Maurice Gordon Photographic Tuition

Wun Wabbit Wun

2012-02-14T08:48:00.000-08:00

Still very frozen over at North Cave Wetlands today. During my walk around the reserve these two pelted out of the undergrowth. I think the Rabbit escaped the Stoat. In the interests of transparency I should add that the below image is a composite as the action happened too quickly for me to capture both hunter and hunted in the frame at the same time in any sort of focus!

I'm no David Attenborough, but I thought I would put Stoat and Weasel below for a front view comparison. Both can be brown or gingery brown, but if you see the whole animal the Weasel is the smaller of the two (15-25cm) and only has a short tail. The Stoat is larger (15-30cm) and has the distinctive long black-tipped tail. Looking from the front though the Weasel has a more jagged edge where the white fur blends into the brown whereas the Stoat has a straighter more uniform border between white and brown.

An obliging Siskin...

2012-01-23T12:59:00.000-08:00

This male Siskin posed well amongst the branches in a spot of bright sunshine at the weekend at North Cave Wetlands. Sticking with the green theme, it was good to see some Greenfinches too on the feeders. They used to be regulars in my garden but have clearly been hit by trichomonosis.

Sunny January day in East Park

2012-01-09T10:20:00.000-08:00

Pochard

It was such a sunny day today, more like April than January, that I thought I would head to East Park hoping for Goosanders. I saw 17 in total though up to 30 have been seen recently. They are shy though and won't come very close to have their photo taken. Great light today which you really need to light up dark headed ducks. Even our everyday Mallard looks very smart in the sunshine. The Coots were leaping out of the water in an almost Dolphin like fashion to snatch bread from a chap's hand.

Mallard

Coot

Goosander

Happy Festivities to one and all!

2011-12-23T03:33:00.000-08:00

Bullfinch berry bonanza...

2011-11-30T09:43:00.000-08:00

Four Bullfinches have spent most of today feeding on these squishy red berries on a tree outside our bedroom window. The only bright red male didn't come within effective camera range unfortunately. If only some Waxwings would drop in too!

Trumpets or Pixies??

2011-11-25T09:52:00.000-08:00

We found this odd little forest of lichen on a damp log pile by South Marsh at Tophill Low during Tuesday afternoon's class. They look more like something out of the film Avatar than something you would expect to find in East Yorkshire. The jury is out, either Trumpet Lichen (Cladonia Fimbriata) or Pixie Cup (Cladonia Pyxidata), so if you know which.............

Dewdrops on Spider Webs

2011-11-21T00:42:00.000-08:00

Some photos from the back garden at the weekend. I have made them totally mono though they were naturally almost mono. In the Tuesday class we have been talking about the need to manually compensate for both dark and light backgrounds to avoid over and under exposure which is a technique I have put into practice here.

Latest Introduction to Wildlife Photography Course starts 8th November

2011-11-01T04:34:00.000-07:00

The latest Introduction to Wildlife Photography course starts at Tophill Low Nature Reserve on Tuesday 8th November from 1pm to 4pm and will run over four weeks. Places are still available. The cost is £90 and full details can be found here. We are running this course over four weeks with three hour sessions on Tuesday each week. For info give me a call on 07866 316577 or e-mail me at: info@mauricephotos.co.uk

Puffins revisited

2011-10-02T06:28:00.000-07:00

I have been re-hosting lots of my online content from photobucket on to flickr as the images reproduce far better on blogs and forums from the flickr host. This also allows me to reproduce the photos on my blogs at a larger size. Some Puffins here on Skomer Island from last year which I have "digitally remastered."

Sunny late September at North Cave Wetlands

2011-09-27T10:04:00.000-07:00

Its going to be sunny all week!! Small Tortoiseshell above, Ruddy Darter below and Migrant Hawker.

