We are all wet!

[nelsonpetilla]

After a long time of being tied-up with much work, had the opportunity of going out again to SINP for a birding activity. Together with a very good friend, or shall i say, my fellow Samareño birding buddy --Dr. Lloyd Co, went for a 3-day trip to SINP and Borongan. We were not-so-lucky with the weather as it kept on raining till our last day when brother sun finally showed up Here are some of my captures that obviously showed what kind of weather we went through in our sortie, thus the title

all photos taken using Canon EOS7D with EF100-400mm f3.5-5.6L IS


Blue-Throated Bee-Eater (Merops viridis) @400mm, f5.6, 1/200sec, ISO400, manual metering, handheld




Philippine Coucal (Centropus viridis) @400mm, f5.6, 1/100sec, ISO800, manual metering, handheld



Philippine Fairy Bluebird (Irena cyanogastra) @400mm, f5.6, 1/250sec, ISO500, manual metering, handheld



Philippine Fairy Bluebird (Irena cyanogastra) @400mm, f5.6, 1/50sec, ISO1600, manual metering, handheld



Pink-Necked Green Pigeon (Treron vernans) @400mm, f5.6, 1/500sec, ISO500, manual metering, handheld



White-Collared Kingfisher (Todiramphus chloris) @400mm, f5.6, 1/125sec, ISO800, manual metering, handheld



White-Throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis) @400mm, f5.6, 1/85sec, ISO640, manual metering, handheld



not a good harvest though but am just happy to be back again with our feathered friends

[Ramon Quisumbing]

Beautiful set, Nelson! You must have gotten close for such details!

The 3rd photo should be the endemic Philippine Fairy Bluebird and not the resident Asian Fairy Bluebird, whose Philippine range is limited to Palawan only. It is presumably the ellae subspecies found in Samar. I only got to within 30 meters of a PFB in Samar; yours is much closer!

[nelsonpetilla]

Oh, thank you for the info Boss caption rectified. Added another tighter photo of the Phil Fairy Bluebird taken early last year in SINP also

[Ramon Quisumbing]

Wow! The second photo of the Phil. Fairy Bluebird is even better! He came out in the sunlight for you. How close were you to get such details with a 400 mm?

[nelsonpetilla]

thanks again for the appreciation Boss. Honestly, with my "sobrang gigil" with the Phil Fairy bluebird that always foraging inside the canopy and seldom goes out, i set several sorties with this bird as my primary objective until achieved. actually, got a number of captures already of this but can't get the real color and details and... am always disappointed with my photos

considering there are lots of PFBluebirds in SINP, what i need are: good hide, good spot and super duper patience in order to nail down the bird. good hide = camouflage/ghillie suit; good spot = an expert local guide super duper patience = good sleep before birding and "gigil" hahaha!

by the way, the second photo of the phil fairy bluebird was taken within five-meter distance. (if my memory served me right)

[luisitoco]

Congratulations on these beautifully captured bird photos Nelson. Missed the Phil. Fairy Bluebird. Better luck next time .

[nelsonpetilla]

thanks DocLui! post your photos as well for the Phil Fairy Bluebird, "one shot, one kill" no second shot chance

[Ramon Quisumbing]

Wow, getting within 5 meters of a PFB and in the sunlight would be fantastic!

[des]

Rare shots of 'Ella's' Fairy Bluebird. The main difference is supposed to be the black back and sides of neck. It looks as though the neck might become black owing to feather wear.

[nelsonpetilla]

Thanks Des. thanks as well for your observation which i can't notice at all all i know about this fairy bluebird is it always appear in black and some streaks of blue. shades of blue in their breast appear only if they go out in a well-lit area

[Dennis Alfaro]

These are great photos Nelson! I like the look of the Philippine Coucal and the Phil Fairy Bluebird with some drizzle

[Edwin Matias]

Sir,

Great Set, esp the Fairy Bluebird.

Regards,
Edwin