Unfortunately it has been another week where I haven't had any time for photography. So, I've chosen an image from my archives, going back into the year 2011... (more)
Unfortunately, I haven't had time to pick up my camera this week. I haven't even had time to put together a series of images for this week's article... (more)
Unfortunately, I haven't had time for photography this week, so here is a collection of images from the last couple of weeks that didn't quite make the cut for their weekly article... (more)
Image of the Week: Crocosmia Lucifer
It was an incredibly hot summer's day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and it was quite possibly the shortest photo shoot I've ever had, lasting less than ten minutes... (more)
Image of the Week: Welsh Poppy
There was a change of venue for my photo shoot this week, and instead of dad's back garden, it took place in my own. Despite the garden being overgrown and neglected, there were a few pretty flowers to be found... (more)
Image of the Week: Common Selfheal
This week there was mixed weather for my photo shoot in dad's garden, with bright sunshine and blue skies one minute, followed by grey clouds and gloomy conditions the next. The wind was the major problem, and it made macro photography very tricky indeed... (more)
Image of the Week: Field Grasshopper
It was another absolutely gorgeous day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and I finally found some insect buddies to photograph... (more)
Image of the Week: Blooming Clover
It was a gorgeous, warm, late spring day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and conditions were near perfect for macro photography... (more)
Image of the Week: Blooming Dog Rose
I managed to complete my photo shoot in dad's garden this week in between downpours. Despite it not being the greatest weather for nature photography, there were still plenty of things to point my camera at, and I thought I ended up with a few decent images... (more)
Image of the Week: Thick Legged Flower Beetle
I only had time for a very short photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but was quite pleased with the images I managed to capture... (more)
Image of the Week: Climbing Hydrangea Bract
It was a bit of an odd day weatherwise for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, with bright sunshine giving way to dark periods as very heavy rain clouds intermittently appeared overhead... (more)
Sometimes I find it quite difficult to decide which image was my favourite of the week, but this week, it was probably the easiest decision I've ever had to make... (more)
Image of the Week: Blooming Rhododendron
It was a dark, damp, breezy morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but there were some new blooms to shoot, which made it worth braving the awful weather... (more)
Image of the Week: Resting Hoverfly
It was an overcast day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and rain looked imminent, so it turned into quite a quick shoot... (more)
Image of the Week: Berberis Trio
It was a beautiful warm sunny day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and the only thing to get in the way of some macro photography was a stiff breeze... (more)
Image of the Week: Cherry Blossom
There was lovely weather for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, with bright blue skies and a gentle warm breeze making it a pleasure to be outside with my camera... (more)
It was a wet, overcast and calm day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and although the rain had ceased, it looked like it was going to return again at any second... (more)
Image of the Week: Pear Blossom
There was perfect weather for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, with a thin layer of cloud filtering out the bright sunshine and keeping shadows to a minimum. It was also dry, and the wind was even cooperating by keeping down to a very gentle waft every few minutes... (more)
Image of the Week: Amelanchier Blossom
The glorious weather of the previous week or so had to break at some time, and it chose the day of my photo shoot to do so. We were back to grey skies and drizzle for this week's trip around dad's garden with my camera, but at least it wasn't windy... (more)
Image of the Week: First Hoverfly
It was a glorious day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, with blue skies, an imperceptible breeze and temperatures pushing into the mid teens in centigrade... (more)
Image of the Week: Forest Flame Blossom
It was a little dull for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but for the first time since getting my new camera, it wasn't raining or windy, and I didn't need any artificial lighting to take some pictures... (more)
Image of the Week: Newly Awoken
At least it wasn't wet this week for my photo shoot in dad's garden, but it was very windy. It was amazing that I managed to focus on anything at all as branches and flower stems jerked around violently to the tune of the wind... (more)
Image of the Week: Wet Quince Blossom
The rain had returned for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and it was accompanied by a stiff breeze and dark clouds... (more)
This week I finally had my new camera in my hands. I'd ordered it before Christmas, and it had finally arrived two months later, and I couldn't wait to put it through its paces... (more)
There was mild drizzle for this week's photo shoot in dad's garden, and I scurried about from subject to subject as I tried to keep my camera dry... (more)
Image of the Week: Bursting Open
Not wanting to sound like a broken record as I describe the weather for my weekly photo shoot, but once again it was a thoroughly dull and overcast morning. A bit of a breeze also made macro photography tricky, but at least it wasn't raining... (more)
Image of the Week: Early Crocus
It was another dull overcast morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and the little LED light panel I used to light my subjects was working very hard to give me acceptable exposures due to the stiff breeze... (more)
Image of the Week: Rotten Fruit
It was a dull but dry morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and because there weren't a plethora of colourful flowers or amazing insects to shoot, I decided to hunt down some of the more mundane, but hopefully still interesting things to point my camera at... (more)
It was another wet morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but at least the rain had stopped falling as I went around clicking away... (more)
Image of the Week: Spider Web Galaxy
It was a very wet morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week with everything being covered in raindrops. I wasn't one hundred percent sure of the weatherproofing qualities of my Sony ZV-E10 camera, so decided not to stay out in the drizzle for too long... (more)
Image of the Week: Common Ivy Berries
We're kicking off the first Image of the Week article of 2022 with blue skies, albeit on a freezing cold day for a photo shoot... (more)
Image of the Week: Budding Drumstick
This year has been quite a difficult year for photography, with much less time for taking photos than I'd have liked. I seem to have lost my photo mojo towards the end of the year, with quite a few of my... (more)
This week is another that I've not picked up a camera, and sees me dipping into my image archive yet again. This time we're travelling back to December 2017. Hope you enjoy the selection of images I've chosen... (more)
Another week has rolled over and it's another week that I've failed to pick up my camera unfortunately. However, I still have plenty of images in my archive to fall back on, and this week we're going back in time to December 2014... (more)
Image of the Week: Mahonia Japonica Blossom
I've failed to take any pictures again this week, so I'm going back to my image archive to pick a selection of photos from December last year... (more)
Image of the Week: Chrysanthemum
Finally I've managed to get my photography mojo back on track with a few macro images in my garden, with this one of a late flowering Chrysanthemum bloom being my favourite... (more)
Image of the Week: Dumper Truck
Finally I've got a few photos that I took this week, but as you can see, they're about as far removed from my usual subject matter as you can get... (more)
Image of the Week: Late Cosmos
This has been yet another week where I have failed to pick up my camera. So I'm afraid I'm dipping into my archive yet again, and this week I'm taking you back to November 2016... (more)
Image of the Week: Southampton Water
This week I'm transporting you back to November 2020 for my Image of the Week article... (more)
Image of the Week: Pink Dahlia
Another week and another set of images from my photo archive. This week we're delving into November back in 2019... (more)
Image of the Week: Blades of Raindrops
I'm still posting photos from my archives, and this week they're all coming from back in October 2017... (more)
Image of the Week: Common Wasp
I can't believe that I'm still posting photos from my archives, and haven't picked up my camera in over a month. So this week I'm transporting you back to my archives from October 2016... (more)
Image of the Week: Master Builder
This week's Image of the Week article is being brought to you courtesy of October 2010. That's over a decade ago, obviously, and back then I was using a Nikon D300 DSLR, which was my introduction to the world of Nikon cameras. I'd previously been a Canon user, owning both the Canon 300D and then the Canon 20D... (more)
Image of the Week: Rear View Dahlia
As we move into October, I still haven't had the opportunity to pick up my camera and take a few photographs. Therefore, this week's crop of images are brought to you from October back in 2019... (more)
Image of the Week: Green Eyed Monster
It's another week where I'm delving into my image archive in order to bring you my Image of the Week article. This week the images come from September back in 2017... (more)
Another week and another crop of images from my image archive. This week all of the images come from September back in 2015... (more)
Image of the Week: Nursery Spider
Like last week, I didn't have time for photography this week, so have travelled back to September 2014 in my photo archive to bring you this week's article... (more)
Image of the Week: Nerine Explosion
This week it finally happened and I ran out of time to do any decent photography. So, I dipped into my archive from a September a few years ago (2018), to bring you this week's series of images... (more)
This has been another week where I decided to combine my two hobbies of photography and fish keeping to create my Image of the Week article... (more)
It was yet another week when I'd had very little time for photography, so I thought I may as well go for something different to my usual macro nature images... (more)
Image of the Week: Shell Dwellers
It has been another week where I haven't had a lot of time for photography, but have spent quite a lot of time with my fishy friends, so decided to combine my two hobbies... (more)
