K&M Adventures – Arches Winter ’14

K&M Adventures is heading to Arches, red rock in winter, it just doesn’t get any better. Wait, yes it does! You can do Arches in winter with friends and that’s what K&M Adventures is offering 19-23 Feb, 2014! You’ll fly into Grand Junction, CO on the 19th (by noon) and we’ll hijack you to Moab, UT where we’re staying in the gorgeous Red Cliff Lodge. Then we’ll shoot, shoot, shoot the gorgeous red rock in winter until the 23rd. Then on the 24th, we’ll take you back to Grand Junction where you’ll sadly grab a plane back home (after 2pm). Kevin and I have lots and lots and lots of shooting time in Moab and we’re excited about this Adventure because there are some places we want to take you that we couldn’t visit before with a big group. The price is $1995 covering transportation (once you’re at Grand Junction) and instruction. We’re only taking 8 folks so grab you winter jacket, camera and come join us for a great time in the land of red rock! Call 760.924.8632 / 661.204.1506 NOW!

K&M Adventures – Grand Tetons

K&M Adventures is taking on the Grand Tetons, 9-13 Oct, 2013! This magnificent region is one Kevin & I have journeyed to and photographed many, many times. The great landscapes, amazing history and of course the critters make for great photography! We are totally stoked to be heading back and taking our Adventure to this amazing country! No, we won’t be in the Grand Tetons only, we have lots a cool ideas up our sleeves. No, we won’t be venturing into Yellowstone. There is way too much unique opportunities, we just can’t contain ourselves!

You’ll wanna fly into Jackson Hole on the afternoon of the 9th and fly out either late on 13 or early on the 14th. We’ll pick you up from the airport and escort your around until we take you back to the airport. That, along with instruction are all included for the price of $1995 (limited to 8, 5 openings). We spend from breakfast until last up together shooting, eating, shooting, digital darkroom, laughing and other things you just can’t imagine! And after those long days, you want to kick your shoes off and relax. We have killer rooms at a killer rate at a great lodge already to fill, so give the office a call 760.924.8632 and we’ll get you all signed up!

Permit Pending

Startin with Friends!

K&M Adv Me begun with our taking our new friends to meet some of my old friends. Unbeknownst to anyone, arrangements had been made at the beginning of the year to be Wacasset for the “airshow” featuring my good friends at the Texas Flying Legend Museum. We got the field before anyone else and found Cub (what I think of as a happy little plane) parked on the grass. We had a lot of fun with it to start. Then I popped open the doors on the boys B-25J “Betty’s Dream” and they got to go inside one of the nest restored planes and shoot till their heart’s content! Smiles all around!

Now this is a different way for sure for folks to experience fall color (or lack there of). I come to find out that only 1 of our adventurers had ever been to a airshow before! Ralphie put us all to shame by shooting 5400 images! He said in true Ralphie fashion< "It was all right!" Of course, being spoiled by the TFLM boys made it all that more special for these first time airshow shooters.

The best part was it was really fun learning for all! They learned about photography, things like panning and planning and placement to how planes move and the best part, about our aviation heritage and the men who flew these magnificent craft. It was a great day and great start to our ME adventure!

Photoshop World Magic – A Tuition Scholarship!

Photoshop World is just such a kick ass experience on every level! Sharon meet up with one very generous gentleman who has made available a number of scholarships to our workshops folks in the past. He was moved by his experience at Photoshop World and is offering another scholarship for our New Hampshire K&M Adventure. While I have two folks in mind, I wanted to open up this generous offer to a little wider audience. You would be responsible for your getting to and from NH, lodging and meals, but the rest is covered. If you are interested, you need to give Sharon a call 661.204.1506 (9-5 PST) and have a conversation. This is a marvelous opportunity for a photographer and want to thank our anonymous sponsor for once again reaching out to help another shooter! That is what Photoshop World is all about!

Americana, Lobster & Fall Color!

Fall conjures up a nostalgic photographic time in my mind. The light is mellow, the color is everywhere and there is a nip in the air signalling a changing of seasons. It also brings up thoughts of youth, trick-o-treating, Thanksgiving, football and traditions. If there is one region in North America that brings this all together at one place and celebrates fall, it’s Maine! We’ve been venturing to ME for fall every year for over the last decade and we simply can’t get enough of this magical region this time of year!

The best part about going to Maine and neighboring New Hampshire in fall is the photography. Now just shooting fall color for me gets old after a while. But it never gets old when you can photograph an old truck, ice house, lobster boat, fishing pier, railroad, quaint seaport village and eat great food! That’s why we keep traveling back to the region in fall, it’s never the same and there is such variety. Did I mention the great food!

I know I didn’t mention lighthouses, but there are some gorgeous, romantic and unique lighthouses to explore as well. And when you’re on the coast in ME in the fall, there is great lobster. Did I mention the great food!

