Photography
gregladen | July 1, 2010This is a guest post by professional photographer Scott Rowed, describing his experience in switching from Windows to Linux.
Does Linux have the tools for a professional photographer?
A few months ago I would have answered "no". After switching primarily to Linux I gradually migrated my computer activities away from Windows. While there are some good open source imaging tools in Linux, there always seemed to be some missing function, forcing me to boot into Windows for serious image editing.
I'd developed a complex workflow for Windows over the years. Irfanview for browsing the RAW files…
grrlscientist | July 1, 2010tags: Turkey Vulture, Cathartes aura, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Turkey Vulture, Cathartes aura, photographed at Brazos Bend State Park, Needville, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 28 November 2007 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/750s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This challenging-to-ID-from-this-image mystery bird has a special foraging ability that other members of this family lack. Can you tell me what that…
grrlscientist | June 30, 2010tags: Cave Swallow, Petrochelidon fulva, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] A young-of-the-year Cave Swallow, Petrochelidon fulva, photographed at Chambers County, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 26 June 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/500s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This mystery bird species is extremely local and seasonal in the southernmost portion of the USA, nesting in very limited numbers only in…
awild | June 29, 2010Messor decipiens,
South Africa
Here's a photo I took last week. It shows a granivorous ant with an enormous head housing muscles for milling the harvest. I used Canon's MP-E 65mm 1-5x lens and a twin flash diffused through two sheets of mylar.
The last time I photographed this species was in the field in South Africa, using a little Nikon coolpix digicam. That was in 2003:
While it's true that the greater magnification and sensor quality of the newer and pricier Canon gear make an obvious difference, I'd argue the single biggest advance is in the lighting. The Canon allows my to plug in an…
grrlscientist | June 29, 2010tags: Black-necked Stilt, Himantopus mexicanus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Newly hatched Black-necked Stilt, Himantopus mexicanus, photographed at Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Anahuac, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 26 June 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/320s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Newly-hatched baby birds of this mystery bird species have a remarkable ability, can you tell me what that is?…
grrlscientist | June 28, 2010tags: King Rail, Marsh Hen, Freshwater Marsh Hen, Rallus elegans, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] King Rail, also known as the Marsh Hen or the Freshwater Marsh Hen, Rallus elegans, photographed at Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Anahuac, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 26 May 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/400s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Today's Mystery Bird seems a bit confused about its own identity,…
grrlscientist | June 27, 2010tags: Green Wood-Hoopoe, Red-billed Wood Hoopoe, Phoeniculus purpureus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Green Wood-Hoopoe, formerly known as the Red-billed Wood Hoopoe, Phoeniculus purpureus, photographed in Tarangire National Park, Tanzania, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Dan Logen, 18 January 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D300, 600 mm VR lens with 1.4 extender ISO 500, f/5.6, 1/250 sec.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This mystery bird species has a remarkable breeding strategy, can you tell me what…
grrlscientist | June 26, 2010tags: Village Indigobird, Vidua chalybeata, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Village Indigobird, Vidua chalybeata, photographed in Tarangire National Park, Tanzania, Africa. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Dan Logen, 17 January 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D300, 600 mm VR lens with 1.4 extender ISO 500, f/8, 1/1000 sec.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This Old World genus of birds is filled with species that have a very close relationship with another species of bird -- can you tell me the nature of that…
grrlscientist | June 25, 2010tags: Ancient Murrelet, Synthliboramphus antiquus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Ancient Murrelet, Synthliboramphus antiquus, photographed zigzagging rapidly roughly 15m below the waves off the south side of Alki Point, Seattle, Washington. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Ron Shimek [larger view].
Olympus OM-10 in an Ikelite Housing, Kodachrome 64 film.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This poorly-known mystery bird species has two remarkable behaviors that are thought to reduce predation at the nest -- what…
grrlscientist | June 24, 2010tags: Brown Pelican, Pelecanus occidentalis, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Brown Pelican, Pelecanus occidentalis, photographed at Monterey Bay, California. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 7 May 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/750s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
Can you tell me something remarkable about this mystery bird's beak/mouth?
The pelican's gullet pouch really can "hold more than its belly can" (as claimed…
awild | June 24, 2010A worker cradles a freshly-laid egg in the brood nest of a laboratory colony of the Argentine Ant Linepithema humile.
photo details: Canon EOS 7D camera
Canon MP-E 65mm 1-5x macro lens
ISO 100, f/13, 1/250sec
grrlscientist | June 23, 2010tags: Western Scrub-jay, California Jay, Aphelocoma californica, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Western Scrub-jay, also known as the California Jay, Aphelocoma californica, photographed at Bodega Bay, California. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 23 December 2007 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/750s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This mystery bird species performs a remarkable behavior that has intrigued scientists and even…
grrlscientist | June 22, 2010tags: Killdeer, Charadrius vociferus, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] newly hatched Killdeer, Charadrius vociferus, photographed at Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Anahuac, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 1 June 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/640s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This cute little bird was or will be, at some point during its youth, protected by a spectacular display by one of its parents. Can…
grrlscientist | June 22, 2010tags: Oil From BP Leak Threatens Life on a Nearby Seamount, animals, marine life, fishes, invertebrates, Salt Dome Seamount, oil drilling, oil spill, oil wells, petroleum, BP, British Petroleum, TransOcean, environment, streaming video
In 2002, ocean explorer Gale Mead was the first person to see and film the profusion of life 200 feet down on Salt Dome Seamount -- just 16 miles from where the BP oil well is now gushing out of control. Mead (daughter of oceanographer Sylvia Earle) describes the corals and fish she saw and the devastation that the oil is likely causing in a place that no other…
grrlscientist | June 21, 2010tags: Marbled Godwit, Limosa fedoa, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Marbled Godwit, Limosa fedoa, photographed at Galveston Island East Beach, Texas. [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 1 June 2010 [larger view].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/1000s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400.
Please name at least one field mark that supports your identification.
This species is comprised of a seemingly homogeneous population of birds. However, scientists have recently found that this species shows some geographic variation…
cwilcox | June 20, 2010Wave breaking in Alabama (Photographer Dave Martin/AP) versus wave in Hawaii (Photographer Clark Little)
Which do you prefer?
grrlscientist | June 20, 2010tags: Bristle-thighed Curlew, Numenius tahitiensis, birds, mystery bird, bird ID quiz
[Mystery bird] Bristle-thighed Curlew, Numenius tahitiensis, photographed on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge -- one of the most remote coral atolls on earth -- a US territory in the north Pacific Ocean [I will identify this bird for you in 48 hours]
Image: Joe Fuhrman, 2010. I encourage you to purchase images from this professional photographer. [larger view] I encourage you to purchase images from this professional photographer.
NOTE: Please name at least one field mark that supports your…