The Flamingos of Oman, a photo from Al Batinah, North

Photographer's Note

Oman is located in a swath of land in the southern Arabian Peninsula. As the Seabourn Odyssey sailed eastward along Oman, I thought of the English word, "posh," meaning "elegant" and "luxurious." Indeed, posh was appropriate in describing the majestic Odyssey on which I was giving a series of lectures. But it was the derivation of the word, "posh," that I had in mind. During colonial days of the British Empire, steamships would offer transportation for passengers and goods between the British Isles and India, sailing along the southern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. Just north of the Equator, it can get oppressively hot and humid, especially in summer months. The passengers who booked on passenger ships, would seek staterooms on the north side (left) heading east and again north side (right) heading west. The word "posh" has its origins in the acronym of the expression "Port side over and Starboard Side home." On a modern air conditioned ship, there is no preference for the Port or Starboard sides!

During a day docked in Salalah, Oman (17° N Latitude), we visited the ruins of a 3rd century castle on the coast. It was there that I took a series of shots of Flamingos dunking their heads into the shallow waters in search of brine shrimp.

In the late afternoon the Odyssey set sail for the straits of Yemen; then northward in the Red Sea, to the Egyptian ports of Safaga, Sharm El Sheik, and Sohkma, before transiting the Suez Canal.

papagolf21, worldcitizen, mcmtanyel, Didi, Graal, snunney, jhm, kordinator, Gigidusud, ayferaldanmaz, mirosu, gervaso heeft deze opmerking als nuttig gemarkeerd

Critiques | Translate

parvatibb (1387) 2013-05-27 11:35

Merhaba Bulent Bey,
Cocukluktan kalan bir durum galiba flamingo denilince aklima Miami Vice dizisi geliyor. Sanki flamingo sadece miami"de bulunabilirmis gibi :)
Artik farkli bir sehri de gozumun onune getirebilecegim.
tesekkurler
slmlar
basak

papagolf21 (152607) 2013-05-27 11:37

Bonsoir, mon ami Bulent,
Ces flamants blancs (qui semble avoir perdu leur teinte rosée) ne manquent pas d'élégance grâce à leurs longs cous et longues pattes, donnant à leur déplacement une marche gracile.
Intéressante note d'accompagnement.
Amitiés.
Philippe

worldcitizen (16234) 2013-05-27 14:22

Hello Bulent,
It's interesting to see your latest photos from the Middle East. In this particular photo the flamingos don't have their typical pinkish color. Are the shrimp and other seafood they are eating not the usual color in Oman?! Nice view of the shallow water, with lovely framing.

lousat (140070) 2013-05-27 14:29

Hi Bulent,a perfect pic for treknature too,beautiful memory from your Oman trip,great capture whit very good details and excellent exposure,i like it! May you correct the date,13-08-2013 is in the future..eheh...thanks for share,Luciano

nikkitta (17070) 2013-05-27 17:06

Hola Bulent

First, I answer your note about Tova, second, what an adventurous trip to very unknown countries, such as Oman and Yemen, third, a smart capture of the flamingos

What is wrong is the date of the capture as Luciano said, take a look at your camera for new shots

Congrats and enjoy the trip

Maria

mcmtanyel (69384) 2013-05-27 18:10

Merhabalar Bülent Bey,
I like the balance that the two stands of flamingos bring to the scene. Now, was this the ocean or a lagoon or a lake? It is unusual to find vegetation so close to the water.
Hürmetlerimle,
MT

Didi (61591) 2013-05-27 18:15

Hi My friends
Curious white flamingos
They don't eat enough Artemia salina who give this particular pink orange colour
Very nice picture indeed
Kind regards

emka (158962) 2013-05-27 23:34

Hi Bulent, Interesting note about the word posh. from Dubai we went in opposite directions. That day I started my big adventure in Darwin.
Nice flamingos. Indeed, they are quite white and not pink as we would expect. But I saw flamingos in Namibia and they were also white. beautiful water with unusual colours.

Warm regrads

Malgo

Graal (103040) 2013-05-27 23:42

Hi Bulent,
pleasant mood here and view of flamingos in water. Good shot. Fine report about the nature in Oman.
Have a nice day.
Aleksander

snunney (130967) 2013-05-28 3:03

Hello Bulent,
I also recall your explanation of the word posh as being the correct derivation of the word. Unfortunately there is no evidence to support this view according to the OED. The story did not make its appearance until the 1930s, by which time the term had already been in use for some twenty years. The origins are in effect unknown. Very sad, but there you go.

