for the 5 days outing , we managed to almost round the island and stay near to both famous beaches.. Kuta and Pantai Sengigi for chasing the sun and stars .
overall the tips is amazing even we skip the most attractive location – Mount Rinjani.
Overall
1. beautiful beaches around
2. beautiful hotel near Pantai Sengigi and Kuta
3. security overall seem alright with local guide around and thanks Agung for the help and guide
update 2014 Jan 8
– beautiful place with lovely wave that those like to shoot seascape
update 2013 Nov 18
– dusk colors simple awesome even the sunset nothing special
– make use of ND 1.2 and ND .9 to make total 7 stops instead using big stopper
update 2013 Nov 8
– we was here for Milky for 2 nights but luck not with us .. but in the morning the Milky “tail” just above the Batu Payung
– a shot capture with Carl Zeiss 15mm F2.8 … the distortion control just awesome
update 2013 Nov 6
– a view that I plan for this trip and the sunset just beautiful with Mount Agung @Bali
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– a great place that need ~5 min walk from the beach
– when shoot at Batu Payung location, need take note on tide as tide could make the back path
update 2013 Nov 5
– a spot that cost a lot … this spot is close and need to buy drink to have a visit and the price is not at low site
– to come this spot, we need to pass a cliff that without any protection and this place is dangerous and if you visit here … pls stay extra carefull
– my legs were shake after back from the beautiful spot with Mount Agung as backdrop , cliff , wave sunset
– a rare Borneo Borneo Endemic which prefer feeding on a small stream
update 202407
– it getting difficult to sight this Borneo Endemic again, use to be so easy just walking in the morning should see 1-2 of them but recent trip to KNP make few challenge search before had it. We walking to search last 4 targets and thick mist without any big hope but this guy just came and not far for everyone good view. Lucky …(also happy for a small Photographer able to capture this not so easy photograph bird in such a close distance)
– another Borneo endemic easier to see but difficult to be photograph but recently getting much easier compare old time. a bird active in dusk and dawn ..
– we arrived KNP evening and it was misty … but we still trying ours best to look for some bird… first session looking for Bulbul failed… but follow by Whitehead’s Broadbill and this amazing endemic. it feed infront of us ~10-15m for quite long until some car passby
– as usual morning session, but lucky today have 1 pair still feeding with quite good available light.
– a shy Borneo montane endemic
– 婆罗洲高山特有种。不很稀有,就是有点害羞。
– 如常,我们一大早就找这鸟。好幸运,遇上一对在还有光线的时候还在。
update 202307
– a bird that always make us wake up early. This special bird come to us dusk, which still have quite good light. CANON R7 with 400mm F2.8 still working perfect for lowlight
– we normal look for this bird dusk/dawn with almost no light situation. A very lucky moment while we walking, got this bird came out for very close for picture (not this) but love this while it standing
– after a tired morning, hiking and keep looking for fast moving shy bird… decided make a move to other place try some lifer for my buddies. After we got the Bornean Shortwing, this bird show up when heavy mist 🙁 but still a lifer for them .. happy men ….
– another long plan and excited Borneo Photography with Taiwan group and thanks for the trusted continue book for 2025 … very dramatic tour, cannot arrived to Kota Kinabalu on time due to Volcano eruption at Sulawesi North but finally arrived but 2 days late. But we still catch up most of the plan and got many good birds such as Dusky Eagle Owl day roost, 3 Whitehead’s, Fruit-hunter, Bristlehead, Helmeted Hornbill and etc ..
– we were lucky on this, we got Everett’s Thrush, Whitehead’s Broadbill, Bornean Green-Magpie and follow by this super close and low Fruit-hunter … and still like a dream everything happen within an hour.It came low and chase away many other bird and stay long.
