Oakville Camera Club Presentation

Katherine Cove
Lake Superior Provincial Park
Ontario, Canada

On Monday, April 27th at 7:00 p.m. I will be presenting “A Photographer’s Guide to the Ontario Landscape” for the Oakville Camera Club at the Queen Elizabeth Park Community and Cultural Centre located at 2302 Bridge Road in Oakville, Ontario.

The presentation is based around my popular eBook, which is an in-depth resource to landscape photography in Ontario. The eBook will be available for purchace, on CD, at the presentation for the low price of $20 CDN.

Hope to see you there 🙂

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Cayman Brac – B-roll Images From Unsuccessful Frog Hunting

Hurricane Crab
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR lens @ 80mm
ISO 100, f25 @ 1/60 sec.
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket

With this post I unveil my new logo that now occupies the header section of the blog. Hope y’all like it 🙂

As mentioned in the previous post, I had several unsuccessful nights of searching for and photographing frogs while on the island of Cayman Brac. These nights were not wasted though. While exploring the understory of the seagrape trees I encountered numerous Soldier Crabs and Hurricane Crabs. I quickly noted that these crabs were very sensitive to the light from my flashlight. Often if too much light fell upon them they would immediately and quickly head for cover. A slow, cautious approach and careful use of the flashlight allowed me to get in low and close for the imagery I had hoped for. The Hurricane Crabs were very large with their bodies being roughly four inches across. Mostly they were a purplish-red color but I did encounter one specimen that had olive to yellowish coloration.

Hurricane Crab
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 85mm
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
ISO 100, f18 @ 1/60 sec

Hurricane Crab
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 92mm
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
ISO 100, f22 @ 1/60 sec.

The other type of crab that was most often encountered during my night time excursions for frog imagery was the Soldier Cab, which is a type of land hermit crab. They varied in size greatly with some having very small shells and others having very large shells. They most often are seen using abandoned whelk shells for their homes. Again these crabs were also sensitive to the light from my flashlight, but careful use also allowed the opportunity for some interesting imagery, particularly when I found a lone Soldier Crab walking along a very thin branch – almost like walking a tight-rope.

Soldier Crab
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 165mm
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
ISO 100, f22 @ 1/60 sec.

As with the Cuban Treefrog images in the previous post note that I have once again used the Canon 500D Close-up Filter on my Nikon 80-400mm VR lens. This is the combination that I always use when traveling. It is a very convenient solution for quality close-up photography and also helps to reduce the overall weight of gear to carry onto an aircraft or out into the field.

Do remember to click on each of the photos to see the larger, sharper version and if you feel so inclined, let me know which is your favorite image 🙂

Soldier Crab
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400 mm VR @ 210mm
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
ISO 100, f22 @ 1/60 sec.

Soldier Crab
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 220mm
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
ISO 100, f22 @ 1/60 sec.

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Cayman Brac – In Search of Cuban Treefrogs & When In Doubt

Cuban Treefrog at Rest
Nikon D800, Nikon 24-85 VR @ 85mm
ISO 100, f22 @ 0.5 sec.

One thing I was looking most forward to upon returning to the Caribbean Island of Cayman Brac in March was photographing Cuban Treefrogs. Although the Cuban Treefrog is an invasive species throughout the Caribbean known to feast upon smaller frog species, they are still a beautiful treefrog. When I visited Cayman Brac in February 2014 the Cuban Treefrogs were very easy to locate however, in March 2015 this was not the case. It had been relatively dry prior to my return trip and I think some of the frogs moved on to wetter areas or were lying dormant somewhere. After three very unsuccessful nights of searching for these frogs I remembered one very important fact about treefrogs – they will most often hang-out around human structures and porch lights as the lights tend to provide these amphibians with an all-u-can-eat buffet 🙂 I began searching the decorative concrete wall surrounding the villa and alas I found a Cuban Treefrog sleeping away the day. The next plan was to monitor this frog as night began to fall so that I could finally create some fresh Cuban Treefrog imagery.

