Nature clicks #61 - Focus tests with elk

Nikon D300s, Sigma 50-500, f/4.5-6.3 APO DG HSM

Another place in the Great Smoky Mountains where elks are often present is the vicinity of the Oconaluftee Visitor Center on the south side of the mountains. It is a wide open space in the valley and a herd of elks can be seen there quite often. Despite a dark overcast and the low light in the late afternoon most pictures of this grazing elk turned out with a decent sharpness. One of the best experiences with the new Nikon D300s is the way its focus works. It is much better than it was with my beloved D200.  This elk bull was really close and I didn't have to use the full 500mm focus length of the SIGMA 50-500. The elk didn't move too fast and this gave me a great opportunity to play and check out the focus system.

Nikon D300s, Sigma 50-500, f/4.5-6.3 APO DG HSM

Another reason that sharpness turned out better than in similar situations before might be the fact that I'm using a taller tripod now. The Calumet 8156, a 4-section carbon fiber tripod, allows me to stand upright between its legs while shooting. I feel much more relaxed and the upright position while shooting makes it easier to apply correct long lens shooting technique.

Beside enjoying the close presence of this majestic elk I also got a kick out of the excitement from other visitors that had their first elk encounter in life. I believe it is important that many people, especially young folks, experience wildlife encounters. This will ensure that more people become aware what we loose if we don't protect the habitat of these animals and also understand that economical things cannot play the only role in our lives.

Nature clicks #60 - Best sound in nature

Nikon D300s, Sigma 50-500, f/4-6.3 APO DG

The next opportunity for more wildlife photography came during a trip to Cataloochee on the east side of the Smokies. In 2001 the National Park Service began to reintroduce elks in the National Park. One of the places were they can be viewed is Cataloochee Valley. Most of the elks wear radio collars around their neck and have ear tags. This makes a lot of sense for the biologists who control the reintroduction program but not every photographer may like it. It didn't bother me a bit.

The rut was already slowing down but we still could hear some male elks bugling. For me there is no better sound in nature than this! This twelve-pointer was chasing the ladies in his harem and made clear to the competition who owns the place.

Nikon D300s, Sigma 50-500, f/4-6.3 APO DG

I could have shot most of the pictures with ISO 200 but I really wanted to test how the D300s performs with higher ISO settings. I used mostly ISO 560 or 800, something that never turned out well with my old D200. Yes, noise is there but it is still manageable. However, noise reduction takes out detail and I know that I will stay away from the higher ISO settings as much as possible.

Nature clicks #59 - First wildlife shot with the D300s

Nikon D300s, Nikkor 24-120, f/4

One question I was hoping to get answered during our time in the Great Smoky Mountains was, how would the new Nikon D300s perform for wildlife photography?

The first animal I had the pleasure to put my lens on was a five foot long Black Snake laying across the trail. I was on my way back from a tiresome hike and to be honest, I didn't really put too much effort in this shot. Now, three weeks later, seeing this picture on my screen it bothers me that I didn't try to get a shot with the snakes tongue out of its mouth. I guess my mind was already back in the campsite!

More to come about wildlife in the Smokies, so please stay tuned…

Nature clicks # 58 - After 83 days

Nikon D200, Sigma 50-500 mm f/4.0-6.3

A brief update on the Trumpeter Swans. I stopped at the Mill Creek Ponds on my way to the Green Island Wetlands (see my post from yesterday). The young swan has grown quite a bit in its 83 days of life. All three seemed to be healthy. It is so nice to see that the parents successfully raise their young one this year. If you click on the "Trumpeter Swan" tag below, you can see my older posts about this swan couple and their cygnet.

The sky was covered with gray clouds. That made the light relatively soft but the colors look a little washed out. I couldn't get any closer than this. The Sigma 50-500 was fully extended. The image is not cropped.

Back-light situations

A long stretch of work lies behind me (11 days) and all what I wanted to do this weekend is go out into nature and create some images. I went to one of my favorite places in the area, the Green Island Wetlands along the Mississippi. I have never been disappointed there.

The duck hunting season is in full swing, which means parts of the wetlands are not really usable for bird photography at the moment. Other parts are not open for hunting and that's where I kept my eyes open in particular. You can't really miss the Great Egrets. They haven't migrated to the south yet and were stalking in the shallow water and hunting for fish.

Nikon D200, Sigma 50-500 mm f/4.0-6.3

I faced two different back-light situations. In the first image the sun light was reflected from the surface of the water and created a kind of moiré pattern. The reflections are not really good if you try to focus on a white bird but I like the gesture of the egret ruffling its feathers. I tried to keep the balance between overexposure of the water and making the bird to dark. Flash wasn't an option because of the distance.

Nikon D200, Sigma 50-500 mm f/4.0-6.3

In the second image I still had a back-light situation and had to make sure that the feathers of the egret didn't get blown out completely. The refections are more subtle and I like how the reeds and another egret outside of the frame are reflected on the dark surface of the water. As I already said, I have never been disappointed at this place...

