Walk with Dogs on Royston Heath

Today, Phil's birthday. we met up with Ian and Peter for a walk on Royston Heath with the 4 dogs. Meredith was in her element. Isla and Bracken are totally addicted to ball chasing while Ted and Flora were much more interested in the treats that Phil had. Taken with my not very powerful camera phone.

Bradgate Final Day

Just a few final images from Monday's visit to Bradgate. I was looking for different behaviour images and was intrigued by this Fallow Stag that repeatedly reached up to try and get at the foliage. The Jackdaws busy removing ticks etc from the Fallow deer were tolerated until they tried into the ears. The light was awful so Red Deer images not best quality but enjoyed watching the sparring etc.

Bradgate - The River

I paid a morning visit to Bradgate before returning home on Monday in very chilly and showery conditions. The river was full from all the recent rain and the autumn colours beautiful so a spent a bit of time with my Fuji compact capturing the flow of the water using the in built neutral density filter to give shutterspeeds of 1/60th (last image) down to 6.5secs (first image). The first two were with the camera on a rock but the rest handheld as the rain started and I needed to keep the lens protected. I can handhold at 1/8th but the 1/4 and 1/2 sec of some of these was a bit too slow. 

Bradgate Park: Birds

Although most photographers go to Bradgate for the deer, especially in the autumn, there are plenty of birds to snap. Starting with the shyer species - Grey Heron, Buzzard, Jackdaw and Pied Wagtail. Jackdaws are born with blue-grey eyes. Their irises change to brown in the first winter and white once they gain their adult plumage. The Black Headed Gulls and Mallard ducks gave plenty of opportunities for 'action' shots as well as portraits.

Ancient Trees at Bradgate

Bradgate has some wonderful old trees, particularly ancient Oaks where you can see how the trees have responded to fungal destruction of the heart wood by putting on extra growth on the perimeter to produce a stable structure. Branches that have fallen remain alive as long as there is some connection to the roots. The oldest trees have been strapped and supported by metal structures. Mainly the trees are still green with a few trees showing beautiful autumn hues.