These are not the sort of Hornbill
photos I had in mind when I decided to feature them here. These gracious
birds can be seen in my neighbourhood every morning and their cries
equally prominent at that hour of the day. Fast disappearing surrounding
once the habitat of various wildlife, trees and forest gave way to
housing development and roads. I’m glad my residence is in the daily
flight path of these endangered species and also the Egrets that
dominate our skies. As far I know in my limited knowledge of birds,
Hornbills are native to Malaysia so perhaps our location close to East
Malaysia has something to do with why they stay here this long. I’m also
aware that due to their dwindling population, pro-active measures have
been taken by the Panaga Natural History Society, University of Brunei Darussalam and Brunei Shell Petroleum with the installation of artificial nesting boxes.
Note: The bright orange bokeh to the right of its head is the distant flare from the Shell refinery that’s directly opposite the vegetable garden.
© Jan Shim Photography
I shot these on the 5D and EF100-400mm @
400mm and while the 5D has a very quiet shutter noise, such is the
sensitivity of the bird’s sense of hearing that it warranted a cautious
stare just to see if the situation escalated to a threat. In my
excitement I mounted the 100-400mm lens to the wrong body when I could
have had more reach with the EOS 20D, a difference of 400mm vs 640mm.
Big difference! So I was saying, these weren’t the sort of pictures I
had in mind. Oh well, I guess that would be my next target, Hornbills in
flight and that’s something I’ve seen—a display of grace and beauty.
A few days later, as I left the house, I
came across a pair of them on a tree next to the road. So happens I had
my 5D/70-200mm with me and I walked right under it and fired a series of
shots (36 to be precise in case anyone was curious). Still no hornbill
in flight photos as it flew off in the wrong direction!
UPDATE April 7, 2008: HORNBILL IN FLIGHT. AN OUTING EXTRAORDINAIRE UPDATE June 30, 2008: HORNBILL USHERING MONDAY BLUES
On April 24, 2008 returning home from a trip to the Temburong National Park on assignment at the ULU ULU RESORT it was good to be finally home after the 3-day mission to produce promotional images for resort operator Sunshine Borneo Tours.
Less than eight minutes away from the door steps, I came across this
hornbill that had just flew into this tree from a lamp post across the
road in Kampong Baru in Seria.
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