
Life and death on the waves
Strange things happen in the natural world. Here’s a photograph from a sequence that I’m still mentally processing. From left to right: …
Strange things happen in the natural world. Here’s a photograph from a sequence that I’m still mentally processing. From left to right: …
I’ve loved watching the Arctic Terns in Orkney this summer. They’re fascinating. I spent hours watching them come back to their colonies …
Hello and welcome to my Sunday Recommendation. Thanks for joining me. Every week I read great wildlife and nature books, stumble upon …
Watching Arctic Terns pull Lumpsuckers out of the water is a thrill. I love the spray of water around this one and …
I love the way that Hen Harriers can turn so quickly. The combination of strong wings and a long tail mean they …
I’ve not seen a Whooper Swan before so it’s a thrill to spot a couple on the Loch of Swartmill. They’re handsome …
My favourite sight is a Hen Harrier harrying.
Something I enjoyed this summer was taking multiple exposures of some of the bird species on Westray and creating composite images from …
What’s actually happening isn’t what appears to be happening. It’s laughing at the other one’s fish flapping in the wind, isn’t it? …
An Arctic Tern family from this summer. I wonder where they are now? I suspect they’ll be somewhere on the way to …
When the sun shines in Orkney, it’s best to make good use of it. This Swallow agreed.
Mike restoring the stone well in the village, watched over by Nessa. There’s an old capped well, overgrown with plants in a …
I’ve been enjoying reviewing some of my images from Orkney Mainland taken this summer and this one, from a sequence I took …
I love to see Dunlin on the tideline: And seeing them fly past so close is a joy: This time I’m watching …
Every time I see a Merlin it’s a fleeting glance. It’s either only resting for a second before heading off to hunt …
I’ve loved being invited to see people working on Westray. I’ve even invited myself. There are many jobs I’ve no experience of, …
I’m driving along the car-bottom-scraping track to Noup Head. It’s first gear all the way unless I want to have my exhaust …
I’ve never had the chance to see Golden Plover close up before. Whenever I’ve driven past a field of them on Westray …
While waiting for a Hen Harrier, which never arrives, I see a distant sheep, which I assume is in a bit of …
Ravens are so difficult to get close to. Their eyesight is exceptional and they recognise any threat from a great distance. They’re …
The hind claws of Meadow Pipits really are something special. Just look at them: The long hind claw is probably an adaptation …
Ros is carving a stone house name at South Hamar. I love the simplicity of her tools and the clean lines of …
There are fifty Ravens at the Sands o’ Maesan. (I know that because I counted them from my photographs when I got …
Hen Harriers are such wonderful birds that it’s worth sitting out in a field for a whole afternoon just in the hope …
I’m sitting at Noup Head in full camouflage waiting for a Hen Harrier to come and saunter over me. There’s been nothing …
Arctic Terns have beaks like tweezers. Or is it that tweezers are like Arctic Terns’ beaks? It’s all part of our inversion …
Louise is making a tapestry on her loom in the studio at South Hamar. It’s a beautiful commission and very different from …
I love stopping at Roadmire, the house overlooking the Ayre of Fribo and the Bay of Tuquoy. It’s my favourite place on …
There are 50 Ravens at the Sands o’ Maesan. One of them has the head of a Rabbit in its beak. I …
I adore Sparrowhawks. I stumbled upon this one in a tree and it was always going to spot me and fly off. …