Ugly Hedgehog - Photography Forum
Home Active Topics Newest Pictures Search Login Register
Posts for: New Mexico Dave
Page: 1 2 3 next>>
Sep 3, 2022 07:57:35   #
PurpleHaze204 wrote:
Hi hogs, need your advice. I'm going on my first safari trip next summer to Kenya and Tanzania. I have an APS-C camera with both 18-135mm and 70-300mm lenses. Will I really need anything longer than 300? Since I'll be there two weeks, it almost doesn't pay to rent as I'd spend almost the same money to purchase say a Sigma 150-500 lens. I'll take travel tripod but will I need flash for evening drives?

Thoughts? Thanks all.


Hello PurpleHaze. Funny that you have that moniker as my wife and I stayed at the Mt. Kenya Lodge facilities that the Queen of England stayed at in 1912 and our small cabin was "Purple Rain" not Purple Haze. Just thought it funny. OK to the meat of your question. I am a semi-professional photographer and have quite a bit of experience in Kenya, Tanzania, Madagascar, South Africa and Australasia. I think the most important question you need to ask yourself is "what am I trying to photograph?" I MAINLY take bird photos, and so I need a larger lens to bring them in closer to capture all of the details of the eyes and the feathers. Lenses like Sigma 150-600 Sport or Contemporary are great, but I have had great success with a prime Nikon 500mm as well. Again, I am primarily a bird photographer. On the last safari I was on in Tanzania and Kenya, I had a 80-400 Nikon which was "ok" but not great for bird photography, but for overall wildlife photography it was quite good. If your target is large wildlife, your choice of lenses that you mentioned will give you a bit of flexibility and should be fine. One caveat. If you are in a typical "safari vehicle" with pop-up roof and lots of dust, tripods are going to be in the way for you and other participants. Do not be tempted to change lenses in these circumstances. I would recommend keeping one lens on one camera, and then just grab the camera (with lens attached) which might be appropriate for the moment. Beanbag might be too large or heavy. I would recommend cutting out a 6-12" length of padded foam insulation normally used for pipes from Home Depot or similar. Super light, and can be stashed in luggage. If you slice the entire length in half (just one side mind you), it can be used on a partially open window as a support. Just curl it over the window glass and rest the camera on the top. Works very well. Have a wonderful trip!!
Go to
Apr 10, 2022 07:15:49   #
BillA wrote:
Good Morning Huggers: I am a bird photographer and I see that many of you also are. I'm trying to locate the meaning of certain abbreviations used when people post their sightings to eBird. The current one, listed in the comments sections, is HO. I have seen several others from time to time. Can anyone tell me where I can find the complete list - I have beaten "google" to death but cannot seem to hit on the search phrase that would deliver me to the correct spot.

Any help much appreciated.

Best to all!
Good Morning Huggers: I am a bird photographer a... (show quote)


In "eBird speak" HO is the abbreviation for "Heard Only."
Go to
May 9, 2021 07:27:36   #
Such a culturally insensitive comment. Absurd! How would you like a stranger coming into your community and jabbing a camera with a 14mm lens in your face? . If they agree and you pay the indigenous Pueblo peoples, then maybe. But do NOT thrust yourself into their private space!
Go to
May 8, 2021 06:16:54   #
Ken, these are really difficult question(s) to answer. Are you trying to photograph architecture and buildings? People? Culture?

"I Have a Nikon Z6 with 24-70 and 24-200- as well as a Z50 (DX) with 16-50 and 50-250.
Considering purchasing a 14-30 for the Z6."

