Tarantula strolls across my photo shoot in Rio Rancho New Mexico

October 08, 2020 in Nature & Wildlife

Unexpected photoshoot guest — tarantula!

During a rural land real estate shoot in the desert NW of Rio Rancho, New Mexico, I had an unexpected guest show up, a very large tarantula! I was waiting for the sun to go down to get the last shots I make at these shoots, my signature HDR sunset shots, when coming down the road was this arachnid. I ran over to the Jeep to take out my other camera which had a 70-200mm lens on it to make these photos from a safe distance! The tarantula obliged quite well choosing to walk further down the road rather than turn into the desert. I am glad I saw this spider in the open and did not see it crawling on my foot when I was in the desert getting the sunset shot!

Elk in Snow in the Grand Canyon Arizona Wildlife Photography

January 08, 2020 in Nature & Wildlife

Elk of the Grand Canyon are real characters

When I first arrived at the Grand Canyon in northern Arizona, there was a bit of down time before I could actually go and see the canyon itself. Fortunately for me, a group of elk was foraging right across the street. This was my first time to photograph elk like this. It turns out these animals are real characters sticking out their tongues at me, laughing, and getting themselves covered in snow just to make a photo more interesting! Thank you Grand Canyon elk for being so photogenic and letting me get some great wildlife shots!

Mule Deer Wildlife Photography New Mexico True in Ramah

November 12, 2019 in Nature & Wildlife, Photography Tips

At last a mule deer photo opportunity

I am often out in very remote areas from late afternoon until sunset and into twilight times here in New Mexico. I love to photograph wildlife, but despite so much time out in nature, I very rarely have the opportunity to photograph large animals, like the mule deer seen here (learn about mule deer). This is in part because when I am done shooting a piece of rural land real estate, I pack up both cameras into a backpack in the back of my Jeep. So if I do happen to see a deer, or other animal, I have to stop, get out, and then get my camera ready. This always results in the animals taking off never to be seen again.

Photography Tip - leave your DSLR camera on!

February 20, 2014 in Photography Tips

If my Nikon DSLR was not on and ready I would have missed this surprise chance in Vinoy Park FloridaPoint & shoot digital cameras, especially early ones, really used up batteries a lot. So much so that people would turn them on and off between shots all the time. I have noticed this practice continues with some of my DSLR photography students as well. However, with a DSLR camera, there is no reason to turn it off between shots. These cameras automatically go into a meter-off (sleep mode) that you can choose to happen in a set amount of time, and with the meter off and the backscreen off, a DSLR uses basically no battery power. Thus, there is no reason to turn your DSLR off until you are putting it back into your camera bag at the end of shooting.

In fact, this practice of turning off the camera can lead to missing shots. I was walking along the seawall in Vinoy Park one time and all of a sudden a dolphin surfaced right below my feet! My Nikon was on and already set in default settings for getting a good shot in the light I was in, which allowed me to in just a split second be able to make the above dolphin photo. Having to turn my camera on would have caused me to miss it. Be sure and keep your DSLR on from the time you take it out of your camera bag until the time you put in back in to make sure you are always ready to capture any sudden photography opportunities.

Free iPhone Wallpaper Monday: Tricolored Heron of Myakka River

October 05, 2009 in Free Wallpaper, Nature & Wildlife

free iPhone wallpaper -- tricolored heron

Start your work week off with a free new wallpaper for your iPhone or iPod touch!

From the same kayak I photographed the Myakka Alligator, I also made this image of a tricolored heron wading and hunting in the surprisingly shallow Myakka River. It was a much less nerve racking task photographing this tricolored heron than it was the aforementioned alligator. Still, I was very pleased to get this opportunity because it was my first time to photograph a tricolored heron.

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My full (and growing) collection of iPhone wallpapers can be viewed HERE and are available for just $1 each.

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To Install the wallpaper onto your iPhone:

1. Right-click or control-click on the image.

2. Select “Save as…”

* Mac users: save the image to a folder or add it to your iPhoto library.

* PC users: save the image in your “My Pictures” folder.

Connect the iPhone/iPod Touch to your computer and do the following:

1. Launch iTunes, click your iPhone icon on iTunes, choose the Photos tab, and select “Sync photos from:”

2. From the pop-up menu, do one of the following:

* If your using a Mac, choose iPhoto or your Pictures folder.
* If you’re using a PC, choose My Pictures folder.

3. Choose Folder, then choose any folder on your computer that has images.

4. Choose “All photos,” or choose “Selected folders” or “Selected albums” and choose the folders or albums you want to sync.

On your iPhone:

5. Launch the Photos app. Browse through the albums or Camera Roll until you find the picture you wish to use.

6. Select the picture so it is displayed full screen.

7. Tap the icon in the lower left corner of the screen. If you don’t see the icon, single tap the picture to display the menus.

8. A menu pops up with three options: Email Photo, Use as Wallpaper, or Assign to Contact.

9. Choose “Use as Wallpaper"

Thanks to Photo Focus and Scott Bourne for the directions above.

All iPhone/iPod Touch Wallpapers are provided without any technical support. Each image is a 320×480 jpg file. All images are Copyright Jason Collin Photography, All Rights Reserved. You are granted a single use, non-exclusive, perpetual license to install this wallpaper on any iPhone or iPod Touch personally owned by you. This license grants you the right to use the wallpaper for non-commercial/personal use only. You may not re-sell, distribute, print or otherwise publish the image without the express written consent of the Copyright owner: Jason Collin Photography

Free Great Blue Heron iPhone Wallpaper

July 16, 2009 in Free Wallpaper, Nature & Wildlife

This photograph of a great blue heron was made near Sanibel Island's pier in February 2009. I am providing this iPhone wallpaper for free. It is my way of saying thank you for visiting Jason Collin Photography.

To Install the wallpaper onto your iPhone:

1. Right-click or control-click on the image.

2. Select “Save as…”

* Mac users: save the image to a folder or add it to your iPhoto library.

* PC users: save the image in your “My Pictures” folder.

Connect the iPhone/iPod Touch to your computer and do the following:

1. Launch iTunes, click your iPhone icon on iTunes, choose the Photos tab, and select “Sync photos from:”

2. From the pop-up menu, do one of the following:

* If your using a Mac, choose iPhoto or your Pictures folder.
* If you’re using a PC, choose My Pictures folder.

3. Choose Folder, then choose any folder on your computer that has images.

4. Choose “All photos,” or choose “Selected folders” or “Selected albums” and choose the folders or albums you want to sync.

On your iPhone:

5. Launch the Photos app. Browse through the albums or Camera Roll until you find the picture you wish to use.

6. Select the picture so it is displayed full screen.

7. Tap the icon in the lower left corner of the screen. If you don’t see the icon, single tap the picture to display the menus.

8. A menu pops up with three options: Email Photo, Use as Wallpaper, or Assign to Contact.

9. Choose “Use as Wallpaper"

Thanks to Photo Focus and Scott Bourne for the directions above.