Today’s guest picture shows a peacock which was observed by Dropscone on a visit to Leeds Castle in Kent during his recent holiday.
Although there were hints of sunshine offered by the weather forecast for today, they were not forthcoming in actuality and we had a chilly, grey day with a nipping east wind. I started out by going up to the Moorland feeders with Mrs Tootlepedal to act as reserve feeder filler.
When we had filled the feeders, she sat in the car and scanned the horizon for exciting raptors (in vain) while I sat in the hide, hoping for exciting new visitors (also in vain).
There was a shy woodpecker….
…who was soon replaced by some more forward great and coal tits.
There was a seed pilfering pheasant….
…and a great quantity of chaffinches and siskins…
…but when two other bird watchers came into the hide, I wasn’t too unhappy to pack up and leave them to it.
On our way back to the town, we stopped at Skippers Bridge to check on the work. The workers must have faith in their scaffolding….
….because the water was foaming away not far beneath their feet. They are making good progress though…
…and have built up a lot of new facing. The man on the right was being fed stones to pack into the space behind the new wall.
If they keep on at this rate, it won’t be long before they are finished.
While I was on the bridge, I stole a glance at the parapet.
I did have some idea of going out for a chilly pedal when we got home but the fact the I would have to face the nippy wind on my return journey persuaded me that making some leek and potato soup was a better plan. We have still got several leeks in the garden so there will probably be more soup before the end of the month.
I watched the birds in between times.
I enjoyed the goldfinch on the right landing on a wing and a prayer
I am so used to seeing our birds that I sometimes forget just how pretty and colourful they are.
Instead of cycling on the slow bike, I took pictures of the belt drive and the solid back tyre which together with the hub gear make it almost maintenance free…
…even if they may make it a little slower.
A fresh crocus caught my eye.
The promised breath of springtime.
I did get some exercise in the end though as Sandy came round for a walk in the afternoon.
The promised sunshine stayed well away and we had a rather grey and featureless stroll. In fact things were so dull that we started to see what pressing buttons on the camera might do.
A smart filter made a striking job of this track view.
I did say that it was rather a grey day…
…so I took a rather grey picture to go with it.
We thought that we would look to see if there were any snowdrops at Holmhead.
We found several…
…hundred.
We were still pressing buttons on the camera and we found a handy setting which will pick out a single colour from a scene.
We were like children in a sweetie shop.
It was a pity that Sandy didn’t have a brighter jacket on.
I even showed the button to Mrs Tootlepedal when I got home…
…but she kept remarkably calm.
In the evening I went out to the first meeting of 2107 for our Langholm Choir, ‘Langholm Sings’. We had a good practice, which started with some familiar music just to get us in the groove. I noticed a few familiar mistakes were still in the groove too. We ended the practice with a couple of new pieces and these were very enjoyable so the new season looks promising.
The flying bird of the day is a female chaffinch looking for a male to give her some space.
Your first picture (well, not yours) looks as if you found a clever button which picks out just two colours.
It is a striking image.
That button for the single colour looks like great fun! The snowdrops at Holmhead look glorious and there are so many of them!
They are flourishing which is good. The locals enjoy them a lot.
I am going to download the manual for my camera and see if I have any good buttons – very impressed by yours.
I bet you have a lot of things lurking in there. What sort is it?
Olympus SP820UZ. It can’t do the one colour thing but it does have one for enhancing sunsets, which I have now memorised, and several others.
I look forward to seeing the results of your research.
I tried a few shots – more experiments to follow.
Good.
I too liked the button that brought out the single colour, a most interesting idea.
Hi Tom – I hope you will not be too shocked that we have actually had to do a peacock cull (6 males to 1 female was getting too awful). Only one peacock left now and another re-homed. The cull was done quickly and professionally but I got terribly depressed afterwards. On a more positive note, the new pup is doing well and my volunteering jobs are sky-rocketing (hence no time to blog). Your blog always comforts me somehow – thank you!
I am sorry to hear about the peacock cull. These things are not easy. But I am glad to hear that you still have one to keep you company, not to mention the new pup too.
I am glad that you are keeping busy and I hope that you will find a moment or two to keep your blogging audience up to speed.
The camera button sounds like a truly “nifty” thing! Installing the scaffolding for the bridge repairs must have been a challenge. And finally – are the solid tires heavy enough for you to notice the difference, either when handling the bike or when riding?
The tyre (I only have one on the back, the front is pneumatic) seems to be very similar to a pneumatic one in every respect at the speed that I ride on the slow bike. I don’t think that someone who rode the bike and who didn’t know about the tyre would notice it at all.
Your photos using that single color setting look more dramatic and sharper. 🙂
It was fun to play with.
When using the single color setting, does the camera choose the color or does it allow you to choose? It is a neat effect, one that I’ve tried unsuccessfully to get naturally.
I also liked the effect of the filter used for the track view, but I think that it would grow tiresome after just a few images.
You can select the colour through the camera’s viewfinder. It seems to to have a range around a colour when it is selected so strong single colour subjects are probably the best. But it definitely has possibilities.
I agree with your remark about the filter on the track view..
I also liked those one colour photos, especially the red roofed buildings. It is wonderful when you discover new gizmos.
I also smiled at you finding some familiar mistakes in the singing groove…I know the feeling 🙂
And plenty more where those came from no doubt.
That’s a very neat button on your camera. Shame Mrs T was more moved.
She takes things very calmly on the whole.
You did well with your camera buttons. Remarkably colourful pheasant.
Oh, the snowdrops – what a marvelous sight!
Oh for a sunny day to see them at their best.
That was a practical button to find, I get the excitement 🙂 Nice to see the snowdrops and the signs of spring, in addition to your colorful birds.
You can do the same thing in photoshop but it takes a lot more time and fiddling.
I know…done that a few times, takes much more time.
Great colourful photos to enjoy all the way through from the lovely birds to the large orange and lemon ‘birds’ in the cages ( I’m getting my new glasses very soon!). The snowdrop scenes are beautiful and the single colour highlighted subjects are my favourite.
I can sympathise with the need for better glasses.
Your seed-pilfering pheasant does look quite guilty…..
I should spend time playing with the buttons on my camera. That’s something I never seem to do.
Those are great shots of the bridge work and what could be better than a forest full of snowdrops.
I like the little footbridge.
You are getting great results with your camera without chasing special effects.
The pheasant looks a bit surprised. Quite a colorful fellow, probably hoping his good looks will excuse him from seed pilfering. The bird panels are beautiful as always.
Those wandering tracks and woodlands filled with snowdrops are inviting!
Good to see crocus. Mine are just now pushing up above the soil. I moved survivors and new crocus bulbs to planters, as they proved to be too much of a temptation for hungry gophers.
Gophers are one thing that we don’t have to worry about.
Snowdrop envy. Again. And envy of your prettier birds that ours. Don’t worry. The envy isn’t making me suffer. Much. The photo effects are very fun.