smooth backgrounds.
A few more from Friday. I enjoy photographing immature eagles, beautiful coloration. The adult eagles' white head and tail are easily blown by me. I use auto ISO and exposure compensation -1 to -2, still manage to blow the whites sometimes.
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2500s1250 ISO-0.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens735mmf/8.01/2000s1250 ISO-1.0 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2000s400 ISO-1.0 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2000s1600 ISO-1.0 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2500s1600 ISO-0.7 EV
ILCE-1M2FE 400-800mm F6.3-8 G OSS lens800mmf/8.01/2500s1600 ISO-0.7 EV
Douglas L wrote:
Thank you Dan! It was cold by the water. My toes were numb because I forgot to bring the toe warmers.
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Douglas that combo you "shoot" with is stellar! The bokeh on the lens is fantastic! Creamy smooth!
Glad you had a great time!
Stick some "warmers" in your car for the winter.
If my feet or hands get cold, regardless of how warm the rest of my body is, I will get chilled very easy!
Stay warm!
Get much snow?
We got 2 inches and it was beautiful this morning but the wind has picked up and the temps have dropped to the low 20's at 1115am.
Dan
Danpbphoto wrote:
Thank Dan! I just bought a pair of Merrell warm boots. I hope with toe warmers, they will keep my toes from falling off.
I was thinking of going to Arlington Cemetery tomorrow morning to shoot the snow on the newly laid Christmas wreaths. But DC got less than 1" of snow and it is going to be COLD tomorrow morning. I will wait for some other time. We got about 2" in our area.
Douglas L wrote:
We got about 2-3 but it is bitter cold! I love the cold but I will wait to later in the week to get out for some photography. My longhorns were out this morning and the snow would have made a great photo BUT I forgot my camera when going into town.
Thanks!
Dan
I know from past experiences and I am bald!!!! 
.