Image of the Week: Dianthus Dewdrops
I managed to fit in a quick early morning photo shoot in my garden this week, and was pleased that some of my flowers were coated in a fine layer of dewdrops... (more)
I finally found a little time to get outside into the garden with my camera this week, although quite a few of the flowers I'd been hoping to photograph had already finished flowering... (more)
Image of the Week: Colourful Guppies
It has been another week when I haven't had any time for photography, and this week I didn't even pick up my DSLR... (more)
I don't want to sound like a broken record, but I haven't had much time for photography this week, in fact I've had no time at all... (more)
Image of the Week: Copper Harlequin Rasboras
I haven't had much time for photography this week, in fact I've had no time at all... (more)
Image of the Week: Achillea Cassis
We were well into British summertime now, which inevitably meant me having to dodge rain showers to complete my garden photo shoot this week... (more)
Image of the Week: Mystic Merlin
This week I had a very quick photo shoot in my back garden after it had rained for most of the day... (more)
Image of the Week: Honeysuckle Serotina
I was pushed for time this week for my weekly photo shoot, and the weather wasn't being very helpful in the few spare moments I managed to find. I eventually got outside during a very short dry spell and managed to grab a few photos showing how things were progressing in my garden... (more)
This week my photo shoot took place in the early morning sunshine of my garden. I'd been hoping for a bit of cloud cover to filter the bright sunshine, but my hopes were dashed... (more)
Image of the Week: Scilla Peruviana
It was a warm but overcast day for my garden photo shoot this week, but annoyingly the sun kept coming out at the most inappropriate moments and meant I kept unwittingly overexposing my images... (more)
Image of the Week: Male Blackbird
It was a wonderfully warm day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week with temperatures hovering around the 22°C mark... (more)
Image of the Week: Herb Robert
It was a bit of a breezy day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and the threat of imminent rain meant I had to rush to grab my selection of images... (more)
Image of the Week: Longhorn Moth
I was racing the weather again during my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and the weather was winning as darker and darker clouds rolled in overhead... (more)
Image of the Week: Welsh Poppy
It was a race against time this week in dad's garden as I endeavoured to complete my photo shoot before the rain arrived... (more)
Image of the Week: Honey Spurge Sucker
It was a funny old day weather wise for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week. The day started off cold and sunny, warmed up during the morning, rained over lunchtime, and had a mixture of hail, sleet and snow falling by the end of the afternoon... (more)
Image of the Week: Lilac Wonder
We'd had two or three weeks of glorious weather recently, but it was overcast and gloomy when I stepped out into my garden for this week's photo shoot... (more)
Image of the Week: Cherry Tree Blossom
It was a lovely warm spring day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and there were quite a lot of new flowers to point my camera lens at... (more)
Image of the Week: The Amelanchier Tree
Unfortunately I haven't had much time for photography this week, which was annoying as the Amelanchier tree in dad's garden was starting to look its best... (more)
Image of the Week: Foxy Foxtrot
It was a warm, overcast spring day for my back garden photo shoot this week, and there were lots of new blooms to point my camera at... (more)
Image of the Week: Honey Spurge Blossom
It was a glorious day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and the warmest day of the year so far. Thankfully, the recent warm sunny weather had triggered some new floral treats to explore... (more)
Image of the Week: Pink Hyacinth
Spring had definitely sprung in my garden this week, and I enjoyed shooting a few new blooms that had arrived whilst on a very short photo shoot... (more)
Image of the Week: Common Plume Moth
It was a bright but overcast afternoon for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but with no wind or rain, it was the perfect weather for macro photography... (more)
This week I managed to squeeze some time in for a photo shoot in my back garden. It was a bright sunny day, with little to no wind, but it was still very chilly... (more)
Image of the Week: Blooming Camellia
This week I had a rather pleasant photo shoot in dad's garden. The skies were blue, the sun was out, and there was even a little bit of heat in the air... (more)
Image of the Week: Thorough Examination
This week I had a few moments to finally have a wander around my garden with my camera, and I found some encouraging signs that springtime was just around the corner... (more)
Image of the Week: Snowdrops Forever
This week I'm back to more usual subject matter, but still using my iPhone... (more)
Image of the Week: Queen Mary 2
For various reasons I've only got one image this week, which was taken with my iPhone whilst on my way to do the weekly grocery shop... (more)
Image of the Week: Blooming Anubias
This week my photo shoot comes from my living room, where something rather interesting was happening in one of my aquariums... (more)
Image of the Week: Wet Wallflower
This week I was waiting for a nice dry day before embarking upon my photo shoot, but my wait was unnsuccessful. I ended up having a quick run around my garden in torrential rain, trying to find something interesting to shoot, and mostly failing... (more)
This week, like last week, it was another wet day for my photo shoot in dad's garden, but unlike last week, I bravely ventured outside with my camera to grab some photos... (more)
Image of the Week: Moth Orchid
My usual weekly photo shoot in dad's garden was rained off this week so I had an impromptu shoot sat at his dining room table... (more)
Image of the Week: White Winter Honeysuckle
My first set of images for 2021 come from a quick photo shoot I had in my back garden this week, which took place on a freezing cold Saturday afternoon... (more)
Image of the Week: Lily Beetle
For my final Image of the Week article of the year I thought I'd revisit some of my favourite images taken during the last 12 months. So here they are, presented in no particular order... (more)
Image of the Week: Christmas Rose
Unfortunately my photo shoot in dad's garden was rained off this week, so I've dipped into my archive for a single image that has a tenuous link to Christmas... (more)
Image of the Week: Colourful Berberis
It was a wet gloomy morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and I was on the lookout for something colourful... (more)
Image of the Week: Resting Raindrops
It was a bitterly cold morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and my aim was to complete it as quickly as possible... (more)
It was a rather beautiful day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, although it was also mightily cold. I was therefore quite surprised to see some insect activity... (more)
Image of the Week: Herb Robert
It was quite a pleasant day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, with the grey skies of previous days giving way to the odd blue patch, and allowing an occasional glimpse of the sun... (more)
Image of the Week: Roast Beef Seeds
It was an awful overcast grey day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but at least there was at least one super colourful area in the garden. That was where the seeds of the Roast-beef plant (Iris foetidissima) were located... (more)
Image of the Week: Late Raspberries
My photo shoot this week was in dad's garden again, and I found a few interesting things to shoot that I must have missed last week... (more)
This week I was over in dad's garden for my weekly photo shoot, and things were most definitely looking more autumnal than they had the last time I'd taken pictures there... (more)
Image of the Week: Cross Spider Detail
This week my garden photo shoot was hampered by me having an injured shoulder which only allowed me to grab a few photos before I had to stop... (more)
Image of the Week: Late Ladybird
I had time for a liesurely stroll around the garden this week for my photo shoot, but wasn't expecting to come across anything interesting to photograph, as it was a bit of a drab uninspiring sort of day. However, then I ran into this little lady... (more)
Image of the Week: Bright Begonia
I only had time for a quick photo shoot in my garden this week where colourful attractions were few and far between... (more)
Image of the Week: Slowly Revealing
I had another quick trip around dad's garden for my photo shoot this week, and came across a few things I'd missed last week... (more)
Image of the Week: River Lily Arrival
It had been quite a few weeks since I'd had a photo shoot in dad's garden, but this week I had a good poke around with my camera to see what I'd been missing... (more)
I didn't have much time for photography this week but at least I managed to get out into the garden for a few minutes to see what I could find to photograph... (more)
Image of the Week: Mexican Star
It was a lovely warm day for my photo shoot in the garden this week, with a bit of cloud cover and no wind to speak of. The weather was perfect for macro floral photography then, so what did I find to photograph... (more)
Image of the Week: Floral First
It was a warm overcast calm day for my photo shoot in the garden this week, and there were a few new subjects to point my camera lens towards... (more)
Image of the Week: Hummingbird Hawk Moth
After several abandoned photo shoots last week because of the poor weather, I was eager to get out into the garden this week and grab a few photos while the weather was good... (more)
Image of the Week: Pincer Movement
We had terrible weather conditions this week, with torrential rain and galeforce winds combining from several named storms in the last few days. As you can imagine, this has made photography particularly tricky... (more)
It was a bit of a dull day for a photo shoot in my garden this week, but I took the opportunity to get out with my camera just before a heavy downpour took place... (more)
Image of the Week: Herring Gull
It was an incredibly hot still morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, with temperatures pushing up past the 30°C mark. Without even the gentlest of breezes it seemed just as hot in the shade as it was in the sunshine... (more)
Image of the Week: Goldfinch Flight
It was a beautiful warm sunny day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and the birdlife seemed to be enjoying the summer weather... (more)
Image of the Week: Raindrop Plinths
This week my photo shoot was short and sweet, as I dodged rain showers to capture more than a few raindrops in my garden... (more)
Image of the Week: African Lily
