A New Year means a new Soul Source photography thread! Starting in 2013, "Show us your great photos" has proved to be a long-lived favourite - all because of the continued contributions and involvement of its enthusiastic participants. Here's looking forward to yet another year of fab photos - and don't forget that you don't need to be a photographer to post up pics. Whether taken with top-of-the-line gear or the camera on your smart phone, if you've got interesting pics, please feel free to share.

To kick off, here's a batch of pics I took today while out on a cold and misty walk in a place called the Amsterdamse Waterleidingduinen. I'd not heard of it until just very recently. Apparently it's a natural water table from which Amsterdam gets most of its fresh water. At the same time, it's a nature reserve, so now that I know of its existence, I'll have to make a point of visiting regularly.

It wasn't a good day to be out with a camera, especially with a zoom lens. The light was poor, it was misty (heavy fog overhead - we could hear geese flying over but could barely see them, even though they were quite low), and it was cold. Hopefully conditions will be better on my next visit.

Here's wishing you all a happy New Year and lots of happy shooting across the next 12 months.

5 minutes ago, Martyn Pitt said:

When you look straight up at the night sky you are looking through the atmosphere at its narrowest thickness, when you look at the horizon at an angle through the atmosphere you are looking through it's thickest part and more likely to distort images, air temperature and movement can have an added effect on image quality as well, described as good or bad seeing by astronomers.

Next week on ask Martyn ... how to knit fog

🤣🤣🤣. Love you Martyn . Can't wait for next week's episode 😋. Do you need special needles 🤔

Edited February 18, 20205 yr by Winsford Soul

I though it was Tony trying to escape 🤫

1 hour ago, Soulfulmerlin said:

Yes . No idea how to stop the troll .

Want shot 

Not really the place to be dealing with site business, but...

Click on your name in the top right. A list of menu items will show, including "Ignored Users". Click on that and you'll come to the page as shown in my screenshot. Type in the name of the user and follow the instructions. Sorted. 

A few shots taken at one of our favourite places to go - even in February - the Boerderij Meerzicht (aka Lakeview Farm, or as we call it, the pancake house).A

3 hours ago, Amsterdam Russ said:

Not really the place to be dealing with site business, but...

Click on your name in the top right. A list of menu items will show, including "Ignored Users". Click on that and you'll come to the page as shown in my screenshot. Type in the name of the user and follow the instructions. Sorted. 

Thanks

Just been and taken these pictures 5 minutes from my house in Burton . A lone Waxwing eating the berries on a housing estate. 😃  wow !. Got the heads up yesterday from local birder. Very grey and gloomy to take pics.

 

Edited February 21, 20205 yr by Veedub

17 minutes ago, Veedub said:

Just been and taken these pictures 5 minutes from my house in Burton . A lone Waxwing eating the berries on a housing estate. 😃  wow !. Got the heads up yesterday from local birder. Very grey and gloomy to take pics.

 

Brilliant pictures mate. Love Waxwings , not seen any this year / winter. 

Cheers Ste,  First one for me for a few years too ! amazing birds and make a noise like a 60s trimphone 😎

First time i ever seen one was after weeks chasing around the North West,  finally got to see one eating apple's in a front garden at Billinge nr Wigan . The owner used to feed the birds  and this waxwing came back again  the year after.  Amazing.  

Yes, they seem to return to the same trees some years and in the most unlikely places like supermarket carparks ! they just go into an eating frenzy like locusts, and seem oblivious to humans 😃

1 hour ago, Veedub said:

Yes, they seem to return to the same trees some years and in the most unlikely places like supermarket carparks ! 

They love the berries on Rowan / Mountain Ash trees, which were used a great deal in landscaping schemes for shopping centres and supermarket car parks. My neighbour has a Rowan tree in his garden, my record is 33 Waxwing on my roof, unfortunately I have not seen any this year, we needed a colder winter to push the birds south.

So no claiming great pictures - but interesting none the less .

London Classic Car Show - at Olympia and some great motors ! 

Including this one .

Another Friday afternoon trip to the pancake house in the Amsterdam woods... 

As well as the usual great and blue tits as photographed last week, this time we were treated to a female great spotted woodpecker feeding at one of the bird tables. I tried to sneak up to get a better pic, but the bird was extremely skittish. And even though I cautiously approach with the trunk of a tree directly between me and the bird, thus obscuring me from the woodpecker, it sensed I was there and flew away before I'd taken more than a couple of steps.

Colt's foot flowering by the water's edge.

