Falling Sideways

I have had a couple of good days out with my camera in the past week and got some lovely shots of a mix of different subjects on and around the marine lake in West Kirby, and also along the beach on my walk back home. I have some wildlife shots, some landscape and sunrise shots as well as a few random images of stuff that caught my eye and that I figured I could do something creative with.

In my last post I shared a few pictures from the first day and I now have loads more to sort through and share. I wasn't sure what to post today however I settled on the two images below. A couple of abstract images of a waterfall, actually the sluice overflow that allows the lake to drain without constantly overtopping the path around it. I have flipped the images counter clockwise through 90 degrees creating a very pleasing effect with the stream of water flowing sideways rather than falling down as it actually was. I used different exposures and I have made some adjustments (white balance, shadows etc) in lightroom to create contrasting images from effectively the same scene.

Falling sideways is an apt title for this post because that is what the images show. It is also a reference to the fact that I took a tumble on the walk home. I lost my footing on the path because I was distracted by a group of people doing some conservation work on the dunes and I wasn't looking where I was going. I landed quite heavily, and must have looked quite a sight as I clattered to the ground. One person came rushing to offer assistance and after checking that I was OK one of his fellows quipped "never mind are you OK how is your camera?" As  dusted myself down I admit that was actually my first priority. Fortunately it is fine.

As I walked the rest of the way home (about 1.5 miles) I could feel myself stiffen up and although I dismissed the idea of getting someone to come and pick me up (I probably should have done) I used the time  on the rest of the walk to ponder the question "did I fall over, or did I have a fall?" It is a funny thing that young people "fall over"  but when an older person takes a tumble they're said to have "had a fall". Does "having a fall" refer to the act of falling itself or is it a indication of perhaps more serious consequences of falling when an older person is the one who falls that is what it seems to imply to me. I can't pretend I am as young as I like to believe I am, and certainly I feel more fragile after this incident even though I have suffered only bruises, a few lingering aches and pains and a degree of embarrassment. I am also aware that in the past I would have laughed, bounced back up and not even given this event a second thought. Nevertheless despite the creeping of the years I will not be deterred, next week I am starting horse riding lessons. Oh yes! wish me luck.

For now enjoy these images and look out for more in my next post... 

In the Spotlight

 I took lots of photos of people round and about the city while I was in Venice. Some good and others not so good and I had selected a handful to share today. However I thought that this image deserved a post of its own.

I think it was a bit of a lucky shot if I am honest, I had been walking along a narrow side street following this gentleman and another younger man (not in a stalker sense, just they were walking ahead of me) and I hoped to capture a shot of them silhouetted at the end of the street but one turned right to peer through a gateway and this chap turned left and waited for his friend. I think the shot was a little under exposed but I have been able to do some basic editing to bring out what I wanted to see in the image. I am super happy with this shot with the effect of the highlights and shadows. Although it is a very simple image I think it is really good. 

Inside the Basilica

 

The other day I shared some shots of the floor in the basilica of Santa Maria della Salute and today I have treated you to some shots of some of the detail in the Basilica San Giorgio Maggiore.

Firstly we have some of the intricate carvings on the seats around the chancel, with angels, cherubs and lions. I have shot these in black and white, save for one image which shows the richness of the wood.

The final two images are of the floor and while the design is not so intricate as the floor in the basilica de Santa Maria della Salute it is a beautiful floor nonetheless. I think the angles I have used in these images really show it off at its best. 

I actually think that they are good enough for a post of their own but I have so many images from Venice to post  I decided to combine them with the carvings as two examples of the exquisite craftsmanship of the renaissance builders.

Great White (Egret not Shark)

 I had pretty much given up on my visit to Burton Mere yesterday. I had managed a few shots of geese in flight and I had watched a pair of Marsh Harriers flying off over the reed bed but there was not much else within range to photograph. To cap it all I twisted my ankle and had decided to call it a day.

