If You Build It They Will Come

Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata), Thornton, Ontario, Canada

Earlier this spring I decided to build a bird photography reflection pool at my backyard bird feeder setups. It was a fantastic idea, especially since Ontario has been under Covid-19 restrictions with a stay at home order in place for a lengthy period of time. I typically spend about 2 hours of each day in my photography blind that is positioned roughly 8-10 feet from my setup. The entire setup is also positioned approximately 30 feet from a cluster of Eastern White Cedar trees that provides the out of focus backdrop for these images.

A male Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis), Thornton, Ontario, Canada

In order to photograph birds with clear reflections a day with virtually no wind is a necessity. On days where the breeze is blowing a bit too much it is often best to compose scenes with all but a strip of water along the bottom edge. Nonetheless a reflection pool setup is a fantastic way to photograph birds beside watery habitat and since we are creating the setup we can pick and choose the props for the cleanest look possible. I find that small moss covered branches, small stones, dried leaves or pine cones make wonderful props.

My Backyard Reflection Pool Setup

How did I construct my reflection pool? I built it out of scrap materials I had left over from home renovation projects. To build your own reflection pool set up I recommend using a 4X8 foot sheet of 5/8 plywood. Do not skimp and build a smaller one as the 8 foot length is required to capture the full reflection of larger birds such as Blue Jays and Grackles. If you only have small birds visiting your garden you could possibly get away with building a slightly smaller pool. Do note that my setup is elevated on sawhorse brackets to raise the pool up to the height of my camera position in my blind. This ensures that I am photographing the birds at the same level as the water, which maximizes the reflection as well. The reflection pool is also tilted so that there is a deep end and a shallow end. The shallow end is where the props are placed. Down each long side of the pool I have screwed a 1X6 board, which deters birds from accessing the pool from the sides as they are quite a bit higher than the surface of the water. At the deep end I have screwed a 1X3 piece of wood and at the shallow end I have screwed a 1X3 piece of wood flat against the plywood to create a one inch lip at the shallow end to help contain the water. Once the pool was screwed together I used black silicone to seal all the joints and then I painted the interior dark brown. Painting the interior a dark colour will help with the reflections as well. Some folks like to line their reflection pools with pond liner, which I think is mostly an added expense as a the plywood construction with silicone joints retains the water just fine.

Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)

To attract birds to the reflection pool I place shelled peanuts, black oil sunflower seeds, and homemade bark butter in stratgeic locations. The black oil sunflower seeds and bark butter are often placed in behind stones, while the shelled peanuts are placed directly in the water. The shelled peanuts will sink, therefore, placing them in the water in front of the props encourages birds such as Blue Jays and Common Grackles to pick the peanuts from the water.

Below are a few additional images created over the last several weeks at the reflection pool setup.

Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata), at pond edge

Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)

Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)

Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)

Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens)

Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)

Male Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis), Thornton, Ontario, Canada

And if you are lucky enough to have small rodents such as chipmunks and squirrels you will likely have opportunities to photograph them as well.

Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis)

Eastern Chipmunk (Tamias striatus)

Details on the Last Days of Winter

Bubbles Beneath Ice

After a week of very warm weather in south-central Ontario much of the season’s snow accumulation has melted. This thawing resulted in the drainage ditches around my home taking on a resemblance to flowing rivers. As the water level in the ditches subsided the temperatures also began to drop again. This change in the weather pattern caused the surfaces of the water in the ditch to freeze while the water flowed away beneath the ice. What remained was a paper thin, extremely fragile layer of ice that presented a multitude of patterns and designs in the frozen surface. Using my Laowa 100mm 2X Ultra-Macro Lens I spent the better part of two hours exploring these intricate designs. The day was bright with clear blue skies, therefore, I deployed my coat to cast a shadow over some of the scenes, which resulted in a blue cast from the clear skies above. On the images where I opted not to use my coat to shade the designs the images took on a natural black and white feel.

This blog post features images captured during my adventures in the roadside ditch 🙂

Ice Details

Ice Details

Ice Details

Ice Details

Ice Details

Ice Details

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) – captive

Wishing everybody a safe and prosperous year!

