One Short Walk With Camera

            Upon looking at my blog to wonder which subjects were of interest to those who read what I have written, I have observed two surprises that have risen from the depths of my past writings; one such from the earliest days of my blogging, in 2011, and another from 2016. What this indicates is that there are people that take advantage of the search feature, so I decided I would revisit both to gain some insight into what was being sought. One very personal observation was that though the subject matter indicated similar preferences then as now, in the earlier photos my preference for focal length seemed to be in the shorter focal lengths, yet my subject interests persist. 

            The long period of lockdown has precluded many of the activities I would normally have experienced and enjoyed capturing, but it does seem the drought may soon be ending. Earlier in the day, I was out capturing the colours in a garden, but exclusively with my versatile Sigma 60-600mm lens, however, I shall attempt to discipline myself to specifically spend some time with my shorter length 24-70mm lens in the near future.
            I had taken a stroll down River Lane to the fast streaming waters of its namesake, when in the branch of one tree’s bark were threaded a couple of goose feathers. The rest of the images are of flowers and leaves that caught my eye and were captured by my camera’s lens.
            The surprises just keep coming, and I am wondering whether the counter of blog viewings has had a spring break and has just wound the numbers around before expiring as the day’s views have just topped five thousand hits in the last week! Unless something has broken at Blogger’ counting mechanism, that has become the largest number of weekly visits since I started putting up my images and words in the last decade!

            Whatever the reason, anyway here are some pictures taken yesterday during a short walk.
           

A Walk by the Fields

          My afternoon walk on this occasion took me away from my end of the village and along the path from the main road that follows the outer bounds of the village, with the currently somewhat overgrown path of the brook. Since Spring is merging into early Summer, some of the leaves no longer have the freshness of early growth, and in some instances have signs of foreign growths on their surfaces, and clusters of larvae. I was however far more interested in young healthy growth and clusters of seeds, and signs of this season’s farmers crops. 
          I spotted a lone rabbit, and remained as still as possible to be able to get some shots before it headed once more for cover. However, there is not much to show for the length of time I spent walking, but I had specifically chosen to walk rather than drive further afield, as it was primarily a walk for exercise, so the photographs were a bonus. Provided the weather holds, my next excursion will be further afield, but the house needs my attention, as does the grass of my lawns, so my priorities must be observed! 

I Walk to the Forest Centre with my Camera

          It was not a day of brilliant sunshine, but it was not unpleasant, and it was definitely good to be outside, and in walking along the main road and passing by the main entrance to the Forest Centre, I headed along the footpath on the opposite side of the road, which in addition to the safety of the path, offered the opportunity to capture images from the front gardens of the houses alongside. As a result, I continued beyond the side entrance to the park, up until the end of the houses, before entering. The preliminary diversion had proved rewarding.
          As I walked along the path within the park, I also climbed the bank at each viewing area to see what the prospects were in the enclosure beyond; noting that the steps were being restored at two of them. I spent quite some time watching a fox family, and from that time onward, I chose to put the Sigma telephoto lens on the camera, in place of the 24-70mm with its macro facility I had been using up till that point. As the fox family appeared to be heading towards a corner and possibly out of my sight, I did not waste further time in adding a multiplier to the long Sigma, since it would reduce the time I had for any shots before they disappeared from view. Now that I know the fox family might be in this area, I will try to visit earlier, with that specific intention, rather than happenstance, even though it might mean no sighting at all!
          The rest of the trip covered the cattle in the same area, foliage I found of interest, billowing clouds of steam at the Waste Disposal site, and some interesting woodland housing structures at various stages of construction, and a fleeting view of a couple of horse riders. Altogether a very worthwhile but short trip with a camera again. Sadly, it would seem it maybe a while before we see the sun again. So, before the rains descend, I will be a mowing!

Brogborough Lake – Finally Busy!

