Ring-billed Gull
Ring-billed Gull_DSC7840, originally uploaded by Russ Cam.
Here’s a Ring-billed Gull having a snack at Valley Inn Road.
Archive for December, 2009
Merry Christmas 2009
I’ve had a wonderful year out here in cyberspace, blogging photography and such. It’s not much fun writing if no one reads your stuff, so a big “thank you” to all you readers, and I hope you’ll return next year.
This is the week for concentrating on family, so I’ll give the blogging a rest until January 2010.
To all good cheer and good health.
Have a very Merry Christmas!
© 2009 Russell G. Campbell
All rights reserved.
Photograph: Juvenile Bald Eagle
One of the most regal birds in Ontario is the Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus). The photo below is of a youngster who does not yet have his white head. these birds are making a comeback in my area—north-west corner of Lake Ontario, and are a welcome sight from time to time.
Nikon D300 DSLR with 300mm f/4 lens + 1.7x teleconverter
1/1250 sec at f/6.7, ISO 720 (handheld)
DTown TV set to return in January
The popular Web TV show, DTown TV, hosted by Scott Kelby and Matt Kloskowski is set to return on January 7 after a hiatus of several weeks. The show originally covered only Nikon products, but the new version will be expanded to cover DSLRs in general, including lighting, studio, on location, post-processing and other digital photography topics.
To see a video of the announcement visit Scott Kelby’s blog, Photoshop Insider. For those of you who might have been in outer space for the past decade or so and don’t know who buy generic viagra buy levitra viagra professional buy generic viagra buy cialis online order cialis professional buy cheap viagra the co-hosts are: Scott Kelby is the president of NAPP, the National Association of Photoshop Professionals. He has written several excellent books on Adobe® Photoshop, Adobe® Photoshop Lightroom and other digital photography topics.
Matt Kloskowski is the Education and Curriculum Developer for NAPP. He has written several books on the Photoshop and Illustrator Adobe® applications, and is a trainer of international reputation.
I watched all 24 of the show’s original episodes and found them entertaining and informative.
© 2009 Russell G. Campbell
All rights reserved.
American Kestrel Photo
The American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) is a small falcon. It is sometimes (mistakenly) called a “Sparrow Hawk.” American Kestrels are widely distributed across the Americas, with their breeding range extending from Alaska, across northern Canada and south to Mexico and the Caribbean.
Most of the birds breeding in Canada migrate south in the winter, though some do stay as year-round residents. Another tiny jewel of the forest.
Nikon D300 DSLR with 300mm f/4 lens
1/400 sec at f/4.0, ISO 280
Great Horned Owl
This is the famous Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus), the tiger of the forest. This magnificent raptor sits haughtily atop the food chain in his forest environment—his only predator being man.
Barred Owl
The Barred Owl (Strix varia) is a medium-sized owl about 20 inches long with a wingspan of about 44 inches. Some are as small as 16 in long and as big as 25 in long. The Barred Owl is also known as the Hoot Owl and is widespread in North America, occurring across most of the eastern half of the continent from Florida in the south up into southern regions of Canada.
In the north, these owls are spreading westward causing concern that their aggressive defense of territory will endanger the Spotted Owl.
Nikon D300 DSLR with 300mm f/4 lens
1/400 sec at f/4.0, ISO 200
Saw-whet Owl
This little beauty is yet another example of natures perfect creations. The Northern Saw-Whet Owl (Aegolius acadicus) is a tiny owl growing to about 18 cm long (7 to 8 in) with a 43 cm wingspan—proof positive that sometimes the most beautiful things, like jewelry, come in small packages.
Nikon D300 DSLR with 300mm f/4 lens
1/500 sec at f/4.0, ISO 320
Nobel Prize to Canadian co-inventor of digital photographer
Congratulations are due to Dr. Willard Boyle, the Canadian scientist whose work virtually invented digital photography. Those of us who love to take pictures digitally owe a debt of gratitude to Dr. Boyle, who along with Dr. George Smith invented the charge-coupled device (CCD) in 1969.
