Fish Racing
This Reddish Egret was trying to catch a fish but didn’t notice that he had scared another one out of the water right beside him. Let the fish racing begin! Taken at Bolivar Flats while laying down with my ground pod.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II lens and 1.4x III teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II gimbal head
1/640 sec @ F7.1, ISO 500, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation, 700mm
Space Shuttle Endeavor Taking off from Ellington Field
Got a front row seat for the final lift off of Space Shuttle Endeavor from Houston’s Ellington Field. Parked along hwy 3 at the end of the runway along with several hundred of my friends before sunrise and stood on the railroad tracks just outside the fence line. The first plane to launch was a commercial jet that took off to the east, in the opposite direction from where I was standing. Was a little worried that the shuttle would take off in that direction as well until a NASA jet took off towards me. On que, the 747 with Endeavor attached took off at 7:00 a.m., a little before sunrise. It was very cool to see, to say the least, including feeling the heat off of the 747’s engines.
Since it wasn’t fully light out yet, had to crank up the ISO to 1600 to get enough shutter speed. Was hoping that it would make a fly-by but alas it didn’t. It turned south and circled but went well north of Ellington, heading for downtown Houston.
Good bye Endeavor…you should have stayed 😦
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 100-400 lens, handheld.
American Oystercatcher Close-up’s
I thought that this trip was going to be a bust. Headed to Bolivar flats before sunrise and found high tide, no exposed sandbars and waves in the gulf. Also forgot to put my rubber boots back into the car. Listened to my gut and turned the car around and headed to the Texas City Dike to look for my Oystercatcher buddies. It took some searching but I found one of them in the usual spot walking along the edge of the dike looking for, guess what, Oysters. Got lucky as he found one in my line of sight. Was able to get another shot of one walking in my direction, which is always a cool perspective. The morning turned out better than anticipated. It’s always good to have a plan B in mind when heading out to the field.
Had the 1.4x attached and got almost full framed shots. Considered taking the teleconverter off as I was almost too close but didn’t want to take the time and lose more shots.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4x III teleconverter out the car window, setting lens on my bean bag
1/1000 sec @ F7.1, ISO 400, evaluative metering, -1/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
1/1600 sec @ F7.1, ISO 400, evaluative metering, -1/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
1/1250 sec @ F7.1, ISO 400, evaluative metering, -1/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
Peeking out of the Sand
Caught this small shorebird hanging out at Bolivar Flats. He was checking me out as he was looking for food. Looks like he might be a Dowitcher but not sure. Got to Bolivar about 1/2 hr before sunrise and headed out along the shoreline. There were a few sand bars exposed near shore but not many. Got some silhouette shots as the sun came up and then concentrated on some Willets and these small shorebirds. Taken from the prone position while using my ground pod. Started getting a nasty headache after one hour of shooting from that position but it was worth it. Need to get my body used to being in that position again.
I’m finding that the easiest way to carry my gear around is to carry the lens in one hand and the ground pod with Wimberley head/flash bracket in the other. It balances the weight out better than trying to carry the lens attached to the ground pod. I’ve been keeping the flash bracket attached and leaving the flash off to use it as a handle to carry the ground pod around.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II lens mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II gimbal head.
1/800 sec @ F5.6, ISO 250, partial metering
1/1000 sec @ F5.6, ISO 250, partial metering
Long Billed Curlew in Flight
This Long Billed Curlew was flying right at me and my 7D did a good job of keeping focus and tracking the action. My old 40D would not have been able to get the second shot. The positive exposure compensation helped to keep this from being a silhouette. The Willet seemed to like the show.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II lens mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II head
1/1000 sec @ F5.6, ISO 400, spot metering, +2/3 exposure compensation
1/640 sec @ F5.6, ISO 400, spot metering, +2/3 exposure compensation
Pelican Silhouette
This brown Pelican was cruising by as I was taking some low-level Willet shots at Galveston’s east beach. I should have switched from Willet to Pelican silhouette mode as he swam towards the sun reflecting off of the water. I’d normally use evaluative metering for silhouette shots but had the camera set on spot metering instead. It still worked as the spot metering helped to darken the scene even though my exposure compensation was set at +2/3.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II lens on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II head.
