Hunter/Jumper Event - Woodbine Farms

This is turning out to be the summer of getting to know your horse(s).  Not that it is a bad thing.  
This past weekend I was able to spend a few hours at a hunter /jumper event in Ann Arbor.
As this was the second time I've been there, I was really looking to improve on the overall quality and variety of my shots.  Last time out, technically the shots were OK, but once I got home I know there were some lessons to be learned.
I spent just over 3 hours there.  The forecast was for rain in the afternoon, and it was correct.  That covered the Novice class - and as such I saw only a limited number of riders, multiple times.  The other event that started just after noon has the riders jump as many gates as they can in a  certain amount of time.  It's a little faster then the Novice class events.  I like them both.
One of my 'experiments' for the day was to see if there was any real difference between  the D500/70-300 combo and the D780/200-500 combo.  Aside from the weight difference, both took excellent shots.  That being said, the monster lens gets heavy very quickly.  Next time, I'll have a monopod at the least.
One of the nice features on the D780 is you can select a 16:9 size format in the optical view finder.  That's generally what I end up formatting to for the monitors.  A number of my shots were in this format.  It's a lot easier to frame the shot, instead of remembering to keep enough space above and below in the frame that will be removed later.
Speaking of cropping, for this event I didn't end up cropping much.  I tried to get a lot tighter.  And, I also missed a number of shots due to missing part of the entire object.
Here are a few from the day.
I like this shot for the position of the horse's head.  The rider is looking in one direction and the horse has other ideas.  Spoiler alert, the rider was correct.

Rider Close Up

NIKON D780 Ver.01.01/200-500mm f/5.6

240 mm, 1/800 sec, f/5.6, ISO 1600 (AUTO)

EV +1, MANUAL Mode, Size 16:9

Not that I know a lot about horse breeds, but I do know when one isn't brown.  Not sure what this is called, but I like it.  Marble?

Jumper

NIKON D780 Ver.01.01/200-500mm f/5.6

270 mm, 1/800 sec, f/5.6, ISO 560 (AUTO)

EV +1.33, MANUAL Mode, Size 16:9

I'm going to run out of names for these shots.  A lot of 'Jumpers'.
So now we're into the upper ring where the action is a bit faster.  I keep hearing that the best photos are when the horse has all four off the floor and even over the jump.  But I like the 'launch' shots.  And more of a head on shot.  I always thought, not being around the sport much, that the horse and rider would always be symmetrical.  But they are not, thankfully, and the position of the horses head vs the legs vs the rider give each jump a bit of personality.

Jumper

NIKON D780 Ver.01.01/200-500mm f/5.6

240 mm, 1/800 sec, f/5.6, ISO 400 (AUTO)

EV +1.33, MANUAL Mode, Size 16:9

Camera switch, the next photos are from the D500/70-300 combo.  The actual reach is around 450 so the combos are very close.  I can tell a little difference in the post processing.  The D780 processor is a newer generation and I hope I'd see a bit of difference.  But in the final product, tough to tell.
Still in the upper ring, I like the shallow launch.  Shows speed.

Jumper

NIKON D500 Ver.1.20/70.0-300.0 mm f/4.5-5.6

277 mm, 1/800 sec, F/5.6, ISO 220 (AUTO)

EV + .33, MANUAL Mode, Size DX

The next two shots are a set.  And a bit of a story.  
Photography is of interesting things.  For today, it is a horse and a rider going over a jump of an extreme close up.  Some of the jumps don't always go as planned.  Even what I would call the good combos sometimes miss the mark.  In my opinion, it's not a bad thing.  When a horse says "I ain't doin' it", it might be for the best.  The combo does a number of jumps in a short amount of time, and the majority of the time, the combo is successful.
But when they are not, it can be an interesting shot.  The angles are really good.
And the second shot of the set is for equal time, this combo was pretty good.

Jumper - Halt

NIKON D500 Ver.1.20/70.0-300.0 mm f/4.5-5.6

277 mm, 1/800 sec, F/5.6, ISO 360 (AUTO)

EV + .33, MANUAL Mode, Size DX

Jumper

NIKON D500 Ver.1.20/70.0-300.0 mm f/4.5-5.6

292 mm, 1/800 sec, F/5.6, ISO 320 (AUTO)

EV + .33, MANUAL Mode, Size DX

This is just about everything I look for in a shot.  Launch position, four off the floor and the horse's head appears to be just off center.  
I noticed in all the shots, there is dirt flying.  Lots of times in places I don't expect.  When I zoom in to check for focus, I see a lot.  First I thought it was contamination of the lens.  Then I took a breath.  And cleaned the lens anyway.

