Nymphs

Flower of fancy

Vanishing Dream

Destiny

Oblivion

 

Every time that I visit Chirk I admire these statues. I know they might not be to everybody's taste but I think they are magnificent. I particularly like the two which are placed next to each other which are called "Destiny" and "Vanishing Dream". 

They are in a naturalistic and symbolist style (apparently) and while the figures are nude for me the power of each sculpture is in the facial expressions and the symbolism. I don't understand the symbolism in each sculpture, for example why one is standing on a serpent, or another has her hands bound behind her back and another has her eyes bound with cloth, but they are elegant and beautifully crafted.

I have shared images of them before I know but today I have gone all out and shared several images and included shots of all four sculptures which I have not done before

They were made by Andrea Carlo Lucchesi who work predominantly in London. He died in 1924 aged 64. The sculptures collectively known as "The Nymphs" were owned by Lord and Lady Howard de Walden who leased Chirk Castle between 1911 and 1946 and were brought to the castle from the couple's London home. Originally they stood in the family's dining room until Lady Howard de Walden insisted they be moved to "a more appropriate location"

When Skies are Grey

 I have been working from home today, and all day long the sun has been shining and there has hardly been a single cloud in the sky. So, I was looking forward to finishing work and getting outside for a nice evening walk along the sea front. But as I turned off my work laptop I realised that the sudden gloom in my  home office is not because the nights are drawing in (we have past the summer solstice after all) but because there is a weather front coming in and the sky is now heavy with dark grey clouds.

As an antidote for that I thought I would quickly post some beautiful, bright and colourful shots of some flowers taken not so long ago in the gardens at Erddig. Hopefully these images will give your day a little lift just as they have mine.

You're welcome.

In an Orderly Fashion

 

So this follows on from yesterdays post (if you haven't seen it please take a look).

I really love the orderliness of the workshop, with all the tools neatly stored in their proper places.

I think the setting really suits black and white images, which is how they were shot. It adds to the sense of age or history. But when I edited the first image in colour I was really struck by the richness and warmth of the wood and that is possibly my favourite image for today.

I love the detail in the cabinets, the marquetry patterns are simple but beautiful, and all that just to store chisels. Marquetry is something I have done in the past (and will do more when I retire) and I know that even for a simple pattern like this it will have taken time and skill and it shows that the craftsman has taken care not just over his tools but how they are displayed.

Many years ago I had a holiday on the Norfolk Broads and I went into a photo studio in Stalham where I bought a black and white print of tools silhouetted against a window. I really liked the picture and I had that in mind when I took these images. Although that was a good image I am going to say I like mine best...

Pearlescent Bark

I have stuck with just one image today, an abstract image of the bark of a tree. 

I have played about a little with the edit in lightroom for this image and I am really pleased with the result. I wouldn't normally take risks with colour because I know that I don't see things the way most people do and while I like the effect of this edit I cannot be sure what other viewers will see.

The colours in the bark were all there, the result of sap leaking out of the tree, as well as stains from the rain and algae. I have increased the saturation of specific colours to add a little drama and to emphasise the pearlescent effect. 

I  grew up believing trees are green and brown but when you look closely there is always so much more to see, and enjoy.
 

Out In The Cold

 Another shot from Chirk castle, and another of the Lucchesi bronzes facing out across the lawn and the topiary. This statue is called "Destiny" and it won gold medals at Dresden in 1895 and at the Paris Exposition in 1900.

As you can see the snow was starting to come down quite fast when this shot was taken, even though a matter of minutes beforehand there had been clear blue skies, and almost as quickly as the snow storm arrived it passed. However, even though the sun came out again it remained bitterly cold and while the bronze nymphs remained outside there were no brass monkeys to be seen...

Statuesque

 Around the gardens at Chirk Castle there are a few beautiful, classical sculptures and although I have seen them many times I am always drawn to look at them whenever I visit. I think there is a real quality to them and I am captivated by their expressions.

In the first of today's images the cherub is almost hidden away in Yew hedge at the side of a small rose garden and perhaps that is why the child/cherub is holding a rose sniffing the delicate scent. This is quite a peaceful and happy scene in contrast to the second image. I have not shown the stature in full, which is of a woman with her hands bound. It is a bronze (one of four) by Andrea Lucchesi and is called "Vanishing Dream" and her wistful or sad expression is a reflection of something lost. I think the mood of the sculpture is enhanced by the fact that it was snowing quite heavily when this shot was taken as can be seen from the streaks of white across the image.

Although there is something pleasing about the first image I much prefer the second because of the quality of the artwork itself, the powerful expression and the overall atmosphere it creates.

