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ALAMBI vs TANDAYPA

ON THE ROAD AGAIN/OFF TO KATMAI ON THE BEAR BOAT

BIRDS OF CENTRAL PARK

DIGITAL BASICS

 

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Photographic Theme: Some of my favorite Ecuador cloud forest hummingbirds

 

 

White-necked Jacobin, Alambi Lodge, Ecuador 

Image copyright 2006: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

 

Canon 40mm f/4  IS DO lens with 2X II TC, 25mm Extension Tube,  and EOS-1Ds Mark II.  ISO 500.   Manual Mode: 1/60 sec. at f/8 was about a 1 stop underexposure.

Flash as Main Light at zero with Better Beamer. 

  

I was amazed when I first saw this species at Alambi.  Just before I left Jairo pointed this one out to me, I approached slowly and made three images before it flew. Lucky me! 

 

 

ALAMBI vs TANDAYPA

 

Between the two Galapagos Photo Cruises I rented a car and traveled to the cloud forest to photograph hummingbirds.  I stayed at Tandayapa Bird Lodge and had a great time.  On my last afternoon I visited Alambi, a lodge that I had just learned about that morning.

Here are my thoughts on each place:

 

Tandayapa is famous.  There are literally dozens of hummers at the feeders at all times.  Viewing (and photography) space is somewhat limited as the deck is about an 18 by 18 foot square.  Photographing perched birds is difficult as it is just about impossible to set up any perches that the birds will use.  There are lots of birds perching at any given moment but there were very few good perches with clean backgrounds.  There are at times large groups of birders at Tandayapa which can make photography difficult at times. The food at Tandayapa was good but the portions were small and at several meals I was wishing for more protein.  Getting to Tandayapa is a big challenge.  I rented a car in Quito and drove.  I missed the turn off of the Calacali road at the 52 km mark and wound up in the small town of Nanagalito.  Once I found the turn off the main road it was 6km over rough roads to reach the turn-off for Tandayapa.  Then there is  short drive uphill on a really rough road to the Tandayapa parking lot.  Then you get to walk about 200 meters straight up.  Whew.  Fortunately there was always a porter around at the bottom of the hill to carry your bags or your gear if  you wished. Lodging with three meals is $99/night.  The rooms are small but comfortable and the staff was quite helpful. 

 

Very few folks even know about Alambi.  It is run by a lovely young couple who speak practically no English.  It is located just about 20 meters off of the main road which is a great convenience, especially for those who wish to visit some of the other great birding and photography sites in the area.  (For this reason folks who are visiting to amass a large bird list would be nuts to stay at Tandayapa.) Lodging with three meals is only $60 a night.  The rooms are comparable to those at Tandayapa.  There are three rooms with two beds each.  One of the rooms has a private bath and a balcony, the other two share a bath.  I only spent a two hours at Alambi and did not eat there, but when I mentioned that the portions at Tandayapa were on the small side they smiled.  Jairo, the young wife’s brother (I think) came over to translate. His English was excellent and he was extremely knowledgeable. 

 

When I got to Alambi I was delighted to see dozens of hummers at the feeders, but dismayed to see that the perch trees that had been erected so that the feeders could be hung made for lots of extreme clutter.  Not wanting to tear the place up without permission, I did the best that I could.  Once Jairo arrived, he told me that they had no problem with my cleaning up the areas around the feeders.  The great news is that the folks at Alambi are fine with visiting photographers moving the feeders and/or setting up their own perches as need be.  And unlike Tandayapa, there is lots of room to work in the large yard surrounding the guest house. 

 

Several different species visit each lodge at various times of the year.  When I visited in mid-July Tandayapa had more of the larger species and Alambi had more of the smaller species, especially the spectacular Purple-throated Woodstar. I got to photograph the lovely White—necked Jacobin only at Alambi.  An ideal visit would include three days at Alambi and three days at Tandayapa.  An option would be to stay the whole time at Alambi and visit Tandayapa for lunch.  As long as you pay for lunch at Tandayapa you were welcome to stay and photograph the hummers.   If you check out the Ecuador Gallery in the last Bulletin (www.birdsasart.com/ecuadorhtml) you can get a good idea of the species that were at each lodge when I visited this summer.  Do remember that I spent two full days at Tandayapa and only two hours at Alambi…

 

To arrange a visit to Alambi you can contact Jairo Sanchez by e-mail at: jairovini@yahoo.com.ar  Be sure to contact him well in advance of your visit as his access to e-mail is limited.

It is extremely likely that I will be leading a Hummingbird IPT to Ecuador’s cloud forest in the coming year.  If you are interested, please let me know via e-mail. 

 

 

Purple-throated Woodstar, male, Alambi Lodge, Ecuador 

Image copyright 2006: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

 

Canon 400mm f/4  IS DO lens with 37mm of extension and EOS-1Ds Mark II.  ISO 800.   Manual Mode: 1/60 sec. at f/11 which was about a  2 stop underexposure.

