Website update

I just updated my website with my new logo design. Trying to keep things very simple!

7d basketball video

Here's a cool way one videographer used the 7d at a shoot...


University of Oregon men's basketball from Isaac Viel on Vimeo.

Sarah + Brent

Here is a link to a few of my favorite pics from an wedding I shot earlier this month in St. Simons Island, GA.

http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=1029956924&k=Z6GUP2QRWZTF5KGES1VXT5PQVRCA444F&oid=1053096584218

Canon announces 1d Mark IV

Canon announced the long-awaited 1d Mark IV today. Here are a few links with more information about the camera...

http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/multi_page.asp?cid=7-10044-10310

http://blog.vincentlaforet.com/

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=ModelInfoAct&fcategoryid=139&modelid=19584

Photography Multimedia Primer

Here's a link to good information about multimedia for photographers...

http://photo.net/learn/multimedia-photography/intro-to-multimedia/

Kingbird vs. Red-tailed Hawk

Check this link for a cool story about a interesting photo a photographer took earlier this year of a Kingbird grabbing a red-tailed hawk and going for a ride.

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_13452818

New site...again!

I just revamped my website...it's beginning to be a habit of mine. The links were hard to see on the previous site, so I wanted to make them big and easy to find as well as creating a new logo. Let me know what you think.

http://www.jasoncrader.com/

Crow & Clouds

Yesterday, I traveled to Ponca with some friends to photograph elk and test my new Canon 7d. I got some good pictures of elk but this was my favorite image from the day. A loan crow flew toward me and I got this shot. I know it breaks a lot of "photo rules" but I like it. Sometimes rules are meant to be broken.

Mating elk in Boxley Valley

Check the link below to see a brief  video of two elk mating in Boxley Valley. This is the prime time to see big bulls, fights, bugles and more...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guaioXON58c

Elk - peak viewing occuring now in Boxley Valley

I've been keeping an eye on the elk in Boxley Valley for the past several weeks. It appears that they are in the peak of their rut. If you're interested in viewing elk and would like to hear them bugle, now is the time to take a trip to Ponca, Arkansas.

Canon 7d

I received one of the first Canon 7d camera bodies to be shipped within the United States today. I will post a full report of my impressions of this new camera after I have a chance to test it this weekend.

Junction Bridge Sunset

Here is a favorite pic of today's sunset shot from atop the Junction Bridge in Little Rock, AR.

Boxley Valley Elk

This is the best time of year to photograph large bull elk in Boxley Valley. I'll be making many trips to this are in the next few weeks to photograph the annual rut that takes place here. Below are two of my favorite images from today.

William @ 14 months

Here are a couple of my favorite shots from today's shoot.

Elk in Boxley Valley

I just returned from Ponca, AR where I photographed elk this afternoon. The light didn't cooperate with me like I wanted it to but I did manage to get some shots of the big bulls in the area. The calf shot below is my favorite from the day.

Lauren & Matt's Wedding Pics

Check out the link below to see some of my favorite photos from today's wedding shoot.

http://crader.zenfolio.com/91909ml

Hare and Hound Race

Please check out the link below. It will take you to a video I shot last weekend at the Arkansas State Championship Hot Air Balloon festival. This is the hare and hound race sped up about five times its actual speed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBiZyfg_Pm4

New site up and running

I just uploaded my new site: http://www.jasoncrader.com/. Please check it out and let me know what you think.

Polar bear vs. girl with purple hippo

Check this link out to see a funny video I shot at the end of last month at the Memphis Zoo. A little girl takes on one of the polar bears at the zoo. You'll have to watch the video to see who wins...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRX-gN0XyxE

Hot Air Balloon Festival, Butterflies and Elk...

Just got back from a long day's trip to Harrison that began @ 4:30AM. I traveled to Harrison to today to photograph the Arkansas Hot Air Balloon Festival. I took pics at this event last year and had a great time so I wanted to do shoot this again this year. The weather didn't cooperate as well but the balloons did get to fly both in the morning and evening. No one grabbed the key this morning to win the $10,000 prize.

After the balloon race was over @ 8:30AM, I traveled to Branson with a few friends and we ended up at the Butterfly Palace. We took lots of pics and had a lot of fun.

From the Butterfly Palace, we traveled south to Ponca to photograph elk. We saw two different herds in the fields around Ponca but most of them were too far out to photograph. There was one real nice 6x6 bull in the bunch.

