KESTREL AT ROSSALL.

Back in August I visited Rossall Point to see how many waders had returned from their breeding grounds,as I walked through the sand hills I was amazed to see a kestrel land on the green of the golf course while the golfers were playing and started catching beetles and bugs.
 After watching this amazing sight I returned with my camera to be met with a few local wildlife photographers and we decided to keep the news as quite as possible.Unfortunately the kestrel was quite a celebrity with the local golfers and dog walkers and after about a week the kestrel disappeared,most of the photographers have a strong opinion of what happened but no proof.
 This was a once in a lifetime experience and long will the memories of this young kestrel be with us all.I`ve posted a few images below and will do another post soon on this wonderful photogenic young bird.

NORTHUMBERLAND IMAGES.

We were recently invited to Northumberland for a weeks holiday in a cottage with our good friends david  and margaret.It was the first time we had been to this part of the country,what an impressive county and so quite on the roads,alot of sightseeing was on the cards and a few meals out.The weather was very kind to us and the camera was brought into action a few times.The first image is Bonny Scotland from Carter Bar,Sunset from the cottage,Eiders at Seahouses,Bamburgh Castle from the shore,Rook and finally Chaffinch.

STARLINGS REVISITED.

I`ve been deleting alot of my old images and when I came across my starling folder the images I chose for my blog had been processed in the old elements 8 version of photoshop.I decided to process one through the full blown version that I have been  using for about 12 months,I do as little as possible to the image,exposure,highlights,shadows,crop and sharpen.The results seem a big improvement to me and I`ve posted my results below for you to compare.

LYTHAM 1940`S WEEKEND.

Last saturday we visited Lytham to photograph the 1940`s weekend,the people take their parts very seriously and attention to detail is taken to the extreme.It can be very difficult to isolate the subject as there are many members of the public walking about,but I`ve tried my best and posted a few of my efforts below.

CORN BUNTINGS OF THE FYLDE COUNTRYSIDE.

Once a common sight and sound of the countryside the corn bunting is struggling to survive with the evolution of modern farming techniques,the bunting is hanging on in a couple of areas of the Fylde but for how long I dread to think.I was lucky enough to have access to a cornfield were a pair of buntings had made a nest,a hide was erected and I managed to capture a few images,not the image I had in mind but the best I could manage.The lack of the finer points of fieldcraft let me down,but I`ve learnt alot and hopefully the next time I will be more successful.I`ve posted my efforts below.

ALLOTMENT MACRO PHOTOGRAPHY.

Wednesday so an improvement in the weather and a visit to the allotment was overdue.Common bluetail damselflies had been seen around the allotment and I was hoping to photograph the female ovipositing in the wildlife pond,no such luck today but I did manage to photograph one resting on the water vegetation [these damselflies are very small at aprox 1in long]. The full list of my efforts taken with a 100mm macro lens hand held,Honey Bee on thistle,Common Soldier Beetle,Green Bottle and Unknown.The Damselflie was taken with a 70-200 mm lens on beanbag.

GARDEN FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY.

I`ve been practicing a bit of flash in the garden while the weather has been so bad,the summer has been none existent in this part of the country with heavy rain strong winds and low temperatures.I`ve hardly seen a butterfly,hoverfly or wasp while only a handful of bumble bees and honey bees have visited the many flowers in the garden.While more work and lots more practice needs to be done on my flash photography I`ve posted a few of my efforts below for you to judge.

ALLOTMENT UPDATE.

The allotment is slowly taking shape after a lot of hard work and sweat,the small wildflower meadow shows promise and the pond is starting to mature with plants flowering and wildlife slowly appearing.A couple of weeks ago I was amazed to see a male  broad bodied chaser flying around the allotment and pond,I put a small post in the ground at the edge of the pond and bingo he landed on it straight away I managed a few images but the next day he was gone. A bit of excitement on a neigbouring allotment was a swarm of honey bees [only the second one I have seen in my lifetime] I rushed home for the camera and managed a couple of images.I`ve posted images below to show how the allotment is maturing,the broad bodied chaser and the honey bee swarm.

                                                                                                        

YOUNG KESTRELS FEEDING TIME.

I recently found a Kestrels nest in almost a natural hole in a large tree.It was  a rush to capture images of the young birds before they left the nest.The nest was almost 20ft high and I needed advice from an expert wildlife photographer how best to exploit the situation.The advice I received worked a treat and in a long 6hr session I managed to capture images of the young birds being fed.I`ve posted my better efforts below,and only wish that the nest had been found a few days earlier.