Portrait
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A bit of garden wildlife
You don’t have to go to exotic places to see fascinating wildlife. Sometimes it’s there in your own back garden/back yard. We have a wheelbarrow stored upside down in our garden. On lifting it recently my wife found these two Common toads (bufo bufo) side by side. We’ve seen individuals before, but two together was unusual. She called me over and I, of course, went and got my OM-1 camera with my OM System 60mm macro lens. A quick focus-stacked set and they were captured for posterity. Sweet! On a Scabious flower just yards away some real drama was playing out. The female Flower Crab spider had previously caught a…
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Spring has sprung
It’s nearly May, and here in leafy Worcester everything wild is going at a very rapid pace. The birds are singing like mad, and creatures like toads are well out of hibernation. I found this one perched on top of an old tree stump in the garden. The stump is covered by our wheelbarrow – upside down – and I’ve seen a toad on the tree stump before. I had my OM System 40-150 Pro lens fitted, which was perfect for an informal portrait. The eyes are good and sharp, which is an important thing in portrait photography. I’ve been experimenting with capturing small insects in flight. It’s really hard…
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A 21st century icon
At a recent trip to Shelsley Walsh for a motorsport hill climb event, I was struck by this marshall’s face against the red circle. The marshalls, all volunteers, do fantastic work making sure the event is safe for all the competitors and for the spectators. He was relaxing for a moment while the hill was cleared to remove a car that had broken down. With his head against that red circle I thought he looked like one of those icons from medieval or Orthodox Christian art. I just loved his contemplative expression, so I used my telephoto lens to isolate him. This was what I thought he looked like; uncanny…