Yesterday morning I had more problems with differential heat waves? at Bear River MBR. If this keeps up I’m thinking about taking up knitting instead of bird photography. After all, the world needs another Rosey Grier.
1/1600, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Just before sunrise yesterday I saw the coldest temperature I’ve experienced so far this winter, 3° F., and it didn’t get much warmer while I was at the refuge. The extreme cold was likely, possibly?, the cause of my sharpness problems that lasted all morning.
1/1600, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
A minute or two after sunrise, just before I reached the refuge gate, there was an adult Bald Eagle on this old post which has been a favorite eagle perch for years. I suspect nearly every bird photographer who has visited the refuge in winter has photos similar to this one. Recently on my blog I celebrated the first bird I kept photos of in 2021 – a Bald Eagle in a neighbor’s tree. I guess what goes around comes around because this will be the first bird I’ll keep photos of in 2022.
While I had the eagle in my viewfinder I was suspicious that I wasn’t getting sharp images and I was right. None of my photos of this bird were as sharp as they should be, even though this one doesn’t look too bad at this small size. I deliberately took this photo vertically to include more of the post and make the eagle smaller in the cropped frame so the softness I thought I was seeing through my viewfinder wouldn’t be quite as evident.
I took more than a thousand photos yesterday, many of which I had high hopes for, but a quick review of them last night revealed that most of them were moderately to grossly soft.
In fact, one of yesterday’s photos of a Rough-legged Hawk perfectly summed up…
1/4000, f/5, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM @248mm, not baited, set up or called in
what I think of most of yesterday’s photos – they were a poopy mess. This photo was taken with my smaller zoom lens which was having sharpness problems in the cold too. At least this one’s reasonably sharp.
1/2500, f/7.1, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Even my photos of this Rough-legged Hawk from a very close vantage point were a little softer than they should have been. We see evidence of the extreme cold in the layers of frost on the back of this bird’s right shoulder and elsewhere. I believe the cold temperatures were causing me to shoot through differential heat waves which caused the softness I was experiencing for most of the morning.
At least I hope that’s what it was and not something more… sinister.
Ron
PS – A progress? report on a recent development at the refuge.
Not too long ago I reported that I had talked to a refuge employee who told me that this old viewing platform on the south end of the auto tour loop was slated for demolition. Then nothing was done about it for several weeks.
Well, it’s gone now, or at least there’s nothing left of it but a pile of rubble. I was told it was unsafe and if so I can see why it had to be torn down but this bird photographer is going to miss it. And so will the birds that liked to perch on it.
Hey Ron, sorry to hear that you are experiencing issues with sharpness. If it makes you feel any better, I had the same issue with my photos last week in even colder temperatures in Northern Minnesota. My kit is similar to yours- 7D Mark II + Canon 600mm f4.0. The softness I experienced was more pronounced when I was shooting wide open.
The first and last shots in this post are a little tough to take, but the bird ones in the middle are great! The tiny bit of softness that comes through in the eagle and hawk images add to the sense of frigid cold those birds (and their photographers) are experiencing. Truth be told, I don’t think I’d even notice that level of softness if you hadn’t taught me to look for it over the years. 😉 So glad these didn’t end up in your delete bin. Also, hoping that the viewing platform will be rebuilt — those platforms end up saving a lot of underbrush in the long run too.
Marty, that old platform was a bit of an eyesore I guess but I got used to it, and liked it. More importantly, so did some of the birds.
I was just home to Louisiana where it was unseasonably warm (80 was a high and they had tornado warnings!) I was happy to come home to New Mexico for some cold weather. But I don’t think I’d like frost on my feathers!
NOLA was in the 30s this morning.
Arwen, extremes in either direction can brutal.
