I didn’t find many birds yesterday but I may have found a solution to one of my most vexing problems with bird photography.
Yesterday morning, after a long drive in the dark to get to my shooting location, I started worrying about the soft photos I was very likely to get in the unusually cold temperatures. I shoot from my pickup so when I stick my lens out the window and the warm lens meets the very cold air, differential contraction of air and/or glass typically causes my photos to be soft, to very soft. Drives me nuts!
About three minutes before the sun came up over the mountains to the east the outside air was 14° F. so I had good reason to worry (it was really 7:26 AM, not 8:26 – I’ve driven so little lately I haven’t yet reset my clock after the recent time change.)
And yes, that’s dust on my screen and dash. When you drive as many dirt roads as I do, dust comes with the territory. If I don’t clean the interior of my pickup until spring I’m thinking of planting potatoes on my dashboard. While I’m out shooting, snacking on raw spuds rather than chocolate donuts would be healthier. I’d just need to remember the salt.
I was alone (no one shooting from the back seat to freeze to death) so I decided to try a new strategy to keep the front of my lens cold and hopefully prevent soft shots. My lens, with camera, lens hood, teleconverter and adapter attached, is 26″ long so I realized that I could roll my window a little more than halfway down and place my camera on my lap at an angle so the end of my lens stuck outside the top half of my window. That would keep both my front lens glass and the air inside my lens hood cold, at the same temp as the outside air. Once I’m at my general location I’m driving very slow on deserted, mostly dirt and gravel roads so doing so would be safe.
So that’s what I did for the first 2+ hours after sunrise until the temps warmed up significantly. I kept the interior temp of my pickup as cold as I could possibly stand it but the front glass of my lens, and the air inside my lens hood, were the same temp as the outside air.
The results were highly encouraging.
1/5000, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in
I didn’t find many birds but the ones I photographed were sharp to very sharp, without exception. This photo is typical. It was taken exactly one hour after sunrise when the temps were still in the teens and it’s sharp enough to cut your eyeballs. As were the other photos I took of this immature Red-tailed Hawk. In fact, all the photos I took yesterday morning that should have been sharp, were.
So I’m encouraged. This strategy won’t solve the problem of distant, shimmering heat waves or atmospheric disturbance caused by heat reflected off of asphalt roads but it appears to work well with differential temperatures between my lens and very cold air.
Now I need to work on strategies to keep myself warmer inside my pickup as I’m driving with the heater turned almost off and my window open. I’ll tell you what. I was chilled to the bone so the long drive home sure felt good with the heater cranked up and the window closed.
Ron
PS – Want some good news this morning? Check this out.
Very nice photo, I am glad you found a solution for one problem, now if only the cameras could compensate for heat waves.
My car is always dusty to Eric’s dislike. He has to wear black dress slacks for work and when he rides with me to work his pants get dirty from the car. The Afghani refugees I worked with lived close to me and I would give them a ride home. The father teased me about my dusty car and asked what I did to cause it. I explained about birding and photography on gravel and dirt roads. He really did not understand the why of it all. He would say ” Car still dirty? with a chuckle and “gard o Khaji” (covered with dust) “It has been a good car for you, you should keep it cleaner”. I said I would be on dirty roads again in the morning so it would not be clean for long.
” I said I would be on dirty roads again in the morning so it would not be clean for long”
That’s my philosophy too, April. But eventually I reach a point…
After the potatoes are harvested.
Yup. Priorities!
Very cool solution — literally! That is one tack-sharp juvie! Long Johns and an extra cup of coffee and chocolate donut would be my recommendation. After all, you burn many more calories when you are cold like that and need to keep up your strength. 😉
Ha, I’ll use any excuse for a chocolate donut.
Happy to oblige! 🍩
I love the way you approach and solve focus problems. One suggestion for keeping yourself warm is to check this item out: http://www.ororowear.com. It is a game changer!
Thanks for the suggestion, Dennis.
I swear by my battery-powered heated gloves for winter bicycle riding. I can put on enough clothes (usually) to keep me warm enough but my hands need extra help. I know you’d need more dexterity for photography but maybe they would keep you a bit warmer while you’re driving around.
Linda, I can, and have, worn a glove on my left hand while photographing birds. But it just doesn’t work on my right “shutter-finger” hand, even with cutouts on the fingertips. There usually isn’t time to remove a glove before a bird takes off. I’d miss far too any shots.
Wonderful news about the black-naped pheasant-pigeon. I really, really hope that it doesn’t get loved to death (again).
And very promising news about one of the banes of your photographic existence as well.
“I really, really hope that it doesn’t get loved to death”
A perfectly valid point, EC. I hope the powers that be keep folks out of the area.
Love that sharp shot of a gorgeous young Red-tail, and would have loved to be there when you spotted her, but that whole freezing-your-patootie-for-the-sake-of-sharpness deal just makes me glad I only have to open my email in the comfort of my warm home to enjoy it! 😎
Wonderful video of the rediscovered bird … good news, indeed.
I think it’s a pretty neat photo too, Kris. I love the vivid colors. And the sharpness of the hawk of course.
What a gorgeous photo. Even the sky is sharp.
