We started strong on the morning of February 25th during the last of my eight weeks of Winter Owl Workshops. A beautiful, almost pure white adult male Snowy Owl showed well, and we got a terrific take-off launch sequence. With the high still lingering, we set up where a predictable female Snowy Owl spent her winter. Despite a relatively quiet (and wet) afternoon, we got some great frames of a Male Northern Harrier (AKA Gray Ghost) hunting close to us. We continued our day with another drive and stopped for a flock of Horned Lark, and then Dave Evans pointed out some movement in front of the van; An American Kestrel had just grabbed a European Starling and dropped it on the side of the road. We set up low, sat, and waited for the Kestrel to return to her prize as she watched from the closest telephone pole. It didn’t take long to return and feast on her recent catch! This is almost the last frame I made before we left her in peace. Stay tuned to the blog for more images from this winter!
There are a few last-minute cancellations for my Winter Owl Workshops. The season is off to an epic start with loads of owls arriving for the winter over the last few weeks. Learn more about my Snowy Owl Workshops HERE.
I had the pleasure of attending Chris' Snowy Owl Workshop this past January. To be honest, I did not know much about Chris before the trip. All I knew was the quality of his images on his website and that I wanted Snowy owl pictures. Needless to say, Chris met and exceeded my expectations. He goes over and above to get you in the right place at the right time to capture the best images possible. Having been on numerous workshops around the world with various leaders, I can say Chris worked harder than most..... He also made sure that we were in a position to get a variety of images and not just 1000 photos of the same animal behaviour. Chris knows his birds and what they are going to do next(as much as humanly possible). He teaches in a way that things make sense. I was getting frustrated with my photography before this trip. I was able to get great shots before the workshop but felt that the percentage of great shots to missed shots needed to be better. Chris explained ways to change a few of my bad habits in a way that no one else ever did. I have tried manual exposure in the past but never got comfortable with it but after a day or two with Chris, it clicked in my mind and my images improved and the percentage of keepers went up.
If you get a chance to go on a workshop with Chris I would highly recommend it. I know I will again.
Shameless self-promotion: Proud to be featured in the 30th-anniversary edition of PHOTOnews Canada. The magazine is available in camera stores in Canada. I will update this post with a link to the online PDF edition when it is available.
There is still a couple of spots left for my otherwise sold-out Winter Owl Workshops in January. This winter is already proving to be the start of a great winter for Owls :)
KUDOS
Being a female on my first photo safari, I had some apprehensions before joining Chris on his acclaimed Winter Snowy Owl Safari. I worried about safety, that I wasn't a good enough photographer for someone with Chris's acclaim, and that I wouldn't be able to keep up with the group on treks. My fears subsided on Day One, and I knew this would be a week I would never forget. With the small group size, Chris was able to give each member the level of instruction they needed. Beyond having great opportunities for owl pictures, I learned helpful things about owl behaviour, owl spotting techniques, operating the camera, processing images, best clothing and gear for winter, and things like the "Dodds duffel toss" that help prevent injuries while putting my camera backpack on. Chris has an extensive knowledge of exposure theory. He is a patient teacher, skilled in helping his participants gain a deep understanding of this critical element of photography. He demonstrated why it is important to capture as much detail as possible for the best possible print, then showed us how to accomplish it. During the week of ever changing light, he kept checking our work to make sure we were getting the best possible results. I usually learn from books and enjoy photography as a solitary pursuit, but I enjoyed the camaraderie of this group experience and received many tips on world travel. The photo safari gave me time to immerse myself in photography and nature. I'm already planning my next safari with Chris.
Sony is very careful to note that Eye AF is designed to work with human subjects; they make no claims about it's ability with birds or mammals..BUT, with every firmware update, it seems to work better with non-human subjects. Make no mistake, it is not flawless, but when it works, it really nails the shots ;) The rumours are that Sony is continuing their efforts to improve this feature, and hope to announce it officially sometime in the future.
Do note the intentional movement in the wing-tips, even with a high shutter speed of 1/3,200 of a second. When I want to freeze the motion, and zoom into every detail, then I am working with a minimum shutter speed of 1/5,000 of a second.
