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Portrait of a Lady

"Portrait of a Lady" is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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We all have plans for the future and one of mine is to create a galley of portraits of all the cats I've loved and adored. With that in mind, I take any opportunity my cats present me with, waiting for the right moment to capture the perfect "portrait" - which, let's face it, can take a while with cats that constantly roll and yawn!

This week Ella decided she'd pose for me - giving me the opportunity to snap a handful of shots, the following two included. My dilemma now is to pick one of these two to be framed - something that's proving to be a hard task!

What are your thoughts? Can you decide which "Portrait of a Lady" you'd enlarge and frame as part of a gallery of kitty portraits?




To view thumbnails of all of my Camera Critter posts, visit the GritFX website.

Happy Huskie

"Happy Huskie" is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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It's hard to believe that it's been over a month since my last camera critter post! After a very busy month, I now have some time to blog again... and that makes me smile like this happy Huskie :)



To view thumbnails of all of my Camera Critter posts, visit the GritFX website.

Bird Life (Part 2)

"Bird Life (Part 2)" is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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As promised last week, here is Bird Life (Part 2).



To view thumbnails of all of my Camera Critter posts, visit the GritFX website.

Bird Life

"Bird Life" is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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Birds. What a life. Oh, to have that kind of freedom...

Here's some footage I shot of different Aussie birds flying, eating and doing their birdy thing in my garden and surrounds.



Next week: Bird Life Part 2

To view thumbnails of all of my Camera Critter posts, visit the GritFX website.

Sibling Love...

"Sibling Love..." is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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I've been a little quiet on the blogosphere, which is partly due to my poor boy being sick...

Jonesy, being the BIG boy that he is, will defend his and Ella's territory (along with tiny Ella herself) with vigour when it comes to nasty strays! Don't get me wrong... I know you can find a great companion in a stray/rescued cat - both Jonesy & Ella are rescued cats - but there are the occasional strays that have gone too long alone in the wild and are just outright feral!

We have one hanging around here right now. While defending the territory a little over a week ago, Jonesy had a massive fight - letting out screeches that woke me from my sleep. The next day he didn't seem himself and by that afternoon was groaning when touched. Straight to the vet we went, where we discovered that he was in fact very sick with a terrible infection!

Anyone who has nursed a sick animal would know that "medicine time" can be just as distressing to the owner as it is to the pet. But Jonesy did great with his course of antibiotics - he's an old hat at taking pills now... poor guy's been through a lot in his life!

Getting to this weeks' camera critter pictures...
With that all behind us - Jonesy is doing great! - I thought I'd honour this "sibling love" with a series of photos of Jonesy with his baby sister Ella. These were taken on a nice spring day when the birds where flying in and out of that tree they lie in front of ;)





P.S. I wish it was spring again... as we enter into winter it's getting colder and colder! At least I might have a chance to get some shots of the kids in front of a winter fire to share with you all. ;)

To view thumbnails of all of my Camera Critter posts, visit the GritFX website.

Theodore...

"Theodore..." is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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Here's some footage I slapped together of my in-laws' dog "Teddy". Footage was shot a few years ago on rural acreage in northern News South Wales (Australia) - I love how the little guy is watching the sunset at the end. Hope you enjoy this brief little film.

Candy... How Sweet She Is!

"Candy... How Sweet She Is!" is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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Meet Candy, my parents cat. This weeks camera critters photo shows Candy in one of her "comfort zones" - the sink in the main bedroom ensuite where she feels secure in the presence of unwanted visitors - like my sisters dogs!! You'd think she'd find a more comfortable place to bed down - right?

And yes, I've manipulated the image... here is the original for curious visitors...

Golden Oldies...

"Golden Oldies..." is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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I've been so busy this week that I didn't even think about my camera, let alone pick it up and snap some photos.

Therefore, this weeks camera critter post is a selection of critter photos taken on various occasions - before digital cameras. On each occasion, I had to capture what I saw with one frame of film... the cows took off on a stampede; the spider ran into the darkness; and the pelicans and gulls dispersed incredibly quickly.

Meet the Neighbours...

"Meet the Neighbours..." is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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With all the trees that surround us, we hear these neighbours more than we see them. This week when we saw they were up at the fence, Dave & I took the opportunity to take some photos. They were more than happy to smile for the camera...

Who Says All Elephants Have Great Memories?

"Who Says All Elephants Have Great Memories?" is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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While having an Easter lunch with my family today, my brother shared some photos of the Bangkok Elephant Campaign which he initiated & conceived to bring attention to the treatment of the elephants in Bangkok. The messages in the murals were written by Jasun Vare (my brother), with each concept developed with Jasun's creative partner Scott Hitchcock, who is also a street artist.

