West Kirby At Night

Just one picture for today's post and it is the last one from my Sunday evening visit to West Kirby marine lake. This was a 6 second exposure and I wanted to cut down the ripples and also highlight the illuminated edge of the pontoon. I like the reflection of the waterfront apartments too.

The lights on the horizon to the left are from shipping anchored out in Liverpool Bay waiting for the tide to turn before heading in to port to unload their cargoes from the far corners of the world.

Across The Lake

 As I write this I am supposed to be in the New Forest, one of my absolute favourite places, for a well earned week away enjoying lots of walks and lots of photo opportunities. However, thanks to the Liverpool region going into Tier 3 lockdown I had to shelve my plans and find some other way to amuse myself.

Yesterday evening I went for a short walk along the waterfront at West Kirby and since there wasn't even the slightest breeze the surface of the marine lake was mirror calm. I didn't have my camera with me at the time so I determined that if the weather held I would pop back this evening to try some long exposure shots. Although there was a slight breeze creating the slightest movement in the water it was still nice and calm so I managed to get some pretty good images.

Here are a couple of shots looking across the lake to Hilbre Island.

In the first image I have used the small buoy to create a little foreground interest and I have adjusted the contrast to bring out the detail in the sky.

The next two images are the same shot but with different treatment. I do think it works well as a black and white image but I think I prefer the pastel tones in the colour image.

Venetian Sunrise #1

So from the title of today's blog you might have been expecting to see the sun coming up above St Marks Basilica or some other Venetian Landmark but if you have seen the post from yesterday you may have been prepared for these more abstract views.

Just like yesterday's images these show the sunlit reflections of Venetian buildings in the surface of the canals. The sun was still low in the sky so the reflections weren't washed out. With the naked eye and given the rapid movement of the water the light was glinting brightly and the reflections seemed more complete but by freezing the image and looking a bit more closely all of these intricate and unique patterns appear. 

I am really really pleased with these pictures because they are so unique.

Feel free to leave a comment.

At Rest

Canon 24mm - 105mm 1:4 L

ISO100   75mm  f/22   1/125 sec

ISO 100  65mm  f/22   1/15 sec

Two more sunset on the beach images for today's post.  This is a different boat for tonight and I really like the colours in these pictures and the angle at which the boat is leaning against its mooring rope. As with yesterday the reflections are really cool and the colours are rich and warm.

Doxey Pool

Here is another shot from my day out at The Roaches in Staffordshire. I originally posted this picture in June 2016 but looking back at that image I think it looks a bit flat so I have reworked it to bring out the qualities that I saw on the day.

I like the reflections of the rocks and cotton grass in the pool, I love the shape of the rocks as they lean lazily away from the viewer and I like the layers of cloud that bring the image together.

I really like this image and I am glad that I have revisited it and brought out the best in it.

Snow Capped

I really really love this picture. I had pulled into a little car park alongside Derwent Water to eat my lunch and looking back I saw this magnificent view. I took a number of shots from slightly different vantage points and I watched this cloud slowly moving towards me across the lake.

I love the colours in the sky and in the reflections, I love the pristine snow on the slopes of Skiddaw and I love the way the cloud appears to hang so low in the sky giving a great sense of perspective to the overall image. 

I am especially pleased to have captured this image because as I clicked the shutter first time nothing happened, my memory card was full and unusually for me I didn't have a spare with me. I almost decided that my day's photography was at an end but determined to capture what is one of the best shots of the day I scrolled through my card and deleted a number of images I had taken earlier in the day. I think you will agree that was a good decision. I think you can also see why, like so many other people I am so drawn to the Lake District and why I always have my camera with me.

Clearly Reflected

An early start on Saturday meant that I got to witness a truly beautiful sunrise and the lighting for these pictures was absolutely perfect. In the shade of the stable block there was no breeze to disturb the surface of the water and so the reflections of the trees, buildings and clouds are flawless. Another bonus due to the early start was that I had the place almost entirely to myself and without the masses of visitors who would arrive later in the day I was able to get these undisturbed shots.

Skiddaw from Derwent Water

I was up fairly early after a cold night under the stars and got down to the shores of Derwent Water before the crowds arrived and before the sun got too high in the sky. I think it was well worth it too because the view was stunning and I was able to get some nice undisturbed shots ( I wasn't so lucky later in the day at Castlerigg but that's another story).

When I arrived here there was another photographer setting up his gear. He really was committed to his art as he had his tripod set up in the water and he was dressed in waders so he could get the perfect angle for the shot. With the blues sky, thesnowy capped peaks of Skidaw reflected in the cold lake and the highly varnished lake cruiser being prepared for its days work I think there was a perfect combination for a stunning image.

I wasn't as well prepared (at least not to get wet) as my fellow photographer but I was equally as committed. To get this shot I needed to go out onto a jetty into the lake. It was closed off and there were signs warning against using the jetty as it was under repair. I wasn't going to let that stop me though and decided that it was worth the risk if I could get a great shot.

In my opinion the risk paid off, what do you think? 

Cool Blue

On Saturday I posted an almost identical view to this but in black and white. I think it is a great shot but I can't decide whether I prefer the colour or the black and white image so I would like to know what you think, please leave a comment below or on the facebook page to say which is your favourite.

Abstract Sculpture

So I am home again, I have actually been home for 5 days but I have had so many things to do I haven't had time to get back to my blog.

As you can imagine my trip to Canada provided so many great photo opportunities and I have over 1600 images to review. I could so easily have taken more and on the long drive across country I saw so many things that I wanted to capture but just didn't have the time. I hope to go back in the future and I have a few ideas of photo projects that I would like to do but that is for the future and here in the present I have some great pictures to share. 

I was able to see so much wildlife and some great scenery so deciding where to start was quite tough. 

I could have begun at the beginning and worked through each day but I don't think that sort of linear approach will work since there is such variety to the pictures I have and so I will be mixing things up.

So for today's image I have chosen a shot of some abstract artwork by the marina in Thunder Bay, Ontario which was the main base for the trip. This shot was taken in the early hours, just before sunrise and you can see the lightening sky reflected in the silvery globes. If you look closely you can also see me in the top and middle sections but fortunately given the lighting that doesn't detract from the image.

Reflections On Llyn Llydaw

The first of today's pictures was taken from the spot where I had camped in 2012, it is a lovely view across the lake and is a really tranquil scene.

The next two images were taken from different vantage points around the lake with some lovely clear reflections.

The pictures show how changeable the conditions were with the clouds moving quite quickly across the tops of the mountains yet the surface of the lake remained calm.