Early doors

The sun was shining when my eyes opened at five, so I got up and took a stroll round the playing field with my camera after a quick breakfast. It was breakfast time for the birds too, young blackbirds and thrushes were hopping about on the recently mown grass, fending for themselves while their parents no doubt go about raising second broods. A robin family wasn't quite so advanced, with two juveniles being seen following an adult along a hedge.

Juvenile robin in the morning shade

There's a sort of mini-plantation in a part of the playing field and I'm pretty sure I saw willow tits there. I certainly saw long tailed tits along the edge of the wood. The wood itself was fairly quiet. Apart from blackbirds there wasn't much to see or hear. I did see a hare in the field at the far side of the wood, and even though I thought I was concealed, and it was good way off, it soon made itself scarce.

By the time I left the wood the early dog walkers were about and my return along the field edge proved very quiet. Most everything had been disturbed by the hounds. I whiled a few minutes away trying to catch a swallow skimming low over the grass. They are tricky beggars to snap. I managed one half decent pic of a swallow against a clear blue sky though. It would have been nicer had it been closer and better defined. Beggars can't be choosers.

Swallow

Back home and there's a trusting young blackbird about. It had better learn fast about cats. Fingers crossed.

Young blackbird

It can be quite assertive!

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Streamside damsels

Back in July 2007 I took a picture of a damselfly eating another insect. It wasn't a great shot. yesterday Mark Houghton blogged a picture of a banded demoiselle - the same speices of damsel. As I knew there were plenty to be found along a stream near the dragonfly pond I nipped out after boxing off what work I had to do by lunch time.

The lure of the pond was hard to resist and I took up the challenge of shooting a dragonfly on the wing. I left defeated - for now. It's a task that requires a concerted effort. On reaching the stream I was wondering where to start my search for the iridescent beasts when two males flew up before me. Starting the theme for the afternoon they steadfastly refused to settle anywhere where they were unobscured, or if they did they were at an inconvenient angle. Rather than hang around waiting for a good opportunity I went in search of more demoiselles.

Although country parks and local nature reserves are a public amenity, and often habituated by errant canines and children, they do have the advantage over more 'serious' nature reserves in that you can wander off the hard paths and are not restricted to looking at the wildlife through hide windows. So it was that I followed a lightly trampled path along the stream's grassy bank.

More damsels flew up and I soon learned to tread more carefully. In some spots there were many damsels to be seen. One was sure to land and pose nicely. It didn't. I managed a few half decent pics, but in most the damsels were partly out of focus because of the angle of their bodies, or there was a leaf partially hiding them. The sun had also disappeared, although the light was still good. Not that that mattered as I was shooting using flash. After a brief bee interlude I wended my way back along the stream.

Female banded demoiselle

On reaching the bridge where the path back to the car leaves the stream I took one last look at the spot I'd started in, but from the opposite bank. Two male banded demoiselles appeared and one landed in a perfect pose. I took a few shots from afar then moved in closer. It stayed put and I was able to get in as close as the lens would allow. Knowing I had at least one good shot I bid the poser a fond farewell and called it a day after a last look at the pond. The chippy beckoned.

 Male banded demoiselle

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A walk in the park

After an early tea I set off to a country park because the rain had eased up and the sun was looking like it might appear for the first time yesterday. When I got there the rain had beaten me to it. Not wet enough to put me off I sheltered the camera under my jacket to keep the drizzle off it.

The first top spot of the day was another Lost Ball! A lucky one because it had been washed downstream by the time I returned. The rainfall hadn't been much, but these upland streams don't need much to pick up pace and colour.

Lost ball 19

The dampness was keeping the smaller birds under cover, which was fine as my big lens is at the lens hospital, the waterfowl were mostly laying on the bank with their heads tucked under their wings. That made them easy to approach and photograph, particularly the bedraggled cygnets.

Ugly ducklings

I haven't visited the park for a lot of years, and it's more manicured than I remembered it, but still wild in places. Parts of it reveal it's industrial heritage, although nature is reclaiming it in the less visited areas. Of course dog walkers abound. Which can be fun when the dog is a lively five month old bearded collie!

 George

The rain had stopped by the time I'd completed my circuit so I headed for the hills of the Land that Time Forgot. Of course it's micro-climate was in operation and the world was misty and wet there. After climbing up the side of a stream that had been almost dry a week ago I descended and tried some arty shots of water droplets on bracken fronds. Nice idea. Poor execution.

Looking down the formerly-industrialised upland stream

Droplet

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Famous for three seconds

Blink and you'll miss it. Somewhere around 07.04

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It's been a while

The bird photography took over for a long time, but the close-ups have been getting more attention lately. No diopter used, just the 70-300, sometimes in 'macro' mode, sometimes not.

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