Indian Summer Dawn

This week we have had some remarkably warm and still weather for the end of September. One morning I was out with my camera in time to see the first sun rays cut through the mist rising from the damp grass.

The mist in the hedgerow and the shadows from the tree's branches caught the sunlight causing a fabulous mysterious landscape. The photograph above was cropped at the bottom to avoid an ugly wire fence. The photo below makes a feature of the fence.
Shortly afterwards I was looking across the fields and the railway to the Chilterns from Mentmore's hill. I seem to have the same effect on sheep that I have on deer. They all run away from me.

Finally an hour after the sunrise, a local park still had some mist lingering.

French Railway Scenes

A couple of photos taken on the french railways.

The first a couple of disused carriages standing the sidings at Ales this September

Rolling stock outside Nimes Station September 2010

The Twisted Hollow Beech Tree of Ashridge

I suspect that the ancient beech tree in Ashridge's Frithden Beeches filmed in the making of a Harry Potter film is the most famous tree in Ashridge.

However, I have been visiting another beech tree in Ashridge for a number of years which in my eyes is even more wonderful.This tree has lost the top of its trunk, practically all of its heartwood centre and most of the trunk's perimeter from rot. And yet it still manages to sprout a small canopy each year from wildly contorted branches growing from the top of its truncated trunk.

It must have been quite a substantial tree before it lost its top section of trunk. Apart from the base, most of which is rotten, all that is left now is a two foot wide by about 5 inches thick spiral band of live wood following the original twist of the tree.

It is not the easiest of trees to photograph, especially in summer when the light is cut out by the leaves. I hope my photos taken this weekend properly shows this wonderful example of how nature is determined to survive despite all the odds.

French Grasshopper Display

Taking a morning walk up the path to the rocky outcrop near Ales in Southern France, camouflaged grasshoppers would jump and fly off to safety showing a flash of bright red just before I stood on them. There was no way I was going to get a photo of one in flight.

However, later on I discovered that a few of the grasshoppers were sitting around and quickly opening and closing their wings covers in a short bursts. I presume this one second burst of colour was a display to attract a mate or deter a competetor.

I did eventually manage to photograph this particular grasshopper showing his red wings.

At a shutter speed of 1/800 of sec and I still couldn't freeze the action

A photograph showing the beautiful markings of another grasshopper

And another one

French Evening Shadows, Clouds and Silhouettes

The last rays of sun on a sundial on the wall of an old house in a village in Southern France.The dramatic sky that evening in Black & White

Evening Shadows in the Olive Grove

A low sun produces interesting patterns in Southern France this September

Lenticular Clouds Southern France

A dramatically beautiful cloud appeared over my head whilst visiting Ales. This first photo was taken about 4:30 in the afternoon. The last was 2 hours later from a hillside near to Ales. It hardly appeared to move.
From the hillside. How many different types of cloud?

A close up of the soft shapes of the cloud
Getting towards sunset

The Virgin Mary appears to be orchestrating the sky.
Note 2012 - I understand this cloud formation is called Lenticular Clouds

Window Shutters and Roof Pigeons

Resting pigeons on a roof in Ales, France.

The pigeon on the pipe on the right looks fairly comfortable with little risk of smoke and heat from the pipe

Short-Toed Eagle, France

An evening walk up a rock outcrop near Ales in the Languedoc-Roussillon Region of southern France, gave me a sighting of this Short-toed Eagle which was using the updraft of air to climb and drift away. Luckily for me it didn't seem disturbed by my presence, and swung overhead as it climbed, allowing me this photograph.

The wonderful French name for this bird is Circaete Jean-Le-Blanc. It is also known as the Snake Eagle in Mediterranean Regions, snakes forming a good part of its diet.

Cité Radieuse, Marseille

A weeks visit to the South of France included a short stay in Marseille.

We passed by the Cite Radieuse, the iconic building designed by Le Corbusier and built between 1947-1952. The building influenced several housing schemes, including Park Hill in Sheffield. A very short stop gave me the opportunity to try and take a few architectural photographs of the external staircase.

The roof of the building was designed as a social space with a running track and even a paddling pool. From a distance the roof has the appearance of the superstructure of a liner (the top of which can be just seen in my photograph).

Another shot of the Staircase. The authorities had a large information board up which rather spoilt views of the whole building from the end elevation.