I'd Rather Be in the Lake District - From March 2009
This page shows a selection of my own photographs from outside the Lakes.
Dew drenched cobwebs in front of a sunrise over Cowdray Ruins, Midhurst, West Sussex - Apparently it is an exceptionally good autumn for spiders [taken on Thursday 24th September]
It couldn't be anywhere else in the world but England... playing cricket on on a summers evening at Cowdray, Midhurst, West Sussex . [3/9/2009]
These pollarded willows line the river Wey just below Stoke Lock at Guildford. Apparently they were pollarded for 'powder wood' for the gunpowder mills at Chilworth during the First World War. [27/8/2009]
Dartmouth taken from a ferry [taken on Friday 12/8/09]
The Ex-G.W.R. '28xx' class 2-8-0, No 3803, steam train approaching Buckfastleigh in South Devon. I don't know what the driver is doing, it looks like he is playing tennis but I suspect I am wrong!
[taken on Thursday 13/8/09]
Pudmoor Pond at Thursley National Nature Reserve, Thursley, Surrey - Home to many rare plants and animals, especially Dragonflies
[taken on Monday 3/8/09]
A field of Barley on the South Downs at Treyford, West Sussex [taken on Sunday 2/8/09]
Cows by the River Wey at Guildford Surrey, it reminded me of a John Constable picture [taken on Friday 31/7/09]
A Common Buzzard, at the Rural Life Centre in Tilford, Surrey [taken on Sunday 26/7/09]
Himalayan balsam (Impatiens glandulifera) is a relative of the busy Lizzie and was introduced in 1839, it is now naturalised, especially on riverbanks and increasingly in waste places and has become a problematical weed.... although you must admit it is rather beautiful.
The poem "Himalayan Balsam" by Anne Stevenson starts...
Orchid-lipped, loose-jointed, purplish, indolent flowers,
with a ripe smell of peaches, like a girl's breath through lipstick,
delicate and coarse in the weedlap of late summer rivers.
Seen here at the River Wey, Guildford [taken 23/7/09]
Pigeons enjoying the sunshine at Brentford Park, West London [Tuesday 14/7/2009 my own picture]
A scene of debauchery near Winchester Cathedral, the soldier beetle orgy (Malthodes marginatus I think)
[Saturday 11/7/2009 my own picture]
Winchester Cathedral [Saturday 11/7/2009 my own picture]
Close up of a rotting tree stump [Sunday 5/7/2009 my own picture]
A full sized acrylic sculpture of the Lexus super car prototype by artist Sou Fujimoto at the Festival of Speed, Goodwood, West Sussex.
[Friday 3/7/2009 my own picture]
Audi is celebrating its 100th anniversary with this traditional giant sculpture outside Goodwood House. Designed by Gerry Judah it features a display of two Audi cars, the legendary 1937 Auto Union streamliner and the recently launched R8 V10 sports car at either end of a dramatic sweep representing tyre tracks, as if they are driving off into the sky. [Friday 3/7/2009 my own picture]
A mid-summer grass snake in the walls of the ruined Waverley Abbey, Farnham, Surrey [20/6/2009]
Diddling Church on the South Downs near Midhurst [10/6/2009]
The Large Red Damselfly, Pyrrhosma nymphula, this is possibly the form melanotum as the thoracic strips are pale yellow instead of the usual orange to red [2/6/2009].
A pretty cottage on the River Itchen at Shawford, Winchester, Hampshire [16/5/2009]
The Mayflies were swarming on the River Itchen in Hampshire [16/5/2009]
The Lions at Trafalgar Square [13/5/2009]
Newborn baby sculpture, "The Christ Child" by Mike Chapman (1999), outside St Martin's in the Field Church London, looking out towards Trafalgar Square. [13/5/2009]
The 'Yanks' arrive at an English village during the 'A Village at War' event at the Rural Life Centre, Farnham, Surrey. [10/5/2009]
A bomb expodes during an air raid at the 'A Village at War' event at the Rural Life Centre, Farnham, Surrey. The sights, sounds and smells of a wartime village [10/5/2009]
Wild Poland outdoor photography exhibition, on the South Bank, London [3/5/2009]
Looking towards Earth from the London Eye [3/5/2009]
London from the London Eye [3/5/2009]
Dandelions are the first plans to turn to seed - My Garden [taken 30/1/2009, my own picture]
When I photographed this ruin at Hindhead, Surrey I thought it was 'Undershaw', the former home of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - however after further research I think that must be next door, so I will have to make a return visit.
[taken 25/4/2009, my own picture]
A different view of the Bluebell woods on the South Downs, (I rested my camera on the ground and set the self timer)
[taken 21/4/2009, my own picture]
I usually just photograph whatever I come across on my daily walk, but today was the first time that I specifically went out with a picture in mind, returning to some remote Bluebell woods on the South Downs. I held my tripod above my head to get a aerial view from about 12 foot off the ground, I think this counts as my first attempt at Pole Aerial Photography (PAP) something I am keen to explore further (and higher), so that's two photographic firsts! It was a lovely warm evening with the strong scent of the bluebells and just bird song, perfect.
[taken 21/4/2009, my own picture]
A rusting Barrel in the disused Brick Works at Midhurst, West Sussex [taken 19/4/2009, my own picture]
Apple Blossom in my Garden, Midhurst, West Sussex [19/4/2009, my own picture]
A Speckled Wood Butterfly beside the River Wey at Guildford, Surrey
(Notice the lack of a plural, there was only one of them, can you tell which are copies?)
[16/4/2009, my own picture]
A Comma Butterfly beside the River Wey at Guildford, Surrey [16/4/2009, my own picture]
(I darkened and blurred the background to make the butterfly stand out from the plant stems but I think I have gone too far as it has resulted in a rather unnatural effect)
Trees on the South Downs near Midhurst, West Sussex [Easter Monday 13/4/2009, my own picture]
A bluebell wood on the South Downs near Midhurst, West Sussex [Easter Monday 13/4/2009, my own picture]
Mowing the Lawn on Easter Monday [13/4/2009, my own picture]
A perfect evening at West Ansty, Devon [Sunday 5/4/2009, my own picture]
Conservation in action! Clearing Rhodedendron at Midhurst Common with views to the South Downs [Tuesday 7/4/2009, my own picture]
A Devonshire farm [Sunday 5/4/2009, my own picture]
Gold Hill, Shaftsbury (where they filmed the Hovis advert) [6/4/2009, my own picture]
A rare migrant Blue Beaked Viviparous Swan, native to the galapagos Islands this swan is one of the very few birds to give birth to live young (no eggs!). On the river Wey Navigation at Guildford [take on 1st April 2009, my own picture]
Clearing Rhododendron to make way for native Heathland at Midhurst Common, West Sussex. It was announced today that Midhurst is within the new South Downs National Park boundary [29/3/2009, my own picture]
Canada Geese on the River Brent at Brentford. It was at this spot in November 1642 where the The Battle of Brentford took place during the English Civil War (the Royalists beat the Parliamentarian forces). [Tuesday 24/3//2009]
Primroses in my garden, Midhurst, West Sussex (I placed them infront of a wheelie bin to create a dark backdrop)
[Mothering Sunday 22/3/2009, my own picture]
Rick Holmes plying his trade at Stoke Lock on the River Wey in Guildford (and the final painting). See www.rickholmes.co.uk for more examples of his work. [18/3/2009, my own picture]