 

            Warm weather and wind brings a return to a busier day on the lake for Windsurfers and Wingsail sailors. I join the throng and set up my trusty Sigma 60-600mm lens on my recently purchased Canon R6 and mount it on the sturdy and steady Benbo (so-called because it uses a Bent Bolt!) This tripod is very different to conventional tripods, and one of its benefits, apart from being very sturdy, it’s lower legs are sealed at the bottom, allowing it to safely stand in shallow water. I did not need this feature on this occasion, but it can be very useful for low viewpoint shooting. 

            On this occasion, it was its stable footing that was my choosing, as I was shooting from close to the water’s edge. There was another reason for choosing the Benbo, was I was trying to capture sequences when Sam was taking to the air using his wingsail. This was as much a challenge for me as for Sam, as using a mirrorless camera is difficult to keep track of moving subjects. 

            I have extracted some sequences as individual galleries, as I feel they may be helpful in studying the sequences. I enjoy the challenges of capturing such sequences from their start, by watching the telltale initial squat to launch from the water.

            Please forgive me for the interminable wait to recap your time on the water, or simply look at what went on that afternoon, but I have some serious issues to sort out regarding my getting stuff up on the Blog currently.

Sorry for Delayed Gallery!

          Whilst all the sailors of Brogborough Lake await the arrival of the most recent tranche of images from the busiest day on the Lake for some time, please accept my apologies for the forced delay due to Life supervening!

          I was always led to be believe the Captain should never leave his Ship, well I can assure everyone, this image has not visited Photoshop to have the Sailor taken out, I believe he may have done it all by himself, yet the independent craft seems happy to continue sailing!

          Meantime I will crack on with the delayed processing of the numerous shots I took of manned craft! Enjoy the Wait, or take the opportunity to enter any subjects of images I may have taken over my time at blogging – a few suggestions: London from the Air, Heron, Butterflies, Jump, Thames, Clerkenwell, Goodwood, Scotland, Paris, St. Tropez, Luton Hoo, Shuttleworth, Stockwood…

Normal Service will be restored as soon as possible, sorry for the delay

          And I will get on with processing the rest of that day's images, meantime, Enjoy!

Nature Calls — so I head for the Country!

          Yes, I need relief, but from enclosing walls, where outside, the sun is beckoning. I gather my camera and lenses and a small amount of sustenance and a flask of weak orange juice to guard against dehydration. I head north and the River Great Ouse, to keep body and soul together, and ensure my reflexes and brain get exercise.
          Damselflies, flowers, and fresh air ensures that no cobwebs are woven into the fabric of what I loosely call a brain. Currently my ongoing concern is for a failing memory, something which in earlier times I held with great pride that recall was speedy and accurate, nowadays I often struggle to remember simple descriptive words, the names of friends and places, and worst of all, why I went up or downstairs or for what item! When that happened in earlier times I would laugh at myself, and the block would melt like ice on a hot plate, and the word, thought or name would appear in a trice. Then it was funny, now it is unnerving. However, I do try to avoid getting too stressed over it, but it is tough!
          Already the grass I cut barely a week hence beckons for the mower, but I have more pressing reasons to be out, so it will have to grow some more, as I need my fix, not photographic fixer, but photographic scenes, and challenges, and the exercise of limbs and brain, and on this day blue sky almost edge to edge was the clarion call that urged me to gather my camera, which was already encased with fully charged batteries, spare cards, and a separate case with an alternative lens and spare caps. However, knowing my memory is absolutely fallible, I open the case and double check! When I reach the car, I check not only my tripods, but my monopod with ball head, which is now my main support, the tripod is there for the off chance that clouds appear. I was never a Boy Scout, but the Cubs motto was similar!
          My destination was Milton Ernest, as I can park close by the river and at this time of year birds, flowers and insects abound, so with the trusty support of the monopod and ball head, the Sigma 60-600mm on the EOS R6 is entirely manageable and really flexible, as I keep reiterating. To be visited by the woodpecker, albeit somewhat shielded by the feeder was a delight! 

          I hope that others can enjoy the shots as much as I enjoyed taking them.