Turnstones

2011-09-25T13:40:00.000-07:00

There were good numbers of Turnstones along the beach and in the harbour in Bridlington today. I think these are great little birds though they seemed to go largely unnoticed by the crowds. I suppose they do blend in well with their surroundings. The birds breed up in the arctic but are here to feed on our rocky beaches. Those that pass through in Autumn and Spring are from Scandinavia on their way to or from wintering grounds in Africa and birds from Canada and Greenland spend the winter in Europe. So today's birds are perhaps more likely to be Scandinavian. Are we in Autumn yet? Though most Turnstones today were in their drabber non breeding plumage, a few birds still showed some of their bright rusty coloured summer feathers. Other birds were the omnipresent Herring Gulls - many juvenile birds - and also a group of Ringed Plover on the beach though the light had dropped and the rain set in when I spotted them.

and doing exactly what it says on the tin..

prawns for tea

how many Turnstones can you see?

oy save us some crab

walk like a dinosaur

an archive picture here showing a bird in breeding plumage

Kingfisher Reprise

2011-09-19T10:16:00.000-07:00

Good to see the birds back in action fishing successfully at Tophill. Today was definitely a "must get a bigger lens" day though!

Bee prepared!

2011-09-03T02:15:00.000-07:00

I was checking the verbena yesterday afternoon for butterfly activity (sans camera) when a large blue hawker dragonfly hung itself up on a bush next to me. I went back inside to get the camera so I could get some pics to id it, but on my return it had flown. Lesson - always expect the unexpected! So, this bumble bee got snapped instead. In terms of butterflies there are several Small Whites around in my back garden, one pristine Red Admiral and one very tatty one.

Invertebrate selection

2011-08-29T02:16:00.000-07:00

Some shots from the past week or so. I've been distracted by the insects over the summer but I'm looking forward to the autumn migration now for some interesting bird sightings.

Can you spot the spider?

Cinnabar moth caterpillars

Grasshopper

Grasshopper

Grasshopper

Speckled Bush Cricket

Southern Hawker (male)

Common Darter (female)

Pairing Ruddy Darter

Hoverfly on heathland, different to my garden variety

Hoverflies

2011-08-06T14:08:00.000-07:00

Again some photos from the back garden. In the absence of very many butterflies there are however stacks of Hoverflies. I think these are mostly the marmalade variety, I will have to check on the bigger black and white one.

Blue is the colour

2011-07-30T10:21:00.000-07:00

This Holly Blue is pictured taking salts from my driveway. There don't seem to be many butterflies around though at the moment in my garden and my updates to the Big Butterfly Count from the garden have unfortunately been a bit meagre.

East Park Exotics

2011-07-22T05:58:00.000-07:00

Yesterday afternoon was a one to one photographic tuition session with Shaun who had a new camera and wanted a brush up on correct exposure. We headed to East Park for some photographic subjects and ended up in the zoo. The birds in particular are very good to photograph as they are so colourful. We looked at composition and the need to underexpose or overexpose depending on the subject.
If anyone is interested in private tuition as opposed to joining a group, give me a call on 07866 316577 or e-mail me at info@mauricephotos.co.uk

Damsel in di garden

2011-07-08T00:33:00.000-07:00

Damsels aren't a common sight in my back garden but I believe this is a female Common Blue Damselfly spotted yesterday afternoon.

Lime Green Spider

2011-06-28T13:44:00.000-07:00

Found this spider in the garden. I think it is a Lime Green Orb Spider. Seem to be a lot of sightings recently across East Yorkshire.

Hot Dragons...

2011-06-27T01:27:00.000-07:00

Sunday was what I think you could technically call bloomin' hot! Perfect conditions for lots of dragonfly activity at North Cave Wetlands. A couple of male Emperor dragonflies were hawking around the dragonfly ponds and there was also a lot of Black-tailed Skimmer activity. In flight shots are always tricky, but the very bright conditions certainly helped to get the shutter speeds up nice and high.

