Ok, I know I went traditional on the collective nouns this time, but the alternatives were just too weird…flock, sault, sawt, sowse and troop. I think I’ll pass!

Most of these lions were photographed in Botswana (2-8) and a couple of them from South Africa (1 & 9). I still have quite a few more to work on and some video as well… So there will be more coming soon.

I really like the way the Lisa Cueman inspired duo-tones work with lions. Some of the images are a bit gory and this sort of tones that down a bit too. Speaking of gory the rest of my lion photography does contain some graphic (gore) images. I don’t think they are over the top and you can see them…HERE.

In case you were curious:

• Male lions can reach a length of 10 feet and weigh between 300 to 500 pounds or more. Female lions are slightly smaller.
• A lion’s roar can be heard up to 5 miles away.
• Tigers are lions’ closest relatives. Without their coats, lion and tiger bodies are so similar that only experts can tell them apart.
• Lion is the only member of the cat family to have a tassel at the tip of the tail.
• A pride’s territory often stretches to about 100 square miles.

[View with PicLens]

Sadly it really is only to support the new D3100. I was hoping for a bit more, but with Nikon and their software well they dance to their own drummer. I still think that it give superior performance, but the Lightroom is so close now and the work flow so much simpler, I find myself using Capture less and less. In fact, I question whether or not I would even pay to upgrade, if and when Nikon goes to NX3.

Here are the highlights.

• Compatibility with Mac OS X version 10.6.4 has been added.
• Support for RAW images captured with the D3100 has been added.
• Information for lenses used with the Auto Distortion correction function under Camera & Lens Corrections in the Develop section of the Edit List has been updated.
• An issue that prevented smooth display of graduations when certain RAW images were opened has been resolved (however this issue may remain in some images)
• An issue that caused certain RAW images to be displayed too brightly with Capture NX 2 Ver. 2.2.0–2.2.4 has been resolved.
• When the Image Dust Off function under Camera & Lens Corrections in the Develop section of the Edit List was applied, block noise was generated in some very rare cases. This issue has been resolved.

The link for the upgrade for Mac is…HERE.

The link for the upgrade for PS is…HERE.

If you son’t already own NX2 and don’t have this version it is worth upgrading. It has always been stable and fast for me. You can buy it from Amazon with the link below.

Nikon Capture NX 2 Full Version

For a limited time, that means if this post is still live, I’m available to scan your APS film cartridges. I’ve got the ability to make high res scans using a Nikon 4000ED scanner. I just finished scanning about 250 canisters of old pics and while they won’t make the cover of a magazine anytime soon it is nice to have the memories back from some family trips.

So, if you have some canisters of APS film laying around and you would like to have a DVD with digital copies of your old photographs send me an email…HERE.

Does this bring back good or bad memories?

Good job collective noun people! There are even good alternates like pod, thunder and raft. I have had good luck with hippo photography and I’ve put a few in this gallery, but there are quite a few more in my portfolio…HERE.

I’ve been charged a couple of times by these guys and it is not fun. They are quite ill tempered and don’t tolerate intrusion into their territory and with a big male weighing as much as 9000 lbs (4500 kg) and having a 4 ft (1.2m) bite and a tooth that can reach 3 ft (1 m) who would want to bother them?

In case you were curious:

• The name comes from 2 Greek words that mean “river horse”.
• Male hippos will attack young hippos in the water, but not on land.
• An adult hippopotamus can stay submerged for 5 to 6 minutes
• A baby hippo can eat grass in 3 weeks, but nurses for a year.
• A hippopotamus can eat 100 to 150 pounds of grass in a night.
• They are the 3rd largest land animal

[View with PicLens]

I did not have GPS capability when I made these images and so their exact area is not shown on the map, but you get the idea. If you are familiar with Moremi, these were all taken near Third Bridge.

Nikon announced the D3100 (replaces D3000, D60, D40 DSLRs) and if you have any of the cameras in that lineage, upgrade now! Tons of new features and improvements. The photographer makes the image, but your equipment can sure help and this is a terrific little DSLR. It should be a terrific video camera as well with ful 1080 HD and constant auto focus!

Nikon D3100:

• 14 MP CMOS Sensor (23.2 x 15.5 mm)
• live View
• Continuous AF in video mode/live view
• 3 inch Display (not swivel)
• 100 – 12800 ISO
• ISO setting manual or automatic
• 11 AF points
• new AF points configuration which should cover a very large portion of the viewfinder
• full HD Video (1920 x 1080)
• HD video: 1080p/24 and 720p 30/24
• AVCHD video codec
• new EXPEED2 processor
• improved objects recognition for the AF control
• improved in-camera menu
• user can save picture profiles
• in camera video editing capabilities or use the new Nikon View NX2
• 3 fps

Of the new releases the one I am most intersted in is the new 24-120. I’ve been wanting that one for a while now and the upgrade give it the VR that I’ve been wanting in that lens.

