[Leica] Kayaking camera: demonstration of concept

[jhnichols at bellsouth.net (Jim Nichols)]

Doug,

Great background story and a very good photo.  My son used to have a kayak, 
so I have heard all about the rollovers, etc. It seems that you have thought 
the process through and will do well.  We'll be expecting more great shots.

Jim Nichols
Tullahoma, TN USA
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Douglas Herr" <telyt@earthlink.net>
To: <lug@leica-users.org>; "LEG" <leica@freelists.org>; "LeicaReflex" 
<leicareflex@freelists.org>
Sent: Tuesday, July 03, 2007 1:00 AM
Subject: [Leica] Kayaking camera: demonstration of concept


> For some time now I've wanted to take a camera with me while kayaking.
>
> Background: the kayak allows me much better access to the water side of 
> marshes, and when I'm in the kayak I don't look like a human and can get 
> much closer.
>
> more background: As most of us know, kayaks are supposed to float on top 
> of the water, but there's always the possibility of turning turtle 
> (flipping over) or becoming a submarine (taking on too much water) so I've 
> been hesitant to carry something like the R8/DMR/280 APO combination in 
> the kayak.
>
> My solution: About a year ago I picked up from an ebay auction a Novoflex 
> 400mm f/5.6 T-Noflexar very inexpensively, and on the camera end of this 
> lens I've fitted an very ugly but (thanks to DAG and UPS) very functional 
> Leicaflex SL.  Total cost of the rig is about US$375 including the SL, 
> Novoflex lens, its shoulder stock, and the LEA-R adapter for Leica-R.  I 
> won't be happy if it gets dunked, OTOH it's not like I'd have the repair 
> expense of the R8/DMR/280 APO if they got soaked.  On the DMR the Novoflex 
> has proven to be adequately sharp for a good 8x12 print.  Not APO-Telyt 
> sharp, but adequate.
>
> The kayak is a fiberglass sea kayak, the Easy Rider Sea Hawk.  It has a 
> covered deck, a big open cockpit so I can get legs or camera in and out 
> easily, and is known as a 'dry' boat, i.e., water doesn't splash in 
> easily.  I've found that I can keep the camera out of the kayak's bilge by 
> balancing it on my legs as I paddle, and far enough forward that it's out 
> of the way of errant splashes from the paddle.
>
> The location I chose to test the rig is a marshy backwater off Lake 
> Natoma, a reservoir just west of Folsom California.  From put-in to the 
> backwater area there's a stretch of open water that can be crossed in 
> fifteen minutes or so and given the unpredictable nature of winds and of 
> other boaters this is probably the riskiest part of the test.  Once in the 
> backwater area there's very little boat traffic and the waters are 
> sheltered from most winds.
>
> Among the wildlife I spotted during the test was a river otter, several 
> Mallard families, a Common Merganser family, and numerous landbirds.  Alos 
> spotted a Great Blue Heron and a Great Egret, but not the Green Heron, the 
> bird I was most interested in.
>
> The Great Egret provided the best photo opportunities, but only after I 
> figured out what to do with the kayak were the pictures worth showing.  I 
> quickly found that photography while the kayak was in open water was 
> pointless: the kayak is always drifting with the current or breezes or 
> both, the birds are paddling a different direction, and I've got only a 
> limited range of motion while seated in the kayak's cockpit.  This plus 
> the floation vest interfering with the shoulder stock and keeping track of 
> the paddle while holding the camera ... clumsy and uncoordinated are the 
> words that come to mind.
>
> I found the best way to use the kayak as a photo platform was to run the 
> boat onto soft mud, jamming it in place, and to wait for the egret to 
> approach as it fed, leaning my elbows on the lip of the cockpit for added 
> camera stability.  So without further words, the result:
>
> http://www.wildlightphoto.com/birds/ardeidae/greg01.html
>
> technical stuff: SL, Novoflex 400mm f/5.6 T-Noflexar, Kodak Portra 170 NC, 
> kayak.  All comments welcome.
>
>
> Doug Herr
> Birdman of Sacramento
> http://www.wildlightphoto.com
>
> _______________________________________________
> Leica Users Group.
> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information
>