reporter Colin Wright                                                   

    Our last indoor talk at the old Weston Longville Village Hall was given by Norfolk based artist, and Society member, Steve Cale. Steve started drawing birds when he was a voluntary warden at Minsmere some 18 years ago when his original idea was that if he sketched a bird it would help him remember the details. In a fascinating talk we were shown how he initiates a field sketch. Using only a 2B pencil and a shaped rubber we were taken stage by stage through a drawing of a Little Ringed Plover. He started by drawing with an arrangement of rectangular boxes to approximate the shape and pose of the bird. Various vertical and horizontal datum lines were then added and we watched as a technical drawing was transformed into the rounded outline of the bird. Emphasising the importance of detailed observation, particularly noting where the light falls on the subject, a few zigzag lines were added to delineate the feathers and the lightest and simplest of pencil lines used to represent feathers in the wind and reflections in the water. It all looked very easy (until I tried it at home). Continue reading →

Thursday 21st October

Apologies for those who turned up to Weston Longville Village Hall for a talk on Birds of the Isle of Man. Unfortunately Chris Sharpe was indisposed at the 11th hour but we managed to get Chris Mills, birdwatcher, ringer, photographer and tour guide to talk about a birding trip to Oman and the United Arab Emirates. Continue reading →

Warden Jed Andrews and assistant warden Sophie Barker, from the Holme Bird Observatory, were our guest speakers in a ‘two for the price of one’ night.  First Sophie talked about trapping and recording moths.  We learnt that there are over

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