Views of the Sailing Sabani Boats in Kin Bay

The 1st sailing sabani race of 2015 was held today.

It's a blast, capturing these events with a digital camera, bouncing around on the ocean.

Out of the seven hundred and, something images, taken this morning, here are a few GIFs.

There were only five boats in the competition and, I hope, I got them all.

If I had a choice, I'd rather be shooting my camera with my feet planted on some earth.

Riding a safety/escort boat, I was out at sea, looking towards the shore.

With a combination of sails and paddles, these boats move quickly.

So, every once in awhile the safety boat dude,  guns his engines real fast.

And, the cameraman cusses, as he almost gets thrown overboard.

It got me thinking.  There must be an easier way to get these photos.

Like, couldn't they rent one of those Goodyear blimps ?

More About Sailing Sabani Boats:

What the Heck is a Sabani ?

Okinawa's Sabani Sailing People

7 GIFs of Birds in or Near Water

Photos Taken March 2015 in Kin Town

 

 

In numerical order as downloaded from the camera, here they come.

The bird in lower left of the frame arrived on the scene as, I was shooting the snipe.

It appears to be a Spotted Greenshank (Tringa guttifer) but, I could be mistaken.

It upset the male, Painted Snipe and, he would soon take off.

From left to right, we have a female and male Painted Snipe, preening.

The red legged birds are Black-winged Stilts.

They kept popping in and out of the frames as, I was photographing the Snipes.

This rascal, appears to be a Grey-tailed Tattler.

The bird is not, standing in the water.  It kept its feet on dry land.

The Latin name for this specimen: Heteroscelus brevipes

The rain started coming down while shooting this scene.

The bird was blinking its eyes but, didn't seem to mind getting wet.

It is a Common Greenshank (Tringa nebularia) and, is a wading bird by nature.

This is the same bird as in the previous photo, shot from a different angle.

The Greenshank was the easiest bird to approach with the camera.

Either it was a photogenic or, just didn't feel like flying in the rain.

A little shower, like this, doesn't bother me, too much.

It cleans the air and, makes things smell a lot better.

It also, makes for some interesting colors, shadows, light and, reflections.

Do you ever shoot your cameras in the rain ?

Birds in Water: Motion GIFs

Black-winged Stilts

 

 

They are called Himantopus himantopus by scientists.

Migratory visitors to the Ryukyu Islands, they sure brighten things up on a rainy day.

A little cloud burst opened, while I was out shooting the cameras.

Rather than, run for cover (like some sane person) I decided to see what the birds would do.

Just in case, you were wondering what they call these birds in French, I got it for you:

Echasse blanche

Learn more about the species at ARKive

10 Images of Osprey Birds in Flight

Over Kin Dam in Okinawa Japan

 

 

These photos were taken over a two hour period this morning.

The Pentax K3 and 300mm lens were used, along with a tripod.

It was 9:33AM when the first subject appeared.

When they fly over water, they are looking for fish.

Catching them with the sun lighting up their eyes can be a challenge.

They eat fish from the ocean or, fresh water.

Ospreys are also known as Sea Hawks.

Pandion haliaetus is their scientific name.

These birds are the only raptors with white bellies.

The white head and brown mask over the eyes makes identification of  this bird, easy.

Ospreys voluntarily, close their nostrils when they dive for fish in the water.

These  birds a third eyelid which is transparent.

This membrane can be closed when under water, serving as goggles, while they catch their prey.

Learn More About Ospreys at Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Entertained by a Grey-faced Buzzard Eagle

A good cure for a St. Patrick's Day hangover was discovered today.

This bird of prey used a fence at the dam as a perch and lookout.

It kept launching from the fence to catch meals of insects.

After it munched on a meal, the bird would return to the fence.

On a nice day, a person could sit and watch this activity for hours.

It all took place at the Kin Dam.

So, if anybody is wondering where to find me, for the rest of this week look for this fence.

The plan is, to go back and get some more dam therapy !