Amsterdam Russ

Same as I did with the dragonfly shots. It was the amount of detail that made me thing they were macros. Great pics regardless.

Great macros, Martyn. Just made the leap down this route last year, although not done much as yet. Here are two of a snail (found on the patio and kidnapped for a while so that I could take photos of it)... ...and a spider, about the size of a thumbnail, in its web.

All brilliant, but the 2nd and 3rd pics are real prize winners! I tip my hat to you... In terms of speed and difficulty to catch in flight, the closest I have to show are these nippy dragonflies...

They're great - and especially the second photo! I'm jealous. Only time I've caught a kingfisher in a pic, all you could see was a tiny blue spot in the distance!

With all the trees and stuff around, it looks like you might get a lot of different visitors to your garden...

Out of interest, is the family still in the same area? We had a family of swans on the waterway that runs alongside our road. They disappeared for a while, came back, and disappeared again. Then the parents (I presume it's the parents) came back again recently and built a nest in the same spot as the one that was there last year.

Really cool creature when you click on the picture and see it large! Very unusual indeed. No idea what it might be, but I did notice that it appears to have one leg missing!

Not so decent a camera, Peter. Mine's is a Nikon D80, which must be half a dozen years old now and takes 10 MP pics. By today's standards that not so big anymore for images. I bought it 2nd hand about three years ago and have no plans to replace it yet. Like you, I'm lucky to have somewhere very close to me that's got plenty of bird/wildlife. In my case it's the woods of Amsterdam. At the same time though, it's amazing what you can see outside your own windows. I only got the blackbird pics above because in between them being fed, the chicks were trying to fly and kept flapping against a window. That alerted me to what was going on and I stood quietly at the window, looking down on them, camera in hand!

As an extension to the ongoing "I saw my first kingfisher today" thread, I thought it might be interesting if people wanted to post and share any wildlife pics that they've taken. As I said on the other thread, that way instead of just talking about what birds and other wildlife we've seen, we can also show photos of them. Hope you think it's a good idea. As the current topic in the "kingfisher" thread is herons, I thought I'd start with a couple of pics of them that I've taken... Juvenile heron (looking very interested in a dragonfly) Heron in sunset silhouette Next up, a couple of pics of blackbird chicks, which I was lucky enough to get while looking out through a window at home. Come on then, show us what you've got. The only condition is that the photos are ones you've taken yourself.

Ah, yes. I see the shipping link now. Thanks... https://www.blurb.co.uk/shipping

What's the postage to Europe, please Mark? I can't get a price from the site without setting up an account first. Thanks in advance...

I've posted this before, but it's definitely worth another share - the mono mix of "If only we had met sooner". Vastly superior to the thin and tinny stereo version. So much so that it's almost like listening to a different song (if you know what I mean). https://youtu.be/mRLdicXQZuw

I've had partial refunds from eBay sellers on a small number of occasions. When I have done, I sometimes feel that sending the item back and getting a full refund might have been the better option. But, once that item is in your hands, it can be difficult to let go of it. Having said that, a partial refund is often much easier than having to repackage the item, set off to the nearest post office, pay the return shipping costs, and keep fingers crossed that it arrives back safely with the seller. Also, it's not always me asking for a partial refund. Sometimes the seller offers one as an easy compromise to the general inconvenience to both parties of returning an item. Sometimes it really is the simplest and most convenient option.

Nancy Wilson - French EP featuring her great version of Unchain My Heart

Found the earlier thread about this. No wonder it seemed familiar - I started it...

I seem to recall that this was discussed a year or two back. And I'm sure I also added a link to this brilliant latter-day vid of Carl Sonny Monroe.

This is a classic, isn't it? And it's certainly been achieved a few times, although I bet there are way more failures than successes. if I understand the idea, this is where someone sets out on a specific challenge to own something of significant worth by starting out with something relatively small, and then making their way to the goal by upgrading, selling for a profit, reinvesting that profit, buying something bigger in value, and, with a bit of luck, accumulating enough to eventually get the 'prize'! Always liked the idea, but think I'd fail miserably and probably end up with less then I started with. Good luck with it!

Ike & Tina Turner - Somebody needs you - Dutch WB with pic sleeve. A new addition to my Loma collection that I'm very happy to have!

Betty O'Brien - She'll be gone & Money Honey (French Liberty EP)

Had a good read through the site earlier - great stuff & well done to all involved!

Fully aware of that, Dave, I can read. However, as this is a forum full of music obsessives, I was sure that acknowledgement of the original version would be appreciated. My statement about The Weavers being a cover wasn't me being contrite, it was stating a fact.

That was incredibly touching to watch!

So, a cover of an old tune that was subsequently covered. Looking into the background of the song, I read that The Weavers version, done 20 years after Lead Belly, was described by Time magazine as: a "dehydrated" and "prettied up" version of the original." Anyway, I digress!

The Weavers certainly helped make Goodnight Irene more famous, but credit must go to killer and chain-gang regular, Lead Belly, who was discovered in Angola Prison and made famous by John Lomax in the 30s.

On the subject of cool versions of "Comin' home baby", Tony Middleton's take on it (recorded in France as Tony Milton and only available as a French release) is great! https://youtu.be/KwrVkBTR1-k