GB1 GameBird 9M-GTR Spotted In Ipoh

First off, let me be clear - I am not a plane spotter. Plane spotting isn't something I've ever considered as a hobby. But something unusual happened in late November 2024 that grabbed my attention. A plane buzzed over my head, and its engine pitch and tone shifted dramatically from high to low, over and over again. This kind of sound was unlike anything I have ever heard in the skies above Ipoh.

Naturally, curiosity got the better of me. I stepped outside, looked up, and there it was: a plane performing aerobatics in the sky. It was looping, rolling, and zooming around with what seemed like effortless grace. My first thought?

"Who's flying that, and isn't it incredibly dangerous?"

This wasn't a one-time occurrence either. The plane returned repeatedly over the next few days, so often that I lost count. Sometimes it danced far off in the distance; other times, it roared directly overhead, close enough to make me stop whatever I was doing.

Finally, after several attempts, I managed to capture a few decent photo of the plane with my Canon SX530 HS superzoom camera. The markings on the fuselage read "9M-GTR." A quick Google search revealed the plane to be a GB1 GameBird with that very registration number.

Not only did I snap a photo, but I also recorded a short video of its aerobatics.

Filming a high-speed plane at such a great distance was no easy feat, and I've realised I need to polish my skills in capturing fast-moving objects overhead. But for a first attempt, I'd say it wasn't too shabby! The video was shot handheld through one of my upstairs south facing window.

Reflecting on the experience, I can't help but feel a newfound appreciation for the skill and precision it must take to fly like that. While plane spotting may not be my thing, this unexpected encounter definitely added some excitement to my week and gave me a story to share.

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Video Link - Oriental Honey-Buzzard (Tweedale Morph)

This is a follow up to my previous post on the Oriental Honey-Buzzard in my neighbourhood. I actually took a couple of videos of this bird and here is one of them that I have uploaded to my Youtube channel.

Sorry for the slight shakiness in the video as I only own a budget tripod. Video was taken with my Canon Powershot SX530HS by the way.

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Hope To See You Again Bani

It has been 3 months. The date July 14th 2024 to be exact. My male cat Bani has not been seen or heard of since then. I think it is safe to conclude now that he has left home and won't be coming back.

Good bye Bani. We are going to miss you. Pleasant journey, wherever you are going.

I hope to see you again one day.

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Oriental Honey-Buzzard - Tweedale Morph

Blyth's Hawk Eagle? That was my first thought. But no. After much digging, it turns out be be an Oriental Honey-Buzzard in what seems to be a Tweedale Morph. My lucky day.

This bird first flew onto the lamp post right in front of me while I was weeding out in my front yard on one wet Monday evening. It then flew onto my neighbour's roof some 25 feet up. I didn't pay much attention to it thinking that it was just paying a quick visit. Some 10 minutes later, it was still there. This prompted me to get some pictures of this bird - and later, some videos.

I first used my Canon EOS 800D camera. But I soon realised that I do not have the reach with my Canon EF-S 55-250mm lens. That's the longest lens that I have on my 800D. So I switch to my old Canon Powershot SX530HS. Now that's better (thus the picture above).

No doubt the Canon EOS 800D would give better picture quality. However, I just couldn't afford those long reaching birding lenses (those greater than 400mm lenses) as I do not have deep pockets. I just can't justify it for now.

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Flowering Again?

Some thing peculiar is happening. This has never happened before as far as I know.

The rambutan season here just ended about 2 weeks ago. In fact, there are still some rambutans on the two trees that I have, though they are not human edible anymore.

And last week, new flowers are blooming again! Not just on one but two trees.

Yes, we have had two rambutan seasons before within a year in the past. But normally, they are spaced out on a couple of months apart.

What's happening? What's triggering this phenomena?

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R.I.P. LahChee

I have been expecting this and it finally happened last month on 18th July 2024. LahChee died with what looks like brain seizure.

It was around April 2024 when I first noticed that something was wrong with her. She wasn't gaining weight and looks a little skinny even though she was eating and drinking normally. She was of the size of a 3 month kitten even though she was 7 months old.

Rest in peace LahChee. We all are going to miss you.

R.I.P. AhChee

The stray mother cat that can came into my life some eight or nine years ago, died last Sunday 14th July 2024. Funny thing was on the evening before she died, she was still very active and came to me looking for food at around 6:30 PM in the evening like she alway do. I obliged.

She gulped down about half a cup of liquid in the food while consuming some noodles and anchovies in between (it was chicken feed meant for my chickens). She then followed me around and even went hunting for rats.

Next thing I knew was my neighbour found her dead in the morning.

R.I.P. ChahJee

I feel so sad. ChahJee died yesterday 5th July 2024 after been with my family for only 18 days. He died at around 1:35 P.M.. My wife and I was by his side.

Welcome ChahJee

Not too sure why but this mature cat has decided to call my house home. I tried to chase him away but he just refused to go. On the next day, he was still loitering around in the backyard. But on the third day, he got all friendly, brushing himself against and bonding with me.

So, welcome cat, welcome to my home.

