Dry summer = little water

Here is another detail shot of a waterfall – details are about all you can get when the summer has been as dry as it has. This waterfall is but a shadow of its former self.

Lower Henderson Brook (Shaw) Falls

This was not with my normal gear setup…I shot this with my newly acquired kit lens (18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS), resting on a beanbag and my camera bag, using the 2 sec. timer and live view. I haven’t really used live view before, oh, and my wife had my tripod…

Details: Canon 50D, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6, @ 55mm, f/22, ISO 500, 1 sec., and circular polarizer

more birds

Here is another – the action shots are very challenging with the little birds. Here is a poor go at it, but it illustrates what we typically see. Here are a male and female Goldfinch on  the feeder with a Black-capped Chickadee coming for a snack….

Canon 50D, Tamron 1.4TC, Canon 70-200 f2.8 L IS @ 120mm, f3.5 (f4), ISO 400, 1/640th sec. about 60% cropped.

Birding…in the backyard

We have 4 feeders going and ton of birds. We have Goldfinches, Mourning Doves, Grackles, Sparrows, Chickadees, and we actually saw a regular pigeon the other day, oh and don’t forget the Squirrels hanging off the feeders. I have posted a few shots before, but I could not resist adding some more. We got some hooks and moved the feeders to the edge of the deck instead of near the house – much better shooting angle. Here is shot of a female Goldfinch.

The gear: Canon 50D, Tamron 1.4TC, Canon EF 70-200 2.8L IS.

The settings: f2.8 (really f4 due to the TC), 200mm (effectively 448mm with the TC and cropped sensor), IS on, 1/400th sec., –2 EC, center weighted average metering.

Editing: Set cloudy WB in ACR, cropped about 40% from the original photo. Increased exposure by 1/3 stop, toned down highlight on perch, +5 on Recovery, Clarity, Vibrance and Saturation in ACR. Sharpened with Scott Kelby’s ‘portrait’ sharpening settings in PS and used Bicubic Sharper when reducing size for web.

I have a few more to post when I get another ‘round tuit…..

Hayes Falls

 

Canon EOS 20D, Canon 70-200mm f2.8 @ f/11, 70mm, 2 sec., ISO-100.

Save money while carrying your Gear!

I have been buying things recently, and shopping all over (online) for gear, gadgets, and stuff - call them accessories. I know that when I start shopping, am thinking that the items I buy will help me take more and better photos. The truth is, and it took me a while to figure this out, is that I just need to get out and shoot more - I have all the gear I really need (oops - did I say that?).

This time I decided it would be justified if the price tag stayed low, and the items were useful. :)

What did I get?
I recently purchased a large telephoto lens that was pretty expensive. I wanted to make sure it was well protected, so I ordered a Lowepro LC4 padded lens case for about $45 taxes in - reasonable, right? (Henry's on EBAY)

I also ordered another set of Cactus v4 flash trigger/reiceivers. I have one set, and I dropped the trasmitter once (whoops), and it opened up, but it still worked fine after I put it all together. I should have a backup, right? $50 US (shipping in) - Reasonable, and I got a second reciever so I can trigger 2 flashes at once!. (Gadget Infinity)

The cables that come with the Cactus have a PC connector at one end, but it is not a screw lock type, so it could be more secure, so they don't come off unexpectedly and get damaged - reasonable, right?. Couple of cables....$25 or so. (Flash Zebra)

I was surfing around and thinking about the Lens case I ordered, and I have a few other cases which belong to Lowepro's slip-lock system. These can attatch to a special belt, and loops on their backpacks, etc. I looked up the Deluxe Padded Belt....$53 - ouch... I am not saying it is not worth it, I have never tried one, but at this point it was too rich for me. You are probably wondering about the title of the post now, after I listed all the money I spent...I found a padded tool belt that works with the slip-lock system at Canadian Tire for $14.99 (57-0006-4) !!!!

I will try it out this weekend :)

....I am also eying a $20 USD Remote Timer for my Camera from LinkDelight.....hmmmmm (did I mention that the Canon version is $150 USD?)