Cuban Treefrog
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400 VR @ 200mm
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on a Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket
ISO 100, f22 @ 1/60 sec.

Once I had discovered this frog’s day-time resting place I was easily able to locate and photograph it over the course of several nights. Here is a selection of my most favorite froggie images from the lovely island of Cayman Brac.

As you scroll through the images below do note that I have used a Canon 500D Close-up Filter on my Nikon 80-400mm VR lens. This close-up filter is a simple and relatively inexpensive option for turning lenses such as the Nikon 80-400mm and the Canon 100-400mm into close focusing macro lenses. Here is a photo to illustrate the Canon 500D Close-up Filter attached to my Nikon 80-400mm VR lens.

Canon 500D Close-up Filter Attached to Nikon 80-400mm VR Lens

Also note that each of these images were photographed handheld using the discontinued Nikon Speedlight SB600 on a Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket (the best flash bracket on the market for macro work today).

Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket

Please do remember to click on each image to see the larger, sharper versions.

Cuban Treefrog
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 195mm
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on a Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket
ISO 100, f22 @ 1/60 sec.

Cuban Treefrog
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 92mm
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on a Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket
ISO 100, f22 @ 1/60 sec.

Cuban Treefrog
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 260mm
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on a Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket
ISO 100, f22 @ 1/60 sec.

Cuban Treefrog
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 175mm
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on a Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket
ISO 100, f32 @ 1/60 sec.

Cuban Treefrog – headshot
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 310mm
Canon 500D Close-up Filter
Nikon Speedlight SB600 on a Wimberley F-2 Macro Bracket
ISO 100, f32 @ 1/60 sec.

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Toronto Digital Photography Club Presentation

I am looking forward to presenting “A Photographer’s Guide to the Ontario Landscape”  on Tuesday April 14th to the Toronto Digital Photography Club. The presentation will be starting at 7:30 p.m. at the Edithvale Community Centre located at 131 Finch Ave West in Toronto. As usual, I will be offering copies of my eBook (on CD) to those in attendance, at the presentation special of $20 CDN.

“A Photographer’s Guide to the Ontario Landscape” is an extensive guide to landscape photography in Ontario complete with driving directions to each of the one-hundred plus locations featured within the guide. It is the only such guide that is available to folks, guiding them around the province to many beautiful vistas. The guide was published in 2011 by Birds As Art Books (Arthur Morris) and is also available for purchase on-line here, however, the presentation special does not apply to on-line sales.

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Cayman Brac – Brown Booby Nesting Season

Brown Booby (male)
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 400mm
ISO 400, f16 @ 1/125 sec.

During my visit to Cayman Brac in February 2014 I was able to photograph the Brown Booby colony on the island as they were incubating their eggs. I kept hoping that the eggs would hatch before I departed the island, but no such luck, so I planned my recent trip to be slightly later in to the nesting season to be assured of hatchlings at the nest.

Brown Booby pair at Nest
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 330mm
ISO 800, f11 @ 1/250 sec.

On Cayman Brac the Brown Booby nests at the very edge of the 144 foot bluff that dominates the east end of the tiny island (Cayman Brac is roughly 12 miles long and about 1 mile wide). My timing for my recent March 2015 visit was perfect as there were birds sitting on eggs, parents with chicks, and chicks that had began molting. Shortly before sunset I would make way to the trail that follows the edge of the bluff to photograph in the warm glow of the setting sun.

Brown Booby with Chick at the Nest
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 120 mm
ISO 200, f11 @ 1/500 sec.

The experience of being able to sit and watch these majestic seabirds with their young at the very edge of the bluff is one I will not soon forget, nor is the sight of the fluffy, white chicks stretching their little wings that will one day enable them to glide over the ocean waves and plummet into the sea to catch their prey.

Brown Booby Chick
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 230mm
ISO 100, f8 @1/250 sec.

During my two weeks on Cayman Brac I created several thousand photos of the Brown Booby. This post represents some of my most favorite images…hope you like them too 🙂

Do remember to click on the images to see the larger, sharper versions.

