Tea and cake (day two)...

Day two of the Tea and Cake Tour, and Nic and I are off to Leeds Castle. Confusingly for some this fortification is not in Yorkshire, but a completely different Leeds, in Kent. All the same, somewhat more within reach, and possibly more interesting.

The initial entrance fee may at first seem a bit on the steep side, but once the ticket(s) are purchased it gives the holder repeated access for the next twelve months; something we intend to do, since the grounds are expansive, the castle itself quite large and the waterfowl and other birds too numerous to "do" in a single day (at least with any justice).

To get ourselves set-up for an afternoon's shooting we make a beeline for the restaurant to sample what is on offer. This time Nic has chocolate cake; I have the walnut, and all washed down with coffee.

The weather is turning out to be better than forecast (now there's a change), although the light is changeable and continues to do so due to the relatively quick moving, but broken cloud, so it is just a case of waiting for the right moment to get pleasing images of the castle and moat (above).

As with most (if not all) big, posh buildings and grounds such as this one, there are the usual attendant exotic birds, and the peacocks here seem more obliging than any other I have ever come across. Very likely because of the start of the mating season - when birds look their best to attract a mate - the several males that we found produced their impressive courting display almost to order for those toting cameras. We both got excellent photographs of this evolutionary wonder, made all the more vivid by the flat light we were now blessed with.

Leeds Castle is a beautiful location in England's South Eastern corner, and we look forward to returning throughout the coming year.



Top: 12-24mm f/4 Nikkor
Right: 85mm f/1.4 Nikkor



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