Beach replenishment...

Pipes that will carry sand onto the beach at Bournemouth, Dorset were
delivered before sunrise today. The sand, part of the beach replenishment
program, will be dredged up from east of the Isle of Wight at a licensed
location, and then pumped ashore. This process, weather permitting, will
begin on Wednesday 13th December, and should be completed by the end
of January 2007.

© 2006 

Standing by the river...

Today, I took delivery of a Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 lens. It's an optic that
I've had my eye on for some time, mainly for its ability to deliver very
shallow depth-of-field. It arrived at 7:20 am, and forty minutes later
I was prowling the banks of the river Stour, Dorset, looking for suitable
subjects to point my lens at.
The image is of Teasels, photographed just downstream from Throop weir.

© 2006 

Into the storm...

There was heavy rain before dawn in Dorset this morning, but the cloud had
broken enough by first light to entice me to get my camera bag and venture down by
the seaside. It's been raining here for the best part of a week, although
not continiously; mostly heavy showers, and although the rain threatened
to start again at any moment it held off long enough to get some dramatic
images with dawn light.
The image of Boscombe pier was made just before the heavens opened
up again, but by now I had the shots I was after.

© 2006

Cold start...

The clear skies over southern England gave way to crisp dawn light,
but despite this there was no frost, so the images I had in mind as I
left the house at 6:30am did not materialise, and the macro lens
stayed in the bag. The image, shot at Hengistbury head, Dorset was
made shortly after 8am today using a 300mm telephoto lens.

© 2006

Remembrance day...

An old lady reads the cards on the wreaths and crosses laid at the
Cenotaph, Bournemouth, after the Remembrance day
service.
Despite the fact that people were there to remember those who
made the ultimate sacrifice, there was a man remonstrating with
police about the lack of nearby parking space for his motorcycle,
and how he had to walk further than usual to attend because roads
were closed off for security reasons. It makes you wonder.

© 2006

Wick fields...

Fog was present along the Dorset coast at dawn today, so an early
start beckoned. This time of year can throw a whole variety of
weather conditions at the photographer, and it is wasteful not
to take advantage of what nature brings.
The image was made on Wick Fields between Hengistbury head
and the river Stour at Christchurch. Although shot in colour, the
mist mutes the hues to give a monochromatic feel.

© 2006

Autumn frost...

Southern England has been enjoying high atmospheric pressure
conditions this week, which has resulted in the first frosts of the
autumn. The image was made early this morning at Hengistbury
Head, Dorset, and has been manipulated in Photoshop.

© 2006

Hengistbury head....

With the hours of daylight dwindling rapidly each day, and the sun lower in the
sky, the light just gets better all the time. The image was made  an
hour after sunrise today, looking toward the headland of Hengistbury head.
The site is internationally known for its Iron Age settlement and double-dyke 
defense system. Originally some distance inland, it became surrounded by
water when the sea broke through the chalk ridge between the
Needles on the Isle of Wight and Old Harry rocks on the Isle of Purbeck some
10,000 years ago (just before lunch).

© 2006

Honeycomb Chine...

The image shows early signs of the development of Honeycomb chine,
near Boscombe pier. The car park in the left foreground is being dug
up in preparation for the building of apartments and penthouses.
The artificial surfing reef plans were approved by the council last month,
but is not expected to be ready until autumn 2007, with the shops,
restaurants and other facilities due for completion in the summer of 2008.

© 2006

The last day of September...

Overnight heavy rain made way to early morning light for
this image of Boscombe pier. There is evidence of the
beginning of the re-development of the area, with the removal
of beach huts in front of Honeycomb chine, and the car park
is now out of commission. Talking to surfers, the opinion is that
the surf reef will be started next year, but as yet there is no
sign of work on the pier.

© 2006

Morning rush hour...

Today I decided on a change of pace and visited Christchurch
harbour, Dorset. Apart from the ducks, the place was deserted,
and the early morning mist muffled any distant sounds of modern
life. As soon as the sun was above the horizon the mist began to
burn off.
The image was made at the same time as Monday morning rush
hour was in progress. I know where I'd rather be.

In memorial:
Today is the 26th anniversary of the death of Led Zeppelin's
drummer John Bonham.

© 2006

Surf's down...