I was farther north of you, it was 1 degree all morning. I had heat wave problems too. Most of my photos are not as sharp as I like but the birds were great! I could visibly see waves shimmer and make the back light snow glitter in my view finder. I might head up on a cloudy or snowy day if the roads are clear. I had to remember to remove the mantis egg ootheca from my car at midnight, I did not want them to start to warm and grow in the garage after a long drive in a warm car. I need to swing by nest time I am your way and deliver them.
I figured that’s where you were, April. We were fairly close to each other but not close enough.
Good to know I’m not the only one who was having heat wave problems but on the other hand I wouldn’t wish those problems on a friend.
OK, you win. We got down to 5° about a week ago and I doubt we’ll see anything in the single digits again this winter (might have just jinxed myself there). I thought we had lost all our Anna’s Hummingbirds but one male showed up at a feeder the next day and my wife just saw a female a few minutes ago. 5° and hummer survivors; seems paradoxical, like 3° and heat waves.
I’m not sure I’d call that “winning”, Lyle.
I’ve been seeing that some of the bird supply stores (Wild Birds Unlimited) ran out of heated hummer feeders during your cold spell. I think our WBU store shipped them some. The owner of our local store, Kelli Frame, is a good person all around.
The world does indeed need a LOT more Rosey Griers. Thanks for the link to a man I hadn’t heard of (in any of his incarnations).
I understand your disappointment but I wasn’t. At all. I see King Parrots with frost on their feathers (at much less harsh temperatures). Perhaps our birds are wimps.
And I love the solid manifestation of ‘I fart in your general direction’.
“And I love the solid manifestation of ‘I fart in your general direction’.”
Well, you did it again EC. You made me LOL. With gusto.
GOOD.
I’m so pleased to see both Bald Eagle and Rough-legged Hawk this morning, a twofer that’s pleasing to my eye even as I understand your disappointment with the softness. So thanks for saving them from the cull! And honestly, that Roughie’s slice does look like an icicle so maybe you did hear it “clink”!
35 here this morning at 7:30 — quite cold for my Ventura Co. location — but getting out of a cozy bed is worth it to see your 2022 Bald Eagle! But that destroyed viewing platform is too sad for words….
“that destroyed viewing platform is too sad for words”
Chris, I don’t often wish for additional man-made structures in ‘wild’ places but after some thought I do hope they eventually replace this one. There aren’t many elevated perches for birds at Bear River MBR and they keep tearing down or removing the few that exist.
This is now my favorite of your Bald eagle pictures😊 I love everything about it… his hairdo, the turn of his head, the post and background. Yes, my new favorite❗️
Good to know, Diana. Very good to know.
That’s a great photo of the eagle, Ron. I love the textures and colors and the perfect pose. Yesterday I happened to be looking out a window into my backyard when a bald eagle flew over the roof, swooped low to the ground and made a tight turn around a tree at the back of the yard – pursued by a redtail. It was the first up-close eagle view I’ve had in a while, and it is easy to forget just how majestic they really are. I think some nice views of our national bird are a great way to start off 2022 – thanks for posting this beautiful shot, and Happy New Year.
Bill, most any sighting of a Bald Eagle is special to most of us and it sounds like your sighting was extra memorable.
I don’t care about the softness. My eyes don’t even notice it, to be honest. What I love is the candid shots of the birds’ behaviors, the non-traditional ‘poses’, the context of the environment, the stories. Birds are beings with lives, not just models for pretty pictures. In my opinion.
Thanks for your perspective, Cheryl.
Sharpness is important, very important, to me because even moderately soft images don’t look good at all when printed. Any softer than that and they don’t look very good at web size either.
That photo of the eagle is Beautiful. Even if people have photos that are similar they probably don’t one that is framed this perfectly. The gorgeous bands of color that make up the landscape beyond are in exactly the right place and give the bird an environment in which to live and breath without taking any thing away from him – the star of show. Gorgeous! Slight softness be damned.