It was a lovely warm sunny morning for my photo shoot this week, which took place in my own garden. Despite the garden being overrun by Horsetail Grass (Equisetum telmateia) it still had some floral treats in store... (more)
It was a rather warm still day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week. In fact it felt as though there was going to be a torrential downpour at any moment. Thankfully, the rain held off while I was taking pictures, but it was a close run thing... (more)
It was a typical British summer's day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week. It was warm, with blue and grey skies, the occasional breeze and the threat of a short sharp rain shower... (more)
Image of the Week: Wet Crocosmia
It was an awful grey wet day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but there was still some colour to be found beneath the grey clouds... (more)
Image of the Week: Coming and Going
What a gorgeous day it was for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week. It was just a shame that I didn't have much time to concentrate on photography. This meant choosing a single subject, and the subject I chose was birdlife... (more)
Image of the Week: Regal Lilies
After a couple of weeks where my photo shoot took place on a dark rainy day, this week I had a bright dry sunny day to shoot a few images in my own garden... (more)
Image of the Week: Resting Raindrops
It was a very dull, almost dark day for my photo shoot this week in dad's garden, and there was rain about too. To be honest, it was a bit too dark to be attempting photography, but I pressed on and grabbed a handful of images anyway... (more)
Image of the Week: Escallonia Drops
We had rain for the first time in ages, and it just happened to coincide with my photo shoot in dad's garden this week. Of course, I didn't let a little bit of wet put me off, and headed out into the drizzle, camera at the ready... (more)
Image of the Week: Star of Persia
This week I was lucky enough to have two photo shoots, the first of which kicked off on a very sunny morning in my own garden... (more)
It was a warm sunny Sunday morning for my garden patio photo shoot this week, where I'd finally tracked down an insect to photograph... (more)
Image of the Week: Dame's Rocket
This week's photo shoot took place in overcast weather, which was perfect for capturing shadowless macro images of some new springtime blooms. Although my mobility was nowhere near one hundred percent, but because the weather was perfect for floral photography, I left my crutches indoors, hobbled outside, and ventured away from the patio area for the first time in weeks... (more)
Image of the Week: Purple Sensation
It was another week where I had limited mobility, so hunting down springtime wildlife wasn't possible. So I spent another photo shoot searching for subjects around my garden patio, and thankfully there were a few within easy clicking distance... (more)
After quite a few weeks of gorgeous weather, this week we had rain. Not a lot of rain, but enough to encourage a few more springtime blooms to reveal themselves... (more)
Image of the Week: Single Montana
I haven't been very mobile this week, after twisting my ankle, and have mostly been getting around on crutches, which aren't the most useful of aids to a photographer. However, I did venture outside onto my patio for a few minutes, and managed to grab a few shots for posterity... (more)
Image of the Week: Cherry Tree Blossom
Despite having unseasonally warm weather recently, it was a typical cool sunny spring day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week... (more)
Image of the Week: Foxy Foxtrot
It was a warm spring day for my photo shoot this week, which took place in my own garden, where there were quite a few treats to photograph... (more)
Image of the Week: Amelanchier Blossom
It was a breezy overcast day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but there were plenty of glimpses of springtime on show to make persevering with my camera worthwhile... (more)
Image of the Week: Grape Hyacinths
There was another beautiful sunny day for my photo shoot this week, which made five weeks in a row that the sun had shined while I had my camera in hand... (more)
Image of the Week: Buteo Buteo
We had the best weather of the year so far for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, with blue skies and warm temperatures encouraging flora and fauna to come out and examine springtime... (more)
It was another lovely morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and springtime seemed to be just around the corner... (more)
Image of the Week: Counting Catkins
I had another beautiful sunny day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and for once, there was no wind or rain to hamper the photography... (more)
Image of the Week: Winter Honeysuckle
After having very stormy weather for the past couple of weeks, I finally had a sunny day for my photo shoot this week... (more)
Image of the Week: Springtime Classic
So last week my photo shoot took place on the day after storm Ciara visited the UK, and this week it took place during the final throes of storm Dennis. This meant that the wind was still pretty volatile, and rain was a factor more often than not... (more)
Image of the Week: Pollen Tipped
My photo shoot in dad's garden this week took place on the day after storm Ciara visited the UK, and winds were still gusting to over 50mph. The good news was though, that during some of the more calmer moments, I managed to grab a few images showing that springtime is definitely on its way... (more)
It was another grey and wet day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but there were a few colourful notes to enjoy as I wandered around with my camera... (more)
Image of the Week: Single Snowdrop
After a couple of weeks of brief photo shoots in my own garden, this week I was back to dad's garden, where early signs of spring were beginning to reveal themselves... (more)
Image of the Week: Frosty Osteospermum
So this weekend brought with it some dry weather, which made a nice change, but it also brought with it the first frosty days of the year... (more)
Image of the Week: Wallflower Awakening
I was still pushed for time to capture some images this week, but I managed to grab a few from my own back garden, which is normally a bit of a mess at this time of year, despite my best efforts to keep on top of it... (more)
Image of the Week: Winter Berries
After a few weeks of not having much time to spare for photography, I finally managed to get out into dad's garden with my camera earlier this week... (more)
Image of the Week: Last Christmas
I haven't had much time for photography in recent weeks, so I've had to dip into my archives for a photo to kick off the new year... (more)
This week I've not had much time to spare so I've only got one image for this article... (more)
Image of the Week: Reflections
Something a bit different from me this week, as I used a Christmas shopping trip into Southampton, UK, as the basis for my weekly photo shoot... (more)
Image of the Week: Yellow Against Blue
Although there were blue skies for my photo shoot this week, there were also gale force gusting winds which made photography a bit of a challenge... (more)
Image of the Week: Cloudstract
This week I couldn't resist pointing my lens skywards to kick off my weekend photo shoot, as there were blue skies and some very weird looking cloud formations floating around... (more)
There was a bit of a mixture weather wise for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend, but at least it remained dry... (more)
Image of the Week: Felicia Raindrops
It was another bitterly cold morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but at least the skies were blue... (more)
Image of the Week: Golden Glow
Don't let the blue sky fool you, it was a bitterly cold Sunday morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, with the weather being rather changeable... (more)
Image of the Week: Common Passion Flower
This week my photo shoot kicks off in my own garden after I noticed that it wasn't as devoid of colour as I thought it was... (more)
Image of the Week: Cotoneaster Bush Berries
Another wet and windy week culminated in a bright sunny Sunday for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week. It was a rather beautiful crisp autumn morning as I journeyed around the garden with my camera at the ready... (more)
Image of the Week: Raindrop Place
It was actually a rather nice morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend, but there were reminders everywhere of the rain that had fallen in the previous week... (more)
Image of the Week: Pink Nerine
After last week's sunny Sunday, we were back to driving rain and gusting wind for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend... (more)
Image of the Week: Garden Spider
After two weeks of wind and rain, it was a beautiful sunny morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week... (more)
It was another dreadful morning weather-wise for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend, with not only heavy rainfall to deal with, but also gale force winds... (more)
Image of the Week: Returning River Lilies
It was a very wet day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend, but that didn't put me off having a wander about looking for content for this week's article... (more)
I had to wait for the fog to clear before I could begin my photo shoot in dad's garden this week. However, once lifted, it was a beautiful warm sunny day, so I was hopeful of photographing lots of insects... (more)
It was a rather chilly morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but at least it was sunny... (more)
Image of the Week: Magpie Mission
It was another beautiful sunny day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend, but it was definitely a lot chillier than it had been in recent weeks as summertime drew to a close... (more)
Image of the Week: Family Life
It was a glorious hot sunny day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend and there was plenty of bird life making plenty of noise beneath the beautiful blue skies... (more)
Image of the Week: Noordwijks Glorie
This week my photo shoot took place in my own garden, as I explored amongst the ever increasing amount of Horsetail Grass (Equisetum telmateia) and other less invasive weeds to find something interesting to shoot... (more)
Image of the Week: Gatekeeper Challenge
It was another grey muggy day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend, and it was also rather windy... (more)
It was a bit of a drab grey day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, with a lack of both bird and insect activity. So, I decided to initially concentrate on the Fly (Diptera) family... (more)
Image of the Week: Hoverfly Hoovering
This week my Image of the Week article kicks off in my own garden, where it was looking very colourful at the moment. It was the height of summer and there were new blooms opening up everywhere... (more)
Image of the Week: Gatekeeper Butterfly
After spotting my first Gatekeeper Butterfly (Pyronia tithonus) of the season last week in dad's garden, this week there were dozens of them... (more)
