Dark and Light

Did I ever mention how much I like chocolate? Well, let's just say it's quite a bit as long as it's the good stuff. I like both light and dark chocolate as I think both types have their own unique taste, both are delicious in their own way. That's pretty much how I feel about these photographs I recently took in the Forest of Dean. There was a part of the woods I visited that were light and airy, and then there was another part that was dark, deep and secretive.

I tried to capture both of these feelings in the photographs, the open airy and bright fresh feel as well as the dark and mysterious. So, which do you prefer? (Chocolate and the photographs!).

Sun Burst

I took advantage of the recent sunny weather to indulge in some photography just for the sake of it. I headed over to the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire as I heard that the bluebells were coming out early this year. Alas the pretty flowers had not yet bloomed but while I was there I was very much taken by the sun streaming through the trees. So I turned my camera into the sun and started shooting.

Sun Burst - You really have to click on this to see it in all it's glory.

Regular readers of this blog will know that I love to turn the camera into the sun and let it flare in the lens. I wanted to capture the dreamy, other-world feel of the woods that day, as if something from a fairy tale might be among the trees. Doing this helped capture the feel I was after. I like the effect of the golden glow and rainbow refraction of the light from the many layers in the camera lens. When the sun streams through something like branches it is also possible to get a great star-burst effect from the sun light. When I took this particular photo I knew I had captured a goodie. I have already had one enquiry for a print for a wall picture and so I am thinking of also adding this to my forthcoming fine art collection. I hope you like it too.

Mist again.

I always have a camera of some sort on me. As a photographer I never switch off and I never know when I will see a great picture that I want to capture. So, when I took my dog for a walk this last weekend I took my Fujifilm X10 with me. It's lighter and more portable than my Canon 5D and lenses and so I often grab it when I go out.

The beach was thick with mist rolling in from the sea in a different sort of lazy wave. Though there seemed to be quite a few people around from the number of cars in the car park, the beach seemed empty as you could not see far into the distance. Every now and again some people and their dog would emerge from the mist like ghostly figures and disappear again as they passed by.  The mist did not deter my little retriever from his favourite game of fetch and I couldn't help but capture a few shots of him running around in the mist, an indistinct little shadow enjoying himself.

I'm very pleased with this particular photograph and gave it a vintage feel to exaggerate the mistiness. I'm currently working on a fine art collection and I am thinking of adding this one to it. What do you think?

Life's a Beach

This photo was taken on a recent visit to a nearby sandy beach which is popular with dog walkers. Henry, my puppy (featured in an earlier post) loves, loves, LOVES going there and running along the wet sand - even on a cold winter's day. It was the first place he was allowed to run 'off lead' and he loves sniffing at the seaweed washed up on the tide.

The beach was cold and on this day and there was a freezing wind coming in off the sea, so fellow dog walkers were wrapped up warm. Even so, the wind blew straight through to the bones. I took a few photographs until my fingers became numb. I loved this one of man and dog enjoying some quality time together. I used my favourite technique of shooting into the sun to capture some lens flare and throw the subjects into slight silhouette with just a tad of detail.

Sunflare

When I was first given a camera as a kid of about 11 or 12 years old, I was told not to take photos into the sun. Now I do it often and I must admit, digital photography helps you do this successfully as you can check the exposure and results immediately. Taking photos into the sun is useful for portraits as your subject is not squinting because the sun is their eyes (it's behind them!) and it can also give a great halo effect from back lighting them. Sometimes though, I just like to use the flare effect from the sun on the camera lens as part of the photograph. The rainbow effect can really add to an otherwise ordinary scene.

During the last snow I set off with my camera to capture some snowy scenes. I was walking through a wooded area and turned to see this scene (click on it to see it larger):

I was struck by the effect of the sun shining through the snowy branches and before I knew what I was doing I had raised my camera to my eye and was taking the photo. No filters were used and the star shaped flare of the sun is exactly as I saw it on the day. It has become one of my favourite captures. 

Let it Snow...

I love the snow. It makes everything so beautiful and brings with it a peaceful hush, except for the crunching of your feet as you walk. It is therefore a great disappointment to me, that thus far it has been an elusive commodity in these parts of the UK. There was not a White Christmas here but actually rather a grey and damp one, which also made it tricky to get out and about with my camera in tow. The cold I can cope with (even when my fingers get so cold I can't feel them anymore as they did when I took these photos of snowy scenes), but my camera and I detest the wet.

These photos were taken in December 2010, in Tintern, South Wales. I got there early before the snow on the branches and twigs could thaw and it looked like a winter wonderland. I was a very happy bunny, especially as there was a cosy hostelry nearby where I got a hot drink and sat near a real fire to thaw my fingers! I am still hoping for snow this winter but in the meantime I hope you had a wonderful Christmas / Holidays and wish you all  the very best for the New Year.

Tiptoe Through the Bluebells

 The main reason I take photographs is that I love doing it. Plain and simple. I enjoy capturing that moment in time before it is gone forever. I enjoy producing something that is beautiful to look at and that others will enjoy as well as myself. I like the creative process, from deciding on the subject, or location and how it will look, through to choosing the correct kit, taking the photo and uploading it to the computer for post processing. 

 With Easter out of the way and some time to myself I decided to take a trip to the woods and photograph the bluebells. The Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire is home to some of the finest bluebell woods and this year they adorned the forest floor in abundance, stretching as far as the eye could see, into the trees. I found and followed a narrow path through the flowers and happily strolled and snapped away the afternoon.There was not another soul in sight and so I just had the birds and squirrels for company.

I always take along a waterproof backed blanket on trips like these. I have learnt from experience that my penchant for getting down low, often on my tummy, can get me a little mucky and often damp. It was while I was getting low for one of the shots that I found my ankle being assaulted by a wood ant. Apparently I was on it's route and it was letting me know. I quickly retreated before more rushed to it's cause!

I chose to use my 17-40mm wide angle lens for these shots and used minimal post processing afterwards as I like to get things right in camera as much as possible. Hope you like the three photos I have shared here. There are more on my Facebook Page. Just search for 'Imaginography' and why not like the page while you're there too? Thanks! : )