Canon RAW saves the Day!

I admit that this still isn't all that great of an image, but it was an outstanding opportunity!

I saw this turkey getting ready to fly across a stream. It happened so quickly that I was barely able to get the camera to my eye and fire before it was all over. Unfortunately the meter was influenced by the dark area in the center and left portion of the picture and the resulting image was grossly overexposed. It was too bright to salvage had I shot it in jpeg. Since it was shot in RAW I was able to get detail in the highlights, but no part of the turkey is completely sharp. I should have had the camera set in burst mode, then I would have had several frames to choose from. It would have been nice to have captured him just a few feet further to the left so that none of the body was obscured.

Canon 40-D: 300mmF4@f4.5-1/350 sec. ISO 400

Bee On Peach Blossom-Canon 40-D: 100mmF2.8 Macro
f11@1/125 sec. ISO 200

In this instance the subject was static and I was able to use a tripod to steady the camera and a reflector to assist in lighting the subject. It was windy, so I had to shoot between the gusts of wind.

Coltsfoot--One Of The First Flowers Of Spring

Coltsfoot is one of the earliest spring flowers to bloom in Fulton County. It bears a remarkable resemblance to dandelions, but it blooms much earlier than they do, I saw the first one around the middle of last week and finally took time out on Saturday afternoon to photograph them.

This flower is most often seen along roadsides and other disturbed areas where moisture is present. All of the below photographs were taken by the roadside.

Canon 40D: 17-40mmF4 L

Canon 40D: 100mmF2.8 Macro

Canon 40D: 100mmF2.8 Macro

The macro shots were taken by resting the camera on a "bean bag" for support. In this case some type of grain such as wheat was used, but most people take a small bag and fill it with beans, hence the name "bean bag. This makes a passable substitute for a tripod for low level shots, when one must lie on the ground to get the correct angle on the subject.

I was thinking about purchasing a tripod especially for this type of shooting as my Gitzo with Wimberley Head is not the right tool for this type of shot, but then I remembered an old Slik U212 that I no longer use and modified it for macro photography. I have had no chance to use it yet. If it works well, I will post a picture of it and give some more details.