Author: fabsforns

Photography instructor and nature lover.

Taking the Lensbaby Sweet 35 for a ride…

Two exposures blended in CS6

Taking the Lensbaby Sweet 35 for a ride… Please click on the thumbnails for a bigger image. A few years ago I had a love affair with the Lensbaby. It was only the 2.0 version, that you had to bend to find your sweet spot and the only available extras were the 4X and 10X… Continue reading Taking the Lensbaby Sweet 35 for a ride…

Time for a change


Not that we are getting away from bird photography.Not really. But sometimes I feel like I need something different and explore new venues and roads to keep the imagination working. Nothing like facing a challenge to keep your mind alert and chumming. Our new toys are Sony’s NEX7. A very small and light mirror less… Continue reading Time for a change


Not bird season for us down here in Miami, but fortunately, I am teaching classes at Zoo Miami on Sundays, so, although I’m not exactly a fan of captive animals, they are so well taken care of, and so beautiful, that it is easy to enjoy spending time there.

Last week-end they had a Trick or Treat week-end, with ghosts and displays, and animals getting pumpkins and orange treat bags filled with fruit. It was great to see all the kids dressed up for Halloween and the air of festivity was all around.

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Today, the day was slower, although I got to see the females lions for the first time, and they are outstandingly beautiful, plus we had an incident with the mountain gorillas. JJ is the alpha male and it is very hard to get him to do anything or even show his face. He likes to sleep, feet up covered by a palm frond. Today, such a beautiful day, he was out, sleeping, of course, when someone threw a whole bag of pop corn to the ditch in front of the exhibit. A young and agile female went right for it, but this didn’t go unnoticed. JJ got on the move and we were ready for some action.

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Well, as in humans, when a male is in love, he is lost. He would go near her but got happy such by getting the pop corn she dropped. Not an ounce of aggression towards her, although another older female that was close by got to feel his anger and rejection. At some point, this young female had the audacity to throw two punches at him, which he took willingly, and after that, she sat on top of the highest rock and pounded on her chest, Tarzan style. Go know…

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When she was finished and plastic bag was licked, she threw it to JJ!!!! The ultimate humilliation.

I’m sure he had his reasons, but we had such a great time watching the behavior.

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Animals be animals, whether they are captive or not, and you can never tell when you are going to get a good image, so the key is patience, wait for them to be in even light if possible and make sure you have enough shutter sped to avoid camera shake if you are in working them in the shade (always recommended).

 

Interview at 121Clicks


I had the honor of being interviewed by this great photography website, which I recommend to students because of all the tutorials and great info on the subject. Please enjoy! Interview with Bird Photographer Fabs Forns

Arctic Terns feeding


http://youtu.be/0PfwYjP5nXg

Arctic Tern (Sterna Paradisea)

They are medium sized sea birds, with the longest migration known to any animal, from the Northern Oceans to Antarctica and back. They see more sunlight in a year than any other animal.
The long forked tails developed in the summer, are particularly attractive as they fly and glide through the air.

They nest every one to three years and perform most of its activities in the air. Juveniles are brown or grayish , resembling winter adults.
They are extremely vocal and protective of their nest, attacking visitors who venture into their colony grounds. They tend to return to the same nesting grounds.
They hardly fly while they are molting, resting in blocks of ice.
They can live of to 34 years and can breed at 3 to 4 years of age.
Their diet consists of fish and small marine invertebrates.
Arctic terns are slightly smaller than common terns, and have a shorter bill and longer tail. The rump is white, the underparts are darker and the wing lacks the dark wedge on the outer edge, which is a key identifying feature of common terns. During summer, the bill becomes bright red and lacks the black tip seen in common terns.
The Arctic Terns are considered threatened in certain states, and at the southern part of their range, the population has been diminishing.
There are approximately one million individuals around the world.