boy the hunter

A weekend of miserable weather but we went with friends to the beach. Their lad was a keen spotter of things in rockpools and was on the hunt for dead crabs.

27th June09, High Newton, 11am

Birds and Eggs

25th June09, High Newton, 8am

This was a Big Egg - perhaps a seabird but it's long gone from its nest.

Starlings on the fence

contrasts

Down to Howick on a fine morning. I was snapping things that looked nice and only on my return did I realise how different these two photographs are in their subject matter despite being a few hundred yards apart. Such is the variety of a coastal walk in Northumberland!

24th June09, Howick Coast, 8am

square eyes

An amazingly warm, summer's day so me and Trooper spent quite a long time on the beach this morning while it was quiet and then revisited when it was quiet again after 5pm. Lots of folk are at home watching Andy Murray at Wimbledon. Sitting in front of the TV is a waste of a rare day of good weather to me (he said, sitting in front of a pc instead!).

23rd June09, Embleton Bay, 8am

23rd June09, High Newton, 6pm

I've never seen the water so clear here. Probably the bright sunlight.

catch up

A few days worth to catch up on...

21st June09, Hepburn Woods, 4pm

22nd June09, Low Newton, 8am

22nd June09, around Christon Bank, 3pm

looking down

A lovely day on the beach but I've taken pictures of blue skies and golden sands before so here's a Beaded Sea Anemone and friends in a rock pool.

20th June09, Football Hole, 6pm

Windblown Dog

The sand was whipping across the beach filling in the excavations left above the high water mark by small children. The wind doesn't bother Trooper, in fact he seems to relish the wind in his fur and doesn't worry about sand getting into his one eye the way I do.

I had photographed a fantastic wedding in Edinburgh earlier in the day. When I get back from the city I enjoy getting the wind in my fur too.

19th June09, High Newton, 7pm

The Story of The Storm

So we left the house just as a massive storm was gathering overhead. Undaunted we set off for the beach. It came closer, we hid in a WWII pillbox, the heavens opened, we waited, it passed, the sun came out. It was like Beethoven's 6th but with a pillbox.

18th June09, Embleton Bay, 7pm

The binman cometh

Back to Howick to pick up some litter...

18th June09, Howick Haven, 8am

all welcome?

16th June09, Howick Haven, 7pm

Different people visit the beach. Some are more welcome than others.

This boat is a work of art which I photographed from the top of the wee cliff. Note the shell portholes and, if you look really carefully, small pieces of coloured glass represent the waves around the keel. Beautiful.

These scummers had left only their burnt out tent, a few dozen lager cans and a bad smell in the air. Being a doogooder, I'll return with a bin bag later. I hope they had a very cold night in their burnt tent.

Fore!

15th June09, High Newton, 8am

I found 4 golf balls on the beach and didn't know what to do with them. The resulting art installation, captured below and known as "Fore!" turns out to have been a short-lived creation as the balls had gone to a better home by 3pm.

Not so elusive

14th June09 around Christon Bank, 8am

It seems wrong to use b+w on such a beautiful morning when there's so much colour around.

The slow camera shutter shows up these wee flies as they zig-zag energetically across the surface of the pond.

The Scarlet Pimpernel - not so elusive as it's only half a mile from home.

Gently does it

A gentle sort of a morning.

13th June09, High Newton, 8am

We don't see yachts very often and these were sailing along on a light wind through a calm sea. I could live with being in a yacht in these conditions!

These cirrus clouds are beautiful. Composed of ice particles and over 18,000 feet up they are harbingers of good weather.