Sax-Zim Results

[mcary]

Here are the results from what turned out to be a pretty slow day at Sax-Zim bog. I have to thank Jonny_Redhorse for all the work he put into the outing and for leading the trip. Most of the results are due directly to his effort. Here are the suspects from the trip:

Jonny and his digiscope setup

Finnbay and his his big 300mm

The infamous Catfish

X-tackleman

And a few of the results:

[Dbl]

Beautiful work Michael! All the shots are terrific.

[buzzsaw]

What kind of birds are those top four?

Lets hear some stories, any Owls, Fox or other noteworthy sightings?

[Steve Foss]

I'm downloading about 2 Gb of images, most a lot like mcary's. But Ken, Jonny and I saw and photographed a northern hawk owl at last light on the way home, ramping up iso to get usable shots. At one point, a shrike dive-bombed the owl and I got a couple frames of that, but I'm not sure yet if they are OK. Shutter speed was right for a sitting owl but possibly too slow for the action. They looked borderline on the LCD.

It was a fun day and a great chance to get to know some neat and generous FMers. Thanks for the good outing, guys! And mcary, keep that weasel in check!

[mcary]

You've gotta be kidding me! Drive around "the bog" all day and the second I turn south for Duluth - you "Northern Minnesota" bums run into a hawk owl. In reality, glad to hear you found something cool in the end. I had great day - it was nice meeting all of you. I look forward to planning some future outings.

[mmeyer]

Glad to hear you guys had a good day. I'm sure it would have been nice if you'd have gotten a few more shots but it sounds like you all had fun. Just think, you guys are sitting at your computers playing and poor XT is probably still on the road.

Thanks for sharing. Can't wait to see more.

[finnbay]

Great shots Mike - great exposures on a tough day to get it right! I'm downloading some stuff now. If anything turns out I'll post one or two. Had a great time. Really enjoyed meeting everyone. Thanks for the tour Jonny!

[finnbay]

Here is the 5th member of our group:

and a couple of other shots:

[jonny_redhorse]

Great shots guys!...I figured I'd add the same shot I posted on the birding forum here.... .....been a good day ....

hey guys!...the birds are here....honest!

or this version?

"Ok Redhorse!....Where's the Birds!"

[Steve Foss]

Here's what I got, guys. Isos from 400 to 800, f5.6 to f8, ss from 1/60 to 1/400, all handheld, fill flash from 430EX set on manual mode full strength for nothern hawk owl

Mr. Redhorse breaks in the digiscope

mcary (left) and x-tackleman don't see death lurking behind them!

three amigos (finnbay on right)

constant companions

pine grosbeak huddles for warmth

female redpoll wonders what's up

male downy woodpecker checks out the scene

northern hawk owl poses

hawk owl missed by the bombing shrike (sorry for poor quality)

shrike flees the scene

nearly 200 cars to interrupt Jonny's shoot

a friendly wave

[finnbay]

Pretty much sums up the day! I see you got me in your favorite pose. Exposure on chickadee is fantastic. Also love that first owl shot!

Hand wave from the train is classic!

[Steve Foss]

Thanks, Ken. I used the blending technique in PS for the chickadee.

[Dbl]

Great work by all, you guys really made the most out of your day!

[finnbay]

A few more from today:

[finnbay]

That second owl shot looks great!

[MN Shutterbug]

Well, I drug my butt into town at 9:30 this evening, after 689 miles and $160 in cash. But, it was well worth it. Hell, that's only $40 for each new buddy I found. I can't believe you bums actually came across the ever elusive owl. You guys got nice pics of it too, for proof. I'll check my card tomorrow to see if I got anything worth showing. If you don't hear from me for awhile, you'll know why. Believe it or not, I'm a bit tired. Anyway, it was a great time with a great bunch of great guys, including an awesome and generous guide.

[jonny_redhorse]

Was great having you up XT!....Good conversation and company!...I bet that nice ,soft bed will feel good tonight!

[finnbay]

Glad to see you made it home okay, X! Sure enjoyed the day with all you guys!

[mcary]

Great looking shots guys! All were very nice, except for that very first one Finnbay put up. I don't know why you'd waste a shutter actuation on that hideous thing. Had a great time and Steve, it seems I'm not the only one that was holding out when it comes to notifying other members of impending traffic related doom. Looking forward to the next outing already.

[buzzsaw]

Thats a neat shot of the on coming semi behind Mike & X. Sounds like you guys enjoyed each others company and that made it a fun time.

[jonny_redhorse]

Steve...I think those images of the shrike divebombing the owl are just fantastic!.......I saw the instant it happened also...would have been great to have captured the shrike alone,sitting atop a tamarac.

[Steve Foss]

Thanks, Jonny. The goal, as always, is to produce shots with enough quality to sell them as prints or to publications. But I was set up for a sitting bird and didn't have time to ramp iso up even more and open aperture all the way. That's OK with me, though. The shooting light was nearly gone, and it was nice to actually get a cool behavioral capture, regardless of quality. The first attack shot is the first image in the burst, and the second one was the second image in the burst. As is typical, the first image shows the owl a bit blurry because at low shutter speed it's extremely difficult to trigger the camera without at least a little shake, while things steady down a bit as the burst progresses.

It all just happened too fast for my reflexes in that low light!

I want to thank you again for all your prep work and for being our guide, Jonny. It was a great day.

I'm thinking we could plan another HSO/FM get-together during early June wildflower season, when there are thousands of subjects that don't run or fly away when we approach. Lots more chances to chat, learn and teach in that setting, not to mention it's warmer.

[MN Shutterbug]

After we guys split up, I stopped back at the Rocket Saloon and Cafe to grab a burger. Unfortunately, the kitchen closed at 2:00. However, the bar was packed. I see now what everyone around Meadowlands does for excitement. I'm not used to skipping a meal, but ended up waiting until I got to Mora at 6:00. I was famished.

Then, I wake up this morning to 7 degrees and -12 wind chill. I checked the conditions up at Hibbing and it was 12 degrees with no wind. What's up with that?

Anyway, here are a few of my shots, some good, some not. Whatever, it was a memorable experience.

Here is the caravan of bird brains, er bird photographers.

I think they're talking about me.

Don't worry about me Ken, I'm coming.

Yep, there's carnivores in these woods.

A miniature carnivore.

His larger cousin.

The infamous chickadee.

The pine siskin that needed digiscoping.

A couple underexposed redpolls. Some people need think before they talk, I need to think before I shoot.

Can't beat the scenery.

What a happy looking gang.

[Steve Foss]

XT, you've got some excellent shots there. Certainly as good as any of the rest of ours. Looks like you're learning the ropes with the 30D and 100-400 pretty darn quick!

[finnbay]

Eatin' at the Rocket twice in one day might not be goot for the system anyway. Some great shots!