Brown Booby Chick Molting
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 400mm
ISO 800, f8 @ 1/160 sec.

Brown Booby
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 280mm
ISO 1250, f8 @ 1/80 sec.

Brown Booby with Chick at the Nest
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 360mm
ISO 200, f16 @ 1/250 sec.

Brown Booby with Chick at the Nest
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 330mm
ISO 400, f11 @ 1/320 sec.

Brown Booby with Chick
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 400mm
ISO 400, f16 @ 1/250 sec.

Brown Booby (female)
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR @ 400mm
ISO 200, f11 @ 1/500 sec.

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Cayman Brac Landscapes

Sunrise on the South Shore of Cayman Brac
Nikon D800, Nikon 18-35mm lens @ 18mm
ISO 50, f16 @ 1/5 second
3-Stop Reverse Graduated Neutral Density Filter

Since my return from Cayman Brac in the Cayman Islands I have been busy processing the images created during my two weeks on the island as well as getting caught up on a backlog of work. The terrain of Cayman Brac is mostly that of what is referred to as the “Iron Shore” however, there are a few sandy beach locations and also a very rugged cliff on the east end of the island. Cayman Brac is roughly 12 miles long by about 1 mile wide so getting around the island to photogenic locations is never really a challenge.

For my two week stay on the island I rented a villa on the south shore that has a lovely sandy beach with a few strewn rocks that were often my subjects for sunrise imagery due to their photogenic appearance.

Daybreak on the South Shore of Cayman Brac
Nikon D800, Nikon 18-35mm lens @ 20mm
ISO 50, f25 @ 0.8 seconds
3-Stop Reverse Graduated Neutral Density Filter

For the sunrise imagery over the Caribbean Sea my number one, go-to filter was the Singh Ray 3-Stop Reverse Graduated Neutral Density Filter. A reverse grad filter has the darkest density in the center of the filter and will transition to the lighter density has you approach the top of the filter, therefore, it does an excellent job of holding back the brightness of the sun when it is on the horizon without over darkening the upper portions of the sky.

Pollard Bay at Sunrise on Cayman Brac
Nikon D800, Nikon 18-35mm lens @ 18mm
ISO 100, f16 @ 10 seconds
3-Stop Reverse Graduated Neutral Density Filter

On the morning I decided to make way up to Pollard Bay for sunrise opportunities on the eastern end of the island I was rewarded with a beautiful sky, and I was immediately drawn to the numerous tide pools reflecting the sky’s colors. The iron shore here is also adorned with lovely green vegetation. After the sunrise image opportunities ended I walked along the shore towards the base of the brac – a Scottish word for bluff.The walk to the base of the bluff was relatively easy, with only one section that would have been treacherous during rough seas, but the seas were not too bad and all I had to contend with was a touch of ocean spray as the waves crashed into the rugged shore.

Rugged Shoreline on Cayman Brac
Nikon D800, Nikon 18-35mm lens @ 35mm
ISO 50, f16 @ 1/25 sec.
Nikon Polarizing Filter

Crashing Wave on Cayman Brac
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR lens @ 95mm
ISO 50, f25 @ 1/8 sec
Nikon Polarizing Filter

The north shore of Cayman Brac provided nice opportunities for sunset images, however, on most evenings as the sun was setting the skies were uncloudy. With little interest in the cloudless skies it was often best to have a minimal amount of sky within the compositions and concentrate on foreground details. Lengthy exposures would blur the ocean’s wave action into a pleasing misty appearance.

Twilight on Cayman Brac’s North Shore
Nikon D800, Nikon 18-35mm lens @ 22mm
ISO 100, f16 @ 6 seconds

Often during my morning sunrise sessions the sun would end up rising into a bank of clouds and present a lovely display of crepuscular rays – below is one of my most favorite such displays that I witnessed.

Please do remember to click on each image to view the larger, sharper versions.

Crepuscular Rays Over the Caribbean Sea
Nikon D800, Nikon 80-400mm VR lens @ 80mm
ISO 50, f22 @ 1/13 second

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