Sunday 31 May 2015

Too short a date...

June is fast approaching and still it blows a cold wind. For the second year running I am part of a dragonfly survey on Wicken Fen and I just haven't been able to get on to the reserve for the first count due to this run of cold weather. For the survey to take place the climactic conditions have to be just so - minimum of 17C; light winds; strong sun...and we just haven't had that combination down here on any day when I could get out...with June arriving next week I am feeling frustrated to say the least...Saturday? That isn't a shoe-in either...so we wait...

Photographically the week has been both good and not so good...I have been out on the Brecks looking for rarities - which was enjoyable...For those of you who don't know The Brecks or Breckland is an area of East Anglia with a unique habitat - dry, warm sandy and chalky grassland - grazed by rabbits to produce a short sward. This is ideal for insects and a number of rare plants...From the roads it looks bland, but when you get out of the car and have a walk it is a wonderful habitat...if you are in the area it is well worth a visit...





common mouse-ear...




field mouse-ear...




hairy rock-cress...




horseshoe vetch...






above and below - purple milk-vetch...








quaking grass...





sweet cicely...


Not only lovely plants to see...they also have great names... On the same day as my first visit to the Brecks I visited a reserve that is only open one day a year...it is the home of the UK's largest population of military orchids...it was a real privilege to be able to photograph them although this was made tricky by the presence of other people with the same objective and one person who for some reason wanted to film a static orchid and set herself up next to the best specimen in a way that precluded others. I was on site for half an hour or so and she didn't move for that time...I went in, took my pictures and left so to allow others to do the same, shame other people don't do likewise...














It is a delightful plant though... well worth the visit... also on the reserve is a large population of common twayblade - another type of orchid...



Not so showy - but the flower structure is lovely... The two habitats were excellent to visit...and the plants...well see for yourselves!!!

Insect life has also been photogenic this week...with numerous species making an appearance...




azure damselfly...




common blue damselfly...





common blue butterfly - photographed in a shower of rain...makes the light nice and soft...





froghopper - creator of cuckoo-spit...





green-veined white butterfly..





above and below - hawthorn shield bug...








holly blue butterfly ovipositing on holly flowers...





the hoverfly Leucozona lucorum





leaf beetles...




small copper butterfly...





soldier beetle...





spiderlings dispersing from the nest ball...






muslin moth...sheltering amongst grasses...

I have also been working on my monochrome series of British wild flowers - the latest set can be found here... - look for the cow parsley set... Now I have had an interesting week with Dreamstime... (my portfolio from this link) who are now not taking wild flower pictures due to a glut on the market of free images (usually taken by enthusiastic amateurs) - hey competition is good but it would be nice for everyone out there to put their reputation on the line on a daily basis rather than shoot when they feel like it and then give images away, probably for the kudos of seeing their images in print...ALL professionals suffer from this...we have to live with it...but it grates a bit...

Hits on my Flickr site have increased due to sharing images on the BBC Springwatch Group...so if you want you can enjoy my images there as well... The most worrying thing from this week is the collapse of viewers to this blog...I had been steadily building a seemingly loyal readership with hits increasing week by week...suddenly last week these hits vanished... over 50% down on the previous six weeks...if you enjoy this weekly skip through my images pass it around...share it with friends and family...

So, I'm writing this on Friday morning...looking at the rain from my window and wondering how much longer...let's all hope eh...?

See you next week,

TTFN









Sunday 24 May 2015

May you never lay your head down...

Ahhh May...my favourite month...nature is just wonderful and in May this wonder is all the more obvious...I can't get out with my Nikons enough during May - when the weather is bad I feel robbed of wild time...but when I am out time stands still...




bird's-foot trefoil...




bugle - normally blue, this is a white form...





guelder rose...




beaked hawk's-beard...






iris bud...





iris leaves...






marsh valerian...





oxeye daisy...






ragged robin...




wood avens...





wild mignonette...





iris in flower...


Well, that was a good start was it not...?  Some lovely plants...and amongst them...




alder fly...




this guy was immobile...maybe a bit cold...





green-eyed crane-fly...






small hoverfly on a grass stem...





noon fly...







nursery web spider...





I found this peacock butterfly on a black board walk...probably basking in an effort to get warm...






snail-eating fly...






...and his lunch...






soldier beetle - looking a little precarious...






tiny spider on a cow parsley umbel...






the beautiful camouflage of this spider was a bonus...I had originally stopped to photograph the plant...






female variable damselfly...

Not a bad week so far...I have also had a few insurance shoots - damaged cars for the insurance companies and their clients...maybe not the most exciting work but a staple and it keeps the money coming in.  I have been updating the usual sites - links to follow...

Big day out planned for Sunday - a Natural History fest around Norfolk taking in a military orchid site, Weeting Heath, Cranfield Camp and Lansdown disused railway...all of which I hope are holding some great species for my Nikons...all will be revealed in good time...


So, to close for this week - here are a couple of landscapes - habitats if you like taken on days when the weather was kind...




a wild-flower meadow dominated by buttercups - in fact three separate species of buttercup - creeping, meadow and bulbous; if you ever walk through such a field check the species carefully...they are not all the same...




A managed river in Ely, with pollarded willows on the banks and floating and marginal vegetation...great for breeding birds and invertebrates; it looks good as well!

And finally some of my latest portraits of my son Quinn...hope you like these...










Now, for those links...I regularly update my Facebook page and my Flickr pages; you can find a more eclectic selection of my images on my Behance and an updated Website is also worth a look. Finally if you would like to buy any of my images a large selection can be found here on Dreamstime.


I hope you all have a good week...stay safe...peace to you all,

TTFN