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FINALLY...after many years of trying I got one!
I would have given my shutter finger to be in that Zodiac alot closer but... ...work (four letter word) comes first.
It didn't help atop two 700HP diesels going full out either given the distance away it was.
Yes...I "could" straighten the horizion but....didn't,

The wind up........






Full sequence Humpback breach start to finish...

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Pentax K-5
Pentax 18-55mm,Pentax 50-200mm,Sigma 17-70mm,Sigma 70-300mm, Sigma 50-500mm

They say good things come in threes...can't wait for the next one!!!
Little, well ALOT hazy this day and facing the sun...

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Pentax K-5
Pentax 18-55mm,Pentax 50-200mm,Sigma 17-70mm,Sigma 70-300mm, Sigma 50-500mm

maybe its the angle or the sun kpr but that doesnt look like a humpback... was it one?

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

Yes...you can clearly see the tubercles on its snout.

Example here....other species do not have these.



Also before that good breach...same whale






Also from the same "training trip"..
One Whale Shark feasting on plankton.
Not the greatest pics but...the arrows at the corners point out the squared face of it as it cruised right under us.
It was a biggun!!!

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Pentax K-5
Pentax 18-55mm,Pentax 50-200mm,Sigma 17-70mm,Sigma 70-300mm, Sigma 50-500mm

in the deep freeze here so working on some more of last spring's pics from Haida Gwaii... some sealion closeups...















box crab mouth parts... yes I know.. not a mammal



a few more whales flick feeding...









upper jaw and baleen closeup...

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

wow, those seal photos are nice and sharp. is that with the 100-400L?

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Canon Powershot S95, Canon 7D, 15-85, Canon 85 1.8 USM, Sigma 30 1.4, 50mm 1.8, Canon 100 2.8L IS Macro, Canon 70-300L IS USM+Kenko 1.4 Pro 300DGX, Canon 430EX II and RS 4 Classic

yup...

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

Great shots wolf!

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Pentax K-5
Pentax 18-55mm,Pentax 50-200mm,Sigma 17-70mm,Sigma 70-300mm, Sigma 50-500mm

There was a cool show on Oasis tonight called The Original Whale Riders. It was about a scientist trying to prove that Humpback Whales are not just represented by 2 seperate groups, northern and southern oceans, as previously thought but instead are made up of several isolated families thus making each family more vulnerable to extinction than the 2 larger groups previously thought. If he is right, the study has just begun, Humpback Whales may need more protection than previously thought to keep the diversity intact. What I found amazing was that to prove the genetic differences he focused on a parasite common on all Humpbacks and he is trying to prove that the parisites are distinct sub-species within each Humpback population thus showing no contact between seperate families of Humpbacks. The only way this parasite is transferred between Whales is through direct contact.

Last spring and fall I got the closest I ever have to whales and I managed to get several shots which showed these parasites. It was said on the show that they had never been captured in pics before as they are so small, .6 to 1 cm in size, compared to the whale. The show was recorded in 2008 so I guess I am one of the few who has captured these parasites in images to date. My pics are not good at all from a photography standpoint but they are as good as or better than any shown on the show from what they showed.... Kinda cool

Here is one shot... this is an EXTREME crop with lots of PP as I never noticed them til I got home but from now on I am definately gonna be looking out for these little guys whenever I am shooting whales.

This is gonna be a cool challenge... imagine trying to shoot a pic of something 1 cm in size on a living, moving whale while bobbing on the ocean

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

that is cool and sobering at the same time.
How stupid are us humans?


Have you considered sending the pics to the scientists?

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Canon Powershot S95, Canon 7D, 15-85, Canon 85 1.8 USM, Sigma 30 1.4, 50mm 1.8, Canon 100 2.8L IS Macro, Canon 70-300L IS USM+Kenko 1.4 Pro 300DGX, Canon 430EX II and RS 4 Classic

I emailed several last night Max and got a response this morning thanking me. They were surprised that someone has actually photographed them and said they would be very helpful. I explained to them that now that I know what to look for I should have more success. All the images I have that show them now were taken with a 24 - 105 ... using the 100-400 or a longer prime, and not getting within 2 meters of the whale, should give me a lot better results. Bad news is I need to keep to my promise to myself this summer and focus on the prairies... too many obligations out here to start roaming around the country. No coastal visits for me til the fall or early spring of next year when I move out that way.

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

The whales have returned to the Bay for the year.
This Humpback mom and calf not 500yds from my door where I live when I'm working.
Some Atlantic Whitesided Dolphins and a few Puffins.
Managed to find one with it's colours but for the most part so far they are juveniles or have no colour yet.
PLENTY of them around though

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Pentax K-5
Pentax 18-55mm,Pentax 50-200mm,Sigma 17-70mm,Sigma 70-300mm, Sigma 50-500mm

love puffins one of the funniest birds on the planet in my opinion

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Canon 7D + 50D + EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM + EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM
Pelican // Black Rapid // Think Tank // Manfrotto // Garmin

Reflections On Canadian Wildlife
My Flickr

here's one of a humpback tail i got the other day..

First time ever photographing whales.. the day started off very hazy, but as the hours went on the haze started to burn off a good bit... so naturally the better photo's game later in the day.

The longest lens i had with me was the 70-200... if i was to do it again i'd probably use something more like the 70-300, even though it's not as bright, the extra range would have suited me well, and I didn't find myself ever needing the bright f2.8 aperture of the 70-200. But I worked with what I had and was happy with some of the shots.

here's a tail breach from a humpback quite close to the boat..

DSC_2666 by janderson45, on Flickr

I think a lot of whale photography is about luck, I didn't witness a full breach (not that i was expecting too) and seldom had chances to grab pictures of much of anything but their backs... obviously as they dive their tail breaches more often than not, but I found this usually occured further away than was ideal for the 200mm lens. Oh well, live and learn.

I can say that i'm quite envious of the photo's some of you guys have grabbed, I feel like I could have been out there all day and not had some of those oppurtunites

let me know what you think!

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Nikon D90,
18-105 3.5-5.6
50mm F1.8 AF-D
Nikon SB-600
Nikon MB-D80 Battery Grip