Sunday, October 23, 2011 9:51:11 PM
black-headed gull, great black-backed gull, BADGER, oystercatcher
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We've had more sunshine in the past few weeks than we had for most of the summer. I'm not complaining, and this afternoon I went down to the coast at Rottingdean to see what was about. I was hoping the fulmars might be back from their summer excursions, but it's a little bit early for them. I might have more luck towards the end of next month.
Meanwhile, there were plenty of gulls to point the camera at. First, a herring gull.
If the sea looks calm in this shot it's because it was taken inside the marina breakwater. This is what the sea was doing on the other side.
There are plenty of black-headed gulls around at the moment, but of course they are white-headed at this time of year.
The black-headed gulls are among the smaller species. Less numerous, but at the other end of the size scale is the great black-backed gull. This one was fending off a pair of herring gulls (it had caught a crab).
The last of the seabirds for today are the oystercatcher. They're waders and zip along the coast in small flocks.
I'm going to close with one recent shot from the trail cam. This is the early hours of Friday morning, and is a rare sighting of one of our more irregular visitors.
Camera note: all shots taken with the Canon 7D EF and 400mm f/5.6L USM lens. Badger via the Bushnell Trophy cam.
Sunday, September 18, 2011 11:00:10 PM
sloe, gull, slug, BADGER
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In the corner of our garden we have a small blackthorn tree. Most years it has produced a small number of fruits, which are called sloes. This year, probably due to a warm spring and wet summer the crop has been unusually large. We don't have much use for them, and few of the garden animals seem to take them. One type does however, the slugs; and I spotted this one munching away late last night.
Keeping to the garden, another of our occasional visitors came by yesterday. There are a couple of badgers that visit, but they are shy and I rarely get to see them in the flesh, so a decent shot from the trail camera is always welcome.
As for today, just a few birds. Again these were all taken from the garden, though the first shots were a long distance above. The first two are not the sharpest, but are included here because I have so few shots of sparowhawks flying in pairs.
Late afternoon and early morning produce by far the best light, and at this time of year both ends of the day are at reasonable hours. That's a big autumn plus! Anyway, this was taken late in the day while two gulls were kicking up a racket on a neighbouring roof.
Camera note: slug taken with the Canon 7D and EF 100mm f/2.8L macro IS USM lens. The birds were all taken with the EF 400mm f/5.6L USM lens. The badger is by the Bushnell Trophy Cam.
Thursday, July 14, 2011 11:12:21 PM
wild cat, BADGER, fox, otter
The title of the blog is the name given to the
Andy Rouse workshop I went to today. It was held at the British Wildlife Centre in Surrey, which meant an opportunity to practise a few techniques in the afternoon. Andy, for those who don't know, is the man behind some great wildlife photos (everything from gorillas to polar bears). The workshop gave an insight into how he gets his shots. And how easy it is to get it all wrong. And how easy it ought to be to get at least some of it right. It's certainly given me plenty to think about.
I'm always a little uneasy with captive animals, but in a learning context it makes sense. These are just a very few of the shots from the afternoon. First up is a wild cat.
The key to those shots was shooting from low down, something I was already familiar with from the garden foxes. We were also shown one of the badgers, though having to shoot down from above isn't ideal. The lesson is 'get down low'. But a badger is a badger so here's one shot with a half-way decent pose.
There are also a number of otters. We spent a fair bit of time encouraging them to clamber up the banks to get a good angle, but my favourite shots were when they were swimming.
Finally, we saw the foxes. There were a pair of adults and a number of cubs (about 4 months old). The foxes were by far the most cooperative, but then having youngsters rushing around (foxes, not people) always make for a lively scene. Inevitably I have loads of shots, so here's just a small selection. First some cubs playing. No technique in these two at all.
This next shot was taken towards the sun (something we did learn about).
And me being me, I took some portraits. Nothing I haven't done before, but fun to do.
So what did I learn? Some things I do right (shooting from a low position). Some things I do very wrong (shooting in the middle of the day). Why shooting low helps. Don't be afraid of difficult light (it's actually better than what seems to be 'good' light). And various ways of using settings. It all sounds so incredibly easy when Andy explains it, and in some ways it is (pressing the shutter is something I can manage). But what isn't easy is seeing the shot in the first place. That's what really makes the difference and that is what is likely to keep me taking way too many shots of indifferent quality at the wrong time of day. Still, it's a easier to get better at doing something when you know where you're going wrong. And I now know a lot! Seriously, it was a really good day, incredibly informative, and will (I am sure) result in some better photos. I couldn't really ask for more.
Camera note: wild cat and otter shots taken with the Canon 7D and EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L USM IS lens; foxes and badger were taken with the EF 100mm f/2.8L macro IS USM lens.
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