I started bird watching at the age of 7, ‘With an Observers Book of Birds’ and an old pair of ex-army issue 8×30 binoculars. I first started watching the birds in my back garden: but gradually, my interest started to gain momentum.

I grew up in Manchester. My formative years from the age of 7 until I was 19 were spent visiting some of the premier spots in the North West of England. These sites included: Tatton Park, Rostherene Mere, Sandbach Flashes, New Brighton, the Ribble Estuary and family holidays to North Wales.

However, membership of Manchester Ornithological Society and Heald Green Naturalist Society opened the doors to such hallowed places such as: Cley, Spurn, Holy Island, Slimbridge and the RSPB reserve at Leighton Moss.

After teaching training college, I got married and moved to Pickering, North Yorkshire. This was an excellent base to explore some of the premier birding sites in the north-east of Yorkshire which included: Filey Brigg, Flamborough Head, Bempton Cliffs, Blacktoft Sands and the forests and moorlands which were just a short drive from my home.

Then came opportunities for foreign travel with trips to: Spain, Mallorca, Portugal, the Canary Islands, Cyprus, Lesvos, the Bahamas, the United States, India, Egypt, Oman, Dubai and I spent 9 years  living and working in Qatar. My birding had now taken on a whole new dimension: birds I had only dreamed of were suddenly there in front of me to observe.

With any project that you undertake, there are always people who help you on the way and this website is no exception. I would like to say a massive thank you to the following people, because without your help a lot of these images would not have been taken

In Qatar: Gordon Saunders, Gavin Farnell, Simon Tull, Jolynn van Duffelen, Dave Sanders and Neil Morris. In South Africa: Gert Claassen and Verity Cherry at Nhongo Safaris. Pickering Bird Group: Alf, Martyn, Graham and Steve. A big thank you to Steve Axiotes at Fluid Media UK and Alistair O’Sullivan at Diony Digital Marketing for designing the site and offering your help and advice. Lastly, but most importantly, my lovely wife Gill for her patience and brilliant bird spotting abilities as we have gone on our journeys together.