We are going back again this fall, taking our K&M Adventure there. Our Fall Tour is Oct. 6-14, 2012. We’re going to be in ME & NH spending half the time out of Freeport, ME and the other half out of Mt Washington, NH. We’re going to check out them lighthouses, the great food, fall color, history and just about anything else the lights takes us to. It’s a marvelous adventure in some our most gorgeous country!

We have a space for YOU! We’ll be picking you up and dropping you off in Portland, ME. You have the option of signing up for one week or the other or, if you’re adventerous enough, join us for the whole time. The price for just one week is $1995 and for both, $3550. We actually have a couple of folks who have signed up for the whole thing (they’ve traveled through eastern fall color with us before) so we only have 3 seats left (the max we take is 8). The price includes transportation to and from the airport and during the adventure, our wit and instruction and one helluva good time. If you’re interested in going, give us a call at 760.924.8632 / 661.204.1506. We look for to adventuring with you!

Tundra Nesting Birds ’13

K&M Adventures is heading to Churchill, Canada, 27 May – 01 June, yeap, shorebird mecca is our spring/summer destination! You’ll fly into Churchill the 27th and fly out the 2nd and in between you will be welcomed by some of the best bird photography on the planet! I’ve not been there for breeding season since ’98 but prior to that, I was there for years! My “worst” trip was 60 difference species of birds, photographed! While world renown for Polar Bears (and we’ve had those in the summer as well), Churchill is not as well known for summer bird photography but that might just change. We are taking only 6 folks with us, the price is $2795 which includes once you arrive in Churchill, transportation, guides and instruction.

The top photo is of a great bird you just don’t see elsewhere like this, the Hudsonian Godwit, and this isn’t a perfect looking male as the full, brick, red breast isn’t fully in. Then there is the Pacific Loon you see here, a sweetie that for four years nested in basically the same place and would pose for us all day. Then there is the bird that nearly no one knows who it is when I throw it up on the screen, that’s because we only see it in its winter drab colors. This is the spectacular Dunlin, another of the great birds of Churchill.

Of course, there is no guarantee of any species or birds at all because, well, weather and life is what it is. But my worst day in Chruchill with birds blows away my best day ever in the lower 48! Here’s just a couple of other species I photographed in Churchill in years past.

Don’t know who these species are, or better yet you do know and want to photograph them yourself? Well then, you need to join us. Worried you need a big lens (because you do) but don’t own one? Well, we’ve arranged with BorrowLenses.com for a special deal for you so you won’t miss out! Give us a call 760.924.8632 / 661.204.1506 to register or to find out more!

K&M Adventures – Churchill ’13

K&M Adventures is heading to Churchill, Canada, 27 May – 01 June, yeap, shorebird mecca is our spring/summer destination! You’ll fly into Churchill the 27th and fly out the 2nd and in between you will be welcomed by some of the best bird photography on the planet! I’ve not been there for breeding season since ’98 but prior to that, I was there for years! My “worst” trip was 60 difference species of birds, photographed! While world renown for Polar Bears (and we’ve had those in the summer as well), Churchill is not as well known for summer bird photography but that might just change. We are taking only 6 folks with us, the price is $2795 which includes once you arrive in Churchill, transportation, guides and instruction.

The top photo is of a great bird you just don’t see elsewhere like this, the Hudsonian Godwit, and this isn’t a perfect looking male as the full, brick, red breast isn’t fully in. Then there is the Pacific Loon you see here, a sweetie that for four years nested in basically the same place and would pose for us all day. Then there is the bird that nearly no one knows who it is when I throw it up on the screen, that’s because we only see it in its winter drab colors. This is the spectacular Dunlin, another of the great birds of Churchill.

Of course, there is no guarantee of any species or birds at all because, well, weather and life is what it is. But my worst day in Chruchill with birds blows away my best day ever in the lower 48! Here’s just a couple of other species I photographed in Churchill in years past.

Don’t know who these species are, or better yet you do know and want to photograph them yourself? Well then, you need to join us. Worried you need a big lens (because you do) but don’t own one? Well, we’ve arranged with BorrowLenses.com for a special deal for you so you won’t miss out! Give us a call 760.924.8632 / 661.204.1506 to register or to find out more!

We Ended Like We Started – Perfection!

You look to the west and you have a gorgeous sunset. Turn to the east and you have a magical thunderhead lit up by the setting sun. Wow…what and ending to a perfect day!

Small Detail, Small Lesson

With the 18mm back on the D4, it was time to talk small details. Here’s a perfect example of the little things we talk about at K&M Adventures. If you look in the lower right corner of these two images, you’ll see one includes the distance ridge and the other one doesn’t. Now Ron & Phil on the peak is essential in this whole thing since they provide the scale. The visual depth is provided with that little slice of ridge in the background. Now there is no right or wrong way here, it all depends on how you want to tell your story. But if you’re not looking for that little detail, then it will go missed and perhaps, the story of your photo!