After shooting the elk, we went back to Harrison to watch the final balloon race of the evening before heading home.

Had a great day. I got some good pics and video. Now I'm ready for a nap...but I have editing to do...

New site in the works

I'm currently working on overhauling both my websites (jasoncrader.com and arkansasphoto.com). When I'm finished, I'll only have one site (www.jasoncrader.com). I'm going to display both my portrait and nature work on this site. I plan to use this blog extensively from here on out to post current information about my photography business. Check back soon for news on my updated website.

Canada Goose and Gosling

I recently photograhed this pair and lots of other geese on a recent photo trip to Arkansas Post. Went in search of alligators and found lots of geese and goslings. I wonder how many of these goslings become alligator food???

Workshop update

The workshop Ernie and I hosted today at Pinnacle Mountain State Park went very well. Thanks to all of our participants. We look forward to having another very soon. Check the site out in the coming days for more details.

National Wildlife 39th Annual Photo Competition

I received the information below in an email earlier this week from John Nuhn, the editor of National Wildlife magazine. He asked me to pass this along to my readers, so I'm doing so. I encourage all of you to participate in this wonderful contest.

INFO:

It’s time again for National Wildlife’s Photo Contest. The magazine invites you to enter your favorite images in its 39th annual competition.

This is its biggest contest ever: Cash prizes totaling $25,000 plus other gifts will be awarded to winners in Professional, Amateur and Youth divisions, including $5,000 each for two grand prize winners, one professional and one amateur. You can submit as many as 20 images in any combination of the following seven categories:

Birds: portraits and behavior
Mammals: portraits and behavior
Other Wildlife: portraits and behavior (includes underwater life, reptiles, amphibians, insects and more)
Backyard Habitats: wild creatures, native plants and natural settings in your yard
Landscapes and Plant Life: scenic views and native plants in wild settings
Connecting People and Nature: people enjoying the outdoors
Global Warming and Wildlife: portraits and behavior of specific species affected by global warming (complete list of species at http://www.nwf.org/photozone/categories.cfm).

● $25,000 in Cash Prizes
● Two $5,000 Grand Prizes
● Pro, Amateur and Youth Divisions
● Submit up to 20 Photos
● 7 Categories
● Free One-Year NWF Membership and
Subscription to National Wildlife

The deadline for all submissions is July 20, 2009. For more details about the categories, the rules, how to submit your photos and other information, go to http://www.nwf.org/photozone/enterphotocontest.cfm.

Richland Creek Pics

I recently went on a photo trip to Richland Creek Wilderness Area. It's a beautiful place with lots to photograph. I've been there a few times before but I hit just right this time...a cloudy day with heavy rains the night before. Here are some of my favorites from the day.

40 Great Online Magazines

Here's a link to 40 great online magazines...check it out...I'm sure there is one on the list that you'll really like.

Pileated Woodpecker

Took a quick trip down to AR Post this afternoon and was rewarded with this Pileated Woodpecker shot...man these are big birds!

Flatside Pinnacle Time Lapse Part 2

I shot this time lapse just before I started the time lapse of the sunset below. I made a decision to cut this one off at 1250 photos and point the camera toward the sun for the final 20 minutes of daylight for the time lapse below. The total time for this was 43 minutes.

Flatsite Pinnacle Sunset Time Lapse

I shot this still time lapse earlier today. This movie contains a total of 585 individual pictures taken over a 20 minute period just before sunset. It was cold and windy but I had the pleaure of watching another beautiful sunset atop Flatside Pinnacle Mountain.

AR Post 2.0

I went to AR Post again today in order to photograph owls but none were out. It was way to windy for these guys today but I did have fun shooting alligators, armadillos and red-winged blackbirds. Here are a few of my favorite pics.

Barred owl at sunset

I had a great day of shooting. I started at Garvan Gardens in Hot Springs and ended the day with this owl new Arkansas Post. I saw this same owl last week in exactly the same spot. My main reason for going to the Post today was to shoot this owl. I ended up shooting more alligators and armadillos. I almost missed this shot and I did get to the spot a few minutes too late to capture the setting sun completely shining on the owl but if you look close, you can see the sunset in the owl's eyes.