Habitat recovery and kudos for a dog

After a long day behind my desk I went for a walk to a little wetland area north of Dubuque along the Mississippi. I haven't been there this year because of the brutal impact that some construction work had last year in this area. It made me just sad and mad to see how a wildlife habitat can be legally treated so bad. Today I just wanted to find out what the situation is there. The good news is that some of the vegetation had recovered and at least some of the wildlife had returned. I saw quite a few birds, frogs, toads, and two young snapping turtles.

Nikon D200, Nikkor 24-120 mm f/4G ED VR

I had packed light and carried just the camera with the 24-120 mounted. Not ideal for this picture of the tiny Snapping Turtle. I wished I had the Sigma 150/f2.8 and a flashlight with me. The background of this picture really sucks but I will not move an animal in order to get a better image. It is what it is in my wildlife photography. I shot a picture of a young snapping turtle almost at the same place several years ago. That was even worse and that's why the new one will replace the first shot in my Iowa Wildlife Gallery. It's ok for now, I will be back sometime.

Nikon D200, Nikkor 24-120 mm f/4G ED VR

On the way back to the car I saw that the low sun created some wonderful light on these sunflowers. I couldn't resist to make the click.

Nikon D200, Nikkor 24-120 mm f/4G ED VR

No, I will not become a "pet shooter"! But I want to give some kudos to Cooper, our little dog that made himself home on our porch last year, and who lives with us since. He was patiently sitting and waiting while I was taking pictures today. He likes the sun and the wonderful warm light was as good for him as it was for the flowers… Good boy Cooper!

Nature clicks # 57 - Heron in low light

Nikon D200, Sigma 50-500 mm f/4.0-6.3, 500 mm (750 mm FX), 1/50s, f/8, ISO 100

As I mentioned yesterday we did some bird watching last weekend in Governor Dodge State Park. The park has two lakes and we saw several species around the lakes and in the forest. One that made for good exercise of long lens technique was this Great Blue Heron. It was slowly moving in the shallow water, which was almost completely covered with Duckweed. The low light that we had on Saturday required long shutter speeds. Actually way too long for my abilities to keep the lens steady even on the tripod. I wrote here many times that I don't increase the ISO beyond 200 because of the limited noise reduction capabilities of my Nikon D200. I do some noise reduction in post but too much of it lets you loose detail. And this is something I don't like in my wildlife pictures.

I shot lots of pictures of this heron. Sometimes it stood up and didn't move at all. This is a good chance for a sharp shot but I wanted a picture showing the bird in hunting position, with its head down and the neck not cut by the waterline in the background. Even if this particular image was made with single-area autofocus on, it seemed that I had a better keeper rate with manual focus.

If you like to see this image in larger size please feel free to click HERE.

Nature clicks # 56 - Cicada, but what species?

Nikon D200, Nikkor 24-120 mm f/4G ED VR, SB 600

A week ago, while sitting on the balcony at night with family, we discovered this cicada resting on a post. I like cicadas and immediately rushed into the house to get my speedlight and camera. This is only the third time that I saw one. There wasn't much time for preparation because the cicada moved upwards and I was afraid it would take off before I had made a single click. The D200 was set to commander mode and the SB600 (placed left from the camera) was triggered by the built in flash of the camera. This quick setup with the flash off camera allowed me to minimize reflections, especially on the wings of the cicada. I just corrected flash distance and angle slightly a couple times before I had this shot.

I don't think it is a periodical cicada. None of the two broods that occur in 17 year emerges in our area is due for an appearance this year. The Northern Illinois Brood emerged in 2007 and will hopefully be seen again in 2024. We don't have to wait so long for the Iowan Brood. They are expected in 2014 the next time (source: Wikipedia). I still don't know what particular species this cicada is, but please drop me a note if you have an idea. I would really appreciate it.

Nature clicks # 55 - Just another hummingbird

Nikon D200, Sigma 50-500 mm f/4.0-6.3, SB 600

I can't resist to post another image from last weekend's shooting session in the front yard. I don't like it as much as the one from yesterday because of the background. It is busier and draws a little the attention away from the bird. I thought it was interesting how the Ruby-throated Hummingbird hangs on to the bloom and drinks the nectar through a gap from the side of the blossom.

Nature clicks # 54 - Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Nikon D200, Sigma 50-500 mm f/4.0-6.3, SB 600

One of the goals I had set for myself this summer was to create an image of a hummingbird feeding from a flower and not from a hummingbird feeder. To make it even more of a challenge I wanted a picture that I didn't have to crop. This is easier said than done. These tiny little birds buzz around very fast and don't hang on at a flower for very long. I used a stand for the speed light, a Nikon SB 600, and placed it slightly above a group of hosta blooms in the yard. I knew the hummingbirds like them. The question was only how frequently they would come near the camera and feed. I spent several hours patiently waiting. I had of course several misses but I finally got a few shots that I'm happy with. This is one of them, and yes, it is as I saw it in the viewfinder. No crop this time :-)