tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8802206289996500659.post2461656091082470167..comments2024-03-27T13:34:10.184+00:00Comments on NORTH DOWNS & BEYOND: Guiding lightsSteve Galehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09459545933323958452noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8802206289996500659.post-39949961251334783952016-04-29T21:22:56.824+01:002016-04-29T21:22:56.824+01:00Hienzel Fitter and Parslow was my first field guid...Hienzel Fitter and Parslow was my first field guide too. Until the Collins came along it was unbeatable.Jonathan Lethbridgehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12791327377479687655noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8802206289996500659.post-20301744194036207252016-04-29T08:32:48.652+01:002016-04-29T08:32:48.652+01:00Those early, wonderful, carefree days, eh Stewart....Those early, wonderful, carefree days, eh Stewart....Steve Galehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09459545933323958452noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8802206289996500659.post-85181779753227157572016-04-29T08:32:02.441+01:002016-04-29T08:32:02.441+01:00That's one of the frustrations of birding Ric!...That's one of the frustrations of birding Ric!Steve Galehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09459545933323958452noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8802206289996500659.post-65349172059008147762016-04-28T23:21:55.191+01:002016-04-28T23:21:55.191+01:00Hienzel Fitter and Parslow was my first. First edi...Hienzel Fitter and Parslow was my first. First edition in, I think, 72? aged 8, I read it all, cover to cover. Can you imagine how boring that would be! It was £1.50. I had never seen pictures like it, and I just wanted to see everything :)Stewarthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01985665182124985194noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8802206289996500659.post-58011812589188564882016-04-27T18:34:48.801+01:002016-04-27T18:34:48.801+01:00I love field guides, it's just a shame my eyes...I love field guides, it's just a shame my eyes don't match the ability in the field the way they do on paper.Richttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02714117508358025668noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8802206289996500659.post-29474908336074669192016-04-27T16:40:04.139+01:002016-04-27T16:40:04.139+01:00Thank you for your comments. A Field Guide means m...Thank you for your comments. A Field Guide means more to most of us than just a 'book to look up birds in' it would seem.Steve Galehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09459545933323958452noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8802206289996500659.post-38721681313134803432016-04-26T21:16:39.333+01:002016-04-26T21:16:39.333+01:00when I got mugged a way back when I was equally up...when I got mugged a way back when I was equally upset about losing my Collins (mk 1) as I was my bins. I had backup optics but no second copy of the book. This was rectified the following day!Jonathan Lethbridgehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12791327377479687655noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8802206289996500659.post-29807721746037061772016-04-26T20:33:39.956+01:002016-04-26T20:33:39.956+01:00Hi Steve, this got me thinking, and I managed to ...Hi Steve, this got me thinking, and I managed to dig out my copy of the Collins THE BIRDS OF BRITAIN AND EUROPE,WITH AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST ,cost £1.50 in 1972 !,I don,t have any of the others though.<br /><br />Laurencelaurence.dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18150037681026689740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8802206289996500659.post-80417453126470167942016-04-26T10:54:27.406+01:002016-04-26T10:54:27.406+01:00It wasn’t until about 10 years ago that I began to...It wasn’t until about 10 years ago that I began to discover my real passions in life, birding and the natural world being one of them. I jumped straight in to the Collins guide and had no idea of its ancestry. Thoroughly enjoyed your recollections, Steve! Particularly loved the line, “[t]he illustration in the book had become real life, and I couldn't quite believe it”. You know you’re alive when you experience that spontaneous sense of recognition and wonder!Lucy @ A Natural Interludehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10239907920826512177noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8802206289996500659.post-59429017744635822132016-04-26T10:05:34.770+01:002016-04-26T10:05:34.770+01:00I still think that the 1954 Field Guide takes some...I still think that the 1954 Field Guide takes some beating, although the colour reproductions in later reprints were a bit off. One book that you haven't mentioned which I've always thought was pretty special, was The Macmillan Field Guide to Bird Identification, fantastic for those birds that look very similar. I can't really see how any new book can come up with anything new, there's only so many ways that you can portray a bird.<br />As for modern methods, well I guess they're hard for some of us oldies to accept as necessary, we've already got people wandering around with bird song lures on phones, etc., but time moves on.Derek Faulknerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05140363868104172311noreply@blogger.com