B17 Yankee Lady in the Wild

About the only thing going for me as an activity these days is attending horse related events, either barrel racing or hunter/jumper.  And today was no different for a Saturday.  I had plans to go to Ann Arbor for the morning to photograph a H/J event.  And only for the morning, as it looked like rain was forecast for the early afternoon.  If nothing else, I am a weather wimp.
I had some things to work on to improve my efforts from last time.  Mostly, I was looking to improve my backgrounds.  A lot of the 'good' shots I had last time have vehicles or buildings as a background.  I thought it took way from some good shots.  The way the event is set up, there will always be some form of background but spectators and other horses fit in better.
Next I wanted to work on varying shots.  Last time out, most of the shots came in three flavors.  
And to help accomplish this goal, I brought in some help.
Looking at the efforts from last time, I found that a number of shots were over 200 mm.  I should be able to put the monster lens on the D780.  That was one combo.  If I put the 70-300 on the D500 that would give me almost the same reach at the long end, and some room on the shorter end.  
And, is there a noticeable difference in the combos?
And why is the title of this post something about a B17?  Am I missing air shows so much that I'm seeing things?
I had been at the event for almost two hours, when I heard the sound of low flying piston engines.  Engines, as in more than two and not moving that fast.  Nothing sounds like straight pipes in the air.
And, probably less than two miles away and I'm guessing at 1200 to 1500 feet above the ground was the Yankee Lady.  Had to go to a horse show to get my air show fix.
The Yankee Lady is based out of Willow Run Airport in Ypsilanti, just over 20 miles to the east of where I was.
The Yankee Lady in the Wild:

Yankee Lady in the Wild

NIKON D780 Ver.01.01/200-500mm f/5.6

500 mm, 1/800 sec, f/5.6, ISO 100 (AUTO)

EV +.33, MANUAL Mode, Size FX

Yes, there is a lot wrong with this.  Shooting a prop subject with something other than prop settings will do that.  I was also shooting with a +EV setting for the overcast in the horse jumping area.  Spare me the obvious criticisms.  I got to hear 'the noise'.  Nothing else matters.
One of the other funny things I noticed, or funny to me anyway, was that only one other person I could see was looking at the aircraft.  He was an older gentleman, and he had some scoot going to get his camera ready.  I'm thinking he knew what it was.

Heron Reflection

Along the drive on the Refuge, there are multiple waterways.  It is easy to miss the scenes because one is always looking tot he skies for the birds in flight.  It is an easy miss.
I don't have many Heron shots up close.  Most of the time I see them in parts of the Refuge away from the drive.
This time, I saw one close to the drive.  I think I got it right.

Heron Reflection

NIKON D500 Ver.1.20/200.0-500.0 mm f/5.6

390 mm, 1/1000 sec. f/5.6, ISO 2500 (AUTO)

EV -1, MANUAL Mode, Size DX

Easily best Heron, non-flight shot so far.

The Neowise Comet Chase

The Neowise Comet has been in the news for a few weeks.  I haven't been interested in nighttime photography past dusk in my journey.  No noise, no wing flapping, no action, no interest.
For some reason C became interested - ergo I became either willingly or unwillingly interested.
So starts the web research.
Best camera, full frame.  Check - I can do that.  I'm looking at single frame rates so no need for the D500, the D780 will do nicely.
Best lens, something in the f/2.8 or higher range.  Check, I can do that.  The new 24-70 f/2.8 will do.  I somewhat question this on the mm size as I'd think a higher reach would be better, but the web never lies, correct?
Other equipment, tri-pod and cable release.  I 'inherited' a solid Bogen a few years ago.  The original use was for an early vintage video camera, ie; heavy.  This is a beast.  I don't use it often because it is not easy to carry.  But that is not a concern for this event, I'm carrying it only from the truck rear seat to the back of the truck.  Check.  As to the cable release, I was going to go high tech.  I was going to use Nikon's wireless remote camera software, Snapbridge.  I've not been a fan of this product in the past.  Nikon is a camera and lens company, not a wireless network and software provider.  And in my experience, it was difficult to set up and not dependable.  However over time, it seems the software and newer camera models have resolved these issues to my satisfaction.  I was able to get the camera and tablet connected five out of five times in the home testing center.  Good to go.
And the right night came yesterday.  Clear skies.
Again, armed with web information most of the pages I read suggested for starting at f/2.8, gong to 20 seconds and adjust the ISO as necessary.  So the plan was set.
I found a place just north of us that should be good.  Middle of farm land, where I thought the light pollution would be as low as I could get.  I wasn't expecting dark park conditions, and in that I wasn't disappointed.
We arrived at the point at sunset.  And promptly found out that the ambient light we needed was still 30 minutes away.  At least it was warm.
During our wait, we heard an almost car crash.  We were asked a few times if we had broken down.  And we had some distant star gazing company.  It's all good.
All went pretty well.  The only issue we had was the remote release.  The Snapbridge software connected to the camera OK, except it would not release the shutter.  Dambit.  I think what happened is the camera has an internal protection function that will not allow a photo if it is too far under or over exposed.  But the shutter would release manually, and that is what I had to do.
In the end, I think the Photo Gods smiled on me.  Out of 21 shots, 3 were keepers.  I kept a few for forensic information.  This is the best of the three.

