Sunny Visit to Priory Park Bedford

The weather was warm and bright, and it had been a fair time since I had been to this place, but I was really looking forward to what it was going to offer on this occasion. What really pleased and surprised me was the variety of subjects. I had been concerned that it might be difficult to keep my distance from the expected numbers of people I would encounter as the weather was so warm and bright, but everything went well, and finding subjects for the camera was no problem at all.

Although the camera kit I brought with me gave me various opportunities, I only put the 60-600mm Sigma zoom on the Canon EOS R6, and attached it to the monopod with a small ball joint head, so I could have a stable support with minimal weight. As I have found from excursions in the recent past, this is kit I can carry all day long with excellent scope for almost every aspect of images I am likely to encounter. Although I did have another lens in my rucksack should I encounter subjects that needed real closeups, but everything that came my way, or I found when deep in the woods never needed any change.

One surprise for me were the zealous swans, as on more than a single occasion I would see one head aggressively towards another at high speed and with much slapping of wings on the water, causing the victim to head away at high speed. Now, I have no idea of the sex of the participants, and whether it was predatory or sexual, but my guess is that it could be related to both. I did my best to cover the encounters which seemed to occur a few times in quick succession, but my observations never settled on a conclusion.

There were times when shots I had hoped to capture failed, one in particular was definitely down to my not spotting a bird a few feet in front of me; it was very close, and only broke cover when I had become a foot away! Another failure was a series of shots where the bird I was panning was flying against the rippled water surface, and the entire sequence held the rippled water in focus, not the bird in flight, surprisingly I had not noticed this whilst shooting, a failure which really annoyed me!

I noticed that I spent longer in the park than the majority, so perhaps afternoon tea drew the majority to their homes. On my return trip back to the car, I closed the monopod leg, considering the afternoon’s shooting was over, when I came across a couple of energetic magpies, only to put the camera back to work for one last time.

I found the afternoon rewarding, and well worth the extra miles to exercise my legs and brain, and I hope that those who take the time to look at the images enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed the challenge of taking them.

Brief Recent Brogborough Lake Visit

        Time is a Commodity that is very precious, and I do my best to fill the hours in the most productive and satisfying manner, which under the present situation, my most valued activity is the taking of pictures. The hours spent keep me occupied mentally and physically and I am very fortunate in that this area abounds with places that provide me with activities that are challenging, such as the windsurfers on Brogborough Lake, and sailing and powerboat aficionados, on Stewartby Lake and, slightly further afield, the River Great Ouse in Bedford which has rowers, canoeists, insect- and bird-life, as well as nearby parks and woodland. All have provided me with subjects for my cameras and lenses, whilst involving both exercise, relaxation, and mental stimulation, not to mention, albeit at healthy distances; interaction with fellow humans, some of whom have shared photographic interests.

        This gallery indicates a small but varied set of images as evidence of my observations and interest over a couple of days, which were vital for my peace of mind as there have been several situations causing me considerable stress, some of which remain unresolved; and unrelated.
        It is reassuring to note that presently it would appear I must be providing others with something of similar interest because over eleven hundred visitors seemingly have spent some time, either looking at the galleries or reading the accompanying narrative. My only regret is that so few readers leave comments (I am not looking for flattery, but reader’s suggestions of subject matter, or locations for further visits that others have enjoyed and succeeded in capturing similar subjects or activities).
        I miss human contact, and variety, so every one of my ventures armed with a camera are of great personal satisfaction, and stress-relieving, but Variety is the Spice of Life, and very much something I seek. Earlier this year, I bought a new Canon body, and it was a difficult decision, but proved to be one of merit; it proved to allow me to spend more time using my Sigma 60-600mm on a monopod without sacrificing quality, because the stability of the monopod alone when using the EOSR 6 meant I could walk with it all day without becoming tired! This means I can even part with some of my other lenses because this Sigma is so impressive.

Nearby Stewartby

     

It was warm, but overcast when I parked up beyond the railway bridge on the outskirts of Stewartby. I assembled the EOS R6 on the monopod with the 60-600mm Sigma lens and crossed the road to enter the path leading to the open area beyond. I was lucky to get just three frames of a pair of Greylag Geese heading in the general direction of Ampthill, and one was fortunate to be used at the start of the two page gallery of images from my brief visit.

I was hoping for more birds and possibly rabbits, but the rabbits spotted me and scampered into the bushes before I could even consider a shot! They never reappeared. I spent a few minutes to see whether they re-appeared, then a few moments taking a look at the small lake bordered by reeds, but no signs of life appeared there either!

Every so often trains passed on the raised lines in both directions so I captured a few shots of them, which was good panning practice, and the new EOS R6 body performs excellently in giving me crisp images in short fast bursts. For those interested, I was shooting at ISO 1250, which at exposures of around 1/800 at f/10 gives excellent detail, with no need to smooth out Noise, and the sign writing on the side of the trains is totally legible despite the train passing at high speed. The quality this camera extracts from the Sigma lens across its range is faultless, and when it is sunny I am happy using the 2x Converter which for Sports and Wildlife shots, only using a monopod is a joy.

I am really looking forward to the relaxing of Lockdown and some wind to be blowing at Brogborough to enjoy using this new body at the extremes! Canon and Sigma – Thank you!

Milton Ernest Flowers

Every so often, I feel blessed that not only is the sun out, but I am somewhere that really benefits my choice of venue to take photos, and this afternoon at a spot by the River Great Ouse, Spring flowers greet me. My lens of choice for such a situation is the extremely versatile 24-70mm lens with its handy macro facility. The gallery of images displayed on this occasion are taken close to the river at Milton Ernest.

The size of the flowers I captured range from the smallest, a few millimetres in diameter to clusters of full-size variegated tulips, which shows how versatile this one lens can be when used exclusively on the EOS R6, as I was that afternoon. After my long telephoto zooms this is one of my favourite lenses because of this very versatility.

What pleased me amongst these images were the interesting curves that the leaf blades formed alongside the flowers themselves. I rounded off the set of images with shots of the river bank and, as I walked back up the lane, the clouds looked ominous over my parked car, so I captured that as a fitting end to my afternoon.