Posts in Category: video
11/8/2010: okay wigeons
You can burn a lot of digital storage space trying to digiscope feeding ducks. Even with a good burst mode…especially with a good burst mode. These American Wigeon in Cape May Point State Park in NJ are typical. Never still. Never with their heads out of the water for more than a second at a time. If you pixel peep this shot you will see that eye-light is a line, not a dot…which means that the bird’s head moved while the image was captured.
To complicate matters I was shooting off a wooden platform out over the water, which vibrated whenever anyone moved for about 50 yards either side on the boardwalk. Not ideal. Still, they are wigeons…okay wigeons.
Canon SD4000IS behind the eyepiece of the ZEISS DiaScope 65 FL for the field of view of about a 2500mm lens on a full frame DSLR. Scope limited to f7 @ 1/320th @ ISO 125.
Added Clarity and Vibrance, and Sharpen narrow edges preset in Lightroom.
And, of course, when the birds will not sit still, you can always switch to video.
11/5/2010: woodcock on the lawn
I have only ever seen three Woodcocks in my life. The first was just as it was getting too dark to see, in the light of a flashlight in our backyard in Kennebunk during migration. The dog alerted us to that one, and I had to investigate the strange sound it (something) was making out there.
The second was along side the road near Parson’s Beach, about 2 miles from home, in broad daylight, early in the spring. That bird was, after we passed on to the beach, and before we drove back home, hit by a car (we found the remains 🙁 ). I have video of him doing his dance…though not so hot as it was taken through the windshield of the car.
The third was a week ago today, on a little patch of grass between the car port of a hotel and the house next door, across the road from the beach in downtown Cape May. A few birders found it as they walked by, and since they were visible from the windows of the room at the Grand Hotel where I was working the ZEISS booth, eventually, as more birder’s gathered, Clay Taylor (Swarovski) and I went out with our digiscoping rigs to photograph what turned out to be this exhausted Woodcock. Chris Woods, who works for eBird (Cornell Lab of Ornithology) was one of the birders there and he knows much of what there is to know about Woodcocks (well, about almost any bird). He and Clay were speculating on how far out to sea the Woodcock had been blown before fighting its way back to land, and barely 100 yards in, before crashing on that little patch of grass. It was huddled up against the base of a porch, perhaps trying to keep out of the wind, which was still blowing strongly.
Clay and I eventually worked our way around through empty stalls in the car port to where we could get some shots at a decent angle. The light was not the best, but the opportunity was too good to miss. This shot was from 30 feet away (we did not want to disturb the bird) at something like the equivalent field of view of a 1600mm lens on a full frame DSLR. ISO 200 at 1/80th second and f5.0 (limited by the camera…by which I mean the f-stop of the actual lens/scope combination was f4.4 computed…and since the camera chose a f-stop of f5, the camera’s f5, which is smaller than f4.4, is the determining f-stop for exposure. But perhaps that is more than you wanted to know.). Canon SD4000IS behind the 15-56X Vario on the ZEISS DiaScope 65FL. I happened to have the camera in wide mode (16/9 ratio, like HD video) when I took the image.
Sharpened and adjusted to add clarity and intensity in Lightroom.
Note the detain in the eye!
And, of course, since I was shooting with the SD4000IS, I had to do some real HD video…though motion was not what this Woodcock was about, at least last Friday.
11/3/2010: Goldfinch for Wings on Wednesday
Yellow-rumped Warblers were not the only birds to take advantage of Cape May’s smorgasbord on Friday and Saturday. Goldfinches were wherever there were sunflower or thistle heads left standing. Again, they were so busy stoking the migration machine that they allowed unusually close approach. A digiscopers dream. Catching the feeding action, on the other hand, was difficult, especially that “hanging upside down off the flower head” thing they do. It just does not impress as much in a still image. Once more, late afternoon/early evening sun picked out the details of the plumage and warmed the shots.
So, of course, I slid the little switch over to video and shot the action in HD. See below.