Male Emperor in bright green and blue livery pictured above and below

Female Emperor ovipositing in the pond

Black-tailed Skimmer male

and showing interest in a female

getting to know you...

what looks like aerial mating could well be the male Black-tailed Skimmer trying to shake any eggs from the female previously fertilized by other males

Male Emperor with Black-tailed Skimmer in background

Heath Fritillary in Kent

2011-06-23T03:43:00.000-07:00

I was working in London on Sunday so planned to stay over and look for Heath Fritillary in one of their Kent strongholds on Monday. Another one of our rare butterflies, the species came close to extinction in Britain at the end of the last century and now survives only in Kent and Essex, on Exmoor in Somerset and also in Cornwall and Devon and usually where habitat is managed. The Kent and Essex populations prefer coppiced woodland and the foodplant is Common Cow-wheat. In times gone by the butterfly was known as the woodman's friend as it would populate new areas of coppice as they were cut. On Exmoor the caterpillars will also feed on Foxglove in sheltered valleys. The Devon and Cornwall populations live in abandoned hay meadows where foodplants are Ribwort Plantain and Germander Speedwell.

The weather on Monday morning didn't look too promising being overcast and rather damp. I was also aware that due to our warm Spring these sun loving butterflies had started to emerge extremely early this year with the first sighting on 12th May - ten days earlier than previous years! For this reason Heath Fritillary numbers probably peaked in early June this year as opposed to late June. The flight period isn't very long and female adults in particular only live for 5 - 10 days, so I was hoping for some good views despite the odds.

In the end I needn't have worried. Nevertheless, a walk around the damp woodland in the morning didn't produce sightings of anything at all although Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Jays and Bullfinches were calling. Eventually I thought I should check a coppiced area where I was pleased to find at least 17 individuals resting on the vegetation. The insects were very docile in the cool conditions though there were two mating pairs! One butterfly was walking along a twig on the ground and was perfectly happy to walk onto my finger. It seemed reluctant to leave until the sun peeped out from behind a cloud and it took to the wing. In the afternoon I investigated another coppice where again there were several resting individuals. The sun then decided to shine and all of a sudden the orange Heath Fritillaries took to the wing with many more butterflies appearing as if from nowhere. This leads me to think my count of 17 in the first coppice was conservative. The sunshine seems to "switch on" the Heath Fritillaries and on sunny days at peak emergence you can experience clouds of them in the woods. It was great to see them and hopefully these butterflies will have a secure future in Britain

Other sightings included Slow Worm, lots of Wood Ants, various moths and a pristine White Admiral which unfortunately didn't hang around to be photographed. Pictures below all taken using the Nikon 105mm f2.8 macro on the D700.

mating pair with larger female on right

Heath Fritillaries at rest are surprisingly difficult to spot

Speckled Bush Cricket juvenile - largely southern species also recently discovered in the East Riding

Rosy Footman moth

Bramble Shoot moth

Four-dotted Footman moth

North Yorkshire Moors

2011-06-18T15:53:00.000-07:00

Shed and sheep on Snod Hill

I headed vaguely northwards on Friday morning hoping to see some Lepidoptera somewhere before the predicted heavy rain (which didn't show til the evening) set in in the afternoon. As the sun seemed to be reluctant to pack up for the day I kept going and ended up on the moors. Although conditions were warm and not too windy I only came across two Small Pearl-bordered Fritillaries, one which would only pose with wings shut and one with wings open which was nice! Sightings also included Whinchat too far away to photograph, Meadow Pipit, Tiger beetle, Common Lizard, lots of sheep, various moths and even a Treecreeper in a place where there aren't that many trees. The Large Heath butterfly still eludes me though there were plenty of Small Heath around.

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary underside

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary upperside

Pyla Fusca micromoth

Cinnabar moth

Common Carpet moth

Small Heath butterfly below

Swallowtails revisited...

2011-06-08T03:48:00.000-07:00

Friday was another hot day and I decided to head for Strumpshaw Fen RSPB reserve in Norwich. The reserve isn't very far from the city centre but boasts a varied selection of habitat including fen, woodland and meadow. Although I didn't manage any photos, Cettis Warblers were bellowing out their song all around the reserve. My target species were Swallowtails again and after walking through the fen with Norfolk Hawker and Scarce Chaser Dragonflies on the wing I didn't see any Papilio machaon britannicus. However, as the fen gave way to woodland I saw my first Swallowtail of the day gliding along. The flight is very strange as the butterflies seem to glide then hang in the air as if suspended from the end of a fishing rod! This individual posed very well for me in the wood (photo above). Further along the track you re-enter the fen and then come to the doctor's house. The doctor gardens specifically to attract insects and very generously doesn't mind passers by taking advantage of this oasis of nectar to take some photos. As we have had such a hot and dry Spring the nectar sources in the wild are currently few and far between, as I noticed at Catfield, so the Swallowtails were feasting on the doctor's flowers! Strumpshaw is a great reserve and I didn't have time to explore all of it. I would imagine there is plenty to see there all year round.

