Some more birds from Saturday’s walk around Reifel and Boundary Bay

Some more birds taken at Boundary Bay regional park and Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary back on March 6, 2011.  All shot with Canon 7D and the 100-400 (most, if not all, at 400mm)

 

1) Female Northern Harrier

Northern Harrier on the Hunt by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

2) Male Northern Harrier

Male Northern Harrier by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

3) Take Out!

Take Out by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

4) Mrs Lesser Scaup

Mrs Lesser Scaup by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

5) Mrs Hooded Merganser

Mrs Hooded Merganser by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

6) Mr Spotted Towhee

Spotted Towhee by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

7) Mr Northern Flicker (whom I’m now led to believe may be an intergrade)

Red Shafted Northern Flicker by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

Hope you like ’em!

Was out shooting again yesterday

I was out at Reifel and Down at Boundary Bay.  These shots are from Boundary Bay.

1. This guy would fly from stump to stump, posing for a group of photographers.

Short Eared Owl Posing by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

2. This owl was cruising the marshy grasslands, hunting.

Short Eared Owl Hunting by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

3. On the Hunt – about to drop for a kill.

Short Eared Owl Hunting by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

4. A bit soft – but I loved the action…

Short Eared Owl Posing by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

5. The little Saw-whet

Northern Saw-whet Owl by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

Pacific International Judo Tournament – 2011

Pacific International Judo Tournament
Steveston Judo Club
Richmond, BC, Canada

Over 140 top class athletes came from Canada, USA, and Japan. Competition was fierce and the Judo – nothing short of thrilling!

The tournament was open to Green belt and up – No Juniors. It still ran for almost 8 hours!  I can’t believe I actually got the photos all processed and posted within a day! I took over 600 photos and ended up with about 75 that I’m happy with.

The whole set can be seen at my Flickr:
 http://www.flickr.com/photos/dragonspeed/sets/72157626098550116/with/5463551430/

Here are a few shots:

1.

2011 Pacific International Judo Tournament – Steveston by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

2.

2011 Pacific International Judo Tournament – Steveston by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

3.

2011 Pacific International Judo Tournament – Steveston by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

4.

2011 Pacific International Judo Tournament – Steveston by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

5. OK – so not everyone was amped up the whole time

2011 Pacific International Judo Tournament – Steveston by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

I hope you enjoy the photos.

Burnaby Lake Birds

Some Burnaby Lake Birds.  The ice around all the local lakes and even on Burnaby Lake forced the usually shy birds to come in much closer.  The mergansers have NEVER been so close.  Monday was a good day to shoot.  (It also was probably our last sunny day until late May )

For those of you following along at home, if you know the ID of the two sparrows, please chime in.

1) Unknown Sparrow (Fox?) – These guys will pose for peanuts

Sparrow (ID?) by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

2) Another Sparrow (?)

Sparrow (ID?) by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

3) I’m a crow – REALLY!

I’m a crow.  REALLY. by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

4) Male Green-Winged Teal

Green-winged Teal by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

5) Male Wood Duck

Male Wood Duck by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

6) Dragon Boats

Dragon Boats by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

7) Female Common Merganser

Steady on… by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

Buffleheads

These pretty little ducks are ever so elusive.  They generally seem to want nothing to do with people.  They have enough ocean that they don’t normally have to hang out with us.

Thankfully for me, their local haunts were pretty frozen the past few days.  This meant that they were nice and close at Burnaby Lake on the 3rd.

Some highlights of these fun little ducks:

Some Buffleheads from Burnaby Lake on Monday.  Since Reifel was all iced up and most of Burnaby Lake was too, that left only a small area where they could hang out.  GREAT for photo ops!

1) Buzzing the flight deck:

Buzz the flight deck! by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

2) Look out… I don’t know if I can get enough clearance!

Look out!!! by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

3) Too much Christmas dinner?

Bufflehead in Flight by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

4) Getting up to speed

Bufflehead in Flight by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

5) Whadda ya mean – FLY???

Too much Christmas Dinner? by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

6) Cruisin’

Male Bufflehead by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

7) Shy Mrs Bufflehead

Female Bufflehead – finally close enough by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

I hope you like ’em.  They were an interesting challenge to shoot!

Great New Year’s Outing to Reifel on January 2nd

Started the New Year off on good note at Reifel on the 2nd.