I am just back from a cross Canada road trip that took just over six weeks and covered more than 17,500km. I was honoured to stop and present at various camera stores across the country, then ended the trip with presentations at ProFusion (Canada's largest camera show); all sponsored by Sony of Canada. Thank you Sony. I got to meet so many great photographers along the way; it was a blast!
I have received a lot of email asking about my thoughts on the new Sony FE 400 f/2.8 GM OSS lens; if I had one, and if I thought it was worth the price tag. Yes, I do own one and YES, it is worth the price! When paired with the Sony Alpha a9 Mirrorless Camera, the Sony FE 400 f/2.8 GM OSS is the fastest, most reactive with the most accurate auto focus lens that I have ever used. It is light and very well balanced (there was a lot of engineering involved to carefully design the lens with most of it's optics toward the back to make it really easy to hand-hold; a real win for birds-in-flight photographers). Add the Sony 2X Tele-extender, and you end up with a prime killing 800mm f/5.6 that is sharper and more capable than the Canon or Nikon prime lenses that I have used.
Sony took a huge step when thy developed the hybrid AF system that the Sony a9 uses; they have leapt forward with the XD Linear focus. There is no camera and lens that can focus as fast!
From the Sony website: "The XD Linear Motors have been newly developed to deliver higher thrust and efficiency than conventional types in order to make the most of the rapidly evolving speed performance of current and future camera bodies. Linear motor design and component layout have been thoroughly revised to achieve significantly higher thrust. Two of these new motors are used in the SEL400F28GM, achieving up to a 5x improvement* in moving-subject tracking performance. This means that the full speed performance of advanced camera bodies can be applied to capturing perfect images of the most dynamic sports or wildlife subjects. The XD Linear motors are further supported by new algorithms developed specifically for them, notably improving the motors’ response to control signals and minimizing lag and instability that can occur when driving a large aperture focus lens group for quiet, low-vibration operation. "
In summary, XD Linear focus is so much faster than the conventional rotational focus because it quickly and efficiently "thrusts" forward and backward to achieve tack sharp focus. Since conventional lens elements rotate like a nut on a bolt, they have to travel about five times further (think how little a nut moves in relation to how many times it must be turned). There is a limit as to how fast a lens (or lens group) can safely move in a rotational manner.
I had the pleasure of attending Chris' Snowy Owl Workshop this past January. To be honest, I did not know much about Chris before the trip. All I knew was the quality of his images on his website and that I wanted Snowy owl pictures. Needless to say, Chris met and exceeded my expectations. He goes over and above to get you in the right place at the right time to capture the best images possible. Having been on numerous workshops around the world with various leaders, I can say Chris worked harder than most..... He also made sure that we were in position to get a variety of images and not just 1000 photos of the same animal behavior. Chris knows his birds and what they are going to do next(as much as humanly possible). He teaches in a way that things make sense. I was getting frustrated with my photography before this trip. I was able to get great shots before the workshop but felt that the percentage of great shots to missed shots needed to be better. Chris explained ways to change a few of my bad habits in a way that no one else ever did. I have tried manual exposure in the past but never got comfortable with it but after a day or two with Chris it clicked in my mind and my images improved and percentage of keepers went up. If you get a chance to go on a workshop with Chris I would highly recommend it. I know I will again.
More Kudos: Chris Dodds knows how to do a workshop!
I had the pleasure of attending Chris' Snowy Owl Workshop this past January. To be honest, I did not know much about Chris before the trip. All I knew was the quality of his images on his website and that I wanted Snowy owl pictures. Needless to say, Chris met and exceeded my expectations. He goes over and above to get you in the right place at the right time to capture the best images possible. Having been on numerous workshops around the world with various leaders, I can say Chris worked harder than most..... He also made sure that we were in position to get a variety of images and not just 1000 photos of the same animal behavior. Chris knows his birds and what they are going to do next (as much as humanly possible). He teaches in a way that things make sense. I was getting frustrated with my photography before this trip. I was able to get great shots before the workshop but felt that the percentage of great shots to missed shots needed to be better. Chris explained ways to change a few of my bad habits in a way that no one else ever did. I have tried manual exposure in the past but never got comfortable with it but after a day or two with Chris it clicked in my mind and my images improved and percentage of keepers went up. If you get a chance to go on a workshop with Chris I would highly recommend it. I know I will again.