Neowise Comet

NIKON D780 Ver.01.01/24-70mm f/2.8

70 mm, 20 sec, f/2.8, ISO 800

EV 0, MANUAL Mode, Size FX

To be be fair, the first time we saw the comet tail on the tablet I was very happy.  C was happy as well.  Sort of like the first good prop shot.  (Not sure happy enough to OK the next lens purchase, but it is a start.)  
This certainly won't win any prizes.  Lots of good comet photos out there.  But One of my favorites already just for the story and the reading to get this far.  
I also know that many of the other published photos were done with special software and equipment.  For just Photoshop and my stuff, a first try I'm happy with.

Post Storm Juvie

Sometimes it is good to know the power of software.  I've often heard in discussions with other photographers that the better the original image, the better the post image.  The more you have to 'edit' the shot, the more you lose in quality.  I'll go for that.
But sometimes I can put myself in a position where a 'save' is needed.   Happens more than one would think.
When I arrived at the Refuge last weekend, the first thing I did is take a test shot or two to get my settings close to what I need.  Usually I don't have to make many changes after that during the visit.  And this time I followed the process.  And it worked until...
On entrance to the park, the first chance at wildlife is driving north.  The wildlife is usually on the right, east.  Into the morning sun.  Birds in the trees at his point early in the morning are not a good shot.  But I was there well after sunrise and this wasn't an issue.  But with the storm passing, the sun still wasn't in a favorable position and created a very flat sky.  Welcome to mid-Michigan.  But the Juvie in the trees like this is not something witnessed every day.  Got to make it work.
Usually, this isn't a problem.  Until it is.
A copy of the original RAW image:

That's a mess.
Forensic photography indicates the light is bad, the sky is flat and worst of all the EV was set at -1.  A holdover setting from the previous week.  The camera was metered on an unusually dark bird, in darker than normal light with an EV of -1.  It ain't the camera's fault.
But what is life without a challenge?
To save the image, I need to lighten the subject, the trees and try to get some definition in the sky.
First, to lighten the bird is easy.  ACR does a good job.  But when the bird is lightened the sky looks worse, if possible.  After a while, playing around with the settings I determined that the bird was worth saving but the sky had to go.
To split the sky from the bird, I usually turn away from PS.  I've been a big fan of the Topaz AI products lately and I planned to use their Mask program.  I tried for an hour to get that to work without success.  I've used it before on simple photos.  This should be simple, the sky is one colored.  Match the color, press a button and the sky should be erased.  Didn't work that way.  So turned to On One.  
The On One masking is simple, fast, intuitive and it works.  I used On One a number of years ago but found their software with each passing 'upgrade' put more of a load on my PC.  I've upgraded to a PC built for photography, and I tried the application the day after I fired the PC up.  And it still did not work well.  There were some other issues that I would call personal issues that moved me on to Topaz.  
The one aspect of On One that I liked in the past was their masking process.  That was going to save this image.
The bird is wet, after the passing storm.  Feathers are everywhere.  Not an easy mask.  

I was able to remove the image sky in less than five minutes.
One of the personal issues I have with On One is the file management.  It took longer to get a file that PS liked than it did to remove the sky.  Again, what is life without a challenge?
Then I needed to find a sky that wasn't too different from the original, but had some definition.  One thing I'm in the habit of doing is taking plain sky shots.  I like to get a lot of clouds in the shots.  I'm sure I can find something that will be a close match.  And I think I did.
In the end, this is what I came up with.