Another Nature Walk with a Camera

                At a time when being close to others is fraught with difficulties, getting out in fresh air and carrying a camera come together as not only a good idea, but also a healthy one from a purely selfish perspective — I need to ensure that my brain is active, and being challenged. On this occasion, although I set off in a northerly direction, I did not actually have a specific destination, because to be too specific might result in expectations being unfulfilled. I did however have a preference for subject matter — Nature.

The weather was warm and on my recent excursions had been to cover birds that were of reasonable size whose habitat was both on the water and shoreline. On this trip I found myself close by Oakley and the River Great Ouse. I walked from my car close by the bridge and away from the village and church and the shady path that could lead to the windmill. I could hear the chatter of young voices coming from the far end and heading towards me, and leading from the path several areas had been cut back to give access to the water’s edge, so I took one of these to both avoid close contact, but more to see what might be  found among the reeds.

There were damselflies flitting around, but as there was a fair abundance of light, flight was sustainable, and at their size, I was far more likely to get photos of them when static on leaves or reeds. There were different species of Damselflies, and different body colours — blue, red and gold, and their prevalence certainly characterises much of the content of this gallery. Damselflies have two sets of wings, and whilst observing some of them, they would very rarely, but occasionally flick them open briefly whilst still static, and this presented me a challenge to capture such moments, but my success rate was poor! But frame 16 was a success, but considering that I witnessed this behaviour numerous times and with different damselflies, my reflexes were certainly challenged, thus my success rate of one was pleasing! There were far more challenging times for the damselfly males, as although I saw much activity on the mating front, I only saw a single example of dual flight despite many forays! Another challenge I enjoy is the capture of alphabet shapes — see if you can spot W-A-X? And surprisingly, I have not re-ordered the images for the letters to create the word!

What also amuses me on occasion when I am met outside, I can be asked what am I actually photographing, and this often when my camera is fixed on a tripod — so in the past I have suggested they look through the back of the camera! I was often looking at a small insect that has yet to move, and the viewer had not seen it till looking away after viewing it through the camera!

On one memorable occasion, I was outside with some College Students; studying photography! and I was amazed that all had passed a four seat chair table beneath a crab apple tree that was absolutely overloaded with windfalls on both table top and chairs! And not one had made the observation — I told them later that a photographer had to look in order to see! On that occasion I was not viewing some distant subject with a long lens!

This trip was definitely insect-oriented, but far from creep-crawly, butterflies and moths can be fascinating in their colours and behaviours, so being out with a camera at this season is never dull. And, the end of this foray, I was challenging myself to capture black-headed gulls, and specifically when in prominent places related to the bridge arches, which adds to the challenge, and one pair were very obliging!

Priory Country Park Visit

          It is some time since I made this specific visit, and it was not too disappointing as I managed to take several images of the natural denizens of the river, swans with this year’s new families being carefully introduced to the world and its possible dangers. The parents are very aware of their charges, and are very protective of their precious young, as a Canada Goose was to become very aware a short time later whilst I was able to witness.

          I also captured another incident where a man and I presume his daughter were generous enough to give some of their bread to help another group of young Cygnets, which has to be some comfort to the Swan community. 

          I saw several damselflies during my walk along the river this day, and even two distinctly different species close by, but so far no butterflies, perhaps it is too early in the season. It was a pleasantly warm afternoon, and very enjoyable to capture several sequences of images of the avian activity in the lives of these birds and brief interlude of what I am presuming was a Reed Bunting, but it was shielded somewhat making it hard to see enough of it plumage and markings to be able to identify without recourse to speaking to someone more knowledgable.

Certainly I enjoyed my time outside and enjoying the fresh air, and I hope others can share in the enjoyment from the images I managed to capture.

Bromham Park Visit

I had not visited this park for some time, and took different paths than walked hitherto. Soon after entering, I took one that followed the lake’s righthand side fairly closely, but there was surprising little avian activity on its lake; the only waterborne birds I encountered were four Mallard Ducks; one female, and three males! Even the chatter of birdsong in the woods was somewhat subdued, all of which hardly bode well for subject matter for the camera.

