Weekend Camera fun

This is me at Union Bay Natural Area with the Nikkor 400mm F2.8 VR and 2x extender. These lenses are so expensive that it's WAY cheaper to rent them than buy them. But if I won the lottery I just might have to get one...

This is me at Union Bay Natural Area with the Nikkor 400mm F2.8 VR and 2x extender. These lenses are so expensive that it’s WAY cheaper to rent them than buy them. But if I won the lottery I just might have to get one…Despite the comments on my Facebook page about “compensating” for something.  

I posted a lot of pictures from the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge yesterday.  Today’s pictures are from Seward Park and Union Bay Natural Area (and one from my house) in Seattle.  Both parks are close to home and have abundant wildlife, especially birds.

The 400mm F2.8 paired with the 2x extender was a great combo.  There was some light degradation, but it worked really well to bring things in close.

I didn't take this with the rented lens, but I liked the photo a lot anyway.  It snows so seldom here, it's fun to shoot when it does.  20mm Lens.

I didn’t take this with the rented lens, but I liked the photo a lot anyway. It snows so seldom here, it’s fun to shoot when it does. 20mm Lens.

peepers

The reach on this lens was such that I was able to shoot this from roughly 200 yards away.

DSC_7983

The light today was great…the grey skies and snow on the ground made it one giant softbox.

DSC_8053

As often happens, this eagle snuck up on me. I was only able to snap this one photo of him flying.

DSC_8087-2

He was nice enough to land on a nearby tree and sit there for 20 minutes while I snapped a few dozen pictures of him.

DSC_8107

The clarity of this lens is incredible.

DSC_8169

I take tons of pictures of cormorants, but hardly ever post them, because they are too far away. This lens let me get up close enough to really see the coloration of his beak and eye.

Homage Pt II

I started geeking last night and it continued to tonight.  This will run its course, I promise.

In the meantime, I made these tonight.

Homage

I stumbled across a blog the other day, quite by accident.  Check it out here.

Inspired, I decided to do an homage of sorts.  And, since the Seahawks are going to be in the Superbowl on Sunday, I thought I’d mix it up with a little Seahawks pride.

Thank you NikitaVdV, for the inspiration!

12thMan 1

I created this using a photo of a 12th man flag displayed on my iPhone as the only light.

I made this one using a small LED light...I'd do it differently next time, as I had to do a lot of post-processing to get this to this stage...

I made this one using a small LED light…I’d do it differently next time, as I had to do a lot of post-processing to get this to this stage…

Bottlelight

Lit entirely by the home screen on my iPhone.

12thMan 2

Another try at the 12th Man Motif. This time with zig-zags.

 

Go Hawks!

Go Hawks!