Like buses...

Just like buses, you wait for one to come along then many come along at once!  This is one of those times, having not put anything on the blog since September 2015, I now find myself adding two blog posts in the space of 48 hours!

My exams finished yesterday evening (that's correct, Saturday evening 6.00pm-7.30pm) so today is all about freedom!  First requirement, take camera out for a walk and get as muddy as possible - check!  Whilst I was out with my camera, I was extremely lucky with seeing wildlife - Buzzard walking about on the green of a golf course, an enormous Hare I mistook as a boulder (yes, that big!), Jay, Kestrel, Roe Deer, Fieldfare and Goldcrest.  But getting them on camera... hmmm.

Anyway, here are a few photos from this mornings.

Mallard early morning

The first port of call on the walk was down to the Lake to see if there were any Grebes or Goosander about.  I couldn't find any in the morning but these Mallards came around the corner to see me sitting there.  They weren't expecting that so were a little wary at first.  This was a camera setting cock up.  I was photographing Moorhen against a dark background so the exposure was set to a fast shutter speed causing this dark feel to the image which I enhanced in post production before adding the ubiquitous vignette, a colour look-up filter for contrast and the cool blue colour and some contrast adjustments.

Male Mallard

This is the same Mallard as above that was swimming past whilst keeping a beady eye on me.  He swam over the reflections of a weeping willow which was a nice backdrop.  Editing was minimal, just vibrance, levels and cropping and vingette.  Isn't the green mallard colour of a Mallard duck so pleasing.

Carrion Crow

 There has been an image I have been trying to make for a good number of years since walking along a lake side and seeing a Heron fly up over me before briefly hovering and looking straight through a gap in the trees down at me before moving off in the direction it came in the late evening.  It's a wonderful memory and perhaps is the reason why I like to try and frame things as if I am looking into the world of the animal.  Maybe this will become my style?!  Maybe I have finally found it!


Anyway, in this case, I was trying to recreate that by photographing through the branches of a Silver Birch with this Carrion Crow flying above.  He was a little too high and my depth of field not great enough for the effect I am after but, that's life and means I can keep striving for the perfect one.  But I like this.  In post production, I added a vignette, levels, curves and also some colour look-up filter to give a cooler looking image and to exaggerate the contrast further.

Greenfinch

Whilst commencing the return leg of my walk, I spotted loads of finches in a tree.  This male Greenfinch remained when the others flew off and allowed me a few frames.  Framing in camera was intended to be like this but I didn't quite have the reach with the lens so I had to crop in.  Then, I selectively increased vibrance and saturation on the Greenfinch and dropped the saturation slightly on the background (practically made no difference).  Played with levels and curves a bit and added that vignette.  Job done.

I hope that you like these and all comments and criticisms are welcome.

Matt