Swallowtails below in the doctor's garden

Scarce Chaser (female)

Norfolk Hawker (male) below

North Cave Wetlands

2011-06-05T06:27:00.000-07:00

I hadn't been to North Cave for a while so I had a walk round on Wednesday evening. Good view of the Great Crested Grebe on the nest and also several Avocet chicks trotting around - just hope not too many get predated. Also a rat, I suppose it is still wildlife!

Great Crested Grebe

Rat

Avocet chick

On the Swallowtail trail...

2011-06-01T00:47:00.000-07:00

I've managed to be in Norfolk at the right time of year for Swallowtail butterflies for the past three years, but on each occasion it has rained! This time the conditions looked more promising. I headed for Hickling Broad on Sunday full of hope with the sun shining, but unfortunately as soon as I stepped out of the car the cloud appeared and the sunshine disappeared. Nevertheless my hopes were buoyed by speaking to people exiting the reserve who had all seen at least one Swallowtail. I enjoyed a vigorous walk around the excellent Norfolk Wildlife Trust reserve and had very good views of Cuckoo, Marsh Harrier, Hobby, Reed Buntings, House Martins and several juvenile Willow Warblers, but you guessed it, not a single Swallowtail.

Monday looked promising sunshine wise so I set off to Catfield Fen for a change of scenery. This Butterfly Conservation reserve is quite remote with no signs to it and no facilities once you have arrived - my favourite kind of place if I'm honest. There is just the fen and the path leading through it and of course in times gone by this habitat would have been very common in this part of eastern England. The only other person I met was cutting reeds for thatch, though with an electric mower not an oldy worldy scythe! As I walked around the reserve Swallowtails started to flit past me but none seemed prepared to stop to pose for a photo. Although Milk Parsley, the larval foodplant, was plentiful I realised there actually weren't many suitable nectaring plants along the pathways for the adults such as Thistle and Ragged Robin. This is largely due to the hot and dry Spring we have had. The Swallowtails are so early that many of their nectar plants have yet to fully emerge, hopefully this will not have any negative impacts on the butterflies population. The reserve was alive with Dragonflies too and I had my first views of Norfolk Hawker, a species also confined to the Broads area. I finally managed some photos of one individual Swallowtail nectaring on Bramble near to the most dangerously squidgy part of the fen. Not the closeups I had been hoping for as I couldn't get close enough to bring the macro to bear so had to rely on the 300mm. I'm sure gardens near to Catfield Fen will currently be getting frequent visits from Swallowtails on the hunt for nectar. I've since found there are other reserves on the Broads with garden areas specifically to attract these spectacular yet approachable butterflies so I hope to get the shots I am really after soon.

The old mill at Catfield Fen with Norfolk Hawker inset

Four-spotted Chaser

Hairy Dragonfly

Azure Damselflies

Willow Warbler shot against white featureless sky so using manual settings to achieve correct exposure for the subject. Something those who have attended my courses will know all about!

Yorkshire Nature Triangle Day, 25th May 2011

2011-05-26T08:00:00.000-07:00

The triangle day was a joint venture between the RSPB and Yorkshire Wildlife Trust to highlight the potential for nature tourism in East Yorkshire. The trip was featured on BBC's Look North and was attended by local hoteliers and business people as well as those involved in promoting and protecting East Yorkshire wildlife. A party of tourism entrepreneurs from Finland also joined the trip, keen to promote tourism and nature tourism links between our two countries. The highlight of the day was a three hour cruise aboard the Yorkshire Belle to see the birds of Bridlington, Flamborough Head and Bempton Cliffs at sea level and at much closer quarters than usual. It was also interesting to see the spectacular geological faults in the cliff face from below and to note how the birds use these natural ledges to nest on.

