Winter Hues - Bradgate Park

Last Sunday (13th November 2011) I went over to Bradgate Park which is part of Charnwood Forest.  It covers 850 acres and the park lies between the villages of  Newtown Linford,  Ansty,  Cropston, Woodhouse Eaves and Swithland. It was a partly sunny, partly misty day which reflects in the images produced.

I went specifically to the Park to photograph the colours, shapes and forms of the trees and countryside - just before winter set in.  I took these with my Fuji Finepix S500 and am quite pleased with how they have turned out. 

This is just after the entrance (From Newtown Linford).  I wanted to capture the size and form of the trees and have used the people that are walking along as a guide to the height of the trees.

This picture just made me laugh - The bird appeared to be on guard and a 'bombing raid' party were on stand by for offenders!

This picture I love - It is clumps of moss growing on the roof  at the entrance gate to the church.  I like the shapes and the simplicity of the shot.

This is All Saints Church in Newtown Linford - at the start of the entrance to Bradgate Park.  I used the almost bare branches of the tree as a curtain - so that you appear to be peering through it to see the church behind.  It added more interest to the form and composition of the photo.

I saw these berries on a tree and they were quite away up.  I like the colours and shapes of them against the lines of the tree.

This was taken mid afternoon when the sun was partially hidden behind cloud - I particulary like the texture made with the water in the foreground.

This is a picture taken by Heather Angel. Below is my interpretation of her shot.

The shapes of the trees here along with the colours and the formation of the rock make this one of my favorite pictures of the day.

Bambi - Bradgate Park is a deer reserve.  This young fawn was blissfully eating his dinner. 

I was walking back to my car and saw this house - I liked the shapes and colours and the texture of the wall. 

A Red Squirrel hanging from the branches - Taken by Heather Angel.  I couldn't find a squirrel but I did find a Jackdaw and tried to emulate her picture.

I like the way this picture is in to halves with the orange of the wall and and the blue sky in the background/  There was a Blackbird (Jackdaw?) sitting in the tree, blending it with the shapes of the branches.

Another picture that I took deliberatly to use the sky and the ground to split the picture in half.  The focal point of the main part of the tree against the blue sky draws the eye into the picture then you see how the roots of the tree have formed round the rocks and blended into the landscape.

This was a point and shoot shot!  The stag came out of some bushes quite unexpectedly and I just point my camera in his direction and hoped for the best as I know that the shutter speed on my camera is not capable of capturing fast movement - So I was pleased that at least I got this :-)