Thanks for the tip, WsW-WYATT-EARP

[Loupey]

I had a meeting near the Racine (Wisconsin) zoo that Ben mentioned in a previous thread. Didn't have any idea when/if I could make it, but I did have a small window of opportunity to make it so I went for it.

Based on Ben's description of it, I took only the 50mm f/1.8 and the 300mm. It was really quiet - I only saw 5 other people - and most of the animals were indoors.

Sorry if these images look somber, but a quiet zoo is a sad zoo IMO and it affected the way I shot. Nothing against the zoo - it was actually pretty clean and well kept, just quiet due to the weather. Please visit and donate if you are in the area.

[Cassie1]

Oh Loupey, those sad little faces. They made me want to cry :sad: I am a real softy when it comes to animals. In #4 the little guy looks as if he's blind in his right eye.

Cassie.

[mjs1973]

The wife and I attempted to go to the Racine Zoo yesterday. When I told the wife about the 4 lion cubs at the zoo, she was all excited to go. About a half hour into our almost 3 hour drive it started to snow and the roads got slippery. We had a pickup pulling a trailer loose control right in front of us and ended up in the ditch with the trailer coming unhooked and flipping on it's side. As bad as we wanted to get to the zoo, we decided we should head for home. We did stop at Best Buy so I could take some test shots with the 40D first tho.

Seeing these picks makes me want to attempt another trip to the zoo.

[WsW-WYATT-EARP]

Glad to see you were able to make the trip. It is such a small zoo there is never a whole lot of people there. I think they had the biggest spike in visitors since the cubs were put on public display. I think the day we were there we only seen like 10 people. As you said though they do keep it very clean and in the warmer months when the weather is nice and the animals are all outside its a very nice place to go being right on the lake.

Mike - if you do make the trip make sure its warm enough for the cubs to be outside - i think it needs to be above 30. Otherwise if it is too cold then there isn't a whole lot to see.

[Loupey]

Cassie - yes, he definitely has a cataract in his eye.

Mike - what was your impression of the 40D? I personally think the LCD is too big and the color in playback seems OFF compared to the 30D. But the 6.5 fps is pretty nice - even nicer when you have the Live View enabled.

Ben - yeah, not much was outside when I was there.


I did end up using the Live View features quite a bit since the railing is out about a foot and a half away from the glass in the indoor exhibits and I like to push the camera right up to the glass. Also, images #1 and #3 are at ISO 3200 - and even then I was only at 1/60s with the 300mm wide open. The remaining at ISO 1600.

[Loupey]

Two more images:

#1 - not a good image (shot at an angle to the glass): That is a two-toed sloth, but that is NOT a two-toed sloth baby that it is cradling.

#2 - pelicans were outside. All were visibly trembling in the cold. I managed to sneak up pretty close with the 300mm.


Eventually I'll get back out shooting wild things again soon Thanks for looking.

[mjs1973]

I love the pelican shot Loupey.

Mike - what was your impression of the 40D? I personally think the LCD is too big and the color in playback seems OFF compared to the 30D. But the 6.5 fps is pretty nice - even nicer when you have the Live View enabled.

I loved it, but the testing I got to do was very limited. The camera was attached to the display counter with the security code, so I was pretty limited with what I could shoot, and the wife was waiting in the car so not a lot of time to play.

The main reason I wanted some test shots was to see for myself what the noise looked like at the higher ISO setting. So basically I picked a spot to focus on, and took a pic, upped the ISO and took another one, until I got to 1600.

The camera felt great in my hands and changing the ISO without taking the camera away from my eye was nice and easy. The burst rate was pretty impressive too, and I could see that coming in handy. I didn't really even pay attention to the LCD screen because I was in a hurry. I took a few shots with the XTi as well, but that just didn't feel or sound as nice to me.

The next time I'm in he city without the wife, I will go to a real camera shop where I can spend a little more time with the camera. Unless something major happens, I see myself with a 40D before we go to Africa in May.

[berrywise]

I think you did a stellar job Loupey!

[Greg McCary]

Great pictures Loupey.

[Cassie1]

I love the Pelican shot Loupey, you've nailed that exposure.

Cassie.

[readingr]

Interesting shots - I must admit I am not a big fan of keeping wild animals in the zoo but understand that it has to happen thanks to man's greed.

Roger

[Loupey]

Mike, berrywise, Greg, Cassie, & Roger - thanks for looking and I appreciate the comments!

Mike - did I know about your upcoming Africa trip? Do you have a thread elsewhere about it so I can get caught up on what you and the Mrs. are planning to do there? Sounds wonderful and exciting.

[mjs1973]

Mike - did I know about your upcoming Africa trip? Do you have a thread elsewhere about it so I can get caught up on what you and the Mrs. are planning to do there? Sounds wonderful and exciting.

I don't have a specific thread about my trip anywhere, but I have mentioned in a couple times in various threads. I will start a new one and fill everyone in.