And we’re back..

Returning from my recent travels in Korea and Japan, I was truly struck by the incredible vibrancy of the cultures and the stunning, diverse landscapes I encountered throughout my journey. The bustling streets of Seoul, adorned with colorful neon lights and rich traditional temples, juxtaposed beautifully with the serene beauty and tranquility of Kyoto’s meticulously maintained gardens and ancient structures. Each moment I experienced was a feast for the senses, filled with a multitude of tantalizing flavours, breathtaking sights, and captivating sounds that lingered in my memory long after I had returned home. Shortly after my Asian excursions, a trip to Anglesey provided a different kind of solace; the rugged coastline and the tranquil, sandy beaches offered a peaceful refuge, allowing for deep reflection. The profound contrast between the lively urban scenes of Asia and the unspoiled natural beauty of Wales was striking, ultimately leaving me with a renewed appreciation for both adventure and quietude in my life.

Ready to go…

So now the bags are packed , the camera gear has been carefully weighed and checked against the airline flight rules. Lenses cleaned , filters checked , batteries charged and memory cards refreshed…

Tomorrow begins the long journey East, starting as ever with a bus ride…last time it was more eventful than the holiday with no less than two changes of bus along one route - first being down to a break down (mechanical not emotional) the second to change to a different type of bus and finally because the first driver was asked to return to the depot….so here’s hoping tomorrow is slightly less event filled. Of course then its the usual journey through an airport , bag drop, security , duty free, gate…to be repeated in Amsterdam where a change of aircraft is required.

Finally we should arrive in Seoul and reverse the process culminating in a bus ride from the airport.

It is then a matter of soaking up the culture, cuisine and sights of Seoul before heading down to Busan for a further introduction to some more of what South Korea has to offer.

Then a trip over to Japan with stays in Tokyo and Kyoto await before beginning our long journey homeward.

Nearly time…

So, very soon I’ll be making a long trip East to visit South Korea and Japan. Both of these countries I have never visited , which makes it very exciting having no prior knowledge of what to expect.

Sure I have watched videos on Youtube to give me some ideas as to the look of the places and what is in each location , but that does not give you the feel of the place , nor what it will be like at the time of the trip.

I have taken the decision not to take the 100-400mm lens , simply because on this trip I am not heading to anywhere that is famous for wildlife or where I can make use of the focal length. Instead I’ll take a series of small prime lenses (16mm, 35mm and 50mm) all with bright apertures along with the 10-18mm for any landscape/longer exposure images, plus of course the trusty 24-105mm. Across these and with the much lighter tripod I should have every base covered for more “street” style imagery. I will have a set of Kase magnetic filters to fit each of the lenses so will be able to add some level of control to the scenes.

In South Korea I’ll be hoping to capture some of the historic palaces along with some of the more modern architecture as well as some of the narrow shopping streets - not my usual genres but I am looking forward to the challenge. Here the visit will mostly be spent in and around Seoul , with a couple of days in Busan. I am also hoping that there will be some autumnal colours to really enhance the scenes.

For Japan its a few days in Tokyo , where I am hoping to capture some of the neon lit streets and to capture just how this huge city looks. Then it is off to Kyoto , where it maty be possible to capture more of the cultural heart of Japan. With no real knowledge of either of these cities it will be a huge challenge to seek out opportunities to capture images to make memories.

Looking at the schedule its very packed and i know these will be just taster visits to get a small feel of these amazing countries…

Anyway must go and start packing…

Life getting in the way..

At the weekend , High Peak Photography Club held their annual Photo challenge during which participants are given a number of themes to capture images of in a set period of time. It was this challenge a few years back that really got me back interested in Photography and I enjoyed the challenge and the camaraderie of fellow photographers all trying to interpret the subject matter in unique ways.

So this year I was prepared and ready to pound the streets of Buxton to capture what I hoped would be well received images. The challenge makes it so it is only images captured in either your phone or in .jpg format on the day are judged, adding to the difficulty in getting that perfect shot.

Sadly as the title says life got in the way, and it brought home to me the fragility of things. I received a call early on Saturday morning from my mother to tell me that Dad had been taken to Hospital the day previous. So my plans changed and I headed over to my parents house. My son also came across and it was good for all of us to chat whilst waiting to hear from the hospital. Eventually the call came that my Dad was to be kept in to monitor him, so we gathered some things together to take to him. I decided that Mum and I would, after the hospital visit, go out for dinner (or Tea if you’re from the North of England) as this would save her from cooking later that day.

So on the whole whilst missing out on the chance to participate in the Photo Challenge this time around, there will always be next year to aim for.

Now just wishing Dad a speedy recovery and return home…

Has it really been a month ?

I looked back and must apologise for not updating things here for such a long time.

