The  European white-fronted geese at Slimbridge will be on their way back to their breeding grounds soon so I wanted to photograph them once more before they departed.
Category: Birds Eloquent Project
Birds Eloquent looks at the visual poetry of birds within the environment and the context within which they are found. It explores the relationship between place and species and also looks at how birds interact with each other within a fragile ecosystem.
The project simply grew from a love of being with birds all my life, watching and recording from an early age and accompanying my brothers on bird outings. All the work is carried out in the British Isles, a country offering so much diversity but under so much pressure.
Never chasing, never collecting species, never year lists or life lists, just a love of watching, anticipating and being in the company of birds. Photographically, I came late to birds, and would rather, at the end of a days shooting, have an eloquent image of a more common species than a record shot of a rarer one. My main focus is exploring how the medium can help convey a sense of place and the extraordinary habits of birds, giving a sense of my own experiences in the field.
As the work continues to develop I find myself pulling back from the bird and working more with how it is experienced in the field. Time waiting for the right moment is time not only invested in the image but in my well being and this aspect of slowing down is becoming central to the work.
I shall be showing a selection of work from this collection at the Found Gallery in Brecon in May 2023
Pink-footed Geese and Whooper Swans at Pilling on the North Fylde Coast
This set of images are beginning to acknowledge the context in which the geese and swans birds are experienced and were all taken at Pilling, Lancashire. Rather than always trying to get closer and closer and thus denying the space that they exist within, the aim is to give over a more holistic experience of being in the landscape with the birds.
Geese and Swans on the west Lancashire coast
I’ve spent a lot of time of the last few weeks and months photographing wild geese and swans. They hold a fascination for me and one that I’ll explore soon in a essay in the ‘Birds Eloquent’ section of the web site.
Bittern, Fox, Kingfisher from Forest Farm, Cardiff
Filed under: Articles, Birds Eloquent ProjectTagged with: Species
Bonaparte’s Gull at Ogmore Estuary
A chance to see a rare vagrant gull on my doorstep was too good to miss and so last week I took a visit to the Ogmore estuary in South Wales and was not to be disappointed.
Handa at Last!
We woke to rain, nothing unusual about that, but the van wasn’t shaking and it just felt stiller. Looking out to Handa was just too much, we had planned to move back south today but being opposite the island and now with the possibility that today the boat just might run, we had to give it one last shot. We could move down south a little quicker it was a chance we had to take. It had even stopped raining!
Forest Farm – 2 – Best of the Rest
In between the long spells when the Bitterns remained well hidden, there were other things going on.
Forest Farm – 1 – Bitterns
I spent a few hours in the ‘doorless’ hide at Forest Farm yesterday, being so close to the city has its problems but it’s a great little spot and always provides something of interest. There had been at least a couple of Bitterns there over the last weeks and quite possibly three!
Tawny Owl by Torch Light – No.2
The owl was around again last night and with another fine evening the conditions were very good.
Tawny Owl by Torch Light
There’s been a Tawny Owl around our area lately and last night it was flying from ariel to ariel just across the road.
Grasshopper Warbler and Corn Bunting – Red Listed Birds
A couple of difficult birds to locate and photograph; the Grasshopper Warbler and the Corn Bunting.
Edgelands Birds – Seaforth 2
Little Gulls used to be regular and in good numbers at Seaforth but in recent years they have fallen off considerably and apparently are now gathering in significant numbers on the Wirral. Something to do with a change in the salinity of the marina, which is just on the other side of the reserve, and has affected the insect numbers that predominate on the surface of the water.
Edgeland Birds – Seaforth 1
Getting access to the Seaforth reserve took a little bit of time and effort, particularly as I’m not on the spot. You’ve got to apply to the port authority police and then have an a short interview with them and get passes for the car and yourself. The previous post looked at the site itself and framed it with respect to the book ‘Edgelands’ This post will look at some of the birds I’ve photographed at the site during a few recent visits.
Catching up – Part Three
Down to Labrador Bay (RSPB) for the Cirl Buntings on the way to Falmouth where my daughter is studying on the BA Press and Editorial photography course. Then up to Scotland with my mum and brothers for a long weekend to visit the loch where we scattered dad’s ashes.
Catching up – Part 2 – The Solway
A few days on the Solway during February to see the High Arctic archipelago Svalbard Barnacle Geese also bought some good sightings of Ban Owl, Whooper Swans, and the Yellowhammers feeding off the seed of the main paths at WWT Caerlaverock.
A little Catching Up – Part One
Although the site has been down for a few months, I’ve still been out photographing on a regular basis. As I said in the last post, if it’s within you you simply cant stop!
WWT Llanelli
Over the weekend I spent three or four hours in the Michael Powell hide at the WWT reserve. On most occasions, if you give it time, the Kingfisher will show from this hide and today was no exception.
Grey Phalarope – August 2009
Following on from the previous post here’s some of the images of the Grey Phalarope taken last year.
Grey Phalarope at Ogmore
On a recent visit to Ogmore estuary I came across a Grey Phalarope, it’s the second time I’ve seen them at this spot. It’s a delight to come across such a delicate and confiding bird and then to spend two or three hours working with it.
North Wales Coast – 2 – Glan-y-Mor Elias – 2
Filed under: Articles, Birds Eloquent ProjectTagged with: Species
