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A lovely couple of hours was spent wondering on Oxenbourne early this morning. The sun was shining and the bird song was only punctuated by the frequent harsh 'barking' of the muntjacs. My first Meadow Brown of the year was soon spotted but try as I might I could not coax him into a more pleasing pose.
This was quickly followed by sightings of a couple of Large Skippers. It is a pity that the tips of the wings of this Skipper are out of focus in the closed wing shot as I like the composition, but I only had time to snatch one photo before the warmth of the sun persuaded him to open his wings. I was shooting with quite a large depth of field so I am assuming that in my haste (and excitement!) I was not properly square on to the butterfly which I believe was rectified in later shots.
A surprising number of Blues were on the wing in varying states of wear and tear but they were not allowing this to temper their territorial squabbles:
In better condition were a couple of Brown Argus, content to pose for the camera as the temperature started to rise. I tried hard to ensure that the white fringe around this very dark butterfly was in focus with varying degrees of success. However, this was an improvement on the SSB shots as the white fringe around them was bleached and lacked any definition. Certainly a tricky combination which I am still not entirely sure how to deal with.
By far the most numerous was the Small Heath which seemed to be everywhere and easily outnumbered the total of all other species seen.
My camera battery was about to run out but I could not resist taking this shot on my way back to the car as the wild flowers at this site are amazing. Back home in time for 'brunch'!

Lovely pics Pauline, it rained here early morning, the afternoon was dry but unfortunately didn't see a thing, your very lucky living where you do.Goldie

Cracking shots Pauline! I'm struggling with Large Skippers at the moment, not finding em, getting em into shot-how did you coax him out of the long grass?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Thank you Goldie. I was actually brought up in the North East in a very industrial area (shipbuilding, coal mines) so I try to remember to appreciate the wildlife around me now.

Thank you too Wurzel. It actually takes a fair bit of patience and even more luck. The weather was very kind to me - the Skippers were very fresh and in the brief sunshine they glinted gold and were easy to see because they quickly became active. The frequent cloud cover in between calmed them down enough for the photos.

Today was fairly similar weather-wise so I thought I would take a chance and pop over to Oaken Wood to see if any Marbled Whites had emerged (they hadn't!). When the sun briefly emerged the meadow came alive with ..... yes, Small Heath, more than I have ever seen before in one place. No wonder it has been so easy this year to find mating pairs.

I also saw a few more Large Skippers and took the opportunity to try to improve on my shots from yesterday. I am actually quite pleased with this batch of photos. Whilst they may not be perfect in every respect I actually like them and one of them might just be my favourite photo of this year so far.

Hi Pauline,

Excellent pictures,

All the best,

Nick.

Hi Pauline, an excellent set of photos. I think the one at the top just about edges it for my favourite.

Cheers,

Neil F.

Thank you Nick - that means a lot.

Thank you Neil. I like them all but I do have a favourite.

As this diary is a record of the progression of my photography skills not all photos included will be ones that I am pleased with. However, I hope that over time an improvement will become evident as I try to master the fundamentals of photography and put them into practice. I would like to think that through a better understanding it will be possible to make better judgements resulting in the overall trend being upwards. Nevertheless, I shall still record the aspects that I have had difficulty with and some of the less successful photos. I am still working hard to improve my focusing following several constructive comments and helpful hints earlier in the season and I think that this is beginning to pay off. More recently I took some shots of SSB's that I was less than happy with. The exposure was all wrong and the white fringe around the butterfly was completely bleached and lacking in any detail. I decided I needed to experiment a bit in different light and with different exposure compensation settings. I think I have achieved what I set out to do - the detail on the white fringe is certainly visible now. I am not content with the compositions or the background but I had less than an hour and this was the aspect I wanted to concentrate on. I am not finished with the SSB's yet so hopefully there will be better to come.

The different species of butterfly all seem to bring with them their own unique challenges when it comes to taking photographs. Whether this be finding them, having the right weather conditions, dealing with the different colour combinations, etc. it means that there is potential to learn from each experience and every outing and it never gets boring. I have not yet seen a female SSB and although I shall keep checking my local site it is time to move on. It might be Marbled White, Small Skipper, DGF or something else, but whatever it is I am looking forward to it. I shall leave with a few photos taken today. Several are very similar but I think my favourites are the ones with the purple hue of the heather in the background.

Cracking shots there Pauline - they cheered me up as I went looking for SSB's at my local site on Monday with no joy and I was ill today ! Still I'll be all better ready for the weekend...with it's rain and gales and below average temperatures You've got to or you'll

I noticed last year that the males of the SSB sem to come out first with the females a week or so later. They also tend to stay lower down in the heather so are harder to find. When you do find one the closed wings are stunning with more really bright and obvious "silver studs" - good luck!

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Hi Pauline,

Lovely photos, I too like the purple shade to the background to a couple.

Neil F.

Thank you Wurzel. I hope you are feeling better today tho I fear you are right about the weekend weather. I imagine the closest I'll get to a butterfly is sorting out my photos

Thank you Neil. Wish I could take ones as good as this all the time but sadly that's not the case just yet. You don't want to know how many I bin or the number of great shots I miss cos I'm not quite fast enough!

Had a quick look at The Straits yesterday morning in the brief, watery sunshine. Definitely no SWF or WA yet. Only butterflies seen were Admiral (wrong colour), MB, lots of LS and my first Small Skipper of the year... but he was too quick for a photo. Only took one photo whilst there. Word of warning - anyone visiting this site needs insect repellant. I wasn't there long but badly bitten by all manner of insects, possibly horse flies?
Stopped off at Broxhead Common on the way back but no female SSB evident as yet.

Found my female Wurzel and yes, she had some lovely studs
but it wasn't long before someone else found her also:
The wind was blowing a gale and taking photos today really wasn't easy but this was the best I could do:

What super and lovely pictues.
Debbie

A delight to see Pauline-especially I've been on domestic duties all day and tomorrow is loft clearing

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Thank you Debbie - I really appreciate your comments.

Morning Worzel - it is kind of you to say so. Looking out the window at the November weather I think the best place to be today is actually in the loft!

Great photos Pauline!

Thank you Colin. It is very kind of you to say so. I am trying hard and still learning but doing my best.

It had been my intention to go to Sainsbury's today but in the event I went to Tesco instead. Now Tesco is only 5 mins away from the Straits and I just couldn't resist. It was windy, overcast and drizzling but I walked along the main track to the clump of bramble by the watchtower. Fritillaries are often to be seen there but today it was quite cold and I consoled myself that even the flies seemed non-existent so at least I wouldn't get bitten again. Suddenly the sun appeared and with it about half a dozen Large Skippers. What is it with these butterflies and their white flowers! I really must get this combination sorted out.
It was time to leave but just as I turned my attention was caught by these. As usual I am undecided which I prefer so have included a selection:

Cracking shots Pauline-I'd go with the last two

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Lovely photos Pauline, i look forward to seeing more you post

Chris

Thank you Wurzel and Chris. Your comments are always appreciated.

A few more that I forgot to include from yesterday:
Don't know what it is but it was very pretty.
A slow worm???? definitely not an adder but I don't know much about snakes.
Once the sun appeared the Skippers seemed to be everywhere.