Happy New Year!

All the best,

Andrew

Top 20 for 2020

2020 has certainly been a challenging year for so many people throughout the world.

The past year really limited many of my photographic adventures from cancelling workshops to being locked down at home. Fortunately I was able to make my way to Cayman Brac for two weeks in late February. The world shut down shortly after my return in March. During the summer months I concentrated my efforts on extreme macro photography around my rural home, often not even having to leave my property. By the time autumn came around I was able to continue with my Muskoka Autumn Colour Spectacular Workshop and Lake Superior Wild & Scenic Photography Workshop. As a result my top 20 images for 2020 have been selected from my Cayman Brac trip, insect photography at home, autumn colour, and the Lake Superior coast.

I hope you enjoy viewing this selection of imagery.

Here’s to a better year in 2021!

Daybreak on the Caribbean Sea at Cayman Brac, BWI

Hawksbill Turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) at Sylvia’s Reef, Cayman Brac, BWI

Spotted Scorpionfish (Scorpaena plumieri), Cayman Brac, BWI

Sister Island Rock Iguana (Cyclura nubila caymanensis)

Crab Spider

Baby Garden Spiders

Praying Mantis

Robberfly

Two-horned leafhopper (Ceresa diceros)

Georgian Bay, Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada

Late day light on Georgian Bay, Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada

Overcast Light on Geogrian Bay, Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada

Autumn colour and reflections at woodland pond in Seguin Township, Ontario, Canada

Winter on Lake Superior, Wawa, Ontario, Canada

Snow covered gorge along Lake SUperior’s north shore near Schreiber, Ontario, Canada

Hattie Cove in winter on Lake Superior, Pukaskwa National Park, Ontario, Canada

Winter storm at Sandy Beach on Lake Superior, Wawa, Ontario, Canada

Mink Creek, Marathon, Ontario

Spruce Grouse (Falcipennis canadensis) male, Neys Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada

Sunrise at Highland Pond in the Torrance Barrens, Muskoka, Ontario, Canada

More from the Microcosm

Red Milkweed Beetle (Tetraopes tetrophthalmus)

Things have been relatively quiet here over the course of the last few weeks as I have been recuperating from a surgical procedure. The recovery has gone very well, however, I will have at least one more month of having to take things easy. I have been feeling well enough to take a couple of walks around the yard each day in search of insects to photograph with the Laowa 100mm 2X Macro Lens.

The final four images in this post are preserved exotic specimens that I have re-hydrated and pinned into position. These preserved specimens offer fantastic opportunities to explore natural-like settings as well as creative edits (a feature for a future post).

If you are interested in learning more about the Laowa 100mm 2X Macro and purchasing the lens please consider doing so by using my affiliate link here.

Spur-throated Grasshopper (Melanopluas ponderosus)

 

Jagged Ambush Bug

 

Robberfly

 

Leafhopper

 

Eupholus cuvieri

 

Homoderus gladiator – preserved specimen

 

Violin Beetle (Mormolyce phyllodes)

 

Cyclommatus metallifer – preserved specimen

Review: Laowa 100mm f2.8 2X Macro Apo Lens

Crab Spider on Ox-Daisy Blossom

Over the course of the last several months I have been using a Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2X Ultra Macro APO CA Dreamer lens that has been on loan to me from Venus Optics. As you read through this blog post you will learn my thoughts on this lens. In short, I was impressed enough with the lens that I purchased this loaner lens and promptly sold my workhorse Nikon 105mm f2.8D AF Micro-Nikkor.

Each image in this blog post is a single capture. No focus stacking techniques were deployed. Some images were photographed at 4X lifesize and this was accomplished by adding a Raynox DCR-250 Diopter to the front of the Laowa 100mm 2X Macro lens. All images, unless otherwise noted, were photographed handheld using the Meike MK-MT24 Flash Speedlite with 2.4G Wireless Trigger supported by a Wimberley dual arm F-2 Macro Bracket.

Gray Tree Frog chorusing at night

First and foremost, the full metal construction of the lens is in-line with the build quality of other Laowa lenses I own making them durable and able to stand the test of time. The CA Dreamer designation refers to the apochromatic design that significantly reduces, if not eliminates, chromatic aberration in both in-focus and out-of-focus areas of the image.