A seafood lunch prepared by Gerard Baker using local produce was served at Flamborough South Landing followed by a guided nature reserve walk and shore search. A good day was had by all.

Very good views of everyone's favourites the Puffins from the Yorkshire Belle

Puffin, Guillemots and a Razorbill

Gannets

Shag

Kittiwake

Guillemots

.....and more Guillemots

Puffins

Razorbills

8th May one day course review

2011-05-13T11:16:00.000-07:00

The weather which had threatened the worst for Sunday was actually pretty good and very sunny in the afternoon though conditions appeared to be too cool for the Butterflies and Dragonflies. Everybody managed to get photos of the various waterfowl and also the very obliging Marsh Frogs which have set up shop in front of North Lagoon hide. I have always heard the "Donald Duck" like cacophony these amphibians create, but this is the first time I have seen the critters close up. Note the inflated cheek pouches used to create the frog chorus! We also reviewed images on the computer in the afternoon and looked at techniques to improve colour and contrast.

Sunday 8th May one day photography course at Tophill Low

2011-04-26T13:07:00.000-07:00

There are still some places available for the one day photography course taking place on Sunday 8th May at Tophill Low. The course will run from 10am to 4pm and there are places for up to 10 people. The cost is £20 per person. There will be plenty of flora and fauna to photograph on the reserve and any sort of digital slr, crossover or compact camera will be fine. We won't delve too heavily into theory as the plan is to explore the reserve and review the photographs on the computer later in the day. Attendees are best to bring a packed lunch. Normal admission charges to the reserve will still apply, though admission is of course free to permit holders. For further details or to book a place you can contact me by e-mail at info@mauricephotos.co.uk or Richard Hampshire the warden at Tophill Low at Richard.Hampshire@yorkshirewater.co.uk

For information about the full introduction to wildlife photography course please click here.

Grasshopper Warbler

2011-04-26T12:59:00.000-07:00

I challenged myself to get some photos of this illusive summer migrant out in the open this year reeling its strange insect like trill and I think I have nearly succeeded - but always room for improvement methinks! The problem is they only seem to show well when they first arrive back in the country. Later in the season the birds seems to go deeper undercover and of course the vegetation becomes thicker so they are harder to see, though the strange song can still be heard.

Green Hairstreaks

2011-04-26T12:00:00.000-07:00

The Green Hairstreak is one of my favourite British Butterflies as, although tiny, it is so bright and exotic looking. I find all our Hairstreaks quite enigmatic as they can take a bit of tracking down in their own specific environments. The Green Hairstreak is the first to appear each year in April and May, followed by the Black Hairstreak for a brief couple of weeks in June/July, then the White-letter Hairstreak and Purple Hairstreak in July and August with the late summer Brown Hairstreak emerging in August and September. The Green Hairstreak is perhaps the hardiest and could almost be described as a generalist as it occurs in a wide variety of habitats though it does require open grassland or moorland which is extensively grazed. I am used to seeing Yorkshire Green Hairstreaks low down on Bilberry, but I found this small population on heathland in Norfolk over Easter flitting between Gorse, Silver Birch and even alighting on Oak. As they can be found on a variety of soils the Green Hairstreak is still quite widespread, but as you can see from their colour they can be hard to spot amongst the foliage - until they move of course!

The White-letter Hairstreak is completely dependent on Elm, the Purple Hairstreak on Oak usually near Ash and the Black and Brown Hairstreaks require abundant Blackthorn. I look forward to tracking down these specialists later in the year.

Further signs of Spring

2011-03-22T16:49:00.000-07:00

As well as the bumblebees in the garden today I had visits from three butterflies, a Brimstone, a Peacock and the Comma pictured above. This individual - most likely a male as he kept chasing the Peacock and returning to the same perch - will have hibernated through the winter as an adult. Interestingly this individual looks almost like the the lighter and brighter hutchinsoni form, though the underside would give a truer indication. As a general rule adult Commas who survive the winter are of the darker tawny red form and give rise to the next generation of the hutchinsoni form in Spring/Summer. This generation then goes on to produce a second brood of darker individuals in August/September who will overwinter to continue the cycle.

