Month: November 2017

Whimbrels over the Magdalen Islands in Quebec

Post author By Stanley
Post date 24 November 2017

Whimbrels over the Magdalen Islands in 2017. Photo taken with a Canon 5DSR.

The whimbrel is a bird that spends most of its life along the coasts of South America. It travels from Brazil to northern Canada when comes the time of nesting. It is possible to see it flying by the Atlantic provinces of Canada or by the Magdalen Islands in the province of Quebec.

The total number of whimbrels belonging to the hudsonicus species is estimated at around 58,000 and is in constant decline. During the last 40 years, the population has diminished by 80%. During their trip, the whimbrels stop an average of three weeks on the acadian peninsula to feed themselves. A study shows that 1200 were observed in 2014, 518 in 2015 and 344 in 2016. ( French text: Le courlis corlieu )

During our family holiday on the Magdalen Islands in 2017, we saw close to thirty of those birds while we were standing on a hill in Havre-aux-Maisons.

A flight of Whimbrels over the Magdalen Islands in 2017

The pictures were taken with a Canon EF 70-200 mm f/2.8L IS II USM telephoto lens mounted on a Canon 5DSR full frame camera. The focal length was set at 200 mm and I had to adjust the ISO at 1250 in order to get a shutter speed that would prevent a blurred picture as the birds were quickly flying by. Some additional cropping was needed in order to obtain a picture that was big enough.

For other photos on the province of Quebec and also Quebec City, click on the following links from my blog:

Province of Quebec Photos

Quebec City and Île d’Orléans in Autumn

Quebec City and Île d’Orléans in Winter

Quebec City and Île d’Orléans in Spring

Quebec City and Île d’Orléans in Summer

Tags bird photography, blurred picture, Canon 5DSR, Canon 70-200 f2.8L IS II USM, full frame camera, hudsonicus, Magdalen Islands, ornithology, Province of Quebec, telephoto lens, tips in photography, whimbrel

Street photography

Walking on the side of a wall in Old Quebec

Post author By Stanley
Post date 17 November 2017

These teens from Quebec City work hard at walking on the side of a stonewall near the St. Louis Gate in Old Quebec. Their efforts deserved a picture.

The picture was taken from far away, that is from a point located on the other side of the St.Louis street.That way, they did not realize that they were being photographed, which allowed them to stay natural. That is one of the principles of street photography.

Behind the people is Quebec City’s lower town. The city lights are visible since it was close to 9 PM when the picture was taken.

I was able to take a sharp picture from really far away only with the help of a Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM telephoto lens mounted on a Canon 5DSR full frame camera that is equipped with a 50.6 megapixel sensor. Some significant cropping was then necessary to bring the action even closer to the viewer.

For other street photography pictures:

Street photography

Tags Canon 5DSR, Canon 70-200 f2.8L IS II USM, full frame sensor, Old Quebec, people photography, Quebec City, Quebec City photos, street photography

Controversial subjects

Turkey’s Prime Minister comments on the September 9/11 attacks.

Post author By Stanley
Post date 13 November 2017

On the CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS program dated November 12, 2017, Fareed invited the Prime Minister of Turkey, Binari Yildirim.

Turkey presented the case that Fethullah Gulen, an american cleric living in the USA, is behind the 2016 failed coup against President Erdogan of Turkey and it wants M. Gulen extradited.

To explain the USA’s refusal to send Fethullah Gulen over to Turkey, Fareed Zakaria said something along the lines : « My contacts say that there is nothing solid that supports the fact that the 2016 coup against Turkey was organized by the Imam Fethullah Gulen ».

The well-prepared Prime Minister of Turkey then responded : « When you said that Osama Bin Laden was behind the September 9/11 attacks, we did not ask for proof of that. We just supported you ». [And immediately went to war in Afghanistan without proof of Bin Laden’s involvment].

In other words, to stay friends with the United States, Turkey did not ask that the USA prove with any hard facts that Bin Laden was behind the 9/11 attacks, a fact that Bin Laden denied from day one. They knew that the United States had strategic interests in Afghanistan and they supported whatever reason, proven or not, that would justify an invasion of Afghanistan.