Robber Fly species with prey

The Laowa 100mm 2X Macro lens is a fully manual lens. There is no autofocus, no image stabilization, and the f-stop is selected by manually rotating the aperture ring to the desired setting. Being fully manual also means that no information will be transmitted to the camera, such as f-stop used. Do note that the Canon mount does not have an aperture ring as the f-stop can be selected by the camera. If you have grown accustomed to relying on autofocus and/or image stabilization you will have a bit of a learning curve on working with a manual macro lens. My first forays into macro photography were in the days of film whereby I used a Minolta X-700 with a Minolta 100mm Macro lens. It took me a couple of days to get back into the swing of manual focusing for macro work, as I had become reliant on autofocus, which can actually be a hindrance to successful macro photography.

Grasshopper photographed at 4X lifesize with the Raynox DCR-250 Diopter attached

The “2X” designation for the lens refers to the ability to achieve twice lifesize at the minimum focusing distance of 9.7” which refers to the distance from the camera sensor to the subject. No other macro lens on the market today, in the 100mm range, offers the ability to achieve 2X magnification. I have often wished my old Nikon macro lens had the ability to focus closer than 1:1 magnification. At a very affordable price the Laowa 100mm 2X Macro lens provides twice lifesize and superb image quality.

Green Bottle Fly at 2X lifesize

The lens does come with a plastic lens hood, however, at 2X lifesize I recommend removing the lens hood as it will cast heavy shadow over subjects. I seldom use the lens hood because at infinity focus the front element of the lens is recessed in the lens barrel about 3 inches and moves towards the front of the lens barrel as you get closer to 2X lifesize. As a result, the lens barrel often acts as a lens hood.

Thistl-head Weevil (Rhinocyllus conicus) with Raynox DCR-250 Diopter attached

There is an optional tripod collar for the lens that can be purchased. I currently do not own the tripod collar, nor do I have any experience with using it. I have read some unfavorable reviews for the optional tripod collar, however, my thought on the tripod collar is that it may be a useful tool to support two flash units on small homemade brackets to keep the set-up compact rather than using brackets to hold flash units. I will provide an update on this after I have had time to test out my theory.

Baby Garden Spiders with Raynox DCR-250 Diopter attached for 4X magnification

Venus Optics (Laowa) have clearly created another lens that offers superior image quality at a very affordable price point. I shudder to think what Canon, Sony, or Nikon would charge for a 100mm f2.8 2X Macro lens if they took the time to design one. Let’s compare pricing from Vistek and do note that the Laowa is the least expensive lens, offering superior results with the ability to capture subjects at twice lifesize:

• Venus Optics Laowa 100mm f/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO: $699.99 CAD
• Sony FE 90mm Macro G OSS: $1499.99 CAD
• Nikon Micro-Nikkor VR 105mm f/2.8: $1129.99 CAD
• Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro IS USM: $1199.99 CAD
• Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM Macro: $769.99 CAD

Stink Bug nymph at 2X lifesize

I am often asked how I am able to manually focus on such tiny critters. It is not as hard as it looks when you practice and perfect good macro techniques. I tend to predetermine the magnification I desire for an intended subject. The next step is to use myself as a human focusing rail and slowly move in and out until sharp focus is achieved. I strongly recommend using inanimate objects placed on the kitchen table as practice subjects.

Green Burgundy Stink Bug (Banasa dimidiata)

Another techniques I will often use if the subject is cooperative is to physically hold the leaf or stem the subject is on and move it towards the lens until sharp focus is achieved. By utilizing this technique I often find that I am able to support the front of the lens on my left hand for added support, especially when photographing at 4 times lifesize!

Gray Wall Jumping Spider at 2X lifesize

The Gray Wall Jumping Spider above was discovered on the brickwork of my home. I carefully encourage it to climb onto a small twig that I could have more control over and move towards the lens until the spider’s eyes became sharp in the viewfinder. After grabbing a few quick images I let the spider go back to its business on the brickwork of my home.

