How to Use a 25mm Extension Tube on a 200–400mm f/4 Lens or 600mm f/4 lens to Photograph Pittas (Sharp Subject, Creamy Background)
Learn how to differentiate Straw-headed Bulbul and Stripe-throated Bulbul by size, throat streaks, habitat and key field marks in Southeast Asia.
Learn how to differentiate Straw-headed Bulbul and Stripe-throated Bulbul by size, throat streaks, habitat and key field marks in Southeast Asia. Straw-headed Bulbul vs Stripe-throated Bulbul At a glance, the Straw-headed Bulbul and the Striped-throated Bulbul may seem similar. But once you understand their size, plumage details, voice, and habitat preference, telling them apart becomes... Continue Reading →
Photographing 4 Species of Pitta in Singapore: My Journey to Capture the Elusive Fairy Pitta
Photographing four species of pitta in Singapore – Fairy Pitta, Blue-winged Pitta, Mangrove Pitta and Hooded Pitta. A bird photographer’s journey through Singapore’s best birding locations.
How Many Species of Bee-eater Are There in Singapore?
Few birds stop me in my tracks quite like a bee-eater. Their colours glow in good light, their flight is fast and fluid, and the moment they return to a perch with an insect in their bill is pure photographic magic. Changi Airport, Singapore Blue -throated Bee-eater in Singapore Blue-tailed Bee-eater in Singapore Despite Singapore’s... Continue Reading →
Hokkaido, Japan, Birding & Scenic Driving Road Trip in Autumn.
Hokkaido, Japan, Birding & Scenic Driving Road Trip in Autumn Two Seasons in Hokkaido In the summer of 2010, Hokkaido greeted us with the fragrance of lavender and the laughter of a tour group moving in unison. We followed the bright banners of our guide through Sapporo’s streets, along Otaru’s glass-lined canals, and across the... Continue Reading →
Birding and photographing birds in Fraser’s Hill, West Malaysia | 50 good birds to photograph
Birding and photographing birds in Fraser’s Hill, WestMalaysia | 50 good birds to photograph Birding in Fraser's Hill | 50 good birds to photograph Fraser’s Hill marked as the genesis of my birding journey to explore the birds of Southeast Asia. Many birders in Singapore and Malaysia would agree that Fraser’s Hill is the “ Early Birding Playground” close to home where books on birds were... Continue Reading →
How many species of bee-eaters are in Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand?
How many species of bee-eaters are in Singapore? I began photographing bee-eaters with my film camera 30 years ago. My journey of discovery and learning started in Singapore, then in peninsular Malaysia, and Thailand. Bee-eaters are beautiful birds. They have long, curved, narrow bills, slender bodies, and long pointed wings. There are 24 species around... Continue Reading →
Photographing the Milky Way the Pillar of Fire by Night | Singapore | Mersing Malaysia
Photographing the Milky Way the Pillar of Fire by Night I have photographed nature for over 30 years as a nature photographer but had never ventured or looked into the deep dark sky at night for astrophotography (except for aurora in Iceland) till recently with a couple of Astro nuts who showed me the way. Boy, I... Continue Reading →
Ujung Kulon National Park, West Java, Indonesia
Ujung Kulon National Park, West Java, Indonesia The Nature Watch magazine published a 5-page article in September 1994 on Ujung Kulon. It was during the Covid-19's Circuit Breaker, while cleaning up, I happened to stumble upon my old field notes on our trip to Ujung Kulon National Park in 1993. It triggered me to share... Continue Reading →
Exploring Barbets: Species in Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand
Exploring Barbets: Species in Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand Barbets, Order: Piciformes, Family: Capitonidae I was fascinated by the beautiful red crown of the coppersmith barbets when I first saw the bird picking on berries, at eye level 20 years ago, while crossing the overhead bridge at Bukit Timah Road in Singapore. Thanks to Tou Jing... Continue Reading →
Bird Watching in Raja Ampat: Wilson’s and Red Bird of Paradise Expedition
Bird Watching in Raja Ampat: Wilson's and Red Bird of Paradise Expedition Bird Watching in Raja Ampat: Wilson's and Red Bird of Paradise Expedition Waisai, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia Alfred Russel Wallace Journey in 1860 In June and July 1860, Alfred Russel Wallace sailed north from the island of Ceram in Maluku to the... Continue Reading →
Birds of Paradise: Discovering Arfak Parotia in West Papua
Birds of Paradise: Discovering Arfak Parotia in West Papua Female feeding. Female. Pegunungan Arfak, West Papua, Indonesia I first encountered the Arfak Parotia or Western Parotia in the highland of Arfak mountain in West Papua. There are two types of hides in Arfak for the Western Parotia , mating hide and feeding hide. The mating hide is where they mate, and... Continue Reading →
Observing Sunda Scops Owl at Singapore Botanic Gardens and Telok Blangah Rise
Observing Sunda Scops Owl at Singapore Botanic Gardens and Telok Blangah Rise Sunday scops owl at the Singapore Botanic Gardens in 2015. Canon 5D3, 100-400mm. Nine years ago, Sunda Scops Owl was spotted at the Botanic Gardens. The awakening of the Sunda scopes owl was an eye-opener for me to observe the owl waking up... Continue Reading →
Birding West Papua | Birds of Paradise
Biridng West Papua | Birds of Paradise Trip in 2023 The most labor-intensive bird of paradise that I have ever photographed is the Wallace's Standardwing bird of paradise on the island of Halmahera. It involved setting up a base camp in the forest and waking up at 4 a.m. to trek across the forest and... Continue Reading →
Endemic Kingfishers of Sulawesi | Birding Tangkoko, North Sulawesi, Indonesia
Endemic Kingfishers of Sulawesi | Birding Tangkoko, North Sulawesi, Indonesia There are 34 kingfishers in Indonesia. The island of Sulawesi has 12 of them, of which six are endemic to Sulawesi. The six endemic kingfishers of Sulawesi are: North Sulawesi, Indonesia Lilac Kingfisher Green-backed Kingfisher Great-billed Kingfisher Sulawesi Dwarf Kingfisher Scaly Kingfisher Black-headed Kingfisher Endemic... Continue Reading →
Birding Halmahera | Bird of Paradise
Birding Halmahera | Bird of Paradise Birding Halmahera | Bird of Paradise I was in the Aketajawe Lolobata National Park. It was 4 am, pitched dark, and drizzling. I was getting ready for an hour of trekking in the forest, crossing knee-deep streams in tanning brown water, and climbing up unmarked slopes in complete darkness... Continue Reading →
Birding Tangkoko. North Sulawesi, Indonesia
Birding Tangkoko. North Sulawesi, Indonesia
Bird Watching in Hat Yai, southern Thailand
Bird Watching in Hat Yai, southern Thailand The southern city of Hat Yai is renowned for shopping, food, entertainment, and more. We spent a morning at Tone Nga Chang Wildlife Sanctuary, west of Hat Yai, to explore the local birding experience in Tuk Tuk with fellow resident bird watchers after our trip to Hala Bala... Continue Reading →
Birding southern Thailand, Hala Bala Wildlife Sanctuary
Birding southern Thailand, Hala Bala Wildlife Sanctuary
Birding southern Thailand, Bang Lang National Park | Hala Bala Wildlife Sanctuary
Birding southern Thailand, Bang Lang National Park | Hala Bala Wildlife Sanctuary After breakfast, a 4-hour van ride from Hala Bala Wildlife Reserve took us to Bang Lang National Park in southern Thailand through a hilly and winding country road to reach Kampong Chulanporn 9. When we got to the destination, it was time for... Continue Reading →
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