dog walk Archives - Page 13 of 15 - Craig Rogers Photography

Morning Dog Walk: A Fake Was Amongst Us

25th May 201826th May 2018Craig Rogers

I take a camera (although just my mobile today) along on my Dog Walks to bring you some of the sightings that I see on my morning walks, these photos are rarely going to be great quality as its hard enough keeping an energetic Dog entertained and get close enough to anything. They also help me identify where species are so that I can plan to return.

Walking alongside the river bank this morning and we spotted a very large Bee/Wasp looking creature, was it a Hornet?

No, it was a Mimic Hornet Hoverfly (Volucella zonaria). They can grown up to almost 16mm long (this was certainly around that size!) and although it looks like it’ll give you trouble, it’s completely harmless with no sting or bite.

Morning Dog Walk: Dragonflies, Butterflies and Moths

20th May 201821st May 2018Craig Rogers

I take a camera along on my Dog Walks to bring you some of the sightings that I see on my morning walks, these photos are rarely going to be great quality as its hard enough keeping an energetic Dog entertained and get close enough to anything. They also help me identify where species are so that I can plan to return.

The spring rains brought us many flowers, which in turn brought us many flying insects so this morning I pointed the camera at a few.

Around water you can usually find many Dragonflies, here is a male Violet Dropwing Dragonfly, found in Africa, Middle East, the Arabian Peninsula and Southern Europe this is a medium-sized Dragonfly, sex identification is simple as the female is green and brown. The name is taken from the way it lowers its wings when perched.

{Click image(s) to view on Flickr - opens in new tab}

I Enjoy The Challenges Of Smartphone Photography

18th May 201818th May 2018Craig Rogers

Over the last few years we have seen Smartphone Cameras increase in quality and functionality at a rapid rate. However, no matter how good they are becoming, they still have a lot of limitations.

These limitations give me an enjoyable challenge and it’s why I love Smartphone photography. It forces you to think about the photo way before you even frame it, trying to overcome the challenges these tiny cameras give. This shouldn’t be any different to any other form of photography and is why its good practice to make you think before pressing the shutter button.

This morning, we had some early hill mist and whilst out walking Wally, he appeared on a small ridge above me. It was a good pose, but the mist behind was a real spoiler, so I took the photo with the thought of making into a High Contrast Black and White photo, using the bright white misty background to contrast him and the Estava plant.

The photo was taken on my Samsung Galaxy S8+ in “Pro” mode, saving as a DNG (RAW) file, then I imported it into Lightroom (on the phone), converted to Black and White and raised the contrast. All this whilst still out walking. I was impressed at the quality, it even made it into my Flickr Albums

{Click image(s) to view on Flickr - opens in new tab}

Morning Dog Walk: A Booted Eagle Soars Above

7th May 20187th May 2018Craig Rogers

This morning, we had a treat, we walked up a nearby ridge (the same one to be used on Saturday’s Nature Photography Walk) and spotted a Booted Eagle soaring high.

Unfortunately, way too high for a close up, even for a crop camera at 400mm, but close enough to identify.

Morning Dog Walk: Long-Tailed Tits

6th May 20186th May 2018Craig Rogers

This morning I was standing under the tree that has a resident Melodious Warbler (see here) and a flock of Long-Tailed Tits came passing through. They really didn’t care that I was there and the first photo, the bird is very close.

It is very common to see flocks of Long-Tailed Tits moving from tree to tree eating as many little bugs as they can find. The Melodious Warbler did it’s best to defend its tree but was out-numbered and the Long-Tailed Tits hopped from branch to branch feeding and then moved to a nearby Fig Tree to continue.

The Algarve has the darker variety of Long-Tailed Tit, and the young is even more interesting with its brown head. Also notice it has red eyelids whereas the adult has yellow.

Wally Loving The Outdoors

5th May 20185th May 2018Craig Rogers

As you know, I carry a camera when out walking Wally (the Dog) every morning to capture some of the things we see.

Occasionally, I’ll point the camera at Wally enjoying himself, below are a few photos from his walks over the last few weeks. I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoy being outdoors with him!

{Click image(s) to view on Flickr - opens in new tab}