With health issues and possessing few skills in tracking birds in flight, I headed to Montreal with a good share of trepidation about having any success on the Winter Owl Safari. Chris Dodds is not only a master photographer, but I soon discovered that he is an incredible leader and instructor who is quick to give suggestions, share his vast knowledge and patiently answer any question. As a result, I was successfully capturing more and more action shots each session as the days went by. Chris went out of his way to make sure each one of his clients was safe and as comfortable as possible in the extreme conditions in which we were photographing. Aware of my health issues, he was continually monitoring me to make sure that I wasn't over doing it. Chris is fun to work with and is spoken very highly of by the landowners who he deals with, which in turn, makes many private tracts of land where the owls are located accessible to him and his groups. He seemingly has an inexhaustible level of energy that ensures that his clients will have the most productive experience humanly possible. Returning home with many stunning photographs and memories of such a delightful experience, I am looking forward to the time when I can do another one of Chris Dodd's workshops with great anticipation.
What can I say? Your Winter Owl Photo Tour was an absolute sensory overload of owls, knowledge and fun! A smashing success! I have to say this was the very best photo trip I have ever joined (and I have joined many). It was an EPIC adventure, and it was a huge success; with your help, I managed to pull off an incredible portfolio of Owl images that was miles better than I could have imagined! Just like your stated goal; I can attest to the fact that the single most important objectives for you as the leader is for your clients to achieve an EPIC portfolio that you would have been proud to call your own, and for everyone to learn. Mission accomplished, my friend…many fold. I would have been thrilled with just one of the hundreds of EPIC images that I created under your wise guidance. You will see me again on another workshop soon. I can offer anyone considering this trip the following advice: DO IT! You won’t regret it. Chris works extremely hard for you to get the very best images; images that will impress everyone. He’s fun and eager to teach anyone, regardless of their abilities. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
I wanted to thank you for a wonderful winter owling workshop last week. It was great to be in the field with you and I learned a great deal about the birds, environment and my camera. Thanks so much for being such a great naturalist, photographer and trip leader. I will go on another trip with you in the future.
Lynda Goff(Professor Emeritus Ecology & Evolutionary Biology UC Santa Cruz) Santa Cruz, California, USA
In my last blog post, I shared an image called Morning Glory. As the the sun continued to rise that morning, the colors in the sky against the retreating fog continued their spectacular show. For more information about my Winter Owl Workshops, CLICK HERE.
KUDOS:
Deep knowledge of animal behaviour and their habitats combined with photographic talent, knowledge and years of experience are the ingredients of trips/workshops guided by Chris Dodds! I had the privilege to join Chris on various trips and experienced unique tailor made experiences, enabling creative and artistic photography. I enjoyed every minute and highly recommend this to colleague nature photographers that like to explore and enjoy the best Nature can offer.
It's not too late; there is still only a couple of spots available for the coming winter owl season! Learn more about my Winter Owl Workshop click HERE.
More Kudos:
Being a female on my first photo safari, I had some apprehensions before joining Chris on his acclaimed Winter Snowy Owl Safari. I worried about safety, that I wasn't a good enough photographer for someone with Chris's acclaim, and that I wouldn't be able to keep up with the group on treks. My fears subsided on Day One, and I knew this would be a week I would never forget. With the small group size, Chris was able to give each member the level of instruction they needed. Beyond having great opportunities for owl pictures, I learned helpful things about owl behaviour, owl spotting techniques, operating the camera, processing images, best clothing and gear for winter, and things like the "Dodds duffel toss" that help prevent injuries while putting my camera backpack on. Chris has an extensive knowledge of exposure theory. He is a patient teacher, skilled in helping his participants gain a deep understanding of this critical element of photography. He demonstrated why it is important to capture as much detail as possible for the best possible print, then showed us how to accomplish it. During the week of ever changing light, he kept checking our work to make sure we were getting the best possible results. I usually learn from books and enjoy photography as a solitary pursuit, but I enjoyed the camaraderie of this group experience and received many tips on world travel. The photo safari gave me time to immerse myself in photography and nature. I'm already planning my next safari with Chris.
There are still a couple of openings due to cancellation for the upcomming winter owl season. Find out more about my Snowy Winter Owl WorkshopHERE.
