Yearly Markers

Every year around March 21st, I record the flowers open in our garden to get a comparison with previous years. As everything is very advanced this year, I thought I would do one now. I will do it in a month's time to make the actual date comparisons.

Last Year Ann Miles Blog: Yearly Markers (pin-sharp.blogspot.com)

Another Impressive Sunset

A very different sunset to the night before - this time with mackerel clouds covering almost the entire span. I played around with foreground interest (some with on-camera flash) until, reluctantly, had to return home! (First image - stitched panorama; last image in-camera panorama of around 300degrees)

Evening light in Cambridge

A few more images from our evening walk round Cambirdge Backs with CCC Members. The Backs are a mass of Dandelion clocks at the moment and all the greens were so vibrant after the rain. Canoeists gave a splash of colour for the image but it did look hard work. 

Wildlife Garden Progress (7)

I manage my garden to help provide food and habitats for bees and other insects. Every few months I record the habitats and flowers so I can compare over the years. The Cowslips are just coming into full bloom in the front grassed area while the woodland area Primroses are still in bloom. I added some Grape hyacinths and Anemones around the trees for nectar feeders. The most popular plants with bees are Comfrey and Dandelions - conveniently seeded in various parts of the garden. The Kingcups around the pond attract various flies. In the shadier areas, there are Hedge garlic, Yellow archangel and Celandines while the main bed at the bottom of the garden is full of Red Campion and Foxgloves this year

Further Ultramacro Experiments - Extension Ring

I have been trying different setups for extreme macro and this is the simplest - using an extension ring on a 50mm macro lens. Images here taken from  f2.8 to F16. 

Cow Parsley and Dandelions At Their Peak

Cow Parsley (or prettier folk name of Queen Anne's Lace) and Dandelions are at their peal flowering and seeding at the moment - probably a couple of weeks earlier than average. Our local walks are lined by banks of white and the grass is full of Dandelion clocks.