AUG. 21 Update...I just bought the above mentioned timer remote. :)
...and I forgot to mention that I picked a cheap tripod carrying strap on e-bay and...I cannot forget the $2 lens hood for my new 'backup' lens - the Canon EF-S 18-55mm 3.5-5.6 IS - which I picked up on Kijiji for $40. :)

I think I should stop.

Beautiful Prince Edward Island

I was lucky enough this past July to have 2 separate trips to PEI. The first was a working trip for my wife, and we (the rest of the family) tagged along and went adventuring. The second trip was an organized vacation with 3 other families to a rented ‘Villa’ for a week. We had an awesome time!

I did not make much time for photography – as I was having way too much fun with friends and family - but I did get a few scenic shot of the areas we visited. What a great place!

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

Jones Mill Falls

I love my little New Brunswick Waterfall book! Thank you Nicholas Guitard!

My Plug: Waterfalls of New Brunswick: A Guide – get it at Westminster Books!

Anyway – I looked up a new spot that seemed easy to get to, and called up a friend and said “Let’s go!”.

What a little adventure we had! First, we left a little late, and grabbed some Tim Horton’s breakfast one the way. After driving for about 45 min., we thought we were probably getting close, and we pulled off for a water, and a snack to take with us, my friend also picked up some sunglasses as he lost his last pair. The falls were a little farther than we thought, and after a few circles we realized that the road indicated in the guide was incorrect and we needed to start to try a few to find the right one…It was about this time that my friend decided the jerky he recently ate was not agreeing with him, and we needed to pull over soon so he could leave it in the bushes. Back in the car, and off to find the falls, 2 min later my friend declared he left his sunglasses with the jerky. We decided to get them on the way back, and found the path to the falls minutes later. On the way down the path we saw 2-3 piles of scat, which I was told was from a bear – great. We spend about an hour shooting the falls, picked up the sunglasses on the way home, got back about an hour after we planned, and had a great morning in the end.

Vomit, Driving, Sunglasses, and Bear Poop. What an adventure!

Oh yeah, the falls…..

In the Paper!

I have been shooting dress rehearsals for Theater New Brunswick for over a year now, and I had one of my photos in the Telegraph Journal!

Theater New Brunswick is running this awesome commissioned work for 24 shows (I believe).

This time, I was only able to shoot during a preview performance (like a dress rehearsal with audience), and was limited to where I could shoot from. (normally I move where I want to in the seating area during a dress rehearsal)  I stood behind the audience for the first half, and to the left of the audience for the second half.

This photo was taken with my Tamron 17-50mm 2.8 @ 50mm and f/4 @ 1/250th sec. ISO 2000 on my 50D – and run through Neat Image to reduce noise.

I was shooting with the Tamron 17-50mm 2.8 on my 50D and the Canon 70-200mm 2.8 L IS on my 20D. Halfway through (when I moved closer to the front) and switched the 70-200mm for the Canon 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5. My ISO was 1600+ on both cameras, and I generally kept the aperture between 2.8 and 5.6, and the shutter speed at 1/focal length or higher.

I like candids, and the actors invariably have great expressions to capture – but I am there to get a good record of the show, stage, lighting, etc for documentary purposes (and maybe a little advertising). I have to push myself to go for the wider shots more and more.

What fun!

Lumberjacks at Summerfest in PEI

Also during our first trip to PEI we got to see the West Coast Lumberjacks Show at Summerfest. I had seen them before in Alberta, and they are always fun to watch - great skills and funny too!



Here are some more photos.

Mostly shot with my Canon 70-200mm 2.8.

Canada Day Fireworks

We were in PEI for Canada and took in some fireworks at Summerfest. It was a great show - and while I was not properly equipped for shooting fireworks (read - no tripod), I did get some photos using a high ISO....

I was using my Canon 50D and my Tamron 17-50mm 2.8 at about f4 and 1/100th sec. @ ISO 800+.



Canada Day Fireworks!