Snowy River (and some thoughts on photo editing)

A few weeks ago I went to Snowdonia on a cold and grey day hoping to find some snow and some great landscape shots. Unfortunately it was a very grey day and the light didn't lend itself to the task I had set myself so when I got home I found most of the images I had taken were a bit dull and didn't really reflect the beauty that I had hoped to capture.

Up until now I have only ever done the most basic editing of my images in Lightroom, in part I have been afraid to try new settings/adjustments and in part I have told myself that if I didn't get it right in camera then it is cheating to mess with the image too much.

When we look at any image that is printed or online there has been some degree of editing or post production and as long as we are honest about that it doesn't matter what we do if the final result is a decent picture.

If the original composition is off then no amount of post production is going to make it a brilliant image so having a good eye is a key skill and an important starting point. With this picture I would say the composition is spot on. However even though the composition is good the colours and the contrast in the original image was affected by the poor light and for weeks I have overlooked this image having decided it wasn't worth sharing. 

Today however I wanted to explore the possibilities in this image and I have experimented with different settings in Lightroom to bring the image to life. I have practised on a few other shots too and I will be sharing them over the next few days.

You can only see the finished product but when I have shown people the before and after images their responses have been really positive, surprised that such a vibrant image could come from the original picture.

Fabulous Fungus

Here are a couple more shots of fungus from my recent visit to High Force. I think these follow yesterday's image of the rock face really nicely because of the layers or different strata as the fungi grow up the side of the wood in the way the different layers of rock proceeded up the cliff side.

Winter Woodland

One of the things I love about this time of year as the trees change and the leaves fall is the number of fungi that you can find on the woodland floor.  I don't always get to appreciate the full range of colours of the trees nut I like the sounds and the feel of the fallen leaves as I walk through them and looking down means I am more likely to spot the fungi. Even in the damp and cold these lovely colonies give off a warm glow.

Green Heart

Now that Valentine's Day is behind us here is one of nature's hearts without any sentimentality.

I love it.

Raindrops, Teardrops, Snowdrops

So today it is Valentine's Day (in case you missed that) and I had thought about posting something romantic but there's enough mush about everywhere else and for those who aren't feeling the love I guess there's no need to inflict anymore on you...

This beautiful clump of snowdrops makes a lovely image, it was suggested to me that they look like fairy's tears and while I'm not sure about that I do think there is something special about them.

Cool as a Cyclamen

Although the main reason for heading to Chirk on Saturday was to see the Snowdrops (and I will be posting some pictures of the Snowdrops in the next few days) one thing that I hoped to see was this wonderful cyclamen. There had been a couple in this spot last year but they were past their best so to find this one was a real treat. I have always been fascinated by the way these flowers slowly unfurl. They look so delicate and beautiful.

Golden Beauty

I think this is a variety of Narcissus called Narcissus pseudonarcissus "Flore Plena" although I am not 100% sure. Whatever it is it is a beautiful and delicate little flower which brings some very welcome  colour and warmth to a winter garden.

I love it and hopefully you will too.

A Winter Tradition

Around this time of year it has become something of  tradition to go to Chirk Castle to see the carpet of snowdrops. In the past I have also been to Attingham Park and other gardens but I think the display at Chirk is my favourite.

I have chosen one shot for today but in the coming days I will be posting more pictures of the snowdrops and some of the other winter flowers which are coming into bloom, bringing a little more colour and heralding the spring. I may also post some images of the castle itself later in the week, so please come back each day to see the new pictures.

Red Breast

I had intended to leave the woodland of Mere Sands Wood behind and go back in time for some pictures from a few years ago but I decided I couldn't leave it without posting one more shot of a beautiful robin.

Enjoy

Fairy Lights

Well not really fairy lights but it's natures equivalent...

Walking yesterday morning  the bushes, which are just beginning to show early signs of spring, shimmered and glowed with raindrops as they caught the early morning sun, adding a magical quality to my woodland walk. This is just one of the reasons I had such a lovely time in the woods.

Creepers, Old and New

Before I add pictures today I want to say thank you to everyone who has supported my daily blog so far. 

Yesterday I passed 20,000 page views which is a terrific milestone and the pictures I have posted have been viewed all around the world with the USA, the UK and South Korea being the top three viewing countries.

So thank you again and I hope you keep coming back...

I have posted similar pictures to these before but I really like the gnarly vines as they cling to the tree and I love the fresh green of the ivy.  I particularly like the final picture and the way the ivy stem cuts across the diagonal pattern in the bark.

A Wooden Rainbow

At the end of the walk on Saturday I came across a stack of logs by the side of the path.  On the exposed cut ends of many of the logs there were colonies of fungi which as you can see from the first two pictures were thriving in their exposed position.  As well as the curling fungus you can see the rough texture of the wood which has a mossy appearance.

The title of today's post refers to the final picture of the pattern of the rings which given the shape and varied colours has the appearance of a rainbow. From a distance the end of these logs appeared smooth particularly due to the glossy sheen from the recent heavy rainfall, however close up you can see that it is actually very bristly, a bit like a coir door mat.

A Reflecting Pond

Winter woodlands, water and reflections, all ingredients for a good walk on New Year's day. Over the next few days I will share a few pictures from the walk in Delamere Forest.

Today's pictures are quite obviously of a fallen tree and a reflection.  Although the water is not deep the reflection of the standing tree in the first image creates the impression of great depth.

For those who have seen my blog before you will know that I like the distortion caused by ripples and so that is why I have chosen the second picture.

Around Chirk

I have been frustrated over the past few days because I haven't been able to post anything due to a problem with the Blogger upload  but fortunately there is a work around and I am back and smiling...

Today's pictures are three different winter scenes from around Chirk castle. The first is a view of one of the turrets that is rarely seen on a visit to the castle, a walk in the woodlands around the castle however is full of little treats and I love the perspective in this shot of the tower.

The second is one of many views of the topiary that I have taken on my visits to Chirk, I think the deep green stands out against the wintry sky.

I really like the final image of the snowdrops, there were lots of people visiting the castle on this particular day, specifically to see its now famous display of these wonderful winter flowers.

Winter Woodland

I was going to post some pictures of spiders and bugs for Halloween but then I recalled a winter walk and taking a video of one of my boys as a zombie and so just for fun I have posted a link to the video (which I hope you watch, it works best with the sound turned up) and I have posted some pictures to create the right atmosphere.

Happy Halloween!!!

Snowdrops #2

Working on the principle that you can't have too much of a good thing I thought I would share some more pictures of snowdrops.  There are three different varieties in close up and then to finish off I have chosen a picture of the woodland floor.  In the background you can just make out a woodsman's hut which was a nice spot for a break.  There was a lovely wood fire burning in the hearth and hot chocolate to warm up with before setting off again into the woods.

Although the main flowers on display were the snowdrops there were other signs of spring which I will be showing tomorrow so come back then.

Please feel free to leave a comment...

Cold and Frosty Too!

So if you liked yesterday's pictures, and I know that a lot of people did, I am sure that you will like the three pictures I have posted today.

These were taken on the same day as yesterdays pictures in Delamere Forest.  The frost created a magical atmosphere, coating every tree and blade of grass. The frozen pond in the third picture  looked firm enough to walk on but it would have been a shame to disturb such a beautiful scene.

I like the frozen spider's web.  Webs often make interesting pictures especially when covered with morning dew and this frozen one is no exception.  It is a shame that it was incomplete but i guess the freezing had made it more fragile.

Let me know which is your favourite and why...