Spring Has Sprung in Texas

FOsteology · March 17, 2011, 02:50:38 PM

You know Spring has arrived in Texas when you see fields of these:

Hawks Feather · March 17, 2011, 04:48:39 PM

Fos,

Nice picture. Looks like it would be a neat place to take LOTS more shots.

Jerry

iahntr · March 17, 2011, 06:11:57 PM

I thought maybe it'd be the snakes comin out or somethin.

FOsteology · March 17, 2011, 06:38:57 PM

Quote from: iahntr on March 17, 2011, 06:11:57 PM
I thought maybe it'd be the snakes comin out or somethin.

Spring time in Texas is also signaled by the creepy crawlies.

FinsnFur · March 17, 2011, 07:41:05 PM

Wow, were still walking across the Mississippi up here

Hawks Feather · March 17, 2011, 07:48:20 PM

I kind of wondered if they would be out in the "greens" looking for snacks. Now I know. Great shots of the rattlesnake. What happened to your Canon?

Jerry

FOsteology · March 17, 2011, 08:07:09 PM

I ended up selling the Canon 40D as I was seriously contemplating upgrading to the 7D.
I may eventually do just that, as I still have a couple "L" lenses, and with shooting birds and the boys playing sport, I think it'll serve me well.

The past few months I've been slumming the micro 4/3 camera's. Specifically the Panasonic GF1 and Olympus E-PL1.
I have a couple primes, and a couple zooms. IQ is more than acceptable for the type of photography I'm doing (amateur).
I really like the concept as it's a royal PITA carrying around a heavy DSLR and the Canon 100-400mm and 400mm prime.

I picked up the new Canon S95 so I'll always have a camera with me. Pretty spiffy for a P&S. The new Olympus XZ-1 has caught my eye, but still on the fence as I think the size is just enough to preclude it from being truly "pocketable".

iahntr · March 17, 2011, 09:48:09 PM

I thought maybe.

Hawks Feather · March 17, 2011, 10:30:04 PM

Fos,

You should probably just send those Canon lens up here so that they don't get feeling like they are on welfare or something. I will put them to work. I do understand the weight. I have a 50D with a battery grip and it starts out heavy and then when you add a lens it becomes an anchor. I did get to look at one of the new 70-200 f2.8 II's about a month ago and that will probably be my next lens. Probably a couple of years out so that I can have enough saved and some of the used ones will start to show up. The problem with the Canon (probably Nikon and others as well) is that they keep their value and in some cases (when there is a sale) you can get new for less than used.

Jerry

lacie23 · March 19, 2011, 05:43:55 PM

Beautiful flowers, but I wouldn't want to meet up with that big snake !

FOsteology · March 19, 2011, 06:24:28 PM

That's a small rattler Lacie! You should see the BIG ones!!

Jerry,

Yes indeed, Canon "L" lenses hold their value. I've been tempted to sell off the 85mm f/1.8, 100-400mm and the 400mm prime and upgrade to the 500mm f/4
However, even after selling all my remaining lenses, I'd still be less than 1/2 way towards the new prime! Just a little hesitant to fork over that much scratch for ONE lens!

A serious investment to be sure.... but I think (talking myself into it) for shooting birds, wildlife, and the boys playing football the BIG lens would be ideal....

FOsteology · March 19, 2011, 06:35:45 PM

Forgot to mention, I'm experimenting with a Panasonic G1 m4/3 camera and Lumix/Panny 14-45mm f/3.5-5.6 mounted to my Kowa TSN-602 60mm spotting scope with the Kowa DA1 digiscoping adapter.

It has the range, but unfortunately the photo's are not as promising as I had hoped...... perhaps the picture quality would be better with a spotter with APO/HD/Flourite Glass

With the super moon making it's appearance this evening (closets it's been to Earth in 30+ years!) I think I'm going to attach the new 100-300mm f/4-5.6 to the digiscoping outfit
and see if I can get some decent images.

Anyone else going to snaps some pictures of tonight's Super Moon?

Hawks Feather · March 19, 2011, 08:10:45 PM

Quote from: FOsteology on March 19, 2011, 06:35:45 PM
Anyone else going to snaps some pictures of tonight's Super Moon?

I had planned to, until the clouds rolled in. It is darker than a cows stomach outside right now. Have fun and I will look for the images.

I have only read about the G1 camera and it seems that there aren't too many middle of the road views - either people LOVE them or don't like them, with more on the love end. It is a neat concept.

Jerry

FinsnFur · March 19, 2011, 08:46:01 PM

I was gonna try too also, and it's blacker then Toby out here too. I'm gonna set the pod up and let the shutter hang if I can get a break in the clouds. Thats about the only way I'm gonna get anything with my camera.

FOsteology · March 19, 2011, 09:32:36 PM

Kids and I sat out on the back porch as soon as it was dark. Watched the moon rise and climb the night sky.

No cloud cover, but the wind is still pretty strong (15-20mph) which played havoc on the digiscope setup stability. Had to wait in between gusts to click the remote control.
Moon exhibited/cast a yellowish tint, so I converted to B&W (PSE8). Added some tiny white specks to simulate stars.

Taken with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 and Panasonic Lumix 14-45mm f/3.5-5.6 (set at 35mm) through my Kowa TSN-602 60mm spotter with fixed 27x eyepiece.
1/1250 f/8 ISO 800 tripod and cable shutter release

Here's a few images straight out of the camera. No post processing, edits, etc. Just to demonstrate how the wind affected the setup. The wind wobbles the spotter and camera enough to cause some blur, and affect the sharpness. I'm going to wait for a nice calm/still night and do some snap shots. Going to try a couple different lenses too. The issue I think I may encounter with some of the higher powered variables is vignetting. The current lens is fine from 18 -35mm. Anything less or more shows vignetting.

FOsteology · March 19, 2011, 09:46:53 PM

Quote from: Hawks Feather on March 19, 2011, 08:10:45 PMI have only read about the G1 camera and it seems that there aren't too many middle of the road views - either people LOVE them or don't like them, with more on the love end. It is a neat concept.

For digiscoping, the G1 and the newer G2 come highly recommended. The folks over on the BirdForum have been singing it's praise for a couple years. Those guys have been taking some exceptional pictures of birds. Seems the Swaro 80mm HD with the 30x fixed eye piece and the Swaro DCA adapter is the spotter setup of choice for those that are consistently taking exceptional pictures.

I recently acquired my G1 off eBay for a good price. Very light weight, and the swivel LCD display sure comes in handy. I'm in the "LOVE It" camp.

pitw · March 19, 2011, 09:52:51 PM

Too foggy and cloudy here to see it too

. I wouldn't have got shots like yours anyway

. Thanks.

FinsnFur · March 19, 2011, 10:59:23 PM

CHEESENRICE! that is so cool. I'm not even posting mine now

Nooooooooo way.

msmith · March 20, 2011, 07:03:07 AM

WOW! Great pics Fos. Really cool shots of the moon! My favorite is the wild flowers though. I like wild flowers. What would those be? 'Round here, about all we have blooming right now is Colt's foot, but the Easter Lilies are budding. How about that rattler? Do you guys kill 'em and eat 'em? Always wanted to try Rattle Snake at least to just say I did.

Colt's Foot http://wildeherb.com/2008/04/04/coltsfoot-heralds-spring-with-its-bright-yellow-blossoms/

Hawks Feather · March 20, 2011, 11:15:25 AM

Nice images Fos. I went out a couple of times with the hopes of finding a hole in the covering, but it didn't happen. All that I could ever see was a lighter area in the darkness.

Thanks for the info on the camera. Which bird forum is it? The part of POTN or a different one?

Jerry