The CCD translates light into an electric charge and is the technology behind the sensors of many digital cameras. The CCD started its life as a “Bubble” memory device at the AT&T Bell Labs. By 1971, however, Bell researchers were able to capture images with it and the CCD imager was born, leading to the explosion in the growth of digital photography.
© 2009 Russell G. Campbell
All rights reserved.
Barn Owl part 2
The thing I enjoy almost as much as taking pictures of birds is to browse through pictures I have already taken. I have almost 11,000 images on my computer and I’ve started to process some of my favourites as prints to hang around the house.
Printing is a new ballgame, requiring a separate set of acquired skills and a whole new respect for patience. Trying to match what comes out of the printer to what one sees on the screen can be daunting at times. But my motto is, Persevere, so I do, and am slowly getting the hang of it.
I use a Huey to calibrate my computer screens and download paper-specific profiles for my Epson R1800 printer. This has cut down on wasted paper from test images. I now usually do one test, then make final adjustments and print away.
I find it convenient to use Adobe Photoshop Lightroom for most of my “lab” work, including making prints.
The weather is not cooperating so I had to dig into the archives for today’s image, which is another Barn Owl (Tyto alba).
As with most images on this blog, if you click on it you will be taken to Flickr.com where they are hosted. Once at Flickr, your can select the “ALL SIZES” option above the image to see a full size version of the photograph. Unfortunately, I have to limit maximum dimensions to 600 X 800 to discourage misuse.
Nikon D300 DSLR with 300mm f/4 lens
1/500 sec at f/4.5, ISO 200
© 2009 Russell G. Campbell
All rights reserved.
Barn Owl
The Barn Owl (Tyto alba) is another of natures countless beauties. It’s birds like these that make nature photography such a delight. This is a captive bird, but no less enjoyable to photograph. My objective is to record for my collection as many birds as I can; it’s not the wilderness experience per se that I seek.
This bird’s name is Gwen. Gwen was hatched at the Raptor Centre at Mountsberg. She was hand raised by the Mountsberg staff and, subsequently, became human-imprinted. As a result she can never be released into the wild. She is a beautiful, healthy, well-adjusted bird and a real treat to photograph.
This image is from my archives—I took it at last summer—but just love seeing it again. It was taken at a relatively slow 1/500 second to not completely stop the motion of her wings. I like this a lot.
Nikon D300 DSLR with 300mm f/4 lens at 1/500 sec, f/5.6 and ISO 220
© 2009 Russell G. Campbell
All rights reserved.
Photos from my walkabout
I went for a walk along the shores of Lake Ontario today and took several photographs as I went along. It seems to me that I’ve seen more mergansers this fall than I saw all last year.
Please remember that I own the copyright to these images, so do not use them without my permission.
American Coot (Fulica americana)
Mute Swan (Cygnus olor)
Red-breasted Merganser hen (Mergus serrator)
Red-breasted Merganser hen (Mergus serrator)
Mallard Duck (Anas Platyrhynchos)
Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus)
© 2009 Russell G. Campbell
All rights reserved.
Photos from my walkabout
I went for a walk along the shores of Lake Ontario today and took several photographs as I went along. It seems to me that I’ve seen more mergansers this fall than I saw all last year.
Please remember that I own the copyright to these images, so do not use them without my permission.
American Coot (Fulica americana)
Mute Swan (Cygnus olor)
Red-breasted Merganser hen (Mergus serrator)
Red-breasted Merganser hen (Mergus serrator)
Mallard Duck (Anas Platyrhynchos)
Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus)
© 2009 Russell G. Campbell
All rights reserved.
Birding: Can’t they just sit still for a minute?
Tripods are among the most under-used piece of photographic equipment. Many amateurs don’t bother with them because of the inconvenience of carrying this extra piece of gear around for an uncertain benefit to the quality of their shots. For years I have owned a tripod, but seldom used it. This all changed recently when I bought a 300mm f/2.8 lens which weighs a bit more than six pounds—add my D300 DSLR and I’m handholding 8lbs+.
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| From a distance, a Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis) 1/500 sec at f/5.6, ISO 220 |
So, for me, a tripod has become a necessity, and therefore I need to master its use. To start with, I bought a gimbal-style tripod head (mentioned earlier), and I am now trying to get used to the new setup.