8. Island Thrush, 岛鸫, 白頭鶇, Turdus poliocephalus, ハイガシラツグミ, MURAI-BELANDA GUNUNG TIMUR
update 202407
– a bird that never though to be sight and photograph before I make some plan to hike up to Laban Rata for missing 2 birds of Malaysia. But today while we looking for missing 3 birds .. Azmil message me he sight the Island Thrush.. without any wait we move to the place .. we try to locate but seem missing while I heard Fruit-hunter calling and trying to locate it but seem still bit a distance to see this bird… Hugo call us … Thrush … and bingo make my Malaysia lifer. (683)
– it is not really shy, it just moving around even many people walking around .. beautiful bird …
– 这是一只我完全没想过的马来西亚鸟(在我安排爬上去神山的路上)。今天但我们在神山寻找3只还没看到的鸟时。朋友Azmil 让我知道这鸟出现,没等我们立刻到了那个鸟点。找了10-20分钟是没找到,我听到食果鸫叫,找了很久还是蛮远没办法看到。在远方,Hugo向我们招手。这就拿下我的马来西亚新鸟种。(683)
– 这鸟很不怕人。
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update 202309
– adult female come low as the male too but most of the Juvi stay high up … but it is just amazing to see them so close and eye level
– 成鸟都下来很低,亚成鸟都站的蛮高的。可是见到他们这么低与近已是很好了。好像还在发梦一样
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– same season for pass 2 years, again we meet >10 Fruit-hunter moving as group again … and today is special we meet it twice !!! and at eye level …
– such a beautiful bird to be see in closea handsome male …Matthew still one of best and lucky birder I know
– misty, rain morning. Dec definite not a good month birding here.
– 每天下雨,雾大。12月真的不是来这看鸟好时侯。
update 202210
– a very dramatic day, raining, heavy mist follow by lucky encounter Bornean Green-Magpie, Whitehead’s Trogon than this “rare” endemic and we had 7-8 birds in one tree for long time
– before getting busy, a very special bird got from previous tour. This is a 2nd bird of the trip and lucky to have the male bird close and female slightly higher for photo
A spectacular chestnut-backed thrush with striking white facial patches, black-and-white wings, and bold pied markings below. Juvenile shows buff streaks on crown and back and buff throat. Terrestrial, feeding on the forest floor singly or in pairs within the lowlands and low hills. Unmistakable within its limited range on islands of Sulawesi and Kabaena. Mournful song is a phrase of several high-pitched whistled notes, “deee-der-doo” or “deee-der.” Calls include “chak” notes and a high-pitched “peep” call. [Ebird]
Brown thrush with bold dark spots on the underparts, white spots in the wings, and black facial stripes below the eye. Occurs in pairs or singly, on or near the ground, in forest, forest edge, and gardens, mostly in the Wet Zone, but also locally in the Dry Zone. No other thrush on Sri Lanka shows distinct rows of white spots on the wings, and bold spotting below. Gives very high-pitched “sweeeee” call; song is a highly variable collection of rich, rising and falling, melodious whistles and warbles. [ebird]
update 202312
– another very common endemic, which found most of the lowland urban areas, forest edge, forest
I will make this a consolidation pictures collection of my Sichuan, CHINA trip
update 2020 March 26
Just another place .. never get bore .. remind me “we look at a people not on his education and outlook but how he/she behave”
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2013 Sichuan trip
Finally I make my first Autumn photography trip (after many years revisit autumn season but previously without Photography) .. and my destination is Sichuan. CHINA (四川 , 中国) .
we don;t have much group photo as we just too concentrate on landscape 😀
update
10 days trips which include below locations
1. 海螺沟
– a National Park that 4 stars with highest Mountain within Si Chuan – Minya Konka (贡嘎山)
– need to pay ticket and bus ticket ~RMB160 and only up to 1,2,3 stops (which can stop and walk to get more spots but we are on rush so I will redo this part next trip
– 4th stop need to pay RMB90 for the cable car to reach to the top of the park and the Minya Konka will look closer to us
– slow walk as the altitude >3000m after 4th stop
– small store for food
travel among for day 1-2
update 2013 Oct 22
2. 新都桥
– a beautiful place with river, houses, tree (turn yellow when autumn)
– a local view tower (mountain) allow us to shoot sunset with the village as foreground
– too many electric wire around, need more time to avoid the wire instead
update 2013 Nov 25
– view along the travel .. the view across the distance almost as beautiful as this ..
