someone on this thread suggested that I post some of mine taken with prime lenses. I'll post the lens used and if tripod or handheld with the following photo,.
some were published in bird magazines, some not, but they are all really tack sharp. Download them and check the details.

I used to own a Canon 1D mk2 and the older Canon 600mm f4 and upgraded to 1DX and the Canon 600mm f4 version 2, and between the two items my tack sharp focus went from maybe 30% to 80-90%

Be sure to download to see quality

600mm with tripod

(Download)

600mm handheld

(Download)

600mm tripod with better beamer

(Download)

600mm from fishing boat

(Download)

600mm from fishing boat

(Download)

Well, you'll attract attention from the other photographers for sure. At Bosque you don't need to hide; there'll be 50 plus other guys standing at each photo op.

Art Morris at birdsasart.com says the secret to getting close to birds is to be low - as in crawling. Since a lot of his photos are from the film era, and the birds are full frame, ya gotta believe he knows what he is talking about.

has to be physical damage.
I fly with two think Tank roller bags, with 2-3 bodies, 600mm prime, 300mm prime and half a doz other lenses, plus flashes & computers. my tripods go in checked bags. The roller bags are semi rigid, and I highly recommend them.

No way that fits under seats, but I have never had damage and I have over 2 million miles on American Airlines and Southwest Airlines. Once in a while on AA I get a feeder airline and small plane and I have to gate check the stuff. I try to talk to the guys loading, so as to be careful. One advantage of platinum status on AA (due to miles) is that I get to board first so that I do get space of my choosing above the seats.

Tony Kuyper has some excellent outputs for web viewing that come with his luminosity masking downloads. One of the best bargains in photography, but need photoshop. check it out at goodnight.us

Well my college degree was in Physics, but when it comes to photography I like to try stuff and see what works, I don't try to think in advance to bias my mind.

That said there are compromises with increasing pixel count on full frame cameras. Higher MP = smaller pixels which means worse signal to noise ratio; more problems with camera movement, worse high ISO performance. and more I am sure.

So to satisfy my mind, I rented a Canon 5DSR for a two week trip to Europe. And while the above is true, I got fabulous pictures from it if I used good technique. A lot better than my 5Dmk3? Not for most situations, but yes some of the time much better. In low light - much worse. Have I bought one yet? NO, but really leaning that way. So inspite of all the trade offs, Canon has made a very excellent FF 50MP camera

Would I like a 50MP with bigger pixels - you bet, but I can't afford medium format stuff.

Well you got the result you wanted, you got your photos published, so difference does it make how many shots you took. I think that is impressive.

When I am on a photo shoot if I can get one photo a day published I am happy. As a bird/wildlife (occasional landscape too) photographer how many shots per hour/day depends on the bird density and if I am shooting setups. In Costa Rica or similar I can easily shoot 5000 frames per day. Out of that I likely will have 100 +/- excellent pictures where focus, wing position, body position are very desirable; out of those I hope to get one, at least, published. Could a better photographer get by with fewer frames? Maybe, I am not the best, but I am an excellent photographer and I do get some photos published which is my goal. So who gives a Sh** how many frames that takes.

Take pride in those published photos and show the publication to everyone interested. Congrats on your success.
Bill

Hey Carlo,
One more suggestion for your photos; the top two especially could have stood some fill flash. I use a better beamer a lot and have actually put useful light on an eagle's nest 200 -300 feet away. Only $70
Think about it
Bill

Carlo,
I am impressed with your hawk photos especially the last one posted. I don't know what your lens cost, but it is pretty good. I shoot with a 600 f4.0 that was very expensive, and I get fabulous photos with it (long learning curve to get good) and I would argue that it would be slightly sharper, but not by much!
You should be proud.
Bill

I have a split personality when it comes to grey market. As a wildlife/bird photographer I need long prime lenses and they are expensive. So I buy them grey and save a lot of money (more than $1000 usually) and I think that the odds of problems with a lens is near zero; however, when I buy camera bodies, I buy them from either B&H or Adorama US models only so that I have a guarantee.

I have a couple of the Dell Ultra HD 4k in the 32 inch version. They are great. If you use them in the highest resolution the print is pretty small, but crisp.
You will be happy

I agree with the insurance and don't worry advice. That is what I do and when you travel with very high end DSLR's like the Canon 1DX tape will not disguise it. Just one other thing I would suggest the think tank roller bags, which are lockable and have a steel cable so that when you leave your bag in the hotel togo to dinner you can tie the bag to the water line or bed, so that a casual thief can not walk off with it. A prepared thief coming after you will be able to cut the cable, I am sure. But that is what we do.
I actually worry about dropping the gear into the ocean/lake more than being robbed and the insurance takes care of that worry as well.

NO Suggestions for P&S as I have no experience; but I do have experience shooting in Costa Rica. If you will be taking a laptop to process photos during the trip, invest in a airtight bag for the laptop and amazon sells a water absorption deal that you plug in at night and then put in the bag and it will absorb the humidity and moisture. Why all this? my macbook pro quit on me and the staff at the hotel told me it happens all the time due to humidity. Started working again after I was home, and Apple had no suggestions as to why it happened. If you are taking a bunch of chips and no computer, then don't worry about it.

Think tank and you won't be sorry. I have two of the roller bags and have been on more than 150 flights with no problem. I put them over head on a plane - never check them.

The 16-35mm f2.8 is one of my go-to lenses. Quality is excellent, but I really like the extra light that the F2.8 brings. I use it indoors a lot and the extra stop is important.
Good luck

With a daughter in Anchorage, we have been to Alaska a number of times and to several wilderness lodges. The recommendation for the Silver Salmon Creek lodge looks like a good one and I will check on it further. Like all the others that are in a pristine locations, expensive.
Thanks for the recommendation