Adder

2011-03-19T03:03:00.000-07:00

March is a good time to look for Adders and other reptiles as the warmer weather brings them out of hibernation to bask in the open. They will become more active and potentially harder to see as temperatures increase. A male East Yorkshire Adder is pictured above. Below a female is preparing to shed her skin, which explains the hazy appearance of the eye. The first three photos were taken this year and the picture at the very bottom of this post shows a young female from two years ago in a different part of the reserve where I haven't been able to locate any snakes so far this season.

Sunday Morning Sightings

2011-02-14T05:30:00.000-08:00

Sunday morning is proving to be a good time to be out and about photographing wildlife at Tophill Low. Last Sunday, 6th Feb, Mark spotted a very tiny yearling Grass Snake (only around 7 inches long) by O Reservoir. This provided us with a very good, if rather unexpected, subject for some macro photography - see below. We did however move the snake off the path as it was so tiny it could easily have been stood on by an unsuspecting visitor. This early sighting is also featured on the Tophill Low blog.

Yesterday, 13th Feb, on his way to the class, Mike came across this cracking Little Owl by the roadside just on the outskirts of the reserve. Quite rightly Mike had his camera ready beside him in the car and captured a series of shots. We worked on some of the RAW images in photoshop and learnt about boosting contrast levels and cropping.

We looked at various crops and decided that this image also worked well in mono.

Looking forward to seeing what we can snap next time!

Weekend Courses

2011-01-18T05:13:00.000-08:00

Due to popular demand from many unable to enrol on weekday courses, I am pleased to announce that I will be starting a six week Introduction to Wildlife Photography Course on Sunday 30th January from 11am to 1pm at Tophill Low Nature Reserve. Details are the same as those in the post below this one or contact me on 07866 316577 or e-mail: info@mauricephotos.co.uk

Introduction to Wildlife Photography Course information

2010-12-11T01:18:00.001-08:00

Welcome to the blog. Digital cameras have made the hobby of photography even more popular with those already interested in birds and wildlife. This course is primarily aimed at people who have invested in digital single lens reflex (DSLR) camera bodies and lenses and who would now like to learn how to get the most out of their equipment. During the course I will aim to clarify the reciprocal factors involved in achieving correct exposures with a view to students being able to take full manual control of their cameras as well as choosing the appropriate programmed functions for different lighting conditions. Other aims of the course are to look at composition, cropping and resizing and to explain basic Photoshop techniques for improving upon the original image using the "digital darkroom". The course alternates weekly "classroom" and photographic field trip sessions, each lasting either two hours for evening classes over six weeks or three hours for daytime classes over four weeks. The cost is £90 per student. Theory learnt in the classroom can be put into practice in the field the following week. Classes are limited to a maximum of seven students. New start dates to be announced soon.

Theory classes are currently held at Tophill Low Nature Reserve visitor centre near Driffield. I am however quite happy to run courses from different locations if there is enough interest from local groups. The most useful pieces of equipment to own are a digital slr camera body, which has the option to be used fully manually and also a telephoto/telephoto zoom lens with a focal length of at least 300mm. Field trips will concentrate on birds during the winter months, but will also include butterflies and insects once Spring arrives. A selection of my own recent photos are displayed below.

To read some comments from previous students please click here

If you would be interested in any of the other courses linked below, then please get in touch:
Portraiture
Street Photography
Digital photography - general introduction

To contact me, either drop me an e-mail to: info@mauricephotos.co.uk or give me a call on: 07866 316577.

And below are a couple of before and after examples of images taken during the Tuesday morning class. The version on the left is the image as recorded by the camera and the version on the right has some basic photoshop "tweaks". Please click for larger versions.