– we almost decide camp here for the view capture
update 2013 Oct
update 2013 Oct 22
3. 塔公
4。 康定-木格措
5。康定- 折多山 – 丹巴
update 2015 Sept 23
– 45min hike up to a high view point …. beautiful instead and we came here for 2 times 😀
update 2013 Nov 13
– very cold morning and the 四姑娘山 is so shy and were lucky it appear for ~1hour after the long wait …(on right)
update 2013 Nov 7
– on the way up 折多山 but snowing getting serious and we just stop at halfway and decided back to hotel … but all half way view just beautiful especially village, ice peak etc …
6。日隆镇 (四姑娘山)
not really go details to each location but trying my best to capture what I see … it is very beautiful place for landscape photography (think whole Si Chuan) should be heaven for landscape photographers …
update 2013 Nov 26
– 2-3th stops @双桥沟 ..
– tourist spot and still worth a visit with beautiful view along .. if able to walk among few stop could able to capture more beautiful view
update 2013 Nov 11
– walking up hill at ~3500-3800 meter from sea level is not easy and I managed to make it 1 hr and this is one extra shot I able to capture .. my friends missed this due to use horse 🙁
– an abandon house after the earthquake …. most of the houses here got distort but rebuild after the earthquake
update 2013 Nov 7
– thanks our drivers Xiao Zhou & Xiao Yang .. they brought us around and also their own village 嘛呢寨..
– a friendly village , love their way of treat guest … and beautiful uphill view for sunset and village view
*** I will keep updating this post for all I capture and remember ……. and please stay connect with me 😀
1. sturdy
2. lowest possible angle
3. highest possible angle
4. the leg connection design, I had few experience with other brand tripod all failed on the leg which sand went into the connection cause the failure
5. size
6. weight
7. cost
FLM provided various tripod mat fullfill yours requirements ..
and as for now, am using below models and available for sale
Lee Filters do produce filters set e.g. GND , CPL, Big Stopper , Holder and rings for Micro 4/3 system , Fuji X100 …
the GND transition from grey to transparent gap is much smaller compare to standard 100/150mm GND filters which allow smaller len produce better filter effect … and other CPL, Big Stopper also cheaper compare to the standard 100x150mm filters
Singh-Ray RGND 2 and 3 stops also AVAILABLE …
Singh-Ray RGND also available now
contact me for more info liewwk76@gmail.com
or order through email – liewwk76@gmail.com or click HERE
another travel tripod to be recommended compare to previous sharing a Travel Tripod … Fotopro X4i-E. which can be keep shorter, cheaper but which is not carbon fibre .
I use the aluminium alloy similar version before for my waterfall testing
Jan – TBA
Feb – TBA
13-19 March – CHINA (TBA) [CANCEL]
15-20 April – Semporna (reserved)
27 – 30 April – Semporna [FULL]
28 May – 2 Jun – Papuma-Mount Bromo, Surabaya, Indonesia
26-30 Jun – Papuma-Mount Bromo, Surabaya, Indonesia
24-30 Jul – Bali, Indonesia [temp reserved]
31Jul-5 Aug – Bali Indonesia
just another sample of Big Stopper use … the use of the ND filters can help to create different effect or mood of our pictures ….
many may ask how we going to use ND filters or Big Stopper as it is almost total dark ..
1. use GND/RGND or shoot like normal but capture the shutterspeed, ISO, F number… e.g below. but make sure set to Manual Focus after the capture or record of the setting
2. use the same ISO, Aperture but then convert the shutter speed base on 10 stops filter exposure table, ‘long time’ (for Iphone user), ND Calc (for Android user)
e.g. ISO100 , F16 , 1/30s before ND1000 , Big Stopper…. will change to
ISO100, F16, 30s
– DO NOT change setting ISO, Aperture
– DO NOT change focus (after the MF)
3. few notes need to be taken
– white balance could be run, you may correct it with white balance tool at Photoshop, Lightroom, DPP … by click white color spot
– the light condition could be change e.g. sunset .. it will change to darker so need to compesate with some add on time … e.g. 30s above I normally add on 10-20% time for sky getting darker
– sturdy tripod need to be use avoid shake …
– long exposure noise need special process to remove (color noise) , if do not know any method turn on long exposure noise reduction