Macro Photography - A Whole New World

More playing with the macro lens at lunchtime today. I can see that if I find the right subjects, there's a whole new world out there under my nose.

I set out to the nearest flowers - some Hawthorn blossom and a few Celandines.

As the end of lunchtime loomed, I found a Peacock butterfly feeding on Dandelions. Fascinating, but a depth-of-field failure, I'm afraid.

On the computer screen the pollen-bearing parts of the Dandelion fascinated me so I blew this one up bigger. The Canon 100mm is amazing - this was just a grab shot really.

Loads more macro fun to come, I can see!

A Foray into Macro Photography

I've always wanted a decent macro lens so I've finally invested, big time, in a Canon 100mm F2.8 L IS. I only had 10 minutes to wander around the garden tonight.

First stop was the Amalanchier which is even more pretty close up.

Next was a seasonal Primrose.

And then of course, at some point you find that nature has sussed out macro a long time ago. This is one of those "hairy" leaves which hold water droplets a treat! The droplet acts as a lens, making the hairs clearly visible! 

Lesson learned:- Still a lot to learn (watch the background and depth of field, and use a tripod!)

Back to the stream

This afternoon I was doing my duty as a son and taking my mother out for a change of scene. We ended up by the river at Llandulas.

We've been there many times but today the place was alive with birds. A couple of Grey Wagtails are resident, as are the Wrens. Summer visitors were represented by a couple of Willow Warblers, flycatching over the water, and a lovely female Pied Flycatcher, again sampling the insect life. If that wasn't enough, a Common Sandpiper patrolled the water's edge. The field the other side of the trees was full of Swallows.

It's amazing what you can find if you sit still for half-an-hour, in the rain!

Recent Roundup (Part1)

I fell like I've just come out of a hibernation and like I missed the last 12 months somewhere. It's probably down to last year's weather but the first few nice days of this year have really woken me up.

I though I'd share a few of the photos I've taken so far this year.

This was the view up the Conwy estuary last week. I couldn't tear myself away!

I caught these Mute Swans were flying upstream.

Great Crested Grebes shake their heads and dance when courting. It's a fascinating thing to see.

It's the time of year when even in birds, hormone levels rise and displays of aggression become common. I never thought I'd see a Canada Goose attack a Swan though.

The geese spent more time fighting amongst themselves. 

It's also the time of year when birds look their smartest, again in the hope of attracting a mate. Lapwings are a fine example.

Away from the reserve, I've been keeping an eye on some Grey Wagtails on a local stream

My first Orme trip of the spring

So it's back to blogging. It's ages since I really kept an on-line record of my activities but I've decided to try to get back into it.

What you will see here will be mainly the results of my photographic adventures.

I'm starting with this morning's wander: A hike over the Great Orme followed by a visit to the Conwy RSPB reserve. 

My main objective was to try out my new toy. I've just bought a Sigma 120-300 F2.8 zoom with the idea that it will be lighter to carry and better for catching birds in flight. I'm not sure what I think of it yet. I'm comparing it all the time to my Canon 500mm F4 and the Sigma is never going to win that fight if the criteria is  purely image quality. The Sigma comes into it's own as a walkaround lens. It's far from lightweight but it's a lot easier to carry than the Canon. The most obvious distance is the lack of "reach". Even with a 1.4X converter attached it's still way short of the magnification of the 500mm.

On the Orme I managed to catch up with a load of birds that I hadn't yet seen this year. My first year tick was Chough. A pair was soaring leisurely around above the lighthouse - gorgeous crows! My first Swallow was hawking over the sheep fields, desperately looking for some flying insects. I felt so sorry for it as there was still a really cold wind, in fact, there was still a fair bit of snow where it lay in the shadows of the walls. The bushes by the hawthorns were full of Goldcrests and I found my first Willow Warblers on the way back to the car.

Photo opportunities were few and far between but the stars of the morning were a pair of Stonechats.

The male was busy posing....

... whilst the female was feathering their nest somewhere

Wheatears were probably the commonest birds up there (after Mipits)

A small flock of Starlings were flying around like the Red Arrows on a display

Conwy reserve was quiet with only the usual suspects. Signs of migrants

 were few apart from several Chiffchaffs calling plus one Swallow hawking over the pools.