Tools of the Trade - the winners
Latest winners. the December theme was 'tools of the trade' which is one of the categories that is more open to interpretation and the photos of the tools you use were all great images capturing work in the countryside. Once again it was another tricky decision but we all agreed the wonderful landscape of Glen Affric complete with tree planting tools by Sandy Davidson was our favourite, as Carla says, "it certainly beats the average office environment"
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| summer's day tree planting by Sandy Davidson. December winner. |
Sandy says: "The photo was taken in a remote part of Glen Affric where I was working as part of a team planting new native woodland. Typically, winter is the season for tree planting but, by using cell-grown stock, the season can be extended into the summer months. Working on high ground with poor soils we look for 'micro sites' in which to plant appropriate species and ensure that the right tree goes in the right place. This often means we plant in clumps and scattered groups, following patches of better soil, and avoiding areas of deep peat. The result is a more natural-looking woodland such as can be seen on the hillside on the left hand side of the image. The image shows the basic tools required for the job - a planting bag for carrying trees, and a trusty spade for planting them."
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| Standard path building tools by Mark O'Brien |
Full size image is on our website.
Sandy has won a subscription to OS maps and Mark has a runners up prize of a CJS subscription.
January's competition has the suggested them of Seasons and the prizes is a copy of the wonderful British Wildlife Photography Awards collection 10 books.
Although we were unanimous in our choice of winner we had to give special mention to this photo from Mark O'Brien who says: "while on the Isle of Tamera on the North West coast of Scotland, I was working on some path building work around one of the old buildings and started my day assessing the tools". It made us all smile - after all a sense of humour is one of the most important 'tools' for anyone planning a careers in the great outdoors!