Day 248 - A Wonderful Opportunity

Hey everyone today's Day 248 and it's maybe a bit shorter than my usual posts but I am having a busy "transition week" at the Secondary School I am going to in September. I have been presented with an opportunity, though, that I am very honoured by. MMNN Action have asked me to send them 12 of my favourite nature photographs which they will put in a film to promote me!! :-) Thank you!

So, here are the photos I chose, and the reasons why:






I like this one as I really think it represents how I feel about all birds. It was taken at Bowness-on-Windermere last Autumn and I loved being surrounded by the birds and having them land on me!

This photo is of a Bee Orchid that I found at Nosterfield. What I like most about it is the detail and the raindrops, especially when you consider it was only taken by an iPhone!

This is the first of my Silton Forest photos that I have chosen. It's one of my favourite places and we go there at least once a week. We spotted this pretty Azure Damselfly near to one of the ponds. It's maybe not one of my best or sharpest photos but I just love the colours.

This was taken at one of my favourite Wetland Reserves, Washington Wetlands and Wildfowl Centre. I'm sure you can see why I chose this one: the Great-Spotted Woodpecker (one of my favourite birds) turned and looked at the camera!

This was definitely one of the best photo opportunities I have ever had. This Gannet just sat on a grassy rock right in front of my camera. I managed to get a very sharp shot of it and I love how it looks so 'clean'.

This one was a fun picture to take. I was at Cragside in Northumberland in the forest that is in the grounds and there was quite a lot of Scot's Pines in one place. I thought it would be a good one for a post so I lay down on my back and took a picture directly up the trunk.

This is the only beetle photo I have chosen. In all of my Beetle posts you'll notice that I do a 'Bug's Eye View' which let me get really close to the beetle's face and I get incredible detail on its face. I also love that the red is so vibrant.

This has got to be my favourite Moth of all time. Just look at its wings! They've got a happy face on them! The Agapeta Hamana brightens up my day whenever I see one. They have a lovely yellow base colour making it even more happy!

The Smew. It's very hard to say this but, it's my favourite bird. More so than even the Bald Eagle or the Montagu's Harrier. It's a small, quaint bird but I just love the markings so much it's described as 'Cracked Ice' and it is just incredible. I also love how the water is so still and the reflection brings this amazing bird out even more.

Leighton Moss is a great place for photography. Sadly, I don't go their very often as it's over in Lancashire and I'm all the way over in North Yorkshire. There are quite a lot of Pheasants and in the first hide is the best place to get good shots of them. At that time, I was into close-up shots, which worked sometimes but not others. This one, though, I think worked.

The Road to Nowhere. This is at Silton Forest on a very misty day. It's a lovely atmospheric photo and I think it shows how peaceful this forest is.





My final photograph, last but not least. This was taken on the same day as the one above and it had recently been raining. You might miss the silk webs draped between the Cow Parsley on a dry day but, in the right conditions, they make for beautiful photographs.



I really hope you enjoyed,

Z.