Post by Ely Teehankee on Apr 8, 2013 0:27:54 GMT
KL is a bustling city filled with structures and tall buildings. Together with Messrs. Muhammad Alzahri & Shaiful Azhar Abu Bakar they brought to certain locations where I saw and photograph some of the birds that I was looking for. Mr. Alzahri is the birding guru of the BNU group and he is like our Mr. Romy Ocon of Philippine Bird Photography Forum. Mr. Shaiful is like me who would go all over the place near & far in search of birds to photograph. In almost all our meal we would have "Teh Tarek" which is hot tea with milk. But what we enjoyed the most is the durian known as "Musang King". It is the best durian that I have ever had.
Canon EOS 1DX, Canon EF 300mm
f/2.8L IS USM. Gitzo GT3530LS tripod, M-3.6 Mongoose Gimbal Action Head. Manual exposure in available light.
On the second to the last day we went to Genting Highland but it was raining and foggy the whole morning so we were skunk that morning. In the afternoon we went to creek in the heart of the city where the Blue-earred Kingfisher would frequent to hunt for small fish along the creek. While waiting for it to appear, this Ashy Tailorbird (Orthotomus ruficeps) 12 cm came unexpectedly.
1/250 sec., f/2.8, ISO 800
Just when we least expect it, the Blue-eared Kingfisher (Alcedo meninting) 16 cm arrives. As our tripods were set very low, we were sitting on the pathway with patches of grass to be at eye level with the bird. It was exciting to see the arrival of this bird as we knew this was now our chance to photograph this bird.
1/50 sec., f/2.8, ISO 100
After all the excitement and rejoicing on the success of seeing the Blue-eared Kingfisher plus the bonus bird of Ashy Tailorbird we thank Mr. Alzahri for taking us to this place. I now asked my friend the "Birding King" Mr. Shaiful to take me to where I can take a picture of the White-throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis) 28 cm. I have seen pictures of the White-throated Kingfisher in other Asian countries but I have never photograph this bird. The white feathers extend from the throat to the chest unlike the Philippine endemic that has only a white patch on its throat that gives it an accurate description fitting perfectly to a "T" the name White-throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis gouldi) 26.5 cm.
1/1250 sec., f/2.8, ISO 400
As an added bonus we saw some Asian Glossy Starling ((Aplonis panayensis) 20 cm which are common birds and ignored by most bird photographers. I am amused by their unusual color of bluish green that gives it a shine that confounds your settings, so I take every opportunity I get to photograph this bird. To my surprise, I have taken a picture of a moulting into adult AGS. I think this is the best looking stage of this bird as it has different colors and design on its feathers.
1/1600 sec., f/2.8, ISO 400
This is how the Asian Glossy Starling would usually look like.
1/1600 sec., f/2.8, ISO 400
Mr. Shaiful is the Project Manager of a Construction company and he oversees the construction of several project in different parts of Malaysia. This gives him the opportunity to go birding in a lot of places and the title of "Birding King" of BNU.
Canon EOS 1DX, Canon EF 300mm
f/2.8L IS USM. Gitzo GT3530LS tripod, M-3.6 Mongoose Gimbal Action Head. Manual exposure in available light.
On the second to the last day we went to Genting Highland but it was raining and foggy the whole morning so we were skunk that morning. In the afternoon we went to creek in the heart of the city where the Blue-earred Kingfisher would frequent to hunt for small fish along the creek. While waiting for it to appear, this Ashy Tailorbird (Orthotomus ruficeps) 12 cm came unexpectedly.
1/250 sec., f/2.8, ISO 800
Just when we least expect it, the Blue-eared Kingfisher (Alcedo meninting) 16 cm arrives. As our tripods were set very low, we were sitting on the pathway with patches of grass to be at eye level with the bird. It was exciting to see the arrival of this bird as we knew this was now our chance to photograph this bird.
1/50 sec., f/2.8, ISO 100
After all the excitement and rejoicing on the success of seeing the Blue-eared Kingfisher plus the bonus bird of Ashy Tailorbird we thank Mr. Alzahri for taking us to this place. I now asked my friend the "Birding King" Mr. Shaiful to take me to where I can take a picture of the White-throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis) 28 cm. I have seen pictures of the White-throated Kingfisher in other Asian countries but I have never photograph this bird. The white feathers extend from the throat to the chest unlike the Philippine endemic that has only a white patch on its throat that gives it an accurate description fitting perfectly to a "T" the name White-throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis gouldi) 26.5 cm.
1/1250 sec., f/2.8, ISO 400
As an added bonus we saw some Asian Glossy Starling ((Aplonis panayensis) 20 cm which are common birds and ignored by most bird photographers. I am amused by their unusual color of bluish green that gives it a shine that confounds your settings, so I take every opportunity I get to photograph this bird. To my surprise, I have taken a picture of a moulting into adult AGS. I think this is the best looking stage of this bird as it has different colors and design on its feathers.
1/1600 sec., f/2.8, ISO 400
This is how the Asian Glossy Starling would usually look like.
1/1600 sec., f/2.8, ISO 400
Mr. Shaiful is the Project Manager of a Construction company and he oversees the construction of several project in different parts of Malaysia. This gives him the opportunity to go birding in a lot of places and the title of "Birding King" of BNU.
Looks like you have a new workflow, Ely! I love it!! Awesome captures in all! 