Lenses:

• Nikkor AF-S DX 55-300 f/4.5-5.6 G ED VR
• Nikkor AF-S 85 f/1.4 G with Nano coating: 10 lens elements in 9 groups
• Nikkor AF-S 24-120 f/4 G ED VR with Nano coating
• Nikkor AF-S 28-300 f/3.5-5.6 G ED VR: 19 lens elements in 14 groups

You can read all of the details and pre-order them on Amazon with these links.

Nikon D3100 14.2MP Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm VR Nikkor Zoom Lens

Nikon 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S DX NIKKOR Lens for Nikon Digital SLR

Nikon 24-120mm f/4G ED VR AF-S NIKKOR Lens for Nikon Digital SLR

Nikon 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR AF-S NIKKOR Lens for Nikon Digital SLR

Nikon 85mm f/1.4G AF-S NIKKOR Lens for Nikon Digital SLR

Coalition is the official collective noun for cheetah, but I don’t like it very much. I’m thinking, Dash or Race or something more suitable to our fastest land mammal…

These pictures were mostly from Botswana’s Moremi Game Reserve. We had a lot of great sightings including 3 bachelor brothers taking an impala calf. The one shot with the crazy “sunset eyes” was in Madikwe South Africa.

I’ve been scanning some old images and there are some more nice cheetah shots so I’ll get those online soon too.

In case you were curious:

• Size: 3.5 to 4.5 ft (1.1 to 1.4 m); Tail, 25.5 to 31.5 in (65 to 80 cm)
• Weight: 77 to 143 lbs (35 to 65 kg)
• Can reach 60 mph (96 kph) and will pass 45 mph in about 2.5 seconds
• Cheetahs were trained by man for hunting as long ago as 3000 BC
• Perhaps only 12,000 of these big cats remain and are considered endangered
• They can’t roar, but they are the only big cat that can purr.

[View with PicLens]

The best part of this news is that Nikon is working on software and I hope that means that Nikon Capture NX2 will soon be Nikon Capture NX3! The other good news is that for Nikon users this is free software and will now edit your videos.

Here are the details and you can download the software…HERE.

ViewNX 2 Primary New Functions

Revamped user interface

Three workspaces

It is easy to switch between the three workspaces—Browser, GeoTag, Edit—with the simple click of a button on the Toolbar.

• Geo Tag workspace
• Browser workspace
• Edit workspace

Four background colors

The color of the workspace background can be selected from white, grey, dark grey and black, depending upon the brightness of images.

Changing palette display, thumbnail list display

As the Browser palette at the left of the ViewNX 2 window and the Edit palette at the right of the window can be displayed separately, working with ViewNX 2 is more efficient. What’s more, as unnecessary palettes can be hidden, the workspace can be maximized. In the Browser and Edit workspaces, the Thumbnail List option can also be selected to display image details with thumbnails.

New image editing functions

(1) Crop

Save only the desired portion of a photo.

(2) Auto Red-Eye

Correct the “red-eye” effect that often occurs in photos of people taken with a flash.

(3) Straighten

Straighten photos taken at an angle.

(4) Auto Lateral Color Aberration

Correct color shift caused by chromatic aberration and reduce lateral chromatic aberration.

Movie editing functions

Trim

Use to specify and extract only the desired portion of a movie file.

Save movie frame as still image

Saves a specified movie frame as a JPEG image with the same pixel count as the original movie frame.

Improved print functions

(1) Printing date/time shot

Print the date images were captured over or below the images.

(2) Background color

Select one of four background color options for printing.

(3) Metadata

Select the shooting information to be printed with images from a detailed set of options.

(4) Header/Footer

Text can be input for use as headers and/or footers with printing

Greater collaboration with my Picturetown

Simple viewing

Images uploaded to my Picturetown can be viewed in the ViewNX 2 Browser window. This allows users to check the images uploaded to my Picturetown without opening a Web browser and entering their login e-mail address and password every time.

Simple upload to my Picturetown from ViewNX 2

Images can be uploaded from ViewNX 2 to my Picturetown using simple drag and drop operations from the folder displayed in the ViewNX 2 Browser window.