R.I.P. - Chahchee

Name: Chahchee

Date Of Birth: Sometime begining December 2023

Date And Time Of Death: 13th June 2024 6:00 P.M. (after short illness since 3rd June 2024)

Cause of death: Unknown

Age: 6 months+

Thank you Chahchee for coming into my life. If only we could have spent more fun and time together. 6 months is just too short.

Focus Bracketing With Olympus EPL-9 And Nisi 58mm Close-up Filter

Greater depth of field. That's what I want for my macro pictures.

So, focus bracketing with a close-up filter attached was one of the first thing that I tried when I first got my Olympus Pen EPL-9 camera and Olympus M.Zuiko ED 40 - 150mm R zoom lens. Tried a few takes and I was disappointed. The results that I got then was unimpressive. I was confused and I wrongly assumed then that the close-up filter combination with the zoom lens doesn't work. How wrong was I. It does works, albeit with some limitations.

The focal length must be between 40mm and 80mm, and ideally, the subject should be at least 25mm across in size. Beyond the 80mm focal length or if the subject is too small (like a lady bug that is 5mm across), the pictures will be unimpressive.

I haven't tried but with a Raynox DCR-250, the focal length range should be less because of its higher magnification capabilities. Maybe between 40mm to 70mm. Again, I haven't tried.

I stumbled upon this find accidentally earlier this month. Not sure why but when I saw this colpacampsomeris indica wasp (thanks to bob296 at iNaturalist for identification) resting on a leave in the cool 8 A.M. morning air, I turned the dial on the camera to AP mode, selected Focus Bracketing, and I clicked away. And the outcome (after much editing because it was shot handheld) was this:

Sorry for the Dreamstime watermark. The picture was too good to not submit it as a stock photo. For a closer look of this picture at Dreamstime, click here. And oh yeah, I wasn't stung by this wasp.

Nest In A Tree Branch

This is the first time I am seeing this. A bird nest in a tree branch. My, the bird is not even a woodpecker but a Coppersmith barbet instead. The old tree where the nest is sits on my neighbour's property. The place is quite tranquil, now a home-stay with not much human activity. Probably, this is what attracted the mother bird to this place.

My Nisi 58mm Close-up Filter

Well, things does not always go according to planned as we all know.

A couple of months ago, I had the intention of getting a budget macro lens; the ones that are made in China. I've narrowed down my choice to either a TTArtisan or an 7Artisans.

Guess what. I bought a Nisi 58mm close-up lens (NOTE: a Lazada Malaysia affiliate link) (Also available on Amazon.com - Note: an Amazon affiliate link) instead in the end.

The deciding factor: the ability to auto-focus when shooting macro. I already own a Raynox DCR-250 (a +8 dioptre lens), by the way. But I felt that I needed the extra working distance than a +8 dioptre close-up lens offers.

Yes I know what they say about most macro photographers where they focus exclusively in manual. But I am just not that confident with my manual focusing abilities. With stock photography, where my macro pictures will end up eventually, sharpness at the point of focus matters. And when you miss your opportunity, there may not be second chance. Hence, my decision with the Nisi over a manual macro lens.

Resynthesizer's Heal Selection In Gimp Under Linux Mint 21.2

Installing the plug-in Resynthesizer in Gimp 2.10.30 running in Linux Mint 21.2 is not as straight forward as it seems. The root of the problem, it seems, is that Resynthesizer requires Python 2. However, Python 2 has been dropped on Linux Mint 21.2 in favour of Python 3. But luckily there is a work-around thanks to some very clever people on the Internet.

Anyway, this is how I got Resynthesizer (and thus Heal Selection) working on Linux Mint 21.2 for Gimp 2.10.30, as of 21st February 2024.

1. Install Gimp via Linux Mint's "Software Manager".

2. Download and install Resynthesizer executable into the local gimp plug-in directory (usually ~/.config/GIMP/2.10/plug-ins)
   
   (description can be found in this forum thread https://www.gimp-forum.net/Thread-Gimp-2-10-Resynthesizer-Linux?pid=11261#pid11261)
   
   The rest of the Resynthesizer Python scripts can be found in the folder PluginScripts at github.
   
   Make sure all downloads are executable (via the command line, I use the "chmod 664").
   
   I could have compiled the Resynthesizer executable myself, but I didn't.
   

3. Download and install 'gimp-python2-overlay-launcher-ubuntu22.04.AppImage' (a 27.2 MB download)
   
   In the description (scroll down to the 25 Apr 22:22 announcement) it says:
   
   "These AppImages launch a system installed Gimp and add Python2.7.18 and MathMap. This solution loads Gimp without changing the operating system. They are intended for current systems @ June 2022"
   
   

4. Test your setup by launching the downloaded Gimp launcher AppImage from 3. It works for me.

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Commode Chair Seat Replacement

I bought this commode chair seat as a spare back in June 2023 from China. It is only last week that I started using it by replacing the old cracked one on my mother's commode chair. After a week I have heard no complains from my mum. So I suppose the quality of this seat is acceptable so far. Installation is easy as it is just a matter of pulling off the old one and then just popping in the new. Quality wise, it is as good as the old one but hopefully better. Time will tell. They come in two colours - white and gray - but I chose the gray one as can be seen in the picture above.