My day job and non-cooperative weather has kept me away from photography lately so it’s time to dig into the archives. Found this Avocet that was coming into his breeding plumage at Bryan Beach, TX last summer.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II lens mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II head
1/500 sec @ F4, ISO 500, evaluative metering
This Avocet was posing nicely for me on a cold winter morning at sunrise. Wish I was there this morning in the same conditions but rain and cloudy weather kept me grounded. Gives me some time to process more photos like this one. Another close-up shot with only minor cropping to a vertical format.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4X III teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II
1/200 sec @ F9, ISO 800, evaluative metering +2/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
The normal flight path of Black Skimmers at Bolivar Flats is parallel with the shore line. Got lucky with this one as he was flying directly at me. My 7D did a good job of tracking the focus. Had to crank the ISO up to 800 to get the shutter speed above 1/100 sec. Taken just before sunrise while lying on a sand bar with my gound pod.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4x III teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II gimbal head
1/160 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +2/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
1/200 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +2/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
1/200 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +2/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
1/200 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +2/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
This Willet was giving me his best head-on pose with some good eye contact. Had to use a little negative exposure compensation after the histogram showed some over exposed “blinkies” on his chest.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4xIII teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II head
1/500 sec @ F9, ISO 400, evaluative metering, -1/3 exposure compensation
Skimmers are always fun to watch as they fly along the water trying to catch fish. The challenge is to be at the right place at the right time when they actually catch a fish. Caught this one as he was going away from me. This photo highlights the narrow depth of field of the 500mm lens with the band of water in focus.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II gimbal head
The Willet won.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II lens with 1.4x III teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II
1/640 sec @ F11, ISO 400, evaluative metering, -1/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
1/640 sec @ F11, ISO 400, evaluative metering, -1/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
One way to get action shots of shorebirds is to shoot a burst of shots when their head starts going towards the water. You can catch some interesting splashing photos. In this case, the Avocet ended up with a water “halo” around his head.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4x III teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II gimbal head
1/500 sec @ F11, ISO 500, evaluative metering, – 1/3 exposure compensation
1/400 sec @ F11, ISO 500, evaluative metering, – 1/3 exposure compensation
My first trip in 2014 led me back to my favorite location, Bolivar Flats. Along the gulf coast, Bolivar is a premier location for shorebird photography, especially if you like to get down and dirty with a ground pod. The tide was going out at sunrise with several exposed sandbars.
My favorite targets, American Avocets, were all bunched up near the jetty behind a group of white pelicans. Didn’t want to spook the pelicans while trying to get to the Avocets so decided to divert to a favorite spot closer to the shoreline around the bend. This area is usually very muddy and it didn’t disappoint. Laid down to see what would come my way when a flock of Snowy Egrets flew in to feed further away from me. Didn’t want to scare them away with standing up and contemplated the best way to get to them. The terrain looked almost like a moonscape with holes in the muck like craters filled with water and higher flat areas like plateaus. Decided that crawling wasn’t a great idea so ended up walking on my knees using my flash bracket as a cane for balance. Went about 30 yards and laid down again to shoot and rest. The muck was smoothed out at this point and then belly crawled the rest of the way. The muck was so slick I was almost gliding. Got fairly close to the flock and a single Snowy off to the left feeding. Was getting some decent shots when the flock suddenly flew away. Looked to my right and another photographer had walked up along the shoreline and spooked the birds. Goes with the territory sometimes. Stayed put and some of the birds came back to finish off the session.
When I got up, I couldn’t see the camo pattern on my waders as the mud/muck was caked on so thick. Good times.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4x III teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II gimbal head
1/640 sec @ F11, ISO 400, evaluative metering, -1/3 exposure compensation
1/800 sec @ F11, ISO 400, evaluative metering, -2/3 exposure compensation
1/1250 sec @ F11, ISO 400, evaluative metering, -2/3 exposure compensation
Here are a couple more silhouette shots from Bolivar Flats. This time, Long Billed Curlew’s. Just can’t resist silhouette shots before the sun comes up. A guilty pleasure of mine.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II lens with 1.4x III teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II gimbal head.
1/125 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, + 2/3 exposure compensation
1/125 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, + 2/3 exposure compensation
My last outing in 2013 was filled with silhouettes of Black Skimmers on the Gulf of Mexico at Bolivar Flats. Calm winds and calm water had the skimmers out in force. Took these before the sun came up in aperture priority with ISO cranked up to 800 to get some decent shutter speeds.
It was a great ending to 2013. It has been a very challenging and rewarding year for me. Photography highlights included a great trip to California to photograph sea otters, leading workshops at Galveston’s FeatherFest, teaching private lessons, getting some future opportunities and spending quality time in nature along the gulf coast. Thanks to everyone who stopped by to check out my blog. Hope that everyone has a fun/safe new year and a great 2014.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4x III teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II head
1/800 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +2/3 exposure compensation
1/640 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +2/3 exposure compensation
1/640 sec @ F5.6, ISO 800, evaluative metering, +2/3 exposure compensation
Tim Timmis Photography 