Cheers guys, I'm enjoying hanging a bit looser with the sketching at the moment, I think I'd been trying too hard lately.
Anyhoo, I can't get out tomorrow, Beth's off to Cornwall for a week's adventuring so I'm on taxi duty.
So I nipped over to Elmley for an hour or two this morning and I'm bl**dy glad I did too.
I'd more or less resigned myself to seeing little else other than nesting avocets but the common terns were hanging about still so they went in the book and I was quite happy with that.
Then, as I was starting the walk back, I spotted a female wheatear on a gate and as I got focussed I caught a movement a bit lower down and up popped a gorgeous male whinchat! The wheatear flew off but the whinchat stayed around for quite a while, much to my delight, so I filled a couple of pages, and got a few shakey and distant shots too, chuffed to bits I am, I love whinchats and see them only rarely so it's a real treat to get one willing to pose for me. After he'd gone I walked up the gate and got some reference shots for background so I feel a painting coming on!
Oh, there were a couple of med gulls mixed in wth the blackheads too, a good day considering!
Mike