Starting at the bottom...
So me and my dad have always been outside together, walking, exploring, whatever we do, it's outside. The past couple of years my dad has really gotten into the same hobby as me, photography, and so it has been a really great way to go out there and carry on my childhood even though I have now grown up and "flown the nest" to be cliché. On a summer day, because lets be honest this year we have had a fantastic summer! Nothing has been better than picking up a camera and a drink and vanishing off to the Moors and Vales that surround where I live. This landscape is alive, magical and unashamedly English in character - rolling hills, gentle brooks trickling through sunken river beds surrounded by forest of green. Yes I know it all sounds a bit Tolkien in description but it is the (York)"Shire" after all! But anyway to the point, this year I really learnt the difference between those really basic butterflies and spiders which I mentioned in my last post, with the use of a wonderful camera equipped with a superb Sigma 70-300mm macro lens, suddenly a whole world of hidden detail became obvious to me.
Now initially you can't see what you are looking for, you could easily spend hours assuming that the countryside if full of wildlife therefore you must see something - oh how wrong this is! Nature is very good, as I have found on many occasions, at hiding from the big bad humans. I noticed this best a few weeks ago when I stopped to photograph a butterfly in a small location known as Fen Bog, only to realise that there had been an Adder curled up about 30cm from my shoe for the last 3minutes. Yes of course it slithered away before I could take get a shot, sods law and all that! This again reiterates the vital message that I am hoping to convey that its not your skill as a photographer or your enthusiast as a connoisseur of all things wildlife, its your ability to observe and seeing as most British wildlife is pretty small then you need to observe your feet. (or if you don't have very nice shoes on maybe a meter or so in front of your feet)
So seeing as I have mentioned Fen Bog already, I think that I will begin this journey there. Geographically Fen Bog is situated in the heart of the Yorkshire Moors, the Steam Railway thunders through it and sheep graze around it, but the bog itself is deep, damp and dense. This does not mean that it can't provide some of the most beautiful wildlife because for such a small area such a large range of habitats are provided. So walking down into the bottom of the valley where the bog is actually, for me, provides a greater variety of wildlife and enjoyment. I still remember the day that day scooted off down the hill in search of an elusive "Six Spotted Burnet Moth". I found one about a meter away from the car, purely by accident I might add, no walking down any hills required. Once again though this taught me that you need to observe what is around you first and then move on after. These creatures, for some reason have a beauty that other moths do not seem to share. I do not know if it is the colour, the rich velvety black that cloaks them, or their dazzling glossy red spots like little drops of gloss paint splattered on them (I truly hope it isn't) but they just stand out from the crowd. At the age of 7 or 8 I would probably have grouped these little dark, flying blobs with the likes of bees and flies and stayed well clear, now my more educated self can see them for what they truly are and I can see them. I think that is the most important thing about educating yourself about what is around you is that you can actually see it, if you don't know what it is you either a) don't spend long looking at it b) don't look for it in the first place or c) assume it is something else and forget it ever existed. If you have an idea of what you are looking for before you go, you are more likely to find it, otherwise you need to record everything and then look it up when you get back home again.
So moving on from the lovely Burnet Moth to another find at Fen Bog, I would like to introduce the "Scorpion Fly". Again another insect that once upon a time I would have grouped with hover flies or house flies and walked right on past. It is beautiful! Forgive its initial "hover fly" like appearance and its general ugliness and you can really start to appreciate its wonderful existence. Okay I get it, its not the most beautiful thing you have ever seen, especially not after that Burnet Moth, but this little 'fella' plays his part in the ecosystem too so we shouldn't discount him. I find the pleasure which I draw from nature comes in my desire to try and capture it at its most perfect with my camera, to document it exactly as I would see it, crisp, clear and sharp. Now as a photographer this presents a challenge because insects, such as out new friend the Scorpion Fly, tend to move pretty fast pretty quickly. The solution for me has been found through trial and error, I was never taught to use a camera and I still couldn't tell you off the top of my head what most of the functions do. I am also not a conformist, I would rather play and have the fun of experimenting than copy someone else's actions. So quite simply, I spun the little camera dial onto "sports mode" - not macro I hear you asking, well macro is great if what you are trying to shoot can't move, but because it has a slightly longer shutter speed to allow the light in for the detail, it blurs very easily if the thing moves. Sports mode retains the clarity and also allows the movement to be captured if you did frighten the life out of your insect and it ran away. I did for this shot have my Sigma 70-300mm lens on full extension and set that to macro, but if all this camera talk is bugging you (excuse the pun) then point and click, see what happens - usually the best way I find!
These are just two of hundreds of species that you could find in this one, reasonably sized wilderness. I recommend highly visiting designated nature reserves because they haven't been invaded by humans, or larger mammals, you can crawl around in the undergrowth, or walk if you prefer (you will see less if you do), and see hundreds and hundreds of different things you never even knew existed, just like I did. I used to love photographing landscapes, but there are only so many times you can shoot a mountain. I have yet to tire of the micro world under my feet, my eyes which are growing older by the day keep on seeing new life emerging from the undergrowth, so just be careful where you step, but I hope that you do step, and crawl, and walk and find out what is out there, under your feet.
Naomi
Now initially you can't see what you are looking for, you could easily spend hours assuming that the countryside if full of wildlife therefore you must see something - oh how wrong this is! Nature is very good, as I have found on many occasions, at hiding from the big bad humans. I noticed this best a few weeks ago when I stopped to photograph a butterfly in a small location known as Fen Bog, only to realise that there had been an Adder curled up about 30cm from my shoe for the last 3minutes. Yes of course it slithered away before I could take get a shot, sods law and all that! This again reiterates the vital message that I am hoping to convey that its not your skill as a photographer or your enthusiast as a connoisseur of all things wildlife, its your ability to observe and seeing as most British wildlife is pretty small then you need to observe your feet. (or if you don't have very nice shoes on maybe a meter or so in front of your feet)