So lets come back up to date, in the intervening time we have continued to have some pretty appalling weather which has hampered my trips out a little bit. I know that’s a really poor excuse as some great photography can be made in the worst conditions, and that it is just a lack of motivation.

Having visited Anglesey back in June, I made a point of returning once more and having a weekend available I once again got myself moving and on the road early enough to get onto Anglesey to spend the most time possible. My first point of call was to be back at The Dingle, as I had only had a short amount of time here previously, this turned out to be a great decision as I was rewarded with some of the best encounters with UK wildlife that I have ever had.

From the wild birds ranging from Jays, Great Tits, Blue Tits, Robins and Chaffinches being amongst the most prolific visitors to the wonderful Red Squirrels the experience was truly uplifting. One of the young Robins kept coming almost within touching distance and was happy to hop around on the fencing as I attempted to capture images, with often posing in really nice placements. The squirrels were equally inquisitive and as I waited to look to capture images one of the squirrels approached to stand on the fence within half a metre of me - far too close for the 100-400mm lens on the camera, but an incredible opportunity for us to look directly at each other.

The time spent in The Dingle was really special and I suspect all other people stopping on the day had the same feelings after encountering the Squirrels and the Bird Life. I have no idea how many images I actually shot, but would have happily filled several SD cards in the camera and will definitely return several more times through the year.

How do you follow up such an encounter ? Well I tried by visiting RSPB Valley a little further up the Island and close to RAF Valley , and although the Reserve is quite pleasant the access to the ponds is limited for Photographers. The location might be a good option for those wanting to Photograph Aircraft due to its proximity to the Airbase and that might be something for me to explore at some point, although of course at weekends the chances of Aircraft flying are lessened.

With time moving on I headed up to South Stack , mainly for the Lighthouse on the peninsula but also there are good opportunities for Seabirds - particularly Guillemots and Gulls. There are some Puffins here also although viewing is limited through either Binoculars or a long telephoto lens. Still it is a location to practice Bird in Flight phtotography as there are so many birds whizzing about - be prepared to get a lot of blurred or missed opportunities as the Guillemots are really fast..

By now I was a little tired and knew I had a long drive home , but couldn’t resist trying a few longer exposure shots of the lighthouse with the fading light behind it - sadly not quite dark enough to see the illuminated bulb radiating out over the sea, maybe return on a winters day when the days are shorter.

Anglesey

So with the promise of a little bit of a break in the weather it was time to take a ride out , partly as a scouting expedition for future locations and also as an excuse to avoid the shops.

As the alarm was about to ring at 5am I got up, did the usual of having breakfast first and then got myself ready to head out, I’m not sure Linda was that pleased to be heading out at this unearthly hour but we were off by 6am. As we set off the heavens opened so naturally my co-pilot suggested we turn back , then luckily before I agreed fell asleep. By the time we were heading into North Wales the rain had departed and the sun was beginning to show up, come on its June where the heck have you been ? And as we continued onwards the weather just got better and better.

We crossed onto Anglesey and headed up towards Holyhead , but oh no that wasn’t todays target , at least not just yet anyway. We headed a little inland to locate The Dingle Nature Reserve , somewhere I have seen on other people You Tube Videos, and on arriving were greeted to a scene of horror , lots of lycra clad joggers here for a Park Run.

Right off to the nearest Cafe to seek out a Welsh Breakfast to pass a little time. As we mopped up the last bits of fried egg , originally missed off by the horrified Cafe Owner, we began to see some of the runners passing through the town. Time to return and to seek out that which I had started out with the intention of looking for - Red Squirrels. And wonder of wonders there were a good number to be found , this place is going to be another spot I return to a number of times. After about an hour I returned to the car with so many ideas and bits of knowledge as to where to place myself next time to improve images.

Next we continued Northwards through the Island to reach Holyhead , partly as I needed to put some fuel in the car and partly looking for options for images close to the dock. The intention was to pass through Holyhead , turn round and look at it from the opposite side, but oh what an opportunity presented itself beyond the town so parking up we had coffee and I wrestled with a Magnum, all the time being watched by a curious Jackdaw. Then I headed down to the coastal path to see what opportunities I could locate , unfortunately for landscapes by this time the light was too harsh. So I just scouted around before coming across a pair of Oytercatchers running around the rocks. So back on with the telephoto lens and sit down to observe where they went and many images later was happy to have come to this spot.

Back in the car we drove across the Northern Edge of Anglesey and dropped into some wonderful villages and coves all of which will make great subjects. Stopping in Moelfre we paid a short visit to the RNLI station which has a great Sea View , before strolling down to the village pub to wet our parched mouths. As it turned out quite a few other visitors to the Island had also found the pub on the same day , but after a short wait we had our drinks and sat down to watch the world revolve around us.

