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Post by Ely Teehankee on Feb 12, 2015 22:22:37 GMT
It takes a little over 2 hours from Manila to Letran (127 kilometers), Bataan if you leave early enough to avoid the traffic. Peter & I were met by Father Oscar better known as Father Auckhs, the most affable priest I ever met. Our target was the Green-faced Parrotfinch (Erythrura viridifacies) 4 3/4 inches. This bird is seldom seen, although they travel in groups as much as several hundreds at a time. Flying fast and difficult to recognize because of their size. You know it is them when they are attracted by the flowering bamboo trees locally know as "Buho" (Schizostachyum lumampao). Commonly used as fence in the rural area and widely used in making the "Sawali" a kind of bamboo matting. It is said that they flower when the bamboo tree is about to die which takes about 10 years. The flower has seeds which the Parrotfinch loves to eat. Our first sighting was around 7:00 AM where a few of them stayed for just a couple of minutes. At around 11:00 we saw a group of 50 in another cluster of bamboo trees but it was difficult to get a clear shot. We had lunch and continued to wait for them until about 4:30 PM. There were over a hundred of them swarming around the flowers and expertly extracting the seeds. This lasted for about 28 minutes giving us enough time to get some open shots of this delightful bird. 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. 1/640 sec., f/6.3, ISO 1600 1/400 sec., f/8, ISO 400 1/500 sec., f/8, ISO 800
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Feb 11, 2015 15:14:48 GMT
Looks like the the Pied Avocet thinks the Stilts are his family. Indeed a rare shot. Congratulations Tateo. Well done & Mabuhay.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Feb 5, 2015 8:30:02 GMT
Congratulations Tateo. You do not need to familiarize yourself with the 800mm & 1DX combination. Your pictures are very good. I think your pictures of the Little Grebe are the best that I have seen. But before you decide to buy maybe you should wait for the 800mm II. Your White Wagtail seems to be accidentally included in the picture, I think your main subject is a bird without feathers. LOL.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Feb 5, 2015 1:53:06 GMT
Battle-scarred on the outside but still good inside resulted in this glorious picture of the popular Yellow-vented Bulbul. Well done Romy & Mabuhay.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 31, 2015 12:24:33 GMT
Great set, Ely. I never had a chance of getting a photo of this bird. Thank you William. You would have a good chance of seeing this bird in Baguio and Bangkong Kahoy. It is probably less than 50-50 chance of seeing this bird but if & when you do see it, I think you would be amaze with its creeping movements that I don't see other birds being able to do the same.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 31, 2015 12:21:50 GMT
Interesting sequence Ely. Thumbs up on the exposure and details. Thank you Tonji, It would be a nice gesture of support for Romy if we can get more people to participate in posting & commenting on this Forum. Cheers & Mabuhay.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 31, 2015 12:19:34 GMT
All nice capture, Ely. Why this bird always head down? Thank you Tateo for your appreciation. The Sulphur-billed Nuthatch is also known as a creeping bird. Unlike the Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker that would work its way up a on a tree, the opposite is true of the Nuthatch. If you ever have the chance to watch the Nuthatch creeping on the trunk of a tree, it will remind you of Michael Jackson's graceful dances. It is a bird watcher's delight to see it move smoothly in a creeping motion around the branch or trunk of a tree.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 28, 2015 8:35:53 GMT
Great lighting on these ones Ely.... love the play of highlights and shadows, resulting into very pleasant colors. Well done! Thank you Romy for your comments. I pay a little bit more attention to my post processing. We almost always learn something new.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 27, 2015 5:36:31 GMT
The weather in Baguio is so nice that it is conducive to birding, eating, sleeping, and whatever makes one happy. Ramon & I had a good time with this Sulphur-billed Nuthatch (Sitta oenochiamys) because it stayed longer than usual and we had the opportunity of seeing this creeping bird looking for worms, finding it, and eating it. Somehow the worms in the Epiphyte are always small and must be delicious for the Nuthatch to make a meal out of it. 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. Looking for the worm. 1/200 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Finding the worm. 1/160 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Eating the worm. 1/160 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 27, 2015 5:03:03 GMT
All very nice shots from Yoyogi Park, Ely. I enjoy very much. Your Mandarin duck very good but mine is not like yours because it is already late when I take the shot. The sun is already high so I can get the real color. Thank you Tateo for your appreciation. I also enjoyed birding with you especially after birding when we go and look for a nice restaurant to eat. LOL.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 25, 2015 7:10:17 GMT
Final birding destination is the Yoyogi Park where the Meiji Shrine is located and the 54 hectares area was supposed to be part of the failed 2016 Summer Olympics Volleyball arena. It is located in Shibuya, Tokyo. Our stay in Tokyo enabled Tateo & I to go to Tsukiji, the biggest fish market in the world. We had fresh grilled Scallops, Oysters, and Japanese eel. We also had Chutoro, the raw tuna belly, uni, and other raw fresh seafood. The price is about one fourth of what it cost here and this is one of the reasons why the Japanese has one of the world's highest rate of longevity. Men has a life expectancy of 80 years, 8th in the world, while women at 87 is number one. In every place we went to we were hoping to see the Mandarin Duck. This was our last chance. 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. We walk about 2 kilometers from the train stop to a small lagoon where the guard told us that there has been a sighting of the Mandarin Duck (Aix galericulata) 18 inches. After waiting for almost 1 hour, I saw this small but colorful duck swimming in the mangrove area. It was about 35 meters out but I did not hesitate to take a shot at it for this was going to be a lifer. 1/60 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 While waiting for the Mandarin duck to make his next move after hiding in the mangroves, I saw this Little Grebe (Tachbaptus ruficollis) 10 inches approaching. I waited until it was within 10 meters and started taking his picture. 1/640 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 There were also some Mallards in the pond and I waited for them to come closer but the lights were tricky as the sun was starting to shine on the pond. 1/200 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 I saw the Mandarin Duck moved a little bit and as it looked like he was not going to go out in the open, I took some shots telling myself better to have some pictures than nothing at all. 1/80 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 The most beautiful duck I have ever seen and even if I did not get a good close up picture, the quench for seeing one in the wild and being able to take some photographs gave me a sense of fulfillment. 1/200 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 24, 2015 9:57:18 GMT