During my walk with the Sigma 60-600mm on the monopod, I spotted a rabbit at a branch in the path, who obviously had seen me before I saw him, as he moved slightly beyond the cover of the vegetation at the edge of the grassy path, momentarily it was joined by another, before both bounded out of sight.

In the slight breeze small seeds floated in the air along the paths together with midges and other flying insects, and some of these had been snagged by fine threads woven between the heads of two teasel heads, presumably as later food for the spiders who wove them.

This visit was a disappointment in terms of images captured, but beneficial in terms of exercise, and I was able to engage in conversation with fellow humans out exercising themselves and some with canine accompaniment.

Bedford Park Visit — Riverside

          I had no visitors coming over, so it was not a difficult decision to take a walk in a park with a camera! On this occasion I made the conscious decision to use the one lens for anything that I decided to attempt to capture, and my decision proved to be the wrong one very early on, as I noticed a few of one of my favourite insects; the hoverfly. And using this bulky lens was hampered by both its weight and inadequate close focussing, but having made the decision, I was now going to accept it! However, because it was still small in the viewfinder, and the insect itself had its own flight plan, that did not involve waiting for a photographer to do his bit, I was also hampered by my puny efforts to achieve focus before it moved off! Also, though it was sufficiently unfazed by my presence, it had no need to keep its eyes on me! So, adding insult to injury it only presented its rear view to me! In order to remind me that I should only consider my macro lens for that type of shot, I decided that despite my dogged determination to keep making attempts, I would display a couple that at least were in focus as an aide-memoire for the future.

One other feature of this set of images was my ongoing interest in patterns made by flowing liquids, especially when these manifest due to restrictions, hence the shots of powerful burbling water at drops in water-level, or the more relaxed ripples, when the flow was more gentle. Dragonflies and damselflies also catch my interest, but they were guarded from my proximity by abundant intervening nettles and a steep bank, but they were not so distant that they were impossible to record in acceptable detail.

At the end of my time by the river, nearby human activity caught my eye, and in particular one boy with his family who was a tad nervous of standing on his paddle board and I felt his lack of confidence was his downfall. Had I been asked, I would have suggested he tried again, but his family seem not to have offered this suggestion! So, I captured his success at creating splashes whilst paddling his board. My suggestion would have been, never be fazed by failure, and try, try, and try again! Avoid accepting defeat whilst learning. But, thank you for giving me some especially pleasing action shots!

Woburn Park Photo Visit

 

 

I have not visited Woburn Park for some time, and thought that despite it being a weekday, I would likely find it well attended, but I was wrong; the Car Park itself was probably a fifth full, so I was pleased with the prospect, and I encountered very few people during the time I spent there.

I had attached the Sigma 60-600mm to the EOS R6 and mounted the lens to the ball head on my monopod, and only once within woods did I extend the leg. Increasingly I have found this a very handy way to travel comparatively light, yet give myself a stable support whether using this lens at either end of its range. The reason for this confidence stems from this mirrorless body and the avoidance of shutter bounce due to the lack of a mirror being activated. I do not have the steadiest of hands, but the monopod is support enough to give the necessary stability; and I can carry and shoot all day without fatigue.

I took a chance in deciding not to bring another lens along; had it proved a necessity it was in the boot, and I could have walked back for it, but I reckoned, it was unnecessary extra weight to carry, and I never missed it — a testament to how good this Sigma lens is. It is far and way my most frequently used lens, the new Canon camera body, the EOS R3; which I bought a short while ago has made a considerable leap in the quality I am able to achieve from all my existing lenses, yet I am still on a steep learning curve to fully understand how best to use its full capabilities. The difficulty is in finding someone who can help me get the full potential from this new camera’s facilities. I am not helped in my task by suffering considerably from a major deterioration in getting the most from my brain, especially short term memory, and being isolated from my family and friends adds to my levels of stress.

Although my ability to retain new knowledge is severely impaired due to the forced isolation and the stress this has caused, taking pictures, and subsequently working with them is cathartic and calming, for without this my ability to cope would would be further eroded.