Oddly enough we had now passed most of the day , and with the breakfast a distant memory we now headed to our nemesis location for dinner on the Island , Red Wharf Bay. Each time previous we had not been able to stop due to the lack of parking and volume of other people here. This time lady luck smile on us and we made it into The Ship Inn for some very welcome food.

By now we had both begun to hit the wall of tiredness so decided to head towards Beaumaris and to begin our journey home….

Return to RSPB Bempton Cliffs

With the poor weather continuing it was important to look for locations that would escape the worst of the rain. Looking on the Met Office weather app it showed that for Saturday morning at least it might be a good option to head to Bempton Cliffs.

So waking up at around 4am and getting myself sorted out I was out of the house and beginning the journey up to the Yorkshire coast. Leaving this early gave me the opportunity to arrive at around 7:30am , and as it turned out that was a very accurate prediction.

Pulling in to the car park just after 7:30am , and getting my camera gear out , placing the camera around my neck and ensuring it was switched on I headed past the visitor centre and down to the cliffs. Knowing from a previous visit that Puffins were most likely to be seen to the more Northern edge of the cliffs I steadily made my way in the direction of the last viewing platform. My excitement was short lived at this point however as no Puffins were visible. Plenty of Gannets and Razorbills were about with the former of these also circling the skies. Still at this time I just watched noting where the various birds were taking off and landing and observing how the light was catching the cliff face.

After a while I decided to head to the Southern edge of the reserve, past all of the other platforms to reach a point where the light was good and the Gannets were coming close enough in flight to get some decent images. Another photographer already had a better position so I took up my slot and after initially watching the path taken in flight by the birds I began to shoot images. The last visit I made here I was using the Canon M50 and the Sigma 170-500mm lens , this time with the R7 and the Canon 100-400mm L MKII would my images improve ?

The focussing speed of the lens combined with the R7’s subject tracking made for a totally different experience capturing birds in flight , not to mention my slightly better approach to choosing which subject to follow and shoot produced much more pleasing results for me and definitely lifted my spirits through the morning.

Moving further along the more Southerly cliffs I once again began to search for Puffins , and still came up short, still it was still early in the day. After a couple of hours I returned to the previous location to shoot more of the Gannets and found a large contingent of Japanese visitors with an impressive array of cameras and lenses capturing images. Once again I found a position that would not interfere with other photographers and took some more images, here trying to capture some behavioural elements. By now I had walked a number of miles and having been awake since 4am I was in need of Coffee , glancing at my watch I was shocked to see it was well after 11am. I strolled up to the now open visitor centre and had a toasted teacake, slice of Yorkshire Parkin and a Hot chocolate to wash it down.

Suitably refreshed and knowing that the weather was due to change in the next couple of hours I made my way back to the more Northerly of the platforms , where a few hours earlier I had begun my visit, and was pleased to find that the Puffins had now begun to appear. At this location now however there was a large crowd , and getting a position to capture good images was difficult, its also difficult as the birds tend to be slightly below the viewing area and right against the cliff face so more challenging for compositions - anyway a good set of record images were taken before the clouds began to appear.

By 1:30pm I knew I was beginning to feel the effects of the early morning start and returned once more to the car park. The journey home was filled with some satisfaction at having made the journey and having at least taken some images to be fairly pleased with.

So where to next week as the weather is supposed to improve ??

June, Oh June

June should be a great month for photography, longer days more sun , better light. Unfortunately here in the UK we seem to have skipped past Summer and gone back to Winter, even to the extent that on some evenings the heating in the house has come on to lift the chill.

So far I have struggled to get motivated to look for subjects to photograph , despite waking up at the weekends to look out and see if there are good opportunities. So now I am re-thinking the strategy , perhaps to switch to subject matter that works well in gloomy or rainy conditions. To most this would mean heading to woodland or forested areas to capture the atmosphere that such conditions create or maybe head to the coast to capture dramatic skies over the seas. While these would be good subjects , for me the weather hasn’t been dramatic enough for the coast to inspire me , and for the woodland this has just resulted in very muddy paths to spoil compositions.

So what type of subject could lend itself well to the conditions we are currently experiencing , well the one I am not usually drawn to - the towns and cities around us. With the chance of reflections in the rain soaked streets, options for using artificial lighting creatively and the option of using black and white to obtain a more creative impact it is the one type of subject that I feel could play well until such time as the better light and weather conditions return.

Of course , having said that , it is possible to get some pretty good shots of wildlife and Landscapes with less than ideal weather and if those do present themselves then it would be nice to be ready for them. So that means having a camera bag loaded with every conceivable option and to begin to plan ahead a little more.

Lets hope for some great options ahead…

And then it Rained once more

Another Bank Holiday weekend here in the UK , and my first opportunity to go out with the Camera since returning from the Coast to Coast walk….

