Quiet day ...

While I think about my next project I took the opportunity of getting out again with my camera. Unlike last week (right place, right time) when I witnessed the `Heron kill`, today was very quiet on the bird front. I was in the wrong place this morning as a Merlin came close to one of the hides while I was already in another area. C`est la vie. However, there were plenty of bugs and beasties to keep me interested.

I will probably be putting forward a 2009 nature portfolio in the new future, which will replace some of my Lightroom gallery works on the website.

Killer Heron

11th July 2009:

I was fortunate enough to see something today that I have never seen for myself before, other than on nature documentaries. A Grey Heron swooped down and took a young Shelduck.

The young bird struggled, and after a barrage from the parent birds and others around, the Heron took off and then landed in a nearby pond.

A few moments later the Heron had already swallowed the bird whole, (you can see the bulge in it`s throat), and it stood there looking too uncomfortable to move for a few minutes.

I`ve never actually seen this for myself before, and it really was a bit of life in the raw.

There were also a couple of Peregrines around, which unfortunately I didn`t capture on camera.

Next art:

I haven`t yet decided for definate, but will try and prepare something on the board over the next week or so.

The Avocet watercolour has now been finished and will be mounted and framed shortly. It was a good bit of therapy, even though it was by using my good hand!
Meanwhile the summer has been a blaze of activity, and after seeing a Peregrine take out a Jackdaw in mid-flight last night, this little chap was happily feeding away today.

I decided that I must try and get the feel of the camera focusing again (having lost some control over my hand and fingers at present), so camera barrel zooming formed an additional part of my physio.

In the circumstances I was quite pleased with the results today.

taking shape

Having spent yesterday continuing with some regular and painful physio, I decided last night to try and concentrate on kick-starting some painting for an hour or so (with the right hand of course!).

My Avocet watercolour was unwrapped for the first time in a number of weeks.
This is an updated image of the painting on my board, with obviously some work remaining.

getting there .....

I now feel as though I am making some real improvement with my arm and hand, and hope to be back to work next week. It all remains painful, and any typing is one-fingered with my left hand, but it`s beginning to settle down. I`ll have a lot of very significant physio starting soon, but with more mobility i`ll be back to my art and photography - at least that`s what I am hoping.

I am hoping to get the arrangements underway for a second exhibition in the Llanelli area over the next few months. Details will be posted on the blog and website.

Thank you to everyone who have been in touch over the last few weeks and shown much kindness. It has been appreciated.

With so much being said about the scarcity of Bees, it good to see more recently with such a nice early summer.
With my post-op `house-arrest` beginning to frustrate me, I happened to see a Sparrowhawk go right over my head with some poor creature dangling from it`s talons.
Two sides of nature!

During this frustrating period of being strapped up, I at least have seen some great birds in the garden or close by. These have included a Grey Heron landing on the corner of my neighbour`s garage, a Great Spotted Woodpecker, which I have never seen in the garden before, and a couple of Sparrowhawk sightings.

The movement in my hand and fingers has been very slow and painful, but trying to exercise this gradually everyday. Will try some right-handed painting if I can during the next week in between the self-inflicted physio and remote working.