Short-eared Owls

2010-11-25T07:29:00.000-08:00

These photographs were taken in North Lincolnshire where up to a dozen Short-eared Owls have been seen in the air at once as they hunt for mice and voles over scrubland. Beautiful birds, but tricky to catch in flight as they don't come out to hunt until late afternoon when light levels have dropped. I am sure these birds will continue to be well photographed over the winter months as they provide such enigmatic subjects.

Kingfishers are back at Tophill Low

2010-09-16T13:02:00.000-07:00

Kingfishers were showing well at Tophill towards the end of last year and hopes were high that they might stay to breed this year in a purpose built burrow equipped with cameras. Unfortunately the winter, as I'm sure you will remember, was a harsh one which can be particularly hard for small birds to endure. The birds may have perished or simply moved away from the frozen fishing ponds. Kingfishers have still been seen around the large reserve, but it is good to know that they are now back showing well near the hide with the Kingfisher apartment underneath. I hadn't been able to guarantee students sightings of these wonderful birds earlier this year, but hopefully from now on I will be able to do so.

Student feedback

2010-08-17T04:20:00.001-07:00

Below are some comments from students who have recently completed introduction to wildlife photography courses. Their comments are beneath their image montages. Please click for larger versions.

"I've had a Canon 40D and a 100-400m lens for about a year now but it's fair to say I've used the camera mainly on automatic. I needed to familiarise myself with the equipment and Maurice's course enabled me to do that. Practice in the field using manual settings, aperture priority and various ISO settings was invaluable and Maurice was always on hand to give advice and answer any questions. The course also opened my eyes to the huge part the computer can play in digital photography and we had the opportunity to use photoshop to improve and manipulate our shots." Phil Hargreaves

"I joined the photography course as I was a complete beginner never having owned or handled an SLR camera before. After the first session I was able use my camera on manual settings changing the light settings, the aperture and the ISO number where appropriate. At the next session we put into practice what we had learnt previously with a shooting session outdoors.
During the rest of the course we looked at other aspects of digital photography. The explanations were clear and backed up by fact sheets. Maurice is a very knowledgeable and competent photographer and teacher. The course was thouroughly enjoyable and has filled me with enthusiasm for the subject." Claude Hargreaves

"I found the course very useful as it refreshed a lot of photographic knowledge gained in the good old days of film and self developing prints. It also linked it well to using a DSLR. I now virtually always use manual setting on my camera particularly as I managed to update to a D300s. Probably wouldn't have had the confidence to do that without your course.
The Photoshop was interesting. Never really used preferring Graphic Converter which seems to do a lot of the Photoshop things in a slightly different way. However, have bought Elements 8 and am now using that quite happily, extending the knowledge you gave every day."
Mike Williamson

"Maurice's course really opened my eyes to what I could do and I'm now friends with my camera - there's more to life than the automatic settings!" David Ware

----------------------

Hi Maurice

Wth regards to the camera course I would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone who needs to gain confidence in operating a digital camera.

I acknowledge that it is an introduction to digital work but it certainly gives everyone confidence to 'have a go'. One of the important messages you put across is that you must experiment and push the buttons on the camera in order to find out about its features and capabilities. This, coupled with your technical - yet simple - explanations of operating the camera was excellent.

All in all a very worthwhile course and one that I enjoyed very much.

Best Wishes,

Keith Marshall

High Summer Butterflies

2010-08-17T03:55:00.000-07:00

Above a beautiful female Brown Hairstreak from the Hampshire/Wiltshire borders perched on Rosebay Willowherb. I was fortunate to find such a pristine individual showing so well. The male Brown Hairstreak has very similar markings on the underside but lacks the vivid colour of the female. Below a striking male Adonis Blue from a chalky Berkshire hillside, a first for me this year. It is certainly true that once you have seen Adonis Blue, even the brightest Common Blue looks pale by comparison! The camera does struggle though to capture the true sky blue iridescence as the sun hits the wings.

Introduction to Digital Photography Course

2010-07-01T01:24:00.000-07:00

This course would suit those with digital slr cameras and even the most basic lenses who would like to develop their photographic skills. However, a separate dedicated flashgun would be useful. During the course I will aim to clarify the reciprocal factors involved in achieving correct exposures with a view to students being able to take full manual control of their cameras. The course runs over seven weeks with weekly two hour sessions and costs £100 per student.