The forecast was for Showers throughout the weekend. On Saturday I headed off to return to a Nature Reserve that I visit a few times each year at Willington , its a Wetlands Reserve managed by Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and often I can find various species of insects , particularly Dragonflies and Damselflies to photograph. Its about 45 minutes drive from my home so I set off early. But on arrival with all of the Rain we have had the Wetlands had now extended as far as the small parking area so I was forced to abandon that. Next choice I headed up to Darley Dale to try to capture some bird life in the wooded area - usually a good selection of small songbirds here and the occasional Raptor (Kestrels and Buzzards mostly). Unfortunately due to having spent time driving to Willington and then up to Darley Dale my arrival also coincided with both the heaviest of the downpours in the morning and also the arrival of many dog walkers , thus the number of species about were reduced and the light was terrible. I did take some images and once processed some are acceptable so not entirely a lost day.

Sunday, and the forecast was worse , this time including Thunder and Lightning for good measure, this time I headed straight to Darley Dale and set up position to get unrestricted views of the bird life (and the Grey Squirrels) and sat and waited for both the light to arrive and the rain to ease off - both did for periods throughout the day and I was much more relaxed at getting some images - with the Robins and Chaffinches coming high on the list of those species that presented the best. For a period I even had a Jay for company.

So it just proves that if you ignore the forecast and get out then there are opportunities to be had…now where’s the summer !!

12 Days in May

I think I may have mentioned once or twice my plan to hike across England following Alfred Wainwrights Coast to Coast…not much to do with photography but it had been a challenge I set myself.

On Friday 3rd May, my walking partner and myself took the train to St.Bees in Cumbria ready to start the walk the following morning. And for the next 12 days we walked , around coastlines, through valleys, over mountains, alongside rivers and finally back to coastline. Passing through three of Englands National Parks along the way - The Lake District National Park, The Yorkshire Dales National Park and finally The North Yorkshire Moors National Park.

I had carried my Canon R7 plus two prime lenses (16mm and 32mm) with me to hopefully capture some of the area we were passing through.

Day 1 - Our first task was to choose a pebble to carry across the country and to wet our boots. Then it was on to ascending onto the headland above the seafront. By the time we had ascended on to the St.Bees headland the mist had rolled in and our views were very much limited to those of the path ahead, so much so that we even passed by the Lighthouse without seeing it. The weather was not going to improve and by the time we had passed through Cleator and were beginning to ascend Dent the rain had started and combined with strong wind it meant slower progress , especially when one of my contact lenses fell out and my perception of depth was badly affected. Still after 14.5miles we reached our overnight stay at Ennerdale Bridge and were able to both dry out and warm up.

Day 2 - A stroll to Ennerdale Water , where , considering the previous days rain, we chose the traditional South route around the lake , passing Robin Hoods Seat to reach a short up and down scramble before the very rocky path to the end of the lake. Now we trudged on through the forest track before reaching Black Sail Hut. A Youth Hostel in the most beautiful of locations. After refreshments it was time to ascend Loftbeck , a climb I had been dreading , but which was less fearsome in reality. Finally we reached Honister Slate Mine via their very uneven track, this gave us an energy lift (due to the Coffee and Cake) before our final descent to Seatoller our second overnight stop.

Day 3 - This one we should have split. Leaving Seatoller and heading for Rosthwaite there is a short stretch along the river where you need to use chains to help you across the rock. From Rosthwaite it is then just a very long climb upwards towards Lining Crag , where a vertical scramble awaits. The views down the valley here are incredible. After a short ascent to Greenup Edge there is the option of a high route or low route to Grasmere , of which we chose the latter - it is still a difficult path to walk being very rocky in places. Before reaching Grasmere , and due to time constraints, we turned our attention to the ascent towards Grisedale Tarn , again the path to this - if you take the right hand side of the valley is just a long slow climb on a fairly decent path before making the final ascent up towards Grisedale Tarn. Here I was hoping to stop for a few moments to take images, only for us to be hit with a torrential downpour , which made the path and our descent towards Patterdale very slippery. Our arrival in Patterdale at our overnight accommodation was more than two hours late but we were welcomed in and our pre-ordered food was ready , and very welcome.

Day 4 - After the previous days experience we took the opportunity to take a slightly different route to our next destination of Shap. Taking the Steamer from Glenrydding to Pooley Bridge, which included a flypast by the RAF, meant our days walking was reduced to just 11miles and had shallower gradients to overcome, it was a very warm day walking across fields of Lambs and Sheep and passing through some of the smallest stiles I have ever encountered. The heat was a definite factor on this hike and really sapped the strength even if the terrain was not so challenging. Arriving in Shap we had mistimed our walk and had a few minutes to wait until the famed Shap Chippy opened - we were definitely the first to take up residence and to get our food ordered. Then a walk through the town to reach our overnight stay.

