Pauline

[Pauline]

Thank you Wurzel. In fact, it is Mike I have to thank for my current obsession with the probiscus and I have to agree that it does make for a better photo as I think this demonstrates:

Thank you Neil. I know someone who has confessed to searching for roosting butterflies by moonlight and torch light. Since that time I resolved not to let external conditions (weather etc) get in the way of finding butterflies - just makes it that bit harder sometimes. This little chap is looking particularly damp and covered in rain:

I spent a lovely couple of hours in the Straits yesterday. A female Blackcap kept me company as I watched the butterflies and various deer made sporadic appearances. However, I was treated to a close up view of one of the buzzards which I normally only see at a distance gliding across the track. This is a truly beautiful bird and to my mind was much paler with a lot more cream colouration than I normally note on buzzards. The words 'honey buzzard' sprung to mind but I really wouldn't know the difference.

I was pleased to see the Skippers out in such numbers as I think they are such charismatic little butterflies and very photogenic. However, when they open their wings a large depth of field is needed for both wings to be in focus. My camera was not set to maximum depth of field as I wanted a faster shutter speed to counter the fact that the camera was both hand held (sorry) and I was also standing off a bit and using zoom. I am trying to understand the relationship between zoom, focal length and depth of field and until I do I guess I will continue to have one wing out of focus as seen here:

A couple more before I move on to the Purple Emperor! (In my dreams )

[MikeOxon]

Love that proboscis in the first Skipper shot!

You might try using a monopod to help with composition and focus (though you seem to do pretty well, hand-held). Much less cumbersome than a tripod and more flexible but surprisingly effective. I use a Manfrotto 694CX with a simple ball head and quick release.

Mike

[P.J.Underwood]

I still havent seen any Purple Emperors in Chidd.Woods.Have you?
P.J.U.

[Pauline]

Thank you Mike - see below.

A quick visit to Goose Green late yesterday afternoon revealed all the same species as the Straits but fewer of them. I have been driving around for weeks now with my monopod in the back of my car - since I found the quick release thingy. I decided it was time to give it a try. I did find it unwieldy and cumbersome, compromising my flexibility and after about 20 mins my back started to ache because I was bending at strange angles to try to get the shot. I put it back into the car but have not entirely given up on it yet - perhaps I just need a bit more practice. So, by way of comparison, here are a couple of shots taken using the monopod. The first shot has had nothing done to it (not cropped or sharpened) apart from re-sizing:

The next one has been cropped:

I then reverted to hand held and took this from quite close up:

To deal with DoF issues I tried to stand off a bit and use the zoom. This example is deliberately closely cropped so that finer details and focusing can be more easily assessed:

Out of all of them I am probably most satisfied with the detail on the last photo although I like the composition of the first, despite the flower being out of focus. I have decided to persevere with the monopod in short bursts to see how I progress with it.

[MikeOxon]

I'd forgotten that you had mentioned using a monopod earlier in your diary.

I tend to just let the 'pod hang loosely from the camera, as I get into position for a shot, and only then do I let the leg drop to the ground and lock it in place. This leaves you free to 'find' the photo and the 'pod then applies the extra steadiness when you need it. You shouldn't let the 'pod dictate how you take the photo, especially if it leads you into uncomfortable positions.

I find the first Skipper photo amusing, with the stamens waving around like some sort of party hat! - I like it The other two Skipper pics are a little dark - you might like to try playing with brightness and contrast in Photoshop, to see if they improve.

Mike

[Pauline]

I shall take heed of your advice Mike the next time the 'pod gets an airing. In the meantime I have been playing with elements as you suggested:

Perhaps not perfect but definitely an improvement. I shall need to become more adept at this as I tend to set the exposure compensatiion to deal with the lightest part of the composition whether it be a butterfly fringe or a flower and that sometimes tends to leave me with an overall dark-ish photo.

Given the sheer numbers of Ringlets and Meadow Browns it is tempting to overlook them in favour of their more rare and exotic cousins but they have a beauty of their own and some considerable variation in markings. A few Ringlets below, including one where 2 of the 'rings' are not properly formed.

[MikeOxon]

they have a beauty of their own and some considerable variation in markings.

You are right about Ringlets! Some recent shots of Wurzel's had opened my eyes to their subtle beauty and I must try for some better photos too. I had tended to dismiss them as rather dull.

Mike

[Gothic_dreams]

Some more lovely photos Pauline, i love the last Ringlet shot

Chris

[David M]

You are right about Ringlets! Some recent shots of Wurzel's had opened my eyes to their subtle beauty and I must try for some better photos too. I had tended to dismiss them as rather dull.

They get a little ugly once their early lustre wears off, but when fresh I consider them very attractive butterflies.

[Pauline]

Thank you for your comment Chris - it is much appreciated.