Image of the Week: Blackbird on Rooftop
My photo shoot in dad's garden started with beautiful blue skies this week, and temperatures that were befitting of a summer's day... (more)
Image of the Week: Chicago Cherry
I was finally back out in dad's garden with my camera on Sunday morning, and there were plenty of new blooms to catch up with considering I hadn't taken one shot in it for nearly a month... (more)
Image of the Week: Mexican Star
After nearly three weeks of not being able to take a single picture, this week I was finally able to get out into my garden and take a few shots... (more)
Image of the Week: Lily Beetle
I've had another week where I was unable to get out and about with my camera unfortunately, so I'm dipping into my archive again for a suitable Image of the Week... (more)
Image of the Week: Crab on Calendula
Something a bit different for my Image of the Week article this week as I've been ill, and have been unable to get out with my camera unfortunately... (more)
Image of the Week: Southern Hawker
Considering it was now June, the weather had been a major disappointment, with wind and rain dominating the last week or two... (more)
Image of the Week: Cinnabar Moth
It was another overcast day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and insect activity seemed to be at an all time low for this time of year... (more)
It was a grey cloudy miserable looking Sunday morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, although it was quite warm, and felt like it was going to thunder at any moment... (more)
Image of the Week: Portuguese Squill
This week my photo shoot took place in my own garden, and was focussed mostly on one particular plant, which is my favourite at this time of year... (more)
It was a beautiful sunny Sunday morning for my photo shoot this week, which, for a change, will concentrate solely on my bird and bug buddies... (more)
Image of the Week: Red Robin Blossom
It was a beautiful sunny day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but although the sun was shining, there was a chill to the air that reminded me that summer was still a few weeks away... (more)
Image of the Week: Pollen Collecting
After a glorious week of weather since the Easter weekend, my photo shoot in dad's garden this week took place on a bit of a dull grey and windy Sunday morning... (more)
It was a beautiful warm and sunny Easter Sunday morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and the soaring temperatures had brought out my bug buddies... (more)
Image of the Week: Cherry Tree Blossom
It was beautiful and sunny for my photo shoot in dad's garden on Sunday morning, but the strong wind brought with it a chill that reminded you that it was still only April... (more)
Image of the Week: Pear Blossom Explorer
It was another beautiful Sunday morning for my photo shoot this week, and although the day started with a chill in the air, it got progressively warmer as the morning went on... (more)
Image of the Week: Herb Robert
For the third week in a row there was good weather for my Sunday morning photo shoot. The blue skies betrayed the chilliness of the temperature though, and where last week there were plenty of insects buzzing about, this week they were noticeable by their absence... (more)
Image of the Week: Common Buzzard
It was another beautiful blue skied Sunday morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and there were quite a few treats in store for me... (more)
Image of the Week: Recovered Memory
After a couple of weeks of gale force winds during my Sunday morning photo shoot, it was nice to be back to sunshine and blue skies once again... (more)
Image of the Week: Pussy Willow
For the second week running my Sunday morning photo shoot in dad's garden took place in gale force winds, but at least this week it was dry... (more)
Image of the Week: Hazel Catkins
I'd had some wonderful weather for my Sunday morning photo shoot for the last couple of weeks, but this week storm Freya had arrived to spoil my photographic fun... (more)
Image of the Week: Dewdrops on Daffodil
It was another gloriously sunny late winter's day for my photo shoot in dad's garden on Sunday, and there was plenty to point my camera at... (more)
Image of the Week: Crocus Welcome
What a glorious morning it was for the first part of my Sunday photo shoot in dad's garden this week. The skies were cloudless and blue, the sunshine was bright and warming, and there was nothing but the gentlest of breezes. So, the conditions were great for photography... (more)
Image of the Week: Camellia Centre
It was a dark, wet, miserable day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and the persistent rain made for quite a lot of lens cleaning and camera hiding to keep it as dry as possible... (more)
Image of the Week: Friendly Robin
I had a garden visitor last week that decided he wanted to dine at my garden bistro, despite the food being frozen solid to the garden table for most of the week... (more)
Image of the Week: Double Ellen Purple
The images this week come from a combination of my own garden and dad's. We're starting off with a few flowers from my garden though, which seems to be waking up a little too early for my liking... (more)
Image of the Week: Ripening Ivy
For the third week running it was a horrible dark grey day for my photo shoot on Sunday morning, but at least the wind hadn't turned up to further hinder the photography... (more)
Image of the Week: Winter Honeysuckle
It was a really drab and dreary grey day again for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but instead of the calmness of recent weeks, it was also really rather windy... (more)
What a dark and dingy day it was for my photo shoot on Sunday morning this week. Even by 11am it remained overcast, with very little light penetrating the thick cloud cover - but at least it wasn't windy... (more)
Image of the Week: Sunset on 2018
My first Image of the Week article for 2019 will be a little longer than my final one for 2018, but as I'm still suffering from health problems, it won't be that much longer, and will focus on images taken around the house... (more)
Image of the Week: Droplet Landscape
My final Image of the Week post for 2018 is going to be short and sweet as I've not been in the best of health over the Christmas period... (more)
Image of the Week: Winter Jasmine Starburst
After an atrocious spell of weather last weekend, which saw the heavens open non-stop for about 48 hours, there was finally a dry, if cold day for my photo shoot at the beginning of the week... (more)
Image of the Week: Osteospermum Blues
It was a beautiful Sunday morning for my photo shoot this week, which took place in my own garden. Although it was a little windy, there were plenty of sheltered spots to aim my macro lens into... (more)
Image of the Week: Returning Quince
It was another dull grey day for my Sunday morning photo shoot in dad's garden this week, and it was getting harder to identify decent subjects as Winter approached... (more)
Image of the Week: Raindrop Refuge
Although it was dry for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend, it had rained for the previous 48 hours, so almost everything was soaking wet... (more)
Image of the Week: Abyssinian Gladiolus
It was a gorgeous sunny morning, if a little cold, for my Sunday morning photo shoot in dad's garden this week. It was getting closer to Winter, and flora and fauna subjects were becoming more difficult to find, but thankfully there were a few gems left for me to shoot... (more)
Image of the Week: Leafy Abstract
I had been expecting my photo shoot in dad's garden on Sunday morning this week to be a complete wash out, as it had hardly stopped raining for most of the week. However, I was pleasantly surprised when I ventured outside and found the sun to be shining... (more)
Image of the Week: Honeysuckle Raindrops
It was a dull wet and windy Sunday morning for my photo shoot this week, with the only redeeming feature of the weather being that it wasn't too cold... (more)
Image of the Week: Clover Flames
It was a dull autumnal day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend, and with the cloud laden sky, was never very far away from a downpour. However, before the rains came, I hunted down a few bits and pieces worth pointing my camera at... (more)
Image of the Week: Endless Dewdrops
It had been a foggy start to the day of my photo shoot this week, but thankfully the sun broke through and turned the fog into little glistening gems that covered every surface, which I couldn't wait to photograph... (more)
This week my photo shoot in dad's garden was a bit of a wash out. It rained and poured for the entire time I was visiting. Not to be put off by a bit of wet though, I ventured out into the downpour to capture a few record shots... (more)
Image of the Week: Dahlia Reborn
It was a beautiful blue skied morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend, and although a little chilly, thankfully the wind and rain stayed away... (more)
Image of the Week: Cotoneaster Bounty
After the vile conditions last week, this week conditions were almost perfect for photography during my Sunday morning photo shoot in dad's garden. While it was a little chilly, there was no wind, no rain and it was bright enough to capture some decent macro images... (more)
Image of the Week: Nerine Bowdenii
It was an absolutely awful Sunday morning for my photo shoot this week. Apart from the torrential rain it was also blowing a gale so it was amazing I managed to grab any shots on my quick scoot around dad's garden... (more)
Temperatures had risen steadily through the week, and by the time I was on my photo shoot on Sunday morning it was a pleasant 22°C. It was a shame that the sun was hiding behind thick banks of cloud, but that was quite fortunate as it provided a natural filter for my photographic endeavours... (more)
Image of the Week: Common Blue Butterfly
If I thought that Autumn was on the way last week, then this week it seemed it had definitely arrived. Temperatures were considerably lower, the skies were greyer, and there was much less insect activity than there had been only a couple of weeks ago... (more)
Image of the Week: Ivy Inception
After a couple of weeks of dreadful photography weather, it was nice to have some sunshine for my Sunday morning photo shoot again. However, there were many definite signs that Summer was on the way out, and Autumn was fast approaching... (more)
Image of the Week: Pretty Abstract
So last week there was a persistent drizzle for my Sunday morning photo shoot in dad's garden, and I got completely soaked within minutes of me stepping outside. This week we had torrential rain that soaked me in seconds... (more)
Image of the Week: Bowing Out Bracts
After the run of gorgeous weather we'd endured this summer, the last couple of weeks had been a bit of a disappointment, and the weather for my Sunday morning photo shoot this week wasn't any better... (more)
Image of the Week: Dahlia Dweller
