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Posts tagged ‘Alan Frost’

Whitesands Bay – late in the day

Whitesands

Taken on the first evening during my recent visit to Pembrokeshire, this shot was taken late in the day as the sun started to set. There were only a handful of other people about, all pleased to be at this rather lovely sandy bay.

It’s a location which is popular with surfers but on this occasion there was only one person with a board, but I like the separation and variety of the other characters in the picture. The man walking his dog, the young child running towards his or her mother who is looking out to sea. We do not know if there is a connection between this group of people. It doesn’t really matter, for they were doubtless enjoying their time there, just as much as I enjoyed the scene and taking a few frames.

Abereiddy – a study of chimneys and skies

The first thing that struck me about Abereiddy was not the beach and the waves lapping against the shore but the interesting cluster of houses that make up this tiny hamlet on the North Pembrokeshire coast.

The hamlet of Abereiddy

The more I looked around, I started to observe and enjoy the chimneys and the way in which they stood out in silhouette against the drama in the skies above. The white rendered walls and the very dark grey roofs, so typical of cottages in this part of Wales, made ideal material for black and white photography.

Chimneys and the rook

Chimney and the sheep on the hill

Grassy bank and chimneys in silhouette

Reminiscing perhaps?

chabce-to-reminisce

There are no prizes for guessing where this shot was taken; as anyone familiar with this iconic location will know that it is the view from Seaford Head towards the chalk cliffs of The Seven Sisters, with Beachy Head just visible in the far distance.

This image is less about the view and more about the story it has to tell. The elderly gentleman with white hair sits on his own, his faithful walking stick at his side. Quite possibly a location he has visited many times before, we can only begin to imagine the thoughts that are passing through his mind as he looks over the coastguard cottages and across the bay to The Seven Sisters. Perhaps he is reminiscing about days gone by and the times when walking the landscape in front of him were a little less challenging than they might be today.

Photographically a key ingredient which makes this shot work for me is the careful placement of his head and the horn handle of his stick, so that both share a dark background. As a result your eye is drawn to this part of the picture, which is of course the main point of interest. The view is stunning, but on this occasion it plays second fiddle to why I pressed the shutter. It’s the story within the picture and not the view itself that I was trying to capture.

After the shower – Looking behind you in Pembrokeshire

after-the-shower

I have just returned home from an excellent few days in North Pembrokeshire in Wales, as one of four participants on an ‘Andy Beel Black and White Photography Tour’. You expect mixed weather when visiting Wales at any time of year and the past five days have been no exception.

I have already downloaded over 800 images and now the fun begins as I go through the frames, select those with promise and give some considered thought to how they should be processed for later inclusion on this blog.

Inevitably a handful of images stay in the memory at the time of pressing the shutter, so I thought I would quickly post one such image. By way of some background it was late afternoon and I was driving the group from Abereiddy to Porthgain. A heavy but fleeting shower came down and as I looked in my rear view mirror I saw this scene. Had I not done so the opportunity would have been missed, but as it was, I pulled over and we all got out of the car and took a handful of frames. The late sun reflecting off the wet road, the tractor and the gate silhouetted against the brightening sky, and last but not least, the rook flying into the shot all go together to complete an atmospheric image so typical of this beautiful part of the country,

More images and words about the workshop will follow in time, but for the moment always remember to look behind you!

In flight – Chichester Harbour

in-flight

Waiting for the vital missing ingredient to appear in a scene is part of the joy of photography, but it can also be very frustrating. This picture is a case in point. Driving home this weekend I spotted the attractive light and cloud formations over Chichester Harbour, near Bosham. As time was on my side, I quickly collected my camera and returned to a parking place near the water which I know well. Fifteen minutes later I was in the right position to take the shot but there was something missing. Various sea birds flew overhead and I soon realised that the water and sky on their own were not sufficient to make the shot. It needed a bird in flight correctly positioned in the frame to complete the scene. The gull ‘In flight’ was the missing ingredient.

I waited patiently and took numerous shots. In some the bird was too far away, or the placement of its wings just wasn’t quite right. In other frames the bird was too high or too low, or flying towards the edge and not towards the centre of the picture. Patience was finally rewarded and I got the picture I wanted.

This month has been quite productive. I have been out taking images virtually every day. This is certainly another frame which will be added to the short list ahead of my exhibition on Chichester Harbour later in the year.