A brief encounter with the cold

Just a quick post before I dash out, probably won't get another chance for quite a few days you see.


Anyway.....

After pottering about the house most of the day, we (me and Mum) decided to get out and feel the bitter cold wind on our skin!! Popped down to Oare Marshes to see what we could see.

A tractor was ploughing the fields on the way and in it's wake were a large flock of gulls and the lighting was lovely.

A bit reluctant to get out of the car, we sat and observed from inside, but I was keen to get a few snaps.


The lighting on the water was beautiful and the sky was equally fantastic.

Of the birds we saw were a couple of ruff (we think) amongst a bunch of huddling widgeon

A number of cormorants (or shag?)

A lone heron hiding behind a bush and sheltering from the bitter wind.

A beautiful swan, always highly photogenic!

And finally as we were driving back along the winding road a murmuration of starlings, along with quite a few lapwings.

A rather seasonal debut

Since returning from a 5 week trip exploring Europe, I have been compiling a list of things to accomplish, such as learn to drive, get a job, create a blog etcetera. I have now ticked one of these off, maybe not the most important, but it's a start.

I was just pottering about the house and decided I should probably get some fresh air, go for a walk and take my camera with me to snap some autumnal shots. Met a nice lady on my walk with a lovely chubby little dog, and we stopped and chatted for a bit (the lady, not the dog!). I achieved what I had set out to do on my walk, it felt better to be out in the countryside than cooped up in the house and I got some nice shots.

The dull sky was somewhat brightened up by the seasonal orange, yellow and crimson leaves of the trees. I've been experimenting with the different features of my camera (Nikon D5100) and trying to get the best out of it. 

Here are the best of the bunch...

I noticed a small gap in the hedge and thought it would frame the shot quite nicely.

I took two photos of this view, this was the first with the foreground in focus. The second had the background in focus and the foreground out of focus. I personally preferred this shot. 

 I loved the variety of heights of trees and different coloured leaves in the shot. I think the leaves across the track resemble a bridge over a stream (the track). On one side, the leaves on the trees are already turning, and could be seen to be enticing the leaves on the other side to turn also.
















I liked this shot because it is so colourful and has leaves of each stage of the turning process.

Some may think that you cannot capture the essence of autumn with a monochrome image, however I disagree. In this photograph you can see the leaves that have fallen to the ground, the spindly, leafless branches and a toadstool on the ground - these, in my opinion, are the epitome of autumn. 







Here, the pattern of the bark caught my eye, and I felt that it was depicted best in monochrome.

 
It had just started spitting with rain and I was in a bit of a hurry to get back home, but I spotted this along the side of the path and thought getting a snap of it was worth getting wet for! 

The vibrant red berries brightened up the hedgerow, maybe it will attract some nice winter visitors!