5D Mark II Video

Check the links below to see how one photographer is using the 5D Mark II to shoot a Rascall Flats TV Special. He shows his setup in the first two links and the third link is the acutal video. Very cool...

http://dpense.wordpress.com/2009/02/13/rascal-flatts-tv-special-using-canon-5d-mkii/

http://dpense.wordpress.com/2009/03/02/canon-5d2mkii-resultsso-far/

http://www.vimeo.com/3934752

Twitter

I can also be found on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/jasoncrader

Facebook

Well I just entered the Facebook arena....lots of friends have asked me to do this for a while so I finally caved in and set everything up today...If you want to join me there, look under my name...jason crader

Time Lapse from Petit Jean

Here is a time lapse from Petit Jean that I took last Saturday...if you look quick, you'll see me in the scene...

AR Post favorites

I spent yesterday afternoon photographing wildlife with two fellow photographers (Paul Caster & Ernie Decker) near AR Post. Posted below are a few of my favorites.

Cossatot Falls

Here is another favorite from yesterday's shoot at Cossatot Falls.

Little Missouri Falls

I had a chance to do some waterfall photography yesterday at Little Missouri Falls and Cossatot Falls with a fellow photographer. We've had several days of rain this week, which has helped fill the streams with some much needed water. I hope to continue shooting a few other falls over the next couple of days.

Pinnacle Mountain Time Lapse Video

Here is a time lapse video taken today near Pinnacle Mountain. I'm having a lot of fun doing this with the new 5dII.

Mt. Nebo Sunset via Time Lapse Photography

I've seen some very interesting time lapse projects online recently, so I thought I'd try my hand at one today. I drove up to Mt. Nebo State Park in order to photograph the sunset. When I got there, the wind was blowing hard and the clouds were moving in, which are perfect conditions for a time lapse photo. The movie below was created from 740 individual pictures taken over a 50 minute period just before dusk. I took about one picture every two seconds and composed this movie with Quicktime Pro. The trick to doing these right is putting your camera on manual and adjusting the exposure and shutter speed to get the effect you want. Dragging the shutter works best if you can do this. I set my initial exposure too fast and was stuck with this for almost an hour. You need to think about what that first exposure should be in order to get the best end results. Next time, I'll set my exposure a little slower than what I did for this (1/20 sec @ f22).

Petit Jean Time Lapse Video

I played around with my new Canon 5dII today at Petit Jean & Mt. Nebo State Parks. Below you can watch a time lapse video of the clouds/vultures flying above the mountains. This 20-second video was actually taken over a 12-minute time period

Nutria vs. Alligator vs. Turtle...

Today, I traveled to AR Post in order to continue to put my new camera (5dII) through its paces. It was fairly warm today (mid 70s), so I knew I'd probably find some alligators down there and I did. Something crazy unfolded right in front of me today that's hard to believe. I stopped my truck when I saw an alligator sunning on top of a nutria nest near the road. These guys usually don't move much but I thought I'd hang out for awhile to see if he'd become active. I hadn't been waiting long (about 30 minutes) when a nutria cruised nearby and decided to sit on a nest about 18 inches away from where the 4-foot alligator lay. I thought this nutria was pretty brave for doing this but it's next move made me realize that the nutria wasn't brave but stupid. He decided the nest he was in wasn't comfortable enough so he attempted to take the nest the alligator was on. Needless to say, this didn't work and you can see in the photo that the alligator didn't budge a bit.

After waiting for about a second or two the nutria finally realized that he wasn't going to win this battle and swam back to his nest. Upon his return though, a red-eared slider had claimed the nutria's nest but this was a battle he could win.

It didn't take him long or much effort to push this turtle off his nest.

The alligator though, thought this was funny and ended up getting the last laugh....

Canon 5D MARK II

Yesterday, I received the Canon 5D MARK II that I ordered from B&H Photo, Thursday. This is Canon's new 21 megapixel camera than can shoot both stills and video. Today, I went out and put it through a test run. I plan to shoot it exclusively this week, so check back here often to read my comments about this new camera and to see some of the pictures and videos that I create.

My initial reaction is that this camera is very good at high ISOs. I did a test and it appears to be quite usable up to ISO 2000. The camera will go to ISO 6400 but that appeared too grainy for my uses. This camera is almost as good as my 1dIII at high ISOs. I think the 1dIII may be a bit cleaner at ISO 1600, but not by much. I'll report back with more information as I shoot this camera this week.

I'm going to post a rough video from today's shoot. This video is of Eden Falls. It's unedited and I'm testing it to see how it works on this blog. I plan to post more video this week as I learn how to use this new tool!!!

