Pronghorns And Parkfield CA

Dale Matson

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Pronghorn Antelope

Sharon and I heard that there were Pronghorn Antelope in various places around California, which was a surprise to us. Having more discretionary time than most, we decided to go look for some the following day.

We heard from a friend Mark, that there was a small herd near Parkfield CA. The little community is located on the San Andreas Fault and more famous for earthquakes than Pronghorns. It is located about 2 hours southwest of Fresno primarily following State Highway 41 south to the Parkfield turn-off (Cholame Valley Road) which heads north to Parkfield. It was along this stretch of road that we came across a group of about 10 Pronghorn Antelope.

I was glad to have my Sony A7R2 and A6000 to use with my Sony Fe 100-400mm lens. I also had my 1.4X converter which gave me 560mm. I was disappointed to see a thin wire electric fence behind the antelope in all of my photographs. I took the fence out in some of the shots using Photoshop. The Antelope eventually worked their way out of range of even the telephoto lens.

 Hawk At Bottom

After this, we decided to visit Parkfield (Population 18). Soon after we crossed the bridge over Little Cholame Creek we were in “Downtown" Parkfield (formerly Russelsville). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkfield,_California

We were there at noon and thought we might try the cafeteria which was not open on Tuesday so we ate our bag lunches we brought along just in case.

"Be Here When It Happens"

On our return to Fresno we took Vineyard Canyon Road to Indian Valley Road to Peach Tree Road to Highway 198 back to Highway 41. We were looking for Tule Elk to no avail but the scenery was quite interesting and scenic.

Bee Boxes

Sony FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS lens With The A7R2

Dale Matson

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I’ve had my new lens about 3 weeks and taken photos in various venues at various focal lengths. I also have some photos where I used the Sony e-mount 1.4X converter in conjunction with the lens at 400mm to give me an effective 560mm lens. I found the lens with the converter was still very sharp. With the converter, the camera in “Auto” mode tended to chose 1/500^th of a second, which I found to be a bit slow, especially for moving objects. I used it in shutter priority mode at 1/600^th of a second for better results.

This is not intended as a review but I was very happy with how lightweight and compact the lens is even with the 1.4X convertor. Much of my shots are while I hike on trails where a tripod is not suitable. All of these shots were hand held. I had the 2X converter but found the photos to not be as sharp as I would like and returned it.

While Sony will be coming out with a prime 400mm 2.8 lens soon, my bank account will not allow me to purchase it and my cardiologist will not allow me to carry it. I traded in my Metabones adapted Canon 400mm f4 D.O. lens and have never looked back.

I have not had any auto focus issues with the lens even with reduced light using the 1.4 converter.

Now all of my A7R2 lenses are e-mount and I am “adapter free”. Thanks Sony and Zeiss for finally filling out the range of lenses that fit my wildlife and landscape needs. Glad I have this lens. I carry it mounted to the camera hanging on my shoulder from a Promaster Swiftstrap mounted to the tripod foot.

 400mm  Crop Acorn Woodpecker

 Millerton Lake Last Swim Of The Season

 Historic Millerton Courthouse

 F18's

 Moon At 400mm

 Pond At Coke Hollowell Nature Center

Coot

 Huntington Lake From Kaiser Pass Road

 560mm

 Fisherman At 100mm

 Crow At 560mm f8 1/600th 

 Distant Bald Eagle 400mm Crop

 Hawk At 560mm

Grandson At 400mm

Edison Lake (7,000') From Whitebark Overlook Near Kaiser Pass

The Sony 24-70 2.8 GM And A7R2

Dale Matson

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Saddlebag Lake

I have had this lens since last spring and find that when I wanted a one lens-in the middle-solution, it fit the bill. The Sony 16-35 2.8 GM is my mountain lens and the Sony 100-400 GM is my wildlife lens.

This is not a lens review but I thought some would be interested in seeing photos taken in different venues over the last few months. My photographs are gleaned from several hikes since spring including Rancheria Falls, near Huntington Lake, Courtright Reservoir, near Shaver Lake, Kaiser Pass Road, Friant Dam Area, Convict Lake near Mammoth Lakes and other eastern Sierra Nevada locations. The photographs reflect an assortment of apertures from 24-70.

I think the build quality is great, the color is excellent and the lens is sharp. Glad I have it.

 Courtright Reservoir

Gorge Below Courtright Reservoir

 Kaiser Pass Road

 Convict Lake

 Friant Dam Area

 Lost Lake Below Friant Dam

 Mt. Tom Near Bishop CA

 Rancheria Falls