Five-Years Ago (11-May-2008) — Colorado

Gone to See America. May 2008 Colorado Road Trip. Day 2: Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge.

American Bittern Hunting in the Reeds at the Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge in Early Spring. Image taken with a Nikon D300 camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/8, 1/1600 sec).

American Bittern Hunting at the Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge in Early Spring. Image taken with a Nikon D300 and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/8, 1/1600 sec). (David J Mathre)
American Bittern Hunting at the Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge in Early Spring. Image taken with a Nikon D300 and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/8, 1/1600 sec). (David J Mathre)

Five-Years Ago (10-May-2008) — Colorado

Gone to See America. May 2008 Colorado Road Trip. Day 1: Great Sand Dunes National Park.

Black-Billed Magpie in Medano Creek. Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado. Image taken with a Nikon D300 camera and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/8, 1/1000 sec).

Black-Billed Magpie in Medano Creek. Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado. Image taken with a Nikon D300 and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/8, 1/1000 sec). (David J Mathre)
Black-Billed Magpie in Medano Creek. Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado. Image taken with a Nikon D300 and 80-400 mm VR lens (ISO 200, 400 mm, f/8, 1/1000 sec). (David J Mathre)

Six-Years Ago (09-May-2007) — New Jersey

Backyard Springtime Nature in New Jersey.

One of my favorite grab images from 2007. Jumping rabbit caught in mid-air. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 300 mm f/2.8 VR + TCE-II 14 (ISO 400, 420 mm, f/4, 1/160 sec). Reprocessed, monochrome and one color.

Jumping Rabbit. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 300 mm f/2.8 VR + TCE-II 14 (ISO 400, 420 mm, f/4, 1/160 sec). (David J Mathre)
Jumping Rabbit. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 300 mm f/2.8 VR + TCE-II 14 (ISO 400, 420 mm, f/4, 1/160 sec). (David J Mathre)

Thursday (04-April-2013) — New Jersey

Backyard Springtime Nature in New Jersey.

The deer right now are pretty scrawny, waiting for plants to start growing after winter. They don’t eat the daffodils or dandelions, but will start going after shrubs and newly planted gardens. Image two was taken with a Nikon 1 V2 using FT1 adapter and the new 80-400 mm VRII lens. This was taken hand-held (ISO 160, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/250 sec), the FOV equivalent to an image taken with a 1080 mm lens on a FX (35 mm DSLR camera). This is the full image, not cropped. The third image of the same deer was taken with a Nikon D4 and 600 mm f/4 VR lens (ISO 560, 600 mm, f/4, 1/2000 sec) using a tripod to stabilize the heavy lens. The image was cropped to show approximately the same view.

Deer in My Backyard, Early Spring in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D4, and 600 mm VR lens (ISO 320, 600 mm, f/4, 1/2000 sec) (David J Mathre)
Deer in My Backyard, Early Spring in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D4, and 600 mm VR lens (ISO 320, 600 mm, f/4, 1/2000 sec) (David J Mathre)
Deer in My Backyard, Early Spring in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V2, FT1 adapter, and 80-400 mm VRII lens (ISO 160, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/250 sec) (David J Mathre)
Deer in My Backyard, Early Spring in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V2, FT1 adapter, and 80-400 mm VRII lens (ISO 160, 400 mm, f/5.6, 1/250 sec) (David J Mathre)
Deer in My Backyard, Early Spring in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D4, and 600 mm VR lens (ISO 560, 600 mm, f/4, 1/2000 sec) (David J Mathre)
Deer in My Backyard, Early Spring in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D4, and 600 mm VR lens (ISO 560, 600 mm, f/4, 1/2000 sec) (David J Mathre)
Deer in My Backyard, Early Spring in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D4, and 600 mm VR lens (ISO 560, 600 mm, f/4, 1/2000 sec) (David J Mathre)
Deer in My Backyard, Early Spring in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon D4, and 600 mm VR lens (ISO 560, 600 mm, f/4, 1/2000 sec) (David J Mathre)

Wednesday (03-April-2013) — New Jersey

Backyard Springtime Nature in New Jersey.

A Male Northern Red Cardinal taken with a Nikon 1 V2 camera and the new 80-400 mm VRII lens (with the FT1 adapter). The lens is much bigger than the camera, but still easy to use hand-held. The field of view (FOV) with this lens is equivalent to 216-1080 mm on a 35 mm (FX) DSLR. The base ISO for the Nikon 1 V2 is 160, and at the base ISO the image of the red cardinal shows good colors and saturation. This image was taken hand-held. The new VR-II works well with this lens to stabilize the image. This combo should be good for birding.

Male Northern Red Cardinal in the Sun. Backyard Spring Nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V2 + FT1 adapter + 80-400 mm VRII lens (ISO 160, 400 mm, f/7.1, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)
Male Northern Red Cardinal in the Sun. Backyard Spring Nature in New Jersey. Image taken with a Nikon 1 V2 + FT1 adapter + 80-400 mm VRII lens (ISO 160, 400 mm, f/7.1, 1/500 sec). (David J Mathre)