1/1000 sec @ F 5.6, ISO 500, spot metering, +2/3 exposure compensation
Reddish Wings
The Reddish Egret saga continues from Bolivar Flats. Here are a couple of photos of a Reddish Egret is full fishing mode. They are very animated with spreading their wings out to scare the fish. These full frame shots were taken while laying down in the sand with my ground pod. Had to crank up the exposure compensation on this one with the bright background of the water causing the camera to reduce the exposure. Always have to play with the exposure compensation while using Aperture priority to get the proper exposure. Becomes second nature after lots of practice.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II, 1.4X III teleconverter mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley II head.
1/800 sec @ F7.1, ISO 500, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
1/800 sec @ F7.1, ISO 500, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
Scissor-Tailed Flycatcher
I’ve never had any luck finding Scissor-Tailed Flycatchers until recently. I’ve spent the last couple of weekends at Brazoria NWR trying to get photos of much larger birds when I found some of these flycatchers in the same spot on each trip. They are fun birds to shoot as they kept taking off and landing trying to catch bugs. Got these two shots out the car window as he was taking off from his perch. The 500mm lens worked well with the 1.4x teleconverter.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II and 1.4X III teleconverter.
1/1600 sec @ F5.6, ISO 400, evaluative metering, + 1/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
1/2000 sec @ F5.6, ISO 400, evaluative metering, + 1/3 exposure compensation, 700mm
American Oystercatcher
Found this Oystercatcher at the Texas City dike a few weeks ago. He was strutting his stuff while walking towards me. Took the shot while handholding my new 500mm lens out the car window on my first weekend outing with it. Made a good first impression…the bird and the lens.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II lens
1/1250 sec @ F5.6, ISO 250, evaluative metering, +1/3 exposure compensation
Reddish Egret…almost but…
Here are a few more shots of a Reddish Egret fishing from Bolivar Flats, TX. From stalking its prey to going for the gold. This one was so close to catching the fish in mid-air. Would have been the money shot. I’ll have to settle for bronze. Hopefully won’t have to wait another 4 years to try again.
It’s always challenging to shoot action shots from laying down on your stomach but using the full Wimberley head on the ground pod makes it easier. Having practiced with my 100-400 and Wimberley Sidekick for about 5 years made for an easy transition to the big lens.
Taken with Canon 7D + Canon 500mm F4 IS II + 1.4x III teleconverter, mounted on Skimmer ground pod with full Wimberley head.
1/800 sec @ F7.1, ISO 400, evaluative metering
1/800 sec @ F7.1, ISO 400, evaluative metering
1/800 sec @ F7.1, ISO 500, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
1/800 sec @ F7.1, ISO 500, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation
Black Skimmer Silhouette
For a change of pace from Reddish Egrets, for now anyways, here is Black Skimmer doing what skimmers do. Also taken at Bolivar Flats. I was walking around carrying my 500mm lens mounted on my ground pod when I heard the telltale “bark” of skimmers coming. Set my groundpod down and pulled off the camera and shot this handheld as two Skimmers went by.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II, handheld.
1/6400 sec @ F4, ISO 500, evaluative metering
Down the Hatch, Reddish Egret Style
Found this Reddish Egret chugging down a fish at Bolivar Flats. Faster shutter speed would have been good but I’ll take it. Ended up chopping off his feet in the original shot so I cropped the photo to this perspective.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II, 1.4X III teleconverter, mounted on Skimmer ground pod/Wimberley head.
1/640 sec @ F7.1, ISO 400, evaluative metering, + 1 exposure compensation
1/640 sec @ F7.1, ISO 400, evaluative metering, + 1 exposure compensation
Willet with Wings Extended
Here is the full series of my recent Willet encounter at Galveston Island. After you are around these birds for a while you learn their behavior and can be ready for the action shot. After they take a bath, they flap their wings to dry them off. Always a good opportunity to get a shot of their colorful wings, which aren’t evident when they are just walking around. You would think that they are kind of boring looking until you see them in flight. They tend to be my go-to shorebird as they always seem to be around and are fairly cooperative, especially when you lay down to shoot them. They will come within a few feet of you before noticing that you don’t belong on the beach.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley gimbal head.