Stills are Canon SD4000IS behind the 15-56x Vario eyepiece of a ZEISS DiaScope 65FL for equivalent fields of veiw of 1) 2500mm and 2) 1200mm. 1) ISO 400 @ 1/1000th @ f6.7 (scope limited), 2) ISO 125 @ 1/400th @ f4 (camera limited).
Blackpoint, Clarity, sharpened, and color adjusted in Lightroom.
Video is a few clips from the SD4000IS edited together.
10/29/2010: bath Hawk
We were looking at a Merlin in the top of the pines across the entrance/exit loop by the parking lot at Cape May Point State park, in front of the Hawk Watch, when one of the gents that was waiting in line for a look through my scope said, “Hay, look at that!”
That was an immature Red-tailed Hawk taking a bath in a fair sized puddle in the center of the loop, about 60 feet in front of us, right in line with the Merlin. So I swung the scope down, and the camera in. One wet hawk! In the image above he seems to be asking pretty plainly “Whach you lookin at?”
The hawk was, shall we say, busy, so I got to play with the zoom on both the camera and the scope and try several different framings, as well as some video.
Canon SD4000IS behind the 15-56x Vario eyepiece on the ZEISS DiaScope 65FL. ISO 125, 1/320th and 1/640th.
Processed in Lightroom using a touch of Fill Light, some Blackpoint right, added Clarity and Vibrance, and Sharpen narrow edges preset. Color adjusted by eye.
As you will see in the video, these shots were taken over a parking lot and a roadway, both in direct sun, and there was already a lot of heat shimmer in the air…which limits the resolution of the images.
10/13/2010: Anhinga doing its wings
For Wings on Wednesday…some real wings. The Anhinga is so much more attractive than its cousin the Cormorant. This lady was in relatively deep shade just at sunset. The mosquitos were coming out, and I was about to leave the rookery pond in the golf course on Jekyll Island, Georgia, after a session with the Wood Storks and Egrets, but I could not resist. The bird was pumping both wings and tail, and moving its head rapidly from side to side, and in the dim light I only managed a couple of shots that caught the bird still enough to show full detail. It was an excellent example of a situation where the HD video capability of today’s compact cameras comes into its own. See the video below. (And it does, by the way, demonstrate the photographic challenge pretty well too!)
Canon SD4000IS behind the eyepiece of the ZEISS DiaScope 65FL for the approximate equivalent field of view of a 1400mm lens on a full frame DSLR. Camera limited aperture of f4 @ 1/50th @ ISO 200. Programmed auto.
A touch of Fill Light and Blackpoint slightly right in Lightroom. Added Clarity and Vibrance and Sharpen narrow edges preset.
And here is the video. One thing about video is that you can shoot in much lower light levels and get good results than with still.
8/4/2010
Swallows Anyone?
I visited Plum Island at Parker River National Wildlife Refuge last Saturday, and though the digiscoping was not great (birds too far away mostly), the Tree Swallow’s were impressive. I am told that the 100,000 or more swallows I saw there were only a tiny fraction of will be on the refuge in a few weeks. I can not imagine. These are fast moving birds. 1/1000 second was not fast enough to freeze all motion.
Canon SD4000IS behind the eyepiece of a ZEISS DiaScope 65FL for an equivalent field of view of about a 1700 mm lens on a full frame DSLR. 1/1000th @ ISO 320. Effective f4.5.
Blackpoint considerably right in Lightroom. Auto Color Balance. Added Clarity and Vibrance. Sharpen narrow edges preset.
From Digiscoped New Diascope 65FL
And of course, of this I had to have video.
8/1/2010
Chipmunk Makes a Meal
Happy Sunday!
I first saw this little guy when I was already too close…for his comfort that is…just the right distance for digiscoping. He sat pretty much frozen in place while I shot way too many exposures. The light was not good. The camera was working at ISO 800. Eventually, though, he relaxed enough to get on with his business despite me. He had apparently been about to dine when I stumbled on him, and he made a meal of whatever small berry or seed he had found. Even at ISO 800 the shutter speed was a bit slow to catch him in motion as he ate. I took a lot of exposures! If you have a moment, watch the video below…it captures the full effect.
