Nearly but not quite

Someone very wise once said insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. It’s true, and that’s what we do as wildlife photographers. We visit the same spot again and again, hoping for that one moment when it all comes together. The light, the subject – we wait for that one moment. Well that’s what I’ve been doing for several weeks now. Waiting on the Fen, for a special subject. This morning was a beautiful frosty start to the day, the first thing I see slinking through the crystallised grass is a Fox, sleek and handsome he stares at me when I squeak, and then bounces away as I try to turn the camera towards him. The frozen ground crunches underfoot, and the first golden light pours over the glistening white frost. The hedge is full of chattering Fieldfares, a pair of Swans glide overhead and two of the resident Roe deer watch shyly as I walk by.

Great reedmace, Typha latifoli, Bulrush, frost, Winter, Suffolk, December

 

Bracken, Pteridium aquilinum, covered in frost, Winter, December, Suffolk

 

I reach the spot and wait, an hour or maybe two goes by with nothing but the most fleeting of glimpses. I move on, and then there,  a movement. Two more, quite close, a flutter, a whistle, they flit on the top of the reeds, the birds I’ve been trying to photograph for weeks.

 

Beardedtit061214DM1895

Bearded tits. Not very well named really, they’re not a member of the tit family, and the male wears a rather dapper moustache rather than a beard. Anyway, they are special little birds, a regular, though elusive Winter visitor to the Fen. So here’s my nearly but not quite photo, they decided to perch momentarily on the same reed, meaning I couldn’t get both in focus, then they moved down into the reeds to feed, not allowing any other chances to get a clear view. Nearly, but not quite. I’ll keep trying!

 

(Click images to view larger…)

If you like what you see, please consider sharing![social_share/]

BOB_Avatar

 

 

 

 

 

UK & Eire Natural History Bloggers

Current favourite books, click for more info:




 

Similar Posts

  • The Murmuration

    You may have noticed from my Facebook page that I have had the most amazing luck to find a Starling murmuration on my way home from work. If you’ve never witnessed a murmuration before, I strongly suggest you go and see one next Winter as it is one of the most enthralling spectacles in the…

  • Urban Otters

    For some weeks now, I’ve seen reports and amazing photographs of Otters in a town not too far away from me. Finally, I could no longer resist such a fantastic opportunity, and today I set out to find them. The Otter is an iconic mammal, shy and elusive, gracing our rivers once again after many…

  • This Weekend

    I’ve not had very much chance to get out with the camera of late, and this weekend wasn’t much better either! With the dull weather I decided to do some work in the garden, and as I was sowing some seeds all the Woodpigeons in the hedgerow scattered, and the small birds dived for cover….

  • Not Otters

    Sometimes you can try too hard. My lovely boss let me have the day off (thanks!) and to make the most of every minute, and hoping to avoid other photographers, I was out at first light – first car in the car park.  Nothing doing. Retracing my steps up and down the rivers, still nothing….

  • Winter Wonderland

    My first meaningful photography trip out this year, and what a beautiful morning. There’s nothing better at this time of year, crisp and frosty, and great light. Headed over to the fen and started trying to capture the frosty reeds and fen plants, a tough job with a 500mm lens, but at least it gives…

2 Comments

  1. Cracking photos Dawn, to get a pic of one bearded tit is pretty good, but two together, a double whammy! You must have been frozen it was certainly a hard frost on Saturday morning.

Leave a Reply