One ongoing observation is related to Swans; they do take umbrage with other smaller birds, and on this trip, one individual took a distinct dislike to one, and there are shots here that cover the incident as it chased its smaller resident off the water. It does make me feel less warm towards Swans, despite their beautiful grooming!

I have looked at this day’s images, and realise it needs further editing, but please forgive me, I cannot expend that energy to reduce some of the duplication, so please forgive me — time is short, and too precious. Please enjoy the images, and forgive the lack of further editing. I will try to do better in the future.

Brogborough Short Visit

There was little wind on this visit to the lake, and on arrival Swallows were swooping low over the lake, and black-headed Gulls likewise — attempting the challenge of concentrating on the Swallows was not on my radar, but I was at least happy that I was able to have some within the images of Windsurfers. The Gulls on the wing were within my capabilities and with these I did spend some time whilst the sailors prepared their craft for the water.

The father of one boy was preparing both his and the son’s board for launching, and I covered this preparation and launch, and Sam giving a group of novices some guidance before going out onto the lake. This concluded this visit, and I then headed for Bedford and the Finger Lakes and the Main, large one to see what I might find.

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.

Brogborough – Fitful Wind

The fewer visits of Windsurfers to the lake has allowed the native avian community to reclaim the lawn in front of the Clubhouse as their latrine. To ensure the humans fully understand their claim they have put down a deposit making our navigation a tad more wary!

From the start I put up my heavy tripod, the Benbo, to give me a firm platform and a level horizon to the images I planned to capture. One sailor I had not seen in a while was Richard McKeating. Sam had alerted me to the diversity of craft the Sailors would be using on this day, and I suspect he also navigated the Three Musketeers Group into position for me to capture ‘The Gang’ — which definitely required skill in the unpredictable wind conditions; so I hope he was pleased that I took note! In return, I hope he appreciated my also capturing his square-on wing shot! — complete with level board! It also gives the impression of a winking girl! Perhaps he’ll consider an A4 print for his Man Cave?!

This visit was not the longest of my recent visits to the lake, but at least it has taken less time to reach the participants than my last recording of the lake’s activity. I commend it to the participants.

Brogborough and Wind

  Brogborough Lake greeted the windsurfers with wind and variable sunshine, and the variations in response, skill levels and what caught the eye of my camera, meant I was kept on my toes all the time. Initially I planned to use my monopod to be able to react speedily, but I soon changed to using my heaviest and sturdiest of tripods. I was helped in this decision by the gusty wind, and also by my desire to capture sequences where some were using their wingsails for airborne excursions beyond the lake’s water surface. As a direct result of this activity, I have created some galleries so the sequence of such events is useful for later inspection, since some such occasions did end unexpectedly.

Another aspect of the enforced closure of the lake caused by Covid restrictions, was that the lakeside lawn was shared by several young families of Canada Geese and Greylag Geese, and also their subsequent, less welcome lack of healthy toilet considerations. Several of these families were there with their new youngsters with their parents in close attendance; naturally I captured some of this activity in addition to the human attempts at flight from some of the windsurfers.

The variety therefore of activities has meant a delay in putting up a record of this particular lake action, but I hope it proves to be worth revisiting once I have it up on the blog. The delay is longer than usual due to the sheer number of images to sort, and the current sluggishness of my computer. I trust my recording of the activity extends the enjoyment of all those participating.

I have extracted the series of shots of a particular jump sequence from Sam Barnes, because he started from the water alongside another Kitesurfer and was in the air with this fellow watching events unfolding behind him! There is a second sequence I have separated out, which due to the angle from which the jump was viewed is more anonymous, but equally useful presumably to show position and height achieved.

Jump Sequence 1 SamBarnesAirborneSequence          16

Jump Sequence 2 BrogLake-DeceptiveAngleJumpSequence 16

Jump Sequence 3 LongerJumpSequence                 16

Jump Sequence 4 Small Jump Sequence                 12

  I apologise for the delay, but I hope everyone who was out on the lake that afternoon enjoys reliving those moments.