This week I decided that my photo shoot should take place in my garden before the weekend arrived, as the weather forecast for the weekend didn't sound like it would be conducive to taking photographs... (more)
Image of the Week: Fly Me To The Moon
What a difference a week makes! After last week's deluge of rain, the glorious summer weather had returned, and I thought I'd kick off this week's article with something a little different... (more)
Image of the Week: Garden Snail
After nearly two months with a minimal amount of rainfall, the backlog seemed to fall from the sky on the day of my photo shoot this week... (more)
It was yet another ridiculously hot summer's day for my photo shoot at the weekend, and the weather showed no signs of getting any cooler. There hadn't been any significant rainfall for weeks, and quite a few of the garden plants were suffering as a result... (more)
Image of the Week: Leaf Cutter Bee
It was yet another gorgeous day for my weekend photo shoot in dad's garden, and this week I decided to concentrate completely on creepy crawlies... (more)
Image of the Week: Silver-washed Fritillary
It seemed that the weather forecasters were right for once, and we'd had another week of glorious weather. So, once again my Sunday morning photo shoot in dad's garden was spent hunting down bugs who were also enjoying the sunshine... (more)
We'd had a run of gorgeous weather recently, with clear blue skies, bright sunshine and rocketing temperatures. Seemingly there was no end in sight, as forecasters predicted more of the same for at least another week... (more)
Image of the Week: Flying Blackbird
It was a gorgeous warm sunny day for my photo shoot this weekend, and there was plenty of wildlife for me to focus my lens on... (more)
Image of the Week: Rose Chafer Beetle
It was a warm but dull Sunday morning for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend, but as it turned out, perfect conditions to go hunting for creepy crawlies... (more)
Image of the Week: African Daisy
I'm kicking off this week's article with images from my own garden, which were taken over the last week... (more)
Image of the Week: Black-tailed Skimmer
This week my photo shoot in dad's garden turned out exactly as I'd been hoping for over the past few weeks. It was a gorgeous day. The sun was shining, the sky was blue, the birds were singing, the insects were buzzing, and the temperature was in the mid twenties... (more)
Image of the Week: Smile Please
The weather for my photo shoot this weekend could be described as varied at best. I didn't hold out much hope for capturing any of my bug buddies as the early morning thunder promised to bring some imminent downpours... (more)
Image of the Week: Finch Fight Club
It was another lovely warm Spring day for my photo shoot this week, but the sunshine and blue skies did not materialise until later in the day. My aim for the shoot was to go in search of insect life again, but, again, my luck was mostly out... (more)
Image of the Week: Mining Pollen
It was another beautiful warm sunny Sunday for my photo shoot this week, and I was hoping to encounter a lot more insect life than I did last week... (more)
Image of the Week: Singing Wren
What a beautiful Bank Holiday weekend it was for my photo shoot this week, with temperatures reaching a record high in some parts of the country. I had been hoping to concentrate on bug photography, but for some reason, the bugs remained hidden, despite the ideal weather conditions... (more)
After the glorious weather of last week, this week we seemed to have fallen back into the clutches of winter. It was a cold, wet, miserable day for my photo shoot in dad's garden on Sunday, but there were a few high points to record... (more)
Image of the Week: Early Damsel
This week my Sunday photo shoot in dad's garden took place during a Springtime heatwave. The skies were blue and temperatures had soared into the mid twenty degrees centigrade range... (more)
Image of the Week: Daisy Cauldron
It wasn't the nicest of mornings for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but at least it wasn't too dark. It had been raining, but it had thankfully stopped by the time I got outside... (more)
Image of the Week: Forget Me Drops
It was another miserable grey Sunday morning for my photo shoot this week, and it was also wet. Still, I didn't let that put me off, and went out in search of some interesting imagery... (more)
Image of the Week: Pieris Pretties
What an awful grey, miserable, murky morning it was for my photo shoot in dad's garden this weekend. However, it wasn't raining, which made a nice change, and there was absolutely no wind, which made photographing in the relative darkness a little easier... (more)
This week, the snow, frost, wind and general chilliness of previous weeks had passed us by, and while the weather wasn't completely glorious, there were a few Spring treats in store for my photo shoot on Sunday... (more)
Image of the Week: Frosty Felicia
Well, after telling you last week that the days were getting warmer, and the insects were waking up, we had a bit of a shock to the system this week as the snow returned... (more)
This week I'm kicking off with a bug photo. After the recent rather dismal cold and frosty weather, we've actually had a few warmer sunny days. Warm enough to have a few insects come out of their winter slumber in fact... (more)
Image of the Week: Outgoing Camellia
After a week of sub-zero temperatures, snow, frost, ice, hail, rain, wind and general transport chaos, it was more like a normal Spring day for my photo shoot this weekend... (more)
Image of the Week: Daffodil Delight
It was a cold crisp cloudless blue skied morning for my photo shoot this weekend, and it really did feel like Spring was in the air... (more)
Image of the Week: Seasonal Snowdrop
So this week we were back to the grey murky mid-winter weather that is the bane of the macro photographer. Getting up close to the subject means that there isn't an awful lot of light coming into the lens to begin with, but when combined with terrible weather conditions, it can be tricky at best to get a decent image... (more)
Image of the Week: Ivy Berries
It was another beautiful Sunday morning for my photo shoot this week, and although it was cold, the only real fly in the ointment was the gusting wind. So, I decided to concentrate on images of things that wouldn't be too wind affected, and would stayed firmly fixed in place... (more)
Image of the Week: Abstract Acer
What a glorious morning it was for my photo shoot this week. The sun was out, the wind had died down, the rain had vanished along with the clouds, there were blue skies and all was well with the weather - apart from it was absolutely freezing, but that, I could cope with... (more)
Image of the Week: Camellia Rising
We had another dull murky grey day for my photo shoot in dad's garden this week, but for a fleeting amount of time, there was a blue sky for just long enough for me to snap this Camellia bloom that had opened up at the top of the bush... (more)
Image of the Week: Felicia Surprise
This week I'm kicking off with images from my own garden. There isn't an awful lot going on at the moment, but there are a few highlights... (more)
Image of the Week: Winter Honeysuckle
What an awful miserable cold grey day it was for my photo shoot this week. It was almost too dark to take photographs without a flash, so I ramped up the ISO, wrapped up warm, and headed off into the garden to see what I could find... (more)
My photo shoot schedule was back to normal this week, with all of the images featured here being taken during a Sunday morning wander around dad's garden... (more)
Image of the Week: Roses are Red
So, as this is my first post of 2018, I'd better start by wishing everyone a Happy New Year... (more)
Image of the Week: Pigeon Pair
Spring was most definitely in the air during my photo shoot on Boxing Day morning this week. It was a beautiful cold winter morning and there was plenty of avian activity to observe... (more)
I'd like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and the happiest of holidays... (more)
Image of the Week: Curvy Lines
This weekend I got to indulge my passion for abstract architectural photography during a Christmas shopping trip in Southampton... (more)
Image of the Week: Wordsworth's Poetical Works
This week my Sunday morning photo shoot was severely affected by the weather. While most of the country was in the grips of heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures, down on the south coast it was blowing a gale, and was extremely wet... (more)
This week I'm starting off my article at the end of the day, rather than the beginning! This is because I had to wait until it got dark to shoot my lead-off image... (more)
Image of the Week: Beautiful Bract
It was a beautiful cold and crisp morning for my weekly wander around dad's garden on my photo shoot this week, and there were quite a few subjects that I wanted to point my camera at... (more)
Image of the Week: Waterlogged Oxeye
This week my Sunday morning photo shoot took place in warmer weather conditions than it had in recent weeks, although the bright blue skies had been replaced by dark grey ones. On the plus side, it wasn't raining, but it was still decidedly wet... (more)
Image of the Week: Quince Blossom
It was another bright but frosty day for my photo shoot this weekend, but my choice of photo subjects seemed to be declining rather rapidly as the year progressed... (more)
Image of the Week: Pyracantha Berries
It was a beautiful sunny day for my photo shoot this weekend, but we also had our first frost since Springtime... (more)
Image of the Week: Abyssinian Gladiolus
What a peculiar day it was weather wise for my photo shoot this week. We had cloud. We had sun. We had warm. We had cold. We had dry. We had wet. About the only conditions we didn't have were wind and snow... (more)
Image of the Week: Winter Jasmine
The sun was out, the skies were blue, and it was my Birthday for this week's photo shoot in dad's garden. The problem was that it was bitterly cold, and it was blowing an absolute gale - so not ideal for any sort of macro photography... (more)
Image of the Week: In the Gutter
It was a lovely warm Sunday morning for my photo shoot this week, but unfortunately the weather was also terribly dull and overcast. I initially tried my hand at a bit of avian photography, but it was really too dark to get anything I was really happy with, even when I pushed the ISO up to and beyond 1000... (more)
Image of the Week: Stripy Eyed
It was a beautiful autumnal day for my photo shoot this week, and I thoroughly enjoyed tracking down the subjects that feature in this article... (more)
Image of the Week: Web Over Berries
What a miserable day it was for my photo shoot at the weekend. It was cold, wet and very windy, so definitely not ideal conditions to be taking photographs in... (more)
Image of the Week: Pink River Lily
Finally, after three weeks of rain, cold and illness effected photo shoots, it was business as usual at the weekend in dad's garden. It was getting late in the year for new flowers, but one of my all time favourites was just coming into bloom. The River Lilies (Hesperantha coccinea, formerly classified as Schizostylis coccinea) were beginning their remarkable display... (more)