Day 5 - Leaving Shap means the Lake District National Park had now been left behind. And we began to stroll through a different landscape, one littered with Limestone pavements rising up through the earth. This was to prove a fairly long day, both in distance and in time and we fully appreciated the rest we were able to get the previous day. On this day we passed by Robin Hoods Grave as we strolled over the moorland, Finally reaching Smardale Bridge we rested a few minutes before beginning what we thought would be a short walk to Kirkby Stephen - oh how wrong you can be. It turns out that Kirkby Stephen almost waits until you are entering its boundary before revealing itself. That evening we treated ourselves to an Indian meal and prepared ourselves for the next stretch.

Day 6 - Today would involve a 4 mile “gentle ascent” to Nine Standards Rigg , a curious collection of stone structures on top of the ridge line , leaving Kirkby Stephen in the distance. From the Nine Standards it is then decided for you based on the time of year as to which boggy path you will have to follow , the normal route at this time of year would take you to the former home of the Yorkshire Sheperdess and her family but more recently Ravenseat Farm has stopped serving cream teas to walkers. Our route for a little safety took us more directly across to the road connecting Kirkby Stephen to Keld. Following the road downwards brings you past Wain Wath , a small but lovely waterfall on the River Swale, before reaching Keld and our stopping point for the night. Here once again we bumped into other walkers we had already met on previous days and swapped stories of our journey so far. Keld marked the halfway point in distance on our walk - from here the distance to go would become less and less

Day 7 - Next destination would be Reeth , taking in Muker along the way and staying close to the River Swale. Today we walked along with another couple who were over from Australia , with the wife being originally from Korea - this gave my walking partner the opportunity to chat to someone from her own country in her own language. The route was pretty beautiful scenery crossing over farmland and hugging the river. Finally on reaching Reeth we treated ourselves to Ice Cream from the famous Ice cream parlour. Before heading across to our overnight accommodation.

Day 8 - An even shorter walk , once again mostly crossing farmland , to reach Richmond . The day was very sunny and warm but the walk was very pleasant overall , again we met some other walkers who we had last seen on Day 2 at Black Sail Hut. We strolled on avoiding the temptation of one of the famous honesty boxes , this one in a church, and made our way ever closer to Richmond , the largest town on the Coast to Coast Walk. Finally we passed the sign telling us we were in Richmond , although it was still another couple of miles distant this did give us a boost . Walking down into the bustling town centre we immediately sought out somewhere for a small lunch and chose a location off the main market area. We were soon joined by another couple of walkers who were breaking their walk at Richmond and taking the opportunity to visit the theatre. On reaching our pre-booked accommodation there was an issue caused due to miscommunication between the booking agents and the previous and new owners of the property - causing a bit of a scramble around to locate two replacement rooms , not easy when there was also a military reunion in town.

Day 9 - Having managed to get our overnight stay sorted we headed out on what was to be the longest walking day , the one with the least elevation change but equally the least visually appealing countryside to keep the mind occupied. The first part of the walk took in some stretches through woodland paths before crossing farmland to head towards the A1 - first though we were passed by a lot of riders on horses who were out on an endurance event. Passing under the A1 I managed to walk into a fallen tree and nearly knock some sense into myself. We now bumped into another walker we had first met a few days before, Jan from Australia was taking a longer period of time to walk the trail than us , but bravely was doing it alone , with all her family back in Australia there would be nobody at the finish to greet her. We would bump into Jan a couple of more times during the day. Next we reached Bolton on Swale and here stopped at the Church which is famous for its hospitality to walkers , and it lived up to the expectation , hot and cold drinks available and chocolate bars - here as it was Sunday a service had just ended as we arrived but the congregation still welcomed us in. Onwards towards Danby Wiske , and this section included a lot of walking along very quiet rural roads punctuated by crossing fields. The walking was strenuous as it was long and the day was hot with little shade in some parts. Reaching Danby Wiske we still had several miles to our final destination , but took full advantage of Isabels Tuck shop at the camp site (as the pub was shut until 4pm) - here was a dazzling array of goodies on offer , drinks, sweets, fruit, ice creams…all at really fair prices too. There are also toilet facilities and a tap to fill up water containers….again much needed. Now the last stretch and this really did push our strength to the limit , with aching feet and limbs we continued , before finally reaching Ingleby Cross - after doging traffic on the very busy A19. Our plan was to eat in the Blue Bell Inn , but on arrival at around 7 we found out that on Sunday food service had ended at 5pm. So after a quick drink and some crisps we trudged onwards to our overnight stay , where thankfully our host offered us a sandwich - most welcome and a fantastic place to stay.

