A Room With a View

 On the drive back from Alsace I had decided to break up the journey with a stopover in Bruges. I had visited the city before but had never stayed overnight and I wanted to see it after dark; It really is a fairy tale city and I hoped to capture some of the magic of the beautiful architecture and the reflections in the canals.

I booked a room in what was once a brewery and I paid a supplement for a room with a canal view and the images above show the view of the canal and the courtyard below both in daytime and at night.

I love the architecture in Bruges. The city has a really interesting history and is famous for the production of handmade lace for hundreds of years. The street on which my hotel was located (Wollestraat) is very old, it is a busy thoroughfare with lots of shops one of which is a fabulous lace shop. The shop was built prior to the Napoleonic era when Belgium was under the rule of the Napoleonic empire. A curious hangover from that era is the window tax. I say curious because the tax is still applied today but only to buildings that were in existence at that time, so the owner of the lace shop has to pay an annual tax on each of her windows but the shop next door which was built slightly later is not liable to the tax. 

Anyway, over the next few days I will share a few more pictures from my wanderings around this beautiful city which I hope you will enjoy.

Illuminations

 One of my aims when I was in Alsace recently was to capture some images of the pretty villages after dark. The historic half timbered houses with their varied colours are very photogenic. I have selected just a few images to share with you which I hope you will enjoy.

These are of the pretty town of Kaysersberg which is where I was staying.

Deer Fern and Baby Beech

Here are two more images from the Black Forest.

The first is a lovely clump of deer fern which is nicely framed by the trees front and back. The second is of a tiny beech tree shoot. The pale leaves stand out really well against the damp leaf litter on the ground. It also looks good in black and white.

Leaf Litter

 One of the things I love about walking in the forest is kicking my way through the leaf litter, this colourful pile was below a large beech tree. I love the rich, warm colours glistening from the recent rain.

I spotted the lichen not far away, this plant has always fascinated me with its incredible structure. Of course lichen is not really a plant but a composite organism, they have no roots and gain their nutrients via photosynthesis and they grow on bark or hang from branches as if living on thin air. 

Lichens are truly amazing, they are found in all climates and all altitudes and some can even survive inside solid rock.

I have just looked in Wikipedia and discovered that there are around 20,000 different species of lichen and a staggering 6 -8% of the earths surface is covered with lichen.

Waterfall

 Here are four more images from my brief visit to the Black Forest in November, as I said in a previous post I had gone to see the famous Triberg Waterfall but it was closed due to adverse conditions. However that disappointment did not stop me enjoying the forest or limit my opportunity to find great photographic subjects.

The theme for today is falling water even if the pictures do not show a waterfall; in the first picture the reverse of the leaf has a jewelled coating of raindrops that reflect the little light that was creeping through the trees. I have increased the depth of the shadows to highlight the glistening droplets. This was shot using my 100-400mm lens and perhaps the focus is not as sharp as I would have hoped but nevertheless I think it is an effective image.

For the next three images I switched to my 100mm macro lens and got really close up to capture the raindrops clinging to the branches, several times I missed the shot as the droplets fell before the shutter closed. The light was fairly poor and I had no flash so I could not capture the falling droplets which is a shame but even so I think these shots look pretty cool.

I particularly like the last image, I used a small torch to illuminate the droplet from below, I took three different shots of this droplet, the first two to capture the inverted reflection of a pine tree  but of the three shots I preferred this one that highlights the shape and structure of the droplet.
 

Dead Wood

 In the forest in winter it would be easy to think that everything is either dead or dormant but actually as you look around you will find an abundance of life. Everything in the forest works in harmony and even the old dead wood is home to so much new life; from the insects and grubs that feed on it and help to break it down, to the fungi and mosses that draw on its rich supply of nutrients.

Then in the rain or after a heavy rainfall the sound of water dripping from the tress and the sheen on the leaf litter adds even more to the experience.

