NESTING MALLARD
I was out on the coast one day when I came across a stretch of foreshore that I thought might be a suitable nesting site for Eider duck. As I proceeded slowly through the long dead reeds I spotted this duck up ahead. Knowing that she would sit tight for a close approach I set up my long lens with extension tubes on my tripod and moved in gently. I took a couple of images and then backed off and left her to her incubation. Unfortunately her nest was raided later in the season so she never produced any chicks.

LIGHTHOUSE
I wanted to obtain a slightly different view of the Dunnet Head lighthouse for a project I am working on. When I arrived at sunset I was dissapointed to find that the sun was being obscured by a low bank of cloud. Rather than give up I had to find a more creative viewpoint so I positioned myself with these two white gateposts in the frame and filtered the sun with a neutral density filter.

RED CAMPION
Inspired by an image I had seen in Practical Photography magazine I spotted this oppurtunity to emulate it one evening. The last of the sun was dropping toward the horizon and backlighting these red campion on the cliff tops. Using a 300mm lens I isolated them from their background and fired away. I later discovered that the guy who had taken the image that inspired me was Roger Coulam who I travelled to Sweden with as a fellow winner of the PP/Hasselblad competition!

CROWS NEST
One of the nests I was monitoring as part of the British Trust for Ornithologys Nest Monitoring scheme was this carrion crow nest. It was about three meters up a young Rowan tree. Due to its awkward loaction I checked it infrequently and was unable to see much clearly so I decided to take a photo. I prefocused the camea at 28mm and as if on cue when a large black object appeared over the nest the hungry young crows responded by demanding food. I love the bright red colour of their enormous gapes!