On this recent visit I did not photograph the four bronzes but I think on a future visit I will do so and it will undoubtedly be the subject of a future post.

Frozen in Time

 

Here are a couple more shots from my recent visit to Chirk Castle. This is definitely one of my favourite castles and even on a very cold winter's day with the sun frequently interrupted by heavy snow it offers lots of great photo opportunities.

The building itself is closed for the winter but the grounds are open and the exterior as always looks marvellous.

Nicely Framed

The approach to the house at Lyme Park takes you about 1 mile through the deer park where there is a herd of wild Red Deer (I didn't spot any) and the façade of the house is grand but not as grand or ostentatious as the rear of the house that overlooks the reflecting pond. This is the side of the house that is made to be seen.

Visitors to Lyme would be invited to walk around the lake so that they can enjoy the spectacular view. As well as this view there is a formal Italian garden, a simple terrace and the orangery and for those with more energy there are extensive grounds, a mill, and of course the deer...

I love the lighting in these shots, I hope you will agree they really show off this magnificent building.

The final shot below is of the fountain in the orangery, in the almost tropical atmosphere the moss has really taken hold on the stonework of the fountain. I like the fact that rather than clear the moss the gardeners have embraced this growth to enhance the feature. The sound of the trickling water is slightly muted creating a lovely relaxing atmosphere.

 

Pemberley

So the eagle eyed among you will understand why I have called this post Pemberley, it is actually Lyme Park in Disley, near Manchester and it was used as the setting for Pemberley the fictional home of the Darcy family in the 1995 BBC Television adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. It is very possible that you won't have seen it but in my home it is very possibly the most watched TV show and this setting is where one of the most famous scenes of the entire series...

I hadn't really wanted to go out today and took some persuading but as it was the weather was perfect and i was able to get some great shots that made the trip worth the effort.

I took several shots of the colours of autumn which you can look forward to over the next few days before I get to some views of the magnificent house.

There was a fair breeze today so the surface of the reflecting pond was broken up by lots of ripples and I was worried that I wouldn't get the shots I wanted so I turned to one of the most useful gadgets in my camera bag, my K+F Concept variable ND filter. Using the filter I was able to use a long exposure and a very small aperture, this meant I could freeze the motion in the water and keep everything in focus to bring out all the detail and get a nice reflection.

From a low vantage point and with the gorgeous afternoon sun behind me I think this creates a striking image.

Still Standing

 This is Hurst Castle, a coastal fort that was built in the time of King Henry VIII, extended and used in the Napoleonic Wars and further modified and in use during WWII. Unfortunately part of the castle is currently closed to visitors due to the fact that one of the sea walls has collapsed due to high seas and the effect of erosion. Work is under way to repair the damage.

It is amazing to think that this has been a working fort for almost 500 years.

This was my second visit to Hurst Castle. The first time I went was about 18 years ago. I had been camping in the New Forest with my young family, we parked up in Keyhaven and rather than take the ferry to the castle I thought it would be a good idea to walk along the shingle spit to make the most of the views across the Solent. I hadn't realised it was a 3 mile walk and although that isn't too far really the fact that it was on shingle made it really hard work. Also as we approached the castle the sky turned a very dark grey and I was dreading the walk back in case it rained. As the visit to the castle continued I heard a rumbling sound and rushed to the top of one of the towers to watch a Spitfire fly past. That was such an exciting and memorable moment but shortly afterwards the rumbling changed and rather than the sound of the Rolls Royce Merlin engine it was the rumble of thunder which was followed by the heaviest downpour.

Luckily the ferry back to Keyhaven arrived in time to rescue us and return us to the harbour and the carpark so we didn't get too wet.

This time round it was just my youngest son and I, we were also on a camping holiday and while I remembered the previous visit quite vividly my son was less sure. Nevertheless he wanted to take the ferry both ways so that's what we did. It was nice to go back and at one point I observed two spitfires flying over the Isle of Wight and then as we were boarding the ferry for the return trip we were treated to a flypast by a two seat spitfire which really topped off the day.

Cardoons

 Thistles can be pretty. I love the pinky purple tones of the flower head which viewed close up has a multitude of little tendrils; black, plum and mulberry coloured fingers reaching upwards from a spiky ball.

I like the colour images but I also really like the black and white image because it highlights the structure of the flower

Everybody go... Ahhhh!

Tamron 150mm - 600mm F5 - 6.3

ISO 1000     428mm   f/6.3    1/250 sec

I have really enjoyed posting shots over the past few days from my visit to Ness Gardens. It has been particularly rewarding because several of the posts have been shared by Ness Gardens and that has really expanded the reach of my blog.

