The other day, I reported the fact that I’d sighted my first estuarine Kingfisher of the autumn as I was making work on large format film at Cattawade.

Low tide today was about 13:30 so no film was about to be wasted as I don’t like shooting in such bright conditions and they were indeed bright, as bright as yesterday was dark and melancholy, and almost twice as hot.

I need to get my eye in for autumnal Kingfishers so it was off to Cattawade to stand and wait. That is the only way with these birds. They are so predictable once you observe them on their own turf. One just has to wait and wait and wait…

The shot above is about as good as it got and thankfully with some industrial infrastructure providing a perch. Three other photographers were about and Charlie (he seems like a Charlie so I’ll call him that) here was aware of the glass and ducked and dived almost as if he knew there would a clatter of shutters (not from me – I’m a half-cocked sort of maker). He looks like a juvenile from his feet colouring. It was interesting chatting to all three and talking about plastering and bricklaying at the end with Dorothy and Trevor.

Now I have worked out where Charlie likes to perch and observe, I’ll be on the look out when I have the large format gear out as one perch is right beneath where my my tripod feet go!