KUDOS
Thank you so much for a memorable week during your Snowy Owl Workshop, I have enjoyed it immensely.
The week has been EPIC, Exhilarating Pictures, Instructional Colossus, what more can I say.
It has been a long held ambition of mine to photograph Snowy Owls and in choosing your trip all my expectations have been filled and some. The company has been an important and enjoyable part of the trip and I will recall with great fondness many of the hilarious moments we have shared together.
I appreciate all the hard work that you have put in to ensure the success of our trip and I wish to thank you for that.
I hope the season continues to go well for you and I wish you happiness in your life.
Chris leads a great workshop. It quickly became clear the amount of prework Chris had done in the weeks leading up to the trip. Chris knew where the owls would be each morning when we arrived in the fields. Another amazing ability Chris has, is he can spot a snowy owl hundreds of yards away. I remember laughing a few times as I am looking through binoculars saying are you sure and every time he was correct.
Chris is an amazing photographer and extremely knowledgeable on both Nikon and Canon photography equipment. I came home a much better photographer, with a better understanding of my camera gear and how to adjust for the environment and light. Throughout the day Chris was continually making sure everyone had the correct setting and reminding us to check our exposure/histogram.
Additionally Chris is just a great guy. He is what i would consider a true outdoorsman and has the adventure stories to go with them. I really enjoyed the travel and downtime with Chris and we had a lot of good laughs.
I would definitely recommend a Chris Dodds photography workshop especially the winter owl workshop and am looking forward to my next trip with Chris.
We all know the “shock & awe” value of a close-up action image posted to your favourite critique forum, web site, Facebook Page, Instagram or Twitter feed; The instant connection between the viewer and the high impact, awe inspiring thumbnail is often rewarded with lots of Likes, comments and kudos. Do you take the time to step back, zoom-out and see the bigger picture? Do you think about more distant views? Do you think about including some habitat in your images? Do you strive to make the kind of image that often looks better on your wall or in a calendar, but is often over-looked on websites because the thumbnail is not as visually “exciting”? Do you think about making "low impact" images?
More Kudos: Chris Dodds knows how to do a workshop!
I had the pleasure of attending Chris' Snowy Owl Workshop this past January. To be honest, I did not know much about Chris before the trip. All I knew was the quality of his images on his website and that I wanted Snowy owl pictures. Needless to say, Chris met and exceeded my expectations. He goes over and above to get you in the right place at the right time to capture the best images possible. Having been on numerous workshops around the world with various leaders, I can say Chris worked harder than most..... He also made sure that we were in position to get a variety of images and not just 1000 photos of the same animal behavior. Chris knows his birds and what they are going to do next (as much as humanly possible). He teaches in a way that things make sense. I was getting frustrated with my photography before this trip. I was able to get great shots before the workshop but felt that the percentage of great shots to missed shots needed to be better. Chris explained ways to change a few of my bad habits in a way that no one else ever did. I have tried manual exposure in the past but never got comfortable with it but after a day or two with Chris it clicked in my mind and my images improved and percentage of keepers went up. If you get a chance to go on a workshop with Chris I would highly recommend it. I know I will again.
Here's one from one of many memorable moments during my Snowy Winter Owl Workshops last season. The outlook for this winter season is simply superb! I currently know where there are more Snowy Owls than I did this time last year. Remarkably, I have had three cancellations due to illness. Each of the three folks have asked me to try to find someone to fill their spot and have agreed to a discount. Be sure to have a look at the workshop and take advantage of $500.00 savings if you book a 2015 owl trip before midnight Dec. 24, 2014. Space is limited, so don't wait too long!
January 12-16, 2015 Snowy Winter Owl Workshop - NOW SOLD OUT
January 26-30, 2015 Snowy Winter Owl Workshop - NOW SOLD OUT
February 2-6, 2015 Snowy Winter Owl Workshop - NOW SOLD OUT
Here's an old favourite from 2005. I have re-processed the image using my current workflow after negotiating a generous licensing fee after the image was found by a legitimate buyer in a blog that had "re-posted" my image. This kind of thing happens almost every day to my images and I maintain a vigilant watch for them and quickly follow-up with invoices that are usually paid in full quite quickly.