Flash as Main Light at zero with Better Beamer.   

 

There are lots of colorful plants in the yard at Alambi and many of them provide lovely backgrounds.  The feeders next to the porch are very close to the house, thus the use of the prime lens alone(with two extension tubes)  to create this image. When I return, I will move the set of feeders that is close to the porch.

 

ON THE ROAD AGAIN/OFF TO KATMAI ON THE BEAR BOAT

 

I fly to Anchorage early this Sunday and will be spending a week on Chuck Keim’s Coastal Explorer.  Six lucky photographers and I will concentrate on sea otters, whales, and several breeding bird colonies for the first 1 ½ days and then concentrate on Coastal Brown Bears for the remainder of the trip.  Jim and Jennifer will be here to help you with your mail orders and IPT and Albuquerque Seminar registrations. I will be back in the office on August 8 for twelve whole days before heading off to Kenya with Todd Gustafson on a sold out Photo Safari. If you are interested joining our Kenya/Fly/Fly Photo Safari in September 2007 please let me know via e-mail.  We will be spending most of our time on that safari at Nakuru and Maasai Mara.

 

 

Buff-tailed Coronet, Tandayapa Bird Lodge, Ecuador 

Image copyright 2006: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

 

Canon 400mm f/4  IS DO lens with 1.4X II TC, 25mm Extension Tube, and EOS-1Ds Mark II.  ISO 800.   Evaluative Metering -1/3 stop: 1/100 sec. at f/5.6.

Flash at -1/3 stop with Better Beamer.

  

This species was common at Tandayapa.  I did not see any at Alambi which is at a much lower elevation.

 

BIRDS OF CENTRAL PARK

 

Cal Vornberger, who attended a St. Augustine IPT a few years back, was kind to send me a copy of his fine book, The Birds of Central Park.”   In the mid-1980s I photographed a bit in Central Park with my first telephoto lens, the Canon 400 f/4.5 FD (manual focus) lens.  It was a tough place to photograph.  Cal began photographing in the park just after 9/11.  He is to be commended for amassing a representative collection of the birds of Central Park in such a short time. 

The book is a seasonally-arranged photographic collection with just a bit of text. While some of the photographs feature birds on man made perches like fences, street light fixtures, and pavement, and others have technical and design flaws, there are more than enough quality photographs to put a smile on any photographer’s face.  My absolute favorite image is on page 137.  It features a Red-winged Blackbird chasing a Great Egret in flight.  Both birds are in sharp focus and the background of reeds is quite appealing.  That this image was created right in the middle of my old home town, the Big Apple, is simply astounding.  And the same could be said of the Eastern Screech Owl on page 139, the Mourning Warbler on page 84, and the Ovenbird on page 68.  Ordinarily you would not think it possible to create such excellent images in the middle of a huge metropolis.  Some of the images that were obviously taken in a large city are quite wonderful, most notably the cover image depicting the nationally famous “Pale Male,” a red-tail that nested high up on a large apartment building.  (When the building’s owner let it be know that Pale Male and his mate were slated for eviction, a firestorm of protest arose and the bird and its nest were saved.)

If you would like to own this quite remarkable collection of bird photographs, you can order a signed copy here: http://www.birdsofcentralpark.com/shop.htm

 

 

 

 

Brown Violet-ear, threat display, Alambi Lodge, Ecuador

Image copyright 2006: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

 

Canon 400mm f/4 IS DO lens with 37mm of extension and EOS-1Ds Mark II.  ISO 800.  Manual Mode: 1/60 sec. at f/5.6.  

 

I was photographing this bird when another hummer flew towards it.  When the Brown Violet-ear raised his ear tufts to threaten the other bird my jaw dropped but I was composed enough to make two images of this amazing behavior.

 

 

 

Rufous-tailed Hummingbird, Tandayapa Bird Lodge, Ecuador 

Image copyright 2006: Arthur Morris/BIRDS AS ART

 

Canon 400 mm f/4  IS DO lens with 2X II TC, 25mm Extension Tube, and EOS-1Ds Mark II.  ISO 800.   Evaluative Metering -1/3 stop: 1/50 sec. at f/10.  

Flash at -1/3 stop with Better Beamer.

   

This small species was not an easy subject as the birds usually perched only for a second or two.

 

DIGITAL BASICS

 

If you think that the images in the Notes and Bulletins look pretty darned good, or if you are not happy with your ability to optimize your digital images, you surely need a copy of our Digital Basics File.  You can learn more about DB here:  http://www.birdsasart.com/digitalbasics.htm

 

Best and love and great picture-making to all,

artie

Note: Arthur Morris has been a Canon contract photographer since 1994 and continues in that role today. Hunt's Photo of Boston, MA is a BAA sponsor as it Delkin Devices.  Back issues of all BAA Bulletins can be found in the Bulletin Archives which may be accessed from the home page at www.birdsasart.com