urban daisy

The little girls called me down to the dam to meet this fellow.   He allowed me to get quite close and didn’t show his beard despite me taking repeated, close shots; a very cool customer.

Here he is a little bothered.  The beard puffed makes him look bigger to foes.

From a photography point of view, they are just one more example of my novice status.  I have no idea why my on camera flash didn’t respond to the lighting conditions.  When I ran outside chasing these little treasures, it was into bright sunlight, but butterflies being what they are, they didn’t stay there for long.   Once in the shadows, there was no going back for my big flash, no time to experiment with camera settings, just mad crazy focusing attempts.

I know they are not masterful examples of the art of photography, but I can’t help liking them all the same.  When I catch butterflies mid flight, I just marvel at the strength of such frail looking beings.

Doesn’t the image on the screen look like it came from the suite of Mac’s desktops? It should have.  It’s a perfect delight to marry it with the clean styling of the Mac Book Pro.

Cool, hey?  You can appreciate it in it’s full glory at MUTE photoblog, along with lots of other creative offerings from the everlastingly clever, but mostly silent, Miles.

Definitely comes under the heading of one of my favourite things…

It’s a serious business.  The little girls, with Grandma, were finding mulberries to feed to Blossy – the wee one with the purple boots.  As it is the very start of the mulberry season, the pickings were slim.

The upper side of the wing is black, the blue triangle is bluer.  These are rather fast little creatures, even for butterflies, so I was pleased to catch this one dining.

It was such a peaceful scene to wake up to.  A mist was rising from the dam, the birds were producing a cacophony that would have been dreadful had it been sung by anything but birds, and there was a crispness to the air that promised a fine day.  My today was perfect!

Nearby to my parent’s house lives a man who collects race horses.  He allowed us to wander around and see the horses, which the little girls enjoyed immensely.  This was my favourite of the foals.  He had four white socks to match his blaze, and such an inquisitive manner.

Just a friendly little nip!

Sharing a spot of dinner.

Three legged horse?

There is nothing quite like exploring the bush at night.  A possum is a source of great excitement for the spotter ( both the middle girls of the family had the honour), and this weekend we saw two on our wanderings.

Ibis are not my favourite birds.  In the city, they are inclined to be bold and rummage through your bags if you leave them unattended for a moment.  I found their country cousins to be a deal more retiring, and set this one to flight by my approach to the dam.