Day 10 - The long walk to the Lion Inn. Initially our hike took us upwards and onto the North Yorkshire moors , where we began to follow the Cleveland Way , a national trail to be tried another time. This trail begins through woodland areas and with some gentle ascents and descents before turning to climb up Gold Hill towards Carlton Bank and the descent to reach Lordstones where a very welcome rest point is located here we met up with Lloyd who we would walk most of the way to the Lion Inn with. After Lordstones it is a series of ups and downs. Passing the Wainstones , White Hill and Clay Bank Top on the way to the summit of Round Hill to reach Bloworth Crossing and the point where for today we say goodbye to the Cleveland way. From these summits in the very far distance we got our first glimpses of the North Sea and our end target. After that the trackway to reach the Lion Inn was a tortuous six mile stretch of former mine track with sharp stones to probe at already sore and aching feet. Here was where I almost had to stop, almost. Taking two paracetamols and some Dextrose tablets my strength was renewed enough to push onwards and to keep up with my walking partner. Lloyd had forged ahead by this point and was already starting to eat his evening meal when we finally arrived - once again to meet some other walkers we had seen earlier on in the hike. The Lion Inn was was a very welcome surprise with great food and a lovely atmosphere to it and very peaceful for a great nights sleep.

Day 11 - The downward path. Today the objective was a short , 10miles to Egton Bridge which would leave us just over 17miles from our end point at Robin Hoods Bay. My feet were still in a bad way and took some time to get going , despite having been taped and covered in foot cream. And with Rain now lightly hitting us we took our time to cross moorland and roads to reach the track which would take us to Glaisdale , the walk over the moors was very refreshing after the hot days we had previously endured. Descending down into Glaisdale we found what had been an ongoing theme on our walk , closed tearooms and shops - something which began way back in Cleator on day 1. This time we couldn’t locate a tearoom we had heard of so ended up strolling down to The Arncliffe Arms for a sandwich and beer. Moving on for the final mile and a half we passed the Beggars Bridge and crossed through Glaisdale woods to reach Egton Bridge and our final overnight stop before Robin Hoods Bay , here the Horseshoe Hotel also offers a small cafe for those just passing through.

Day 12 - The final push. Onwards from the hotel we took a short detour to cross some stepping stones (not really on the trail but a bit of fun) , then passing across what is the driveway to Egton Manor to join a footpath through towards Grosmont. Walking through Grosmont is a little like stepping back in time as the North Yorkshire Moors Railway passes through here with a level crossing right in the town. For us there were no trains waiting at the station so we pressed on. From Grosmont there is a delightful two mile long walk uphill to reach Sleights Moor crossing this to reach the manic A169 which is to be crossed to begin the descent to Littlebeck to pass through Littlebeck wood on the way towards Falling Foss , there are a few sharp inclines in the woods and upon reaching Falling Foss there was the welcome sight (finally) of Scones with Jam and Cream and Coffee. Break Over we then ascended out from Old May Beck to begin crossing Fylingdales Moor. The Moorland towards Hawsker was very boggy in places and energy was sapped just finding routes through the marshy areas. Finally we joined a road and walked into High Hawsker to take a brief rest break with only 4 miles to walk. The final stretch is reached by passing through a caravan park before re-joining the Cleveland Way to walk along the cliff top to Robin Hoods Bay. The walk down to the Bay Hotel is a steep incline after 17miles but soon the end is reached. With my partner Linda there to greet us. Now just the tradition of throwing our pebble into the North Sea , taking photos and signing the Coast to Coast book in Wainwrights Bar. The it was off for Fish and Chips and a well earned rest..

So with that finished and some money raised for Charity it is back to the harsh reality of work…oh and also time to return to photography…

Almost at the Start

So April has almost ended and yes, I still have left writing a blog for a number of weeks. However, bear with me there is a reason…

In just a couple of days I’ll begin a walk across England , following the route as defined by Alfred Wainwright back in 1973. This hike is around 184 miles in length and traverses three of the UK’s national parks - The Lake District, The Yorkshire Dales and finally the North Yorkshire Moors. Given the distance involved and the terrain to pass through , I have focussed a little more on getting fit(ter) and ready to make it firstly to the start and beyond that the aim is to reach the finish in twelve days.

So now the Photography Club season has come to an end it is time to return to look at gathering more images to take into the next season, and based on that I recently attended an event hosted by Photography Session Days , having previously met both Emma and Graham that run the company and had time to chat with them at The Photography and Video show back in March they let me know that they had space on an event at Allerton Castle in North Yorkshire so I took the plunge ,despite not being usually comfortable photographing people, and booked to attend.

The event timing was for a morning session , so it was necessary to get up and get on the road early to arrive on time. The event was really well organised and all of the models available were able to offer great advice on what may work well in each of the settings available. That being said if you have no idea as to how to get the best out of your camera it is daunting at the beginning , but by the end of the session it is possible to achieve some images to be proud of. Editing those images in a creative way will be the key to adding value beyond the initial shoot and that is not something that can be learned on the day.