1/1250 sec @ F4, ISO 400, spot metering, +1/3 exposure compensation
1/1250 sec @ F4, ISO 400, spot metering, +1/3 exposure compensation
1/800 sec @ F4, ISO 400, spot metering, +1/3 exposure compensation
Reddish Egret Close-ups from Bolivar Flats
After five months, finally made it back to my favorite location for shore bird photography, Bolivar Flats. The high tides in the morning have kept me away but went back today to continue to test out my Canon 500mm F4 IS II lens. Very glad that I went as there was more action than anticipated, including several Reddish Egrets. Used the 1.4x III yesterday at Galveston and today at Bolivar. Didn’t even take the bag along to put the teleconverter in, which ended up being a mistake as one of the Reddish Egret’s was too close for 700mm. Had to settle on head shots several times. Ended up missing some great fishing sequences because that he was too close. Live and learn. The teleconverter worked well but the focus would hunt with busy backgrounds. Ended up using all focus points on the close up shots when he would go for the fish. I’ll post some of the action shots later. I’m going to have some fun with this lens.
Taken with Canon 7D and Canon 500mm F4 IS II with 1.4x III teleconverter, mounted on Skimmer ground pod with Wimberley gimbal head. These are all close to full frame shots.
1/640 sec @ F7.1, 700mm, ISO 400, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation, AV mode
1/1250 sec @ F7.1, 700mm, ISO 400, evaluative metering, +1 exposure compensation, AV mode
1/800 sec @ F7.1, 700mm, ISO 400, evaluative metering, AV mode
Canon 7D Custom Function Settings
I’ve had a few people interested in my 7D settings so I’ve decided to share them. The Canon 7D is a great camera with many advantages over my old 40D. However, it is more complicated to use and set up properly. I did lots of research on the web and got advice from other photographers on the custom function settings. Here are my settings for wildlife photography. Once you get the settings that you like, I’d highly recommend that you write them down. If you send your camera in for repairs, like me, they change all of your settings back to the original factory settings. If you didn’t write them down you have to start over again.
| Custom Function | Description | Setting | Setting Description | Notes |
| C.Fn I: Exposure | ||||
| 1 | Exposure level increments | 0 | 1/3 stop | |
| 2 | ISO speed setting increments | 0 | 1/3 stop | |
| 3 | ISO Expansion | 1 | On | |
| 4 | Bracketing auto cancel | 0 | On | |
| 5 | Bracketing sequence | 0 | 0,-,+ | |
| 6 | Safety shift | 1 | Enable | |
| 7 | Flash sync speed in AV mode | 0 | Auto | |
| C.Fn II: Image | ||||
| 1 | Long exposure noise reduction | 0 | off | |
| 2 | High ISO speed noise reduction | 0 | standard | Affects JPG’s only. Depends on how much in-camera noise reduction that you want when shooting jpgs. |
| 3 | Highlight tone priority | 0 | disable | may cause more noise if enabled |
| C.Fn III: Autofocus/Drive | ||||
| 1 | AI Servo tracking sensitivity | 1 | Slow | Keeps AF from hunting too quickly if you lose focus temporarily |
| 2 | AI Servo 1st/2nd image priority | 0 | AF priority/tracking priority | |
| 3 | AI Servo AF tracking method | 1 | Continuous AF track priority | |
| 4 | Lens drive when AF impossible | 0 | Focus search on | |
| 5 | AF microadjustment | 0 | Disable | |
| 6 | Select AF area select move | varies | ||
| 7 | Manual AF point selection pattern | 1 | Continuous | |
| 8 | VF display illumination | 1 | Enable | |
| 9 | Display all AF points | 0 | Disable | |
| 10 | Focus display in AI Servo MF | 0 | Enable | |
| 11 | AF assist beam firing | 1 | Disable | |
| 12 | Orientation linked AF point | 1 | Select different AF points | |
| 13 | Mirror lockup | 0 | disable | |
| C.Fn IV: Operation / Others | ||||
| 1 | Custom controls | default | personal perference | |
| 2 | Dial direction during TV/AV | 0 | Normal | |
| 3 | Add image verification data | 0 | disable | |
| 4 | Add aspect ration information | 0 | Off |
Tim Timmis Photography 