Post by Ely Teehankee on Dec 23, 2013 1:48:42 GMT
I have heard of the White-shouldered Starling frequent appearance at Candaba. But fate or luck is not with me on this bird as every time I go there I don't get to see it. This trip was more about trying to see and photograph the Black-faced Spoonbill and the Siberian Rubythroat. I saw Neon, Tonji, & Sylvia who earlier saw the Black-faced Spoonbill. It flew away and I missed it. There seems to be fewer birds at Candaba this year. The census made by the WBCP indicated that but I was expecting to see the usual Purple Swamphen, Yellow Bittern, Cinnamon Bittern, Lesser Coucal, Jacana, and the other birds that are usually seen when one goes to Candaba. I did not see any of these birds on this trip. There were hundreds of Philippine Duck and Wandering Whistling Duck. On one of my rounds around the pond I saw Tirso and his friends pointing their cameras on a tree near the Mayor's house. Upon seeing me Tirso gave me his spot and pointed my camera to the bird that I have been looking for, a White-shoulder Starling, a lifer for me. Thank you Tirso for the lifer and your beautiful 2014 calendar that I will put on my office wall.
Canon EOS 1DX, Canon EF 800mm f5.6L IS USM, Gitzo GT3530LS tripod, M-3.6 Mongoose Gimbal Action Head. Manual exposure in available light.
White-shouldered Starling (Sturnus sinensis) 7 1/2 inches. The Kennedy Guide Book describes it as rare when the book was being made. This is one of the few times that a bird has increase in number rather than being depleted as in many instances. A lifer is always an exciting moment for a wild bird photographer.
1/250 sec., f/5.6, ISO 100
1/250 sec., f/8, ISO 400 with Canon 1.4X TC
1/250 sec., f/8, ISO 400 with Canon 1.4X TC
Having taken long distance shots of Philippine Ducks, I still had my 1.4X TC attached to the lens when I started to take pictures of the White-shouldered Starling. Rather than lose time in removing the TC I opted to take pictures with it and along came the Arctic Warbler (Phylloscopus borealis) 4 3/4 inches. This skittish bird is always difficult to focus on much more so with the TC which further makes it longer to get a focus on the bird.
1/800 sec., f/8, ISO 400 with Canon 1.4X TC
1/125 sec., f/8, ISO 400 with Canon 1.4X TC
The Cleopatra-like eye brow of the Philippine Duck (Anas luzonica) 20 inches is one of the best looking duck with its built in smile. It is unfortunate that some people still hunt them even when there is a law that was made to protect the birds from harm so that future generations can still see them. There were many of them but they stay some 70 meters away from the road. The closest that I got was about 50 meters. There were hundreds of them and when one group gets spook the others follow.
1/500 sec., f/8, ISO 100 with Canon 1.4X TC
The next two pictures were taken at 73.3 meters without a TC. There are 4 ducks that are airborne with one about to lift off. The next picture shows how powerful their wings are that they can lift off in a fraction of a second. They are like a pound for pound champion when you compare it with commercial jets.
1/800 sec., f/5.6, ISO 100
1/800 sec., f/5.6, ISO 100
Canon EOS 1DX, Canon EF 800mm f5.6L IS USM, Gitzo GT3530LS tripod, M-3.6 Mongoose Gimbal Action Head. Manual exposure in available light.
White-shouldered Starling (Sturnus sinensis) 7 1/2 inches. The Kennedy Guide Book describes it as rare when the book was being made. This is one of the few times that a bird has increase in number rather than being depleted as in many instances. A lifer is always an exciting moment for a wild bird photographer.
1/250 sec., f/5.6, ISO 100
1/250 sec., f/8, ISO 400 with Canon 1.4X TC
1/250 sec., f/8, ISO 400 with Canon 1.4X TC
Having taken long distance shots of Philippine Ducks, I still had my 1.4X TC attached to the lens when I started to take pictures of the White-shouldered Starling. Rather than lose time in removing the TC I opted to take pictures with it and along came the Arctic Warbler (Phylloscopus borealis) 4 3/4 inches. This skittish bird is always difficult to focus on much more so with the TC which further makes it longer to get a focus on the bird.
1/800 sec., f/8, ISO 400 with Canon 1.4X TC
1/125 sec., f/8, ISO 400 with Canon 1.4X TC
The Cleopatra-like eye brow of the Philippine Duck (Anas luzonica) 20 inches is one of the best looking duck with its built in smile. It is unfortunate that some people still hunt them even when there is a law that was made to protect the birds from harm so that future generations can still see them. There were many of them but they stay some 70 meters away from the road. The closest that I got was about 50 meters. There were hundreds of them and when one group gets spook the others follow.
1/500 sec., f/8, ISO 100 with Canon 1.4X TC
The next two pictures were taken at 73.3 meters without a TC. There are 4 ducks that are airborne with one about to lift off. The next picture shows how powerful their wings are that they can lift off in a fraction of a second. They are like a pound for pound champion when you compare it with commercial jets.
1/800 sec., f/5.6, ISO 100
1/800 sec., f/5.6, ISO 100
