Categories
Environment Photos of Quebec

A visit of the Léon-Provancher-Marsh.

Red-winged Blackbird at the Marais-Léon-Provancher in 2024.
Red-winged Blackbird at the Marais-Léon-Provancher in 2024.

Bird photography enthusiasts can explore the Léon-Provancher-Marsh   in Portneuf.

Red-winged Blackbird chasing two dragonflies.
Red-winged Blackbird chasing two dragonflies.

In the photo above, a Red-winged blackbird is stalking bugs in flight. But it’s about 100 metres from the shore. A shot at this distance and on a small, fast-moving subject poses a problem. I try my luck with a Canon 5dsr equipped with a Canon 70-200 f2.8L IS II USM lens.

The bird has just spotted its meal. It swoops down on two dragonflies, braking at the last second to adjust to the insect’s changing trajectory. The agility of the little creatures presents a colossal challenge to the predator.

Once the photo session is over, it’s time to process the Canon 5dsr’s 50.6 megapixel RAW files to correct and bring the bird as close as possible. At this stage, I note the two dragonflies that were difficult to see as I concentrated on following the bird in flight.

For this kind of scene, the photographic technique always remains the same: we prioritize shutter speed while lowering the ISO, because we’ll have to enlarge the main subject considerably during digital processing. We want to avoid enormous graininess on the final print.

The last processing phase for this photo of a small, distant and fast-moving bird is the use of artificial intelligence software. This will enable the focus to be improved slightly if the need arises.

But even with AI, there are no miracles. You can’t turn a bad initial photo into an excellent one unless you completely recompose it. That’s when you step out of the world of photography and choose digital creation.

Green heron at the Marais-Léon-Provancher 2024
Green heron at the Marais-Léon-Provancher 2024

Above, a shot of a green heron caught at the end of a photography session. But it seems to me that I’d call it more of a blue heron when the plumage is captured from this angle.

Female Red-winged Blackbird at the Marais-Léon-Provancher in 2024
Female Red-winged Blackbird at the Marais-Léon-Provancher in 2024

Click on the following link for more photos of the province of Quebec on my blog.

Categories
Photos of Canada

A Cooper’s hawk in flight.

Cooper's hawk in flight in British Columbia, Canada.
Cooper’s hawk in flight in British Columbia, Canada.

At first glance, you don’t know what to look for. Nature’s mimicry has done its work. Then the Cooper’s hawk appears, wings outstretched, flying in our direction.

I took the photo in a British Columbia park. The RAW file makes it possible to correct areas that are too light or really dark, but you still have to respect the bird’s ability to blend in with the landscape. By over-lightening the bird, we take it out of the environment where it hides to watch its prey.

The fact that the hawk is advancing rapidly towards the camera makes it difficult to focus, especially through high light contrasts. The result is a slight blurring of the head, which is easily corrected by artificial intelligence.

A Cooper's hawk is airborne in Oak Bay, British Columbia.
A Cooper’s hawk is airborne in Oak Bay, British Columbia.

Several companies sell a product capable or claiming to be capable of correcting blurred areas. As far as I’m concerned, I use Topaz AI. All you have to do is position the cursor on the spot where a slight improvement is desired and you’re done.

However, don’t expect miracles with such software. The photo has to be good enough for the program to make a tiny improvement.

Click on the link for more photos of Canada on my blog.

Categories
Photography

Blue Jay and Russian Mountain Ash

Blue jay and Russian Mountain Ash. Autumn 2020 in Quebec City.
Blue jay and Russian Mountain Ash. Autumn 2020 in Quebec City.

Every Autumn, a Blue Jay lands on our patio knowing he can stock up for the winter. After hearing his calls, I quickly get the peanuts and the camera.

The pictures were taken with a Canon EOS 5DS R which allows significant cropping without loss of quality. In the photo above, the branches of the Russian Mountain Ash surround the bird and provide a natural setting.

I place the peanuts in front of the tree, just to include a few small red fruits in the photographic composition.

Blue jay with a peanut in front of a Russian Mountain Ash. Quebec City 2020.
Blue jay with a peanut in front of a Russian Mountain Ash. Quebec City 2020.

Capturing the blue jay in flight is a bit more difficult, but in the digital age and with a Canon EF 70-200mm f / 2.8L IS II USM lens, photographing birds in flight is made much easier. The photo below was taken with a shutter speed of 1/8000, an aperture of 4.0, and an ISO set at 1250.

Blue Jay in flight. Quebec City 2020.
Blue Jay in flight. Quebec City 2020.

I have yet to see a Blue Jay eat the fruits of our Russian Mountain Ash. On the other hand, the ravens of the neighborhood have no problem with them.

Raven in a Russian Mountain Ash
Raven in a Russian Mountain Ash

Here is a link for more pictures of Quebec in Autumn on my website.