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| Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis) 1/1250 sec at f/5.6, ISO 200 |
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| Airborne Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis) 1/1250 sec at f/5.6, ISO 200 |
This means getting as much practice as possible with the tripod, and resisting the temptation to shoot handheld. This is a lot easier, of course, when the birds cooperate and sit still—something not at all guaranteed.
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| Mallard pair (Anas Platyrhynchos) cooperating nicely 1/1000 sec at f/5.6, ISO 200 |
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| Mallard drake (Anas Platyrhynchos) looking like he’s about to take off. 1/1000 sec at f/5.6, ISO 200 |
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| Mallard drake (Anas Platyrhynchos) taking off. 1/1000 sec at f/5.6, ISO 200 |
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| Greater Scaup (Aythya marila) 1/500 sec at f/5.6, ISO 200 |
So, am I happy with the results so far? To a point only. I believe I now have the optimum combination of gear for the sort of bird photography I like. The 1.7x teleconverter gives me a 35mm film equivalent of 750mm in reach—not so bad really. And at 300mm f/2.8 (35mm film equivalent of 450mm), this lens is still very usable handheld.
At times when the light is not bright enough, that f/2.8 is great. And even with a 1.4x teleconverter attached, I am able to work at f/4 with a 35mm film equivalent of 630mm in reach—not too shabby at all.
What I really need to work on is being able to quickly locate bird in flight in the lens and focus before it is out of range. A lot easier said than done.
Harris’s Hawk
The Harris’s Hawk (Parabuteo unicinctus) is a big, handsome raptor, which ranges from the southwestern United States through Central America and into much of the drier habitats in South America. They prey on mammals, birds and reptiles. Harris’s Hawks are popular birds used in the sport of falconry.
Unlike most other raptors, which are solitary hunters except when breeding and migrating, Harris’s Hawks will hunt in groups of two to six made up of family members. A small group flies ahead and scouts, alternating with another group member that flies ahead and scouts until prey is caught. At other times, all hawks will encircle the prey while one individual flushes it.
I took the following photograph at The Canadian Raptor Conservancy south of Simcoe, Ontario at Vittoria. The Canadian Raptor Conservancy’s focus is to educate the general public about birds of prey and the important role they play in our natural world.
Canada Goose
The Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) is among the most under-appreciated waterfowl in my area (extreme west end of Lake Ontario’s north shore). By the early 20th century, over-hunting and loss of habitat had brought this bird to the brink of extinction in its native range. The Giant Canada Goose subspecies, in fact, was believed to be extinct in the 1950s until a small flock was discovered wintering in Rochester, Minnesota in 1962.
Fortunately, their populations have recovered in most of their range. For many, however, their increasing numbers are mixed blessings at best. I like this bird a lot and happily put up with the minor inconvenience their presence causes from time to time.
Mute Swans
The Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) is one of the heaviest flying birds. Males (cobs) average about 25 lbs and females (pens) over 30 lbs. They are natives of Europe and Asia and introduced in North America. Mute and Trumpeter swans have become quite a common sight in Burlington, where I live in Ontario, Canada. And Tundra Swans are also seen from time to time.
Apparently, Mute Swans get the name “mute” from being less vocal than other swan species. They have white plumage at maturity, though the feathers on their heads and necks are often stained an orange-brown by iron and tannins from water plants.
Blacks and Mallards: ducks of a different feather flock together
The American Black Duck (Anas rubripes) was at one time the most abundant dabbling duck in my area (extreme west end of Lake Ontario’s north shore), but has been replaced for the most part by the more colourful Mallard Duck (Anas platyrhynchos).
Black Ducks and Mallard Ducks are closely related and interbreed regularly. Male and female American Black Ducks resemble the female Mallard in size and appearance, however, their brown bodies are darker than the Mallard’s. They also lack the Mallard’s whitish outer tail-feathers and prominent white wing bars, and the American Black Duck’s head and neck are a lighter brown than its torso.
The male and female American Black Ducks are generally similar in appearance, but the male’s bill is yellow while the females is a dull green.
American Black Duck drake:
Mallard Duck drake:
American Black Duck hen:
Mallard Duck hen:
© 2009 Russell G. Campbell
All rights reserved.