Would I attend another event , absolutely yes. So I will continue to watch out for the various events coming up and definitely push myself to operate the camera more seamlessly and to possibly take a few more lens options, to give more flexibility and variety to the images I can capture.

Anyway back to where we began , the Coast to Coast walk , I will try to write a few brief notes throughout and maybe if fatigue and weather dont affect me too much will aim to gather at least a few images that I can share..

April Showers ??

Given that March was pretty much a washout , with lots of frequent heavy rains it is hardly surprising to be a little pessimistic heading in to April.

Easter weekend straddled across March and April and surprisingly there were some bright spells, sadly what this does bring is a massive influx of visitors to the Peak District , many of whom seem unwilling to use car parks that they have to pay in. Indeed whilst the influx of visitors should be a good thing for the region with people spending money with local businesses it often has to be balanced against the impact on the environment and the native wildlife.

The biggest single impact is on the number of vehicles that are badly parked and cause obstruction for emergency vehicles or local farmers to pass, with many of these vehicles causing damage to the roadside verges. Secondly is the amount of litter dropped by those who for some reason think that the countryside has a large army of litter pickers walking around constantly cleaning up after the laziness of others. Finally it is inconsiderate dog walkers , not all are to be placed in this category to make that clear , those that allow dogs to run free across field clearly signed as having either livestock or particularly vulnerable species of wildlife in them. Aligned to the inconsiderate dog walkers are the insane number of dog waste bags either just dropped on the pathways, shoved into walls, hung like bizarre Christmas decorations from trees and fences or left where a few seconds before was their own car - if you take the trouble to bag it then dispose of the bag appropriately - yes walking miles carrying a bag of dog waste isn’t fashionable but you chose to get a dog…..right rant over…

On the positive side the injury to my knee has improved significantly and that is allowing me the chance to get moving more again - firstly a trip out to Carr Vale Nature reserve on Good Friday to see what migrant birdlife had begun to return to our shores, sadly the weather was not great for brining out the best and between showers but still any time spent outdoors is better than none , or that is what we will keep telling ourselves right ?

Following this , in-between the usual visits to outlaws (sorry relatives) I managed to do a couple more walks around the local environment clocking up almost 30miles in the process and feeling as though with more time available I could have stretched each walk further giving me confidence that with only a few weeks of training left I will be in a good position for my Coast to Coast walk adventure…

So lets see where April takes us…

Another trip to Sheffield

This week I had a long weekend , just as there will be next weekend with the Easter Bank Holidays, so you would think that would offer additional opportunities for getting out to do photography. Well as is often the case life got in the way, with jobs to do around the house on both Friday and Saturday , neither of which had particularly good weather. So Sunday I was determined to go out , but where to head to. Initially I headed out to look for Raptors, Birds of Prey , setting off to an area that normally I see a few Kestrels or the odd Buzzard, however not one was to be seen - possibly as I was slightly later than usual getting out (the old bed being a little too comfortable).

Disappointed but with improving light I made the decision to go to look to photograph Kingfishers once more, hence the trip to Sheffield. The trip over the moors to reach the location was beautiful , but presented no new photographic opportunities so I didn’t stop on the way.

Arriving at the location I parked up and walked to the first pond where the Kingfishers are normally active , again normally is what I said there as I got that feeling today was going to be one of those days where the subject I wanted to capture just didn’t appear. Ok , onwards to the next pond and here surely they must be…well no, again no Kingfishers. So I sat myself down and busied myself photographing the Mallards and Mandarin Ducks , all of whom seemed to be curious as to what the heck I was doing there and tried presenting themselves in the best light.

Anyway I decided , no Kingfishers then surely there must be some Dippers slightly further upstream (or anything other than Ducks) , so I walked upwards through the parkland alongside the brook searching for subjects , had I been looking for some intimate landscapes then the dappled light through the trees would have offered many opportunities , but sadly few wildlife subjects. Upon reaching the Cafe in the park I sat , had a coffee and thought of my next steps. Head further up the park or walk down to one of the other ponds…

Choosing the latter of the options I headed back down the park but on the opposite side of the brook and reached a third pond , here finding another photographer and finally Kingfishers , a Male with his brilliantine colouring and a female , beautiful in her own right. The behaviour was fascinating in that the male was fishing and then taking the fish to the female who for the most part was hidden from view, before he once again took up a perch to hunt. Here, however came the issue that due to the time of day , my error for starting at the wrong location, the sunlight was almost directly behind and above the birds so silhouettes were the order of the day. I spent several minutes chatting to the other photographer and gaining some valuable knowledge to use next time.

