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With hope! Lol! Here's 1/365. My good camera died a few months ago so it's iphone time for a while! Happy New Year again, to you all! <3
Smoke blows away from the exhaust stacks of P-51D "Tall in the saddle" as Peter Teichman starts its Packard Merlin engine.
This morning my alarm was set for 03:45 and I headed out, very groggily, for the hour drive to Start Point Lighthouse on the Devon Coast.
This is one of my favourite locations, the rocks that lead to the lighthouse along the top here are fantastic and the views are just beautiful, with Hallsands and Beesands to the East and East Prawle to the west.
I met up with Darren Blight Photography in the car park just after 5am and we took the walk down the path to our location.
After all the cloud yesterday I was hoping there would be some hanging around this morning, but we were greeted with a clear sky, and although this doesn't usually make for a great photo the haze across the horizon gave the shot a little bit of interest.
Still, it was a lovely morning to be out, and the perfect way to start the day
Start Point is a promontory in the South Hams district in Devon, England, grid reference SX832370. Close to the most southerly point in the county, it marks the southern limit of Start Bay, which extends northwards to the estuary of the River Dart.
The rocks of the point are greenschist and mica-schist, formed by metamorphism of Devonian sediments during a period of mountain building towards the end of the Carboniferous period.
The name "Start" derives from an Anglo-Saxon word steort, meaning a tail. This root also appears in the names of birds with distinctive tails, like the redstart.
As a result of the many shipwrecks in the area, Start Point lighthouse was built in 1836 to alert ships to the danger of the point and its surrounding rocks. The lighthouse, and the area's birdlife, make it a popular spot for visitors, and Start Point is accessible to walkers from the South West Coast Path.
The Start Point transmitting station is located on top of the promontory, just north-west of the lighthouse. Built in 1939, it nowadays transmits only a single broadcast, BBC Radio 5 Live.
Lamacraft Farm is near Start Point and a quarter of a mile from South Hallsands.
Your love is second hand, you know
I walk until I see the place,
That reminds me of yesterday
And throw all your lies away
You could have done it so much better
You could have told me I was never the one
And never lend me your heart
I’m a disorder but you weren’t too much order
I can fly with you
Start, restart, undo
I still hear your guitar in my ear..
Texto: Anni B. Sweet
©Todos los derechos reservados
Day 1/365 The whole year is laid out before us. We have a clean slate, a new beginning, a fresh start. I plan to make mine a great one...I wish the same for all of you. Happy New Year!
Today looked like an excellent day for a photoshoot. However, after loading up the gear and props, the sun started to play hide and seek. The wind also made its appearance in the form of gusts which wreaked havoc with all my props. Better luck next time.
I managed a couple of shots before I packed it in. This is one of my Liberty Classic Canadian Tire Piggy Banks.
Soleil is a new condo development by RDG Management Ltd currently under construction at 1711 152 Street, Surrey.
KMZ Star del 1958, un nome poco poetico per una splendida reflex, il primo rullino mi ha molto soddisfatto, la macchina è priva di esposimetro ma la messa a fuoco è molto facile ( più che con la mia Pentax digitale che è in pessime condizioni ).
© Andy Brandl (2015) // PhotonMix Photography
Don´t redistribute - don´t use on webpages, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.
**View on Black**
I took this a few weeks back in this great little hidden spot my buddy Matt showed a small group of us. We were lucky to have a pretty awesome sunset which was predicted by Jeff Lewis and Escaype. Some new shooting and editing techniques went into this shot and I would like to thank David Thompson for helping me dial this one in. His critique and suggestions are always friendly and spot on. Plus his work is amazing!!
Hope you all enjoy!
My thoughts are with all the people of Fort McMurray, Alberta, who are being devastated by a massive wildfire at the moment. Everyone in the city is fleeing, leaving everything behind.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/fort-mcmurray-fire-social...
Two days ago, on 2 May 2016, I was incredibly fortunate to be able to witness about 30 (?) of these Grouse, mainly male with just a handful of females, displaying at their "lek" or communal dancing ground. On this particular day, five of us went to see this. There had been a couple of possible chances for me to get out there, but these had fallen through. Then, out of the blue, friend Dorothy phoned me a few days ago, asking if I had been able to get to the lek yet. She said that if I hadn't been, that her husband Stephen would be willing to drive me there! This was such a wonderful surprise, though anyone who really knows this couple already knows what amazingly kind and generous people they are. I was so happy to get this unexpected chance and the three of us had a great morning, in good weather and in good company. Two young men also went, making their own way there. Delightful guys, highly respectful of not only the Grouse, but also of us, constantly moving form their seats to allow us to get our turn, and vice versa - there are only three tiny windows from which to shoot. They could so easily have left the 'hide/blind ahead of us when the Grouse had all left, but instead they waited till we were all packed up and then made sure that we were all able to safely get over the very awkward stile at the fence line. Having been out there last year, on 13 April 2015, I knew of this problem and had bought a three-step step ladder a few weeks ago, just in case I was able to go sometime this spring. This made so much difference, thank goodness, especially as I was really tired after staying up all night in order to leave at a very unearthly hour of the morning.
So glad we had a nice, sunny day - the day I went a year ago, the weather was overcast and not good for photos. This year, I got to see the Grouse in beautiful sunrise light, too. Of course, the 'problem' of clumps of tall grass was exactly the same this year, lol, keeping the birds somewhat hidden, but every once in a while, a bird would come out into the open. Most of the time, they were quite distant, but we were very lucky that several did give us a closer view. This photo was taken fully zoomed - Focal Length (35mm format) - 1200 mm - so it's better to see it at this size and not the larger size. Such magnificent birds, with their yellow 'eyebrows', purple patch (which is revealed when the males are dancing) below the side of the neck on the males, and glorious feather pattern. Their dance display to attract the females is so fascinating to watch.
Just after we got back to our cars, another car came along the road and stopped to talk with us. It turned out that this gentleman was indirectly connected to the lek. He voiced his huge concern at how many people had been out there this spring, feeling that this was not good for the Grouse. He said that hopefully no more people would be going, so that the Grouse would be undisturbed in their mating. We agreed with him and thought that maybe people should not be allowed to visit every year, but perhaps every two or three years. I will pass on his words and great concern to our Naturalist leader who organizes these visits.
After we left the lek, we travelled a few nearby backroads, hoping to see a Western Meadowlark. We saw 10! It had been so funny, while we sat in the blind at the lek, a Meadowlark was somewhere nearby and sang for us for about four hours! When we at last emerged into the sunlight, there was no sign of it anywhere. We did manage to get a few distant shots of two or three of them.
Thank you so much, Stephen and Dorothy, for offering to take me - so very kind and thoughtful of you, as always! The stop for having our sandwiches was great and the muffins you brought along with you ended the morning very nicely.
If you have time, the following 2:30 minute YouTube video by the Alberta Conservation Association is very good for showing the action of these birds. There are several still shots first and then the video starts. Pretty amazing! The birds remind me of a child's wind-up toy : )
I came across an excellent brochure (pdf file) about Sharp-tailed Grouse on the Internet and will use some of the information from it, instead of using my own words to describe what goes on at a lek. I had seen females of this species before, on Christmas Bird Counts, but not a male and not at breeding time.
www.ab-conservation.com/downloads/educational_materials/b...
"Sharp-tailed grouse perform spring courtship displays on communal “dancing grounds” called leks. Here, males compete for breeding opportunities by displaying their "dancing” ability to females. Most activity on the lek occurs in the early morning just before sunrise and for a few hours afterwards. The males’ energetic display includes fluttering wings, rapid foot stomping and spinning in tight circles - reminiscent of wind-up toys. The most dominant males court females with low cooing sounds and by strutting around them with inflated air sacs on their neck and fanned tail feathers. It is nearly a winner-take-all form of competition, as only a few of the males are selected as mates by the females.
Leks are found in areas with dry open ground, where dancing activity keeps the vegetation well-trampled. Leks are used over several weeks beginning in late March and are often used for years, even decades. They are an important part of sharp-tailed grouse life, and the loss of suitable lek habitat can be a limiting factor for sharp-tailed grouse in Alberta.
Male sharp-tailed grouse gather on the lek in late March. In April the females arrive, sparking increased displaying by the males. Peak attendance by females on the lek occurs between mid to late April in much of Alberta. Once they have selected a male, hens breed once and then seek out a place to nest, usually in late April to early May.
Leks are an integral part of the lifecycle of prairie grouse. Active leks should never be approached, as any disturbance to the birds may disrupt breeding activities and result in the abandonment of the lek. The locations of active and historical leks are of great interest to grouse biologists.
Native North Americans called the sharp-tailed grouse “Fire Bird” because of their reliance on fires to keep their habitat open in wooded areas. Suppression of natural fire in parkland and boreal areas reduces the amount of open grassland available to sharp-tailed grouse.
Sharp-tailed grouse were an important food source for native North Americans and they continue to be a popular game bird for hunters today.
In Alberta, the sharp-tailed grouse is listed as “Sensitive.”
While exact population numbers are not known, there is a feeling that sharp-tailed grouse have decreased significantly in numbers over the past 40 years. This trend is supported by lek counts, hunter surveys, aerial counts and Breeding Bird Survey data. Declining numbers are the result of a reduction in the quality and quantity of sharp-tailed grouse habitat, particularly the loss of quality nesting and brood-rearing habitat." From www.ab-conservation.com.
www.ab-conservation.com/downloads/report_series/Use-Habit...
Poznan, Poland
Crossing Podgórna
Couldn't resit this as I hurried along the way...I really enjoy this view point, especially in the morning. Last shot of this beautiful morning before heading to work....lovely start to the day!
Join me on Erik Witsoe Photography
and Behance
A start lever in an abandoned brickworks near Ewhurst, Surrey.
There is very little left of the brickworks, although most of the brick kilns are still intact. Nearly every wall has been covered in grafitti, some of it very good.
My photography day started off on a rather uninspiring note, the weather was very dull and overcast with the prospect of rain to add to the misery. Both Steve and I decided that we should make the effort to get out with our first stop being Crovie which is a small village that sits on the East Coast of Scotland. The main street is for pedestrians only, everything has to transported by shopping trolley or wooden barrows as there are no cars allowed. There is however some limited parking at the far end of the village. We were pleasantly surprised to see the weather had brightened up enough to catch the odd photograph where the sun shone.
1st Lt. Meaghan Cosand, C-5B Galaxy pilot with the 312th Airlift Squadron, starts engines in preparation for takeoff from Kadena Air Base, Japan, Aug. 15, 2014. She was flying a mobility channel mission, moving high-priority cargo and passengers among air bases in the U.S. Pacific Command area of responsibility. (U.S. Air Force photo/Lt. Col. Robert Couse-Baker)