GOOSANDER on the River Coly

So it went something like this... My Canon 24 - 70 mm f/4 L IS USM finally arrived today (after Parcelforce temporarily misplaced it) so I headed out for a few shots after work. It was already fairly dark but fast shutter speeds aren't necessarily particularly important when shooting with wide angle lenses. Whilst taking some photos of a bridge in Colyton the usual mallard group swam by but there was an unexpected guest! My first thoughts were along the lines of *!%&!*!%!!*. I know I shouldn't get excited over a duck, but this was only my second ever patch Goosander, it was just typical that I had a WIDE ANGLE lens on for testing. Brilliant. I tried my best at a few pics but with 70mm this is not an easy task... So I hastily jogged home, grabbed the 600mm and drove back down. It was still there although the light by now was very poor for photography. Here's a few of the least bad pics; they're cropped and all taken at ISO 2500 so graining is evident:

Wildlife photographs

Well, and some landscapes too.
Apologies for how quiet this page has been in recent weeks, I simply haven't been able to get out at all and birding potential from my office(s) is very limited! As well as my normal day jobs I've also had a lot of photography work come my way lately. As my location of work for next year is still unconfirmed, I'm clearing some of my stock of mounted wildlife photographs and greeting cards. As such the pricing will be incredibly low; I'd rather people have them cheaply than for the products to sit in a box for months on end! Pics are available in 12 x 10 inch and 10 x 8 inch mounts. There's also a choice of mount colour as shown in the images below. I've been browsing for pricing by other photographers and they charge on average 220% of my price. Feel free to ask for a quote. You can also request specific photos from this blog if there's something in particular that you would like.

Posing GWE & Colyton fireworks

More of the Shapwick Heath GWE and a few firework pics from the Colyton firework display (in the rain):

Great White Egret in VERY close company...

Lots more to come when time permits...

RED-BREASTED FLYCATCHER - Lifer on patch

A mid-morning text from Bun and then another moments later from Steve Waite certainly got my attention. 'RB Fly at Seaton Hole'. I asked Steve if this was a patch first and when he replied with confirmation, I made a rather hasty exit from work. The bird was distant (top of trees), elusive and views were very brief with the bird flitting out from hiding every now and then. Steve said that it would just sit and preen for long periods earlier in the day but it was less active by the time I got there. A fantastic bird for the patch and a lifer for me; the pics are pretty lousy but at least it's recognisable as a RB Fly!!

GREY PHALAROPE - Brilliantly Obliging

I haven't been able to spend much time out with the camera this month due to masses of work, but with a couple hours free this afternoon I thought I'd try for the Budleigh Salterton / River Otter Grey Phalarope which has been present for almost a week now. It was actually a lifer for me (yes, really) so to get such close views of this most tolerant bird was great!

A trip to Dartmoor...

...Zoological Park!

I booked yesterday off work to spend with Natalie and we decided on a zoo trip; thankfully the weather was pretty much perfect! Avian interest was rather limited with the most exotic sighting being a wild Barnacle Goose which has been staying at the zoo on and off lately.

Here's a few pics from the day. Please note the copyright watermarks on certain images...

Up close and personal!

A late afternoon visit to Black Hole Marsh was rather underwhelming with nothing of interest showing close at all. We headed to the Burrow Pit instead and sat by the Swan, with a couple of Kingfishers providing occasional entertainment, lovely end to the day!

More Black Hole Marsh Brilliance

Having been rather ill for the last week I haven't spent as much time at the marshes as I'd have liked to. Thankfully the quality of birds made up for it with 3 Little Stints being present (always very distant) along with good numbers of Ruff (up to 8 at one point) and Greenshank. A Sparrowhawk also caused havoc over the marsh on a couple of occasions:

Little Stint

Little Stint

Little Stint

Kestrel

Sparrowhawk - I quite like the flies in this shot!

Sparrowhawk

I have a whole day booked off work tomorrow (yes, really!!) which I'll be spending at a zoo in lovely company. There may soon be some non-avian photos on this page if I'm desperate for blog material...

Kingfisher diving pics

Kingfishers giving more fantastic views. Still haven't managed a 'super shot' due to distance but my persistence will pay off eventually...

Kingfisher & Kestrel pics

A brief visit to Black Hole Marsh yielded the usual good views of Kingfishers, with 2 females being protective of the area. A Kestrel was having a difficult time flying in breezy conditions, which provided a few photo opportunities as it did a couple of stoops over the marsh. Here's a few pics of the aforementioned species, as well as one of the Greenshank posing nicely.

A couple of Little Stint also flew in whilst I was there (one of which had been reported already). Hopefully they'll hang around for a few days and pose nicely for my camera...