We have always had flooding as we live in a valley where two rivers join, so it's no big deal having lived here for over 70 years. The main problem now is since the Tonbridge flood barrier was installed after the 1968 biggest one in living memory it comes up within 12 hours when they shut it. Now in their wisdom they are putting an extra metre on it this year !
I am a certified scuba diver so I should be able to survive.

What a wonderful video Eric, it may have been very frustrating for you, but for me, it was simply brilliant.
It's funny but we all love to see butterflies, but as to where they come from, the caterpillar we detest them, munching away on our home grown produce, that also is just as frustrating. I don't think I have seen such beautifully coloured caterpillars, the ones we see in the back garden all seem to be green with no noticeable markings at all.

I really enjoyed your video Eric and can imagine your frustration as you tried to time the emergence. Very nice closeup work.

I enjoyed that Eric, really well filmed and sorry that you missed the great event.  It's a different concept waiting for ages for something to happen and I get too impatient, mostly I get the camera all secured/exposed/focused and suddenly a gale force ten suddenly appears on cue !
Close up work is not the easiest to do outside and mostly the professionals tend to have a mock up in the studio with perfect lighting etc so I also admire your video from the technical side.
Obviously we won't be having caterpillars and butterflies for some while over this side so the only things worth filming close up at the moment are the crocuses and snowdrops on the lawn that have started to grow in the last week.
On a technical note did you just use the zoom lens or did you use any close up lenses on the filter ring ? I have tried both over the years but can never decide what is best.   

Yes I have the ability to control the Panasonic from my phone that is a bonus, especially the zoom that is super smooth when on a decent tripod. I to have an old close up lens set left over from from my stills days that happen to be the same diameter for the Panasonic but too small for the Sony, OK I can use them on it but I don't see the point in cropping in post. Something else that I picked up years ago that I still use, is a clockwork tripod mount panning device that is brilliant that will revolve a full 360 deg.
I never throw anything away much to Sue's dismay !

Eric I disagree as it's very easy to use, I use my Samsung phone that I bought on eBay for £25 and the App cost nothing. You can see what you are filming on a bigger screen and start/stop/ zoom/replay and control other things on the camera while sitting in a chair having a coffee or a beer. I need a bit of comfort in my dotage so I don't think that is ridiculous ?
Both of my old SD900 Panasonics have a remote but they have limited controls and no screen so you have to be  close to the camera to see what's going on. They stopped making them probably because they realized that they would have to make a remote with a screen and were on a hiding to nothing, as a phone (that most of us have) has got it already to go.

Just a bit of fun, I actually wanted it to last longer but the battery went flat !   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wL7LE65OwxE

I was just giving it a try as these ones are out of the wind and possible rain and I can leave the camera there for hours. This could have been better as I wanted to leave it running for another hour or so to get all the flowers fully open, however as I  said the battery went flat !!! If I do it again I will use my external power pack.

In the 1960's I did an Old Time Music Hall in which I did an impersonation of the old artist Gus Elen singing "it's a great big shame",  a while ago I attempted to lip sync the old Audio tapes of that show to an old film of Gus Elen, I nearly got it right

https://youtu.be/uhBFX0mdD6E

PS Alan Clark was my Stage Name

Hi Alan thanks for joining in, I used to sync a lot of my 8mm & S8 films up all those years ago, and I did then go on to buy a S8 sound camera that I used until I went to the first actual "video" with all the clumsy heavy equipment back in the day. The latest generation of camcorders and editing equipment that we have now are so good that it is quite possible to make a decent film (in broadcast quality) that people would go and actually watch, without being pressganged into the "Baby On The Lawn" epics that a lot of people made (but some still do) !!
Now of course a humble mobile phone "can now produce" amazing footage.

Not really a gadget person, I operate with just a camcorder, no extra lens', but I do have a spare battery about my person when going out into the field, so to speak. The spare battery came in useful last Monday when we visited Anglesey Abbey in Cambridgeshire.

Hope you enjoy the five minute video https://youtu.be/UkPc-ON4BSA

Thanks Albert.  Nice looking weather.  Have you taken us there before?  Your pans appear to be getting smoother.  Some shots have a white wall or building in the background.  What's that?

I thought of you this morning when the gadget that is an important part of life nowadays (my mobile phone) blared out with a loud noise - Presidential Alert. We don't actually have a President.  Anyway it was another warning on Cyclone Gabrielle which is bearing down on us and already causing problems in Northland.