Lakenheath

Very windy, cool and some rain at lakenheath so not ideal bird photography conditions so was please to come away with one or two shots that I like including my first ever photo of a Bittern. Not the sharpest image but shows the golden plumage and green legs. The Sand Martin is also a first and I am also happy with the Heron, Whitethroat and Reed Bunting.

Burwash Time Again

Visited Burwash Manor Farm for the first time this year to try hand at the Dragons. Lots of Emperors around as well as Azure Damselflies. Delighted to get a pair of sparring Emperors complete with water droplets (1/2500th second) but they were only small part of the frame unfortunately. There seemed to be an abundance of Male Azure damselflies so that when a coupled pair were attempting to lay in the water, they were constantly 'bombed' by batallions of males.

Greenwich

Took the infrared camera on a visit to Greenwich today - the light was very harsh but one or two worked quite well. The panorama above shows part of Olympic village being constructed in the distance (click to view larger).

Beneficial Visitors to the Garden

Mrs Tiggiwinkle (or perhaps Mister) wandered across the lawn this morning. Always glad to see one in the garden as they help keep down the slug. The Lacewing is also welcome as both the adults and larvae feed on greenfly.

Iris Time in the Beren

The irises in Tinch and John's garden in Toft are at their best at the moment - such a profusion of shapes and colours.

A robin helping keep the irises caterpillar free and enjoying a statue to perch on.

Shuttleworth Evening Flying

The light in the first part of the evening was ideal - low sunlight with plenty of interesting clouds as well as blue patches. The clouds built up in the second half and it started to rain just as the show finished at 7 oclock. After last year's trials, I settled on a 640th of a second which gave a chance of sharp images but with some movement in the propeller.

Burton-on-Trent

A few pictures from a visit on Thursday evening on my way to lecture to their camera club.
Lovely evening light to enjoy a picnic in the meadows by the languid waters of the Trent.

Sorry, but more images from the pond - this time using same lens as before (300mm with extender ring) but now on a tripod so smaller apertures possible.

Damselflies

Spent a couple of hours photographing Red and Azure Damselflies as respite from too much computer work. Used 300mm lens with extension ring - gives great separation from background but difficult to get enough depth of field. The 'naughty' pond skaters is my favourite with the muted colours and the indentations on the surface from the feet.

Flying Rods

The surface of the River Wensum on Wednesday was a mass of flying 'gnats' and as they changed speed they appeared as flying rods with lots of rotating wings. I have never seen this with the naked eye before. The photos are taken at 1/1000th (not quite enough to freeze wing movement, 1/40th (about what my eye saw) and 1/15th both up wind where they moved slower and downwind with very fast movement. Has anyone else witnessed this - the multiple images seen without the camera were quite new to me.

Superb Light at Pensthorpe

Lots to photograph at Pensthorpe today including Bearded Tit with its lunch and Reed Warbler. The colours on the Ruff and Mandarin Drake were amazingly vibrant in the late afternoon sun.