Down to the woods

Our Photo Soc does occasional bits of volunteer photography for the local Wildlife Trust.  They'd asked us to come to an Easter holiday 'wild play' event today, in Ecclesall Woods. The aim was to capture some candid images of families taking part for the Trust to use in publicity materials; Trust staff dealt with all the necessary consents etc, leaving the two of us free to concentrate on the photography.
We were so lucky - this continuing spell of dry, sunny weather made for a lovely morning. Scarlett, the Trust staff member leading the event, was impeccably well-organised. She took everyone through a good sequence, in a clearing away from the main woodland pathways. First, talking about camouflage and then decorating paper headbands with leaves, twigs and moss; then building dens and using netting for camouflage; then making seed bombs; then finding minibeasts and looking at them under magnification. Finally everyone helped to put things away, dismantling the dens and returning the clearing to its natural state.
It was an object lesson in how to run a two hour event that was both absorbing and rather soothing, with its gentle pace. Everyone took part, even a little group of boys - similar to Eben's age - who had looked a bit sceptical to start with. As the morning wore on, you could see children peeling off in ones and twos sometimes, for a little while - engrossed in exploring, or sometimes just daydreaming.
I haven't included any close-up images of the children themselves, as the consent was strictly for Wildlife Trust publicity uses. In the extra you can see Scarlett guiding part of the group across a little stream, on the way to the clearing.