Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

Ok,
So where is Borat? On vacation? Bored of the Board? From omnipresent to  a no show?

Inquiring minds...

Yes I was on vacation.

Just got back from Panama yesterday.  Stayed at the Gamboa Resort on the Chagres river, very near the canal.  I'll say this, if there is a list of the top ten man made structures, the Panama Canal will have to be near the top.  Very friendly people.  No pan handling nor begging.  Very good food and the water is safe to drink.  Lots of scenery, wildlife and things to do. Here's a couple of pics:

The first one is of their Centenio Bridge which spans the canal.  It was built 1999 for 2000 inauguration.  If you look closely, you'll see a ship passing under it.  It's a beautiful structure.  Next two are of a couple ships passing by.  The picture of the passenger ship was taken from the deck of one of the resort's restaurants.  The other from the side of the canal.  The Toucan was an additional bonus.  I took it's picture while the big container ship passed by.   It's hard to get good bird pictures with the sky in the back ground.  Too much of a silhouette effect.   That's as good as I could get under the conditions. 

 

There are ways to correct for a bright background such as the sky. You need to have a camera with automation that can be overridden. Basically you want to take the exposure from your subject ( the Toucan) and not the general average of the shot ( sky is so bright it swamps the bird).

Some cameras have a "bright sky" setting while others allow you to "over expose" the shot on purpose. I've even seen some cameras that allow you to get close to the subject, take an exposure reading, "hold" the setting, and then move back to where you really want to be. That system isn't so good for birds but is good for portraits.

I thought all the shots, including the Toucan turned out quite well.

nibbler wrote:
Thanks for the input.  I do have to become more familiar with the camera settings.   The camera I have (Fuji S8000fd) is brand new with lots of features.  It has plenty of light compensation features.  Unfortunately, when the camera is set up for taking pictures of slow moving massive ships, switching the camera over to get a shot of a bird takes time.  Of which, one seldom has when photographing wildlife.  Do you have any idea how tough it is to get an appointment with a Toucan? 

Sounds like a very good  vacation. Good pics. Welcome back

Hey Borat welcome back, we missed you here!

we apreciate your devotion to the forum for helping people out ,

Regards! 

Denis wrote:

Thanks bud. 

It's fun to go to different places but it's better to get home.  I was itching to be working on my Yamahas.  So that's what I'm up to now.  I'm waiting for another shipment of parts to finish installing the electronic ignition & charging system, new tires, sprockets and chain and seat cover.   Then when it warms up, I can finish cleaning and painting the frame.  By then, the wheels, side panels and tank should be back from the paint shop and I can start to put it back together. 

Man, you folks in the south east have been getting nailed regularly with tons of snow.  I'm a bit jealous.  We haven't had any serious snow here for over a month.  Maybe longer.  The Simplicity has been leading a life of leisure.  It's been cold though.