The end...

I had a chance to travel some this afternoon and I found this pair of donkeys along the road near Dardnelle. Sometimes when you shoot, you try to get a certain shot and it just never happens. What made me stop was the baby donkey on the left. I wanted to get a nice portrait of him, but I didn't. I think I scared the couple off with my big lens. This was about the only picture I got today. That's OK though. I can go back and try to get him again soon. This field will be a better morning shoot anyway...

Another favorite from Saturday's shoot

Here is another one of my favorite images from last Saturday's autofocus test shoot.

Autfocus test @ Riverview Park

After getting my 1dIII back from Canon Friday, I decided to put it through its paces at Riverview Park in Dardnelle last Saturday. I had an overcast day but a perfect situation to test the new autofocus fix that Canon performed on my camera. I must say I'm completely satisified with what they've done. The autofocus responds better and tracks subjects much better. I had a very high percentage of in-focus images. If you have a 1dIII, send it in and get the fix!!!

7GB Eight Foot Wide Print

Check out The Luminous Landscape to see what Michael Reichman created with his Phase One P65+ back. A wonderful scene and one heck of a file...

Canon 1dIII autofocus manual

For those of you who shoot with a Canon 1dIII, you may be interested in this flash driven AI-Servo Autofocus manual. It contains a lot of useful information.

Camera is back from Canon

I just got my 1dIII back from Canon. According to their repair sheet they found that the adjustment of the AF assembly was incorrect causing inaccurate auto focus from time to time. The AF assembly was reworked. They replaced the mirror box assembly and washer. They adjusted focus, exposure meter and cleaned the C-mos sensor. We'll see how these new adjustments work in the field. I'll post my thoughts on this after shooting this weekend. If the camera is not much better, I may look at changing systems...

Photographing Aboard Air Force One

Check out Larry Downing's post today on the Reuters blog as he shares insites into what photographers traveling with the president experience.

Amtrack police arrest man for taking photos of trains for Amtrack photography contest

I heard about this while listening to an old photo podcast a couple of days ago. I just found the video parody of this on Stephen Colbert's website. Quite funny. Check this video out.

Sandisk 8GB SD Extreme III Cards $39.95

If anyone needs any new SanDisk 8GB SD Extreme III cards, Best Buy has these for $39.95 this week. This is an excellent price on a very fast and good card.

Podcast #1

I've added a new section to my website in which I plan to post a regular podcast. I'll be sharing information that I've learned in the last 15+ years of doing photography and I plan to keep you up-to-date about what's happening in photography today. Check out podcast #1.

Jim Richardson Seminar in St. Louis

I've just returned from a quick trip to St. Louis to hear Jim Richardson speak to the St. Louis Camera Club. His talk was about travel photography. To learn more about this photographer please visit his website.

Site update...New Gallery Images

Just a quick note to state that I updated my wildlife and people galleries. I have eight new images up for viewing. Enjoy!

Cameraless....

I just sent in my 1dIII to Canon to get the new autofocus fix. I haven't had a lot of problems with this camera. In fact, it's the best camera I've ever owned for shooting the way I do (fast and furious) but I thought I'd let the service guys update everything at this time while it's free. If you own a 1dIII or 1dsIII you may want to send it in to Canon to get this free fix. Check their website out here for more info. Canon has also posted a great autofocus tutorial for the 1dIII. If you own this camera, I'll think you'll enjoy this tutorial.

Updated Website up and running!!!

I just completely updated my website. It's been up and running since about noon. I'm using new software and a new host company. The site is flash driven as well, so if you don't have the latest flash player, you'll need to download it in order to see the site. Let me know what you think.

Paul's favorite bird...

Today, I went to Holla Bend National Wildlife Refuge with two fellow photographers (Ernie Decker & Paul Caster). We had plans to travel to Mount Magazine but those changed when we left the lights on in Paul's two-day-old Toyota Tundra while at Holla Bend. We had to wait about 2 1/2 hours for another fellow photographer (Mike Cooper) to bring some jumper cables to get us going again. After being stranded on the road for that long, we decided to eat lunch in Dardnelle, check out Riverview Park (nothing to shoot) and head back home. We did stop by Overcup Lake but found nothing to shoot. In honor of the mockingbird that caused us to stop, I'm posting this image for Paul....

New Website Launch

I'm in the process of redesigning my website. I hope to have it up and running by March 2nd.