Many people think that it is just concrete and a very modern city, but that is a big mistake. Because this city also has lungs to breathe. People who live in this modern city still have plenty of choice for the limited free time they have. There are well-landscaped parks to choose from, as well as some remnants of the original rainforest. There are also some mangroves, with their natural inhabitants.
Today we choose to visit the famous Botanical Garden of Singapore. This garden is the only one in the world with UNESCO World Heritage status. It is a free park, except for the orchid garden, for which you pay an entrance fee. It is easy to reach by public transport, such as the metro and city buses.
The park is well maintained and clean, like the rest of the city. You can also pick up a map to help you find your way around the park. It is well equipped with public and very clean toilets, and there are plenty of options for food and drink.
Unfortunately, the weather was against us today. Although the temperature was pleasant, there were frequent thunderstorms and rainfall, which forced us to take shelter.
The Botanical Garden is always worth a visit, even between the rain showers. What made it more difficult was that the birds were hiding in the foliage. We did see a few squirrels, as well as turtles and a single monitor lizard scurrying around. We were also looking for some snake species that occur there, but unfortunately they did not show themselves. Some people say that’s a good thing, but they are useful in the animal kingdom.
Birds included the Javanese Myna, Yellow-vented bulbul, and Malaysian pied fantail, to name a few species. From a distance, we saw the White-throated Kingfisher and the Imperial Pied Pigeon. Fortunately, various flower species and lotus varieties were in bloom, adding some colour to this cloudy day. I can imagine that if you live in this busy city, you regularly visit places like this to clear your head, unwind and relax by going for walks. And grab a seat on a terrace. for tea or coffee. 

The island of Sumba, part of the province of East Nusa Tenggara, offers a wealth of potential for landscape photographers, with a natural environment that rivals other beaches in Indonesia. Of the many beaches along the coast of Sumba, Watu Parunu Beach, located on the eastern tip of the island, is one of the beaches with a beautiful natural panorama. The charm of this beach location attracts photographers and tourists to make the long journey from the city of Waingapu, just to enjoy the atmosphere in the afternoon until the sun sets. Watu Parunu Beach is located in the village of Lain Janji, in the district of Wulla Waijelu, in the regency of Sumba Timur. To reach this beach, visitors must travel 135 kilometres from the centre of Waingapu. It may seem far, but the fatigue of the long journey is immediately rewarded once you arrive at the beach. The vast white sandy beaches along the coastline and the powerful waves are a remedy for fatigue and boredom. Due to its remote location and accessibility, this beach is always worth visiting for sunrise and sunset. The light is beautiful there when a few clouds appear above the limestone rock formations, and the large pebbles covered with green moss provide a nice contrast and leading line in your photos. The limestone rock formations are stunningly beautiful, and the gate that forms them, granting access to the other part of the beach, is unique. Women and children harvest seaweed that grows abundantly on the dry part of the beach at low tide. A gigantic limestone wall rises from the sandy beach. On closer inspection, pieces of limestone boulders are scattered here and there. With beautiful lines and colours, this offers a wealth of opportunities to take abstract photos. Shells are also fused with the limestone. It is amazing how, when you are concentrating on taking photographs and searching for compositions, you forget the time. As dusk falls and the colours in the sky change instantly, on this side of the world and below the equator, the golden and blue hour are reduced to fifteen minutes. So we hurry to find the right composition for the sunset. We also take advantage of the blue quarter of an hour to take a few photos. Unfortunately, it is time to return to Waingapu. The drive in the dark takes three and a half hours before we are back at the hotel.  

All pictures taken with:

OM-1 

MZuiko 12-40mm f/2.8

MZuiko 8-25mm  f/4

Leofoto tripod

Kase Magnetic filters

Birding in Serendib, 

How is that and do you use a lot of manipulation with AI software  for these photographs is a regular question. 

The answer is clearly no. I don’t use AI software to polish my images. Only software in use is DXO for noise reduction and then fine tuning in Adobe Photoshop.
I will probably switch completely to DXO Photolab later and cancel my subscription to Adobe after years, the last month the price was increased by 50%. 

Then execution in the field, do you use shelters or camouflage nets/clothing. Again, the answer is simple, no. In Sri Lanka, photographing birds well on your own is not a problem, you can approach them reasonably well without them feeling threatened and flying away.
Of course, there are species that behave a little more nervously than others. But in general it’s fairly easy, of course it takes a lot of patience and time from yourself. Locations where can you find them is another question. For instance, Sinharaja Rainforest, Udawalawe National Park, Bundala National Park and Kitulgala rainforest are all great destinations for bird lovers. You can also find many birds locally in gardens as well as around rice fields. 

Opportunities abound in Sri Lanka where you can go, lesser-known locations can be found where you have a chance. As there is  Mannar, you can admire flamingos during the right season or diverse kind owls in Tissamaharama as example. There are also many tanks scattered across the island with bird life. 

There is a migration season when birds from various distant countries come to spend the winter, which runs from mid-September to mid-April, after which the birds return to their locations in distant countries. 

Then what kind of brand or camera do you use and with which lenses?  This is, of course, a personal thing. 

Bad cameras no longer exist these days, just like lenses, so what is the difference and the choice you make and weigh up for yourself? 

For some, it’s the cost, for others it’s the weight, and for others it’s the comfort and ease of use of their equipment. 

Where do you use your photos for, magazines, print, or just social networking such as Facebook or Instagram, for example? 

These are considerations you have to make for yourself. I myself opted for the 4:3 , and mirrorless system about 12 years ago, and to this day I am very happy with that choice. 

No more heavy camera bags, which is very good for your back, for example, and you can also shoot for longer without suffering from the weight in your arms and hands. 

So more freedom and comfort, and you can leave your tripod at home thanks to the excellent IBIS built into the camera and lenses.  

Of course, there are some drawbacks to the system I use, such as the number of megapixels the camera has, this makes it less possible to make a good crop of images. Then, of course, there is the depth of field and bokeh, which is much nicer with fulframe. The advantages are that this system has the best IBIS image stabilisation in the world as well as tracking syteem and pro capture, which have recently been adopted by major brands.  So this was in short some answers what some people asked lately.

All images are taken during my last visit to Kumana National Park

Camera and lenses:

OM-1

MZuiko 300 mm f/4 

TC 1.4