At the time of writing, local beach staff are unable to confirm
a date for the start of the renovation of Boscombe pier and
surrounding area, although speculation is that it will be late
starting, and will cost twice the original estimate (so what's new?).
The image shows the pier today, viewed from the west during late
afternoon, on a falling tide.

© 2006

Early morning stroll...

At least I don't have to get out of bed in the middle of the night
at this time of year to get the dawn light. The image was made
at around 7:00am today, from Boscombe beach, Dorset. I got
just 10 minutes of light before the sun was obscured by clouds.
I asked beach staff about the re-development of the area, and
if it was running to schedule, but they didn't seem to know one way
or the other. Watch this space.

In memorial:
Today is the 36th anniversary of the death of Jimi Hendrix.

© 2006

Low tide at Poole harbour...

Today, there were particularly low tides along the south coast of
Dorset, the lowest being -0.1 at Mupe bay. Unfortunately, this
occured during the middle of the night and was therefore not
an ideal photographic subject. However, Poole harbour had its
low tide at around 6am, and with sunrise at around 6:35am, I
decided to target that location.
The image was shot at 7:08am facing west. In the
background is Branksea Castle, located on Brownsea island.
The island is where Baden Powell set up the first Scouting
encampment in 1907.

© 2006

Beach comber...

Early morning on Boscombe sea front, and the tractor is out raking
the beach in preparation for today's Lifeguard competition.
This scene won't be visible much longer, as the pier head is to
be demolished as part of a renovation project for the area, which is
due to start in the next month or so. The pier enterance, which dates
from 1958-60 will survive as it is now a Grade 2 listed building.
Also included in the project will be an artificial surf reef, reputed
to be the largest in Europe.

This blog will be used to visually document the re-development.

© 2006

 

Just around the corner...

The holiday season is all but over, and the kids are back to school...
autumn is just around the corner. Apart from the odd jogger and
dog walker, the beach and promenades on the coast of Dorset
are deserted during the early morning.
The image is of a promenade shelter on Boscombe beach, Dorset,
shot just after sunrise, with the pier in the background.

© 2006

The Red Arrows...

Today, at 1200 hrs the RAF team The Red Arrows
gave their annual display between Boscombe and Bournemouth
piers, Dorset. It was a typical demonstration that has given them
a world wide reputation that is second to none. Half of the display
features close formation aerobatic manoeurves, then they break
formation and start showing off.
© 2006

Harvest...

It's Harvest time here in Dorset, and the farmers are taking
full advantage of daylight to get the job done before the weather
breaks. Shot in late evening, the image shows a Combine Harvester
and Bailer at work on Kimmeridge Farm. 
© 2006

Jurassic coast...

As a prelude to (my) photographic season, I recently wandered
around the Isle of Purbeck, Dorset in the search of suitable
locations for the coming winter. The image here is of
Worbarrow Tout, part of the Jurassic Coast which now has the
status of a World Herritage site.

This view of the coast is only accessable from one route, and requires
a suitably low tide for access. At this time of year the sun still sets
inland, but come November-February it rises and sets at sea, creating
stunning lighting of the cliffs.
© 2006

Passiflora...

Today I decided to take a different approach to photography,
stuff a macro lens onto the front of my camera, and
hunt down some close-up images. Whilst I am no gardener
(to say the least), much to my surprise I found this specimen
in my garden, a Passionflower.

© 2006

On the Beach...

Not too much has happened on the photo front of late,
so I decided to get myself out early (5:15am) and
do something about it. The sunrise was fleeting in my
neck of the woods today, so I concentrated on details
found on my local beach. The image is of stacked beach
recliners.

© 2006 

Reflection # 8

A reflection makes an interesting image in its own right
without the need to reveal the subject that made it,
often producing an abstract far removed from the original.

The photograph above was made just before sunset on the
River Stour, Dorset.

© 2006

Rust...

The image is of the stern section of a long abandoned boat
that I came across whilst bumbling around on the shore
line of Poole harbour, Dorset. It's part of a 'dereliction'
set of images I have been assembling for my LRPS. 
© 2006

Mill pond...

A long over-due project has finally got under way. I've wanted
to start a reflections gallery for some time, but never seemed to
get around to it. I had made a start earlier this year while I was
still shooting on film, but the clowns at my local lab lost the film
(not for the first time, either). The image included here is of a
local water mill photographed in early evening.