Post Storm Juvie

NIKON D500 Ver.1.20/200.0-500.0 mm f/5.6

720 mm, 1/1000 sec, f/5.6, ISO 160 (AUTO)

EV -1, MANUAL Mode, Size DX

That bird was still drenched, as was its buddies in nearby trees.  I might have added a bit more light than was there, but the wet feathers on the wing and body is something you don't see every day.  Usually the birds are a nice brown and fluffy all the way around.
And most importantly, this photo has an element that seems to be my trademark.  A branch in the way of a subject.  Its removal would be the next project.

Great Egret - Walk this Way

My first year at the Refuge, I took more photos of Egrets than I know what to do with.  Elegant bird for sure.  Big, slow, nice yellow eyes.  And not real skiddish in front of the camera.
As a photographer, what's not to like?  As a white subject in sunlight, or even cloudy, it is very easy on the camera for metering purposes.  
Last year, I didn't take that many photos.  I had many from the year before.  So, unless something interesting happened.....
After the storm passed through, many birds were stationary in the trees.  Although I have seen Egrets in the trees before, at this visit there were more in the trees than usual.
As there were no cars behind me, I could watch a few birds in the trees for a few minutes.  I saw this one bird, a bit anti-social away from a group.  As I watched, it started to 'walk' along the branch.  I thought a transition to flight was imminent.  All I could think of was any versions "Walk this Way".

Walk this Way

NIKON D500 Ver.1.20/200.0-500.0 mm f/5.6

585 mm, 1/1250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 250 (AUTO)

MANUAL Mode, Size DX

One of the other 'action' shots of the Egret was a take off.  I had watched this one 'land' and it did appear to be on the restless side.  Just be a little patient.
I had the camera set for 5 FPS.  If I had to do it over again, I'd probably go with 7 FPS.  But I got what I got.
I liked this shot because the colors stood out.  The storm was recent, the ground was wet and the sunlight was cracking the clouds.  Different.

Take Off

NIKON D500 Ver.1.20/200.0-500.0 mm f/5.6

690 mm, 1/1250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 125 (AUTO)

MANUAL Mode, Size DX

Not bad for shooting out of the truck window.

Pelicans, Pelicans, Pelicans

The Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge re-opened last weekend after being closed for almost two months.  The closure was in reaction to the floods in may caused by multiple dams failing during a weekend of heavy rains.  Or was that the Johnstown flood?  Anyway, lots of rain, mis-managed dams and a lot of down stream damage in both cases.
I couldn't get out last weekend due to the paying job.  And this weekend was a toss up between a horse event and the Refuge.  The weather was the decision maker.  I elected to stay in the truck.
And I haven't been to the Refuge after a good heavy rain and storm.
The storm, I believe definitely had an effect on the bird behavior.
There is a lot of water in the Refuge.  The flooding accelerated the filling of the area.  A lot of the wildlife used to come close to the drive, now not as much.  Have to up the game a little.
Saw a new bird, will be another post.
Saw a few Sand Hill Cranes close to the drive and the pictures came out well.  Nothing in flight, but good grazing shots.
But the Pelicans were out.  Not flying, just huddled together.  I've seen them collected in a group before, but a bit more loosely.  I'm wondering if this is a post storm meeting?

Pelican Mass

NIKON D500 Ver.1.20/200.0-500.0 mm f/5.6

750 mm, 1/1000 sec, f/5.6, ISO 180 (AUTO)

MANUAL Mode, Size DX

I like this shot a lot.  Blues and greens are separated.  The water is just right, not blown out or too blue.  And none of the subjects are acting up for the camera.  Interesting.

Michigan Barrel Racing Association

With the air racing industry at a crawl, if not shut down entirely, my weekend schedule is somewhat more flexible this summer.
I'm having fun going to the horse events.  The people are nothing short of great to be around.
This is the second MBRA event I've been to and what I've learned is this is fun and available to all ages.  I've seen kids who don't have enough weight on them to keep them in the saddle (yes, they stay on, but you get the point.) to those who would be in the post collegiate divisions.
Like a good airplane shot, a horse in action shot can be just as intriguing to me.  Great lines on both subjects.  Prior to this year, what I knew about horse visual scenes came from the opening credits on a Howard Hawks western film.
Getting a good horse shot to me is as difficult as getting a good prop or helicopter shot.  With a solo jet shot, it is just shoot with a high shutter speed and go for it.  With an opposing jet shot, double the speed, use a high frames per second setting and go for it.
I'm working on figuring out what works best for horses, IMO, so I take a lot of shots, and throw a lot away.  I'm still learning.
There are a couple of shots I'll post from the event, but starting with this one.
The events have two elements, poles and barrels.  The poles, to me, offer two photo opportunities.  I can get shots with the horse and rider going through or around the poles and a straightaway.  In the barrels element, the best shots are around the barrels.
This is a shot of a horse and rider coming down a straightaway in the poles event.  This reminded me of a pony express rider.  The horse, the rider, the hat.  Ah, the sunglasses, maybe not so much.  And at the time of the Pony Express, trash bins were not metal.

