Private Garden Life

I set off in sunshine, with the distinct possibility my hope for uninterrupted sunshine might well be doomed, however, the Gods appeared to have been benevolent on this occasion, as the dark clouds were slow-moving, and seemed to pass by without dropping their ominous load.

In order to keep my distance from the avian visitors to this garden, I opted for my trusty long zoom, Sigma 60-600mm lens on the EOS R6, as I could operate easily to get both close-up detail, and more general views, with minimal moving around, so as to avoid disturbing the myriad birds which visit the garden.

The variety of colours on show was a delight, and I was lucky enough to get a series of shots of one brave bird, who came to bathe in the water, and be generous in moving to different locations to keep my attention! I also ventured to the riverside nearby, but of the three ducks originally close to the bank two beat a hasty and vigorous flapping retreat, the other simply headed off determinedly, keeping its head away from me, but no energy exerted to leave the water!

I will let the images captured tell their own story of an ultimately very relaxing afternoon close by the river.

Another River Gt. Ouse Visit

There are times when Britain defies the idea that all we talk about is our weather, and this day, certainly in Bedfordshire, just had to be one where everywhere I turned everyone simply got on with enjoying it! There were no clouds to be seen from horizon to horizon, just clear blue. I had headed north to a place I had visited on the river that seems to wander in circles around the county, never giving a clue as to where it might be heading. Perhaps the message is: “Forget your compass, just follow me”! I did just that after taking the A421 north until I could get on the A603 and headed to Great Barford. The bridge here tells a story, it has many arches meaning it was built to defy the river and reach beyond its clutches to reach other destinations rather than be contained by its leisurely meanderings. Yes, the river provided water for growing crops, but it also gave the means to reach elsewhere to sell them and to reach higher ground to be safe from its dangers. The bridge not only has many arches, but it has history — a record of being constantly rebuilt stronger and wider over centuries — people here needed the river, and realised it had to be managed.

On this day the river gave over some of its power to the people to be enjoyed, and the sunshine brought them out cheerfully and in relaxed mood, small family groups remained in relaxed isolation, or walked with young families, or exercised with their dogs; older folk sat on some of the benches, at peace, watching others pursue their activities. People individually enjoying both the calm and the exercise in the open fields or on the paths, or on the water, paddling or tending their boats. In the air were birds flying, also with no clearly defined destination; Time appeared to have slowed down in the mild air, and even the young children appeared serene.

I spent some time at the same pace capturing what I saw, before moving elsewhere to see a pair of tractors tilling the ground and raising the dry soil in the slight breeze. I moved elsewhere to capture views of some of the houses and churches and, the ravens and pigeons on the ground or the pollarded trees, and finally I got shots of Spring blossom, fields of golden rapeseed and before leaving the area, I strolled around a lone church which remains consecrated, but like its neighbour buildings seems to be from a bygone era; in retirement.

Two Nearby Nature Locations

A successful walk around the paths of the Forest Centre after a short spell closer to home, and all in aid of exercise, and fresh air. Once again, my handy recording tool, the LUMIX FZ10002 was brought once again into service, to keep my eye and brain active, especially since the natural world does not stand still, and this season brings freshness, and the juxtaposition of the one that preceded. Sadly, due to human behaviour, Winter seems to have passed us by in this part of the UK! And it is my contention that the lack of that cleansing period of hard frosts has had a detrimental effect on our ability to limit the transmission of the Coronavirus in England.

I wonder whether we will take note of our adverse effect upon this planet and in the future, work harder to preserve this vital ecosystem. I gather there is evidence of less pollution due to our reduced travelling, and I think there was mention that the River Thames is becoming less polluted. But, in my walks of late, I have been appalled by the surge in discarded packaging on many of the routes I have been taking, and far more disturbing, the amount of extra dog excreta along many walks (on this particular trip, there were several examples that had not been even bagged, which is totally unacceptable behaviour!) — I feel ashamed of my fellow humans, and am very concerned for our children and their families if this disrespect continues for the planet which provides our home. This behaviour has to be severely curtailed, since we are also polluting the space beyond our planet with the detritus of past Space vehicles’ spent engine stages; just because a removal procedure is somewhat fraught with difficulty, should not be an excuse to simply do nothing.

