Sunday, August 30, 2009
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Infrared Images from Cambridge
Definitely weather for Ducks on Friday. Many of the tourists taking punt trips were provided with umbrellas
Very pleased with the Water lily images - looks like an Xray in that you can see through the overlapping leaves.
It is very unpredictable as to what colours are generated by the infrared making the processing stage very interesting.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Saturday, August 22, 2009
The Best of the Bunch
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
More images from ICBP
Monday, August 17, 2009
International Centre for Birds of Prey
We called at the International Centre for Birds of Prey on the way back from Wales. It is situated near Newent and has a very extensive collection of raptors. They have a very good record for breeding from their captive birds including a Golden Eagle.
Visit their website (www.icbp.org) to learn more about the Centre.
These two peregrine pictures were taken during one of their flying displays - I love the graphic nature of the images - remind me of the paintings in the Thorburn bird books that I have treasured since I first became interested in bird watching.
The Yellow-billed kite image isn't unfortunately very sharp but I was so amazed by the Concorde impersonation that I have shared it on my blog
Visit their website (www.icbp.org) to learn more about the Centre.
These two peregrine pictures were taken during one of their flying displays - I love the graphic nature of the images - remind me of the paintings in the Thorburn bird books that I have treasured since I first became interested in bird watching.
The Yellow-billed kite image isn't unfortunately very sharp but I was so amazed by the Concorde impersonation that I have shared it on my blog
Friday, August 14, 2009
Blaenavon
I was expecting the Welsh Valleys to be littered with remnants of the coal and steel industry. In fact, almost all traces of the former industries have been completely erased - the buildings demolished and the slag heaps landscaped into country parks for mountain biking and such like.
In December 2000 UNESCO named the Blaenavon Industrial Landscape as a World Heritage Site for the following reason:
"The area around Blaenavon bears eloquent and exceptional testimony to the pre-eminence of South Wales as the world's major producer of iron and coal in the 19th century. All the necessary elements can be seen, including coal and ore mines, quarries, a primitive railway system, furnaces, the homes of workers, and the social infrastructure of their community."
We visited both the Iron works and the Big Pit coal mine.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Unexpected birds
While visiting Treorchy to photograph the buildings and cemetery, we were amazed to see both a heron and a dipper in the stream alongside the busy main street. The heron took off almost immediately but the dipper continues to move along the bank dipping into the water at regular intervals. It then rested for a time on one leg giving us a chance to photograph it.
Kite in the Sunshine!!
After Monday's rain and poor light, yesterday was perfect for photographing the kites. They also obviously enjoyed the weather as, at one point, there were 20 of them circling overhead in the thermals. This one did an obliging quick fly past just at a distance to be correct in the frame (small crop behind the bird to decentralise it)
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Red Kites
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Old and New
Pembroke Dock
We spent Saturday walking around Pembroke Dock - a town waiting to be discovered by the tourists. They are hoping to get a Harry Potter museum set up there as parts of the films were shot in the area. This will certainly bring in the masses but I doubt they will appreciate the stylish Georgian architecture and Naval History from Nelson's time to the Sunderland Flying Boat station in the last war.
Upper picture is Shipwright Inn and Gun Tower Museum.
Lower picture one of the fine Georgian terraces in the Naval Dockyard
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Ramsey Island
Thursday, August 6, 2009
National Botanic Gardens of Wales
Today we visited the National Botanic Gardens of Wales built in 2000 with the main greenhouse designed by Norman Foster. It is the world's largest single-span glasshouse measuring 110 m long by 60 m wide.
We then went to Pendine Sands, a 7 mile beach of firm sands used to set four world land speed records, including two by Malcolm Campbell.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
From wet Wales
Monday, August 3, 2009
On Sunday, we visited the Newport Transporter Bridge only to find it has been closed for two years and isn't due to repopen till October 2010. It is one of only two such bridges in the UK - the other being in Middlesborough. You can just see the transporter platform going across - the workmen use it to get their supplies to the workshop on the other bank
We then went into Cardiff and walked round Cardiff Bay area - I greatly enjoyed the Senedd building - wonderful architecture and interesting heat and water conservation features in the design.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Two Monochrome Images from Hereford
Ascari's Cafe Hereford
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