Photographing at the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge

Last December I visited the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife

Refuge for the first time. I never imagined the photographs I would

return home with. Looking at my slides in January, I decided to take

the leap and publish my first book, "Bosque del Apache National

Wildlife Refuge, 48 Hours of Flight". The book documents the fast

action flight and rhythms on the refuge over four, 12 hour days of

photographing. The book is out now on http://www.amazon.com or

http://www.imagestreampress.com. Going to the refuge for the first

time and writing a book about the experience was really enjoyable. If

you have never been to the refuge, make an effort to go.

 

The photographs in the book was taken with a Nikon N90s, 500mm f/4,

17-35 f/2.8, and lots of Provia 100F. Well, just like the many

thousands out there look at a digital SLR, I'm wondering if anyone

has had experience with a Nikon D1X, D1H, or D2H at the Bosque del

Apache NWR. Specifically, What I am interested in knowing is whether

these bodies are up to the task for all day fast action shooting.

Would the D1X with its 3fps be better than the new D2H at 8fps. What

about cold temp performance and what other issues should be

considered when shooting digital at Bosque del Apache? Many Thanks.<div></div>

Congrats on your first book!

 

I shot last year at Bosque with a Nikon D1 and F5. At some points I believe the cold prevented the film from advancing. With digital, I had no problems with gear performance. Being able to change ISO for the morning blast offs was great with digital, I started out at 800 and changed as the light got better.

 

I have since converted to the Canon system and have had no problems with "all day fast action shooting", even with 16 hour days in the field at Churchill and Alaska! I just keep extra flash cards and spare batteries handy.

 

Hope this helps.

There's something magical, almost spiritual, about a first trip to Bosque. I don't know if it was waiting with quiet anticipation in the freezing darkness, the pink glow of first light, or when I saw my first blast off, but I fell in love with the place on my first visit, too.

 

Anyway, congratulations on the book! That's a big deal and I'm sure it was a lot of work. The cover is beautiful and very inviting. I visited both sites to see if I could see more of the book. Is it in bookstores and if so, which ones? I have to go and see.....

 

Sorry I can't help with the digital stuff - just wanted to say CONGRATS! You must be rightfully very proud and I'm sure it's a beautiful book :-)

Thanks for your comments on the book. It was really a fun project and great time being down there. Sounds like we could have been then during the same time of the year. I was there the first week in December. I was surprised how many photographers were there and just how cold it was. I think the thing that most stands out in my mind is the drive from Socorro at 5:30 in the morning. Under the cover of an ink black sky, the only cars on the road were those headed to the refuge. Driving in, tripods and dark shadows of photographers seemed to be all over the place. When daylight neared, the sound of thousands of birds could be heard in the distance. It was a sight and sound I will never forget. It was amazing to see so many of these birds right off the Flight Deck. I think what got me thinking about digital having gone through this was the ability to switch ISO settings and not be bound to a 36 frame limit. I know I missed shots due to low light, changing batteries, film, etc. But hey, I guess I'll just have to go back and try again!

I hear ya' - being able to change ISO is one of the things that attracts me to digital. That and the ability to experiment with instant results. I still like film though. Aside from finishing a painting, there aren't too many feelings that can compare to holding the medium in my hands - it is immensely satisfying to me as an artist. But, I'm working hard toward my first digital *and* a medium format camera. Good luck to you and I'll be looking for that book! Here is an image from my first (and only) trip two years ago!<div></div>

<p>Jim, one of the minor problems with digital is that I took so many images that I have yet to review them all! But it does offer a lot of flexibility, this year I plan to shoot just digital. I was there last year around the time you mention and recall one morning in particular that was quite cold.</p>

 

<p>I wrote up a brief article on my first visit to Bosque that can be seen here: <a href=http://www.hforcier.com/articles/bosque.htm><u>Bosque Article</u></a>, if you are interested.</p>

 

<p>The first image is the morning blast off taken at ISO 800. The snow goose in flight was taken at ISO 200 one evening.</p>

 

<p>Again, congrats on the book!</p>

Heather, nice article - a must read for anyone going down. I agree, adding a digital capability has many benefits. Managing does seem to quickly become a problem however. I've been using Canto's Cumulus image management software for my 35 and 120mm scans and it works very well for me. Getting 36 slides developed and viewing them on the light table - very easy to quickly seperate the good from the bad. The one's I'm interested in, I'll scan and put them into Cumulus. I'm concerned with digital I'm going to spend a lot more time looking at files and in the end carry more images of lesser quality. I really like being able to go to the file and look at the original slide - it sets a standard for me. With digital there are so many other quality factors to consider from format to your display to noise and color models. I'm concerned I'm going to spend too much time on that and not on quality photography. I'm working on my second book right now, due out next spring. It's a 10x10" format and done on all film, scanned, and direct into a first generation computer to plate printing process. This is the same technique I used for my first book and the quality is amazing. I can scan a 35mm at 4000dpi and still have excellent resolution even for a 10x10 book format. Right now I'm really looking at digital for its benefits of getting more out of my 500m lens, specifically for birds, and changing ISO on the fly. I think its going to be a while before I'm completely shooting digital. I just have too much fun with LF, MF, and 35mm films like Velvia 100F! Below is a photo from the book, if you were there when I was, you have gotten the same one.<div></div>