Nature knows best...

There has been something of a drought here in Dorset, and I'm not talking about the water supply. I am referring to any sort of photographic output from me. It's not for the want of trying, I can tell you, but as the weather has stubbornly remained cold for the past week or so, nature - and all of its myriad colours - appears to have been put on hold.

I did try, earlier in the week, to photograph the blossoms emerging from a tree in my garden, but the results were poor and disappointing. Today I decide I can do a far better job and allocate an hour to do so.

I am using a macro lens to get in close, but using it at a wide aperture so as to blur the background sufficiently. I do love the pastel shades that result as they contribute so much to the overall pictorial effect.

It has recently come to my attention that the start of the season is now in dispute: the Met Office claiming it begins on 1st March, whilst traditionally it has always been around the start of the third week of that month (the equinox). I prefer nature to sort it out in its own sweet time.



105mm f/2.8 Sigma macro lens. 1/80th second at f/4. + 0.33 EV compensation. ISO 200. Tripod and remote release.


© 2013

To simply wait...

Not my usual practice; to go out searching for subjects to photograph without a camera, but this morning I did just that. A reconnaissance mission, if you like. I am keeping a close eye on certain areas that I know will sooner or later produce dazzling displays of spring, and this seems to be the quickest way since I am working locally. Daffodils are nearly in bloom - there is the odd one or two in full flower - but it's the crocuses in a nearby park that are starting to put on a show.

I return to my chosen site at around mid-day, but since I will be photographing my subjects in shadow (either natural, or created by me) it worries me not. The real problem is the breeze that almost constantly moves the flowers. There are those that will restrain the blooms with wires or other gadgets available to avoid subject blur when using small apertures and slow shutter speeds (unavoidable), but I prefer to simply wait until the wind momentarily dies down to get the shot. It always does.



105mm f/2.8D Sigma macro lens. 1/8th second at f/16.  - 0.33 EV compensation. ISO 400. Tripod and remote release.



© 2013

Tea and cake (day two)...

Day two of the Tea and Cake Tour, and Nic and I are off to Leeds Castle. Confusingly for some this fortification is not in Yorkshire, but a completely different Leeds, in Kent. All the same, somewhat more within reach, and possibly more interesting.

The initial entrance fee may at first seem a bit on the steep side, but once the ticket(s) are purchased it gives the holder repeated access for the next twelve months; something we intend to do, since the grounds are expansive, the castle itself quite large and the waterfowl and other birds too numerous to "do" in a single day (at least with any justice).

To get ourselves set-up for an afternoon's shooting we make a beeline for the restaurant to sample what is on offer. This time Nic has chocolate cake; I have the walnut, and all washed down with coffee.

The weather is turning out to be better than forecast (now there's a change), although the light is changeable and continues to do so due to the relatively quick moving, but broken cloud, so it is just a case of waiting for the right moment to get pleasing images of the castle and moat (above).

As with most (if not all) big, posh buildings and grounds such as this one, there are the usual attendant exotic birds, and the peacocks here seem more obliging than any other I have ever come across. Very likely because of the start of the mating season - when birds look their best to attract a mate - the several males that we found produced their impressive courting display almost to order for those toting cameras. We both got excellent photographs of this evolutionary wonder, made all the more vivid by the flat light we were now blessed with.

Leeds Castle is a beautiful location in England's South Eastern corner, and we look forward to returning throughout the coming year.



Top: 12-24mm f/4 Nikkor
Right: 85mm f/1.4 Nikkor



© 2013

Tea and cake (day one)...

A change is as good as as rest, and Canterbury, Kent, was the location chosen by my friend Nic for a day out eating cake, drinking tea and taking photographs. After our arrival the first stop was Chambers for coffee and cake, just to get the ball rolling, followed by a casual roam around the town. Although Canterbury has a very famous cathedral it is barely visible from within the town itself, and we decided against visiting it this time around (there is a £9.50 entrance fee during most of the day), and concentrated on the more accessible locations.

The steel mask (right) - made up of numerous smaller plates welded together and entitled "Buckethead" - stands next to the Marlowe Theatre, and was the first subject to draw my attention.

After that came lunch at Boho on the high street (Goat cheese chiabatta and chips with salad, and Earl Grey tea) and more walking.

The building that was the most interesting to me was 28 Palace Street, known as Crooked House (amongst other names) and its precarious lean. I was intrigued by the way the door had been specially cut to allow for the lop-sidedness of the Tudor building. The inscription above it reads: "...a very old house bulging out over the road...leaning forward, trying to see who was passing on the narrow pavement below..." Charles Dickens, 1849

The trad jazz band, playing an impromptu session, it would seem, next to the old medieval Westgate, demonstrates the spirit of the town and its creativity (remember the prog-rock and avant-guard jazz scene and the "Canterbury Sound" of the late 1960s and early 70s?). Whatever good cause they were trying to raise money for - very possibly themselves - it was a delight to witness something of such a high standard being played in the street, and for free. Of course, I added a contribution after taking numerous shots (this is what you do, folks), and we even got a visit from what appeared to be the mayor.
Note: The trombone player was playing a red plastic instrument, although without seeing it I doubt you would have known the difference. Talent will out, as the saying goes.

All this was polished-off with afternoon tea at Tiny Tim's Tearoom, where you will not find a finer example of Lemon, or Sticky Ginger cake (the latter, for me, and with ice cream), anywhere on the planet. The Earl Grey was also top notch. Pricy, but worth every penny.


All images: 24-70mm f/2.8 AF-S Nikkor



© 2013

Brick wall with graffiti...

