Wednesday 4 July 2012

Beautiful Bee Orchids at RSPB Conwy june 6th 2012

It has been  a few years since i last photographed Bee Orchids, so since the butterfly season is really slow with the weather being so bad a quick decision to visit  RSPB Conwy to see the orchids and the birds:)
Arriving early in the morning , the weather was changeable but the sun was out when i arrived which makes a change this year!  haha
After a quick chat with the very helpful rangers in the visitor centre , i knew exactly where to look for the Bee Orchids. the first spot was just behind the centre on the edge of a field where they had put a sign up :)   in fact i found 5 plants in this spot :)  but only one was good enough to photograph!



A walk around the reserve now, a swan is nesting near to the hide on the first lagoon so that is the first place to start :)  and here she is, what a beauty :)


A walk along the boardwalks through the sedges , loads of sedge warblers were making a lot of noise!  haha , but couldn't get any pics.  but i did find this Drinker moth caterpillar feeding on a sedge stem .


at the end of the boardwalk there is a small pond , hopefully i can find a few damselflies but it is early with the cold weather for them to be emerging.  after a quick search i found one on a wooden handrail of all places , newly emerged this morning as it hasn't coloured up yet.  shot with canon mpe-65 macro lens and focus stacked 3 frames to increase depth of field.



 
After getting these shots it started raining , not much so i carried on towards the next lagoon hide , passing on the way this view. just love the carved wooden lapwings ,  so i had to shoot a real one:)


into the hide , and my lens limitations are proven, the birds are just too far away for my 70-300mm on full frame , will have to crop alot!!!!!!!    so here is a lapwing.



and after trying without any rewards to shoot swallows & swifts in flight , shot these:)


Time to go and find the other Orchids now , which are on the coastal path on way back to the centre via the estuary.  i pause to shoot the local Canadian family :)  so cute!


more rain on its way by the look of it! 



A view looking at Conwy castle, taken right by the Orchids:)


and now for the Orchids ,  with yellow vetch flowers all around i used them as a beautiful background to show off the Bee Orchids :D




I noticed a broad legged leaf beetle on a daisy nearby , so  took a few high magnification portraits , showing all the pollen covering its head!  haha



and then i found a Drinker moth catt on the ground , so again shot with mpe-65 macro lens, 3 frames focus stacked.



I will finish of with my favourite Orchid image of the day , taken when the sun went behind a cloud. which gave much softer light.


Wonderful morning at RSPB Conwy.

images shot with canon 5d2, 100mm & mpe-65 macro lens & 70-300is



6 comments:

  1. I just scroll through your photos going Wow...wow...wow - beautiful

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  2. Swans and baby Canadian Geese stole the show for me but like Tracey... "Wow" kept escaping my lips!

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  3. Never yet seen orchids in the wild, fantastic....and what an amazing shot of the insect covered in pollen! well done...

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  4. Fantastic shots - they really tell a story (well, several stories really!). Thanks for sharing!

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  5. You are such a wonderful photographer Phil. Am catching up on your pix after my break. I find them inspirational.
    Pollen shot is amazing.
    Thanks for sharing.

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  6. Phil you are such a wonderful photographer. Am catching up with your blog after my break.
    I find your pix inspirational.
    That pollen shot is amazing.

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