On the walk back to the car park I stopped briefly at one of the screens where I had seen a Little Grebe and a Great White Egret before. The grebe was on show but with the sun directly in front of me all I could get was a silhouette. Then this egret flew down and started fishing close enough that I could get a few pictures. I watched as it caught several fish and I managed to get several good shots of it with wings extended, fish in its beak or just stood poised regally with one eye watching for its next catch. I actually took over 100 images while I was watching so it was a good end to what had otherwise been a disappointing trip.

The images above are variations on just one shot, the penultimate shot of the day.

Obviously the first one is rotated through 90 degrees and I have converted it to black and white. I have cropped it slightly to centre the image and I have added a slight vignette. I am always on the lookout for heart shapes in nature and when I took the original photo I knew that I would be able to create the above image and I am super happy with the result.

The other pictures are, as I say from the same shot, they have been given slightly different edits but apart from the change to black and white for one and the addition of the vignette there is very little change to the actual raw data.

Lac d'Annecy

 On my road trip after leaving Florence I drove through Pisa, I saw the leaning tower but did not stop to explore the town as time on this leg was tight. There was an interesting drive along the Ligurian coast and then inland via some exciting mountain roads to  a small town called Casale Monferrato in Alessandria, on the banks of the River Po where I stayed overnight. It was a lovely town but for some reason the only photos I took were using  my mobile phone and I don't have any to hand to share on here.

From there I drove to Courmayeur and then through the Mont Blanc Tunnel to Chamonix and then on to Lac d'Annecy where I stayed in a lodge on the edge of the lake just a few metres from the jetty in the images above.

This was in June 2018, in Italy the summer was in full swing and it had been hot and sunny the whole time. In fact apart from the thunderstorm and landslide outside of Dresden early on in the trip the weather had been nothing but hot. So it was a bit of a shock to the system arriving in Annecy where it was cold, and overcast. It was a welcome respite for my son however as he had caught a little too much sun in the preceding days so he welcomed the cooler conditions.

The town of Annecy is very picturesque and is a popular destination for French holiday makers all year round, for the lake in summer and the ski slopes nearby in the winter. 

These shots were taken in the early evening and as the clouds rolled in it was very atmospheric, albeit quite chilly.

Cool Metallic Reflection

Firstly, I know I said in my last post that I would share some pictures from inside the Museum of Liverpool, specifically I was going to show some pictures of the cool curves of the spiral stairway, however when I looked at the images this morning I wasn't convinced I liked them enough to share so I have decided to go with something different.

The images above are almost identical except for the fact that one is in full colour and the other is monochrome. The exposure and contrast are slightly different in each image too.

The buildings in this image are along the Strand in Liverpool overlooking Kings Dock. There was a thin film of ice on the water which the bright sun had not managed to melt. The sun reflecting off the side of one of the buildings gives the water a metallic quality which I think is really nice.

I hadn't noticed at the time I took the pictures but the pillars supporting the building in the centre of the shot are much like the pillars which support power station cooling towers.

 

Pontoon

Here are a few more shots of the marine lake after dark, these were long exposures to smooth out the ripples in the surface of the lake. It also brought out the detail in the sky and reflections that otherwise would have been missed.

Uprising

Here are the final few smoky blue images from last weekend's lockdown photo session.

I like all these images but the second is my favourite which I have actually rotated through 90 degrees. 

I think that there is something of the northern lights about these although perhaps the colours are wrong for that.

I don't know about you but when I look at the third picture I can see the profile of a face

Cool Blue

Two more smokey blue images.

The first of these images is cropped and rotated clockwise through 90 degrees and I think it works really well.

I still have a few more of these to share and will do so in the coming days although I may break things up with some splashes of spring colour from my garden, come back tomorrow to see what I pick...

Drip Drop

These are the last few of my water droplet images for now, I will try some more another day.

For the colour in these shots I  used Vimto in the first two switching to red food colouring in the last two. I wasn't sure how this would work out because the colour is so concentrated and as you can see it very quickly dispersed in the cold water.

I think they create some interesting effects.

Lockdown Fun

Although I still have lots of pictures I could sort through and share from past shoots I thought that today I would try something I have never tried before and I am really pleased with the results.