Congrats on your “solution”. I’m picturing you driving on a twisty dirt road, camera in one hand precariously hanging out the window, the other hand on the steering wheel while simultaneously grasping a donut – or potato – and freezing your patootie off. As Michael says, suffering comes with the territory.
“Even the sky is sharp”
You made me laugh again, Lyle.
Wonderful tip! I too was out photographing raptors yesterday morning in the cold and also worried about soft photos. But with companions in the back seat I didn’t open my window and so got soft photos until it warmed later in the day. I wonder, though, if you are concerned of any negative impact of having the temperatures of the lens vary a lot from the cold outside to the warm inside?
Nope, that doesn’t worry me Kent (other than the soft photos if I don’t keep the end of my lens cold). In part because I don’t keep it very warm inside but even if I did I wouldn’t have any concerns.
Ron – Good to know – thanks for your quick reply.
Makes sense, Ron. Good tip!
Thanks, Ed.
Always learning, how wonderful is that? Great idea!
Thanks, JK.
Could you keep your camea in a cooler to isolate it from your warm vehicle interior. Then when you get to your location, open all your windows to cool down the vehicle interior (and you!) before opening the insolated cooler. That would get you in the cold as well, but not for such an extended time??
Gail, I’m afraid that wouldn’t be practical for a variety of reasons.
That is a very nice sharp photo, and it’s a RT!
Back when I used to ride motorcycles more often, there were these heated suits that some would use on cold rides. If I recall, they would plug into the motorcycle electrical system. Something like that could be an option.
Then again, suffering for one’s art has been a long established tradition. 😁
“Then again, suffering for one’s art has been a long established tradition”
That brings The Agony and the Ecstasy to mind.
Good story and excellent photo Ron. Very sharp for sure. Sounds though that you might be very uncomfortable working with that new strategy. Don’t freeze yourself to death out there for the sake of sharper shots. Planting potatoes sounds healthier than the donuts, but the donuts sure taste better with the coffee, and health guru Dr. Steven Gundry does not recommend potatoes as being very healthy.
“Dr. Steven Gundry does not recommend potatoes as being very healthy”
Everett, I’d still wager they’re healthier than chocolate donuts!
Yes – for sure – have not eaten a donut in many years and laugh every time I see a new donut shop opening in our area
Nice! However, you freezing isn’t helpful either…. 😉 YES on the extinct bird being found……. 🙂
My father fought in New Guinea during WWII I’m sure a bird wasn’t on his mind at the time….. 😉
“I’m sure a bird wasn’t on his mind at the time”
I’m sure you’re right, Judy.
Just beautiful, well done!!!!
Thanks, Dick.
Glorious and sharp as a tack! Brrrrrrrr 🙂
Thanks, Kathleen.
Hi Ron: I too have experienced the issue of soft images from a warm lens in a cold environment. I’ve seen numerous articles and videos on the issue and a solution that works for me is to remove the lens hood if the sun angle is not going to cause any issues with the sun hitting the front element. The heat trapped inside the hood is the culprit. I was very surprised at the solution, but it does work if it is an option based on the sun angle.
Keith, I’ve removed the hood in the past but I don’t like to do it for fear of scratching my front element. With my lens I can’t use a protective UV filter in the front.
Maybe a 12 volt heated car blanket? A quick search shows them for $25 or so. Thanks for the gorgeous photos, first thing I open in the mornings.
An interesting suggestion, Theresa.
And some electric socks for your feet. Sparky
Steven, my feet are a big part of the problem. Because of neuropathy in my feet I haven’t worn real shoes for going on 5 years. All I wear is my Birkenstocks, with thick socks in winter. I never claimed to be a clothes horse..
I’ll SAY SHARP- crisp and beautiful… Congratulations on crafting a solution–
for that, you deserve a chocolate donut–grow the potatoes for a hot weather
snack instead !
Thanks, Kris. Maybe both… 🙂
I hope I never encounter 14F temperatures when I’m out and about with my camera, but if I do, I’ll remember your tips. Dealing with an air-conditioned camera in humidity can be equally frustrating, but at least I’m more comfortable while I’m lens-wiping!
Shoreacres, our usually very low humidity is rarely a problem.
In Florida I often had the opposite problem on hot humid mornings. Since I kept my camera in our air-conditioned home, the lens would fog up, needing to be wiped several times before they warmed up to the ambient temperature. My solution was to store the camera overnight in the garage.
I’ve heard of problems like that, Kenneth.
That is one stunning shot. And you are one tough old bird yourself to handle those temps for what must have been hours. (Either that or gosh darn loco, but I’ll leave that determination up to those who know you more intimately. 🤔😉) But it worked and I guess that’s what counts. Guess that determination and stubbornness is one of the main factors that make the difference between your first class shots and the rest of us. 😉
Granny Pat, I suspect that “gosh darn loco” is at least part of the equation.
Good news all around. Don’t get frostbit!
Thank you for the link to the news… it’s a beautiful bird… I love how excited the local guide is and how the article says the residents are vested in saving the bird.
It’s fun to get some good news in that department for a change, isn’t it Cheryl.
Was it breezy yesterday morning? That helps for me.
Nope. The air was completely still, as it usually is on those unusually cold mornings.