I made a serious mistake on this trip, I failed to take note of the battery charge level, and hence why the trip involved two different locations, as I had to hasten home to get another fully charged one! However, it does add to the variety. It also gave the opportunity to get shots of a very different type of bee, which I spotted on the ground close to a gate, it has a very pointy proboscis, but although I have seen one before, I know nothing about it, so will spend sometime trying to learn more about it.

Overall, it was a very satisfying time in the warm sunshine, with a pleasant breeze, and some interesting shots for me to ponder later.

MM-Walk in the Fields

Having spent the afternoon of the Monday Bank Holiday really close to home to capture the Spring Growth in the hedgerows and the elusive male Orange Spot Butterflies, making the most of the warm sunshine, the following Day was destined to be largely seated in front of my Mac, spending time cropping and adjusting the images into a gallery to be put up on the blog.
This ensures I cannot spend too much time in the great outdoors and disobey the mores of Social Distancing whilst under the Covid pandemic, whilst still ensuring I keep body and brain active, and exercised regularly. On this trip, the large part of my time was spent without even a single soul visible for at least eighty percent of this period. Out in the large open field, the Marston Moretaine Church does not display its characteristic separate bell tower and seems ordinary and unassuming, beyond the shielding trees.
On three distinct occasions when I caught sight of a white butterfly with orange wing tips, they were making the most of the energy supplying sunshine to spend most of their time in the air, with only fractions of a second stationary, so with almost no time to frame them, let alone consider focussing. This is the single most frustrating aspect of using a mirrorless camera – one needs some appreciable time to follow and focus on such a subject in order to expect to obtain a reasonable shot, and with almost constant sunshine, the butterfly has the advantage! On one spell when the insect was working along the banks of the stream, it alighted on a flower probably three times in a five-minute spell, and the aggregate time it was stationary over that period never amounted to a complete single second! The really galling aspect was on that occasion, I never had a chance to get it in frame, let alone get an image!
Likewise, the stream was both deep and with overhanging grasses, reeds and other foliage, making it difficult to capture the few shots I did manage, of a pair of Mallard ducks making their way along. Fortunately, I enjoy a challenge as I need to master the controls of this particular camera, because they are far less intuitive than my Canon cameras. (I am also reminded of the saying involving 'Old Dogs' and 'New Tricks') and I freely admit that I have many more difficult-to-reach 'Little Grey Cells' that lie tantalising buried within the Cortex I laughingly call my brain! – I put this down to 'Anno Domini' and the sad truth that my dominoes are easily knocked over in a cascade!
However, the fortuitous finding of this Lumix FZ1000 Mk2 does mean that I can have it with me all day without it ever becoming a burden, and the quality it can achieve is exceptional, despite having thus far not reached that Nirvana where I find it entirely intuitive (this is when I am reminded of the mathematical term asymptote, and as if to remind myself, I accept I will only ever come close, in that Infinity always keeps its distance!)
After the trip as I reached home, a lone starling atop my roof was singing its little heart out, presumably hoping for its sweetheart to respond. Aha! My little Leica-lensed Lumix, can capture you clearly from down here!

A Short Walk With a Camera

  To stay healthy at any time for a man in his mid-seventies, he needs to keep both body and mind fit, and in the straitened times we now find ourselves, the key to being able to survive, if one unfortunately contracts the Covid-19 Virus is ensuring the body's health at the time.

