Pauline

[Pauline]

These are also from yesterday but I wanted to be sure that they were indeed slow worms before I posted them. The beautiful metallic colours were stunning - each different - and reminded me of an intricate piece of jewellery. Platinum, gold, silver, bronze, all interwoven and gleaming. I am not yet sure whether they eat ants but being a lizard I would have thought so in which case they had a ready food source to hand. Breakfast in bed eh

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Pauline,

I really like your Gatekeepers pairs, especially the second one, think that one looks a bit special

Cheers,

Neil F.

[Pauline]

Good to hear from you Neil and glad you like my gatekeepers - worth getting a drenching for then .

Chalkhills seem to be doing incredibly well this year according to recent reports and my own personal observations - good news in a year when so many species have struggled. They have provided plenty of photographic opportunities recently and being prepared to pose in a variety of positions they are a very photogenic butterfly. In celebration of Chalkhills:

Today, if it ever stops raining, I plan to spend a couple of hours on Noar Hill and around the Selbourne area to see if there is any sign of the Brown Hairstreak. Given the lack of sightings here in the last couple of years since the blackthorn was 'pruned' I am not hopeful.

[Pauline]

No Brown hairstreaks seen as yet but an interesting couple of hours at Oxenbourne this morning. I met a student who was doing some work on behalf of Butterfly Conservation, collecting data on the lava of the rare Striped Lynchnis moth which lives on the Dark Mullen plant, named it would seem after a less scarce moth called the Dark Mullen.... but more of that later. Of possibly more interest is the fact that the SSS are now out at Oxenbourne (although I saw only one female and NO mating pairs ) so in true Pauline style a host of photos from the very many that I am still sorting through:

These are definitely not the easiest butterfly to photograph especially the males and the weather today made the task that much more difficult - a combination of sun and wind so they were quite active and when the wind caught them they ended up goodness knows where!!


Edit: I've tried a different crop on the first photo - does it work better I wonder! Ah well, still so much to learn.

[MikeOxon]

I've tried a different crop on the first photo - does it work better I wonder!

I think it does

Mike

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Pauline,

Some lovely photos there, the 7th one down on the bell flower is a real cracker

Cheers,

Neil F.

[Pauline]

Thank you Neil. Your compliment is much appreciated and it has got me thinking about what makes one photo better than a similar one - apart from personal preference of course.

Thank you too Mike. You advised me earlier about my cropping and I tried to take note. I realise that the way a photo is cropped can greatly change its perspective and the way it is viewed. I have not been entirely happy with my photos recently (always striving for better) and to that end I have been looking at a lot of other photographs taken by others, trying to work out what I like about them and why.

There are some very good photographers on this site that provide excellent examples. I thought I might try some different crops on the photos I have already posted by way of comparison - the presentation of my photos is all part of my photography learning curve which is what this diary has always been about. So, the same butterflies, the same photos but different crops:

It is quite dark here although it is midday and it is teeming with rain. However, the forecast for the rest of the week looks good so if it lives up to its promise I think I might venture further afield in my quest for the Brown Hairstreak.

However, before I leave the Chalkhills for this season a couple of photos taken whilst looking for SSS:

[ChrisC]

your diary has been great viewing Pauline, i may not comment but i always look in.

[philm63]

Pauline
You take some fantastic pictures.
Is there any reason you prefer / go for what I would call the more "isolated" shots, where the background and the butterfly's immediate surroundings are out of focus so do not detract?
It can give some excellent results as you so ably exhibit, I tend to lean the other way and like to shoot the subject in context of where and on what it was seen. Potrait wise yours are excellent, I would have real difficulty duplicating it I am sure. Keep up the excellent and very readable work.
Phil

[MikeOxon]

the way a photo is cropped can greatly change its perspective and the way it is viewed.

I think this is the fascinating thing about photographs (and paintings too).

It is the frame that makes it a 'picture'. Our 'natural' vision seems to have no edges but, by putting up a frame, we direct attention to our chosen 'subject'. I think it was Stanley Spencer who caused considerable comment by allowing his subject matter apparently to 'spill over' the edge of the frame, so implying that the action continued outside his picture.

