Dorset | alan frost photography

Adding a new dimension – an adventure in colour

For the past 8 years I have solely concentrated on Black and White photography and I have enjoyed the experience immensely. A quick scan of the galleries on this website will reveal a wealth of monochrome images. Only one gallery includes a small selection of colour work.

Whilst I will continue making monochrome photographs I have decided to spend considerably more of my time creating colour images. Good composition, form, texture, light and shade are all key to good black and white photography and I know these skills will be put to good use in the future. However the introduction of colour adds another dimension. Colour balance, colour temperature, saturation and luminosity and the interplay of all these ingredients have a role in making a pleasing image. These are skills I have yet to learn. I do not think for a moment this knowledge can be acquired overnight and I am sure I will make many mistakes along the way. In essence this is a new adventure, a fresh challenge and I do not know where it might lead me in terms of a photographic style.

I suspect the choice of subject matter will not change as I love to be outdoors and enjoying being in nature. I do though intend to adopt a more considered approach. Taking my time, thinking things through, planning the shot and using a tripod and filters if necessary. Less the ‘hit and run’ of my usual spontaneous approach. More contemplative which I hope will result in a much more immersive photographic experience. An approach which applies not just to taking the image, but also in post processing when I am making key decisions about how the finished image should appear and the feelings I would the photograph to convey.

I may write about my equipment of choice in a future entry but for now I will simply say I will be using Fujifilm cameras and lenses. Their excellent colour science is well known. I shall also be using Capture One Pro for editing and post processing. Again I may write about this aspect of the adventure on another occasion.

To finish I would like to share a few more images I have made in the past week or so. Early days but I think this new challenge is going to be rather fun!

Close to my back door ….. the old tractor store.

On a recent walk I stumbled upon this old steel barn which had seen better days, and was now being used to store three redundant tractors. They too were long past their prime. How long the barn and tractors had been in this state is anyone’s guess but it was a rich source of photographic material.

It was a real pleasure to wander around and uncover some details in an effort to record and capture the feeling of this place.

This collection of images forms part of my latest project – ‘Close to my back door’. There are two other entries you might like to see.

A return to my favourite genre…..and it’s close to my back door.

Close to my back door …… when the light is right.

Earlier this month I posted my first entry on this blog for nearly 5 months. I am pleased this entry hasn’t taken quite so long!

Once again the images are all of scenes which are close to my back door. This isn’t just because the current ‘Covid Lockdown’ prevent anything other than ‘staying local’ for exercise but because I truly enjoy exploring and seeing what can be photographed in my immediate surroundings. Why travel for miles and miles (restrictions allowing of course) if good subjects can be found near to home?

There is another distinct advantage to this approach which I written about before. It allows me to return to a place when I know the lighting will work to my advantage. I will have visted the location previously and then envisaged what the scene might look like at a different time of day and when the weather conditions are more conducive to create a pleasing result.

This approach doesn’t guarantee a good picture but it does improve my chances greatly. Composition, choice of lens etc can all be considered beforehand. The light just has to be right.

All of the images in this entry were taken in this way. It requires a degree of patience and the pre-visualised outcome may not always be as I would hope or expect. Over the years this approach has allowed me to think and plan ahead. When the plan comes together there is a great deal of satisfaction to be had. When it doesn’t, I learn from the experience knowing I can return another day. After all – it’s close to my back door.

My last major project was ‘Still by the Water’ which took the best part of 2 years to photograph and complete, and all the images were captured within a 10 minute drive of home. The photographs you see here are I believe the humble beginnings of another long term project.

Hamlet through a pinhole….. but the church doors are closed.

The Dorset hamlet of Affpuddle lies to the east of Tolpuddle, its better known neighbour famous for The Tolpuddle Martyrs, and a mile or so down the road there is another village called Briantspuddle. All three communities form part of the lower reaches of the Piddle valley.

Affpuddle is by far the smallest, warranting in my opinion the title of hamlet, whereas the other two are most certainly villages. Unusually for a hamlet, Affpuddle boasts its own church, St Laurence, which is bounded by the River Piddle on the northern side of the graveyard. A lovely setting.

Winter is coming…..

It may seem a little odd to be posting this image when here in the UK we are still enjoying the long warm days of summer.

This dull, misty scene of bare skeletal trees in winter reminds me of what lies in store. From a photographic point of view, autumn and winter have much to offer and the months between October and March are arguably my favoured time of year to be out and about with a camera.

I shall make the most of the summer but I am looking forward to the seasons changing and the impact they have on our rich and varied landscape.