Flags can make some interesting photo op’s at airshows. This year at Wings Over Houston, this B17 Flying Fortress attracted my eye with the Texas and US flags waving in the wind as the sun was coming up. In the first photo, the US flag is directly behind the turret, along with the sun. In the second shot, the US flag is reflecting in the turret.
Taken with Canon 1DX and Canon 100-400mm lens, handheld
1/320 sec @ F14, ISO 100, evaluative metering
1/2000 sec @ F11, ISO 1600, evaluative metering
Spent two full days last weekend taking photos at the Wings Over Houston airshow. It was great weather, which brought out record crowds as they sold out the show on Sunday. Got to hang out with Christine and her father on Saturday, who is a former A4 pilot. The Blue Angels were awesome as always. With bright blue sky’s, blue jets and harsh sunlight, decided to try B&W for something different, which helped to bring out the details in the smoke trails with the higher contrast. Took lots of photos so more to come.
Taken with Canon 1DX and Canon 100-400 lens, handheld
1/1250sec @ F10, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
1/1000 sec @ F8, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
From the my last trip to Bolivar Flats, this White Morph Reddish Egret landed nearby and then suddenly took off. The colors were muted as the sun was behind the clouds so I tried using B&W on this one.
Taken with Canon 1DX and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4X III teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II gimbal head
1/1000 sec @ F7.1, ISO 1600, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
Tried to go to Bolivar Flats again last Sunday after a very successful trip on Sat. Should have known better as it’s difficult to get two good days in a row at one location. That turned out to be the case as it was too windy, which covered up most of the sandbars and kept the birds from being out where I could reach them. Headed back across the ferry and found this Brown Pelican just hanging out. Got some good eye contact as he was probably wondering what I was doing.
Taken with Canon 1DX with Canon 500mm F4 IS II and 1.4x III teleconverter, handheld
1/640 sec @ F5.6, ISO 3200, +1 exposure compensation
Made another trip to Bolivar Flats on Saturday. The wind was supposed to be fairly calm on Sat. and got confirmation of that when heading into the Texas City area and could see the steam coming off the of refineries going straight up. Always a good sign. Was hoping for completely calm, like glass, water but didn’t get that lucky. Arrived at the Flats around 6:30 a.m. and had plenty of time to head down the beach and set up on the ground before the sun came up. Picked a location on a sandbar with water on both sides of me and the sun at my back. Turned out to be a good location with an abundant amount of bird activity, i.e. a target rich environment.
Was getting shots of a Marbled Godwit to my right when I looked around and saw this Reddish Egret to my left. He gave me a nice pose when the sun popped out above the clouds. Nothing like seeing a gorgeous sunrise over the Gulf of Mexico and having birds like this to photograph. I’m very luck to live in this neck of the woods.
Taken with Canon 1DX and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4x III teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II gimbal head
Aperture priority, 1/800 sec @ F9, ISO 1600, evaluative metering, +1/3 exposure compensation
Here is another Oystercatcher shot from the Texas City dike. He was feeding on a carcass of some kind but not sure what it was. Got some nice wave action in the background.
Taken with Canon 1DX and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4x III teleconverter, handheld out the car window
1/640 @ F18, ISO 1600, Evaluative Metering, +1/3 exposure compensation 
Found two Common Nighthawks lying in the gravel at the Texas City Dike. They were hard to spot and were well camouflaged at a distance. This one was snoozing but luckily opened his eyes long enough to get a catch light in his eye from the sun.
Taken with Canon 1DX and Canon 500mm F4 IS II lens with 1.4X III teleconverter, handheld
1/800 sec @ F13, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +2/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
Tried to make a trip to Bolivar Flats yesterday but couldn’t get there as it looked like I might get my car stuck in the sand with all of the rain that the Houston area had last week. Ended up heading to the Texas City dike in search of the elusive American Oystercatcher. Found him in the usual spot and got this shot as he flew off.
Taken with Canon 1DX and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4X teleconverter, handheld out the car window
1/1600 sec @ F16, ISO 1600, evaluative metering
This Common Nighthawk appeared to be smiling at me as he did a fly-by. However, it’s an illusion as what appears to be his nose is really his mouth.
Taken with Canon 1DX and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4X Teleconverter, handheld
1/3200 sec @ F8, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +2/3 exposure compensation
There was a “gaggle” of Tri-Colored Herons on this trip to Brazoria NWR in SE Texas. My definition of a gaggle is >20, which is a record for me. They were everywhere mixed in with Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, Spoonbills, Ibis and a few Wood Storks. It wasn’t very conducive to clean backgrounds but was fun none the less.
Taken with Canon 1DX and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4X III teleconverter, hand-held out the car window
1/640 sec @ F5.6, ISO 1600, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
1/1000 sec @ F8, ISO 1600, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
1/1000 sec @ F8, ISO 1600, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
Tim Timmis Photography 
