Beaver Moon
The Beaver supermoon occurred on November 15th and, not having planned anything especially interesting, I just took a few pictures before and on the day from my back yard.
Starlings at Ham Wall 31st October
This is always a special time of year on the Somerset Levels and especially at Ham Wall where the starlings regularly settle in to and rise from the reed beds. On this occasion it was a nice dry evening with golden light and a small crouid gathered hoping to see murmurations. We were not disappointed and there were quiet gasps of awe as the starlings danced in the sky and settled into the reed beds. I took some still images and then decided to try some video - not having video expertise. I’ll work on that for future occasions.
Kew Gardens
A long planned trip to London to take in the 'How the Light Get's In' festival and also to see some sights was affected by me (?foolishly) taking up some running and managing to injure my right Achilles, gluteus medius and left forefoot and also develop a heavy cold. Ideal then for an enforced slow macro walk or hobble around Kew Gardens. A few natural light mostly macro pictures were of course taken.
Along a path verge at Westhay Moor
A short walk along a path at Westhay Moor, just for about 100 metres, revealed profuse and strange strange hidden life, including the common flower fly (a type of hover fly), root maggot flies (Leucophora), bitter-sweet nightshade (Solanum dulcamara), Harmonia axyridis pupa, European nursery web spiders, cluster flies, Dexiosoma caninum (a tachinid fly), Voria (another tachinid fly), green shield bugs, Ichneumonid wasps, wolf spiders, midge (Tanytarsini), Pericomini mothfly, Dyphus quadripunctorius (a parasitic wasp), common stretch spider and an Arion slug.
Forde Abbey: mostly macro
The former Cistercian abbey and grounds near Chard are such a beautiful location and full of flowers at this time of year. The interior of the historic house/abbey is fascinating and the grounds magnificent…and a macro delight.
Moth Macro+
I am keen to continue to learn how to do close up, macro, extreme macro and microphotography. Here are some images from a first attempt to do some extreme macro with a deceased moth found in the house.
Brissago
The Brissago Islands (Italian: Isole di Brissago) consist of two islands located in the Swiss part of Lake Maggiore, close to Locarno and Ascona. The larger island is famous for its botanical garden. This garden features subtropical species from around the world and enjoys a unique climate due to its location on the island. We approached the larger island by ferry from Locarno, passing the smart adjacent town of Ascona. I spent most of the time at Brissago enjoying the garden and its flowers and insects - especially the Black/Violet Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa Violacea)
Valle Verzasca
The Verzasca Valley is a beautiful valley in the Italian Ticino canton of Switzerland. The fast flowing waters of the Verzasca River flow over smooth polished rocks and under the famous Ponte dei Salti bridge before flowing into the Lago di Vogorno, held back by the famous Verzasca Dam – famous from the James Bond film Golden Eye.
Sherborne Close Up
A visit to Sherbourne Castle and Gardens yesterday was a delight. A magnificent house and beautiful landscaped garden with lake. I couldn’t help but do some close up and macro…
Monte Tamaro
Monte Tamaro is a mountain located in the Swiss canton of Ticino, situated in the triangle between Lugano, Bellinzona, and Locarno. Monte Tamaro offers breathtaking views of the surrounding region, reaching a height of 1,962 meters (6,437 feet) above sea level.
Monte Tamaro has been developed as a mountain resort with adventure activities but for us a particular attraction was the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli. The church is an extraordinary piece of contemporary architecture by the renowned architect Mario Botta, on a spur of the mountain and offering panoramic views around.
Cardada Cimetta
Cardada Cimetta is a mountain area in southern Switzerland offering stunning views across Lake Maggiore, the towns of Locarno and Ascona and also the Monte Rosa massif, flanked by glaciers, is the highest mountains in the Swiss Alps. Depending on the method of counting, it has ten peaks higher than 4,000 m, and lies partly in Italy. The Dufourspitze (4,634 m, right, black rocky crest) in the Monte Rosa massif is Switzerland’s highest peak and often visible from the Cimetta peak (1671m).
Gotthard: ‘The King of Mountain Passes’
The Gotthard Pass lies at an elevation of 2106 metres and connects northern Switzerland with the south, an inviting pass to negotiate on our journey to Locarno in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino. There was heavy snow in the winter…
Morning Light at Rheinfelden
Rheinfelden is a beautiful small Swiss town to the east of Basel on the banks of the Rhine with a stone bridge forming a border between Switzerland and Germany. Beautiful in the morning light and with the powerful sight and sounds of this mighty river.
Reims Cathedral
Even today, in an age that seems lost and confused between sacred and the secular, the great cathedrals of the world have the capacity to expand consciousness, opening the eyes of the heart to wonder, beauty, mystery, the infinite or the divine. The great cathedral at Reims, Notre-Dame de Reims, is no exception – a masterpiece of gothic architecture and, like our own Wells Cathedral, full of spiritual symbolism and sacred geometry. The cathedral once (like Chartres and Amiens) had a labyrinth installed in the floor of the nave, sadly destroyed by the cathedral priests in 1779.
If you like bees…
If you like bees...we came home from holiday to find the lavender in full flower and offering a feast to Western Honey Bees.