I am fortunate in having open spaces close at hand, so I am making the most of the fine weather by taking long walks, and a camera; the former to exercise the body, the latter to keep the eyes and brain active, by taking a keen interest in all that surrounds me, and when observing others, being aware of keeping a good distance between them and myself for the safety of both parties.
Either one of us may well be hosting the virus, so maintaining this separation is both selfless and selfish, apart from being a strict discipline that has to be observed. From both personal observation and similar anecdotal evidence from others, it would seem that where say a month ago if someone was walking along either the same path as yourself or on the other side of the road, most would avoid any conversation or even glances; of late on each occasion I have been pleasantly surprised at how almost every person of either sex or any age, now will catch one's eye and offer a greeting, many times with a smile, and often a brief conversation. I wonder – am I being overly optimistic that when the peak of this crisis is behind us, we will still retain this behaviour?
On this trip I once again took along the lightweight, but very versatile Lumix FZ10002 zoom, mirrorless bodied camera, and started recording images of flowers, initially in my own garden, then the nearby flower boxes and front gardens belonging to my neighbours. I spotted a small unusual bee that on this occasion was unable to capture as it was was way too speedy! It is unusual in that unlike other bees it has a pronounced pointy nose (note the highly technical description! – Not!)
I had no fixed plan for the subjects I was intending to capture, but fresh blossom was certainly an early feature, as were Tulip heads as yet not fully open, likewise very young and fresh leaves, beginning to unfurl. Later in my walk it was other buds, a cat and a lone Ladybird, that soon disappeared beneath a leaf.
The walk lasted far longer than it will take anyone viewing the gallery, but I am trying hard to master the different behaviour of a mirrorless camera, and I am certainly not yet as effective with this, but I am certainly impressed with the quality it can achieve when I consider its cost and versatility, coupled to its portability.

A Marston Moretaine Walk

Yesterday I needed exercise, and the Marston Vale Forest seemed a good place to walk in sunshine and fresh air, away from contact with other humans. I took only my LUMIX fz20001 and walked along the main road to the gated entrance on the opposite side to the row of houses — encountering no one! Once through the gate, I had walked to the first viewing platform of the wetland area before I met a soul, and these were a couple in quiet conversation, who probably did not even register my presence. I climbed the steps to take in the view from this open air hide — all that was to be seen were some rooks and a lone Greylag.
The flowers in the opening and closing galleries were taken in the walk to and from the Forest Centre. The camera that recorded every image in this group was the LUMIX FZ 10002; which now accompanies me when I am not toting my heavy Benbo with one of my Canon bodies and the Sigma 60-600mm Sports lens. The irony is that the LUMIX should be easier to use, but because it has so many different functions, I find it harder to find the limited facilities I require, at speed! This is why I try to take this camera out as often as possible, so I can feel as confident as using my Canon gear. The drawback is that due to an aging brain, when I then next take out one of my Canons is that I struggle to remember how to do something that used to be second nature!
Initially the route I took kept close to the outer boundary of the reserve, and by pure luck I found myself taking a picture on the far side of a brick structure I had photographed only a few days back; it still has me puzzled as to its original purpose. I suspect it is a remnant from an erstwhile railway line, but viewing using Google Earth did not expose any further answer.
Today’s photo trip does show that Spring is definitely coming on, spurred by the several days of welcome warm sunshine. The wind has also moderated over the last couple of days. At various points along my circular trip, work upon the Covanta Incinerator can be seen with its tall cranes highly visible in red against the blue sky. Of more personal interest, I spotted my first butterfly of this year, the Peacock. The variety of colours and textures is very much in evidence at this time of year, hence why I enjoyed that afternoon trip; young leaves often exhibit far greater texture in their early stages on growth than their later full size. The variety of textures I found in dead wood, dried, crazed soil and discarded bark, and the curves of the paths are all featured in the gallery of images from this walk with a camera. Coming away from the Park, effectively bookended the gallery with what caught my eye once back on the road back to my house in the front gardens I passed.

Brief Marston Lake – Spring Flowers

The newly- AA-assisted boost to my flattened Car Battery, was very welcome, but due to the delay, I was unable to make the longer distance travel to pastures new. I chose to make the most of the time whilst my running engine was recharging to at least be somewhere close with possibilities of capturing either some of the wildlife, or at least the fresh young growth in the woods enclosing Marston Lake.

