A couple Alaskan photos

[Recty]

I went down to Homer, Alaska this weekend, where I grew up.

Nothing too special for pictures, but I was testing out my new 50mm and I definitely like it.

These were all taken using autofocus, I previously used a Sigma 50mm f/1.4 and was really unimpressed with it's ability to autofocus. The Canon seems spot on.

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/anemone001.jpg

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/crab001.jpg

This is at F/1.4...

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/rock001-1.jpg

And then one at F/5.6...

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/rock002.jpg

Here's another autofocus at F/1.4, it turned out pretty decent, WAAAAY better than either of my Sigma lenses would have done.

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/snail001-1.jpg

[Recty]

Then here are a couple I took with my 100mm macro of some sandhill cranes outside my father's house.

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/crane006.jpg

This is pretty cool, it's standing on one leg and it did this for like an hour, it looks so off balance yet it stood there with no problem.

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/crane007.jpg

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/crane005.jpg

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/crane004.jpg

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/crane003.jpg

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/crane002.jpg

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/crane001.jpg

[Recty]

And then here are a few pictures from the drive back up to Anchorage...

My wife, my brother and then me!

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/sewardturn002.jpg

And then here is the beautiful view without people blocking it!

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/sewardturn001.jpg

[Reef Bass]

Nice lens Grant! Glad you're happy with it. You sound surprised that it works as well as it does. It's a Canon buddy!

Your brother is going to want to borrow it soon.

I like the sandhill next to the sunflower and the "off balance" sandhill.

Alaska is beautiful.

Good to see Grant Jr. there too!

[Recty]

Yeah, he will be borrowing I'm sure :)

I am a little surprised it works so well, I guess it's because the Sigma was such a letdown I figured maybe the Canon version would have issues as well.

Alaska really is beautiful, it's a gorgeous place. This weekend has been nonstop sun too, great place to be at this time. Come another month and the snow starts flying, it gets a little less desirable to me ;)

[TitusvileSurfer]

Dang Grant, exquisite work! I REALLY loved the snail at f/1.4. Perfect depth of field.

[Recty]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15665576#post15665576 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TitusvileSurfer
Dang Grant, exquisite work! I REALLY loved the snail at f/1.4. Perfect depth of field. Thanks ;) I'm really happy with the lens, it performed flawlessly, especially when compared to the Sigma version of it :)

I'm really pleased with the crane pictures too.

[IPT]

Dude - I had no idea the Cranes looked like that! I thought they were just black spots in the sky flying all haphazardly making strange noises.... nice shots. Is it my laptop display or are the mtn/lake shots a tad underexposed (particularly the mtn on the right side)? Have you done any masking in PS yet?

[Recty]

Cranes are pretty cool, and pretty big to boot.

As far as the mountains go, I'm not sure? The sun was coming over the mountains over there, so it was definitely casting some deep dark shadows, as to if that looks like real life or I need to brighten that area up, I couldnt tell you ;) I thought this looked realistic to me.

Yes, I do quite a bit of masking in PS for some of the web page work I'm doing, I typically havent been for pictures I'm posting on RC.

[dendronepthya]

Wow you took those cranes at 50mm? Must have been really close

[Recty]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15674705#post15674705 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dendronepthya
Wow you took those cranes at 50mm? Must have been really close No kidding!!!

Nah, I said right before the crane pictures that I took them with my 100mm macro.

[dendronepthya]

still, 100mm isn't that close lol. good job

[Recty]

My dad and mom live in Homer, I went down to visit them this weekend. The cranes come down right outside his house, he puts out like $200 worth of bird seed and berries every month for all the birds to eat, he has like a zoo outside ;)

See in the one picture where the crane is on one foot? There is a white tupperware looking thing to the left? That's a long shallow lagoon filled with water that the cranes get in from time to time and they drink a lot.

It's amazing how much a bird like a crane drinks.

[Recty]

A post by IPT in his thread about tracking collars made me decide to post these. These were taken with my 50mm, so they are a pretty big crop to get them large enough as they were about 60 feet away when I took the picture with a pretty short lens.

Notice the legs...

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/crane008.jpg

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i236/Recty/crane009.jpg

[JStraz4991]

nice pictures