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My second total solar eclipse in my life (just 7 years from the last. What an amazing experience! Afterwards, I looked at my last shots on my camera and saw they were hopelessly out of focus. I was still so thrilled about the day that I didn't let it get to me.
I got back to the hotel and saw I had some decent ones from the beginning of totality, including the diamond ring shots I missed last time. The irony is that I was busy getting video of in beginning of totality last time that I only got shot of the end of totality. This time, I got the beginning and not the end!
Here is the YT video I got with my other camera and lens.
One thing I have loved about the EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II lens is its speed in focusing. Coupled with my Canon 7D mark ii (that has an amazing arsenal of auto-focus options and bells and whistles, this has been wonderful setup for wildlife photography, especially birds in flight. In fact, having shot with the mark 1 of both camera and lens, I can say the two are a significant improvement over the original. And between the lens being sharp wide-open (2 stops improvement over the old where I had to stop down to f/8), having another stop of image stabilization, and the camera's sensor adding at least another stop in image quality at higher resolution, I would say this set up is a good 4 to 5 stops improvement over the old!
So I have so loved this setup!
Had an awesome encounter with a Scarlet Tanager last week which afforded me the dream shots I have been hoping for for many yaars.
One of my recently moulted Mexican Flame-knee tarantulas (Brachypelma auratum) sitting on a nautiloid fossil.
These otters popped up from a hole in the ice just 20 feet from me at the Narrows in Prince Albert National Park in Saskatchewan Canada.
A few more photos from yesterday. In hindsight, it was a sweet day with some variety, though at the time, it didn't feel like a wild success, even though the Golden-winged Warbler was a sweet sweet find.
This and a partner beaver were swimming around within 20 feet of me at the beaver lodge along Grey Owl's Cabin Trail (before West Wind).
A few photos I did not upload from the May 10/11 storm. That was an incredible storm. The yellow/orange colors in these corona shots are not a result of any photoshopping. My typical workflow does involve some contrast and highlight/shadow adjustments, but I rarely even saturate the colors. If anything, I will lower the saturation at times when the contrast adjustments oversaturate it.
All that to say, these colors are real.
From what I have read, oranges and yellows are the results of overlaps of the typical greens and pinks. Still, these yellows are intense.
Had an awesome encounter with a Scarlet Tanager last week which afforded me the dream shots I have been hoping for for many yaars.
Enjoyed a nice morning out at Crex Meadows this morning. Not super active, but seeing 3 wolves, 2 shirked, and some Sharp-tailed Grouse was satisfying.
I had recently reworked this stack with a new workflow and wanted to upload it again.
I also enjoy the twilight, northern lights and airglow visible in this stack.
Enjoyed a nice morning out at Crex Meadows this morning. Not super active, but seeing 3 wolves, 2 shirked, and some Sharp-tailed Grouse was satisfying.
There was a third wolf, but I didn't see it until I got home and looked over the pics. Clearly different and trailing behind.
This is only the third time in my l life to see them, and in each case, they are so far as to be barely photographic.
A phenomenal Geomagnetic Storm last night. This is the best storm I have seen in the States to date (after 23 years of watching).
Tooka trip up to the North Shore of Lake Superior to photograph Northern Lights with a friend tonight. Worth the trip. Not the best show by far, but a great photo-shoot nonetheless.
For the second night in a row, the heavens opened up. This time, I am beginning to recognize a pattern. I love auroras that are well-defined with brilliant curtains, and I have seen enough now to recognize that they typically come strong in these times out of times of soft, diffuse bands of lights across the sky. I saw it some last night, and tonight, I was just about to turn in when I saw this and decided to look for another location to shoot from. So glad I did. I found a pigeon barn on the outskirts of town on the side of the road. I set up my camera, and started getting shots of the auroras with the barn in the foreground. Soon, the heavens opened up, just as I predicted. WELL worth the extra time out tonight.
A great northern lights storm this evening. Some beautiful lights for any hour, but a brilliant burst that lasted maybe 10 minutes turned the snow green!
The reds in this shot were visible to the naked eye. It has been a long time since I have seen such reds in auroras.
For the second night in a row, the heavens opened up. This time, I am beginning to recognize a pattern. I love auroras that are well-defined with brilliant curtains, and I have seen enough now to recognize that they typically come strong in these times out of times of soft, diffuse bands of lights across the sky. I saw it some last night, and tonight, I was just about to turn in when I saw this and decided to look for another location to shoot from. So glad I did. I found a pigeon barn on the outskirts of town on the side of the road. I set up my camera, and started getting shots of the auroras with the barn in the foreground. Soon, the heavens opened up, just as I predicted. WELL worth the extra time out tonight.
V/Line's X38 which at the time was on hire to Austrac is stabled at the MCS sidings at Cooks River.
The loco would be used on Austrac's Sydney to Melbourne (SM7) service the following day.
Freight Corp's 8015 can be seen in the background.
Saturday 1st May 1999
I find it ironic that I have one of my best shots of an Ovenbird so late in the season. I'll take it.
I woke at 4am to see that satellites indicated that the northern lights storm had just started, which meant that I had roughly an hour to get outside before they showed up. Thankfully, the spot I had picked the day before for this was just 7 miles away and my camera gear was all ready.
This storm wasn't the brightest, but it was one of maybe 4 times in 23 years that I could see the reds with my naked eye. That also meant they often overpowered my camera's sensor.
The moonlight didn't interfere with this show, but gave some lights to the foreground. And the lake I took these pictures on had very little snow, giving me opportunity to see some reflection.
Waiting for the storm the night before on this lake, I didn't see lights, but did hear the lake giving some very impressive ice quakes.
In all, it was a great way to start the morning.