Swamp Milkweed Leaf Beetle at 2X lifesize

Many of these images were created during self-isolating on my half acre country home. It is quite amazing what can be found hiding in plain sight when we take the time to explore the microcosm

Ambush Bug with prey at 2X lifesize

The Ambush Bug above was preoccupied with its prey and the Milkweed Beetles below were preoccupied with each other and this allowed me to use my technique of holding the stem and leaf to take better control of the situation and to focus more easily on the insects.

Red Milkweed Beetle (Tetraopes tetrophthalmus)

Since many of my images were being photographed at either 2X or 4X lifesize I did select an aperture of f22 for maximum depth of field. I think you would agree that the lens performs very well stopped down 🙂

Lichens photographed using ambient light and tripod

Having a lens such as the Laowa 100mm 2X Macro in your gear bag will allow you the luxury of being able to photograph tight details, itty bitty critters, or large animals such as the portrait of the 3 foot Ball Python below.

Royal Python (Python regius) – captive bred

Below is a single frame at 2X lifesize of a butterfly wing. While photographing the fine details of the butterfly wing, even at f22 it was critical to keep the the sensor plane parallel to the wing to ensure sharp focus throughout the image, otherwise the delete key would have been utilized 🙂

Papilio multicaudata (Mexico) Dead specimen from private collection

A couple of nights ago at dusk I lucked out and found a Gray Wall Jumping Spider exploring the lichen encrusted bark of one of my large Silver Maple trees. Rather than go in for the tighter images I deliberately stepped back to create a scene that illustrates the spider’s ability to blend in to its surroundings.

Gray Wall Jumping Spider camouflaged on tree trunk

As I mentioned in the opening paragraph of this post I loved the Laowa 100mm f2.8 2X Macro APO lens so much that I purchased it and sold my Nikon 105mm Micro lens. This is my third Laowa lens that I have added to my gear bag. First was the incredible 15mm 1;1 Wide Angle Macro that allows me to capture my signature frog-scapes. The second Laowa lens added was the 12mm Zero D lens, which quickly became my workhorse lens for both landscapes and architectural photography. If you are intrigued by the Laowa 100mm 2X Macro please consider purchasing the lens through my affiliate link by clicking here.

Leafhopper nymph with Raynox DCR-250 Diopter attached for 4X magnification

Ruby-throated Hummingbirds

A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird at Petunia Blossom

During this time of social distancing I have been spending a bit of time perfecting my backyard birdfeeder set-ups. In particular my hummingbird set-up as I have never really devoted much time to it.

Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are the only hummingbird species that visit my feeders in south-central Ontario but watching them visit the various flowers in the garden gives me great ideas for creating set-ups for pleasing imagery. I will often use a Wimberley Plamp to hold various perches or flowers. When using small perches I place the the twigs in close proximity to the feeders to give the hummingbirds a spot to land in between feedings. When using flowers as props I will remove the hummingbird feeder and use the Wimberley Plamp to hold the blossom. Spraying the blossom with sugar water from the feeder will get the birds attention and they can easily be photographed at various types of blossoms for variety in your imagery. If you scroll down you will see how I use the Plamp to hold props. When using real flowers I recommend using water tubes to keep the blossom hydrated so that it will last longer.

On occasion I will place some colorful silk flowers far in the background to provide some added out of focus color.

As you scroll through the imagery here in this post you will notice the last image is VERY much out of focus. This occurred due to the speed at which the hummingbirds fly around and the camera losing focus in the process, but nonetheless it does appear like an intentional in-camera creative blur so I decided to keep the image file 🙂 A happy accident of sorts 🙂

A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird at Solomon’s Seal Blossom

 

A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird at rest

 

A male Ruby-throated Hummingbird at rest

 

A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird

 

A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird taking flight

 

A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird

 

A male Ruby-throated Hummingbird

 

A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird

 

Hummingbird Feeder Set-up

 

Hummingbird Feeder Set-up

 

Out of focus Ruby-throated Hummingbird

The Social Distancing Images

Common Loon

Here are a few recent images that I have captured during this pandemic. All but the Common Loon were photographed n my backyard. The Common Loon was photographed on Lake Simcoe near Barrie, Ontario at first light. Arriving at first light not only ensured killer light but also meant I would have the location all to myself as most folks do not get out to take advantage of the sweet light at sunrise.