Pony Express Pose

NIKON D500 Ver.1.20/70.0-300.0 mm f/4.5-5.6

270 mm, 1/1000 sec, f/6.3, ISO 200 (AUTO)

MANUAL Mode, Size DX

I was trying something new.  I was moving the focus point around in the optical viewer.  Usually, I have the point in the center.  A lot of my throwaways are because my frame often drifts up, that is I lose the lower part of the subject.  If my focus point was higher, maybe I'll keep more of the subject in the frame.  Maybe.  Still a work in progress.
As to the barrels, there are a lot of interesting shots.  Most of what I take has to do with the horse and rider leaning into the ground.  With the format I use, it often doesn't fill up the frame.  Price of the scene.
In this shot, I held on to the shutter a bit longer than normal.  A mistake.  Sometimes I'm just lucky.  This shot fills the frame.  What I really like is how the sun plays on the horse.  And there's some hair flying as well.

Around the Barrel

NIKON D500 Ver.1.20/70.0-300.0 mm f/4.5-5.6

150 mm, 1/1000 sec, f/6.3, ISO 140 (AUTO)

MANUAL Mode, Size DX

It was a fun visit, although I could only stay for a few hours.  It was HOT.  Hot in July, who knew?

Post Processing - 2020

Post processing seems to be a never ending journey.  Over time software gets better, hardware gets faster.  And there are more choices and options.  And the training videos.
Shooting over 600 shots last weekend and processing all within a few hours was doable only with decent software practice enough to understand my flaws when shooting.
The blanket statement is that noting that comes out of my camera is "show" ready.  Every shot needs some 'help'.
I have a tendency to shoot off level.  I have an in view level.  Neat toy but useless, I usually don't have enough time to process that information.  At the very least, 99% of my shots need to be leveled.
Cropping:  Every shot is cropped.  My cameras are set up to shoot DX and FX.  Any other format will leave something behind.  My finished product usually comes out in 16:9 format, with 1920 x 1080 for current display monitors.  I don't do a lot of printing any more.  If I need an odd size, usually I can get it from the DX or FX original format.
Even if I wanted to shoot JPG, I still have to make these changes.  Multiple changes on a JPG file isn't a good practice.
So RAW it is and I'm committed to the process.  Even if there are a few hundred shots to process.
This is the process I use most of the time.
First, my software center is Photoshop.  Most of the work is done in Adobe Camera Raw.  I grew up on Elements and I suspect most of the terms and processes will translate to Elements easily.  I use other software where necessary.  Photoshop is all around good, but other niche software can be easier to use.

When opening a RAW file in PS, ACR (Adobe Camera RAW) opens automatically.  I like to make the ACR edits within PS as a filter.  This will be explained later.  However, there are two edits I like to make that are not available with ACR as a filter.  These edits have to be made at the Open.  One of the issues with PS is that the interfaces will change frequently.  The process names are generally consistent, but will sometimes be 'moved'.  Off the soapbox.  The two edits I like to make at the file open are found in the Optics tab.  Remove chromatic aberrations and Use profile corrections.  Chromatic Aberrations are inherent in a zoom lens, so if using a prime lens this edit is not necessary.  After selecting these two edits, open the image into PS.

After the photo is opened, the first thing I do is create a new layer to work with.  The easiest way is to use the short cut keys clt+j.  I will right click on this layer and select Convert to Smart Object.  Creating to a smart object is a very powerful tool.  This works for global changes and can limit some other edits.  But overall I use this.  What this allows is after edits are completed and saved, the layer can be edited again.  If this is not a smart object, once the edits are completed and saved, the layer is fixed.  So, I'll go through a number of edits on this layer.  If I forget one or need to remove some blue, on a regular layer I'd have to do everything all over again.  With a smart object, I can reopen the layer and make the changes to the edits.  This is such a time and process saver.

Working on my smart object, I select Filter on the top menu and select Camera Raw Filter (Shift + Ctl+ A).  This opens up the ACR module again this time as a filter.  Because I'm working on this as a smart object, all changes can be re-edited if necessary.  Had I made the changes on the file open, those changes are locked in.

