A Few More Center Parc Birds

This Sparrowhawk stayed on a branch in a dark area a long way away for about 10 minutes; it was great to have more than the usual fleeting view. Plenty of activity on the northern lake with three Great Crested Grebes often very close, plus Coots and Mallards (also Tufted , Pochard and Goosander). Sad to see very few Chaffinches and those that were there had diseased legs with typical squatting position. Other birds, especially the Robin, for 4-year old Sadie who enjoyed time in the hide during their visit.

Clear Night at Elveden

Thursday night was very clear so had a second go at the stars - this time lower ISO -400; 30 secs and f5.6. Caught what I think was a shooting star in second image - Peter reported seeing one in Caambridge that evening I saw on facebook later.

Windy Night at Center Parcs

At Elveden with the family and had fun taking some images yesterday evening in the wood behind the 'Villa'. The gale had abaited a bit and the moon is nearly full but there were still strong gusts that swayed the tall pines and the clouds were moving very fast. There are a sprinkling of stars. I would like to have tried longer but haven't brought a remote with me. 30seconds f11 iso1600.

Center Parc Birds

 Today was my time to go out with camera and enjoy the forest. A frustrating but enjoyable  morning in the bird hide was followed by a walk round the perimeter of Center Parc in beautiful autumn sunshine. The abundance of food this autumn has drastically reduced the number of birds at the feeders or around the villas but it will certainly benefit bird populations this winter.

Firework Display

 Having missed other firework displays this year, I was delighted that Center Parcs put on a tremendous show last evening - one of the best that I have seen live. These are all straight shots on Fuji Nex other than taking out a post bottom right. The first shot is their test firing - for them to test the wind direction etc; for me to test exposure - 15sec at f3.5 iso 400 - a bit too bright but I do like the sky colour. During the main display, I used 0.4 sec and let the camera meter (f value f4-f7.1) I will probably take out the blue fountain light as it does take the eye.

Autumn Colours at Center Parcs

 Beautiful sunny dawn really showed off the autumn colours at Elveden. Just a touch of ground frost.

Tits in Flight

 The hide at Elveden Center Parc is the best place I have found to attempt to get birds in flight as the feeders are very high and the background a long way away. Despite two visits and a lot of exposures, I still didn't achieve a really sharp image image where it needed to be. Also, as I was shooting fairly late in the afternoon, I had to use ISO1000 to get an even tolerable 1250th of a sec at f7.1 - more depth of field and faster shutterspeed should be possible in the morning if the day is bright. Unfortunately will have to wait another year to try again.