<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The image above was shot from just above the bluebonnets at f 22 with the 16-35 mm lens and Canon EOS Mark III camera\u00a0on a tripod.\u00a0 I tilted the camera\u00a0sharply downward and\u00a0used a cable release to trip the shutter.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The photo above was done at\u00a0ground level (very tough on the photographer’s neck) just as the sun was setting.\u00a0 Again, I used the super wide angle lens for this shot.\u00a0 All my daylight landscape shots were done with a polarizer attached and rotated enough to distribute the darkening effect on the sky.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n I captured this Great Blue Heron in breeding plumage just as it touched down on a perch.\u00a0 For most of my bird shots, including this one, \u00a0I\u00a0use the Canon 7D and Canon 500 mm lens and try to capture action.\u00a0 I was using the center focusing point in the viewfinder to insure I got the bird in sharp focus.\u00a0 With multi-point focusing screens, focus tends to jump to the background, but it works well for birds with sky background.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n I couldn’t resist showing you this shot with the Roseate Spoonbill’s shadow on his wing.\u00a0 It really helps when you can capture something a little out of the ordinary in your nature shots.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The sweep of the spoonbill’s wings makes this shot exciting to me.\u00a0 Obviously, the Great Egret was\u00a0NOT impressed.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Under the dark clouds, I had to do this shot at ISO 1000 to get a shutter speed of 1\/400 second.\u00a0 Thanks to Adobe Camera RAW’s\u00a0 great noise reduction slider, I was able to eliminate most of the noise in this one.\u00a0 For the flight shot below, I used ISO 1250 to get a shutter speed of 1\/1250 to almost stop the bird’s motion.\u00a0 It’s not tack sharp, but close.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n For the last two springs, I’ve led a photography workshop\u00a0at the Hoak Ranch near Ozona, Texas.\u00a0\u00a0It was\u00a0tons of fun…we concentrated on light painting and star trails.\u00a0 There were lots of\u00a0nice cacti in bloom\u00a0and a few reptiles that\u00a0added to the interest of this west Texas setting.\u00a0 The bull snake above was photographed with the 16-35 mm wide angle lens at a distance of about 6 inches.\u00a0 The tongue makes the shot.\u00a0 Again, the photographer has to be willing to go prone for shots like this.\u00a0 It’s tough on the neck but the results are much nicer than shots done from above.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n I used the vignetting tool in ACR to help focus the viewers’ attention on the Pitaya Cactus growing from a ledge on the Hoak Ranch.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The shot above was a test shot\u00a0for the star trail photograph that was to\u00a0follow.\u00a0 * Just for fun, you should try helping 8 photographers set up, after dark, for a star trail shot.\u00a0 In spite of the high stress it placed on the workshop leader, the one hour exposure below is\u00a0what everyone got.\u00a0 I’ve never seen a happier group than ours\u00a0when they finally got a chance to see a real star trail captured in their own cameras.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n I hope you like this little collection of photos from a very busy spring in Texas.\u00a0 If you have time for a last minute trip, join me next week on Wednesday – Friday morning\u00a0at Caddo Lake, Texas for two and half day of great bird and landscape photography.\u00a0 There have been two cancellations in the last week which opened these slots.\u00a0 Just drop me an email and I’ll get the details to you immediately.\u00a0 This is your chance to get the yellow-throated warbler, prothonotary warbler, norther parula warbler, summer tanager, and a bunch more.<\/p>\n Finally, there are still two places left for the Block Creek Natural Area workshop on Friday-Sunday, May 11-13.\u00a0 We will be photographing painted buntings, vermilion flycatchers and more on that one.\u00a0 Check this web site for other details and contact me at lditto@larryditto.com<\/a> if you are interested.\u00a0 We will enjoy very nice accommodations and food on that Texas hill country shoot!<\/p>\n Thanks to all of you for checking in,<\/p>\n Larry<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It has been a busy spring with almost no time\u00a0produce a newsletter.\u00a0 But, at long last, here I am at the computer. I’ve been leading workshops and giving talks at nature festivals through April.\u00a0 Along the way, I met some great people and I’ve had\u00a0some great\u00a0photo opportunities.\u00a0 The unusually cloudy, rainy weather certainly\u00a0hurt the lesser … Continue reading Busy Spring<\/span> ![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.larryditto.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/Church-and-Bluebonnets_Larry-Ditto_70K4976.jpg\" "\\"Bluebonnets")
<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>