Other ViewNX 2 Functions

Files can be converted to a different format and image size can be adjusted

Aspects such as brightness, contrast, highlights and shadows can be adjusted for both JPEG and RAW images

Equipped with a variety of display modes including Thumbnail Grid, Thumbnail List, Image Viewer and Full Screen

Comprehensive RAW image processing with Exposure Comp., White Balance and Picture Control adjustments

Custom Picture Controls can be created and saved. Custom Picture Controls created with a Nikon camera can be imported into ViewNX 2 and exported to compatible cameras. (RAW images only)

Nine color labels and ratings (up to five stars can be specified) enable detailed organization and classification of images

This is one of my favorite African animals! They have many colorful names (Painted Dog, Painted Hunting Dog, African Hunting Dog, Cape Hunting Dog, Spotted Dog, Ornate Wolf or Painted Wolf) and there is a bit of a push to have their official name changed to Painted Dog. The feeling is the name has given them a bad rap and they’ve been persecuted by locals and farmers to an endangered status.

They are amazing hunters having the highest success ratio for kills among the top predators. Wild Dogs have an 80% success rate on hunts compared to the King of Beasts, the Lion, at a measly 30%! They are also very supportive of the pack members. Weak and older members are given a portion of the hunt and often the youngest are allowed to eat first. Even the “nanny’s that are left behind to protect pups during the hunt are fed via regurgitation. OK doesn’t sound good, but they get their fair share!

In case you were curious:

• Size: weight 17-36 kilograms (37-79 pounds). It stands about 30 inches (75 cm) at the shoulder, with a head and body length averaging about 40 inches (100 cm) and a tail of 12 to 18 inches (30–45 cm).
• They have four not five toes on their forelegs.
• Only the male and female alpha pair will produce the offspring of the pack.
• Each animal’s unique coat is an identification marker because no two are alike.

[View with PicLens]

I didn’t have a GPS setup when I took these images, but they were all taken in South Africa’s Madikwe Reserve as shown on this map.

I love NIK software, I doubt there is an image in my portfolio that at least one of their magnificent software packages has not touched. They have just released an update (FREE to registered users) of their crazy good Viveza software. The good news is that Mac (finally) gets 64bit support. If you read what they say they was not a trivial matter and yet, they are not charging for the upgrade. That customer service is a hallmark of this greta company. I highly recommend them!

I am sure the rest of the packages will be rolling out shortly.

Per Nik Software and a link to the free updates is…HERE.

Version 2.003 for Mac includes:

• 64-Bit Compatible
• Fixes additional minor bugs

Viveza 2.003 has been updated for 64-bit compatibility for the Macintosh and Windows operating systems. If you are currently running a workflow that supports 64-bit, such as Adobe Photoshop CS5 and/or Macintosh OS 10.6 (Snow Leopard), please download this update.

However, if you are currently using Adobe Photoshop CS2 and/or Macintosh OS 10.4 (Tiger), which do not run natively in 64-bit, the update is currently not compatible in these environments.

Version 2.003 for Windows includes:

• 64-Bit Compatible
• Fixes additional minor bugs

Of course, if you don’t own Viveza, you can buy it from me!

Viveza 2

The release candidate for Adobe Lightroom 3.2 is out today and while I normally wait to post the updates until it the final version, the Facebook export is pretty cool. If you are a Facebook photographer or have one of the new cameras it supports grab it now. Here is what Adobe says about a release candidate, “The ‘release candidate’ label indicates that this update is well tested but would benefit from additional community testing…”

The details from Adobe:

New Functionality

• Additional direct publish functionality to Facebook, the popular social networking site.

Newly supported camera models include:

• Casio EXILIM EX-FH100 (DNG*)
• Leica S2 (DNG*)
• Panasonic DMC-FZ100
• Panasonic DMC-FZ40 (FZ45)
• Panasonic DMC-LX5
• Pentax 645D
• Samsung NX10
• Samsung TL500 (EX1)
• Sony A290
• Sony A390
• Sony Alpha NEX-3
• Sony Alpha NEX-5

You can get the downloads from Adobe Labs….HERE.

If you still have not bought Adobe Lightroom shame on you and here is a link for the upgrade!

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 Upgrade

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3

I’ve been to Africa quite a few times and while I was there I never really thought about photographing the birds…what a shame. While I have been re-working my old images for the new site I found these few birds scattered about and some of them are really quite nice…

In Botswana alone there are almost 600 species and 500 of them should be easy to find. I managed to photograph about 20! To be fair most of the times I was there I didn’t have long enough lenses to photograph them and I did see a huge number of birds. Unlike birders, I only “count” birds that I get a picture of, but still I cannot wait to go back for my feathered friends.