It meant that I could leave the car at tickover in the knowledge it was safe, whilst I was able to capture some of the burgeoning new growth that surrounds the lake, and I was lucky to spot some water lilies on the far side, with the bonus of a damselfly or two alight on the  brand leaves, as if they were ‘helipads, insects for the use of’ – in RAF-parlance!

Since speed was of the essence, I decided to forego a tripod, in favour of the monopod, and this was prompted in part by two appearances of a rabbit breaking cover, but my presence, made it decide not to risk further exposure, so my patience on this occasion was not rewarded. So I returned to taking shots of some of the local blossom and the insects that were assisting their pollination, somewhat warily in the presence of wasps!

By the lily pads I had hoped to capture the damselflies in flight, but they seemed happy and secure just afloat on the leaves basking in the warm sunshine, barely disturbed by the rippling water swirling their islands.

I hoped that finally my battery would have sufficient charge to call a halt to the wasting of valuable fuel, and turned off the engine  allowing me to lock the car and wander around in the hope of finding other subjects, but was out of luck if I was hoping for activity such as Grebe on the lake, or woodpeckers in the surrounding trees.

Since it was the end of the week, the anglers were arriving presumably to spend the night under canvas for an early start on Saturday, and so I headed back, hoping the car would start; it did, and so I left the lake to its natural owners, and their hopes.

In Search of Rivers and Lakes

 

Using the SatNav map, I search out locations with reasonable access to spots where carrying a heavy tripod and long lens is manageable from where I am able to park. On this occasion, I investigate the path leading to a bridge over the River Great Ouse in the village of the beautifully named Newton Blossomville. The first walk is exploratory carrying the EOS R camera with just the 24-70mm lens, and I am reminded of the words “fortune favours the brave”, because I made that decision on the possibility of carrying the many times heavier tripod and long lens in vain. I mention this because there were many more brighter periods in that initial trip than the subsequent one with the heavier kit! The sun brought out simply countless demoiselle damselflies on that exploratory trip!

I returned to the same spot a short while later and the sun was behind the largest cloud in the sky with a long wait for the wind to blow it it by, but I did manage at least a couple of shots. Their colouration is very striking in comparison to the far more common light blue damselfly.

The river divides into several individual channels, and later I learned from two local gentlemen that the ruins I had spotted had been a water mill in the early part of the last century, the bridge I was later to cross, effectively bridges the island that lay in the path of the river at this point. I did see a bed of reeds on the far bank that looked as if it had been a Swan’s nest, but there none in attendance during the entire time I was there, and two women I spoke to seemed to confirm my observation. Another small islet had been taken by a Mallard pair who were using it as a preening station.

I heard many different birds calling, but most seemed to be tree bound, and many were well-hidden, occasionally spotted only when moving briefly to a new spot before disappearing from view once more. In the field beyond the blue painted bridge, the numerous sheep were gently grazing, and as I moved close to the river bank, I moved slowly to avoid spooking them, but the views of the bridge from this side were almost non-existent due to the dense tree cover right up to the water’s edge.

I will likely visit again on a sunny day with my much lighter long lens to see whether I can capture further shots of the elusive, and beautiful demoiselle damselfly, now I know they favour warm sunshine, and hide when the sun is shaded. The time was well spent, but sadly no sightings of Kingfishers which was largely the reason for that afternoon’s trip.

A Climb to Millbrook Church

As many who know me will realise, I rarely travel without a camera, and on those occasions, I will have made a conscious decision not to be taking photos, or my family will have made that decision for me! Yes, I do have a phone  that Sports a camera, but for me that is not a serious option. For several years my choice has been a single lens reflex, and although I started as a Nikon devotee, there came a point where I opted to jump from film to digital, and at that juncture Canon offered a better quality than Nikon, so I jumped ship. 

Both camera makers spent the early digital years, swapping the lead in terms of quality or ease of use, but as I simply had to wait a short while when Canon was behind before the next model made a jump, I stayed loyal. This was as much due to my investment and the prohibitive financial cost of making such a jump. Both systems are very equal, and there are subtle handling differences which would mean at critical moments I could fail to capture a shot.