Don't over pack your kit. It sounds to me that you have what you need. The photographer makes the images, not the lens or camera combination(s). I understand that. You have a nice combination of lenses for the area, and unless you are a wildlife photographer (like me) then no need for a larger lens. Wide angle lens with a full frame? I don't think you need another lens. I think that you already have what you need. Just be creative on the images. Trust me, I have lived here in the Southwest for 39 years, and in Corrales just to the south for over 20 years. Wonderful place to live, and a wonderful place to photograph.
Go to
Apr 8, 2021 06:09:29   #
I had a similar problem when in Thailand in 2019. Talk about bad timing! Mine froze up at around 250mm. Fortunately I had a Coolpix P1000 for a backup which I used for the remainder of the trip to Thailand and then on to Cambodia. When I returned, I contacted Nikon Repair Services, boxed it carefully via UPS with lots of padding and bubble wrap, insured it for $1000, and shipped it off to the Los Angeles location for repair. I had it back in two weeks and the cost was around $250. I think that I had accumulated fine grit on the barrel and it finally gave up and locked up on me. Now, as good as new!
Go to
Mar 24, 2021 08:38:06   #
I agree. My motto is now "to keep an image, determine if it can be sold commercially, or is it compelling (tells a story).
Go to
Mar 24, 2021 08:33:20   #
I have taken more than 300,000 photos of birds in my time (now 62), and I have a huge number of keepers, but this is my favorite. My wife Janet with new friends at Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania. Not staged, and she didn't even know that I had my camera out at the time


Go to
Jan 7, 2021 06:42:31   #
It might also be that since the P900 is enabled with GPS capabilities, there is a slow draw down on the battery since it remotely "monitors" its location. At least that is what happens with my GP-1 GPS unit attached to my D500 even when the camera is off.
Go to
Dec 30, 2020 06:46:18   #
Umm, Appy your comments do not make sense. Not sure what you are asking or advocating.
Go to
Dec 29, 2020 06:42:45   #
I resolve to use my Nikon D750 and D810 more, but still use the D500 for wildlife and birds.

I also resolve to start #Project365, where you take a photograph each day of the year with a critical look at what you are trying to learn about perspective, light, etc. Could be an iPhone or macro image of an insect in the dirt. It just teaches us to look and change perspectives, and sometimes the results are spectacular.

I also resolve to do a Sandoval County Big Year (NM) where I try to bird in various area within the county several times a week. Of course being a bird photographer, the Nikon D500 goes out with either the 500mm, the Sigma 150-600mm, or the 400mm. Heck, I bought them... better use them!

New Mexico Dave
Go to
Dec 25, 2020 07:05:48   #
Umm, maybe NASA chose that company brand for photography? You are pretty supreme sitting on your Canon seat. Be nice, and let it go. So biased....
Go to
Dec 23, 2020 06:58:54   #
Pompous comment by you. YOU of such high skill level with the Canon products. Take a break. Have you ever tested the other Nikon , Sony or other products? If not, then sit back and let others breath and speak what they feel strongly about. You have great knowledge and understanding with Canon, but what do you REALLY know about Nikon and other brands? You are happy to write off Nikon as a collapsing and disappearing company, but what do you know? I am Nikon and will always be (30 years and running).
Go to
Dec 23, 2020 06:38:21   #
Biased comment. You are are good critic, but do not own Nikon much and certainly have no photos published or on covers of magazines. Canon is a great company, but so is Nikon, Sony and others. Why so biased?
Go to
Dec 23, 2020 06:31:24   #
Chirpy? So sure that Canon is going to "win" the race?
Go to
Oct 20, 2020 07:25:32   #
I am semi-professional and have sold images to magazine and field guides. Mainly bird photos. This is my process: 1. Download images from camera onto PC hard drive using a folder identified as to date and location (like 2020-10-18 New Mexico). 2. Cull all the duds. 3. Transfer all the keepers onto backup hard drive with the same date and location subject. 4. Import the folder into Lightroom. 5. Add tags (within a reasonable limit). For instance, just recently a birding and photography morning where I live would include "New Mexico, Corrales, Corrales Bosque, Birds, Anseriformes, Anatidae, Duck, MALL (the four-letter code-name for Mallard for you non-biologists). 6. Make edits, and then do another back up onto another hard drive. While for some this sounds excessive, with over 450,000 images that I have taken over the last 17 years, if I want to find an image of a bird like a Mallard, Lightroom has it catalogued and I can search for it easily. Or "New Mexico" and "Duck." It's there using both of the key word tags. Scott Kelby and several other professionals that I have communicated with (Melissa Groo and Ben Clock) all HIGHLY recommend using as many useful tags as necessary so that you can locate that elusive image. My three cents worth, but this has certainly worked for me, and I will continue to use this system.
Go to
Page: 1 2 3 next>>
UglyHedgehog.com - Forum
Copyright 2011-2024 Ugly Hedgehog, Inc.