Here are the New Year’s Birds:

1. Robin with a Berry

Robin with a berry by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

2. A first for me… Ruby-Crowned Kinglet

Ruby-Crowned Kinglet by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

3. Harrier on the Hunt

Harrier on the Hunt by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

4a. Coopers/Sharpie getting rousted

Coopers/Sharpshinned Hawk by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

4b.

Coopers/Sharpshinned Hawk by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

5. The rouster – a Peregrine(?)

Some birds from my walk around Reifel

Back on Nov 28th I went for 5 hour walk around the Reifel Bird Sanctuary.  While the weatherman promised sun, it was far from it.  More like hazy overcast.  Less than ideal photography weather. 

The morning started out COLD and there was frost in places.  Most of the ponds were frozen over.  Always fun to watch the mallards come in for landings on ice and slide to a stop 😉

Well, here are a few shots that turned out OK for the day – All shot with the 7D and 100-400L:

The sky was so dreary behind this poor baldy that I had to give him a nice blue gradient instead

Bald Eagle by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

As I was about to leave, word got out about a couple of Great Horned Owls in a tree… They were tucked up DEEP in the branches. ISO 12800 to even get a shot worth keeping!

Great Horned Owl by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

A little marsh wren. You hear them and you see them flitting about. It was a nice change to be able to get a shot of one… My first time!

A little wren by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

Greater White Fronted Goose – Uncommon visitor to the area

Greater White Fronted Goose by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

Shorebirds resting

Shorebirds resting on the Tidal Flats by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

Along comes Mr. Coopers Hawk…

Coopers Hawk by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

Resulting in…. Shorebirds in flight

Shorebirds in flight by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

More flight patterns

Shorebirds in flight by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

More from my visit that day can be seen at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dragons…7625490900830/

Some Birds from Reifel

I’m still editing some of my other shots but I thought I’d share a few of the various beauties that I saw the other week:

1. Dowitcher – "I’m SURE I set that morsel down HERE"

Dowitcher by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

2. Golden-Crowned Sparrow – "Whatchyou talkin’ b’out Willis?"

Golden-Crowned Sparrow by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

3. Golden-Crowned Sparrow – "Does this angle make my butt look fat?"

Golden-Crowned Sparrow by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

4. Black-Crowned Night Heron – "Hey! What’s THAT doing in there?!!?"

Black-Crowned Night Heron by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

5. Black-Crowned Night Heron

Black-Crowned Night Heron by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

6. Snow Rising ???

Snow Geese by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

7. Snow Geese – The migration

Snow Geese by DragonSpeed, on Flickr

All shot with the 100-400 on a Canon 7D

Red Tailed Hawk vs. Northern Harrier – Dogfight!

Reifel Bird Sanctuary
Delta BC, Canada

So, here was this poor Red Tailed Hawk just soaring around minding his own business.

Next thing you know a Northern Harrier decided that he didn’t like Red in his area. What an aerial battle ensued. The Harrier continued to dive and attack the RTH while he worked to avoid the harassment. In shot #3 you can see the RTH has his head turned 180 to try to see the Harrier attacking from above. Classic dogfight!

Wood Duck Portrait Session

I managed to book Mr and Mrs Wood Duck in for some portraits yesterday:

Mrs Wood duck was in her Saturday best. It was a bit windy, but she posted like a champ

She preferred this shot… showing off the irridescent highlights in her hair.

Mr Wood duck wanted the "Tough Guy" shot":

The classic shots however were what Mrs Duck said he should stick with:

A full bust shot

The two of them even went for the artistic couple’s shot:

While I think they liked the pictures, they mentioned something about "bills" and not paying, so I think I’ll have to chalk the whole session up to a learning experience 😉

Vancouver International Judo Tournament – 2010 Pictures

These are pretty late, but I’ve been swamped with other things that have required my attention in the last couple of months.

The whole series can be seen at:

 http://www.slacker.ca/brian/webpics/showpix.aspx?20100206Judo

Here are a few select images:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Green winged Teals

I went down to Burnaby Lake on Saturday to see what was out. It was a bit cool and windy so it kept the crowds down a bit. I was trying some “at duck level” shots.  Here’s my go at the male Green Winged Teal:

Shot with the Canon 7D, 100-400mm lens.

A couple of visitors on a dull day

It’s always nice when you get visitors on a dull day.  I’ve been moping around home with cold for a couple of days now.   It’s nice when this guy and gal come to visit:

Mr Northern Flicker

Mrs Downy Woodpecker

Both shot at ISO 1600 @400mm with my Canon 50D.