I'm bringing this to your attention after reading several rants from a couple of "famous" photographers who regularly try to make you believe that you should be posting your images on-line without any watermarks; be they visible or not. This despite my not remembering many artists who didn't sign their work.
Here's my thoughts; those of a professional who does still post to the web, my blog, Facebook, Google Plus and 500px. It's fun and it's good for business.
All of my images are posted with a huge visible watermark and they all contain a digital watermark in the event that someone decides to remove the visible watermark before they share them without my permission. The visible watermark is there to build my brand and inform the viewer that it is my work; the invisible watermark to protect myself from image theft and the possibility of the work being rendered an orphan work.
An orphan work is a copyrighted work for which the copyright owner cannot be contacted. That's what happens after someone strips your image of the visible watermark …. or, if you never put one on the image in the first place.
Why is this all important? Once you post an image without a watermark, or, if someone re-posts your image without your watermark, then a legitimate buyer doesn't know who to buy the rights from. It could be the editor of a very prestigious magazine, or an advertising agency representing a very prestigious brand; there are still people out there right now who pay large sums of money to licence an image.
How to prevent this from happening to you? Simple, place a visible watermark somewhere on your image with your name or website address AND be sure to Watermark your image with an invisible, digital watermark by running it through the Digimarc for images filter in Photoshop.
A digital watermark embedded in your image carries a unique ID and can link to contact information or a website for viewers interested in learning more about you or purchasing your artwork. The watermark stays with your image regardless of the path it travels across the Internet. No matter where your digital image ends up, others will be able to determine your copyright ownership and find you. If anyone finds your image on-line and wants to contact you, they need only read the Digimarc invisible watermark to either find your co-ordinates via the Digimarc site, or be directly connected to your website.
As an added bonus, Digimarc for images also offers premium services which searches for, and index all of the images it finds on-line with a Digimarc invisible watermark; it's a search engine for protected images - now you can see who has been stealing your work and pursue them.
Find out more about Digimarc for Images and Save 30% off your subscription to Digimarc for images by using the coupon code "naturephotography" at www.digimarc.com/digimarc-for-images
It's safe to say that this owl season has reached EPIC! Here's another testimonial that I have received from my recent Snowy Winter Owl Workshops:
"Five days in temperatures between –5°C and –15°C plus a snow blizzard just to learn how to photograph Great Grey Owls in their own habitat in the snow! Was it worth crossing the Atlantic for? Yes, definitely – Chris Dodds is an excellent photographer and patient tutor. From him I learnt lots about manual exposure, histograms, and composition with these owls as the subject. I used a Canon 7D handheld with a Canon 100mm-400mm lens, and although this was not a pro-camera – like Chris’ and others in the group – I did not feel underpowered or even overwhelmed! Many thanks again Chris."
- Jo LathamNorfolk | UK
Le Nichoir Fundraiser ONLY LIMITED SPACE AVAILABLE!
Join me, Canadian nature photographer Christopher Dodds, on March 9, 2013 at 6:30 PM at the Casgrain Theatre (CEGEP John Abbot College 21275 Lakeshore Road, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, Québec H9X 3L9, Canada) for an hour and a half long slideshow presentation to benefit Le Nichoir. The show is designed to be entertaining and informative to all; nature lovers and photographers alike. Stories of adventure, natural history facts and information are all on the menu and this show is designed to offer helpful tips & techniques sure to improve your photography efforts with everything from a camera phone, point & shoot camera or professional SLR camera system. Over one hundred of his images will be projected, many unseen. Everyone is welcome! Hurry! Only 280 seats. Tickets are only $18.00 each and are available for advance purchase only - every penny is collected by, and goes to Le Nichoir. Please call or email Le Nichoir (communication@lenichoir.org 450-458-2809) to secure your tickets, or make a donation if you can't make it (be sure to tell them it's on behalf of Chris' Photo Geek Christmas Party) Major credit cards and cheques accepted. There will be ample time to mingle, meet my friends and contacts and share some of your images with others, so feel free to bring prints, iPads or laptops with your favourite images to share. I hope to see you there and PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD!
The door prizes were over the top last year, and thanks to my good friends and sponsors, we have secured an even better stash for this year.
