Inquisitive Cygnet

Hum, today has not been fantastic for photography...
I went to Mount Pond this morning because I felt like I hadn't seen the birds for ages! It was early and dark, so I didn't hold out much hope for fine photographic conditions. ISO400 and I still couldn't use fast enough shutter speeds for the shots I wanted. Meh.
I took a few snaps and had a nice amble (and stroked one of the cygnets on the wing!). I resolved to return later to get a swan pic...

I returned in the early afternoon, and it was both very grey and raining. It looked slightly brighter at least; I chose ISO400 (the highest I'll go with my camera's hot pixel problem) and still couldn't achieve shutter speeds fast enough for the photos I wanted. MEH!
I've taken too many pictures of the swans today to reject them all, so here is my least dissatisfactory cygnet shot. They're quite curious characters: if I crouch by the edge near them, they tend to come over to have a closer look at me.

I was out all day yesterday, but have now back blipped a picture of my nephew trying to break the sound barrier... It was an unsuccessful attempt, but an amusing zoomy picture.

p.s. The angle, in this case, was because I was mimicking the cygnet somewhat... I think its patchy plumage is beautiful and accentuates their shape and features: take a look at its wings in large ("L").

Merry Christmas!