Glossy Ibis, Ely

I was able to go to Ely this afternoon for a couple of hours to see if I could spot and photograph a Glossy Ibis which is there much of the time but not all the time.   I'm not sure what the meadow is called - it's between Ely Country Park and the Great Ouse and the Ibis keeps its distance!   Lovely to see nevertheless.   There were several species of bird on this waterlogged meadow so a great pleasure to see the Ibis, a Snipe and a Black-Headed Gull (still in winter plummage) in a single frame..

Mute Swan - displaying?

There wasn't another Mute Swan in sight so I'm not sure if this was courtship behaviour or just having a jolly good stretch.   As the display continued the Swan got higher and higher out of the water.

Long-tailed Tit - Bottisham Lock

I'm still not sure what this Long-tailed Tit has in its beak.   Obviously there's a feather but is there food there too?   Presumably the bird is about to line its nest.   I've chosen images which show off the long tail, including the one with the bird in flight which accentuates the length of the tail.   And a Crow for good measure - a bird I've rarely taken the trouble to photograph.

Images not entered into Exhibition

Having just worked on some images to put forward for consideration at the Cambridge Camera Club's annual exhibition, here are some of the ones I didn't submit - but perhaps now I wish I had!    Until I put these together I hadn't clocked how many of them feature water.

Great Crested Grebes Mating

Yesterday morning at the Lazy Otter this pair of Great Crested Grebes were mating and nest building in that order.   Their nest is in a very exposed position and one can only hope it doesn't get predated.   There is at least one egg in it although not easy to see.   The nest is also very vulnerable to passing boats which are probably not on the move that much, yet.   The light wasn't good initially and the images contrasty but worth capturing nevertheless.

Grey Squirrel

We are seeing a lot of Squirrels these days, so many that instead of having a squirrel-free bird feeder it is more like a bird free squirrel feeder!   I need to explore how many joints a Grey Squirrel has in its front feet.   In the first photograph they appear to be numerous!

Jay and Squirrel through kitchen window

We seem to be getting visits from a Jay almost daily at the moment - very exciting.   I would prefer not to be photographing through glass but at least it means the Jay is closer than it would otherwise be if I were to try getting outside to photograph it.   I've included an image of the bird in a shrub as that is where it is more often seen.

Blog Bulbs - Crocuses

Perhaps some of these images are getting nearer what I'm aiming at.......

Recording Garden Plants

For too long I've been meaning to record photographically the plants in our garden during a whole  year - and to do so in a 'slightly different' way.   I know I haven't yet found the style I want to adopt but here are some posts which are work in progress.   I think the style will include differential focus in a significant way - and these are experiments with blossoms.   I also think the bit of the image in focus needs to have a diffuse background and I'm not yet sure how I shall manage this on a range of plants - blossoms, bulbs, perenials, herbaceous plants, climbers.....   And I plan to leave the plants identifiable.

Birds at Bottisham Lock

I haven't often seen a Black-Headed Gull take a fish. I  had to check up what was said in a field guide about its feeding practices!   It's always a pleasure to see Wagtails again, a sonorous Wren and a Kingfisher is often seen on this stretch of The Cam these days.   Sometimes it poses....

Golden Retrievers - Colour

Many of the dogs on show were light in colour and I wondered whether there is a fashion for shade of coat colour or whether, knowing the judge and her preferences in advance, meant only the lighter coloured 'Goldens' were shown.