Recently, as I made the switch to a mirrorless body, I fell into just such a situation. I had my recently acquired EOS R and Sigma Sports 60-600mm crash to the ground, and whilst both were being repaired, I went back to my DSLRs, only to find I had lost the fluidity in the handling, that used to be second nature! The differences are only slight, but my brain is less agile than it was when I made the jump to digital all those years back!

I made a trip to my accountant today, and on the return trip, I parked the car in the village of Millbrook, and grabbing the camera I took a steep path up to the top to see what the views might be, and whatever else might be of interest. It was only when I reached the summit and saw the view, that I realised I had actually been to this same spot before, but on that occasion, I had started from the opposite side of the same hill! It had not been a wasted journey, but it was one of those forehead-slapping moments!

The end result is a single page gallery of what caught my eye, and certainly gave me a quality that justified my purchase, and its flip screen made all the difference to the ease with which I was able to get the low angles of some of the shots, and also the landscapes, due to the lack of shutter vibration, coupled with the larger pixel count inherent in the file size increase over my 5D MkIII, had I taken the same shots with the latter.

It was a useful opportunity to become more familiar with the EOS R for when I need to work swiftly and intuitively in the future.

Marston Moretaine – Bus Stop Birds in the Bushes

 

On returning down Station Road, having posted a letter, the cacophony of birds in the bushes by the bus stop was to tempting a sight to ignore, so my return trip was at a brisker pace as I considered grabbing my medium weight tripod putting on the gimbal head and the Sigma 150-600 Sports lens and seeing what I might catch in the sunshine.

When I returned equipped, I noticed that there were the first signs of blossom on the branches, and the chirruping was still as busy as when I had passed before, so I just hoped that my presence was not going to be the kiss of death to my chances of capturing some shots of the birds I had spotted earlier.

To give myself a good chance, I had brought along some seeds to establish I was there to show my potential subjects some generosity, and I liberally spread handfuls close to the bushes but at a good distance from where I had set down the tripod.

The bushes were a mass of fine branches, which I knew would make it tough to capture the birds without intervening branches coming between myself and the birds, but there again it was probably also the reason why the birds felt moderately secure. It was not too long before some of the birds began returning, giving me a chance to see what I could capture, there seemed to be house sparrows and starlings as far as I could tell, with the very occasional pigeon coming in, but though I was not going to take shots of them in the bush, When one settled on a nearby roof ridge, I did sneak a couple of shots since it’s arrival in the bushes had caused a few starlings to make a swift exit, leaving them bare of birds.

I stayed a while and was occasionally involved in conversation from passers by, my next door neighbour heading home to collect her children from school, and a mother and young child, who informed me the bushes were hers, so I showed her and the boy a couple of shots on the back of the camera.

Search for Signs of Spring – Stewartby Lake

Having recently had the first cataract operation, I have not been out with my camera long enough to create a gallery of images, but this afternoon, as the sun was forecast to shine, I gathered a camera and three lenses and headed for the lake at Stewartby, in the hope I might be able to record the first tentative signs of Spring.

Certainly upon my arrival, it did not look too promising. Undeterred, I walked slowly in the counter-clockwise direction, with the 100mm macro on the 5D MkIII, looking into the largely hawthorn bushes to right and left; every so often venturing down paths that led down to the foreshore on my left, or the more dense right side, which had a few paths that led to the outer boundary at first, and later to a brook deep down beyond steep banks, where I did not venture!

I slowly gathered images of occasional attempts at hedge-laying; I was unconvinced that what I saw was likely to be too effective, but I am no expert. I find that very often the dying leaves in hedgerows, are full of rich colour, and on more than one occasion I captured those. There were some new memorial seats along the path, with some excellent incised carvings. I was able to capture some fresh blossom and even a lone daffodil;  I had hoped for more and better shots and some more sunlight, but nevertheless I felt rewarded by what  I had managed from such unprepossessing beginnings, and soon my phone beckoned with its harsh staccato beat to let me know that the next eye drops were due, and I still had to get back to administer them. It will be tougher yet on Saturday, when I will need to carry a freezer block with me when I visit the NEC.

