For the past few years we have been going away at or just after Christmas with Jonathan and Sue most recent years to East London. This year they are cat sitting in North London so we are meeting them in London some days but staying on our own in Beckton (North Woolwich). We arrived mid afternoon and walked down to the Albert Dock now occupied by East London University. No sunset but the lights and lit buildings gave good colours to play with.
Here a miscellany of shots from an Evening Flying show at Duxford which featured a pyrotechnics display by two motorised gliders. Some of the shots were taken by Phil on my camera as he didn't get his gear organised before leaving for work in the morning (used faster shutterspeed 1/640th for gliders) while I used a slow shutterspeed (up to 1.6secs) to accentuate the trails and shapes. The moon wasn't quite full but still impressive.
Saturday's walk was all about the weather - I sent off for my walk round Hardwick Wood and Caldecote in warm sunshine but the clouds soon gathered and, as the rain started, I noticed a glider against the storm clouds and then another and another. In all I counted 8 soaring in the thermals (plus a buzzard). I later found out these were from the UK Junior Gliding Nationals at Gransden Lodge. One glider failed to maintain height and must have landed in a local field somewhere. I got very wet but. like these skittish calves, dried off in some late afternoon sunshine. (for my info wider angle are phone images)