I just put the Hummingbird feeder out today… let’s see if they start coming by to pose 🙂

Olympic Gold Medal Hockey Game Song and Video

This is GREAT!!!

Vancouver 2010 – Welcome World

I finally got downtown on Sunday – what a SPECTACULAR day!  Here are a few of my shots:

The cauldron:

Winter Games and Cherry Blossoms – LOVE it!

Giant building-side Quatchi:

Quatchi with the rest … HUGE ADS!

Olympic 2010 logo on the countdown clock:

Gold! Gold! Gold!!!!!

Alexandre Bilodeau wins Gold for Canada in the Men’s Moguls!!!!

 

Canada finally wins Gold at a games that we host!!!! 

 

Go Canada!!!!!!!

Luge Athlete dies in training at Whistler sliding centre

A luge athlete from Georgia (the country), Nodar Kumaritashvili, died during a practice run at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics… He went off track and then head first into a steel pole at about 145kph.

It was on the news today – they warned it would be graphic.  Yeah, yeah…. I heard a restaurant full of people gasp… it WAS horrific.  Watching people die is strange and unnatural, but we’re drawn to watch for some reason.

The pursuit of bigger, better, faster – a think knife edge.

Pray for the safety of the Athletes and for comfort for this young man’s family.

  

*** WARNING – HARSH VIDEO ***

 

Here is the CTV Olympic video of the run: http://www.ctvolympics.ca/video/index.html?assetid=3350f67a-7694-4f9b-830f-09d957013d41

Camping at Manning Park with the Scouts

I haven’t posted about our Scout camp at Manning Park for a couple of reasons.  Unfortunately I still can’t really post about all the fun we had that weekend. Hopefully that will soon come to an end and you’ll get to hear all the interesting times that we had while there.  In the mean time, I have a few pictures from our camp.  There are many others, but you know you me – I’m going to start with the Birds 🙂

1) Sitting in the tree – considering coming down

2) Moments later this guy would be down eating from a hand.

3) Is a bird in the hand really worth two in the bush?

4) Looking for food

5) Escaping with the goods

6) Not everyone was so happy with them landing 😉

7) One of our Venturers posing with a new found friend

I’ll have some pictures of actual camp life up later, but the birds are always high on my list. I hope you enjoyed them!

New Year’s Bell Ringing

I helped the Vancouver Buddhist temple with their ceremony this past New Year.

Buddhist belief has it that one rings a bell 108 times at midnight on New Year’s to ring away the 108 bonno (Earthly Desires) that shackle mankind and keep one from reaching inner peace. In a strict ceremony, the bell will be struck exactly 108 times in keeping with the Buddhist belief that each reverberation symbolically represents the purging of the 108 bonno or mortal desires, such as greed, jealousy and infidelity, that bedevil humankind.  In this one, all comers may approach and ring the bell to help cleanse themselves on their path to Nirvana.

The event started with a small ceremony at the Temple and then we headed over to the asian studies building at UBC.  We set up at 2315 and there was already a line forming.  The crowd totalled easily over 100 if not 200 people.  The rain started off intermittent but as we came up to the midnight hour the rain cleared.  The many people rang the bell well into the New Year, finishing around 0030.  We wrapped it all up and got back to Uncle Dave’s place by 0130 for some New Year’s cheer on our own.  It was definitely an interesting event.

The whole album can be found at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dragonspeed/sets/72157623126916365/

1) The Main Shrine at the VBT:

2)  The Bell before the ceremony start (at the Asian Studies building – UBC):

3) The Bell – long exposure w/ flash burst

4) All Ages rang the bell!

5.) VBT Sensei Welcoming Bell Ringing Visitors

6) Taiko Drummer

Canada West Judo Tournament – 2009

Our club, the Burnaby Judo Club hosted the Canada West Invitational Judo Tournament on December 5, 2009.  We had a great range of competitors come from across Canada and the US.  It was a long day but all involved had fun. There was some good judo to be seen.  Everyone agreed that it went really smoothly!

The photos were taken with a Canon 7D and for the most part the 70-200 F/2.8 lens.  Some were taken with the 17-55 F/2.8 lens.  Almost all were taken at ISO 6400

The photo gallery can be seen at my web gallery.

Here are a few highlight shots: