Thursday 7 March 2013

Dubai.............................................................................. a trip I missed out on

My girlfriend Amanda has just returned home after visiting her sister who lives in Dubai.
It's a trip I had to miss due to my knee operation last week.

I have never been to Dubai but Amanda lived there for a couple of years but that was over 20 years ago.
In her own words Dubai had changed beyond belief... and was amazing.

These are just a few of the 600 plus images she brought back to share with me... 
...there's a lot of sorting out to be done.

These were taken around the Dubai Marina.

Before she left I asked to to try and capture an image of a Hoopoe for me... she exceeded all my expectations... not only did she identify Hoopoe's from my brief description she also managed to get some pretty impressive pics despite only having a 18-200mm travel lens on her camera.

Hoopoe (Upupa epops).

The Hoopoe is a bird that occasionally visits the south of England... I have never seen one.
Here's a few of the other birds she saw during her trip.

Parakeet.

Common Mynah (a member of the starling family).

Laughing Dove.

I hope to share more Dubai images over the next couple of days... but my favourite is still the Hoopoe.
I hope you have enjoyed Amanda's pictures... they are her first wild bird images.

Linking to Skywatch FridayWeekly Top ShotCamera Critters and The Bird D'pot

34 comments:

Elizabeth Edwards said...

gorgeous birds. so cool. love the one with the mohawk. ( :

Horst in Edmonton said...

Amanda took some awesome photos for you. Looks like there will be a lot of photography in her future.

John @ Beans and I on the Loose said...

Oh I do hope you share more of her photos as I will never see that place. Her photos are great - a good eye. Does she have a blog?

TexWisGirl said...

she's a great photographer! sorry you missed that cool trip, but am really hoping your knee surgery will be a success!

Carole M. said...

would be a minefield for photographic moments in Dubai it seems. I love the hoopoes and you certainly have a great photo of it for your collection Drew; they are such an intruiging bird. The parakeet looks similar to the male Eclectus though they do have a touch of red on the wing flank. The common mynah, we know as the Indian Mynah here. Not a very popular bird at all.

Anonymous said...

WOW! What a beautiful marina. She did a great job taking images of the birds. Happy Skywatching!

LV said...

Thank you for this interesting journey.

Brian King said...

She took some fantastic shots! I've seen a lot of photos of Dubai and it's a gorgeous place! So much wealth there it's not even funny. Love her bird photos! Sorry you had to miss this trip. Perhaps the two of you can go in the future.

LONDONLULU said...

She took some lovely photos! All the birds are beautiful but the hoopoe is special. And what a cityscape. Hope your knee gets better.

Indrani said...

Those buildings are amazing!
Cool bird captures by your friend.

Light and Voices said...

Mohawk bird is fantastic! Dubai doesn't look a bit like I imagined all those buildings looks more like New York City. Oh well. Change, we must accept change. And so it is.
JM Illinois
U.S.A.

Joop Zand said...

Great photo's Andrew.

Bob Bushell said...

Thanks for showing us the beautiful Dubai birds, they are really excellent. Thanks Amanda as well.

Pantherka said...

This is a very beautiful Andrew.
Skoda trip to Dubai. But the knee is the main priority.
Amanda shot a lovely photos.

Cezar and Léia said...

Amanda is very talented, these pictures are spectacular.Dubai is in my list here, I want to visit there someday!I'm impressed by the huge buildings, the view is fantastic!
Thanks for sharing these lovely postcards!
Happy weekend,
Léia

MadSnapper said...

these are beautiful and my favorite is that hoopoe bird. wow. i have never been in a city with skyscrapers like this...

Maya said...

Thank you Amanda, for the beautiful photos! The shot of the skyscrapers along the river is awesome. And my favorite is the Hoopoe, too :) Thank you, Andrew, for sharing. And hope you are continuing to feel better!

DeniseinVA said...

Oh my gosh Andrew, Amanda took some amazing photos. The Hoopoe bird particularly. What an extraordinary bird!

Magia da Inês said...

°º✿✿
°º✿ Fotografias incríveis.
º° ✿✿ ♫° · Beijinhos do Brasil

HansHB said...

A great serie of photos, well done!

Jeanne said...

This looks like such an incredible place, and that Hoopoe is quite an interesting bird

Susan said...

These are such amazing shots!

Anonymous said...

Amazing shots. I do love that Hoopoe!

Nefertiti said...

uel endroit magnifique et quels superbes oiseaux ! Oo

Unknown said...

I tried to photograph a couple of Hoopoe the other day with no success. That shot is amazing!

Snap said...

Amanda took some wonderful shots. I really like the Hoopoe, too! Happy Critter Day!

Pia said...

WOW! Wow to both, the Dubai photos and your bird shots. My favorite today is the Wiedehopf.

Dave said...

Great shots. I love the parakeet shot. Was it a wild bird?

The Herald said...

Didn't she do well? Great set of images Amanda.
And the Hoopoe?...what a fantastic bird/...never seen one (but hoping!)...and also very envious now!!

And Andrew, I bet you're gutted that you missed out on this trip? I hope you get to make it next time...[;o)

Anonymous said...

Wonderful shots! That Hoopoe is an interesting bird.

Unknown said...

Hope you are mending well, sad that you missed out on what looks like a fantastic experience.

EMily said...

Wow. 600 photos, that is a lot of sorting. I love the cityscapes! Very nice shots!

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

Amanda is a good bird photographer! (She'd been hanging around with the best before she went to Dubai though ;>) What a great place to visit -- that bird is incredible. Hope you both get to go back sometime before too long.

Unknown said...

Really its true that Dubai trip is one of the most amazing & memorable one. I really enjoyed it & also I want to take the details about places of Egypt so please suggest me in your next one. If you want to start your tour then you must follow the Dubai trips which is pleasant to see & unbelievable.