Various artists from around the world (Japan, Australia, Sweden, Thailand, Malaysia, England) came on board producing what I think is an amazing set of artworks; which communicate a poignant message.

The campaign has been supported by WSPA (World Society for Protection of Animals) along with the elephant nature park and rescue foundation.

My kudos to all of those involved!!

Click on each image and take a closer look...

I Am The Lizard King!

"I Am The Lizard King!" is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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So there he was. Basking in the sunlight, a typical garden skink, no more than twenty centimetres in length. I ran inside to get the camera and when I got back to the garden, he hadn’t moved. But I only had one chance to take a shot – as soon as the shutter stirred the little lizard scurried away into the bushes.

Jonesy, my oldest cat, sat nearby the whole time, watching me in bewilderment. It wasn’t until the skink moved after I took the photograph that Jonesy finally realised what was going on. He leapt into the garden and spent the next two hours fossicking for the lizard. He never caught it.



Later, I returned outside and found Jonesy asleep in the garden bed. He seemed exhausted. I keep telling him to let the ecology do its thing – that all little creatures have a purpose. But he just can’t help himself with those lizards.



Click on the image for a larger version.

Happy Days!!

"Happy Days!" is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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For anyone who read my Camera Critter post "Fare ye well, young Frederick…" you will know about Fred and how we had to surrender him to the RSPCA. I have missed the little guy immensely. However, the absolute positive result is watching Ella and Jonesy comfortable in their environment once again.

After a decent play, Jonesy has crashed out on the grass (he's the blur in the background), however Ella still wants to play and scans the garden beds for any sign of movement! I thought that this sight just had to be captured for posterity....



After a few shutter clicks, Jonesy became aware of the attention that Ella was apparently being showered with and slowly got to his feet and came over to me. At this point, David then demanded the camera to capture some beauty shots of our little "precious".




Click on the image for a larger version.

Happy St. Patricks Day!

"Happy St. Patricks Day!" is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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I know it's a little early...
However, in a few days a number of people across the globe with Irish heritage will be donning green in the name of St. Patricks Day. So for all of you, here is a little piece of green from Down Under!

These tiny frogs were photographed on Dave's parents farm, 500km north of Sydney. A number of them showed their little faces after a nice rainfall. They were tiny, around the size of your thumb. I only had a standard lens with me, and this was pre-digital. I imagine the results would be a great deal better if I were to shoot them today, armed with my digital SLR. I still think that they are good enough to share in celebration of St. Pats. Day.

Before I leave you, I'd like to give a "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" shout out to one of our loyal readers (Shea) to pass onto his daughter - whose birthday is on St Patricks Day!!


Click on the image for a larger version.

Fare ye well, young Frederick…

"Fare ye well, young Frederick" is this week's "Camera Critters" post. If you want to participate, click on the image above.

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For the last three months, a stray cat has been loitering around the studio. Being out in a rural area, I see stray cats from time to time, mostly feral and scavenging for food. But this little guy, affectionately named “Fred” (or “Freddy” or “Frederick” or “Federico” – however the mood struck me), was recognisably different from the rest. He didn’t seem as mangy as the standard feral and my suspicion was that he was dumped out here as a young kitten and forced to fend for himself.

He was quickly shown the lay of the land by our oldest cat, Jonesy. This lad is a big puss, and even though he is incredibly generous with his territory, Jonesy still likes to make it clear who is the boss. So Fred never became hostile towards my two cats because of his fracas with the Jones, and settled into a mutually considerate existence on the back deck. But whilst he may have been friendly with Jonesy, my little girl Ella never cared for Fred and would avoid any areas where he lay. I also think that perhaps Jonesy was merely tolerating Fred…

It took me some time to arrive at the point where Fred would trust me enough to allow me to handle him. When I finally did, the affection he displayed towards a simple stroke of the back was extremely touching. He had obviously never felt the kind hand of a human. Soon though, he became exceedingly demanding, clawing at the back door for his breakfast and dinner. I think he learnt some bad habits from Jonesy!

To cut a long story short, I had to make a tough decision and surrender him to the RSPCA. The bottom line was that Jonesy and Ella have a special bond that was disrupted by the introduction of Fred, and my consideration had to lie with my two beloved babies. Since Fred departed last week, Ella has been much happier and she and Jonesy have begun to play again – something they hadn’t really done during the past three months. Hopefully, Fred will find a new home with loving ‘parents’ who will give him all the affection he craves.


Click on the image for a larger version.