Fishy Clouds

To say we lucked into great clouds during our K&M Adventure SD is an understatement. The trick was not finding the clouds but rather, what to put with them. That’s where visiting a location over and over again really pays big dividends. I’ve been to Custer dozens of times so when the afternoon thunderheads piled up, I knew where I wanted to go. What I didn’t know that the 16Fish would be the lens that would be the funniest to shot with. Kevin first got it out and I peaked through his lens and then grabbed mine. I then played with the peaks and valleys to make the designs that would go with the shapes of the clouds. It was so much fun taking the D4 and just pointing and blasting with the great light and shapes!

K&M Adv – Custer Sunrise

Custer is such an amazing place! Long ago a dear friend shared a secret with me, a place to greet the new day. It’s a place I share with all I bring to Custer because as you can see, it is a glorious spot. There are a couple of key ingredients required to make this happen. The first is getting up early and as you’ll see, we had a great group who had NO problem with this first one. Next was knowing the place to go. Check. Finally, set your WB to Cloudy to capture the color. After that, the rest are in the hand of the photo Gods. The arrangment of elements then just worked the clouds to bring the up up, around down and over to the sun over and over again. One thing I learned this week in regards to the D4 is it does a GREAT job with this kind of scene with one click. With the D3, I would have gone to HDR to bring this image to life. These are single clicks out of the with the 24-70AFS attached with images just processed in ACR.

Just Gotta Stop For Clouds!

We had driven past it a couple of hours earlier, but it was in full sun with bald skies. Yuck. When we came back by, the thunderstorm was building and the aperture in the clouds let enough light in to bring drama while providing a great background. So was required was an illegal U turn as we were shooting.

The only real question was, what lens to use? There was actually no right or wrong answer because everyone could make up and tell their own story. I went with the 18AF for a couple of reasons. One was its angle of view, the other is because it’s rectilinear (that’s not a PC). With that, it was simply a question of getting in the right place to relate the three buildings the way I like in concert with the clouds. So, I danced a little as the clouds and the aperture in them moved about.

The bottom image is the one I like the best, then the color version and finally the top image. When I stopped, I saw this at a B&W image but the clouds were changing and that made me move changing how I wanted to actually arrange the three buildings. Then a burst of sunlight came out when made me think color. All of these images are a handheld, 7 image HDR finished with Photomatix Pro and Photoshop.

K&M Adv hits SD!

We’re up in the Blackhills of SD and man, it’s gorgeous! We headed out to a gorgeous sunrise only to find the thunderstorms from the night before still hanging about. Now it’s really no secret, I love clouds, they call me Mr Clouds so we had to stop! The thermal action kept them on the move, shape and density constantly changing while we stood there and all day long. The key to me in making the shots are the subtle shades of gray along with some element to give them scale. In these examples I used HDR and landscape to capture those elements. Photographically, the D4 and 18AF worked their magic. I’m finding though with the D4 and its new sensor that single click cloud photos along with ACR is producing more cloud shots that I like then HDR. mtc…

That’s Just Gotta Hurt!

There are times no matter who you are or how good you are, you simply cannot replace a motordrive on astroblast!We were at the rookery when a Great Egret came into feed the kids. Well as you might guess, all hell broke loose as the two kids fought over the resource. In case you didn’t know, the kids have to simulate the parent to cough up a meal. They do this by grabbing the parent’s bill and pump the head/neck back and forth over and over again. This whole time, those pointie bills are flying around like diggers! I watch through the lens holding my breath part of the time, the chaos is fierce. There is no physical way even with the D4 you can see the action, tell your finger to fire and the camera fire to capture the action. So it’s real simple for me, hit the hammer, let the D4′s 10fps loose, enjoy the sound of that mirror slapping away and shoot! Then in the post I look at the action frame by frame to decide which images tells the story of the mayhem the best. Once, long ago at Venice Rookery I saw the same behavior and at the end, there was a little blood below the eye of the parent. I didn’t see it this time but you just gotta think that hurts!

In the Bag
• D4
• 600VR
• TC-17E II
• Lexar 64GB 1000x UDMA
• Gitzo GT-5561SGT
• Wimberley WH-200

Subject Knowledge Can Finish the Story

Any southern coastal region in late winter early spring is a target rich place to photograph shorebirds. Our time at Ft DeSoto is a perfect example. What you see here is the same bird, the Black-bellied Plover, one of my favorites. They just have attitude and a air of confidence that makes me smile. Sadly, we don’t see them in the spring tuxedo but we can see them in the winter plumage and then changing into their spring duds. If you know a little bit about them, you will recognize the transitions in plumage which makes for a great story. These are three different individuals, all three at different phases of molting in their spring coat. If you’re into editorial content creation, this is money in the bank. If you do slideshows on bird ID, this is a treasure chest. And if you just want to document the mysteries of birds, this is a great reward for getting up early and lying on the sand shooting. And it all comes from knowing a little bit about your subject. Knowledge about your subject trumps an expensive lens every time!

