Leica M9-P | alan frost photography

Posts tagged ‘Leica M9-P’

Colour of light on The Jurassic Coast

Clavell Tower at Kimmeridge Bay at the end of the day

The Jurassic Coast in Dorset is a World Heritage site, famous for its cliffs, beaches and fossils. Together they reveal the history of the earth over a period of 185 million years. Just jaw dropping. The area is also a rich source of photographic subjects and whilst it’s a challenge to take anything that hasn’t already been taken many times before, it’s no less appealing simply because of its popularity, particularly when the colour of the light is at its most favourable.

My wife and I have just returned from a short break in the area, staying at West Lane Cottage in Piddlehinton which is about 20 to 25 minutes drive from various parts of the coast. We chose to visit a number of different locations, mainly towards the end of the day and we were blessed with some fine weather and on one day in particular, a superb sunset.

By way of a change from my usual monochrome work, here are a selection of photographs captured on our trips to the coast.

Perhaps, just perhaps, maybe I should do a little more colour work in the future? Only time will tell.

Morning light on East Cliff near West Bay

Towards Golden Cap from West Bay

The cliffs at Hive Beach near Burton Bradstock

Looking east from Swyre as the sun starts to set

Sunset at Swyre – looking towards Golden Cap

More people at the Goodwood Revival

A couple of days ago I posted an entry with the first selection of people shots taken last weekend at the Goodwood Revival. You can read that post by clicking here.

This second set includes another eight images which I hope you will enjoy. They all try and capture something of the party atmosphere which descends upon Goodwood Motor Circuit every September.

The girls from St Trinian’s School were very much in evidence this year. Originally a cartoon strip created by Ronald Searle in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, he wrote a number of books and in the 1950’s some films were made which featured Alastair Sim (in drag) cast as the headmistress. Great fun.

A more serious moment as two ‘cleaning ladies’ listen to The Earl of March making a presentation to David Brabham the youngest son of the late great Sir Jack Brabham. A picture of the presentation can be seen below.

All over the motor circuit, stalls and shops authentically replicate the feel and times of the post war era. This shot below of ‘The Old Bicycle Company’ was typical of what can be seen.

Ladies don’t often wear hats these days, so there is always the concern as to whether or not it’s still in place and hasn’t shifted in the breeze.

Another ‘underground’ shot, this time of a young lady framed by two film posters – ‘North by Northwest’ by Alfred Hitchcock and ‘Jailhouse Rock’ starring the one and only Elvis Presley.

An England football fan tries to take my photograph with her old camera, while I try and take a picture of her and her friend, with mine. Somehow I think she forgot to load any film but you never can be sure!

I have written about the Goodwood Revival on previous occasions and there are links below if you are interested.

2012

The Silver Arrows at the Goodwood Revival Meeting

The Characters of the Goodwood Revival Meeting

Goodwood Revival Meeting – the last entry

2014

Goodwood Revival – the cars and the people

2016

People at the Goodwood Revival

There is also a Gallery page featuring the Goodwood Revival, and you can see that page by clicking here.

Do click on any of the images in this post to see a larger version which will open in a new window.

People at the Goodwood Revival

Each year the Goodwood Revival has a theme and this year was no exception. As you entered the circuit, a group of rowdy football fans could be heard shouting “C’mon England” whilst waving scarves and banners. Wind the clock back fifty years and The Revival was celebrating England winning the World Cup against Germany.

Whether it’s the people, the cars, the planes or the many stands, there is just so much to see and enjoy. It’s like one big fancy dress party with the majority of people wearing clothes from the 1940’s, 50’s or 60’s. Quite frankly there is no other event like it in the world today.

I have photographed this policeman and his wonderful vintage bicycle before and it was good to see him again. That’s the beauty of this event – you very often bump into the same people and they are always happy to stop and have a chat.

I couldn’t resist taking a picture of this young lady astride a Harley Davidson, although quite what the ape was doing in the background I’m not sure!

On the other side of the road from the circuit there are yet more stands, a huge marquee which stages the Bonhams Auction of cars and memorabilia, and a fairground.

As always the Glamcab girls were there, always ready to smile and pose for the cameras.

I will be posting a further selection of pictures very soon. In the meantime do click on any of these images to see a larger version.

For anyone interested, all these photgraphs were taken with a Leica M9-P, imported into Lightroom and then converted into monochrome using Silver Efex Pro 2.

Shelter in Piddle Wood

Woodland shelter

When I am out walking in the countryside I always hope to stumble across something which catches my eye and in my view is worth photographing. I always seem to struggle in woodland areas but when I saw this dilapidated woodman’s hut made of corrugated iron it caught my attention.

The scene itself was made more interesting by virtue of the large puddle of water which provided some reflections, not only of the shelter but also the spindly trees. The line of stones gave me a good lead in to the hut and I like the overhanging branch which helps to frame the main subject of interest.

Yes, the hut has seen better days and I would guess has not had a particular purpose in life for quite some time, but photographically speaking this is what makes it all the more interesting – well it does to me anyway.

Transient light – the best of both worlds perhaps?

Transition (Blending in photoshop)

This is the third and final entry in series which only serves to highlight the array of choices when it comes processing.

The first entry (Transient light – when only colour will do) showed a relatively straight forward colour image. The second entry posted yesterday (Transient light – when mono works as well) was the black and white conversion and today I have posted this image, which is effectively a mix of the colour and black and white versions. I opened both images in Photoshop with the colour image as the background layer. I then created a separate layer using the mono version which had been previously processed in Silver Efex. I then blended the two layers and reduced the opacity to arrive at the image you see here.

Overlaying the more dramatic and contrasty B&W image has given the original colour version a little more punch in my view. The rain shower has been enhanced and there is more detail in the clouds on the horizon which has added depth. The colour which attracted me to take the shot in the first place has not been lost.

So three versions of one image. Which one is best? I don’t think there is a ‘best’ image; photography or any form of art is very subjective so everyone will have their own personal preference. For me it has been an interesting exercise and will make me stop and think a little more about processing options before I even begin.