It is moments like this that keep me digiscoping. No other camera system would allow such intimacy without the use of a blind and many hours in the field…a lot more planning and preparation than life currently allows me. With my digiscoping rig, though the animal has to be cooperative enough to wait for me to get set up…tripod down, camera swung out so I can focus, camera swung back in and turned on…before I can take my first shot, I am able, quite often, to capture these walk up, unplanned encounters. That is what I like about it.
You do have to open and receptive…no that is not putting it strongly enough. You have to be actively looking for opportunities for intimacy and well practiced in your chosen method of capturing them, so that you don’t miss too many when you do walk up on them.
And there is of course, being Sunday, a spiritual lesson there too. After all, my moments of intimacy are not with the creature alone. Someday I hope to well practiced enough in methods of love to capture every possible moment of intimacy when I walk up on them…as I am sure I do unthinking, a thousand times a day.
How much harder than digiscoping could that be 
?
Canon SD4000IS behind the eyepiece of a ZEISS DiaScope 65FL for the equivalent field of view of a 2600mm lens on a full frame DSLR @ 1/40th sec @ ISO 800. Effective f-stop, f7.
Fill Light in Lightroom and Blackpoint pretty far right. Auto White Balance. Added Clarity and Vibrance. Sharpen narrow edges preset.
And now the video.
7/7/2010
Chipper on a Post
This was one noisy Chipmunk. Just proving the accuracy of its name.
Canon SD1400IS through the eyepiece of a ZEISS DiaScope 85FL for an equivalent focal length of about 1500mm, f4.5 @ 1/125 @ ISO 320. Programmed auto.
In Lightroom, a touch of Fill Light, added Clarity and Vibrance, Blackpoint right, and Sharpen narrow edges preset.
And, I have video too.
6/6/2010
Song Sparrow on a Post
Happy Sunday!
Brought to you through the magic of digiscoping. Nothing like it. I was 30 feet or more from this little guy. This is about as close to a bird-in-the-hand view as you can get. On my laptop monitor he is close to life size right here, and I could view him at several times life-size.
Canon SD1400IS Digital Elph behind the eyepiece of a Zeiss Diascoope 65FL. Equivalent focal length about 3500mm. Exif f5.0 @ 1/320th @ ISO 80. Programmmed auto. Computed f-stop based on the scope/camera combination: f9.6.
In Lightroom, some Recovery for the sky, a touch of Fill Light to compensate for Blackpoint right. Added Clarity and just a bit of Vibrance. Sharpen landscape preset.
I zoomed back to get the full bird in full song. This one is at about 1800mm equivalent. Note that the bird has its nictitating membrane over the eye.
And here is the video, along with a curious passerby.
6/4/2010
Bobolink
For some reason, the Bobolink has been a digiscoping jinx bird for me. Every year I try for new shots at Laudholm Farm, just down the road from us, where they are abundant and very visible during courting season in the spring. I tried two years in a row in North Dakota where they are also abundant. And I have nothing to show for it…or at least, nothing I am willing to show to others. 🙂
So, this year, I gottem! Or at least I got my best shots yet.
Even then, this is still a very hard bird to photograph. White on black is always a hard exposure problem, and the fine-fur like structure of the head feathers is a real challenge to capture effectively. And when they are visible in courtship, they are always moving. After courtship they simply disappear. I have never seen a Bobolink that was not courting or being courted. Maybe I am just not looking hard enough.
Canon SD1400IS behind the eyepiece of a Zeiss Diascope 65FL for an equivalent focal length of about 3500mm. Exif f5.0 @ 1/160th @ ISO 80. Computed f-stop, considering the spotting scope, f9.6.
In Lightroom, some Recovery for the highlights, a touch of Fill Light to open the black plumage, and then a bit of Blackpoint right to intensify the colors. Adde Clarity and just a bit of Vibrance. Sharpen landscape preset.
And, though the light on this video is not what I would like (got to leave some challenge for next year), it does showcase the song!
All but the video are from Digiscope Around Home on my Wide Eyed In Wonder site.