“Even if people have photos that are similar they probably don’t one that is framed this perfectly”
Joanne, actually what I think is most special about that shot is the beautiful warm, very early morning light. I’ve seen many other similar photos taken later in the day and I don’t like them nearly as well. Most folks don’t like to get up that early… 🙂
Poor wild critters. I wonder if they, like humans, gradually lose their ability to tolerate extreme temperatures as they age ? Probably they don’t live long enough to get the test– in “sunny Southern Utah”, a few miles north of me,
it hit 3 BELOW zero yesterday !
That’s cold, Kris – especially for most of your area.
I think we have seen that post many times. Or at least I think we have. Great way to start of the new year with a very cold eagle. It’s a wonder the Roughie’s poop didn’t freeze in mid air. I remember you showing us that old viewing platform. Probably became a hazard. Too bad they could have have repaired or replaced it.
I am out on foot for all my photos and the coldest I have ever been out here in the morning was 16. At 3 degrees you for sure need to be in a truck and I guess even that would be damn cold.
Wishing you an excellent year of photos along with good health and a snow blower that works.
“It’s a wonder the Roughie’s poop didn’t freeze in mid air.”
Who’s to say it didn’t, Everett. I think I heard a “clink” when it hit the ground… 🙂
Ron, Was this the viewing platform on the left about 3/4 through the drive ? I was on that platform last October and I really didn’t notice anything unsafe about it….
Yes, that’s it Gary – about a half mile before you get back to the refuge entrance.
It was perfectly safe for one person or a few but sometimes entire busloads of people use it at the same time. That’s what they were worried about. They had it inspected by the state and the inspector deemed it unsafe.
I am particularly taken with the picture of the bird with frost on his feathers. Something I would not have a chance to see in Florida. I sometimes stop to reflect how lucky I am to live now, when we can take photos and videos of birds and animals. Without them, I wouldn’t have any idea of what a living bird (or jaguar or elephant) looks like up close. Thanks for giving me this window on what you see, and don’t be too quick to hit delete!
“don’t be too quick to hit delete”
Mary, last night I was tempted to delete the entire morning’s photos in one ‘swell foop’ but decided against it. I’ll go through them more carefully in the next day or two.
“last night I was tempted to delete the entire morning’s photos in one ‘swell foop’”
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! 😱😱😱🙀🙀🙀 Step away from the delete key!
The eagle and hawk both show their displeasure with the temps even if not as sharp as you’d like! 😉 Definitely “fluffed up” a bit – at least a little sunlight “might” help. Hopefully the differential heat wave thing is to blame – since both lenses seem to be experiencing it……..?
We’re doing the half-assed chinook thing that will end tonight again. 🙁 The wild swings don’t allow for getting used to anything.
Judy, I saw from your FB post it’s supposed to be 39 below in Cut Bank soon. My cousin Jim Dudley told me yesterday that the sustained winds up there were 40+ mph. I sure don’t miss those conditions on the farm.
This morning here in central Illinois it’s minus 2 degrees, the coldest so far this year, but, then it’s January and we expect it.
Brrrr…
We lost one of my favorite platforms at a nearby refuge, too. Everything has a life span, and the insults of various hurricanes didn’t help. Unlike the birds, some things can’t fly away! I must say: even when your sharp eye isn’t satisfied with your day’s results, they’re still a cut above most and well worth viewing.
Thank you, Shoreacres. Your last sentence was especially appreciated.
You beat last January’s record despite the cold. Great shots, but I understand that, for you, “perfect” is the enemy of “great.” We just moved to Connecticut from Florida, so I am having trouble adjusting to the mid-20 degrees.
Kenneth, I know what you mean about adjusting to the cold, which is relative. Yesterday I mentioned to a friend what a pansy-ass I’ve become regarding my tolerance of cold. When I lived in northern Montana the temperatures I experienced yesterday would have been a walk in the park
Think age has something to do with it too! 😉 I sure don’t do as well with it as I used to. 🙁 Will the platform be rebuilt or don’t know?
I don’t know, Judy. Forgot to ask.