As of Thurday evening the fault on my phone line has still not
been rectified by the Telecom company I subscribe to. I've
made 4 calls to them since Sunday, and each time they've promised
me "It will be corrected in the next 24 hours". Obviously they can't
count, except when it comes to sending out bills.

© 2006

Ah, normal service seems to be resumed...

16 weeks ago, my local beaches had 1.1million cubic metres
of sand dredged up and pumped ashore in a replenishment
program. Today, I see the sand being removed to allow 
maintenance of the Groynes. Why couldn't this work have been
performed before the pumping started and the woodwork
was already exposed? More burden on the tax payer, no doubt.
Local councils in action. You can't beat it, can you?

© 2006

Normal service will be resumed...

British Telecom (bless their cotton socks) inform me that there
is a fault on my line due to re-wiring, so my computer will
not hold an internet connection. This is preventing me from
making posts. They say it will be another 24 hours before
my phone stops barking at me. Why wasn't I informed that
this maintenance was going to take place? So long as they have
my money, eh?
  

The rural post box...

Surprisingly, despite the failure of my camera earlier this week, 
the images on the memory card survived.
The image of the rural post box was made at the start of an
ongoing project to record man-made artifacts of the countryside to which we barely give a second glance.

Location: Knowlton, Dorset
© 2006 

The saga ends...

Today, just 67 hours after I returned the said Nikon D200, I received a new replacement from the good people of Warehouse Express (www.warehouseexpress.com). This, in my opinion, is first class service. OK, the camera was only 3 weeks old, and they could have made me wait whilst a Nikon service centre gave it the 'once-over', but no, their response was immediate and effective.
In this day and age service like this deserves a mention.

So, the saga begins...

Three weeks to the day, it lasted. The camera has been returned via Royal Mail special delivery to the dealer at 2:35pm. Up to now, the e-mail I sent last night outlining the fault has still gone un-answered, so a brief phone call to the company clarified the procedure for the return. They say it could take up to three weeks before it's been checked by the manufacture, repaired if possible, or a replacement delivered.
The customer is always the one who suffers. Maybe buying on-line is not all that's it cracked up to be.

Daily Grind

Daily Grind
Modern technology in action. The new digital camera (no names mentioned, for now) failed on me yesterday evening after only 3 weeks use. It just decided it had had enough, and would not work. I'd resisted the change to digital photography all this time, certain that film was giving me all that I needed, but I succumbed. For the time that the camera worked I was pleased with the way it handled, and the results I was getting, but how can I trust the technology now? Digital SLR's are jam-packed with electronics, just waiting for the right moment to give up the ghost.
I'd used a Nikon F5 for 4 years in all kinds of conditions and it didn't falter once, gave great images and was built like the proverbial...So, it's back to film for the foreseeable future whilst it gets sorted out. Maybe I'll just return to photography the old fashioned way.

Not happy.

90 years on...

90th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme

© 2006

Standing in the rain...

The daily grind continues in The New Forest; this time standing around in the rain, waiting for Fallow Deer to put in an appearance. After a couple of hours they wander into view and I make the shot. There's still plenty of time to get images like this before they head off for the rutting season, which will be around the end of September. By then they'll have other things on their mind.
© 2006

Another day at the pond

Another trip to the New Forest. This time to Cadmans Pool. Tried to photograph the Canada Geese, but some buffoon kept encouraging his dog into the water which stressed the birds unnecessarily, particularly the ones who had young. Still, he was taking a string of calls and talking loudly on his mobile phone, so he must have been someone important.

Eventually I focused my attention to the Dragonflys at the waters edge, and managed to get this image of a Broad-bodied Chaser.
© 2006

Just starting out

Hi there,
Welcome to the Daily Grind. This is just the start. I am going to use this blog mainly for the posting of recent photographs on a short term basis, as opposed to my online portfolio which is more permanent (more of which later).

To start the ball rolling, I'm posting an example of the fruits of my patience with a shot made two days ago in the New Forest, Hampshire, UK.

(Please note; all images on this blog are owned by me, and may not be reproduced mechanically or electronically without my written permission).

Thank You.

© 2006