Headed out with the 28-300mm lens this morning, sans tripod. Indoors, the lens is much too slow. However, in the sunny outdoors, it covers a broad range without a hitch.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 320, 300mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/1,600s

In the late morning, Shoreline Lake was almost empty. There were a few birds around the lake, but nothing close to the lake at dusk. At 300mm, the details of the tern are much more visible, compared to the July 4th photos.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 160, 300mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/800s

This Great Egret was just standing by the shoreline, until it felt itchy. Scratch, scratch, scratch.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 180, 300mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/800s

This one was really far away.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 1250, 300mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/1,600s

I think this is a snowy egret. I’ve never seen a bird sitting on its rear with its legs sticking out.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 180, 300mm, 0 EV, f/5.6, 1/1,600s

I’m used to seeing pigeons hanging out in the eaves. Here is one on a tree.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 1600, 300mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/1,600s

Finally, some butterflies. The Gulf Fritillary, which you can compare against one taken with a macro lens.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 1600, 300mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/1,600s

And a Common Buckeye. This fellow kept twitching its wings, so I couldn’t capture an image with its wings fully spread.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, ISO 900, 300mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/1,600s

Headed to the Stanford Dish by the dawn’s early light.

Nikon D800, AF-S Zoom-Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8G ED, ISO 100, 70mm, -1 EV, f/16, 1/15s

A lot of cloud cover. So much for the glorious morning light. So, I plodded up the hill. Higher up, I could see over the trees and all the way to the Palo Alto Baylands, which the morning sun had transformed into a sepia monochrome.

^ Click for larger image.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, ISO 100, 200mm, -1 EV, f/16, 1/125s

I ascended up some more and could see Hanger One at Moffett Federal Airfield. At this point, I was glad I brought along the tripod to steady the camera since I was out of breath. No amount of VR is going to help after a steep hill climb.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, ISO 100, 70mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/100s

There is ample opportunity to photograph the Dish along the way from various vantage points. While the skies were a bit dreary, the hike was also comfortably cool. Tradeoffs.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, ISO 100, 200mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/100s

I finally reached the Dish and head up for a closer view. About this time, the sun was starting to break through the clouds.

Nikon D800, AF-S Zoom-Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8G ED, ISO 100, 26mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/640s

I did see a lot of squirrels. Pretty amazing to capture a sharp photo of a squirrel at 1/40s.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, ISO 100, 200mm, 0 EV, f/16, 1/40s

Instead of continuing down the trail, I headed back. Here’s the other dish.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, ISO 100, 185mm, 0 EV, f/16, 1/60s

Every once in a while, I would look back and see if I should photograph the Dish again. By now, the skies were bluer.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, ISO 100, 82mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/320s

On the descent, there’s a hazy view of the Stanford campus.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, ISO 100, 70mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/250s

The fallen. Love the golden grass and blue skies.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, ISO 100, 70mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/320s

One last glance at the Dish.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, ISO 100, 70mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/320s

The King of the Hill. Oops, dirty sensor.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, ISO 100, 145mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/250s

And a pretty bluebird waiting by the exit to bid farewell.

Nikon D800, AF-S Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II, ISO 100, 145mm, 0 EV, f/8, 1/200s

I’ve been to Shoreline Amphitheater for July 4th. While the concert was fun, getting out of the parking lot was an absolute mess. So, this year we got the cheap seats at Shoreline Lake. We arrived so early that we even found abundant street parking. However, the police had barricaded the closest streets and parking lots.

Nikon D800, AF-S Zoom-Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8G ED, ISO 100, 62mm, -0.7 EV, f/2.8, 3.0s

So, we sat around and looked at the birds and waited for sunset. The -0.7 EV was an accident. Forgot to switch back after shooting some sunset photos, but no harm, no foul.

I thought the fireworks would start around 9:30 p.m. From our location, we could hear and sometimes see the firework shows in nearby cities. However, 9:30 passed. 9:45 passed. The kids were getting restless. Finally, the show started at 9:51 PM. In the shadows, you can see a sailboat. You can rent a boat from the Aquatic Center and view the fireworks from the middle of the lake if you wish.

Nikon D800, AF-S Zoom-Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8G ED, ISO 100, 70mm, -0.7 EV, f/8, 3.1s

I really enjoyed this vantage point because the fireworks were reflected across the lake.