In case you were curious:

• The Spur-winged Goose is one of the largest in the world
• Marabou Storks have the largest wing span (3.5 m or 10.5 ft) and are called the Undertaker Bird
• Ground Horn-bills are a bad omen in Kenya, if one lands on your roof you must move or risk death!

[View with PicLens]

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The GPS data was added after the fact and so is really just a representative area of where theses birds were photographed. Next time I’m in Africa it will be correct!

I recently wanted some new business cards to go with my spiffy new logo and so I decided to give Moo a try. I had seen their ads, but had never really given them a serious look. One of their many unique attributes is that they will print your business cards in color on 2 sides and …wait for it…you can have a unique image on EACH card! Holy Printing Batman! This would cost a fortune anyplace, except Moo. They’ll do it for $22 for 50. That is a great deal.

The quality is exceptional and heavy weight and somehow they have a velvety feel. According to Moo, “Our paper is thick, high quality 16pt card with a sleek matte laminate finish”. Everybody loves to touch my Moo cards!

They really love to print and will actually print you a sample run for FREE! Go to their website…HERE, and download the photoshop template and make some cards! I cannot recommend highly enough that you have your cool colorful custom cuddly cards printed by the good people at Moo.

Here is mine…show me yours!

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When you are on safari one of the sounds that you’ll never forget is that of the Spotted Hyena or Laughing Hyena. The latter name is most appropriate! Click the link to hear it for yourself… “Laughing” Hyena. We’d often hear them “laughing” around the camp in the morning,  a great alarm clock by the way!

One evening a clan (that’s an alternate collective noun for hyena) raided our kitchen tent and managed to haul away a 75lb (34 kilo) wooded locker through a window! That was not a good hyena sound!

In case you were curious:

• 28 to 35 inches tall and weigh 90 to 190 pounds (40-90 kilo)
• Female spotted hyenas are dominant over the males
• Spotted hyena cubs are born with their eyes open
• Hyenas can go for several days without water

[View with PicLens]

I did not have GPS capability when I made these images and so their exact area is not shown on the map, but you get the idea. If you are familiar with Moremi, these were all taken near Third Bridge.

A collective noun within an alliteration! Word geekdom taken to new heights or lows depending on your perspective! The point is I love elephants and spending time with wild elephants pretty much pegs the awesome meter at full tilt.

I’ve been working on some older images and many of them I have not seen in a decade. New software and a better eye has let me mine a few nuggets while scanning and scanning and scanning…ick. At the end of the day, getting images that I can use, that i didn’t know I had…priceless. I’ve also found a few minutes of video (hand-held so be kind) including a “fun” charging elephant. The charging elephant was not intent on doing us harm, but the guides instruction to the driver do give it some urgency! I’ve never had the computer horsepower or the software skills to create something like this before now and so nobody has ever seen me being charged by the elephant!

Ngiyakuthanda ngempela means “do you like it” in Zulu…Let me know!

I am not going to add the map this time but the majority of the images were taken in Botswana and the rest were in South Africa and Zimbabwe. If you are curious just ask.

Now that is a great collective noun for vultures. They are also referred to as a colony, but boo, boring! These images are from one of my safaris in Botswana. I’ve recently been updating and re-sizing my images to match the new style of web gallery and so you’ll be seeing more of these images for a while.

These vultures were all on a hippo carcass in the Okavango Delta in Botswana. We were in the Moremi Game Reserve and it was a safari for the ages. We saw everything and we saw it up close… I cannot wait to get back to Botswana, it is by far my favorite safari destination.

In case you were curious:

White-backed Vulture

• Size: 4.2 to 7.2 kilograms (9.3–16 lb), it is 94 cm (37 in) long and has a 218 cm (86 in) wingspan
• South Africa, the Zulu call African White-Backed Vulture Inge (The Purifier)
• Hunts more by site than by smell

Hooded Vulture

• size: 26 inches long, with a 5 1/2 foot wingspan
• its latin name means, “a monk-like (bird) that drags away the dead”

[View with PicLens]

I did not have GPS capability when I made these images and so their exact area is not shown on the map, but you get the idea. If you are familiar with Moremi, these were all taken near Third Bridge.

WooHoo, finally “they” as in the collective noun police got a good one for the lynx. Wonder what a collective noun for collective noun writers would be, a scribe? a plurality? Post your thoughts.

As you might expect this is another group of image from my wildlife photography workshop in California. This time the subject was the Eurasian Lynx aka Siberian Lynx. We don’t normally photograph exotic or rather species from outside of North America, but they love cats and so we get to photograph a few exotics like this.