I enjoyed my woodland walk here (this is in the Black Forest) and I will be certain to get out to a forest near me over the coming weeks so that I can draw on the energy that it gives.

Making a Mark

 

These shots were taken in the Black Forest just outside of the town of Triberg. I had gone to see the waterfalls which are famed as one of the highest in Germany.

I had been once before in March 2015 with my son, however on that occasion due to the snow the paths to the falls were closed and I didn't get to see them. I had hoped to see them during my recent visit in November, before the winter snow arrived. However, following recent heavy rains the paths were once again closed. 

I was of course a little disappointed although the forest is so beautiful and the drive through the mountains to get there had been lots of fun. I was determined not to let that setback ruin my day and enjoyed a walk in the forest before heading into town for some hot chocolate and a piece of cake, and a little shopping.

I loved walking in the forest, surrounded by the variety of trees, I immersed myself in the sights, sounds and smells of the woodland in winter. I took lots of photos that captured some of the magic of the experience and along the way I spotted this mile marker a little way off the main path in the trees. I tried to imagine the people from years past who would have used this stone as a guide along their journey and wondered what life in the forest might have been like. 

The colours in the forest at this time of year were rich and varied and in these images I have used the masking tool in Adobe Lightroom to highlight the stone and separate it from the background using a variety of settings. I like all three images, not only because they help me recall a wonderful day out but also because they look good. As well as the richness of the colours I love the texture of the stone that has weathered over so many years exposure to the elements.

A Step Back in Time

 

This is Kaysersberg, a small town in Alsace, France. Not far from Strasbourg and Colmar, and close to the border with Germany. The heart of the town is comprised of cobbled streets and beautiful half timbered houses that date back more than six hundred years. It is a town that embraces its heritage and during my recent visit towards the end of November the town was preparing for its annual Christmas fair. I was pleased to be there before the crowds of people arrived because it was quiet and the charm of the place was unspoiled.

Surrounded by the hills of the Ballons des Vosges and the famous vineyards this is a wonderful place to visit at any time of year but in the winter with the clear crisp air and the smell of wood smoke there is a special feeling of calm, it is almost magical, especially with the Christmas lights.

The buildings are brightly coloured but as these pictures were taken during the evening and the light was poor I have chosen to present them in black and white. If it were not for the TV aerials and the fairy lights you could easily think these were pictures from long ago and that perhaps very little has changed here over the centuries.

Regal Eagle

 This is an African Fish Eagle, this species of eagle lives in Africa and feeds on fish, in case that needed clarification :)

Its range is across sub Saharan Africa wherever there are large bodies of open water. It is the national bird of Namibia and Zambia.

From the first picture as it launches itself from the tree it is quite deceptive in that this is a really large bird, with a wingspan of up to 2.8m (9 feet) it is incredible that it is so manoeuvrable is such a tight space. Once in flight it is agile and graceful and a really beautiful sight. At one point during the display it swooped between myself and my mum, its wings tucked in with mere millimetres from each of our heads.

At rest on a post having snacked on a dead chick it struck a fantastic pose and fixed me with an intense stare as I looked at it through my camera's lens.

My favourite images are the second and fourth. On the second one as well as converting it to black and white which works really well I have tried out the newest update to the masking tool in Adobe Lightroom, this is not something I have tried before and I am really happy with the result. It is now in my list of all time favourite pictures.

Lanner Falcon

 This is such a stunning looking bird, so perfectly adapted to make it a deadly hunter. It feeds of small birds and bats, it will fly to about 3000' and then stoop at high speed to snatch its prey on the wing. 

They are so effective as hunters that they are popular in falconry and are bred in captivity. One bird recently sold for over $70,000 dollars.

Cat Face

 This selection of pictures are of a Eurasian Eagle Owl. This is the UK's largest species of owl and it is really quite magnificent. They were almost extinct in the UK now so long ago apart from those birds in private collections but in recent years there has been an increase in their numbers. This increase has received a mixed reception because they will take other birds of prey as part of their diet, including other endangered species so the conservation programme has to be carefully managed.

