Sunset over Mudeford Quay
I live very near to this location so on a cold early evening I took my tripod, camera and a selection of ND filters to the edge of the Quayside.The tide was going out and moving at some pace so I put on an ND 10 filter to smooth out the fast flowing water together with an ND 4 graduated filter to control the sunset and bring some foreground detail out without needing to fix too much in the editing. At ISO 100 and f/22 an 8 second exposure did the trick.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO 100, 17mm, 0ev, f/22, 8.0s
A Touch of Spring
White Daffodil
This was taken back in Spring 2012 whilst I was shooting in a wood that has a great reputation for wild bluebells. It was growing wild but stood out for me as it seemed perfectly formed, flawless almost. It was also at the peak of it’s bloom and looking so proud.
By getting in close I was able to drop the background out of focus, and by exposing for the very bright petals it has created a background with zero distraction to the main subject.
It’s making me want Spring to come around again soon.
Canon 60D: EXIF ISO100, 85mm, 0ev, f/5,6, 1/50
Dolphin in Black and White
This is a re-edit of a photograph I published over a year ago. I’ve always loved this photo as I feel fortunate to have captured this beautiful creature in such favourable conditions – swimming wild in calm waters just a few miles off the coast of Vilamoura in Portugal.
My recent addiction to Black and White images prompted the re-edit and I like the results. Bearing in mind that most of his body is under water is a clue to just how calm the water was that day. I’d happily spend the rest of my days photographing wildlife like this.
Edited in Aperture 3. EXIF: ISO400, 90mm, 0ev, f/5.6, 1/1000
The Tree
This tree caught my eye as it made an imposing shape against a clear blue sky on a crispy Winter morning. Probably a more imposing figure in it’s glory days, it still made a shot worth taking. I didn’t have my DSLR with me on the day so my Samsung Galaxy S3 took the picture and I subsequently edited it in Aperture 3.
For what it’s worth the EXIF is: ISO80, 4mm, 0ev, f/2.6, 1/558
The location is the grounds of Wroxall Abbey, now a hotel but formerly the family country seat of Sir Christopher Wren – the most famous architect of St Paul’s Cathedral in London.
Focus on Black and White
I seem to have found myself editing into Black and White. I post regularly to Streamzoo and my content seems to show a journey from vivid colours, through experimentation with HDR to now being firmly settled in the world of monochrome.
I’m not complaining, maybe Black and White is now “my thing”. It certainly makes me think differently about the shots I take, knowing that that texture, light and composition have to be spot on to make the end result even remotely interesting. I also enjoy the editing, there just seem to be so many possibilities to take the image in any direction you choose.
So let’s see how long it lasts, but for now I’m sharing an old photograph but a favourite. This chap came back to life because I wanted to see what a monochrome version of the image would be like. He is currently my wallpaper on my iPad and has been for some time. Hope you like it too.
Edited in Aperture 3. ISO 100, 190mm, 0ev, f/7.1, 1/400
The Gherkin
This building is 180 metres tall and it’s official name is 30 St Mary Axe in London. The building gained it’s name before construction started due to it’s unorthodox appearance on the drawing board. Construction actually started in 2001 and completed in December 2003, officially opening in May 2004. Located on the former site of the Baltic Exchange the building dominates the surrounding area and is a significant feature of the City of London landscape.
Coliseum, Rome
Photographed by many and from every conceivable angle. So for this shot I decided to crop with the sky to the top left and then in the post edit to go with a high contrast black and white. The long exposure I used also helped tocreate the mysterious effect with the clouds and…….. hey presto!
To me this shot starts to capture the moody look I associate with an amphitheatre that has, after all, a pretty gory history.
Valencia Statue
This is a full height statue in the centre of old town Valencia, Spain. I zoomed in as the head was at an unusual juxtaposition to the body and this was the most interesting part. With some post editing to bring some detail out and to go high contrast black and white I think the end result is quite striking.
Tornado Bomber
Taken at the Bournemouth 2012 Air Festival this Tornado Bomber was one of two displaying an attack scenario providing air cover to troops under attack. I wanted to capture the moment the afterburners were fully lit and yet had to be careful that the heat did not create a haze over the photograph. The light was not great on the day and I was shooting at ISO 400.
EXIF: Canon 60D, Canon 70-300mm f/4 – 5.6, ISO400, 300mm, 0ev, f/9, 1/4000
Lily Stamen
It’s that time of year again when a Lily will make a good subject for a photograph. Lately I’ve been exploring macro photography a bit more and going through a steep learning curve with the different lenses I have been using. This shot started out as one of the whole of the flower but as I cropped in I noticed how interesting the sharp focused stamen were and with the background nicely thrown out of focus creating a cool background.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO200, 80mm, 0ev, f/5.6, 1/100
Sunset Refections
I went out during the evening golden hour and stayed out to see if there would be anything interesting to shoot at sunset. We had a lot of rain last week and this was the first dry day, but still stormy and cloudy. As I walked along the quay I noticed the reflection of the sunset and clouds in the wet sand of the harbour, it was low tide so there was very little water on the surface. I like this, it could have done with something in the foreground to create some interest but you can’t have everything.