Now, Turkey says that the Unites States are not willing to commit themselves to Turkey’s national interests the same way Turkey supported the USA. It is like saying to the United States : « Don’t ask for hard facts, just do it, like we did for you. » In 2016, on the same issue, Erdogan said : « If we are strategic partners or model partners, do what is necessary“.

We can extract two things out of this discussion between Fareed Zakaria and Binari Yildirim:

1) That the cleric Fethullah Gulen has possibly nothing more to do with the coup in Turkey than Bin Laden had to do with the 9/11 attacks. But as Gulen strongly opposes Erdogan, he is considered a threat to Turkey’s national interests (or to Erdogan’s chance to stay indifinitely in power?).

Turkey expects the United States to refrain from looking for hard facts of any wrong doings by Gulen and nonetheless send the cleric to Turkey as a sign of goodwill and friendship between the two countries.

2) That friends of the United States don’t seem to ask a lot of questions and proof when it comes to the 9/11 attacks. They go with the flow and expect a return of favors when comes the time…

Fareed quickly changed subject …

For more explanations on the failed coup in Turkey, click on the following link on CNN : Turkey failed coup explainer

About the September 9/11 attacks, you will find several facts presented in a book written by a former well-known french journalist, Éric Reynaud, in the « controversial issues » section of my website :

Controversial issues

Photos of Canada Ship photography

The Corona Frontier ship in the Vancouver harbour

Post author By Stanley
Post date 10 November 2017

The Corona Frontier bulk carrier vessel in the Vancouver Harbour in 2016

The picture above was taken during summer 2016 in the Vancouver harbour, in British Columbia. I chose that time of the day to take the picture since the light was at its best.

The calm winds allowed for a better reflection in the water. The rain, which had been falling almost all day, favored the presence of low clouds which eventually hid the mountains. It is nonetheless possible to still see part of the mountains at the top of the picture.

I used a Canon 5DSR full frame camera equipped with a Canon 70-200 f2.8L IS II USM telephoto lens. The aperture was set at F9 in order to optimize the photo’s sharpness.

The bulk carrier ship in the foreground is the Corona Frontier. It sails under the japanese flag and has its home port in Kobe. The vessel was built in 2000. The Corona Frontier’s draught is 13.7 meters and its gross tonnage is 48032 tons.

For more articles in the category « Photos of Canada », click on the following link : Photos of Canada

Tags British-Columbia, Canon 5DSR, Canon 70-200 f2.8L IS II USM, Corona Frontier, night photography, night reflections, ship photography, Vancouver Harbour

Photos of Canada Photos of Quebec

Sunset on the Magdalen Islands

Post author By Stanley
Post date 3 November 2017

The Magdalen Islands, in the Province of Quebec, are recognized for the magnificent sunsets. The picture above was taken while I was coming back from Havre Aubert with my family during summer 2017. The ponds are located between Havre Aubert and Cap-aux-Meules, immediately alongside the main road.

The day had been cloudy and there was no indication that the evening would offer a possibility to get an interesting picture. But around 8 PM, while the sun was still relatively high above the horizon, a few sunrays were able to pierce through the cloud deck. The stratocumulus being well defined, it became obvious that when the sun would be close enough to the horizon, it would light the cloud deck from below as well as light up the ponds. It was important to act rapidly in order to capture the beautiful atmosphere.

When the winds are calm and you must stand still close to ponds in order to do photographic adjustments, one must accept to lose some blood to swarming moskitos. That night, I must have lost a pint of blood!

The absence of wind allowed for a good reflection of the electric poles in the foreground.

The picture was taken with a Canon 5DSR full frame camera equipped with a Canon 70-200 f2.8L IS II USM telephoto lens and a graduated filter used to avoid the underexposure that would be caused by the highlights in the horizon. I used aperture priority and set it at F18 to get a proper depth of field. The ISO was set at 200 and the focal length at 135 mm.