Wild Orchid on Selsley Common

We drove up to Selsley Common early this afternoon to fly Helena's new kite. The weather was overcast and there seemed to be little wind at home so I suggested that Selsley might have better conditions. As it is on the Cotswold escarpment and overlooks the Severn Vale the winds usually blow up the Severn estuary all the way from the Atlantic Ocean. Unfortunately when we got there what little breeze there was seemed to be coming down in the opposite direction from the north.

Having finally worked out how to prepare the kite, which is of the stunt variety, and its various lines ,every attempt to launch it came back to earth rather too easily. So we deferred the launch flight until another day and reverted to our cameras. The light was rather dull and the views a bit distant. There were cows resting in the long grass which we approached, whilst swifts swooped high and low and abundant skylarks both sang and flew up high in the air and down again to land in the long grass singing all the while.

We wandered off in different directions to look for pictures. Helena came to where I was standing and said she had found a wild orchid for which this common is renowned. I attached my recently purchased macro lens and lay in the grass and tried to work out how best to film this pretty flower. A tripod would have helped as would a bit more light, but I'm pleased to be able to see some detail in such a relatively small flower. I definitely have a lot to learn about macro work, as well as all the other forms of photography. Yesterday I was watching online tutorials about multiple flash set-ups with radio transmitters and got rather boggled, again. I must keep trying.