In the Bag
• D4
• 600VR
• TC-17E II
• Lexar 64GB 1000x UDMA

Ybor City – Back to a Challenge

After the gorgeous morning at Myakka, we headed back into the city, an unique city. My bud RC introduced me to the magic and “special” life of Ybor some time ago and I like to visit it at least once a year. This is a real photographic challenge for me. It’s kinda tight quarters where photographs don’t jump out at you, you’ve gotta look for them. You also have to take the sensory overload and narrow down the final image into the viewfinder. I’m not the best at doing this but do know what doesn’t work when I see it. This photo wasn’t my find, a couple of other participants had found the scene and really loved it. But their photo didn’t look like this. What they showed me included the four walls of the “bombed” out bldg before you get to this scene. With 65% of the photo washed out exposed cement, I made a funny face and said in typical Moose fashion, it sucked. That went over like a lead balloon because within their minute with the scene, it would seem the formed an extreme attachment to this bombed out four walls. Then walking forty feet forward to make this click you see here and sharing that idea, went over as a lead balloon as well.

After being told I didn’t get it and didn’t see it, I came across this scene in a window and it made me smile. I think it kinda sums up what it is to be a photographer and at times, an instructor. You’ve gotta have courage and heart in photography. You’ve gotta have both with you go click. You’ve gotta have both when you share your photography and you really have to have both when you are asked to comment on a photograph. Yeah, I could have been a whole lot gentler in saying the photos suck, but it wouldn’t change the fact they suck. I don’t think the top image is worth blogging other then to tell this story. It’s a stick against a wall framing a stick with color. But here’s the deal…the only person you have to make happy with your photography is yourself. Period, end of story! That only changes when you ask someone elses opinion because when you do that, you are then seeking a gratification that might not come and that hurts. This is a challenge of photography, for myself just like anyone else wins and sometimes looses. And the best news, either way the sun will rise tomorrow! it’s only a photograph.

Totally Got Butt Kicked!

Before you go gettin excited and think I know what I’m doing, what you see here are just 2 of the 14 sharp images I got last night out of the 168 images I took of Black Skimmers skimming. That kind of success rate sucks and I’m not pleased! What as the problem? That I don’t know because while I had the bird in the frame and the composition worked, the skimmers weren’t sharp. I started to play with the AF pattern of the D4 and while it improved my keeper rate (these were taken using D51), it still wasn’t consistent enough for me. Now the sun was almost down, the contrast range below the minimum, I wanted better. So, I have some more testing to do to figure out if it was pilot error, camera deficiency or a combination of both.

In the Bag
• D4
• 600VR
• Lexar 64GB 1000x UDMA
• Gitzo GT-5561SGT
• Wimberley WH-200

K&M Advetnures FL…2nd Morning

So we arrive at North Beach lagoon at Fort DeSoto to see nothing, zero, nada bird but a lonely GBH way off in the distance. For the start of our 2nd day of our K&M Adventure FL, I was a bit nervous. I mean, the idea is to be shooting cool subjects. Well, I really didn’t pause, walked right over to the beach. And at first, didn’t see much but then after a couple of minutes, the birds started to appear at the wave line and we never looked back! It was a killer morning, I filled 2009 images from two and a half hours of shooting and like you see above, they don’t suck! I love shorebirds! You’ve got here are Willet, Marbled Godwit, American Oystercatcher and Ruddy Turnstone.

I started out with my rig on the tripod but as soon as I got to the shoreline, I knew I had to get down. Here’s the deal, while shooting from a tripod is just fine, the angle of attack to me is too steep, it includes way too much background which is sand. Yes, sand is where they live but it doesn’t really aid in visually making them pop. So I wanna get down on their level. While this really restricts your movement, when you watch their biology, you can find places to get down and make the shot. If you want to learn the entire technique, head to Kelby Training. The whole thing is about backgrounds, my favorite pet peeve.

And if you’re not shy, like asking questions and want to learn from guys who have been doing this stuff for a combined 60yrs, come along on a K&M Adventure. We have an opening next month in South Dakota, a couple this fall and two next winter in Grand Canyon. For more info or to register, call 760.204.1506. Now, back to the sand, there are more birds to photograph!

In the Bag
• D4
• 600VR
• TC-14E II
• Lexar 64GB 1000x UDMA

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