Week one is a "classroom" photographic theory session held at Tophill Low nature reserve. Weeks two to six, depending on the weather conditions, will include a photographing people session, a wildlife photography session, a mid-course classroom photoshop session, a street photography/architectural session, a landscape session and concluding with a final photoshop session.

The course will look at composition and cropping, depth of field and how to control it, flash techniques, low light photography and also how to get the most out of your images using photoshop and the digital darkroom.

For further details please contact me on 07866 316577 or e-mail: info@mauricephotos.co.uk

Portraiture Course

2010-06-30T12:37:00.000-07:00

This course will look at photographing people both on location and in a studio environment. The course runs weekly two hour sessions over five weeks and costs £100 per person. The course would suit those who have been on one of my introductory courses or those who have good basic photographic knowledge. I will provide studio lighting, backdrops and computer equipment for our indoor sessions. Course aims are also to look at resizing images for the smallest everyday print to a very large canvas. We will also look at creating digital photo montages such as the one above.

A dedicated external flashgun will be required for outdoor shooting for results as below, though students will be able to make use of my equipment if they don't currently own one.

For further details please contact me on 07866 316577 or e-mail: info@mauricephotos.co.uk

Street Photography Course

2010-06-30T12:06:00.000-07:00

This seven week course will concentrate on the fun and the spontaneous, creating well composed and well exposed images from daily life and would suit photographers who have been through one of my introductory courses or who already have a good working photographic knowledge. Each weekly session lasts for two hours and we will visit different locations or local events suitable for candid and reportage style shots. The course costs £100 per student. We will have a mid-course photoshop session and a final week photoshop session to review and enhance images and with five weeks of shooting there should be plenty of good images to sort through!

A lens such as a 70-200mm zoom would be ideal for this type of photography though a wide angle zoom will also be useful. The aim will be to travel as light as possible.

For further details please contact me on 07866 316577 or e-mail: info@mauricephotos.co.uk

North Yorkshire Moors photo trip

2010-04-26T01:50:00.000-07:00

I am organizing a trip primarily to photograph Dark Green Fritillary and Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary butterflies on the North Yorkshire Moors, near Pickering, on Sunday 4th July meeting at 10.00am - weather permitting! Cost will be £15 per person. I will be on hand to give advice and attendees are welcome to borrow my Nikon camera equipment. Your own compact flash memory card would then be useful to pop in my cameras so you could take your images home with you. Both closeup/macro lenses and telephoto lenses are useful to photograph these butterflies. Compact digital cameras with macro capabilities would also work well as the Dark Green Fritillary in particular is quite a large butterfly.

Please click on the photo montage above for a larger version. All these photos were taken on the North Yorkshire Moors. We will be likely to see Dark Green Fritillary (pictured top), Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary (two images below), Whinchat and Golden-ringed Dragonfly (third row down). Also likely to be present are Small Copper, Small Skipper, Small Heath and Large Heath butterflies. The walk is over even moorland paths and we won't need to cover great distances to see the wildlife.

If you would like to continue your day out, Goathland, Whitby, Thornton-le-Dale, the Dalby Forest and many places of interest for sightseeing, lunch and walking are all nearby. For those interested in going on to look for Red Grouse after lunch (please bring a packup) you are welcome to follow me in your own car to another site on the moors where we will hopefully see Grouse by the roadside.

Attendees will have to make their own way to the meeting site near Pickering on the day. Please call or e-mail if you would be interested in the North Yorkshire Moors trip: photography@mgcvk.karoo.co.uk / 07866 316577.

Skomer trip

2010-03-23T07:58:00.000-07:00

Some photos of the Puffins on Skomer island just off the Pembrokeshire coast. A fantastic place to visit in spring and summer, packed full of wildlife although of course the Puffins are the stars. The birds on the island permit close views and are wonderful to photograph. I believe the Short-eared Owl was dining on the local delicacy Skomer Vole!