I have however been itching to share some of the pictures of Red Squirrels at the Formby National Trust site. I have well over 100 pictures from my early morning visit so I will share a few of them over the next few days. Narrowing my selection is not easy because there are some cracking shots so hopefully you will come back tomorrow to see more.

I had a lovely time, I arrived early in order to have the place pretty much to myself but the problem with that was that the light wasn't great in the dense woodland but as time went on this improved and with the right settings I think I was able to get some lovely shots of these beautiful and endearing creatures.

Having taken a good number of pictures I wandered off into the dunes and sat for a while enjoying the sun and looking out to sea.  It was a perfect day.

Standing Proud

Here is another shot of one of the Dunham Massey stags. It really is such a beautiful creature and I was so lucky to be able to get close and appreciate how truly beautiful it is.

It is easy to forget seeing them so close that these are wild not domestic animals. Because they live in a large estate where there are lots of visitors they have become used to people but while they are not as timid as deer that truly live wild for example in the New Forest or Forest of Dean or in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland they can still be skittish and need to be treated with just as much respect.

I think that herds like this are an important part of our nations wildlife and really are a national treasure.

At Rest

I have called today's post "At Rest" but really while this stag was resting quite peacefully he was constantly on alert watching out for the small of herd of doe's that were feeding nearby. What I didn't realise at the time I was taking this shot was that inside the "den" of branches and wooden stakes next to the stag there was a young fawn exploring.

I haven't been out with my camera for a couple of weeks due to poor weather and also feeling under the weather so I am hoping for a good spell this weekend. In the meantime I am really grateful that I have had some good opportunities earlier this year to keep me going.

I'm Watching You

So I will be swapping and changing themes over the next few days, after all I have been busy in recent weeks and I want to share the best of those days out.

Today I have gone back to Dunham Massey for this shot of a magnificent stag. It was wonderful getting so close to this wonderful creature but as calm as he appeared to be he never let his guard down and I knew that he was always keeping a close eye on where I was and what I was doing. Every now and then he would lift his head and sniff the air as in this shot. I could sense that he was warning me not to get too close and I had to remind myself that this is a wild animal and it was best to keep at a safe distance.

Pin Mill Two

Two more shots of the Pin Mill at Bodnant Gardens today. This time from the inside using the arches and windows to frame the garden.

I like the warm colour of the wall is the first shot but I particularly like the second shot taken from a low vantage point looking out into the garden.

Remember there is a chance to win a free print of your choice (from my blog of course) simply visit my facebook page Like and Share for a chance to win. The draw will be taken when the number of visitors to my blog reaches 50,000. It won't be long so have a go.

My Favourite Colour

One of the biggest attractions at Bodnant Gardens is the famous Laburnum Arch which comes into full flower at the end of May.

When I visited the gardens two weeks ago the arch wasn't at its peak glory although it still was a big draw for the many visitors. One end of the arch was coming into flower and so I was keen to get some close up shots of the individual flowers.

I love yellow and these bright flowers really give me a lift and against a pink backdrop as in the second shot they look wonderful. They have such a lovely shape too, designed to draw in bees and other pollinators.

I doubt whether I will get back to see the arch in all its glory this season however these few pictures are enough for me. If you have the chance though get down to Bodnant and I promise you won't be disappointed, if not then come back over the next few days and I will be posting some more floral gems and other shots from the gardens which really are a national treasure. 

Morning Fresh

Sometimes plants in the early stage of their development have something of an alien quality about them. Have a look at my post from Monday for a good example of what I mean. 

Today's first shot of an Bearded Iris springing into bloom is another good example. Springing is probably the wrong adjective because it is really a slow unfurling as the flower matures into a beautiful floatey flower.

This one has a soft green background which is the fern from the second of today's pictures. Ferns are really interesting plants with the lovely shades of green and the different textures of the fronds. This one has a really fresh colour as it it young and still has some of the early morning dew on it.

Lovely...

Rock Idol

So when you saw the title of today's post did you expect to see a picture of some heroic figure from the world of rock music? If so I am sorry to disappoint.

This shot was taken yesterday on a walk around Brimham Rocks, close to the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in North Yorkshire. It is a large area of moorland managed by the National Trust with numerous impressive rocky outcrops where the elements have combined to wear away at the grit stone leaving behind hundreds of contorted rock formations. 

This is perhaps one of the most unusual and spectacular because it appears balanced on a small conical rock at its base and it is known as the Idol. I have no idea how long it has stood here but as erosion continues it is certain that at some point in the future it will fall.