I think they are really splendid birds and I have been lucky enough to see one in the wild, it was a visitor at Burton Mere Wetlands a few years ago and it attracted a large number of twitchers  who were all lined up in the hope pf catching a glimpse.

I think there is something feline about these birds, at least in the shape of the face especially in flight, what do you think???

Patience My A***

 This is a rather fine specimen of a Griffon Vulture, or Eurasian Griffon which is found in southern Europe and across Asia. They can grow up to 122cm tall with a wingspan up to 2.8m so quite a formidable bird. I remember watching a vulture in a zoo ripping apart a goats leg, stripping the tendons away from the bone, it was really impressive to see the power in its claws and beak.

I like the watchful pose of this bird, hunched as if ready to launch into the air and catch some thermals in search of the next meal.

It reminded me of a picture on a t-shirt I saw many many years ago that had two vultures sitting in a tree surveying the dry landscape, they were scrawny and obviously very hungry and one was saying to the other "Patience my ass, I'm going to kill something".

This one won't have to worry about its next meal as it is resident at the National Centre for Birds of Prey at Helmsley where it obviously receives excellent care.

A Real Head Turner

 I had to look twice at this bald eagle that was looking intently at me as I was preparing to take his portrait.

He is sat on a perch with his back towards me but with his head swivelled through 180 degrees to look at me. 

He has such an intense stare but part of me cant help thinking he looks a bit like Sam Eagle from The Muppet Show and he is about to lecture me on good manners...

Gyr Falcon

 This beautiful Gyr Falcon was braving the wet weather , although he didn't really have any choice as the heavy rain arrived out of nowhere so I figure it caught everyone out.

This is the largest species of falcon, and they are popular as hunting birds. They have a wide range across Arctic coastal regions, tundra and northern North America as well as what is referred to as the Eurosiberian region.  They have different coloured plumage depending on the area they live.

One final fact it is the official bird of Canada's Northwest Territories...

Eagle Eyed

 I think that in the natural world my favourite things are birds of prey and I always get a buzz of excitement when I see them in the wild. There are several birds on my bucket list of birds I want to see and hopefully photograph in their natural habitat. In reality I don't expect to get to see many of them so I am grateful for places like the National Centre for Birds of Prey at Duncombe Park where they do great work for the conservation of so many species that I would never get to see in the wild. 

I visited with my mum recently and although we got caught in the rain we got to see some beautiful birds and enjoy a wonderful flying display. Of course I took loads of photos some of which I will be sharing.

For today I have just one image of a Tawny Eagle a species which is more at home in sub Saharan Africa. While in some regions the population is fairly strong in other areas it is considered as a threatened species with population loss due to poisoning and shooting or from traffic.

I  think this is a stunning looking bird, I love the intense expression.

I have had to do a close up image because this bird was in an aviary and I was shooting through the mesh of the enclosure so it is quite a soft image but I think by doing so I have been able to emphasise the intensity of its stare and get across something of the power of this beautiful bird.

Nicely Framed

The approach to the house at Lyme Park takes you about 1 mile through the deer park where there is a herd of wild Red Deer (I didn't spot any) and the façade of the house is grand but not as grand or ostentatious as the rear of the house that overlooks the reflecting pond. This is the side of the house that is made to be seen.

Visitors to Lyme would be invited to walk around the lake so that they can enjoy the spectacular view. As well as this view there is a formal Italian garden, a simple terrace and the orangery and for those with more energy there are extensive grounds, a mill, and of course the deer...

I love the lighting in these shots, I hope you will agree they really show off this magnificent building.

The final shot below is of the fountain in the orangery, in the almost tropical atmosphere the moss has really taken hold on the stonework of the fountain. I like the fact that rather than clear the moss the gardeners have embraced this growth to enhance the feature. The sound of the trickling water is slightly muted creating a lovely relaxing atmosphere.