I'm no fan of tripods either - especially for mobile subjects like butterflies. Many people consider you can't get sharp pics without them but I find that a monopod is a good compromise - less hassle than a tripod but a big improvement in stability over hand-holding.
Mike
Search found 2657 matches
- Fri Jul 29, 2011 5:58 pm
- Forum: Photography
- Topic: Brown Argus
- Replies: 3
- Views: 507
- Fri Jul 29, 2011 11:58 am
- Forum: Sites
- Topic: Otmoor, Oxon
- Replies: 3
- Views: 333
Re: Otmoor, Oxon
Sounds a terrifying experience - at least you avoided the unexploded bombs! Perhaps butterflying should be classified as a dangerous sport.
Mike
Mike
- Fri Jul 29, 2011 10:48 am
- Forum: Sites
- Topic: Otmoor, Oxon
- Replies: 3
- Views: 333
Otmoor, Oxon
28th July 2011 Next to the carpark for the RSPB reserve near Beckley, Oxon, there is bridleway known as the Roman Road. Yesterday, in hot sunshine, both sides of the ride held clouds of butterflies, rising up from the undergrowth with each step. Most were Gatekeepers, with several multi-spotted var...
- Thu Jul 28, 2011 9:49 pm
- Forum: Sites
- Topic: Whitecross Green Wood?
- Replies: 18
- Views: 1318
Re: Whitecross Green Wood?
I saw Brown Hairstreak this afternoon on Otmoor. BrnHstrk_Otmoor.jpg It was at the south end of the Roman Road, adjacent to the RSPB carpark, near Beckley. The lane was very hot and sheltered, with clouds of gatekeepers rising at every step. I was delighted when, on approaching a bank of flowers, on...
- Wed Jul 27, 2011 10:28 pm
- Forum: Photography
- Topic: Brown Argus
- Replies: 3
- Views: 507
Re: Brown Argus
That's a very nice image, John, and welcome to the forums. The exposure and detail in the butterfly wings is great, and I love the way the colours in the beautifully out-of-focus background echo the flower on which she is standing. The background is a tribute to the excellent bokeh of your Canon mac...
- Tue Jul 26, 2011 8:51 pm
- Forum: General
- Topic: Pentax Papilio Binoculars
- Replies: 12
- Views: 926
Pentax Papilio Binoculars
I mentioned in another thread, somewhere on this site, that I had some Pentax Papilio 6.5 x 21 binoculars on order. They arrived today and I am very impressed. Of course, I expect that everyone in this forum already has their pair but, in case anyone hasn't, may I add my recommendation. The optical ...
Re: July 2011
More from Oxfordshire - 25th July I walked along the 'earthwork' on the ridge of Sliding Hill near Swyncombe this afternoon. It was a beautiful sunny day and the hillside was a carpet of wild flowers, with many attendant butterflies. The most abundant lepidoptera were, however, Forester Moths and a...
Re: July 2011
Huge numbers of dragonflies in the wood including this colourful specimen. Anyone know what it is? It's a Southern Hawker (Aeshna cyanea) , characterised by the broad yellow stripes on the sides of the thorax. No argument about the Essex but, if you are offering a free optician session, I'll happil...
Re: July 2011
Let's hope the dearth of Peacocks is a temporary glitch. Small Tortoiseshells had a bad patch a few years go but seem to have recovered to some extent although, generally, it seems that we have to be content with less of most things. It appears that Lulworh Skippers are in trouble too, judging by th...
- Sat Jul 23, 2011 11:56 am
- Forum: General
- Topic: What is this hoverfly doing?
- Replies: 4
- Views: 250
Re: What is this hoverfly doing?
Fascinating photo! Like you, I first assumed this was a bit of spider thread but Gilbert mentions this behaviour in his paper on Foraging Ecology of Hoverflies - see: http://ecology.nottingham.ac.uk/~plzfg/pdf%20files/1981%20Gilbert_foraging%20ecology%20of%20syrphids.pdf He writes that it is sometim...