Now the flow begins:

White Balance:  There are many ways to balance colors.  The easiest way I found is to use the white balance dropper to find a neutral spot in the photo.  Hover the dropper over a neutral area, read the RGB values on the histogram.  When the values are as close to even as can be, click the spot.  You will see the temperature and tint values change.  With some practice, neutral spots can be found relatively easily.

Color:  In the Edit area, find the Auto button.  This will set the Exposure, Contrast, Highlights, ect.  For my tastes, this works well.  On occasion, I will need to edit exposure or contrast.  Then I set Texture, Clarity and Dehaze.  Usually with a D500 photo I will set these to 20, 20 and 10.  With the D780, I set to 10, 10 and 5.  Vibrance and Saturation I set to 15 and 5.  Yes, these can be set as a profile that doesn't need to be entered all the time.  For color, this is where I start.

Curve:  Curve can be used for a lot of edits, but I use it mostly to 'deaden' shadows.  If I need to, I will move the Shadow slider to the right.  Once that is set, I use the rest to recover as necessary.  Yes, there is a shadow recovery penalty, but with the rest of the sliders the penalty can be quickly neutralized.

Detail:  This is where sharpening and noise reduction can be done.  ACR does a great job, but.  I use other applications for these jobs.  Absent of other applications, use these edits.

Color Mixer:  If I have a targeted color in an image, I'll select it here.  Usually I like a yellow or green pop in an image.  Sometimes a really deep blue sky will cast an overall blue haze that can be corrected here.  I won't correct a blue tint of the sky here, that will be done with a gradient later.

Geometry:  This is a biggie for me.  As I mentioned before, I am level challenged.  Usually this is a one button edit, both horizontal and vertical.  On occasion, this won't do the trick, not even close.  When it doesn't work, I just use the horizontal button.  And there are a few times, I have to do this on my own.  There is a grid feature to help out.  But 90% of the time, it is a one button click and move on.

Heal:  This is an underrated powerful tool.  On a day out at the airfield, eventually there will be some form of blemish on the shots from either dust, water or a small sunspot.  The blemish is easily seen in nice blue skies.  These are easily remedied here, using the Visualize Spots option.  One click, blemish gone.  Serious image saver.

At this point, the basic global edits are done.  Sometimes I use a more targeted edit methodology such as if an Eagle's white hood isn't exactly right, I spot edit the hood and add a small amount of exposure.  Or if a sky isn't the right shade of blue, I'll use the gradient tool to either lessen the exposure or add some blue.

At this point the ACR filter can be closed.  

To finish, I'll create another layer.  I don't have to.  Because this layer is a smart object, I could just move on to the next filter.  One of the down falls of using a smart object is if I add another filter to this layer and then go back to the ACR to make a change, it will take FOREVER to finish the layer.  So I just create a new layer.  

Depending on the image I'll use the following Topaz products.

If the image needs a lot of help, and it happens more than you'd think, I'll use Topaz AI Sharpen.  This usually happens when I'm shooting prop driven aircraft.  I have to use a slow shutter speed on a fast moving aircraft.  Sometimes I pan just right, sometimes I miss it entirely (delete) and sometimes I get it close.  I usually get it close.  AI Sharpen has three different algorithms to solve an image.  Usually the defaults on one of the three will do the job.  If the image is not salvageable, I will know at this time.  (Yes, I will often use this product first to see if i can work with the image before I sink any time into it.)

If the image needs noise reduction, I will use AI Denoise.  Easy, intuitive product to remove noise.  And with the latest version, you can target noise reduction.  For example, you can clean up the sky without touching below the horizon.  Very powerful.

And, if the image is close I'll use AI Denoise Clear option.  Usually the the process will add just enough sharpening to really clean up the image.  Best finishing product I've ever used.

At this point, the image is done.

I'll crop the finished product as necessary.

Move on to the next.

Yes, most of this can be used in a batch process.

It sounds like a lot, takes less than two minutes per shot.  Yes, practice helps.

I learned a lot this last weekend.

Not sure where to start or go with this, so it may be all over the place.  My blog, my rules.
RAW vs. JPG.  I took over 600 shots.  All RAW.  How long did t take me to get to 250 ish Kurt ready shots?  Not as long as one would think.  Saturday night took me two to go through all the shots and rate them.  Maybe could have been faster, but was also watching Svengoulie.  Also managed to get a blog post out.  Sunday morning batched the colors on the 250, less than 30 minutes.  Then had to level, crop to 1920x1080 or 1920x1280, save as JPG the 250 shots.  About two hours.  Again, not that bad.  Even if I had taken JPGs, I'd still have to do the finishing part.  Multiple saves on the JPGs.  I would listen to an argument on the file size.  In the D780 I use 32 gig cards in each slot where I can I get 650 shots per card or about 1300 shots.  I do carry extra cards.  I had one day at Reno taking 1700.  First time there and yep, probably should have taken a movie camera.  Two years ago, I was much younger.  Anyway, at this time - no reason to go JPG.
Auto-Focus.

