Toby Houlton was speaker at the Friends of Rye Harbour Nature Reserve meeting last Saturday, March 18. He presented a selection of his wildlife images which captured moments of amazing beauty and drama and demonstrated his real professional quality. Many of the shots were taken around Castle Water very early in the morning. Using a makeshift hide and exercising extreme patience, he managed to take close-ups of his subjects.
His commentary was so entertaining that we doubted his assertion that this was his first public presentation of his work, although he has previously entered photographic competitions.
After the interval, the scene switched to Toby’s suburban garden in Hastings, where he had created effectively an outdoor studio, with key features such as a small pond to attract wildlife. Again, we saw some incredible images, such as the one just visible on the screen in the photo of a blue tit being seen off a teazle by a hungry goldfinch.
Photos: Kenneth Bird and Toby Houlton