A lone and very chirpy blue tit caught my eye from high in a leafless tree, but it needed massive cropping to get the shot, but it’s a tribute to the Canon lens that I was able to resolve it at all!

Unscheduled Visit to Stockwood Discovery Centre

On Monday night a crown fell out, so Tuesday I managed to get an appointment to have it restored, this meant that the opportunity arose for me to pay a visit to the Gardens and Greenhouse at the Stockwood Discovery Centre. Since the sun was also out, it made the journey from Dunstable to Luton seem like a very good idea, so in case I was delayed and could not make it back to Marston Moretaine for a scheduled networking evening with Peter Carr as we were going to a DigiCluster event in Watford at the Town Hall in the evening, I made sure I had my ticket and camera ready for the eventuality.

I spotted the blossom on the trees which could be shot against a blue sky, I took those shots before seeking out Jan the gardener for anything new that was sprouting, as it turned out I found a number of subjects of interest before I needed to look for Jan, and in that short time, I was beginning to feel the warmth, so the greenhouse for the present was not a high priority. Most of what I found early on was close to the ground, so the groundsheet was pressed into service to allow me to kneel on the ground.

Jan quickly pointed out several flowers or shoots I should take a look at, and I set to. Later I also took a look in the greenhouse, but surprisingly there was less there than outside in the gardens, and I was there too late to consider travelling back and therefore made tracks for Harpenden and Peter Carr who was finding a 3D design of spoons was frustratingly not going to plan, but eventually it succumbed to Peter’s persistence and the stage he had hoped to reach quite a while beforehand was concluded.

I had not had a lunch and was grateful to accept his offer of toast and honey before we headed into the afternoon traffic and headed for Watford.

An Afternoon in the Hertfordshire Lanes

The morning sunshine had waned, and the clouds were increasing, but as what work I had was done, I decided I would grab my cameras and head off out. I had no clear direction but I was on the lookout for spring blossom and garden flowers and any early pollinators I might find. I headed in the direction of Kings Walden and Preston, and I was in luck. By the edge of one hamlet was a couple of trees in full bloom with numerous bees in attendance and by Kings Walden there were a series of fields with Longhorn cattle, and what was handy was they came ambling towards me to munch at the long and lush green grass at the hedge and fence with no fear for my presence, their offspring were less sure however. Later when I had found a lane with distinct banks of bluebells, a car stopped and the lady told me she had seen me earlier by the cattle and told me where I might see young owls in the early evening, which was really charming.

The lanes leading towards the central green at Preston were awash with colour, but nowhere there to stop, so I parked by the Red Lion pub, which had featured in an episode of Foyle’s War some time back, I was by the local well, whose depth is checked regularly to ascertain the water table depth, this snippet I learned from one of the nearby residents later that day. What I find fascinating when out and about with cameras and lenses is how often I am involved in conversation and regaled with local stories, equally, when my phone goes and I mention where I am, often as not the person calling recounts some personal recollection of the very place I happen to be – such was the case this afternoon, when I mentioned the pub and my location the person at the other end told me that the pub when threatened with closure was bought by the local residents!

I then walked back down the lane by which I had entered the village and was able to take several photos of the blossom on trees and individual flowers that had earlier caught my eye, on my return, the light shining through the leaves of the trees on the green also fascinated me as they were so fresh from the recent rains. I walked beyond my car and recognised that the flowers in the garden by the side of the house had caught my eye in past years, and I soon found myself in conversation with a man tending to his garden, who told me that there was a wood just a short drive away that was absolutely a riot of bluebells. He gave me directions and it was he who told me the depth of the well. I thanked him and set off, hoping I would remember the directions accurately; I need not have worried as they were very clear and easy to follow, and although by now there was no sunshine, I did manage to find somewhere to stop and was able to get a picture or three, and the sun even came out for a moment before I left. I returned to thank the kind gentleman, then set off back, though I did stop at the edge of one village to capture the strong light on a thin strip of oilseed rape in front of a cottage with dark sky beyond. Later I also spotted some towering clouds silhouetting a line of trees.