Yep, that 70 is spot on.  Too bad.  Anyway, I used a larger center point for AF.  That works well for wide open spots and birds who move around a lot.  Overthinking this, I left it alone.  On purpose.  Clearly I could have done better.  There were two main arenas in play.  This one had a number of posts that were clearly jumping in the way.  The other arena is a little more open.  If/when I go back, I'll probably tighten up the AF area.
Frames per second:  I don't know why I always hold back on the FPS.  That's like leaving 2 cylinders in the truck when you're passing slower traffic.  Use 'em.  Sure, it eats up card space but I carry extra.  In this case I'll take only 2-4 per sequence.  And for the top of the jump, it would be worth it.  The D780 will do 7 FPS.  The D500 will do 10 FPS.  I did that once at the air races.  It was worth it.  My problem on Saturday was thinking that horses are slower than airplanes, and I should be able to get the job done at 3 FPS.  Bad thinking.  With the horses, I am trying to get an object in a specific place at a specific time.  Less room for error.  Faster frame cycle rate.  I had a much better success rate a 7 PFS.
Camera/Lens combo:  I started with the D500 and the 70-300.  I got off a few shots, but thought it was too much lens.  I did an in the filed lens swap, which I don't like to do.  And finished the day with the D780 on the business end of the 70-300.  As the day developed, I could have used the D500.  Most of my shots were over 105 mm which would be the short end of that combo.  This event was built for the D500 - and next time I'll flex it.  The vast majority of my shots were at 300 mm, which would tell me it was maxxed out and I could have used more reach.  The monster lens would be too much to lug around, but maybe some time later in the year.  When it is cooler.
When to put all this together?  Saturday is a Barrel Racing Event about 45 minutes away.  Can't think of a better time.

Woodbine Farms Hunter Jumper

Fun day out of the house today.  Since March, I've probably been out of the house for more than an hour less than ten times, and at least half of those times I just took a road trip and stayed in the car.  I've been looking forward to today for a few weeks.  And it didn't disappoint.
I'm doing a slow suffer as my air shows are cancelling.  The Reno Air Races officially cancelled their event yesterday.  Thunder over Michigan is still on, but my guess is it will cancel in the next few weeks.  The Refuge is flooded, still closed since the heavy rains and dam failures last month.  I won't be doing any indoor events like hockey for a while.
But today I was able to get out of the house, somewhere to go.  
Time to give the D780 a 600+ shot day.
My horse subject expert from the camera club told me of today's event a few weeks ago.  Hunter Jumpers.  I have no idea what this means, but I'm going to learn.  Essentially its a horse and rider combo where at some point the horse will jump, land and move to the next gate.  I'm good with that.  Some form of action.  I need this.
The morning was severely overcast.  The sun came out in the afternoon.  Big difference in the shots.
As to the camera set up, I guessed I could get close to the action.  I started with the D500 and the 70-300 lens.  With the crop factor, too much lens.  The D780 and 70-300 was a good set up.  I started with a set up of 3 frames per second, went to 5 FPS and eventually went to 7 FPS.  At 7 FPS, I could catch more of the desired shots - horse and rider at the top of the jump.  Yea, there are more throw aways, but that part is easy.  I shot at 1/1000 sec.  Apertures were either at f/8  and f/5.6.  ISOs went between 100 to one shot at 5600.  I also used the EV function more than usual.  I think this helped out a bit.  With the day being overcast, I didn't have to concern myself with whites burning out so this helped out with getting more of all the light in the shot.
One other thing I was able to do with these shots that I can't do with aircraft or bird shots is avoid the aggressive cropping.  The subjects were big enough to fill the frame.  I have a few good shots that are missing some hoofs.  Got in a bit too close.  Yep, it's a journey.
So much for the technical stuff.
There were fours types of shots I was looking for.
First, the support shots.  What goes on outside the arena.  People watching.  
Next, in the arena area but not competing.  Yet.  Horses and riders getting ready to enter the course.  Warm up.
Then, my favorite shots which is the horse and rider in lift off mode.
Then, everyone else's favorite, horse and rider at the top of the jump.
It was a 600+ shot day.  I'm down to about 250 good shots.  Technically all came out good.  And we'll define 'good' as something was in focus.  (That's just plain funny.)  Sometimes the auto-focus would go it's own way.