Image of the Week: Crinkled Beauty
This week, my weekend photo shoot was once again wet, and temperatures had dropped severely, just about reaching the double figure mark of 10°C. I was also suffering from cellulitis, which meant my photo shoot was doubly miserable... (more)
Image of the Week: Munch, Munch, Munch
My photo shoot this week was almost a carbon copy of last week's. It was wet, it was warm, and I only had a short period of time to capture some interesting or colourful imagery before I was soaked to the skin... (more)
Image of the Week: Damp Evening
What a difference a week makes! After the return to summer for last week's Bank Holiday weekend, this weekend couldn't have been more of a contrast. Although the temperature hadn't dropped too much, the blue skies had gone, and the grey clouds that had replaced them were depositing their contents all over my Sunday morning photo shoot... (more)
Image of the Week: Jumping Jackdaw
After a couple of chilly Sunday morning photo shoot jaunts around dad's garden, this week it was absolutely glorious. The warmth that had been missing from the early morning was back, as were a plethora of birds, bugs and blooms... (more)
Image of the Week: Migrant Hawker
This beautiful creature is a Migrant Hawker Dragonfly (Aeshna mixta), and it's over two years ago since I last came across one in dad's garden... (more)
It was another beautiful morning for my weekend photo shoot, but although the blue skies looked inviting, it was a rather cold start to the day... (more)
This week I was back on the trail of bugs again in dad's back garden, and came across this interesting looking creature. It's another one of those insects that styles itself on a Wasp, but is actually a Sawfly called the Figwort Sawfly (Tenthredo scrophulariae)... (more)
Image of the Week: Painted Lady
Although the weather wasn't perfect for my weekend photo shoot this week, it was sufficiently warm and sunny to bring out a plethora of butterflies... (more)
This weekend's photo shoot started with bright blue skies, lashings of sun, and an abundance of bird activity in the garden... (more)
Image of the Week: Large Skipper Butterfly
I've decided that this week I'm going to focus my Image of the Week article wholly on insects. Let's call it my Insect of the Week article instead. Why? Well, this is undoubtedly the best time of year to capture insect activity, and, to be honest, I think I've captured quite a few good insect images this week. Let's see... (more)
Image of the Week: Erigeron Stallone
We were back to blue, cloudless skies, long sunny days, and soaring temperatures once again for my weekend photo shoot around dad's garden this week... (more)
Image of the Week: Memorial Wheel
Something a little different from me this week. Although I live in the South of England, I actually come from the North, and after a family bereavement, I travelled back to my home village of Wingate where I stayed for a few days... (more)
Image of the Week: Crocosmia Lucifer
This week I'm kicking off with one of my most favourite plants to photograph, a Crocosmia. Well, actually, when I say most favourite, what I really mean is, most challenging... (more)
Image of the Week: Winging Woodpigeon
So the UK has been in the grips of a heatwave for the last week, and temperatures have steadily rose upwards until they topped 30C in the South of England. Hence, lots of blue skies, lots of sunshine, and lots of unbearably hot days... (more)
Image of the Week: Velvety Textures
This week we kick off in dad's garden, admiring the first Oriental Lily (Lilium) to appear... (more)
This week my Sunday morning photo shoot took place in very windy and overcast conditions that made macro photography quite challenging, especially when most of the flowers I wanted to get shots of were swaying about on very long stems... (more)
This week I'm kicking off the article in my garden, where I had planted lots of Alliums, mainly to attract the Bees and the Hoverflies... (more)
Image of the Week: Peacock Meeting
We had beautiful warm and sunny weather for my Sunday morning photo shoot this week, and this meant that there was lots of insect activity... (more)
This week on my Sunday morning photo shoot I went off in search of wildlife in the shape of bugs and birds, and with the weather warming up, there was plenty to point my camera at... (more)
Image of the Week: Rhododendron
Since photographing the first flower buds of this Rhododendron bush in dad's garden before November last year, they have finally seen fit to open, and it was definitely worth the wait... (more)
Image of the Week: First Damselfly
It has been a funny old week in terms of the weather since my last Image of the Week article. We've had pretty much all types in the South of England, from hard frost, hail, sleet, gale force winds and rain, then, blue cloudless skies, bright sunshine and rising temperatures... (more)
Image of the Week: Berberis Sawfly
We've had a bit of a cold snap since I took these photographs, but despite it being quite dull and cloudy, the insects were out in force last weekend... (more)
Image of the Week: Orange Poppy
After a couple of weeks of very nice warm spring weather, it had turned decidedly colder over the Easter holiday weekend, although it remained dry and sunny... (more)
Image of the Week: Cherry Blossom
What another gorgeous weekend we had last weekend, especially on Sunday when temperatures rocketed into the high teens, and even broke the 20 degree centigrade mark in some areas. The beautiful weather seems to have triggered blossom season, with many trees and bushes bursting into bloom... (more)
Image of the Week: Spring Foraging
What a beautiful spring morning it was on Sunday when I went on my photo shoot in dad's garden this week. The bugs were out in force, the birds were singing, and the flowers were doing their best to keep up with the season. As well as birdsong, the multitude of mowers humming away in the background signalled that spring had really arrived... (more)
Image of the Week: Green Shield
Spring had finally sprung, and guess what? The bugs were back in town! I spent a glorious spring morning taking photographs in dad's garden, with this Green Shield Bug (Palomena prasina) being the highlight of my photo shoot... (more)
Image of the Week: Flowering Currant
Finally, for the most part, we had a weekend without rain at last, and over in dad's garden, spring had really got under way, with lots of new flowers being encouraged into flowering... (more)
Image of the Week: Multicoloured Memories
It was yet another wet Sunday as I embarked on my photo shoot at dad's last weekend, and I was once again looking for inspiration amongst the raindrops... (more)
Image of the Week: Pink Hepatica Noblis
A bit of recent sunshine, and some slightly warmer weather have set things moving at some pace in my garden this week. It's not quite springtime yet, but there are quite a few new blooms to show... (more)
Image of the Week: Yellow on Blue
I always think that springtime has definitely arrived when the Daffodils (Narcissus) come out in force. We weren't quite there yet, but this particular specimen was leading the way and it wouldn't be long before many more followed... (more)
Image of the Week: Heavenly Hellebore
This week we are starting off in my garden, where I finally have a flower to show you! So, drum roll please, I present to you my first Hellebore (Helleborus) of the year, which is of the variety 'Double Ellen'... (more)
Image of the Week: Orange Crocus
Although the frosts seemed to have relented, the last week has been bitterly cold, with snow trying to fall on a couple of occasions. We did have one sunny day, but frustratingly, I was tied up in a meeting, so didn't manage to capture anything with my camera... (more)
Image of the Week: Yellow on Green
As it was the first fortnight of February, and the hard frosts seemed to have given way to milder temperatures, I went looking for flowers at the weekend. However, it was still bitterly cold, and a bit early in the year for much colour, but I managed to stumble upon a few colourful finds... (more)
Image of the Week: Amaryllis Minerva
I have to kick off this week's article with an image of a new flower for me, an Amaryllis! This one is a variety called Amaryllis Minerva, and it has been very satisfying to watch it grow over the last couple of months... (more)
The bright blue skies belied the freezing cold weather we have been experiencing this week. However, they encouraged a raft of garden birds to come out of hiding, to enjoy the sunshine... (more)
Image of the Week: Raindrops on Rosehips
Well, there's no denying the fact that it has been another wet week down here in the South of England. So, what is there to do for the enthusiastic photographer other than to brave the weather, and embrace the dripiness of it all... (more)
This week I'm indulging myself by kicking off the article with a shot of my cute furry photography buddy... (more)
Image of the Week: Touchdown Imminent
In case I haven't already said so, Happy New Year to you! This week's article comprises of images I took at the end of December, and the beginning of January... (more)
The sun has set on another year, so that means it's time to wish everyone a very Happy New Year, and to welcome you all to 2017... (more)
Image of the Week: Blooming Quince
My final article of 2016 sees the first signs of spring beginning to show themselves... (more)
I'd like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and the happiest of New Year's... (more)
Image of the Week: Sunrise Over Hythe
Like quite a lot of people this week I visited my local town to do a spot of Christmas shopping. However, with a camera in my pocket, very little actual shopping took place as I sought to get away from the hustle and bustle of the busy shopping areas... (more)
Image of the Week: Winter Warrior
Isn't it amazing how resilient our insect population can be? Last week there was a bubble blowing fly, venturing out on a frosty morning, and this week we have this little guy, busy collecting pollen on another cold December day... (more)
Image of the Week: Ice Crystals
While this week has been a little warmer than last, it has still been bitterly cold, and we've had a covering of frost on most mornings. This week during my photo shoot however, the frost didn't budge at all, and remained in the garden all day... (more)
This week I'm kicking off the article in my garden, where you could find this very late flowering Pincushion (Scabiosa columbaria) flower earlier in the week. It is one of the few summer flowers remaining in the garden and is valiantly holding onto blooms despite the frost doing its uppermost to rob them from me... (more)
Image of the Week: Beginning to Bloom
It hasn't been a good week for nature photography this week. Apart from it being cold, wet and windy outside, I'm currently suffering from an attack of cellulitis, which means that this photographer hasn't been up to much either... (more)