Lovely set Ely. Great detail on the crow, and nice timing on the drinking dove! Thank you Romy for your comments, some of the pictures here, are more for documenting this wonderful birding experienced that we had in Japan.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 24, 2015 9:53:28 GMT
Many nice photos, Ely. Specially I like the Kingfisher and the Woodpecker eating fruits. First time I see woodpecker eating fruit. We enjoy very much birding in Japan. I agree with you Tateo as it is also my first time to see a Woodpecker eating the fruit. We both enjoyed birding and also the many good food & restaurants that we went to. But we certainly did a lot of walking which also happens here at times when looking for birds.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 24, 2015 9:48:59 GMT
Superb series, Ely..... wish we can get that close to these quackers at Candaba! Thank you Romy. This kind of situation is what bird photographers wish for, but unfortunately it does not happen all the time. I am glad that Tateo convinced me to go to Japan for the winter birds. Although it was cold, it was also comfortable when you are wearing the proper clothing. The Japanese restaurants here are comparable with the good Japanese restaurants of Japan, so that is a bonus for us here in the Philippines.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 24, 2015 9:42:51 GMT
All nice shots, Ely. Still I remember the birds in the park. Thank you Tateo. It seems like it was ordinary when we were there but it is truly special to be able to see the ducks this close. As pointed out by Romy, it would be happiness for all of us if we can get this close to the ducks in Candaba.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 22, 2015 13:02:08 GMT
Kichijoji is a prefecture between Tateo's hometown of Saitama and Tokyo. We had a lot of fun taking pictures and looking for places to eat. We walked a lot but it was nice and cold at about 5ºC. At night it would be nearer 0ºC. The food is good especially if you like Ramen. There are so many kinds and cooked in different ways. Each restaurant has their own way of doing it. The exciting part in going to a new place is that you will get a lot of lifers as most of the birds that you will see are different from what we have back home. 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. Jungle Crow (Corvus macrohynchos) 18-23 inches. A lifer for me. It seems to be bigger and fatter than our Large-billed Crow. Maybe the cold weather has something to do with it. 1/160 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800 Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker (Picoides kizuki) 5 1/2 inches. Another lifer. Similar to our Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker but since this is Japan, it is called the Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker. 1/320 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800 Oriental Turtle-Dove (Streptopelia orientalis) 12 1/2 inches. At first I thought it was a Spotted Dove but it is different. Another lifer for me. 1/320 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800 This one is so thirsty that he decided to have a drink. I was lucky to see him flying in and I was so happy to see him perch on the mangrove just above the water line. He must have drunk more than 10 times giving me the chance to catch him in action. 1/100 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800 White Wagtail (Montacilla albalugens) 7 1/2 inches. A common and easy to find bird in Japan. 1/100 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800 1/320 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800 Great Tit (Parus minor) 6 inches. Another lifer for me for this skittish bird. Its behavior reminds me of our Elegant Tit. 1/1000 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800 Japanese Green Woodpecker (Dicus awokera) 11 1/2 inches. This was the big bonus of the day as I have never seen a Japanese Green Woodpecker that not only eats worms and bugs from the rotten barks of a tree but also indulges on small fruits as can be seen on the next picture. 1/250 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800 1/200 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800 Common Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) 6 inches. I was wondering why a crowd was gathering looking out to the mangroves at the edge of the lagoon. It turned out to be a Common Kingfisher and from what I gather it goes there everyday feasting on the small fish. 1/500 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 22, 2015 1:22:56 GMT
Very nice photos of this bird Ely. The light is very nice and it is so close. I've struggled with harsh light the times I have encountered this bird. Thank you Tonji. You are not alone. I had the same problem on the first day when the birds were feeding under the harsh light. All the pictures that I took were discarded. Luckily on the second day, they were in the shade and the pictures were acceptable. I am hoping that the next time I have the opportunity to see these birds I would get the picture that I like.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 19, 2015 12:13:56 GMT
Wow..... great close-up shots of my nemesis mountain bird, Ely! Re the Taragon Plant, I think Nimfa has a small patch by the side of our garage in Paranaque. Will give you some cuttings once I'm back in the city. Thank you Romy. If you have some used plastic cups, plant the cuttings on it so that I will have a good chance of propagating this plant, just like the way I gave them to you before.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 19, 2015 12:11:51 GMT
It is a unique bird, the only one that I know of that has a crossbill. By the way pine nuts which the birds loves to eat are very delicious.
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jan 19, 2015 0:36:03 GMT
Thank you Prop Jerry. It was a lifer and a thrill for me to photograph this bird. I hope to be able to encounter this bird again in the near future as it is the only bird that I know with a crossbill. As for the Tarragon, I have moved to a smaller house with just a small garden. I will have to plant this wonderful & useful herb again so that we can all enjoy the tea that is so refreshing especially when we go birding. I need some cuttings and hopefully the ones that I gave Romy before have flourished so that I can ask for some from him. LOL.
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