Orchids at Wisely

And last, but not least, the Orchids.. I am passionate about Orchids. They are, quite simply, magnificent.

Enough said!

Wisley Butterflies

The butterflies were just stunning!  Walking into the exhibit, you couldn't help but feel a sense of wonder as you stepped into a sea of colour and movement... they were fabulous, huge, stately creatures who seemed utterly unfussed by our intrusion and cameras.  When they did settle, long enough to pose, I didn't like to get too close for fear of scaring them away so relied on my lens and am blown away by the depth of detail that it captured.  Sorting through the photos was punctuated by all sorts of murmurings and mutterings: "But just look!  Look at the detail!  How does it do that?" All much to the amusement of the far more technically minded boyf!

See what I mean?  I was 6ft away!  How does the camera pick up that level of detail?!

On a more prosaic note, we learnt that butterflies both poop and have sense a humour ;o)  If you ever get the chance, they are well worth it, the Wisley Butterflies.

RHS Wisley Gardens, 16th February 2013

It's half term, the first hints of spring, sun and warmth are in the air and, to celebrate, we met my parents and Godmother at the Royal Horticultural Society gardens at Wisley.  It was a lovely day out.  We were there, really, to see the butterflies, which for a couple of months at the start of the year take over part of the 18thC greenhouse, but the gardens were fascinating too.  Even at the end of a pretty bleak winter, there was interest and beauty all about and it was the perfect opportunity to test the D90 out on something other than the dogs and fields! 

I may have gone a little overboard, all 270 odd photos later... and then there was "deletegate" where I turned the air blue and had a crash course in SD card recovery programmes.... but, finally, here are some of the shots that I am truly happy with.  I warn you now, there are still quite a lot (30ish?!) but, for all our sanities, they are posted in separate groups; starting with the Gardens and Greenhouse.

I rather love cacti, who would think that lumpy green spiky things could be so beautiful!  Shame they don't grow in Essex...

The Owl and The Camera

One of the lovely boyf's stipulations, when presenting me with my Christmas present, was to use it to get a good photograph of the Barn owl that we are occasionally lucky enough to see in the back field as we walk the dogs.  Yesterday afternoon I was planning to take my camera on our walk but it was bitterly cold and sleeting and didn't really seem like the best plan.  The snow is (slowly) going and I couldn't imagine there would really be anything photo and bone-chilled fingers worthy.  Famous last thoughts and all that; not only do we have a Barn owl, we have two.  Two, very unfussed by the crazy lady and her dogs, owls who, for a delightful 20 minutes, showed me exactly why we are so keen on getting a good photo of them  They were positively showing off, swooping, hunting, posing and preening and all well within range of the D90's lens.

Unfortunately, not so the camera phone's, but I tried... so here you are hon, one owl pic.  I've given you a little hint, I'm sure you'll agree, it's obvious when you know where to look!

A box of memories and the Nikon D90

I am a lucky girl.  I know that I'm a lucky girl.  I have my beautiful daughter, friends, family (furry, feathered and far-flung) and the lovely boyf.

There I've said it.  Done, dusted, about to be published on the interweb ;o) ...it's amazing what a day back at work will do, especially after a couple of weeks of Christmas cheer and goodwill, and we did have a pretty lovely time.

But, going back to the subject at hand, two of my favourite presents this year (apart from, to name a few, my Lady Gaga perfume (unexpected and really good, who would have guessed?), the vegan chocolate and lemonade making kits, the wooden chook and lots of new saucepans!) were a box of (what I thought were lost) mementos that the child had found and kept for me and a very shiny, new and achingly cool camera from the boyf. 

The box is so special, not just because of what it contains, but because the 11yr old knew that she didn't need to buy me something to give me something perfect.  It was entirely her own idea and she had obviously been plotting it for a while; she is a clever old soul sometimes, my daughter, and I am so utterly proud of her.

As for the camera.  Well, I only hope I can do it justice really, it is one amazing piece of technology.  I could never bought myself one but the lovely boyf has taken the last few Christmases as an opportunity to help me do what I love to do.  Thanks to him I have Miss G, my laptop and now the D90; all of which make my creative life easier, more enjoyable and let me broaden my horizons in the process.  He spoils me, and I would be lying if I said that I didn't like to be spoilt!, but it is about much more than that.  I know that the things that I do in my free time can get me all caught up and become consuming; they are pretty solitary and selfish pursuits.  As anyone who lives with the steady hum of a sewing machine, the click-clack of the keyboard as you google some more research or another post is thought through and typed up, or who goes for a nice walk with their beloved... trailing behind just to get "one more shot"... will tell you.  To support that, aid and abet it even, is a great gift because he knows, as well as I do, that he's lost me now for a good few more evenings; certainly until I've finished wading through the (rather scary) owners manual, and my newly acquired D90 for Dummies! 

He is, truly, a very lovely boyf and I'm a lucky gal... and yes, there will be more photos appearing on this blog :o)  Sorry folks!