Getting Ever Closer to Completion

Jarvis Foresters, Harpenden – Less of a Building Site

Grass and finished paths makes the whole area look more and more like a completed development, and as I entered there were people looking to deliver some of the incomers’ fittings. The sun was shining brightly on the grass, round the back, blossom was appearing on the shrubs. Almost all the paths are now gravel composite where there was tarmac before, and only a few areas remain to be turfed.

Down below the basement is no longer a storage area, but has yet to be marked out for the parking bays, but the security gates are in place, but not yet motorised. Upstairs floor coverings are down in the communal areas, the lifts have their protective sheeting removed as have the glass panels on the staircases, so the next fortnight or so will soon see tenants moving in, and the sounds of construction will be a distant memory, and a new chapter will begin for the new residents.

Easter Sunday Activities

Unlike Friday when the sun shone from a clear blue sky, the day started with mist, and during the course of the day, the best we had was milky sunshine. I had printed one picture from Good Friday of one of the flowers I had captured in Soulbury, and used it to say thank you to the couple who had kindly allowed me to step into their front garden. I drove to their house to pop the card in – they had a family gathering, I handed over the card – they thanked me, but it was I who was grateful.

My drive took me to Three Locks, on the Grand Union Canal, and it was packed with visitors both on the water and at the canalside pub alongside the locks. I watched for a while before setting off  again, this time in search of landscapes, but the misty distance prevented me from pure scenes, but allowed me to capture horses, some in fields, some being ridden. I also managed to capture some of the blossom.

As I returned we were stopped at a roundabout to allow a vast procession of bikers of all ages with highly individually modified bikes and trikes, so I opened my door and squatted by the roadside capturing a few of them as they passed on their way; my journey ended with a couple of more peaceful shots of the canal and river.

On days like this, it seems easy to forget the harsher realities that exist around us.

Lilac in Bloom

Graced with a couple of days with brilliant sunshine into very late afternoon, gave me a chance to have nice light on the lilac blossom in my front garden, so I just grabbed the camera and popped in a card and took about fifteen or so shots so that I had some raw material for occasional cards.

I also wanted to ensure that keywords were present as a test from Lightroom (it took a conversation with John Beardsworth to make me see something that was hidden in plain sight – thank you John!)

I just love the high key feel to these images. Even the presence of cars and houses is less obtrusive.

Westcott Day, followed by Bulbourne and Tringford flowers

A bright day with a chance to see how Lizzy’s garden was progressing and to see the kitchen in sunshine provided a few interesting examples of colour, light and shade.

A day or two later, visit Bulbourne to see the Blacksmith where there was a beautiful display of Spring flowers rarely all seen at the same time, daffodils, tulips, and early bluebells with some dandelions thrown in for good measure! Then on to Tringford to meet the man who introduced me to the bailiff, which allowed me to capture life on both the stream and the reservoir, there in his garden were poppies and tulips.

There were Greylag, Canada Geese, a Heron, Coots and a Grebe to be found in flight, on the water and on the ground in a field still with blossom on the trees, yet at long last the day had the warmth of coming summer.

Later still, and I took a walk along the Wendover Arm of the Grand Union canal, and managed to get up close and personal to a Starling. Fishermen were to be found in abundance as were cyclists, families with children and dogs and a few slowly chugging narrowboats. A woman was knitting seated by the towpath and a man ensconced with his Sunday newspaper outside his galley. Birds were to be seen gathering twigs for nest-building others sang invisibly in the bushes, and overhead were the occasional sounds of light aircraft, cattle lowed in the fields nearby and the horses wandered slowly with swishing tails – the midges and seemingly mosquitoes were the reason for that. There were some very strange canoes on the canal looking very precariously low in the water.

The shot of the anchor was especially for Catherine.