- Sat Jul 23, 2011 9:27 am
- Forum: Personal Diaries
- Topic: Wurzel
- Replies: 5881
- Views: 2874571
Re: Wurzel
referring to " brown spots " Millerd was not alone in mis-understanding your initial post but, now you have explained, I can point out that the Gatekeeper is prone to aberrations in both colour and spotting. Millerd has an example of a colour aberration in his thread "Golden Gatekeep...
- Fri Jul 22, 2011 12:38 pm
- Forum: Photography
- Topic: new here - first pic !
- Replies: 5
- Views: 675
Re: new here - first pic !
I was very puzzled until I looked at the EXIF data, as the plant is definitely not a blackberry!!! Pretty good as a Blackberry phone photo though! Welcome to the forum.
Mike
Mike
- Fri Jul 22, 2011 9:51 am
- Forum: Conservation
- Topic: Is anybody here taking part in this?
- Replies: 14
- Views: 1317
Re: Is anybody here taking part in this?
You are right that 8,000 years is very little in evolutionary time but it is pleny of time for isolated populations to die out! I suspect that lots of former colonists have gone - not to mention wolves, beavers, lynx, etc., etc!!
Mike
Mike
- Fri Jul 22, 2011 9:42 am
- Forum: Sites
- Topic: Aston Rowant
- Replies: 18
- Views: 1666
Re: Aston Rowant
I've not been up there yet this year but there were plenty last year on August 9th. If you are visiting the area, other good sites are Watlington Hill, a little further West, and my favourite, which is Sliding Hill, near Swyncombe; a high ridge jutting into the Oxfordshire Plain, mercifully free fro...
- Thu Jul 21, 2011 11:28 am
- Forum: Personal Diaries
- Topic: Charles Nicol
- Replies: 125
- Views: 17043
Re: Charles Nicol
For Photoshop/Elements users, there's a free kaleidoscope plugin available from: http://www.mehdiplugins.com/english/kaleidoscope.htm Here is an example made with Photoshop Elements 2 from an original on my website: vaness1_kaleid.jpg I downloaded this plug-in after finding that the Sumo site was no...
- Wed Jul 20, 2011 9:58 pm
- Forum: Photography
- Topic: What to do?
- Replies: 9
- Views: 520
Re: What to do?
I'm not a fan of tripods for mobile subjects, as I find them too restrictive. I use a Manfrotto 694CX monopod, with a quick-release ball head, and find it extremely versatile. I think price is a good guide to tripods, as cheap models use plastic components, which fail in time. Look for solid metal l...
- Wed Jul 20, 2011 7:30 pm
- Forum: Photography
- Topic: Sharpening
- Replies: 22
- Views: 1461
Re: Sharpening
When I have time, I'll try a direct comparison of these different methods and post some results on the forum. While the weather has not been great out in the field, I have been trying the various suggestions in this thread. It's not been a very scientific study but I have tried to examine the effec...
- Wed Jul 20, 2011 10:20 am
- Forum: Photography
- Topic: Lens Cleaning
- Replies: 4
- Views: 367
Re: Lens Cleaning
I keep clear UV filters on all my lenses, all the time. As a result, I have never needed to clean the lens itself. A soft cloth is usually sufficient to clean the filters but, if they get really greasy, I use a Q-tip and iso-propyl alcohol. Sometimes, I just give the whole filter a wash in warm wate...
- Tue Jul 19, 2011 8:36 pm
- Forum: Sites
- Topic: Arnside Knott
- Replies: 45
- Views: 2836
Re: Arnside Knott
Gorgeous specimens and very nice pics, too. The centre of the first large brown ring on your HBF looks bluish. Is it really, or is it just the contrast with the yellow surroundings?
Mike
Mike
- Tue Jul 19, 2011 8:28 pm
- Forum: Identification
- Topic: Wall Brown?? ID please
- Replies: 6
- Views: 339
Re: Wall Brown?? ID please
Hi Lee. You are off to a running start with those pics. I particularly like the characterful shot of the Comma underside. You didn't say where these were taken - it's always interesting to know what species are occurring where. Nowadays, Wall Browns have become rather scarce inland, and are mostly f...