That center post, perfect focus.  If there were a fly walking on it, we could see the color of the eyes.  Too bad the post is not the star of the show.  Not sure if this should be a point of pride, but I'm getting better at telling when the AF is not where I need it to be, and I can correct it on the next shot.  I'm still laughing at these mis-focused shots.  It's a journey.
Now to the good shots.
Most of the time when I take 100s of shots in one day, it is hard to pick one that defines my day.  Today is not one of those days.  I lucked into what I consider to be one of my better shots.  Got it right away.
But this one isn't it. 
This one made it to the best finals on the rider's facial expression.  Most of today's shots shave facial expressions that may be flattering, and some not so much.  But fact of life, we all have them.  But this one is good.  Concentration and determination.  The angle at about 45 degrees works for me.  These are my favorite shots, launching.

Jumper 01

NIKON D780 Ver.01.01/70-300mm f/4.5-5.6

270 mm, 1/1000 sec, f/5.6, ISO 2800 (AUTO)

EV +1, MANUAL Mode, Size FX

This shot made it to the favorites, well, not sure why yet.  Just struck me.  Just looks like the rider and the horse are on the same page, effortless.  Been there, done that.  I have more than a few of this combo, they are good.

Jumper 03

NIKON D780 Ver.01.01/70-300mm f/4.5-5.6

195 mm, 1/1000 sec, f/5.6, ISO 500 (AUTO)

EV +0.67, MANUAL Mode, Size FX

As I mentioned before, few shots get the 5 star treatment on the first round of shot triage.  Last shots to move me were the inverted F4U,  the F/A 18 with the sonic clouds and the horse in the stall from last year.  
I found a shot location that worked well, looking down an area with two jumps in line.  All that framing photography stuff.  If the horse and rider stayed in the middle, perfect.  If they drifted to either side, well, just perfect -.

Jumper 02

NIKON D780 Ver.01.01/70-300mm f/4.5-5.6

300 mm, 1/1000 sec, f/5.6, ISO 560 (AUTO)

EV +0.67, MANUAL Mode, Size FX

OK, maybe not down the direct center, but it works.  The horse is 4 off the floor, head slightly off center.  And as much as the horse's head is off the center line, the rider's body is off.  Of all the shots I took today with this scene, nothing like it.
If this gets best horse shot of 2020, don't tell me it was an off year.  It's good, I like it.  This is an early favorite, maybe for shot of the year.  Certainly on the short list.
It was a good day.  Got some good natural vitamin D.  I did sort of say I'd have some photos to the event available to the farm some time after next weekend.  Looks like there will be just over 250.  And that's another story - but a good one.

Storm Front

When the paying job takes up most of your time, you look forward to time off as hopefully good weather.  And when you take some time off from the paying job, you really don't look forward to 'crappy' weather.  Unless....
Today was the perfect storm.  Pun intended.  Low 90s, high humidity and a cold front courtesy of tropical storm.  Entirely predictable.
So I went on the road to get out of the subdivision and get some visibility.  I went to the parking lot for the Nature Refuge.  It is closed due to flooding, more on that later, but the lot was dry.  Just barely.  But as I arrived, a thought struck me.  (Note the word, struck.)  I was just about the tallest thing for yards around me.  I know from the previous life, that lightning can lead the front by up to 20 miles.  Photography from a distance.  Time to move.
So, I spent some time in the lot, taking a few wildlife photos but keeping an eye on the sky.  It was getting darker by the minute.
The front was not what I had hoped for.  I wanted a big wall, lots of lightning.  This was a normal Michigan front.  Not that it sneaks up on you, but it does.  This part of the storm was not a large front, that would come later.  So, If I could get get to the side of the action......
And I did.

Storm Front

NIKON D780 Ver.01.01/24-70mm f/2.8

27 mm, 1/200 sec, f/5.6, ISO 100

Aperture Priority, Size FX

This is the first week out with the new lens, 24-70mm f/2.8.  I needed to get a lens for the D780 to go more wide angle.  I have a 50mm f/1.8, but the next useful lens is the 70-300 f/4.5 to f/5.6.  To be fair, I don't see landscape shots as well as I see other subjects.  But I can see the cloud formations.  This is a start.  Again, it could be more dynamic, some strategically placed lightning.  Maybe a more defined front?  For a mid-Michigan defined front, I'll take it.