The Eurasian Lynx is huge, far bigger than its Canadian cousin and the one we photographed is gorgeous. I am sure if you join me in October for my next wildlife photography workshop in Montana you’ll get an opportunity to photograph him too. You can get all of the details on the PAW (Photographers Alliance Workshops) website…HERE.

In case you were curious:

• The largest member of the Lynx family and the largest cat found in Europe.
• A big male Eurasian Lynx can weigh 84 pounds (38 kilograms) whereas the Canadian Lynx weighs 18 to 24 pounds (8 to 11 kilograms).
• They commonly hunt prey three to four times their size and there are records of reindeer kill.
• The name “lynx” comes from the Greek word “to shine,” in possible reference to the eye shine of the cats at night.

[View with PicLens]

You’ll not find a wild Eurasian Lynx in California, but you can photograph one with me at my wildlife photography workshop this October.

OK, boring “they” need to step it up with the collective nouns on this one. I still like a “howling” or perhaps an “eclipse” would be more relevant these days. A pack of wolves on the move is called a route” or a “horde”. At any rate this howling of wolves was photographed during my wildlife workshop in April near Yosemite National Park.

PAW (Photographers Alliance Workshops) and I will be offering another wildlife photography workshop this October and a limited number of seats are still available…HERE.

In case you were curious:

• Average life span in the wild: 6 to 8 years
• Size: Head and body, 36 to 63 in (91 to 160 cm); Tail, 13 to 20 in (33 to 51 cm); Average foot size, 4 inches wide by 5 inches long
• Weight: 40 to 175 lbs (18 to 79 kg)

More info on wolves at Nat Geo…HERE.

[View with PicLens]

While there are a few wild wolves in California, these are back at home in Montana waiting so you’ll have to sign up for the workshop in October for your opportunity to photograph them with me.

As the title says and the map below confirms, I was out chasing the shorebirds around the Gandy Bridge beach this morning. I got a bit of a late start, but the photography was pretty good. The nice thing about shooting shorebirds this time of the year is that many of the migrants are in their alternate breeding plumage. This means they can look a lot better/colorful. Or it can mean they are in a kind of funky in between, like the Black Terns here. I’ve been trying forever to find a fully black one here in Florida, but alas no luck yet.

[View with PicLens]

Well seems my GPS was a few feet off. Most (not the Black Terns) of the pictures were taken from the water looking back towards the beach. Hmm. Ah well, the water was nice about 86 and so it was like photographing shorebirds from a hot tub!

I don’t really care for this collective noun either. How about a ‘Gruff” or “Pest”? Post you suggestions for a new collective noun. I’ve photographed quite a few badgers, but never one as mellow as this one. Never snarled, never was cranky and never really did any badgerly things. It was also quite a photogenic badger…check out those blue eyes! Who knew?

This badger was another featured subject during my wildlife photography workshop in April. We (PAW – Photographers Alliance Workshops) will be offering another wildlife photography workshop in October. There is limited space available so sign up today…HERE.

In case you were curious:

• Badgers may weigh up to 30 pounds (13.5 kg)
• Badgers live together in large extensive system of underground tunnels or catacombs and nesting chambers called “setts”, that are huge tunnel systems, in some cases, actually centuries old.
• The badger is the fastest digging animal on earth ( a meter per minute), and the strongest for its size

[View with PicLens]

Our photogenic badger is no longer in California, but this map does show you the ranch that we used during out wildlife photography workshop in April.

The poor fox has several collective nouns and most of them are not very good… a leash? an earth? a lead? Menh! We may have sort out a new collective noun for the fox. Perhaps a “Stole” not very PETA of me, but it’s better than some of the others. Leave a comment with your clever contributions.

I photographed these gorgeous foxes during my wildlife photography workshop in April. This is always a great workshop and we are going to be offering it again in October. The PAW (Photographers Alliance Workshops) website has all of the details…HERE. If you love wildlife photography it doesn’t get any better than on this workshop in Montana.

In case you were curious:

• The silver fox is the same species as the red fox, it is merely a color mutation.
• Average life span in the wild: 2 to 4 years
• Size: Head and body, 18 to 33.75 in (46 to 86 cm); Tail, 12 to 21.75 in (30.5 to 55.5 cm)
• Weight: 6.5 to 24 lbs (3 to 11 kg)
• A fox uses its tail (or “brush”) as a warm cover in cold weather
• Some red foxes are golden, reddish-brown, silver, or even black

Many more facts can be found on the Nat Geo site…HERE.

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We’ve taken the foxes back to their home in Montana so even though the map shows where we had our wildlife photography workshop, you won’t find a fox. At least none this photogenic