As I pulled back the curtains last Sunday morning, grateful for the extra hour in bed, it seemed I was not the only one!

Clearly visible in the daylight, not one, as before, (see earlier blog post) but two Barn Owls, eyes closed snoozing away the morning. I ran upstairs to our son's room, which is virtually opposite their wall hole, and captured this amazing image.

I'd love them to be one male and one female. They can then be affectionately known as 'Robin' and 'Virginia' after our guests who spotted we had an Owl the week before. Anyone reading this who knows anything about Owl gender please let us know! (Quite liking the idea of an Owl called 'Robin'!).

GH

Maybe not the yellow shiny clinkety, clinkety stuff, but Arran can enrich the soul and deliver countless wealth in visual spectacle, day after day, all year round.

One of our first memories of Arran, from a visit in the autumn of 1998, is of jaw dropping panoramic rainbows which seemed to be everywhere and anywhere you turned. The late season's weather rarely remains constant, certainly in our corner of the island, and dramatic sky and seascapes are sure to be a part of your stay here on Arran.

We had been hearing strange 'rasping' noises outside our barn for a week or two, usually around dusk. I had been meaning to go and take a look, but it was our guests in Green Brae who pointed out that we had an Owl in residence!

The next evening I set up camera/tripod/flash with the longest lens I had available (300mm), pre-focused on the hole - where I was told it appeared from - and waited . . . 

As the light fell I started to see a blurred shape emerging from behind the rock. With still just enough ambient light available, the view through my lens revealed the character you see here and, as he/she(?) peered out I capture this image.

A moment or two later and the Owl moved forward and took flight from the barn, a picture I missed.  As it circled above in the still clear azure twilight, a silhouette of outstretched wings, I felt so privileged to witness such a creature for the first time. 

With virtually no light left to see by and, as I had moved the camera no chance to focus again on the hole, I thought I caught the presence of another shape. A second Owl? But more of that later!

Walk on Blackwaterfoot beach and each time something will be different.

The light.

Intense and low; above Kintyre, amongst Kintyre, long shadow, no shadow?

The sea.

In, out, crashing, loud, alive and joyful, or still as stillness itself?

The sand.

Rippled, smooth, wet, dry; foot-printed, bird-printed, hoof-printed; sand-castled and dappled with coloured seaweed . . or . . not?

The sky.

Azure blue, burnt orange; rain-bowed and clouded, dark as night, fresh as day?

You cannot be bored on the beach.

GH.

Earlier today there was talk on Twitter of the International Space Station (ISS) passing over the UK. I asked @VirtualAstro if there was a likely sighting up here on the Isle of Arran and the answer was a definite yes! Information showed the craft would pass by in the south west just after 8 o'clock.

Having never witnessed the ISS before and not knowing what to expect, I grabbed camera and tripod shortly before 8pm. Pointing roughly in the right direction with the edge of our barn in the frame, I did a couple of test shots and decided on the camera setting you can see below.

It would have been nice to have caught the trace of the light as it started over the buildings, but not knowing what I was looking for meant the realisation took me by surprise. I hit the camera shutter and held it down for what must have been at least a minute and then again for a further minute. This double shot meant a 'merge' in Photoshop and a slight gap in the continuation of the bright line.

Great to see and to capture.

Camera Setting of DSLR:

Speed: ISO 400
Aperture: f8
Shutter:  open on 'bulb' (b)
Focus:  on infinity

GH.