The old, huge landscape cameras gave the photographer plenty of time to contemplate the image on the ground glass screen but I find it is very hard compose in a tiny viewfinder or lcd screen, so I think it is essential to contemplate the result on a large monitor and then decide the optimum framing.

The many favourable comments you receive demonstrate that you're making your selections in a way that appeals to your viewers.

Mike

[Paul Harfield]

your diary has been great viewing Pauline, i may not comment but i always look in.

Hi Pauline
I also rarely comment. I read many of the prolific diaries but yours is always the first I look at. Great photos but also very well written, easy to read and witty. If my own diary were a fraction as good I would be pleased. Keep up the good work

[Pauline]

Aah, it's really kind of you to say so Chris and good to know you're one of my regular viewers . I still haven't managed to get any close-up shots to compare with your stunning images.

Thank you Phil, I really appreciate your comments. I guess the 'isolated' shots are something of a personal preference. In general, I think that many shots taken 'in context' include a background that is just too 'busy' and distracts from the beauty of the butterfly. However, not always, as is demonstrated by your lovely Small Tortoiseshell and also Guy's (Padfield) amazing shots which show the incredible background and is worthy of inclusion on its own merit. I tried, unsuccessfully, to replicate this approach the other day when I was on a hillside with the thunder rumbling and lightening crackling. I wasn't really happy with the result tho' :

Thank you for this Mike - that is really interesting. I have seen paintings like you describe - usually wildlife subjects - and they have stopped me in my tracks, as it can be a very effective and eye-catching technique. Perhaps I should try it

Good to hear from you Paul and thank you for your kind words. I always read your diary too. Do you ever get up to Rake Bottom. Oxenbourne, Chalton Down, all just South of Petersfield as they are all very good sites? I have to confess that it has always been my intention (and still is) although not openly declared, to end my diary to coincide with my birthday at beg of September. So, 31 August will be my last posting for this season.

In the next few weeks I hope to see Brown Hairstreak, Wall Brown and Adonis - Small Tortoiseshell would be an added bonus! Whether I succeed remains to be seen. In the meantime, the following is a bit of a 'wash-up' session, including a few pics that have somehow missed out in earlier postings:

Second brood Common Blue.

The (well advanced) larva of the Lychnis moth. I might well try to get a photo of the pupae.

... and the Chalkhills which I can't seem to escape from - taken in the rain as per normal. I am hoping to start a new trend known as the 'drowned rat' look .

[Padfield]

I tried, unsuccessfully, to replicate this approach the other day when I was on a hillside with the thunder rumbling and lightening crackling. I wasn't really happy with the result tho' :

I think that is a lovely shot, Pauline. For me, a good photograph can be (as that one is) a keyhole into another world - a moment in a narrative that spills not just out of the frame of the picture but forward and backward in time. I say, 'can be' because there are obviously lots of different kinds of good photograph, including the portrait style which you also excel at.

The chief difficulties of scenic shots are firstly that you get less control over the aspect of the butterfly (because you are obliged to shoot horizontally, towards your chosen 'context') and secondly that you need to be very close, so the butterfly represents a wide angle of arc. Re the first: I have sat for long periods by a perfectly photographable butterfly simply waiting for it to raise a photogenic surface into the plane of the picture I want to take. Re the second: getting so close makes these kinds of photo more invasive. I take most of my photos from about 5cm from the butterfly and when I'm alone am confident I can sneak up on any species to this distance without disturbing it (I have a very strict rule that if I accidentally flush an individual three times I will let it be and move on - chasing an individual for a photo is just selfish, as well as missing the point of observing nature). When there are others around, the balletic movements required to get smoothly into position are frankly embarrassing and whenever I see someone coming I stop taking pictures.

Sorry to clutter your diary, but you do seem to invite observations and this is also an opportunity to join the chorus of congratulation on your work.

Guy

[MikeOxon]

I wasn't really happy with the result tho' :

I agree with Guy - it's a lovely shot, which shows the context well.

If you want to try another technique, this is a shot that could benefit from subtle use of fill-in flash, to balance the foreground and background. I don't know what degree of flash control your camera offers and it will need a lot of practice to get it right. Something to try over the Winter months. You're not really going to leave us all in September are you?

