Non-SWD 50-200mm with EX-25 and MMF-3 Cropped from 4608 x 3456 to 2395 x 25121 before resizing for web.

Paynes Prairie - FL:

An eco-system south of Gainesville, Florida, spanning an area running east to west across a stretch of US 441 & US I-75, Paynes Prairie supports a wide variety of wildlife, including migratory birds, such as these sandhill cranes, and more sedentary life forms like the rattlers and gators.

Regrettably, these birds did not buzz me; they never got closer than a couple hundred yards or more away. These images have been cropped and re-sized.

In a few weeks the cranes will be long gone, heading north to their summer breeding grounds where the weather is fickle and the temperatures are more chilling than winters in sunny Florida.

In this series the (40-150mm) lens was stretched to its limit. It was a breezy day with a bright sun, blue skies and just a few small scattered clouds.

The cranes never did get very close, and with the gusty winds it was rather difficult keeping them in the center of the viewfinder; unfortunately, when the birds ended up outside the center of the frame the AF would wander and generally lock up; occasionally, with some finessing of the FBW focusing ring and some luck I was able to get a green light for another instant and another quick shot.

At the end of the day I yearned for a longer lens and a faster, more accurate, focusing system, and now, it seems, Olympus has delivered several new lenses, including the new 50-200mm zoom; that sure would have been nice this past weekend. Oh, and the new 2-power tele-extender; that would have been real nice to have this past weekend; yeah, it would.

First shot with my new Sigma APO MACRO 150mm F2.8 EX DG