Dorset Holiday pt2 Castles, Spiders and Sunsets sept 15 th 2014

Today we are going to visit Corfe Castle which is about 40 minutes drive from Durdle Door campsite.   i think  lol.    the weather is looking very good for today with sun,  blue sky and staying very warm :)

After parking up we walk around the castle through a wooded path before coming to the main entrance...........

Walking up the inner grounds of the castle towards the ruins.  more info on the castle HERE

Look at the way the gateway has dropped on one side , in fact the ruins clearly show huge walls ect that have fallen or slid sideways where the foundations were not built to hold such large heavy fortifications.

                                                            Mollster resting in the sun :)

                          I believe the castle was partly demolished on orders from the parliament!

                                                           Mol is climbing the battlements  lol

                                 The Swanage railway , always great to see a steam train :)

                          Mol,  being Queen of the castle is looking "Down" on her subjects   haha

                                                                        The" Stocks"

                                                                        Arghhhhh...............

Time to go now , Durlston country park is our afternoon destination , having parked by a lovely meadow , (which i must search for Wasp spiders later)  we have walked down towards the coastline.  a small art gallery has a viewing platform where we can see "Old Harrys Rocks" in the distance.

            A long lens image of the "Pinnacles "   with Peverill "look out point" in the foreground which is overlooking Swanage bay.

                                                                           A bit of fun :)

                                    Mol makes a good squirrel!    she actually hates them  !

                        Walking down to the coastal path , we come across this huge stone globe!

                                                               Something down there Mol?

               I have spotted loads of Dark Bush Crickets :)   shot with 100mm macro natural light.

I have been looking for Wasp Spiders along this coastal path as this is a good area for them, i would really like to photograph one, especially as i have never seen one before.

After looking all along both sides of this path  i have finally found one , and a very unexpected find with a young Lizard in her web!     I had no idea they could catch a prey this big ,  the poor Lizard has been well wrapped up in silk thread  , shows how strong the silk is :)  Its in an impossible position to get good images , this is the best i have managed.

                      Continuing along the path i have not managed to spot any more spiders .

There are quite a few caves here , named Tilly Whim Caves , but they have been fenced off due to being unsafe after coastal erosion i presume.

      Heading back towards the car park , i have found a tiny beetle  lol  , but no more Wasp Spiders :(
I will go and have a look around the small meadow area next to where we parked.

After getting back to the car, I have just 20 minutes left on parking ticket to find and photograph a wasp spider!  This could be a bit tricky!    Look at this meadow.  There are some thicker, higher pockets of brambles and other plants either side of a wooden fence in the middle of this area , could be a good place to look .

Yay  i have found a nice female  , but not in a very good perch/position .   I have run back to the car to get the tripod so i can shoot a series of frames to focus stack to increase depth of field ,i usually shoot hand held but the spider is too deep in the foliage for me to get a good position , so tripod it has to be, but in low light with a slight breeze it may be advantageous and being low to the ground might be sheltered enough.

                       this image is 5 frames focus stacked , natural light shot with 100mm L macro lens.

                                                and a 13 frame focus stack with flash

Time has run out ,i have to get going now, but i will try and come back later in the week to see if i can find some more.......



Back to the camp site now for dinner, and then hopefully another sunset down at Durdle Door :)

Its just before 7 pm now , and i am on the shingle shooting long exposures as the sun starts to set behind me , this is the best image , shorter exposures give the best water movement i have found  and a bit of colour is being reflected in the distance.   only 0.8 sec exposure gave the best "movement" in the sea :)

I have rushed up to the top above the bay to shoot the sunset , its best colour is now at about 7.15 , and setting fast...               cant believe how fast the sun sets here!

A cooler look now as the sun sets behind the cliffs of Bats Head ,but giving a lovely colour over Weymouth now :)

                           Cool blue now , love the colour in the water around the rock arch.

                                                    Back onto the shingle after sundown.

                                        The end of another great day on the Jurassic coast.

Bug Hunt at Risley Moss 1 st september 2014

A quick trip down to Risley Moss nature reserve today , its a bit windy but it is fairly sheltered at the small meadow area i shoot at .  Dragonfly's are the main target species today.

Arriving at the site  a fast walk down to the meadow are, which is only very small but has loads of insect attracting wild plants/flowers that in turn attract the Dragonfly's , the main species here are the tiny Black Darters.

Unfortunately there are very few flowers open , appears recent rain has flattened most of them , along with loads of other photographers that have been here shooting and created paths through the plants.

                     A Drone hoverfly cleaning itself on one of the few flowers still open :)

                                  I love shooting Back lit spiders :)         the webs are superb
                                           the legs are quite translucent on this orb weaver

       A big hoverfly on my finger :)    its come over quite dull and i think its going to rain so will have to hurry up and find some Dragons, which are noticeable by their absence!

                                                                 another shot of it :)

                              I have eventualy found a pair of Black Darters , and a spider  :)         
                   this image is 5 frames focus stacked to get both spider and the dragons in focus .

                                                   An old  Female Black Darter.

                                         Young Female with her bright colours

                      and that was the last i managed to shoot , its chucking it down now :(

World Famous Laburnum Arch at Bodnant Gardens and a few dragons 1st June 2014

Today i am on my way to Bodnant gardens in north wales to see the famous Laburnum Arch , which i have seen many times but never at its peak , for the last week it has been fully open so my timing is great.     the gardens open at 10 am,  so as i need to photograph the full length of the tunnel without anybody getting in the way i will get there early to be first in line to get in :)

I have arrived just before 9.30 and the car park is deserted , Yay!     i make my way down to the garden entrance through the tunnel and i am the only one there , but soon quite a few start arriving.  The Arch is just 2 minutes walk from the entrance so i have already got my tripod set up and camera ready to rush round and get as many images as i can while its clear.  as the gates open i can, as a National trust member, go through fast entrance and i am rushing round to the arch.   i have already decided my composition so quickly i set up and take a series of bracketed frames , i have managed to take just 15 frames before a couple of other photographers set up beside me and then watch in amazement as 3 people just blatantly walk straight in front of us all and walk very slowly down the middle of the tunnel preventing any more shots , after this a steady procession of people arrive and that is it!    here are my best 3 images..............

Time for a quick walk around the garden to see if can see any bugs to shoot , the Bearded Iris are looking fabulous.

                                          i have found a spider lurking in a curled up leaf :)

                                                            a Blue Himalayan Poppy

               The White Wisteria looks superb next to the steps below the rose garden.

                                                                        Bumble bee

                                                  and another spider hanging around :)

               a final shot from the garden before i nip off to rspb conwy for a walk around there.

I have now driven back to Conwy to walk around the local reserve , i have heard quite a few dragonflies have been seen recently so will try and find a few.

I have just spotted an Emperor Dragonfly hunting over this pool but it is not settling , constantly flying as usual for this species  but a male Broad Bodied Chaser is being more co operative and i am going to try get a few shots of this one.

                                              after half an hour i have bagged a few images :)

now its time to walk back to the car park and get back home to go take Mollster for a walk , on the way i must go see the Bee Orchids  but first a Common Blue catches my eye :)

                                                    and my final image of the Bee Orchid