So, having gone beyond the suburbs this morning, I came back to a long wander around our area and a little more time in the garden.

The first point of reference once more was the stream on the way to the station. When I went past this morning, at a rush, no time for a photo, the female mallard was sitting in the same spot as yesterday, wings held slightly drooped, clearly with young underneath them, so I set off happily. But when I got back there was no sign of her. As we have a thriving population of urban foxes, which are very partial to duck and duckling, I thought the worst. However, learning from past experience, I went to the other side of the stream and could just about see, if I crouched down and squinted, this little lot:

The camera gave me a slightly better view, and I think there are 7 or 8.

Tomorrow’s challenge is to actually manage a shot of these little ones which is in focus. Which brings me to the second question I’ve been mulling over today: what are pictures for?

These past 9 days, when I have been consciously trying to take pictures to illustrate the blog, have proven beyond doubt what I already really knew, that wildlife photographers require immense technical skill with their cameras and related equipment, detailed knowledge of the wildlife they are trying to photograph, and boundless patience. A good dose of luck also seems to help.

As I have none of these skills or attributes, apart from, occasionally, luck, is it worth even trying to take my own pictures, or should I use stock images from free access sites? There is no doubt that they would be technically better.

But the answer to that question seems to come down to why the pictures are in the blog in the first place. I want you to have an impression of what I have seen seeing and a glimpse of how it has made me feel. I’m not trying to teach anyone anything, but to share my experience. However rough these pictures, they remind me of a moment which gave me a great rush of pleasure. And, on that basis, I think they add something, even when, as here, they are technically awful.

But I will still try again tomorrow – just in case it’s my lucky day!