Leah Turner and Mick Thompson Share September Eastside Audubon Photo Honors
Leah Turner and Mick Thompson were named co-winners of the Eastside Audubon Photo of the Month award for September. Leah won for her shots of elusive Common Loons at Semiahmoo Spit, south of Vancouver, B.C., while Mick earned recognition for his photos of long-eared owls taken at Boundary Bay in British Columbia.
This marks the sixth time Leah has won the award. “These Common Loons were much more cooperative than most,” she says. “I was shooting them from the beach, and they were curious about the sound of my camera’s shutter. They swam right up to shore. I was able to lay down on the sand to get my lens at eye level with them, which made for some nice portraits.”
You can see more of Leah’s work on Instagram.
Leah Turner’s Photo Details
All Leah’s photos were shot with a Nikon D850 and a Nikkor 500 mm lens with the following settings:
Focal Length: 500mm | Exposure: 1/800 sec | Aperture: f/5.6 | ISO: 500
Mick’s winning photos, his fourth Photo of the Month award, featured long-eared owls. The photos were not only due to his skill in capturing these elusive birds but also his evolving expertise in post-processing. "I've come to understand that our digital cameras are as much computers as they are cameras," Mick explains. "When you take a photo, you're actually creating a data file, and with sophisticated editing software, you can dramatically improve the final image."
Using tools like DxO PureRAW 4, Topaz Photo AI, and Adobe Photoshop, Mick was able to re-edit these shots.
You can see more of Mick’s work on Instagram.
Mick Thompson’s Photo Details
Both sets of photos were taken with a Canon 7D Mark II and a Canon 500 mm lens.
In the two examples of photos below, the one on the left is the original while the one on the right is enhanced by modern photo editing software that removes unnecessary detail while improving image quality.
Focal Length: 500 mm | Exposure: 1/125 sec | Aperture: f/8 | ISO: 800
The photo on the left is the original and the one on the right is enhanced by newer editing software.
Focal Length: 500 mm | Exposure: 1/1000 sec | Aperture: f/8 | ISO: 12,800
The photo on the left is the original and the one on the right is enhanced by newer editing software.
About the Eastside Audubon Photograph of the Month Award
The Photo of the Month award was instituted to recognize the work of the Photo Group Members. The group members meet monthly to show their latest photos and videos as well as share their knowledge of photography and wildlife. To attend the meetings, please join the group’s announcement list.