While a very common wild flower, I took the pic because it sat so brightly and proudly against the background of the dark and murky water. Weather conditions were also somewhat 'murky', which meant using the widest aperture possible (f5.6) in lieu of a tripod and a preferred setting of perhaps f11 - hence the lack of a decent depth of field and better sharpness.

Still, it's all good practice and a bit of fun into the bargain.

Another photo competition to check out, and this one's definitely well worth looking at. It's the Underwater Photographer of the Year and all of the winning entries are stunning. Can't say I ever get shots like these with my underwater GoPro!

Photo courtesy of BBC News website. Link to story & winning pics here:

https://www.bbc.com/news/in-pictures-51633570

 

I was looking at them on Tuesday evening.  Some amazing photographs.  Thanks for sharing them. What they don't tell though Russell is that the underwater housings cost more than the cameras. My camera body was £1700 and the housing which by the way is lens specific came out at approximately £2000 . There where cheaper options available but would you risk it ? 

24 minutes ago, Winsford Soul said:

I was looking at them on Tuesday evening.  Some amazing photographs.  Thanks for sharing them. What they don't tell though Russell is that the underwater housings cost more than the cameras. My camera body was £1700 and the housing which by the way is lens specific came out at approximately £2000 . There where cheaper options available but would you risk it ? 

Top-end photography requires top-end equipment, I guess, and if I had the money to buy such stuff – as well as the means to be in some of these locations (for more that the usual two-week summer vacation) – I'd jump at it.

I also guess that most if not all of the winning photographers are professionals. Investing in the tools of the trade clearly pays off, which is why, with my bottom-of-the-market Nikon D3200, an entry level GoPro, and an iPhone 5, I've no chance of giving up my day job! 🤣

Here,s a few pictures from yesterdays visit to Burton Mere RSPB reserve on the Wirral.  Didn't get to see the Water Pipits or the Cattle Egret and most birds where sheltering from storm Jorge but managed these few

Little Egret

 

Hmmmmmmm..... Lunch

Edited March 1, 20205 yr by Zed1

2 minutes ago, Zed1 said:

Hmmmmmmm..... Lunch

Who for Gaz . You or the dog ? Trust you and the lovely Debs are well and safe mate 

8 minutes ago, Winsford Soul said:

Who for Gaz . You or the dog ? Trust you and the lovely Debs are well and safe mate 

We're good Ste, Yourself?.

Was my lunch, but Ted (our dog) decided he wanted it as well..  

On 01/03/2020 at 21:24, Zed1 said:

Hmmmmmmm..... Lunch

That's a cute little dawg. What I want to know is, what on earth were you having for lunch? Only...it looks like a fossilised Big Mac? 🤔😳

On 01/03/2020 at 21:39, Zed1 said:

We're good Ste, Yourself?.

Was my lunch, but Ted (our dog) decided he wanted it as well..  

All good mate thank you.  

10 hours ago, Flamingemeralds said:

That's a cute little dawg. What I want to know is, what on earth were you having for lunch? Only...it looks like a fossilised Big Mac? 🤔😳

A Scotch Pancake...... 

Possiblynot the best photo I have had taken but my son was in hysterics when I answered the door dressed like this. Also refused to take me shopping while I was wearing this 

A few from yesterday at Pennington Flash

Common Gull. Song Thrush. Female Reed Bunting. Blackbird

 

Anyone spotted a Curlew yet . Heard them arrive few nights ago 

4 minutes ago, Soulfulmerlin said:

Anyone spotted a Curlew yet . Heard them arrive few nights ago 

Three over Pennington flash calling yesterday and then a fourth one landed but way to far away to get a picture even with the big white.  

Heard a few last week on the Dee estuary 

Longridge fell last Thursday night flying overhead . Must have just arrived . 

Just had a message saying that the first  Sand Martin sighting of the year for Pennington flash today at 10.30am.

Spring is definitely here . 

8 minutes ago, Winsford Soul said:

Just had a message saying that the first  Sand Martin sighting of the year for Pennington flash today at 10.30am.

Spring is definitely here . 

3 Sand martins round here in Staffs today too ! 10am this morn. Branston gravel pits and Blithfield resevoir 😀

Edited March 10, 20205 yr by Veedub

Comma Butterfly  Garden fence when I arrived home from work at lunch time 

Edited March 13, 20205 yr by Winsford Soul

On 08/03/2020 at 18:02, Soulfulmerlin said:

Anyone spotted a Curlew yet . Heard them arrive few nights ago 

2 Weeks ago we had a couple at Belvide, just checked the first one was on 22nd Feb

Edited March 13, 20205 yr by Martyn Pitt

23 minutes ago, Martyn Pitt said:

2 Weeks ago we had a couple at Belvide, just checked the first one was on 22nd Feb

Nice one mate.  

