A few photos taken in July and August of swallows in Dorset. Our recently installed upgraded electricity cables are ridiculously large, but at least they provide a solid perch for the birds. The adult swallows shown are followed by a young trainee swallow nabbing a passing insect; and some cute fledglings including one (penultimate) who decides to call for its food the easy way – and the compliant parent… 
ROLLING HARBOUR GALLERY 
yes wow is the word – what size of lens were you using here to get such detail RH
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Hi Scott, many thanks. I’ve just got a basic Lumix FZ45 bridge camera, which has the advantage of a Leica lens and a good zoom (24 / 32). I have an extension lens for it which increases the zoom a bit but can’t be adjusted like a normal zoom lens. Basically it’s the lens quality though. I bought a more expensive version of this camera, but it turned out not to have the Leica lens so bird shots in particular were ‘soft’… as I discovered on my return from a trip with it. I sold it again and went back to the old camera!
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Great photographs! Swallows are great birds to have near the house to watch. I think I am fond of them because they will nest and roost in proximity to human habitation which I take as a very friendly gesture. We did not have any swallows nesting near us this year, unfortunately. Amelia
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We are so lucky to get them every year, and more than usual this summer (but fewer house martins). Although we had fledglings, I never found a nest in the outbuildings. But now it’s ‘farewell’ until April.
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