One of the great things about the internet is how easy it is to see other people's work. One of the drawbacks is how easy it is to see other people's work that is much better than one's own! Or maybe that's a good thing too.
I've always enjoyed photography and within the family have been the best photographer. Along the way I acquired a few friends who were very good indeed, but that was ok because they were still in the minority as the majority of people either didn't have cameras or didn't take many photos apart from at weddings and along with my other artwork. Knowing people who took better photos gave me something to aim at. I continued to develop my photography with a view to one day perhaps being able to exhibit some photos.
With the arrival of digital photography and related technology came an explosion in the popularity of photography and with social media everyone's efforts can be readily available for admiration. I now have several friends whose photos are of such a high standard that I don't expect mine will ever reach those heights! I've also seen thousands of photos taken by people I don't know, which just take your breath away with their precision and composition. The place of photography in my artwork has been diminishing for the past five years or so and I think this is part of the explanation.
On the other hand, put me in a location with plenty of wildlife and a little more time than usual, and I get the bug again. I love digital cameras. It's normal for me to take 50 or more shots to get just one that I like. I think I took 62 shots of the little lizard at the top. (He's only about 15cms long, including tail) though a very modest 30 or so of the deer.
There were certainly more than 50 pics taken of goldfinches. I took one batch the first day I found several feeding away at the thistles and the second day, having got at least some halfway decent shots, was braver with the noise I made and opened a window perhaps 5 metres away from them. They didn't interrupt their feeding so I was able to snap away and out of the second batch got this one, which I'm really pleased with.
And finally, butterflies. I'm still busy taking them. If you've followed my blog over the years you'll have seen pics of butterflies before. These are three of my favourites from the past two weeks. I love the sweet pea pic because there's a little bug in there as well as the butterfly. I never tire of the black and white butterflies, and the last shot is one I'm really pleased with because of the overall composition of the picture.
