Weird!

Look closely!

I will admit to a tiny bit of photoshopping as I removed a bit of seagull tail that was just visible below the pigeon. Original photo is on my Flickr page.

Elvie.

Reflections of Haverfordwest

After a dramatic thunderstorm on Thursday night yesterday was quiet and overcast with no wind. We did a bit of shopping in Haverfordwest in the morning. The Riverside Shopping Centre runs along one side of the River Cleddau while on the other side is a modern market and some old warehouses now converted to various other commercial uses. The lack of wind produced some wonderful reflections in the water so I popped back with my camera in the afternoon. Here's a selection of watery pictures of the town.

Elvie

Return to the Brecon Beacons

I returned with new found photographer friend, Trevor, to some of the sites we'd visited on the rather wet landscape photography day a few weeks ago. We had a glorious sunny day and could see for miles over the mountains. I retook the photo of the fence that I posted last time and converted it to black & white for comparison. What a difference! It's obviously the same place but the photo has a completely different atmosphere. I had to get some birds in so introduced Trevor to the red kite feeding centre at Llanddeusant and we also took in some mountain views and one of the Ystradfellte waterfalls. It was a very full day & very enjoyable.

Tomorrow I'm off to the caravan to join LB who went today. With all this warm weather there is no better place to be than by the coast.

Elvie

Devil's Bridge

The weekend camping trip was a great success, good riding, nice campsite, kit worked well & plenty to do. In fact we'd like to go back to the area to explore it more. I can highly recommend Woodlands, the campsite we stayed at. There were quite a few midges unfortunately but otherwise it was excellent. It even had a cafe serving breakfast. The local pub, the famous waterfalls and the Rheidol Valley Steam Railway kept us amused all weekend. The pub however attracted most attention as we had elevenses, lunch, afternoon tea as well as evening drinks there.

The wildlife kept us entertained too. There were loads of red kites, as there is a nearby feeding station at Nant yr Arian, but V also spotted a pied flycatchers nest on the campsite with the parent birds visiting regularly to feed their young. V & I had plenty of photographic opportunities. In fact I took so many photos it's taken me all week to sort through them.

Elvie.

Digital Photos in a Downpour

Yesterday V & I joined another of Tim Colliers one day courses. This one covered landscape photography visiting various sites in the Brecon Beacons by minibus. There were only six on the course so we benefited from plenty of personal attention. Unfortunately part of the service involved Tim holding the umbrella over us in turn so we could take photos without getting totally drenched, while the thunder rumbled around us. The weather was dreadful! Despite that he took us to some wonderful, dramatic and quite remote places where we managed to take some good pictures despite the conditions and have a good laugh in the process.


I came away with plenty to think about next time I'm shooting landscapes. I must say the brief stop in the pub towards the end where we could dry off, warm up and view some of Tims fabulous photos of Flat Holm and Skokholm was a great relief. I'll certainly be looking out for more of his courses.



My waterproofs were totally inadequate so I'll be treating myself to some new ones very soon. The camera survived, just! It steamed up with condensation inside the lens, late in the day. Fortunately it had all cleared this morning and is working perfectly. One bonus of the day was meeting one of the other participants, T, who is an experienced photographer. I've been invited to join him and his friend on their regular Wednesday photoshoots which will be a great way to learn more

Elvie

If you go down to the woods today

No Teddy Bears I'm afraid, only Elvie trying to be artistic!



Obviously suffering for her art. After a long exciting day on Skomer, a gentle stroll through the local wood was the obvious way to wind down. Elvie took her camera along, and couldn't resist the temptation to take a couple of shots, and I couldn't resist recording it for posterity. LB

Ravens Revisited

I wasn't happy with the photos I took of the raven's nest three weeks ago so after today's rain had passed over we went back to the Deer Park to have another go. Well, they have grown! Last time we could barely see the fledglings, now there are three nearly nearly full grown youngsters in the nest. I used a tripod for todays photos and got half a dozen much better shots. There was also a fulmar's nest nearby with three argumentative adolescents on board.


Elvie

Newport Wetlands Reserve

Had a pleasant afternoon at the Newport Wetlands. The reserve was constructed some years ago to replace the lost habitat in Cardiff Bay, when the barrage was built. It gives very easy access to the ponds and reed beds with proper paths and no mud! It would have been very peaceful there yesterday if it hadn't been for the reed warblers! What noisy birds they are! It's actually a lovely cheerful song and we were surrounded by them. Frustratingly the birds stayed well into the reeds and although I had a few glimpses, enough to identify them, I was unable to photograph them. In fact none of my photos were particularly good. I could do with a more telephoto lens. I'm finding photography is the sort of hobby which encourages you to buy more and more accessories! Anyway to get back to the birds. We spent most of our time watching a family of young coots being fed by their parents.
They were really cute. The iconic bird of the reserve is the bearded tit but we failed to spot them, ah well, it's another reason to go back there!

Elvie

Seabirds

We're back in Pembrokeshire for Easter. We've been blessed with lovely sunny weather so have made the most of it with lots of long walks along the cliff path. Of course I've taken the camera and have been trying to get more bird shots. We went chough hunting on Saturday but failed to see one let alone photograph them. We did spot this raven's nest though and spent some time watching as the parents flew back and fore feeding the youngsters. The chicks were still very small and all we saw of them was the occasional beak visible above the top of the nest. I also took dozens of photos of the gulls and fulmars as they circled around. Most were a bit fuzzy and ended in the bin but I was pleased with these two, a herring gull above and fulmar below.

Yesterday we had a brief glimpse of a chough near West Dale Bay but had no time to photograph it. Never mind, it's early in the year so I'm hopeful I'll get a snap of them. They're beautiful birds with bright red beaks and legs and very acrobatic in the air. It will be a good challenge!

We've had a lovely weekend here, catching up with old friends. A caravan site is an incredibly sociable place, presumably because we spend more time outdoors so bump into people more. We've previously considered buying a flat down here but always decided against it purely because we'd miss the company of the campsite. Amazingly LB met an old college friend here yesterday. They've not met for over thirty years but John, who lives in Swindon, has just happened to buy a van pitched next door to one of our closest friends here! It's a small world!

Elvie

Rock Pools - an alternative perspective!

The underwater casing for my compact camera had only been used in warm tropical waters until last weekend when I had the bright idea of using it inside rock pools in Pembrokeshire. It was a bit hit and miss as most of the time I couldn't see what I was photographing but I did get some good shots. I think the most surprising aspect was the vibrancy of the colours. Seaweed and the slow or static animals filled all the frames. Perhaps one day I'll do it and find a big crab or fish looking at the lens but I think that's unlikely! I'll have to get a book on seaweed now. I can identify the topshells and sea anenome but can't name the plants in the photos. Also does anyone know what the green blobs of jelly are on this red seaweed?

Elvie

Broadhaven

On Friday we came down to our caravan for the first time this season. I particularly love it at this time of year. From the van we have a great view up the valley of Haroldston Woods and the surrounding fields. We're ideally placed to watch the changing colours of the seasons. At present most of the trees are bare but some are coming into leaf so there are patches of the palest green, not the vibrant greens of the summer. The gorse is in full bloom and the blackthorn is also blossoming. Each time we visit the colours will have changed until everything is in full leaf, then it will remain fairly static over summer until the autumn brings it's own changes. The woodland is full of birdsong now. The chiffchaffs have arrived en masse and you can hear them wherever you are in the wood. There are plenty of blackbirds, robins and assorted tits and finches singing away too.


We've had a couple of walks in the woods, along the cliff path and of course on the beach. I've brought my slr camera and am quite pleased with some of the photos I've taken. It's strange how having a new camera has made me think about different camera angles and views. I've also tried a few arty close up photos and some underwater shots in the rock pools. I don't have a card reader to get the rock pool shots off the compact camera so I'll post those after I get home tomorrow.

Elvie

Llanelli Wildfowl & Wetlands Centre

Viv & I went here on Saturday for a bird photography workshop run by Tim Collier. I learn't a lot and thoroughly enjoyed the day. I was also very impressed with the Wetlands Centre itself. I had often driven past but never visited it till now.



It's run by the WWT and is similar to Slimbridge but smaller. There are a number of ponds and pens of captive birds with a large lagoon and abutting salt marsh where you'll see a variety of wild birds including ducks, geese, gulls and waders. There are numeous hides which proved very useful in the showers. The cafe was clean & pleasant with plenty of choice and a good view of the birdfeeders outside. It's certainly well worth a visit and I will definitely be going back there to explore some more. Anyway here's a few of the photos I took there. (From top to bottom an eider duck, smew and whooper swan )

Elvie

Photoshop Training

As well as learning to use my camera properly I decided I needed to learn to use the copy of Photoshop Elements that I have. Although Elements is a cut down version of Photoshop it's still quite complex and I've only been able to use the very basic functions. As I'm impatient I looked around for intensive courses and thanks to google found Mike Bone and FarrowHouse Training. I've just had two days training with him. He teaches a maximum of three students at a time and does specific courses for each version of Photoshop. It was brilliant. We covered a heck of a lot in two days and although I know I'll forget bits I now know the basics and can look it up as I need it without feeling totally confused by the manual. I'll certainly never trust a photo again. It's amazing what changes can be made very simply!

Anyway I'm a bit knackered now, it was hard work & held near Torquay so I've had a long drive tonight. I do recommend it if you're keen on learning a lot quickly. Time for a cuppa and early night for me but you can check on the link to his website!

Elvie