I’ve barely picked up the camera this weekend, but the rain now seems to be clearing and I took a look out in the garden. No sign of any foxes, but the small pond is home to a thriving colony of damselfly nymphs. These will emerge in a blaze of colour in the summer (unless the newts get them first).
These shots are taken through the surface of the water. I’ll try to get some better ones over the coming weeks.
Camera note: all photos taken with the Canon 7D and EF 100mm f/2.8L macro IS USM lens.
The storm has passed and we are back with fine autumnal weather. Cool, but the skies are clear. Outside tonight I can see Jupiter shining brightly and Orion rising. Much earlier today the skies were blue, perfectly setting off the pure white of a little egret.
The Canada geese were also enjoying the calm.
At lunchtime I stepped out on to the start of the South Downs Way. Here the smaller birds dominate. There was a lone (and very late) swallow overhead, and a colourful jay criss-crossing between the trees.
If the swallow (the photo is not worth posting) was a late visitor, I was equally surprised to see numerous butterflies including several red admirals and this beautiful clouded yellow.
Camera note: all shots taken with the Canon 7D and EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L USM IS lens.
Very typical weather today. I left home in high hope of some decent light, but by the time I’d arrived at Falmer the gloom had already set in. It was a dark and somewhat dismal scene, but it held one welcome surprise in the form of a cormorant. It’s been a quiet year for them here, but this lone bird was quietly gliding around the pond as the heavens opened and the rain came down.
Almost as quickly as it had started (though not so quickly that I didn’t get soaked) the rain relented, and the cormorant took the opportunity to dry off.
The weather was still struggling to make up its mind at lunchtime. The sun emerged long enough to entice this common darter out…
The rats prefer a touch of sunshine even though they mainly lurk in the shade. These are my favourites of the numerous shots I took of them today.
The end of the day was beautiful. The skies cleared and we were blessed with warm red light as the sun descended to the horizon. And all that needs to set it off perfectly is a pretty red fox.
Camera note: all shots taken with the Canon 7D and EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L USM IS lens.
