I headed out to Lake Casitas with the Canon R5 and the RF 800mm f/11 to chase a sunrise, then see what I could find—hawks, eagles, scrub jays, and whatever else decided to show up. The sunrise was absolutely phenomenal (each one is different, right?), and I got the reflections I was after before pulling off the road for a red-tail hawk in perfect early light. With the 800mm, you don’t “zoom with a ring,” you zoom with your feet—so I had to stay on top of framing and accept the backgrounds I couldn’t change without being 20 feet tall. The eagle nest was active, but it was a total crap shoot—far away, heat coming on, and a lot of waiting. I still had a win-win day: hawk, scrub jay, some eagles (even if not amazing), plus bonus birds like a kestrel that kept leapfrogging me, California quail (window shots), and a curved-bill thrasher. Gear-wise, I talk through why I still love the original R5, why the 800 f/11 (and 600 f/11) are underrated fun lenses, and how I set up autofocus: I’m a single-point person most of the time, with a separate button for eye tracking. With f/11 locked in, shutter speed is the game—usually 1/1250 or faster, and I let auto ISO do its thing knowing I’ll finish in Lightroom Classic.