Cambridge Firework Display

Last night was the return of a free firework display in Cambridge after a three-year wait and was witnessed by a large crowds despite the rainy conditions.  

Bradgate Park in the Rain

The forecast was for thundery showers in Leicestershire on Sunday morning but, undeterred, 6 RPS members met up around dawn to visit Bradgate Park. We didn't get the thunderstorms, just torrential rain with occasional 'drier' interludes when we could move on from one tree shelter to the next until the afternoon. Challenging conditions with obviously low light; the first shot was at 1/30th second handheld! The Grey heron was even grumpier than last year in the snow and it is amazing what other 'hobbyist' do in the rain - I am surprised they risked electric cars in the rain (my telephoto lens proved not to withstand such extreme conditions and is residing in a bag of rice at the moment - hopefully drying out)

Storm on Freshwater Bay, Isle of Wight

Friday was very windy with gusts up to 50mph and near horizontal rain - not pleasant for being out but well worth time spent in a shelter on Freshwater Bay photographing the spray and waves. These were taken with shutterspeeds  from1/3200th to 1/8th second, all handheld, some with deliberate camera movement added. 

Rain at Last

Last night we had our first rain shower for weeks in our village in Cambridgeshire. Not enough to make much difference to the parched soil and withered plants but a start we hope. Images taken with legacy Olympus 50mm lens on my Fuji system (plus 16mm extension tube) - gives wonderfully 'soft' images yet with sharpness where in focus.

Dorset 1: Welcome to Kingcombe

A bit of a wet start to our stay in Dorset but the snails are happy. Great to walk in the flower-filled meadows and find orchids in large numbers.