Image of the Week: Water World
The last seven days haven't been good for gardening, or for photography! Although in recent days it has been a little warmer, we've seen quite a lot of rain... (more)
Image of the Week: Behind the Cosmos
This week has seen the first frosty mornings of the season, so the gardens are really starting to shut down for the year. However, there are still a few plants still hanging on... (more)
This week in dad's garden there was a definite feel of autumn, as flowers died back, leaves turned brown, insect life disappeared, and the weather turned much cooler... (more)
Image of the Week: Autumnal Wasp
With the days getting shorter, and the weather turning colder, insects are disappearing quickly from our gardens for another year. However, there were still a few subjects around on a sunny Sunday morning, and I was lucky enough to grab a few shots of this docile Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris) as it warmed up in a very autumnal looking Acer palmatum tree... (more)
Image of the Week: Nerine Bowdenii
This week we start with two new flowers to my garden. Firstly, we have this splendid specimen, a Guernsey lily (Nerine bowdenii). I've tried growing Nerine's for the past couple of years, but this is the first time I've managed to get one to burst into flower, so it's quite an exciting moment for me... (more)
Image of the Week: Common Plume Moth
We start off this week's article in the world of the Lepidoptera, which is the order of insects that include butterflies and moths... (more)
Image of the Week: Drop of Nectar
This week my weekly photo journal kicks off with this little miracle of nature, as we see a single droplet of nectar forming on the stigma of a Peruvian Lily (Alstroemeria)... (more)
Image of the Week: Poppy Picker
This week's article imagery starts off in my garden, taking a look at the early autumn insect and arachnid life. This Hoverfly was particularly fond of my Poppy 'Falling in Love' blooms, as am I... (more)
This week we're kicking off our photo journey in the house, and are taking a look at a couple of house plants... (more)
Image of the Week: Abyssinian Gladiolus
This beautiful piece of flora is called an Abyssinian Gladiolus (Gladiolus murielae formerly classified under the genus of Acidanthera). Grown as a late flowering summer bulb, the flowers are produced on top of slender stems that can grow in excess of two feet tall... (more)
This is the River Lily (Hesperantha coccinea, also known as Schizostylis Coccinea), also known as the Crimson Flag, or Kaffir Lily... (more)
Image of the Week: Raindrop Retreat
After an extremely dry period of weather, the garden got some much needed rain this weekend. The only downside was that it came during my Sunday morning photo shoot in my dad's garden! This meant that there was very little chance of photographing insects as they had all stayed home in bed, avoiding the enormous raindrops... (more)
Image of the Week: Speckled Wood
It ended up being another glorious week here, and so the insects have been out in force once more. A butterfly that has been missing from my portfolio so far this year has been the Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria) butterfly, but this weekend I managed to track some down, and put that right... (more)
I've been asked quite a few times about how I shoot my insect macros, and have explained more than once or twice in various forums. However, now that I have a location to put all of my photography related information, namely here, I thought I'd collate the information and create a tutorial, based upon my own experiences! So, here goes... (more)
Image of the Week: Bumblebee on Zinnia
It has been another glorious week here in the South of England, and the insects have once again been out in force enjoying the warm weather and lovely sunshine... (more)
Image of the Week: Seedy Allium
This week we're starting off in my garden, with this very photogenic Drumstick Allium (Allium sphaerocephalon), pictured in front of a hanging basket full of Petunia 'Night Sky' blooms... (more)
It's not often you find a bona fide alien in your garden, but that's what I thought I'd found when I was cutting down some large Iris leaves last week... (more)
Image of the Week: Vigilant Gatekeeper
The heatwave I talked about last week continued for most of this week, and brought with it a whole host of friendly butterflies... (more)
Image of the Week: Orange Ladybird
Well, what a difference a week makes. Last week it seemed summer had deserted us, and winter had returned, but this week we've been experiencing a heatwave... (more)
Image of the Week: Gooseberries
You may be wondering why I'm leading with a picture of a collection of gooseberries this week? Well, typical British summertime has resumed as you'll see from some of the shots below... (more)
Image of the Week: Bee Leaving
We finally had a week that was more befitting for British summertime, where it was actually more like summer than winter. The warm sunshine brought with it a plethora of flora and fauna activity, which I'll give you a peek of in this week's article... (more)
It was only a matter of time before my photographic buddy became this year's Image of the Week, and I think you'll agree that my little friend deserves his time in the limelight... (more)
This week I'm showcasing one of my all time favourite plants, the Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia) plant. I've been wanting to grow this impressive looking plant for a very long time, and have had numerous attempts at growing one from seed! Unfortunately, I've never had a single seed germinate... (more)
Image of the Week: Ichneumon Profile
Well what a change in the weather there was this week! Last week I devoted my whole weekly article to the arrival of the insects, but this week it was so cold and wet there was hardly one to be found... (more)
Image of the Week: Hovering Hoverfly
This week the whole article is dedicated to the return of the insects. I've posted a few insect photos in previous articles this year, but this week, the glorious weather has encouraged all sorts of creepy crawlies to reappear... (more)
Image of the Week: Thick Legged Flower Beetle
Despite being relatively common, this Thick Legged Flower Beetle (Oedemera nobilis) is a new beetle to me. You can see where it gets its name, just look at those powerful looking rear legs... (more)
Image of the Week: Green Shield Bug
With it being so wet this weekend, I wasn't expecting to be shooting insects, but then I stumbled across this fine specimen drying out on a leaf... (more)
Image of the Week: House Sparrow
Last week I wanted to concentrate on avian photography, but got distracted by bugs, but this week I stuck to my task, and spent a morning with the birds... (more)
Image of the Week: On Top of the World
For the most part it has been a beautiful week since I last posted. Temperatures have been soaring above twenty degrees centigrade and there have been blue skies every day, until a couple of days ago, when the rain returned; more on that later... (more)
Image of the Week: Spring Anemone
We've had a gorgeous week so far this week, and with the fantastic weather has come the arrival of lots of new flowers to my garden... (more)
Image of the Week: Pollen Addict
After the beautiful weather we've had over the past few weeks it was a bit of a shock to the system to have frosty mornings and freezing cold days return this far into the year... (more)
This last week has been the best of the year so far weather wise, with some beautiful blue skies and a notable rise in temperature during the daytime. The warmer weather has encouraged all sorts of wildlife into the garden, especially the birds and the bees... (more)
Image of the Week: Small but Beautiful
A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that its not only our cultivated flowers that are awakening this springtime, but also the uninvited guests in our garden - the weeds! This got me thinking about some of the prettier wild plants that live in our gardens... (more)
Image of the Week: Afternoon Sunlight
The recent good weather, and in particular the warm spell, has done wonders for the spring bulbs planted in the garden, especially the Tulips... (more)
Image of the Week: Hyacinth Probing
We've had very mixed weather conditions in the last week that have brought everything from blazing sunshine, hailstones, torrential rain and 100 mph winds to the area... (more)
Image of the Week: Petunia Plugs
Something a little different this week! As those who follow my weekly posts will already know, I spend quite a lot of my photography time shooting flowers. What most probably don't know, however, is that for the past three or four years I've also spent quite a lot of time growing them... (more)
Image of the Week: Spring Sunshine
This has definitely been the most productive week this year in terms of photography, and I have a bumper crop of flowers and feathers to share with you... (more)
Image of the Week: Mouse and Mole
This week I have another mixed selection of fauna and flora to share with you. My favourite is of one of a family of mice that currently resides beneath my garden shed... (more)
This week I've got a bit of a mixed bag of imagery to show you! First off is this little Robin (Erithacus rubecula). Over the past couple of weeks he has decided to take up residence in a bird box in my garden... (more)
Image of the Week: Abstract Flora
It's amazing what a little bit of sunshine can do for the flower garden in springtime! The last few weeks have been quite slow going for all of the spring bulbs, and up until now, only the camellia has added any real colour to the garden... (more)
Image of the Week: Great Tit Flight
With springtime somewhat on hold in the flower garden, this week I concentrated on photographing birds. I was hoping to capture a good cross-section of British garden birds, and I ended up with quite a good collection - even if I say so myself... (more)
Image of the Week: Star Attraction
In a turbulent week weather wise, I managed to get out and shoot some springtime images in almost perfect conditions, only a few hours before storm Isobel battered the South of England into submission... (more)
Image of the Week: Raindrop Islands
Another week brings with it another collection of raindrops. This week I was once again presented with the challenge of shooting something in the rain... (more)
Image of the Week: Raindrop Plateau
There are no prizes for guessing the subject of this week's Image of the Week article! After the good weather of a couple of weeks ago, followed by the cold weather of last week, this week we were back... (more)
Image of the Week: Broken Bract
What a difference a week makes! Last week, spring was most definitely in the air. There were promising signs of new growth in the garden and even some colour starting to show. This week, however, it had... (more)
Image of the Week: Early Camellia
Spring was definitely in the air last weekend when I took pictures of this camellia! The bush normally comes into flower in late February, but the unseasonally warm temperatures and the abundance of rain... (more)
