I Revisit a Park Just North of the A421

          I headed across the A421 to visit the woods beyond. Once parked, I took the soft case from my LUMIX FZ10002, leaving it behind in the car’s boot, and hung the camera around my neck. On this occasion I am travelling light, very light! Not even my monopod. Locking up the car, I take to the long dark tunnel of trees into the open air beyond, occasionally stopping to capture images along the way that caught my eye.
          Currently, the weather seems somewhat unsettled, and slightly less clearly season defined, but I did find metallic green flies, at least three species of butterflies, Red Admiral, Meadow Brown, and some others that I could not immediately identify. Variegated leaf colouring and backlit leaves also attracted my interest, as did a fair number of small, or simply young hoverflies. Beyond the woods, in the open area of the park, the wind had picked up, and despite taking several of the paths in hope of further interest, I was disappointed, as nothing much caught my eye, and therefore my camera — the rest of my walk yielded only fair weather clouds, the green winding paths and one long, lightly leaved and bowing branch framing the curving metalled path.
          I had gained the exercise, enjoyed the fresh air, and was impressed yet again by just how versatile this small camera is and fully justifies my decision to purchase it — it does not replace my more expensive kit, but when travelling light, fully earns its place amongst my heavier and pricier cameras.

Millennium Park Afternoon

 

Warm, calm weather settles on Marston Moretaine, and rather than drive anywhere I decide a walk along the main road away from the village, past the main entrance to the Millennium Park on the left, and the open gates to the new graveyard on my right, heading towards the turnstile entry before the allotments.

Once, beyond the gate, I walk a short distance to the perimeter path and head to the right, and soon encounter small family groups, lone runners, and cyclists, and I soon begin capturing billowing Cumulus clouds, before moving closer to the treeline to capture Autumn leaves, and a large clump of mistletoe. Leaves of varying colours from still vivid greens to yellows and gold to definite brown interspersed with red berries. My eye soon spots faces on the trunks of trees, often covered in small patches of yellow lichen. One such, resembled the face of a man, another a pig, yet another looked as if caught running in a green sack race, sporting a hula-hoop.

Leaves of gold, leaves of green, early catkins, and late blackberries, all are spotted along the winding path, then through the thicket, I spot an albino duck with its partner in the water below. The clouds begin to hide the sun and I spot a man in the distance who I thought at first was also toting a camera, but as I near, I realise it is a pair of binoculars, and we begin chatting. I come across some unusual, reddy orange berries with pink bulbous headgear. The lowering sun clears the clouds for a time, and two separate contrails form a cross against the pale blue sky. Having walked in conversation with binoculars man to the far end of the park, I bid him farewell, as it is far quicker for me to return the way I came than exit to the main road.

The journey back means I am heading towards the setting sun which gives me the opportunity for its capture beneath interesting cloud shapes. It marks the end of my walk, as it sinks below the horizon, and my penultimate image is shot with flash to silhouette the tree, yet preserve its detail, as the sun sets on my last image of the afternoon.

I met two charming ladies just prior to the last shots, with whom I chatted as one had asked a question about Photoshop, and this conversation was held with me walking backwards, so that I could speak to them whilst walking, yet keep the regulation distance.