DAN FORDER WILDLIFE

Here's my attempt at photographing today's partial solar eclipse with a budget DIY solar filter, taken through a brief gap in the cloud at 11.35... Partial Solar Eclipse, 10/06/2021, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, UK. To take the photo I just used my Nikon D500 with Sigma 150-600 DG OS HSM Sport handheld with 2 layers of mylar survival space blanket from Wilkos tied over the front of the lens. These were the settings for this best result I could get with the above equipment: f/9 (where my copy sharpest) 1/160 sec ISO-50 Focal length C.570mm

I was a bit surprised to see this 1st Summer (?!) ARCTIC TERN feeding a couple of hundred yards from my flat at Watermead last night, especially in June - this is very unseasonal as the Artic Terns that do wander inland should be moving through north between end of April & beginning of May, but making it even more unusual is the fact that 1st year birds usually don't migrate north from their wintering grounds, & are rarely seen in Europe. 1st Summer ARCTIC TERN, Watermead, Bucks, 07/06/21 1st Summer ARCTIC TERN, Watermead, Bucks, 07/06/21 It was feeding far out on the large lake from 19.55 at least, until 21.25, when it circled-up very high, until only just visible as a dot to the naked eye, then headed off slowly S/SSE. 1st Summer ARCTIC TERN, Watermead, Bucks, 07/06/21 Although the light was very nice, it was tricky to photograph, especially at distance - the light was actually not that bright with the sun just dipping behind the tree-tops, so with such an active bird I n