For this week's Image of the Week I'm taking a dip into my archive - literally! (more)
Image of the Week: Happy New Year
Happy New Year, and welcome to 2016! I can't believe another year is over, it seems to have passed by so quickly... (more)
Image of the Week: Southampton Civic Centre
Something a lot different from me this week - and not at all Christmassy!!! This building is part of Southampton Civic Centre, which I photographed recently while... (more)
I was quite fortunate this week to witness the classic V shape formation of some migrating geese... (more)
Despite last week's surprise appearance of some early Quince blossom, this week there were very few photographic opportunities in the garden... (more)
Image of the Week: Early Quince
With the number of colours in the garden decreasing as winter draws nearer, I was quite surprised to find a quince bush full of blossom last weekend... (more)
Image of the Week: Blooming Nerine
Well, as I said in my write-up for last week's Image of the Week article, I kept my fingers crossed, and had the pleasure of witnessing my Nerine bowdenii buds bloom... (more)
I'm very pleased to announce that I have recently finished working on my fourth book cover artwork collaboration. Far from the Spaceports is the first in what I hope will be a long series of science fiction novels written by my good friend Richard Abbott... (more)
Image of the Week: Budding Nerine
I've spent a long time waiting for the moment, and it's nearly here. I planted a small collection of Nerine bowdenii bulbs back in March, and they have almost fulfilled their promise... (more)
Image of the Week: Blueberry Bush Leaf
This is the first year that I've grown blueberry bushes, and I wasn't expecting much from them. However, not only did they provide a small but delicious crop of fruit... (more)
Image of the Week: Wet Weaver Web
I have to admit that I love this time of year! I could spend all day and every day photographing the delights that autumn brings... (more)
Image of the Week: Cloud Iridescence
Here's a photograph of something a little different from me. This colourful looking abstract is of a rainbow in a cloud... (more)
This remarkable looking flower is called an Anthurium, and this particular plant has been flowering non-stop since last Christmas... (more)
Image of the Week: Schizostylis Coccinea
At a time of the year when most flowers are fading, it's nice to see a flower that's thriving in the cooler temperatures of autumn... (more)
Image of the Week: Nuts Whole Hazelnuts
As I was walking around a particularly magnificent looking Corkscrew hazel tree (Corylus avellana contorta) at the weekend, I noticed a number of hazelnuts scattered around its base... (more)
This is just a short announcement to inform everyone that there is now an option to share articles from the website using Google+... (more)
With another new month comes another trio of website updates! Updates include a new look for the Image of the Week archive, a refresh for the Latest Article page and the introduction of a new Acknowledgements page... (more)
It was only last week that I wrote about not being able to walk around the garden without running into a spider web. This week there were new obstacles, namely, crane flies... (more)
I couldn't resist staying up until about 4am to grab a few shots of the 'blood moon' as the supermoon and lunar eclipse coincided on Sunday night... (more)
Regular visitors to the website and blog will have noticed the introduction of a new Privacy Policy... (more)
Image of the Week: Garden Spider
September is the time of the year when it becomes difficult to walk around the garden without becoming entangled in spider webs... (more)
Image of the Week: Japanese Anemone
The weather meant I had very little time for photography this weekend, and when I did get outside, there didn't appear to be much to photograph... (more)
Image of the Week: Food Coloured Heather
So I was walking around the garden centre earlier today, looking for something colourful to make the garden a more pleasant place to be as summer winds down, when I came across this stuff... (more)
Image of the Week: Elephant Hawk Moth
It's not often that I post my Image of the Week on the same day that I take it. In fact, that wasn't my plan for this week either, until I came to put my bin out in readiness for the refuse collectors. Let me explain... (more)
Image of the Week: Greenbottle
We have encountered what can only be called a typical British summertime over the last few days! Of course, this means that rain has been quite abundant... (more)
Image of the Week: Gatekeeper Greeting
This has to be my favourite time of the year for shooting insects, and last weekend, conditions were absolutely perfect for pursuing insects... (more)
Image of the Week: Geranium Rozanne
One of my favourite things to photograph are flowers, especially if I've grown them myself... (more)
Image of the Week: Migrant Hawker
After the disappointing weather of the last couple of weeks, this weekend was a cracker, especially for those of us who like photographing insects... (more)
Image of the Week: Bumblebee Browsing
Due to the inclement British summertime weather, this week's Image of the Week is from a couple of week's ago... (more)
Image of the Week: Peregrine Falcon
So, picture the scene. There was I, sat in my dad's back garden, drinking a cup of coffee, enjoying the sunshine and having a nice chat. A group of great tits take up residence in a nearby tree, and I pick up my camera... (more)
Image of the Week: Grey Squirrel
Those who follow my weekly musings will no doubt have picked up on my love of macro and bird photography. This week, however, we have something a little different... (more)
Image of the Week: Allium Arrival
While I love taking pictures of flowers in full bloom, I also think there is some merit in capturing them just before the moment they explode into their full beauty... (more)
With most of the small birds in the UK being dubbed LBJ's - Little Brown Jobs - I'm always pleased to see one of our more common colourful species... (more)
Image of the Week: Zebra Jumping Spider
I was very fortunate to get any sort of image for this week's post, and was even more fortunate to find such a cute spider willing to pose for me... (more)
Image of the Week: The Centre of Attention
The arrival of the Wild Roses in the garden seemed to send the bumblebees into some sort of pollen collecting frenzy... (more)
After placing my Wildlife Trail Camera in the garden for a few nights, I identified an area that is used by a family of mice every night... (more)
Image of the Week: Flying Visit
This image is the result of me setting out to get a half decent photograph of a Dunnock - more commonly known as a Hedge Sparrow... (more)
I'm regularly astounded by nature! Take this blue iris, for instance. It was planted three years ago, in a sheltered part of the garden. Each year, on or around the 1st of June... (more)
As you can see from the above video, I've purchased a camera capable of nighttime shooting! It's actually a Wildlife Trail Camera that has infrared and motion detecting capabilities... (more)
So, how should I put this? Well, spring was most definitely in the air at the weekend as I walked around the garden, and it wasn't only the birds and the bees who were getting it on... (more)
Image of the Week: Robin on the Fence
I'm quite lucky to have some blue tits nesting in my garden. I've been keeping an eye on them for the last few weeks, watching the parents bring a succession of food back to the nest box... (more)
Image of the Week: Guilty as Charged
Last week I wrote about how photography had led me to becoming quite a keen gardener, and how I grew plants and flowers that would attract... (more)
Image of the Week: Bleeding Hearts
As a nature photographer who primarily shoots macro nature images, it was almost inevitable that I'd end up being quite a keen gardener... (more)
A short announcement. I've finally got around to implementing the Blog Article Archive feature... (more)
Image of the Week: Abstract Alstroemeria
It sometimes rains! Hmm! Actually, in the UK, it has rained quite a lot of the time in recent years... (more)
Image of the Week: Early Damsel
The culmination of a lovely week weather-wise saw the first damselflies arrive in the UK - the Large Red Damselfly (Pyrrhosoma nymphula)... (more)
I'm very pleased to announce that I have recently finished working on my third book cover artwork collaboration... (more)
Image of the Week: Robin Red Breast
You may remember my Pied Wagtail shot from about a month ago? It was my Image of the Week, and my article accompanying the image told... (more)
Image of the Week: Sempervivum
Ever since I was bitten by the photography bug, I've viewed my surroundings slightly differently to how I used to... (more)
Here's wishing everyone a very Happy Easter - especially if you've got a sweet tooth... (more)
Image of the Week: Cobalt Blue
I've recently taken on the task of trying to better organise my image archives, and it has led me to discovering some hidden gems amongst my portfolio of images... (more)
Image of the Week: Hoverfly Eye
Anyone who follows my photography knows that I love shooting insects... (more)
Image of the Week: Springtime Tulips
It always feels more like springtime when the tulips arrive - even if they were bought from a shop... (more)
I love any excuse for posting one of my water splash images, and St Patrick's Day seems like as good an excuse as any... (more)
I couldn't let Mothering Sunday pass without uploading something pretty to mark the day... (more)
Image of the Week: Pied Wagtail
If there's one thing I love taking pictures of, it's birds! As subjects, they offer the photographer a fantastic challenge... (more)
Image of the Week: Blooming Springtime
For this week's Image of the Week, the object of the exercise was to capture springtime from the viewpoint of a bug... (more)
What better way to celebrate St David's day than to go out and shoot some daffodils? The only problem is... (more)
Image of the Week: Winter Jasmine
For this week's Image of the Week I went looking for colour! The problem was that on a very grey February day there was very little colour about... (more)
I'm always glad of an excuse to post an image of the moon! Like many, I find the moon a fascinating subject to shoot and thought I'd share some tips on how to shoot it... (more)
So who doesn't like pancakes? Even if you don't like to eat them, Pancake Tuesday, or more correctly, Shrove Tuesday, is a great day to get the camera out... (more)
Image of the Week: Lost in Thought
I thought I'd better strike while the iron was hot and upload this week's Image of the Week... (more)
Image of the Week: Valentine's Day
Happy Valentine's day everyone! I hope you are all having the most wonderful of times... (more)
Every year I refresh my website image portfolios with images taken in the previous year, and today's the day... (more)
Regular visitors to the website may have noticed a few changes recently. The major update is the introduction of a blog feature... (more)
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