monochrome | alan frost photography

Posts from the ‘monochrome’ category

Shutter, window and steps – a simple picture?

Shutter, window and steps

There is something about this image which appeals to me. It’s a fairly straightforward and simple composition, made up of three principal components. There is light coming through the window on the left, balanced by the dark shadow area on the right. The contrast of light and shade is separated by the window shutter which is worn with peeling paintwork needing attention. The wooden steps have a lovely grain to them but it is unclear from the photograph where they lead. Up to another floor possibly or just a high level cupboard? To climb the steps you would need to close the shutter, cutting out the light – why was it designed this way? Through the window the out of focus detail hints at a garden beyond with a line of trees on the horizon. Bright spots on the glass suggest it might be raining. A simple image perhaps, but on closer observation plenty to hold the viewers attention, at least that’s what I believe.

It reminds me of the saying by Ansel Adams – ‘There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer’. If both are happy then I guess that’s what makes a successful photograph.

This photograph was taken with a Leica M Monochrom and 50mm F1.4 Summilux lens – @f2.4 1/2000th sec ISO 3200

Do click on the image for a larger view.

An Easter display – Mono where there should be colour

Easter display

A few weeks ago I was asked if I would take some photographs for publication in our parish magazine of the truly beautiful flowers which were on display in my local church over the Easter period. I did not need to ask if they wanted colour or black or white images. Of course they had to be in colour and that was absolutely right.

The dominant colour of the flowers was yellow, a sign of Spring, and new life and growth. Irrespective of your own personal religious beliefs this time of year is always a joy; as Winter turns to Spring, the trees turn green and the dawn chorus can be heard each and every morning as night turns into day.

I was pleased with the images I took but as my first photographic love is monochrome and not colour, I could not resist the temptation to convert one of the pictures into black and white. It works for me but it would never have been selected for the colour centre page spread in the parish magazine! Nevertheless it’s one to share on my blog and I hope you agree.

Dunraven Bay – a brief visit

Dunraven Bay is situated on the south coast of Wales in the Vale of Glamorgan. The bay itself faces west and is also known as Southerndown beach after the nearby village.

I visited this lovely coastline on a cold and windswept afternoon at the end of March. I was fortunate to find the tide was out, revealing the sands and rocks which make this such an interesting place to photograph. With the weather as it was there were only a few people around, just a handful of walkers and their dogs to leave their foot and paw prints in the sand.

I tried to imagine what it would be like mid summer, in warm temperatures and blue skies. The car park would be full, families would be enjoying the lovely beach, children rock pooling and building sand castles. The surf would also attract windsurfers and others who enjoy their water sports. For me though, I enjoyed the isolation, free to wander and explore, and take shots of anything which took me eye. Rarely did I have to wait for people to move out of the frame.

I hope you enjoy the selection of images shown below. To view a larger version click on the image and it will open in a new window.

A return to Bath and an alternative view

Tradesmen only

At the end of October last year I spent a very enjoyable day in the beautiful Georgian city of Bath in Somerset, on a photographic workshop with Andy Beel FRPS. I wrote about it here. More recently I was travelling back from South Wales and had agreed to pick up my daughter in Bath and we would return home together. The weather was very different to my previous visit. It had been raining heavily in the morning and by the time I arrived in Bath the rain had stopped but it was still grey and overcast. This was in complete contrast to the bright sunshine I had experienced towards the end of last year. I had a couple of hours to kill and decided that I would try and adopt an alternative approach to before. The weather conditions offered very different lighting and I thought I would challenge myself by sticking to just one lens – the Olympus 75mm f1.8 on the Olympus EM1. Because of the crop factor this lens equates to a 150mm on a full frame 35mm camera. Ordinarily this is not the lens I would choose to take photographs in a crowded city with large buildings and confined areas in which to work. Reach for the wide angle, others might say; try to get everything into the shot. Although I covered a similar area I was looking for new angles and arguably the less glamorous parts of the city which had been the obvious things to shoot last time round. I finished up with the selection you can see here.

Old steps

Behind the Georgian facade

Porticos

Resting pigeon

Sash window

Back street

Going down

Walking on a Sunday

Street lamp

I took great pleasure from revisiting Bath and taking an alternative view. When I compare this set of images with those I took at the tail end of last year, there are some common features, but I think the overall impression they give of the city is very different. I also enjoyed restricting myself to just one prime lens. It made me look for images which only worked with a more limited and compressed depth of field. If you missed the link to my earlier post on Bath, it’s here. Do click on any of the images to view a larger version which will open in a new window.

Foggy morning on the south coast

Boat by the pier

The weather has been quite glorious for the past week or two, but sometimes at this time of year the coastline can be affected by sea fog. More often that not it burns off but while it lasts it will bring the temperature right down. A few hundred yards inland it can be bright sunshine and much warmer.

The weather forecast predicted early morning fog, so I left for work much earlier than normal, took my camera and walked along the seafront for about half an hour and took the photographs you can see in this entry. I like the emptiness of a seaside resort first thing in the morning and when coupled with the fog it takes on a very different feel. Later in the day the blue skies and warm sunshine had encouraged people to come out and the coastline took on a whole new character.

Painted hut

Cockles and whelks

Empty tables

Gull on a groyne

Boat and huts

Lone walker

All of the images in this post were taken with a Leica M Monochrom and 50mm Summilux lens. Straight out of the camera the images are very flat so they do need processing. I used Lightroom and then applied a Kodak Tri X 400 ‘film type’ preset in Silver Efex Pro which adds some grain and contrast to the image.

Click on any the photographs to view a larger version.