Mike

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Pauline,

Just thought I would mention that last year I photographed the last butterfly, a Red Admiral, in my garden and posted it in my diary on October 30th, then just carried on again in March.

No need to finish at the end of August.

Cheers,

Neil F.

[Paul Harfield]

Good to hear from you Paul and thank you for your kind words. I always read your diary too. Do you ever get up to Rake Bottom. Oxenbourne, Chalton Down, all just South of Petersfield as they are all very good sites? I have to confess that it has always been my intention (and still is) although not openly declared, to end my diary to coincide with my birthday at beg of September. So, 31 August will be my last posting for this season.

In the next few weeks I hope to see Brown Hairstreak, Wall Brown and Adonis - Small Tortoiseshell would be an added bonus! Whether I succeed remains to be seen. In the meantime, the following is a bit of a 'wash-up' session, including a few pics that have somehow missed out in earlier postings:

Hi Pauline
I have not yet made it to any of the sites you mention. I did get up to Beacon Hill at Warnford last Sunday for the first time (I have not written that up in my diary yet). What a wonderful place I spent 4 hours there and did not see another soul, aside from a couple of dog walkers as I was leaving. I did not see any Silver Spotted Skippers though. Even so probably my best day so far this year I think I will have lots of places left to visit for the first time next year. Plenty of species still to see for the first time as well.

[Pauline]

You are certainly not cluttering my diary Guy so please don't apologise. I appreciate you explaining your techniques to me tho' you might be surprised to know that I, too, can do that dance to get close to butterflies . Perhaps we should call it the Butterfly Bolero . It was always my intention to encourage interaction through my diary as I think it is good to embrace different styles and ideas and I have certainly had a lot of help and advice - more than I could have hoped for. Last but not least, thank you for the compliment.

Thank you too Mike - you have helped me such a lot with your advice. My last posting will certainly be 31 August but I shall not be leaving you as I shall keep in touch with the website and be back with my diary on 4 May 2013 (if you can all put up with me for another season ). I have no idea about the flash capabilities on my camera Mike as I have never used it but I can see that the photo needs something to 'bring it all together'. Amongst other things, over the winter period I shall be trying to consolidate what I have learned and practice some new techniques.

Thank you Neil for all your support and encouragement. It is not so much about the butterflies but other things that I must attend to. Still, I STILL have 3 weeks to go to get those last 3 butterflies I want to see .

You have some great times ahead of you Paul. Butterflies take you to just the best places and you meet a great bunch of people. Keep in touch.

Well, today, dentist, vet and doctor appointments prevented any butterfly photography so this is yet another chance for a final glimpse at some of the menagerie:

Jaffa - feral kitten living in a squirrels drey in my garden but not any more:

Stanleigh - used to belong to neighbour but left home as she didn't like their dog. Totally trustworthy with every bird. Shown here with poorly pigeon:

Keeping sick bird company:

Millie, found injured on road, showing off her pc skills:

and last but not least Foxy with ducks. He has totally lost his wild instincts and his hunting skills due to the trauma he suffered to his head combined with his epilepsy

[Wurzel]

I thought you were looking after animals- not serving them a la bowl!

Just in case you haven't heard Brown Hairstreaks were seen a couple of says ago at Shipton Bellinger (2 makes).

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Pauline]

Thank you Wurzel for bringing that to my attention. As luck would have it, today was one of my 3 annual days out arranged ages ago with Brown hairstreaks in mind. I was beginning to think it was still too early and debated looking for Wall Browns instead but after seeing your posting I set off for Shipton Bellinger. There were a few folk around and it wasn't long before I met up with Alan T. Together we searched the bramble and found not one, but two BH, both on the same thistle! A third came down shortly after. As the number of interested photographers steadily increased the butterflies became more nervous and less approachable but a few shots from this morning. Later, it was on to Oxenbourne to check up on the status of SSS but more of that tomorrow. Well, 1 down, 2 to go .......

This last one was a bit tricky as I was shooting into the sun against the sky, but I tried:

Just the females to find now

[Susie]

Lovely photos of the brown hairstreaks, Pauline. I am very envious.