Nikon D800, AF-S Zoom-Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8G ED, ISO 100, 58mm, -0.7 EV, f/8, 4.3s

I was shooting in manual mode at f/8 and the shutter set to bulb. Click the remote to open and close the shutter.

This one looks like a dandelion. Surprisingly, the waterfowl were completely unfazed by the fireworks.

While waiting for the July 4th fireworks, I observed the various birds at Shoreline Lake in Mountain View, CA. Apparently, dusk is feeding time for some of the birds. The terns would float through the air.

All of the sudden, they would look downward.

And away it would go.

Eyes on the prize.

Splash!

Dinner is served.

This bird didn’t have to do any acrobatics to catch its prey.

Bees are easy. They are not skittish. And, even when I get too close, they just buzz around and move on to another nearby flower.

Nikon D800, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm, f/2.8G IF-ED, ISO 100, 105mm, f/8, 1/160s

Nikon D800, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm, f/2.8G IF-ED, ISO 100, 105mm, f/8, 1/160s

Butterflies are different. You look at one wrong and it just might fly far, far away. This one is a Western Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio rutulus) that I found along the Stevens Creek trail.

Nikon D800, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm, f/2.8G IF-ED, ISO 100, 105mm, f/8, 1/160s

Nikon D800, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm, f/2.8G IF-ED, ISO 100, 105mm, f/8, 1/200s

Nikon D800, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm, f/2.8G IF-ED, ISO 100, 105mm, f/8, 1/250s

Another noon walk. I usually follow the same path and see the same flowers and insects every day. However, sometimes I’m blessed with a pleasant surprise along the way.

Today, I spotted a butterfly floating around some bushes. As I stopped to observe and take some photos, it was joined by two other butterflies. Serendipity indeed.

Nikon D800, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED, ISO 200, 105mm, f/5, 1/2,000s

I had no idea what type of butterfly it was, but using this butterfly identification guide, I arrived at Agraulis vanilla. Close enough.

During the lunch hour, I sometimes head out for a walk. After I purchased the macro lens, I’ve taken my camera out with me more often. I encountered this white flower along the way.

Nikon D800, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED, ISO 100, 105mm, f/16, 1/160s

One thing I’ve discovered is that with the macro lens in hand, I am more cognizant of my surroundings. I take time to look at all the flowers and search for any bees or other insects nearby. The macro lens also slows down the photographic process. Because of the narrow depth of field, I often end up in manual focus mode. So, I have to select which part of the flower I want to keep in focus. I’m also aware of flowers that have dropped after a previous encounter. No flowers = no bees = boring green plant.

The same photo as above, but cropped more closely.

Even a routine roadside weed can be intriguing.

Nikon D800, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED, ISO 100, 105mm, f/16, 1/160s

I was shooting in manual mode a few days ago and forgot to reset my settings. Last night, I spotted a small red dot roaming around the calla lily, and grabbed the camera. So, the aperture and shutter speed were for an entirely different event, but the exposure was not far off fortunately.

Nikon D800, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED, ISO 100, 105mm, f/4, 1/100s

Later, I spotted this guy climbing up the telephone pole. I’m pretty sure that telephone lines are the equivalent of highways for squirrels–basically, paths that offer unfettered access to the entire neighborhood. The squirrels are free from ground-based predators, like cats, but probably have to watch out for hawks and other raptors. I wonder what would happen to the squirrels if the telephone and electrical lines ever transitioned underground.

Nikon D800, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED, ISO 100, 105mm, f/4, 1/100s

I’ve owned a succession of Nikon cameras. The D800 was the first one to lose its battery cover. I’m not even sure when and where it occurred. I was just reaching to change the battery when I realized that it was a bit exposed. I re-traced my steps during the previous 24 hours but the cover did not show up. Nothing was at the bottom of the camera bag either.

So, I ended up ordering a cover from Nikon’s web site. The cover was only $3.90, which didn’t sound too bad to me. But, shipping and handling was $11.00. A local camera store did not have the part in stock. A third party was selling the same part for $11.99 with free shipping.

Considering how easily this part fell off, I decided to pick up 3 battery door covers directly from Nikon. Excluding taxes, that’s $7.57 per door. The part shipped from Torrance, CA and took a week to reach Northern California by ground UPS.