Not at all dull Mike - look at the lovely contrast in colours and the beautiful markings. I cannot leave the Ringlets without including a mating pair. I have struggled to get a photo of a pair mating as they always seem to be in such awkward positions and if approached tend to fly off. Today was different:

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Pauline,

I totally agree with your sentiments regarding Ringlets, something that I also feel towards Green-veined Whites which I feel are often overlooked.

Well done on the mating pair, I have see a few but usually doing the Ringlet thing of being tucked down in the grass.

Cheers,

Neil F.

[philm63]

Pauline

This is a fascinating and beautifully "illustrated" diary, keep it up. Only wish I had the same variety of species to see here, never mind your skill with a camera.

Phil

[Gothic_dreams]

Lovely mating pair of Ringlets Pauline, you have captured them great

Chris

[Pauline]

Thank you Neil. I haven't actually seen many GVW this season (as you can probably tell by lack of photos) but I certainly agree with you. In a nice, sharp photo that has been well composed they can look smashing. A butterfly doesn't need to be rare to be appreciated.

That is a wonderfully worded complement Phil and I shall value it. It has left me pondering on how much of the diary you have read and where you are from.

Thank you Chris - I was lucky to find them in such an obliging position.

Yesterday, at 1.45pm I was very pleased to be able to watch 4 PE's. Their frequent territorial squabbles were no doubt due to the fact that they all seemed to be sharing the same tree. I know that there were at least 4 because 3 were in the air together and I could see one stationed at the end of a branch (I even managed to get what I shall laughingly call a photo of this individual albeit at full zoom - on this occasion I shall not be commenting on my photographic technique ). The weather was very changeable with frequent downpours. I watched this individual to see what he would do as the rain became heavier (getting soaked myself in the process), but like the SWF and WA earlier, he just sat with his wings open and weathered the storm. I would have been delighted with a close up photo but in the current climate it felt like a privilege just to be entertained by them. Sadly, at 2.45pm I had to leave them to their activity. I am hoping that their emergence will follow the same pattern as the SWF and that after a slow start there will be more sightings, possibly going on well into August.

[P.J.Underwood]

Brilliant,Pauline!That's the type of photo I want with my telephoto lens.
Philip

[MikeOxon]

a photo of this individual albeit at full zoom - on this occasion I shall not be commenting on my photographic technique

Nevertheless, I shall comment! I looked at the EXIF data and noticed that you appropriately used +0.66 exposure compensation to bring out the detail against the sky. What an advert for the capability of the Lumix FZ38 too! The antennae are resolved quite sharply against the sky. I notice that the 35mm equivalent focal length of the lens was almost 500mm - for comparison a 500mm f/4 lens for a Canon DSLR costs around £8,500 and weighs over 3kg!!!

Mike

[jenks]

Hi Pauline,
being someone whose photographic capabilities are " point, press, and hope for the best " with a Panasonic digital, I`m incapable of technical analysis but always envious of those who take excellent photos. To me your photo of PE captures the essence of this butterfly; high in the canopy looking down on us looking up at him ! You got me drooling, a visit to Bentley Wood is planned for tomorrow ! I hope I get as good a sighting as you got today.

[jenks]

make that sighting yesterday !

[philm63]

It has left me pondering on how much of the diary you have read and where you are from.

P1080313d.jpg

I enjoyed the story as you continue to try to get more out of your camera images both technically and artistically, but the list of species you have seen and photographed is great. I have now seen a total of 19 species locally and seriously expect I can add possibly four more (Purple Hairstreak, White-letter Hairstreak, Brimstone and Common Blue). The last Painted lady I saw locally was in 2009. I live in Bingley which is between Bradford and Keighley in West Yorkshire. From Heights Lane which runs along one of the highest ridges locally, about 500 yards from me, I can just about see the Lancashire border. The local terrain is recovered moorland (very rough pasture) running into moorland proper in one direction, and downhill into the Aire valley in the other. Not too far away can get into the Wharfe valley which is better from a wildlife point of view. Mind you, my garden bird list stands at around 30 species, I have had Red Kite and Buzzard from the garden, and Siskin, Nuthatch and Great Spotted Woodpecker are all pretty regular. I run a Fuji S5600 bridge camera, it has sufficed for about four years but I am still learning with it, keep trying diffrent settings and methods, butterflies and dragonflies are much diffrent to take pictures of than birds, which it is almost impossible to regularly take good close-up shots of. The occasional chance does occur and I have some bird shots I am particularly proud of, not necessarily from a technical point of view, more from the enjoyment they gave me seeing the bird and getting a "permanent memory" of the moment; and that is how I am approaching my butterfly and dragonfly shots.

Phil

[Nick Broomer]

Your first photo of a Small Skipper on the top of this page is just lovely Pauline.

All the best, Nick.