Each of the songbird images were created from my photo blind that is set-up in my backyard at a birdfeeder adorned with attractive perches for natural looking photos.

Every image in this post was photographed using the Nikon D500 and Nikkor 200-500mm VR lens with a wide open aperture of f5.6.

During these times of social distancing and self-isolation consider creating your own backyard birdfeeder set-up to see what you might be able to capture. It can be a great way to practice bird photography skills with common species, try new techniques,, and to just have fun and feel good. To guide you through the process of creating simple set-ups from which to photograph garden birds please take a look at Andy Rouse’s Wild Angle -Episode 2 by clicking here.

Song Sparrow

 

White-crowned Sparrow

 

Male Red-winged Blackbird

 

Female Brown-headed Cowbird

 

Chipping Sparrow

 

Common Grackle

New eBook Announcement: WILD PLACES

Today I am pleased to announce the release of my 3rd eBook; WILD PLACES – Exploring the Creative Process of Landscape Photography.

WILD PLACES – Exploring the Creative Process of Landscape Photography is not a book about the technical aspects of landscape photography. It is about the thoughts and decisions that were made, in-the-field, to determine what to include or exclude from the frame to convey visual beauty. Slowing down and making conscious decisions to control the visual elements within the environment will assist you in creating photography that entices the minds and emotions of viewers.

Wild Places features a collection of 110 photographs from Ontario and beyond that will inspire you on your next excursion into wild spaces, as you explore the artistry of the land. Extended captions that correspond to each image provide discussions on the composition, applicable filter selections, and many other useful tidbits of information.

I am often complimented after presenting my various programs for being  an engaging speaker who shares inspiring imagery while explaining various tips and techniques in a way that can be understood by all levels of photographers. This eBook is characteristic of attending one of my photographic presentations.

Price: $20 CAD

To purchase your copy of Wild Places please click here.

Cayman Brac 2020 Trip Report

Brown Booby in Flight

I returned on March 4th from a two week stay on the remote Caribbean island of Cayman Brac. It was by far a very productive trip with a multitude of great images captured.  As usual the nesting Brown Booby birds put an an awesome show from nesting activities to in flight opportunities.

Sunrise and sunsets were a little trickier to be had this year due to heavy clouds out on the horizon, but nonetheless perseverance paid off. Virtually all of my sunrise and sunset imagery was created using stacked ND and reverse grad filters. The ND filters coupled with the reverse grads allowed me to slow the shutter speed down sufficiently to allow the incoming ocean waves to blur out nice and soft. My choice of filters for these scenes were the Singh-Ray Filters 3-Stop ND Filter, Mor-Slo 5-stop ND FIlter, and the 3_stop Reverse Graduated ND Filter

During my snorkel excursions my Nikon D500 and Nikkor 18-35mm lens inside an Ewa Marine Housing proved perfect for many of the ocean fishes encountered. I had great success with Octopus, Spotted Scorpionfish and many other often difficult to photograph while snorkeling species. I will do a full blog post on the underwater success I had in the near future.

I was also quite ecstatic with finding a very co-operative, female Sister Islands Rock Iguana. These iguanas are sadly critically endangered now, but efforts are underway to lend a helping hand, which entails eradicating  invasive Green Iguanas.

As you scroll down through the images you will see a host of wonderful opportunities that were to be found during this trip. Stay tuned for announcements for the 2021 trip very soon.

Daybreak on Cayman Brac

 

Spotted Scorpionfish

 

Sister Island Rock Iguana

 

Daybreak on Cayman Brac

 

Brown Booby Preening

 

West Indian Whistling Ducks

 

Brown Booby Family

 

Yellow Stingray

 

Sunrise at Pollard Bay, Cayman Brac

 

Octopus

 

Green Heron

 

Willet

 

White-spotted File Fish

 

Cuban Tree Frog (invasive on Cayman Brac)