There are occasions - when I look back through the archives - that I wonder just what made me fire the shutter in the first place. There are subjects that clearly attracted my attention in that moment and I took the shot, but having revisited it I try to see what was going through my head at the time; the very reason for framing and focusing, and why the photograph no longer works once seen on the screen after the fact. The emotional connection is strong at the time but has become lost soon after, and the file languishes on a storage hard drive, forgotten.

I'm not sure if this one such example, but I saw this brick wall two days ago in passing, and although I had my camera with me at the time I didn't photograph it. However, I did intend to return in better light (it was overcast then as it was today).

 I am drawn to the patterns and decay of the brickwork, as well as the graffiti and electrical cable, but other than that what else is there? It's not a stunning landscape; nor a fascinating aspect of wildlife behaviour or a portrayal of human achievement, but it does tell a story, and that in itself is a valid argument to make the exposure.



50mm f/1.8 AF Nikkor. 1/100 second at f/5.6.  - 0.67 EV compensation. ISO 640



© 2013

I spy...

I had recently noticed that the tree at the bottom of my garden was producing buds, but it was whilst I was watching a song thrush at the bird feeder today that I became aware of emerging pink flowers. This is roughly a month in advance of the usual display of blossoms on this particular species, and although there was only one fully open flower that I could see (and too high up to get at), it is still early.

Fortunately, it is an overcast and windless day, so getting sharp, low contrast images was not difficult. It was still risky though, as the low light of a late winter's afternoon was forcing me to use slow shutter speeds for the aperture I wanted. A tripod and remote release did the rest.



105mm f/2.8D Sigma macro lens. 1/15 second at f/6.3.  - 0.67 EV compensation. ISO 400. Tripod and remote release. Mirror lock up



© 2013

Lost and found...

A dull day's shooting, to be honest, but spiced-up with two lengthy conversations with total strangers: the first about fishing and photography; the second about starlings and photography. In between all that I did come across this scene on the seafront at Boscombe, Dorset.

From what I can see, some kind soul had placed two lost items in a conspicuous place on the promenade, giving the original owner(s) the opportunity to see, and reclaim their property. Unfortunately, both were the worse for wear; the phone having been subjected to sea water whilst the pen merely lost on the sandy beach. Neither seemed as they would ever perform to their original spec again.

After taking the shots it made me wonder just how long these two everyday items would have remained there for me to discover, had they been in serviceable condition.

24-70mm f/2.8G AF-S Nikkor. 1/1000 second at f/2.8.  - 0.67 EV compensation. ISO 400. Monopod



© 2013

Backlit buds...

I had the idea for today's shoot some time late last night, but unfortunately the daffodils that were to be my subject had still not grown high enough for the effect I was after. Undeterred, I pressed on and took a number of images of the soon-to-be-open buds from various angles.

Nothing much was coming together with frontal or side lighting (the former rarely a good idea) until I pointed the lens into the light and photographed them back lit. This approach allowed the translucency of the folded petals to create the picture.

During the session it snowed for the third time that I was aware of during the day. Merely light flurries, and nothing at all significant, but just a reminder that although spring is beginning to show its colours we are far from out of the woods as far as winter is concerned. Mind you, I have known it to snow in the area in mid-April on the Dorset coast, 1999 being the last occasion.



300mm f/2.8 AF-S VR Nikkor with TC-14E converter. 1/125 second at  f/11 - 0.33 EV compensation. ISO 200. Monopod and remote release. Mirror lock-up.



© 2013

Sticking it out for all the right reasons...

I nearly missed this shot. Up until that point I had been more or less haphazardly snapping various cloud formations all afternoon - none of which were particularly interesting; none of which were inspiring. I know the images will get deleted during the first edit, but I continue anyway.

By 4.30pm I had almost resigned myself to not getting anything at all as the thick grey clouds rolled in from the north west, but since there was still another half hour before sunset I allowed experience work in my favour, and I decided to stick it out.

I was right. While there is light there is still a chance, and as the cloud bank parted I was treated to spectacular variations of light and colour and I start to make photographs with some purpose.




24-70mm f/2.8G AF-S Nikkor. 1/1000 second at f/8. ISO 400. Monopod.



© 2013

How long?...

Yesterday's "crocus shoot" was something of a failure. I am not a macro photographer (or more accurately, a photomacrographer), but  I am able to produce the occasional close-up image when required. The main problem is getting fully prepared to shoot in the field, with the right aids to make a potentially difficult scenario run much smoother. Wind and subject movement is the main bugbear when photographing small flowers at higher magnifications outside, and it was this that plagued many of the shots I took. I got one or two sharp shots, but the composition let it all down. Not to worry. It is still early in the season, and therefore I get second chance (at least).

So, for the time being it is back to patrolling the seafront. The pier project that I started working on last year still hasn't got off the ground - more likely an ongoing thing that a cut and dried exercise - so I concentrate on the light itself. It is a very flat day all round: Quite mild for the time of year; no wind and very little colour. In fact, because of the nature of the light I decide in advance that all images will be converted to monochrome when I get back in front of a computer. A no brainer, really.

Post processing in Photoshop, and the removal of the colour information in the file makes surprisingly little difference to the finished article. I do, however, decide to artificially tone the photographs for a warmer effect. In this case the simulation of a platinotype print (platinum print), with delicate but full range of tones. Real platinum prints have a life expectancy of several thousand years, assuming they are stored correctly and safely. I wonder how long this image will remain on internet servers?



24-70mm f/2.8G AF-S Nikkor. 1/1000 second at f/8.  - 0.33 EV compensation. ISO 200


© 2013