For these shots I used my 100mm macro lens and my ring flash and I set up a mini studio on my dining table with two small spotlights to add extra highlights. I hadn't really used the flash properly before so my first challenge was working out how to synchronise the flash so I could use a fast shutter speed (1/1250ms to 1/2000ms). Once I got that sorted I used a medicine syringe to drop water into a bowl filled to the brim. It was a case of trial and error to get the droplets in the right spot and to fire the shutter at the right time.

I was able to create a lot of interesting effects; I will share a few more over the next few days but for today enjoy these. I think they are really cool!

Jump Off

I had mixed feelings about this group of lads, I was impressed by their skills and the confidence with they pulled off their tricks in the centre of Vienna however their disregard for pedestrians was less impressive. 

Anyway I took advantage of the situation and snapped a few shots...

Red Gazania

After incorrectly identifying a flower the other day I was especially careful to research today's' specimen to avoid any embarrassment. 

It is, I can confidently say a Red Gazania. Photographing red flowers is quite tricky because it can be difficult to get a true representation of the colour but I think I got this one spot on.

The second shot was a bit of a bonus as I had focused in on the centre of the flower to pick out the detail in the heart of the flower and I hadn't noticed the aphid at first but I am quite plesed that I captured the little critter, it gives a sense of scale as well as being a cool shot.

Tiger Face

OK, so it might not be what you see when you look at this image but in an abstract way I think there is a tiger face hidden in the ripples.

One of the wonderful about ripples and reflections is that they reveal something unique every time you look...

The Lighthouse

This cool reflection is of the Faro San Giorgio Maggiore in the last of the evening sun.

I like the transition from blue to gold to green as the reflection moves from sky to stone and then shadow.

Fire On Water

I love this picture, it really does look like fire and water.

It is another reflection from Burton Mere, taken this past weekend. 

You may be surprised to learn that it is the reflection of some new willow shoots growing on the bank of a small island in the mere. The shoots are bright golden orange and as they catch the sun they look glorious against the dark background of the old wood. And of course as you can see here they create a wonderful abstract reflection in the gently rippling water.

Back Streets and Buildings

Having posted abstract pictures over the past three days I have reverted to more familiar images of back streets and buildings around Venice.

In contrast to the bold colours of the past few days I have gone full on black and white for today's post and I know that is not everyone's taste especially when the city is so colourful and the sky was so blue but I really love black and white photography.

For those who prefer colour please come back tomorrow and I will mix things up a bit.

Skater Boi!

It was as I was walking back following my visit to the waterfront in Thunder Bay that I spotted this skater practicing a few tricks in the small skate park. I took a moment to capture a few action shots and I am fairly pleased with the results.

The pose of the skater in each trick reminds me of some graffiti I saw in Paris over 30 years ago and which for some time I had copied onto the back of a jacket I wore. I was never much of a skater myself (I never really had the balance or skill) but that doesn't mean I can't appreciate the skill that we see in these shots.

I would have liked to spend a little more time watching and photographing this guy in action but that wasn't possible so I will have to make do with these for now, and that means so will you.

Body Language

Apparently Chameleons can change colour according to their mood as well as for the purpose of camouflage, and also it is thought to attract a mate. Unfortunately I am unable to determine what mood this little fella is in, is he happy, sad or indifferent?

We all know that we can communicate through body language, sometimes it is intentional and easily understood, other times it is extremely subtle and hard to read and sometimes it is completely subconscious and often it is misunderstood. Sometimes we can even mislead people by controlling our body language to confuse or mislead people. Oh what complex beings we are!

Underground Walkway

It's getting late and I almost missed the opportunity to post something today but I am committed to this so I'm getting this one in at the last moment.

I have spent far too much time on a train today traveling down to London where I shall be for the next week. I thought that I would post something rail related and this picture shows the walkway from the Water Street entrance to the James Street underground station in Liverpool. It's an impressive tunnel with a lot of history and I think it makes a decent image too.