Hello and welcome
I have always had a keen interest in wildlife and the great outdoors;
I was an Angler for over 30 years but gave it up a few years ago to
concentrate on photographing wildlife. I lived in Runcorn; Cheshire a
short distance from the M56 that gave me great access to the Wirral,
Northwales and Lancashire, with some great countryside on my doorstep
I didn't have to travel too far in search of wildlife and photographic
opportunities.
Some of my wildlife photographs range from as far afield as Cuba,
Antigua, Saint Martin, Saint Lucia, Dominican Republic, Tuscany ,
Corfu, Turkey, Spain, Portugal.
I now live in the Charente area of western France.
Fill Flash
Today was the day I decided to try and photograph the Sparrowhawk that has started to visit my garden again.
With the lack of light I decided to dig out my Canon Speedlite 430EX11 and use some fill flash.
After setting everything up all I had to do was sit and wait. One hour later I noticed some movement around the base of the tree.
Not the Sparrowhawk that I was expecting but something much smaller.
It’s a Goldcrest searching for insects, a dangerous place to be as the Sparrowhawk could appear at any time.
I find it difficult to get the balance right when using a flash (due to my lack of skill) but I am reasonably happy with the results.
Zoo Days in Tuscany
Early on in the year we had a holiday in Tuscany, we hired a car for the two weeks so we could explore the region
We followed the wine and scenic routes from Volterra, to the island of Elba.
On one of the days we visited a small Zoo. However the living conditions of the birds and mammals could only be described as poor.
Home alone
Not much action on the photographic front so I decided to stay at home and see what turns up.
It’s been very quiet in the garden for the last few weeks but some birds have started to reappear. Goldfinch, Bullfinch, Greenfinch, Nuthatch and most of the Tits, that hasn’t gone unnoticed by the local Sparrowhawk.
It visited the garden three times in the last hour. Still didn’t manage a shot (next time I will be ready).
Meadow Pipit on Frodsham Marsh
It’s been ages since I last visited Frodsham Marsh, I had a run down to see if I could get any Fieldfare or Redwing feeding on the Hawthorn berries but that didn’t work out as I couldn’t get near enough to photograph them.
However a small group of Meadow pipits turned up on the fence line next to the roadway so I was able to get some shots from the car.
Curlew
Going through old folders and found these Curlew
Curlew at RSPB Leighton Moss
Carrion Crow
I found these Photos of a Carrion Crow feeding on a dead Squirrel as I was going through some old folders.
The Kingfisher is back
It’s been a few weeks since I last photographed the Kingfisher, despite calling in most days I haven’t seen them and according to local birders they haven’t been seen.
I thought that may be it until spring next year, however on this mornings short visit one female Kingfisher turned up and I managed to get a few shots before it disappeared from view.
A Place in the Sun
Not pressed the shutter on the camera since returning from France over two weeks ago.
Our visit to France was to find our own Place in the Sun. It will be perfect for us and the family with its slower pace of life.
Our intention is to have a holiday home and use it as often as we can. Not much happens in the Limousin area of France as it is largely used for agriculture.
It has some very big leisure lakes that get well used in the summer and attracts visitors from all over France and Europe they are also great for wildlife.
The Limousin is the size of Wales with varying habitats from mountainous heavily wooded regions to rolling hills overlooking woods and pasture to flat fields. Another bonus it that the Limousin area of France is a major migratory route for birds.
The Limousin has some large towns and is peppered with small hamlets. The lack of traffic reflects the population numbers out of the towns (its great).
Flights from Manchester and Liverpool are inexpensive and you could drive if you wanted to.
After landing at Limoges international airport we headed off to La Souterraine our first port of call to the gite which would be our base for a few days as we checked out the surrounded areas for a suitable property.
From the Haute Vienne to the Creuse and the Charente areas of France our journey ended after nine days. With over two thousand miles covered and numerous viewings carried out. With some great properties seen and some not so good we finally found one which came with two acres of woodland near Rochechouart set in small hamlet.
If all goes to plan we should be in our place in the sun by the end of January 2014 and photographing some great wildlife.
Bearded Tits Leighton Moss RSPB
Bearded Tits at RSPB site, Leighton Moss
At this time of year Bearded Tits can be seen eating grit from the grit tables just off the causeway on the approach to the public hide.
More in the folder
RSPB Leighton Moss
Little Egret at the Eric Morecambe Hide RSPB Leighton Moss.
The small fish and shrimps don’t stand much chance
That reminds me
Just going through my Little Egret photographs from Leighton Moss when I found some old ones in the folder
so I thought I would upload these ones first.
In at the deep end
Water Rail
Shame its a rubbish shot but that’s what happens when your not ready for the unexpected.
The kingfisher shots aren’t anything to write home about due to the very slow shutter speed.
Anything can turn up
I decided on an early start in my quest for better Kingfisher shots, getting into position just as the Sun worked its magic on the lake.
As I waited for the Kingfisher to announce its arrival a Water Rail sneaked out of the reedbed to my left and cautiously made its way to the right-hand reedbed.
I managed a few shots just before it disappeared again.
Another surprise visitor was a young fox carrying a pear.
Alerted to the sound of my camera shutter it stopped to have a quick look before it too disappeared into the reedbed.
Eventually the Kingfisher arrived but didn’t stay long.
It didn’t fish either. It had a brief look around and flew off into the distance.
That was it for the rest of the day.
Common Earthball
Common Earthball- Scleroderma citrinum
This poisonous fungus is the most common species of Earth Ball in the UK.
Candle Snuff Fungus
Candle Snuff Fungus Xylaria hypoxylon,
This small fungus is found in groups growing on dead stumps. The back stems may be forked towards the tips, which are white. If you tap them a cloud of white spore powder will be released, as in the smoke of a snuffed candle. Each stem grows up to 7cm in height, and they are common in the Autumn.
