Visual Sensibility

Proboscis monkey (Narsalis larvatus)

Is it a female? Yes. Just look at the nose size.

I swore to myself I would get a decent telephoto lens in 2013. I quite hated myself back when in East Borneo since I couldn’t get any sharp photos of wildlife. I couldn’t avoid the chromatic aberration produced by my borrowed Canon 100-300mm lens. It’s definitely not a lens I would commend. Nonetheless, I thanked my supervisor, Tara, so much for lending me the lens. I was under supervision of her who kindly trust me the property of US Department of Commerce—I’m serious, the lens was the government’s—which I wish the Indonesian government would be kindly lending to research student.

Anyway, I don’t want to repeat the same mistake, so here it is some things about photographing wildlife when you were on a river trip based on my own experience in Mahakam River of East Borneo, Indonesia:

1. Do ask the skipper to stop once you notice something
2. Wild animals which you can see on the trip probably on a tree for most of the time. Turn on your eagle eyes mode.
3. Don’t just look for mammals. Look for birds too. If possible, do some research about endangered or IUCN red-listed birds in the area.
4. You probably don’t want to expect any reptiles, unless you’re in an area known as aligator/crocs’ favourite.
5. It’s better to mount prime/fixed lens than telephoto lens on your camera, and maybe crop-sensored camera will give you better zoom ability than the full-framed one. Of course, lenses with around 300mm focal length would be much better than just 100mm.
6. Keep right eye on your viewfinder, so your have clear view on your left one. It’s a very recommended eye position for any wildlife photographers. You will get used to it in time.
7. Learn to be less expressive. You obviously don’t want to scare your object with you screaming, “Aaahh Gooodd, OH MY GOOODDD, that white-fronted langur is soooo cuuuute!”. No.
8. Learn to relax. People who are often in the field are less emotional. They used to mingle themselves with the mother nature, and of course, by remembering that they are there because of God :)
9. Learn to be patient. You will get the benefit outside from wildlife photography. Trust me.
10. DO NOT EVER FORGET TO COMPOSE, especially if you’re aiming for photo competition. Real wildlife photographers are not merely wildlife enthusiasts. They are also among the greatest appreciators of mother earth. Composing your object(s) might be easily forgotten, especially if you’re too much drawn into the animals’ remarkable appearance. It’s totally understandable. But, if you really do love them, you don’t want them to appear undelightful in photos, right? So to make people see as beautiful as you do the animals, do compose: Be careful with the background, focus on the eye(s), decide fast to use either rule of third or centered, and remember your own cause; do you want just a portrait, or something related to animal welfare campaign?

I’m in love with Irawaddy dolphins. I love the fact that God creates such creatures whose mouth shaped as if they were smiling. 

Irawaddy dolphins or Orcaella brevirostris can only be found around South East Asian countries and some parts of East Asian countries. They live in freshwater and one among few cetaceans (still same order with whales) who is considered unique because of its close relationship with humans. As bioindicators, they often help fishermen to locate the potential location of fishes. 

Indonesia has its own privilege of having a lot of them within Kalimantan waters, either it’s Kapuas River, along the coast of Balikpapan, and even within the gulf of Berau. The richness and exotic Kalimantan even attracted one of world’s renowned cetologist, Danielle Kreb, which later made her resides in Samarinda, working as a scientific advisor for RASI, an NGO whose works mainly about the mammal. I once contacted Mrs. Kreb about the possibility of internship and volunteering for annual survey of the dolphins, and surprisingly, with her low profile personality she told me that there’s always a chance.

Mr. Rooswiadji from WWF Indonesia sent me a photo by Surasak Thongsukdee from WWF Thailand last Monday. Thanks to him, now I know how big Irawaddy dolphin’s melon is! 

And yes, what’s on photo above is one of the most sensational freshwater animals (not ‘marine’, like other species of whales) in South East Asia, the Orcaella brevirostris or also called Irawaddy dolphin. It’s distributed mainly in freshwaters, like estuaries and rivers, and some of them even help fishermen in Balikpapan, Samarinda, and other freshwater regions in Kalimantan (Borneo). They’re listen as ‘Vulnerable’ in IUCN Red List, meaning their population number could decline if humans pay no attention to their existence. They’re mainly threatened by the possibility of by-catch (it’s a marine term, meaning ‘caught unintentionally by fishermen while collecting fishes from nets they use’).

PS: This is a queued post I wrote on Monday since I’d already be at Pari Island at Thousand Islands right now. Me and other Biology students Batch 2009 are staying for two nights, starts from today, here for a Animal Behaviour field lecture. Have a good Thursday, Guys!

prairieorca:

White killer whale adult spotted for first time in wild

First male adult all-white orca filmed off Commander Islands

Say hello to Iceberg, the first known all-white adult killer whale.

“Scientists from the universities of Moscow and St. Petersburg are hoping he’ll become a symbol of conservation for the ocean.”

To see more pictures of Iceberg and the other white orcas of Russia, visit the orca photo page on Russian Orcas.

Eric Hoyt has written a blog entry about Iceberg, FEROP (Far East Russia Orca Project), and Russian Cetacean Habitat Project.

I’m sorry for posting another one about the albino orca, Iceberg. I fall in love too deep with him.

Iceberg is not the only albino whale (he’s even just partially albino), because once there was Chimo. According to ano_orca, Chimo was partially albino due to Chediak-Higashi Syndrome. She was captured for captivity on January 1st, 1970 near BC, Canada, and passed away on February 11th, 1972 due to complications from her disease (which I assume it was because she was put into a captivity).

(via scetaceans)

thedailyfeed:

Don’t mess with a mama elephant! A group of tourists at a game preserve in Botswana caught this stunning moment on film as a protective mama elephant fought off a ravenous pack of hyenas threatening her tiny calf.

This is why I love mammals. Motherhood rules!

PS: Oh God, this makes me miss Mom more.

PPS: Do you know that the real ‘king of the jungle’ in Africa is NOT a lion? Tales of Nature on Animal Planet told me that it is always either the African elephant or the black rhinoceros. They rule the Serengeti and other national parks in Africa. Even cheetahs, lions, and hyenas are afraid of them. It is indeed NOT the strongest creature who becomes the ‘king’, but it is the biggest one. And that’s the true rule of the jungle, Guys. 

(via discoverynews)

My future ‘babies’, them who’s on my bucket list.

PS: Indonesia has them in the north of Sulawesi, Guys! Our country and Philippines are actually aces of South East Asia because we are included in whales’ migration path.

(via scetaceans)