Anyway, this image is nicely composed and agreeably lit. I see that the flamingos appear to be white rather than pink. As such, they stand out well from the blue background.

jhm (211738) 2013-05-28 3:13

Dear Bulent,

I love your picture, why, we see alone Flamingos in the Belgian Zoo, but always and everywhere pink Flamingos.
I am a very big fan of animals, a pity that a lot people animals dead for money, as the elephants and rhinos.
You did excellent through the foreground as contrast to use.
This makes your composition nice. TFS.

Kind regards,
John

fabianoleite (13575) 2013-05-28 8:09

Good and simple composition, with the birds well spread out throughout the picture, with good divisionns of elements and nice colors. Very well done, congratulations!

kordinator (8738) 2013-06-09 1:27

Dear Bulent
Fantastic shot, you caught a great moment.
Lovely colors ans light.
Wonderful nature and birds.
Excellent framing.
All the best dear friend
Saša

berek (50518) 2013-06-15 21:41

Merhaba Bülent bey
ne kadar sade bir kare. Flimingolar her zaman güzel poz verir. keninize çok iyi bakın.
Sevgiler.
Burak

chrisvek (7003) 2013-06-22 17:53

Hello Bulent

This is a very well composed image with nice lightning management and perfect brightness.Splendid POV too.Thank for sharing with us.

All the best
Chris

limielski (0) 2013-07-04 7:23

Hi Bulent!

I like such colouring and style - pastel and soft. A beautiful composition. I have seen flamings in national park "Camarque" in south of France - beautiful dignified birds.

Warm regards, Leszek

Gigidusud (21679) 2013-07-31 15:06

Hello dear Bulent,
A beautiful nature photo with the flamingos and their reflections in the water. I like the pastel tones too. Well done!
Best regards,
Gigi.

ayferaldanmaz (1085) 2013-08-11 9:33

merhaba Bülent bey,
çok güzel bir doğal yaşam karesi.. ilk dikkatimi çeken flamingoların Umman da olması ve ikinci olarak da alışık olduğumuz pembe renkte olmamalarıydı. araştırınca bu pembe rengin yedikleri besinlerle alakalı olduğunu öğrendim..
mükemmel yansımaları ve doğal renkleri yakaladığınız ve ayrıca araştırma ihtiyacı yarattığınız bu güzel kare için tebrikler ve teşekkürler :)
selamlar,
ayfer

TRB (14138) 2013-08-12 11:58

merhaba Bülent Bey,
Sadeliği ve şıklığı ile dikkat çekici, çok hoş bir kadraj.
Renkleri, ışığı ve görüntüsü ile tablo gibi..
emeğinize sağlık, selam ve saygılar

Tülay

mesutilgim (0) 2013-09-06 12:58

Selam sevgili Bülent,
Bu kare de son derece dingin ve insanın içini rahatlatan bir kare.
Tebrikler
Selam ve sevgiler
MESUT ILGIM

eldancer1 (36343) 2013-09-10 9:20

Awesome capture of those flamingos in the wild. Good pov and dof with nice details. Lighting is a little washout, otherwise well done, tfs.

mirosu (16313) 2013-09-18 19:32

Hi Bulent,
Excellent view to small groups of Flamingos. You have composed this photo very well leaving nice sand-grass area in front of water. The Flamingos ate neatly placed along the frame. Excellent.
I'm surprised to see flamingos in Yemen, very hot country during summer time. Are these local flamingos or just migrating birds?
Excellent photo and superb introductory note. Thanks for posting it.
Greetings
Miro

Cricri (176) 2013-10-04 6:23

Hi Bulent
Belle image de ce groupe de flamand BLANC, belle lumière, couleurs contrastés, belle réalisation
Belle journée
cricri

gervaso (28437) 2013-10-09 19:19

Hello, Bulent!

I think I had never seen white flamingos before, and they are also beautiful! Excellent colors, especially of the lake, which contrasts well with the birds! Wonderful composition!

Kamilutka (8107) 2014-02-08 2:28

Hello Bulent,
amazingly we have flamingos once a year in Lefkada, where they stop for about one month on their journey south. They are not very afraid of people and the cameras seem not to bother them to much.
I like how on your photo they make two groups as if chatting lazily at some kind of party. The bit of land adds some contrast and color to the image.
Thanks for sharing and have a nice weekend
Kamila

Hunkar (7440) 2014-03-03 15:34

Bülent Bey,
Flamingoları beşer beşer çok iyi yakalamışsınız.
Selamlar,