EXIF: CANON 60D, ISO200, 85mm, 0ev, f/5.6, 1/4000
Ferrari Engine
I took this picture last year when travelling back through Rome airport. In the Ferrari shop they had a Formula 1 engine on display and I started zooming in to create some unusual shots. This was taken at f/5.6 but I was close enough to the subject that it created the isolation of the component that I was looking for.
EXIF: Canon 1000D, ISO100, 55mm, f/5.6, 1/60
Life’s a Beach
So, I was walking along Manly Beach with camera at the ready and watching out for people surfing that might make an interesting shot.
When I came across this surf rescue board carefully resting on it’s side with the waves in the background I felt this encapsulated all that was great about this place – safe and relaxing.
Manly Beach is a beautiful place and one where all your cares and worries melt away as soon as you step off the ferry. I thoroughly recommend it if you are visiting Sydney and if the choice is between Bondi or Manly then in my opinion there simply is no choice to be made.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO100, 300mm, 0ev, f/10, 1/125
Sydney Harbour Bridge in Monochrome
I walked over the Sydney Harbour bridge at dusk and whilst I was primarily taking the normal tourist snaps I was also determined to get something a bit more interesting that showed the amazing engineering of this structure. I think the light has worked well on this shot but the sweeping arch converging to a point in the distance gives the picture an interesting perspective. The bridge is not an easy place to shoot as the constant vibration from the traffic needs to be managed, tripods won’t work so a deep breath whilst waiting for the moment of quiet is the way to go – especially at 1/30th.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO100, 75mm, 0ev, f/5.6, 1/30
Sydney Opera House in Monochrome
I took so many pictures of the opera house and there are many that I like, but this close crop worked well and then I suddenly took it to monochrome and the detail in the surface came to life. I should use monochrome more often, note to self.
EXIF: Canon Powershot sx220 HS, ISO 1600, 5mm, 0ev, f/3.1, 1/25
Reflections in a Building
I saw this building catching the light and reflecting an adjacent building. I like the way the reflected image as distorted on the blue shaded glass. This was taken on my recent trip to Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO 100, 75mm, 0ev, f/5.6, 1/125
Lloyds of London from Leadenhall Pl.
This shot was taken from the rear of the building, Leadenhall Place. Out of all the shots I took in the “Square Mile” of London the Lloyds Building is still the one fascinating me in terms of photographic impact.
At the moment the building is undergoing some refurbishment so much of it has scaffolding – although some would say it would be hard to notice.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO100, 17mm, ev0, f/8, 1/500
Tower 42
The original name for Tower 42 was the National Westminster Tower, having been built to house the National Westminster Bank’s International Division.
The Tower is located at 25 Old Broad Street in the City of London. Opened in 1981 it was the tallest building in the United Kingdom until replaced by One Canada Square, Canary Wharf, in 1990. The title of tallest building will soon be taken by the Shard.
Today the building is home to multiple tenants and comprises office space and restaurants. Notably, Gary Rhodes has his Michelin starred Rhodes Twenty Four restaurant located not surprisingly on the 24th Floor.
I took this shot from what I thought was an interesting and unusual angle from directly below the building, this leaves off the the very distinctive top of the building but gives a different perspective to the iconic tower.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO 100, 53mm, 0ev, f/5.6, 1/640
Lloyds of London
I went into the City of London today to take pictures of some of the iconic architecture, specifically the newer office buildings. Lloyds Insurance building has a reputation as not being the prettiest of buildings but it sure is interesting.
The building was built between 1978 and 1986. It was considered innovative because the architect provided its services such as staircases, lifts, electrical power conduits and water pipes on the outside. This left an uncluttered space inside but the impact of the building was not to everyone’s taste with Prince Charles famously referring to it as a “monstrous carbuncle on the face of an old friend”.
The twelve glass lifts were the first of their kind in the UK.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO 100, 17mm, ev0, f/8, 1/100
Burnt Wood
This tree stump had been burnt and this emphasised the character of what was once the bark. I love how vivid the colours have worked on this, having tried a few black and white variants I am really pleased with the colour version.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO100, 85mm, 0ev, f/5.6, 1/50
Tree Trunk
Long dead but an interesting tree trunk from my visit to the New Forest today. I try to avoid portrait orientation usually, no particular reason, but the shape said I had to go there on this one.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO100, 85mm, 0ev, f/5.6, 1/60
Tree Roots, Part 2
This is a part of the tree root system shown earlier, roots grow in all sorts of interesting directions and are not often visible unless uprooted – as this tree was suddenly in a storm in the late eighties.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO 100, 75mm, 0ev, f/5.6,1/250
Tree Roots
These are the dried out roots of a fallen tree in the New Forest, Southern England. Many trees fell in storms twenty or more years back and I guess this was but one of them.
EXIF: Canon 60D, ISO 100, 73mm, 0ev, f/5.6, 1/40
Two Swans
It was as if I asked these two to pose for the camera, love the way they both look straight at me for this one.
Also the water droplets have been caught in the light nicely.
EXIF: ISO100|135mm|0ev|f7.1|1/500