A few from today's trip to Pennington  

Immature Cormorant. Male Reed Bunting. Coal Tit.

Hopefully tomorrow. Barn Owl and Short eared owl from Lunt Meadow nr Southport

 

Fabulous pictures Ste as always !  Keep 'em coming, this is what we need , brightened my day no end seeing your post 😀 

18 minutes ago, Veedub said:

Fabulous pictures Ste as always !  Keep 'em coming, this is what we need , brightened my day no end seeing your post 😀 

Thanks Mike.  Much appreciated mate 😁. Hopefully will be posting some decent Barn and Short eared owl pictures after tomorrow morning.  

Cool Ste, Ive yet to see a Barn owl .

 Heres a pic I posted 2 years ago,. I was lucky enough to spot 5 Chiffchaffs on a twig. 😀 Ive never shown the short video so thought I'd share this too . 

 

 

19 minutes ago, Veedub said:

Cool Ste, Ive yet to see a Barn owl .

 Heres a pic I posted 2 years ago,. I was lucky enough to spot 5 Chiffchaffs on a twig. 😀 Ive never shown the short video so thought I'd share this too . 

 

 

Brilliant,  simply brilliant.  That what I went out for today but unfortunately  not here in Manchester yet, anytime soon though. 

As promised which with wildlife is very unusual . Here,s a few Barn owl pictures taken in awful light this morning and all heavily cropped

 

Edited March 15, 20205 yr by Winsford Soul

Short Eared Owl again heavily cropped

 

 

Heard my first Chiff Chaff of the year today but unfortunately no pictures 

Steve you think that is heavily cropped ... how about this a Red Kite over a mile away 😀

We had three drift through yesterday morning, all distant, following the M6 south, obviously not effected by the roadworks

2 hours ago, Winsford Soul said:

As promised which with wildlife is very unusual . Here,s a few Barn owl pictures taken in awful light this morning and all heavily cropped

 

 

Bloody hell !! just fantastic !! They must have been waiting for you, heard you were coming ! 😁

1 hour ago, Veedub said:

Bloody hell !! just fantastic !! They must have been waiting for you, heard you were coming ! 😁

Thanks mate.  I was about 2 miles away,  talking to a local lady dog walker ( actually across the river Alt ) she see,s them every morning.  As we went our separate ways, me towards where she had mentioned I saw one , then two , three, Managed to get over to where the owls where before they disappeared and take a few pictures and as i was going back to the car the shortie put in a brief appearance. Then hearing the Chiffchaff was a bonus 

9 minutes ago, Winsford Soul said:

Thanks mate.  I was about 2 miles away,  talking to a local lady dog walker ( actually across the river Alt ) she see,s them every morning.  As we went our separate ways, me towards where she had mentioned I saw one , then two , three, Managed to get over to where the owls where before they disappeared and take a few pictures and as i was going back to the car the shortie put in a brief appearance. Then hearing the Chiffchaff was a bonus 

This is what it's all about mate, a solitary hobby, so rewarding , just focused on the moment when you spot a bird and nothing else matters. You must have been bursting with excitement when you got those pics ! 😀 

That 3rd picture,  of the Short Eared Owl , the composition is just stunning ! 

Edited March 15, 20205 yr by Veedub

14 minutes ago, Veedub said:

This is what it's all about mate, a solitary hobby, so rewarding , just focused on the moment when you spot a bird and nothing else matters. You must have been bursting with excitement when you got those pics ! 😀 

That 3rd picture,  of the Short Eared Owl , the composition is just stunning ! 

My lungs where nearly bursting trying to cover the two miles over the very wet rough ground and get within range of the owls but still a respectful distance so as not to disturb them in their search for food.  .

I just cropped the pictures so as people could see them properly but it did help the composition and thank you 

1 minute ago, Winsford Soul said:

My lungs where nearly bursting trying to cover the two miles over the very wet rough ground and get within range of the owls but still a respectful distance so as not to disturb them in their search for food.  .

I just cropped the pictures so as people could see them properly but it did help the composition and thank you 

Thanks Ste, made mine and Sarahs day . 

Very serene in Ambleside, and quiet.

Anybody would think theres a curfew in place....

Ed

A Great Crested Grebe from a gloomy Saturday

 

43 minutes ago, Martyn Pitt said:

A Great Crested Grebe from a gloomy Saturday

 

Martyn.  How did you get the reflection shot ? 😋