Earlier Than You Think

Apr 12, 2022 | Field Reports

White-breasted Nuthatch captured by Z 6II / 180-400VR / SB-5000

Studies show that on average, birds are nesting 7-10 days earlier than they were a few decades ago. This is in response to their world warming up and I would imagine insects hatching earlier for the same reason. With nearly a dozen nests with eggs here at The Ranch now, my own field observations would bare this out. If you’re into or want to get into photographing nesting birds, you want to get out now or the season might just pass you by!

Thunderbay 4 is In The House!

Apr 7, 2022 | Field Reports

OWC Thunderbay 4

I needed more storage space, but I didn’t want it taking up a ton of space in the office or be so loud that Sharon and I would have to scream to hear each other in the office. It also needed to have a bunch of space and it to be fast! I talked with my IT guy Chuck and he put me (as well as our son Jake who just upgraded to it as well) onto the OWC Thunderbay 4 and it does all that I want and a whole bunch more! It is small, incredibly small that the two (prime and physical BU) take up less space than a loaf of bread. Whisper quiet, only hear them at times when I’m zooming through a folder for images. And they are fast!!! I loaded mine with 4 – 18TB HDD drives that with SoftRaid Pro (also OWC) running Raid 4 gives me 54TB of storage space. All of this and it didn’t use up all our budget. I’ve had it for months now and waited till now to tell you cause I wanted to have a true field test with the system. It’s a beautiful thing, Thunderbay 4 is in the house!

Small Rig – More Than Video Gear

Mar 10, 2022 | Field Reports

Small Rig Z 9 cage w/Z70-200f2.8 & Z1.4x attached

Small Rig has a great line of accessories for our gear! I have lots of it in my kit from their small ballheads and L-Brackets to now their Cage for the Z 9. Many think of Small Rig as supplying accessories for just video folks but they do so much more. You might look at the cage on the Z 9 above and just think it’s for my video work but I got it for a totally different purpose. It’s for my air-to-air photo missions!

Whaaaaaat you say! Yeppers, I use the cage for a number of reasons, the main one is for protection. Every part of an aircraft is designed to take a nick out of our gear! There are so many sharp and pointy edges that take off paint the Cage protects against. It’s marvelous! Then, I have the SmallRig Articulating Arm with Dual Ball Heads attached to the Cage where I attach the Keymission 180. It’s rock-solid even in the slip stream. The Cage can be attached to the Platyball head as it has Arca Swiss groves and even has a wrench built in to easily and quickly remove it. I highly encourage you to check out Small Rig, you might find there accessories that make your photography simpler even if you don’t shoot video!

Z 9 – Flash – WR-R11a

Feb 22, 2022 | Field Reports

Z 9 / WR-R11a / SB-5000

The Z 9 utilizes the same Nikon Wireless Flash System that has been part of the Nikon line for the past six-plus years. There is a few updates to the system since then, mostly software (make sure you’re using the most current firmware) but one recent one is hardware. Nikon brought out the WR-R11a about a year ago and to me, it’s worth the price. It replaces the WR-R10 which works with the Z 9 and its ten-pin socket. The WR-R11a is a more robust unit with a hinge at the ten-pin socket preventing the unit from being accidentally hit and broken off (WR-R10 has no hinge). Both units work WR-T10 Remote that permits you to fire the camera taking a still(s) or start and stop video recording. You can pair up to 18 flashes with the unit with a working distance of about seventy feet and remotely fire the camera from about one hundred feet.

There are a couple of Menu items in the Z 9 that are grayed out until the WR-R10 / WR-R11a are attached. One is the Photo Shooting Menu (see below) and in the SetUp > Wireless remote (WR) options. Once a unit is inserted into the ten-pin both menu items become active. SetUp > Wireless remote (WR) options have to do with how the two units talk with each other, Pin or Paired. The other as you see in the video below has to do with how you work with thet wireless flash. Hopefully that covers all the questions. If not, don’t hesitate to reach out.

FTZ II – Yeah, It Makes a Difference

Feb 17, 2022 | Field Reports

Nikon FTZ II

It’s such a little change but it’s very much welcomed. The FTZ II replaces the FTZ with the introduction of the Z 9. If you click on the link, you can see the change, if you look really closely. The small tab at the bottom of the FTZ is not present in the FTZ II. That protrusion permitted the FTZ to be directly mounted to a tripod. It also would block the rotation of some lenses from horizontal to vertical. And from my point of view, was not aesthetically attractive. This is an essential piece of gear for me, required for attaching the 180-400VR and the 800f5.6 AFS to the Z 9 and Z 6II. It makes up for the loss of the F Mount air gap while providing all functionality. It’s a really small thing but I’m so glad them made the upgrade!

The Nikkor Z100-400 – A Vid

Feb 7, 2022 | Field Reports

The new Nikkor Z100-400 is a gorgeous lens! Along with being fun to shoot with, it’s sharp, versatile, and incorporates some great new features. This is a short video on how I like shooting with this new lens. It’s not just a remake of the F Mount 80-400VR, not even close! The new anti-creep feature, an MFD of 2.5′, weight of 4lbs, 77mm front filter compact design makes it a spectacular lens to add to your kit. Check it out!

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