So its goodnight from me

I started blogging in 2011. I dipped my toe in gently as I approached early retirement. I had no idea what I would write about but I knew it would involve photographs. Several times I have contemplated stopping. It is time consuming. Yet it is also a way of getting down on ‘paper’ my thoughts and feelings. I regard it as developmental. I never realised I would come across so many interesting, fun, reflective, talented and encouraging people. I try not to worry about statistics but there is an inner desire to know that there is somebody out there.

This graph is how my annual views have grown:

I’ll settle for that. The year end review also sorts out the good from the drivel. There is a lot of drivel for each good post but it seems this was my top non-technical one from 2014.

Colour – by day and by night

Newer readers may want to have a look.

It was also a challenging year as you know. I was slowing down literally and tipped over in October. This forced my hand and I duly had my heart fixed. So far, so good. Reading, writing, a little work, they all helped keep me sane as I grew more and more frustrated. 2015 will also be a huge challenge as we relocate our life across to Britain. Blogging will doubtless be sporadic and occasional until we are settled.

I thought about the images I enjoyed making most in 2015 and as my parting shot for the year, here they are. My top ten. Like the BBC, 9/10 repeats. I can’t think why the first one made the cut.

Raspberry Ripple

Brown Shrike

 

 

 

 

Not quite but almost

This is nothing like Not only but also. It is Pete without Dud. What I mean is I hope to do a final New Year’s Eve post before 2014 is signed off. So it is almost farewell to 2014. First the shots from today’s walk. No macro lens but with a tripod this time. Once again it was a walk without a bird photo. I did see a very fine bird indeed – a male White-rumped Shama – but it is not a HK bird. It will either have escaped from a cage or be a temple release so not tickable. Plastic.

The trees though were not escapes. At least not today. The first shot was, I thought until a couple of years ago, a lichen or moss. Then I was told it is an alga, Trentepohlia if I recall correctly. The only Alga I knew before that was a chum of Biggles and Ginger.

I am looking this one up – should not be difficult but perhaps an itinerant botanist might save me the trouble. I am suggesting Sarcandra glabra. If correct this is an important medicinal plant in TCM.If I fail to deliver on my final post then I offer you now as a just in case a heartfelt thank you for your company in 2014 and I wish you health and happiness in 2015.

The ascent of Everest

A month ago that was how it felt climbing the hill behind the house. Today I walked up without a problem. I decided to walk light – just my binoculars round my neck and the 180 macro lens on my trusty 5D3. I took some decent enough idea shots but the lens was a bit heavy to hand hold so most of the photos were deleted because there was slight motion blur (user error) or lacked the DoF I wanted.

I was happy to see Asian Stubtail, twice! Not rare but secretive, I picked them out on call. Too far for the 180 lens. I also saw a flock of 5 Hwamei and some Black-throated Laughingthrushes. The Yellow-browed Warblers were still flitting in the tree canopies but still no Bluetails or Robins. So I contented myself with trying to paint with light: