When you are looking at the beautiful photos here, I hope you are enjoying them visually and immersing yourself in the details. But you can't help wondering how the shots are set up, I spend some time talking about it here.
Getting to the location is easy enough in Singapore with public transport reaching most places. However, there are still some surprisingly remote location. To reach Coney Island, I used my trusted road bike. It involves waking up before the sun is up and biking from Pasir Ris through Lorong Halus to reach the island. If you timed it well, you will reach it just as the sun's gentle ray hits the length of the island at a slight gradient. This golden bath of light will give you fantastic exposure.
You generally want to get the shots before the sun reaches the highest point. The afternoon sun is too glaring and creates a harsh shadow on the subjects. My favourite time for photography is from 7 to 9.30 a.m. You can do this at any parks in Singapore. With your back facing the rising sun, look for interesting creatures to photograph.
I seldom use a tripod as I prefer a more reactive style of photography. I cover more distance on foot and move a lot to frame the composition to get the bird. With a tripod, I tend to plant it down and wait for the birds to come to me.
Understanding the behaviours of the different species of birds is an important factor. If you can predict the next action the bird is going to take, you can prepare and frame the shot in advance.