Moving on I retraced my steps back to the second pond I had visited and having sat for a few minutes was rewarded with the Male Kingfisher perching on a branch for a few seconds before taking to flight and heading away. I moved position to a little further along the pond and once again spent time focussing on the Ducks , which as I had now sighted my primary subject seemed much more appealing so I attempted to capture them in better light and position - given this is a public park I took the decision not to lay fully prone on the bank of the pond (as my wheezing and struggle for breath may have caused someone to dial for an ambulance) and instead got as low as practically possible. Almost immediately to be disturbed by well meaning people walking through asking about the photography…and of course had I seen the Kingfishers..

It was here that a young photographer joined the increasing numbers of people and also asked about the Kingfishers , and after some time chatting showed some of the most incredible photographs that I have seen from one so young…I gave my advice as to ways to present the images to a wider audience - which they do fully deserve and chatted as we both headed back to the first pond I had started out at. Here the Kingfisher was once again hunting although the placement of its perches often meant that the background showed us to be in an inner city park area.

Anyway , ultimately I got some images that I can work with and met two very very good photographers on the day, both at the opposite ends of the age spectrum, which truly shows how such an interest can bring generations together - I hope at some point to bump into both of them again….

The Photography and Video Show 2024

Having attended previous incarnations of the show , I wanted to go along. Not necessarily to make any large investment in equipment , but more of a fact finding mission to see what is about and to do some hands on viewing of products for myself.

So having got the early bird ticket offer I headed out on Saturday (16th March 2024) to travel down to Birmingham , almost 90miles from my home. The show always opens at 10am so I gave myself enough time to arrive , park and then walk to the show halls. Arriving at the National Exhibition Centre from the M42 side it was clear the day would be a busy one with very slow moving traffic entering the site. So having parked and collected my camera bag , yes I did take my camera and two lenses, I hiked to the hall and arrived with five minutes to go before the doors opened.

Upon entering the show you are immediately greeted with the, sometimes overwhelming choice of what to see first, for me I headed to the KASE filters stand. This year the KASE stand was conveniently located near to the entrance and not hidden away at the back of the second hall , why a filter manufacturer first you may ask, well simply put a local photographer to me Stephen Elliott is one of their brand ambassadors so I pop by to say hello. Even at this early hour people were trying to snap up bargains and the stand was busy , so I said the briefest of hellos before heading around to other stands.

As a Canon shooter the temptation would be to head to the large Canon stand to try out lenses , camera bodies etc , but my focus was just on experiencing the show. Throughout all of the show days there are many keynote speakers and masterclasses that are taking place so it is important to use the show guide to identify where these take place , something I failed to do and so I missed two talks , one by Emma Finch and the other by Joe Cornish - must try harder to get to these early. Anyhow I then found myself back at the KASE filters stand and listened to the talk given by Vanda Ralevska (mylenscapes) about her journey from Czechoslovakia to the UK and how this transformed her love of photography. After listening to Vanda I stood up and headed to purchase a new cleaning kit as my existing one is a bit weather beaten now, At the counter I found myself stood amongst some of You Tubes most recognisable photographers , Adam Gibbs, Thomas Heaton and Nick Page - I took a few moments to chat with Adam and found myself enjoying the chat , then it was time to play the choose the polaroid game with Thomas and Nick , difficult to choose small polaroid images that are of the Birmingham area. Anyway I will leave it to them to present the outcome of that on their You Tube channels.

Having now purchased my cleaning kit I went off wandering again, spending time to look at products available , chat to the Royal Photographic Society regarding gaining a distinction and the upcoming changes to submissions, and then spent time photographing the various models that had been supplied by Creativity Hub Events and Rotolight - all of whom were thoroughly professional in their craft despite the throngs of mostly male photographers snapping away all day - this I find is always an opportunity as someone that typically does not shoot portraits to see if I could under the less than ideal lighting in the arena actually get some “OK” images..

At lunch I bumped into two of the members of the High Peak Photography Club and had a pleasant time talking to them , it is one of the reasons I enjoy the club so much is that the members are friendly and welcoming.

Then with the final throes of the afternoon drawing in I stumbled across Graham Currey, a great character model , who had attended the club , here resplendent in his monk style outfit - he and Emma Finch that I mentioned earlier run Session Days where you can attend and photograph various characters in unique settings and we had a really nice chat about upcoming events and a possible return to the club.

Overall , despite the event being very busy I once again had a really great time , yes parking and food at these events seems expensive but overall its an experience and a day away from the normal…so roll on next March…

Another tiring week..

So this week has been a little empty of Photographic opportunities , mostly as it has been spent in a house that is being decorated so not great for relaxing or keeping the energy up for much else.

With that in mind I’m heading off to the Photography and Video show at the NEC in Birmingham on Saturday , here there will be the opportunity to hear from some of the photographers whose work I admire and also to spend time looking at all of the different and wonderful things to help with creating more images going forwards. It also offers the opportunity to see how others are using equipment to make their images and to learn from a wider group of professionals.

For me the show is also an opportunity to take images as there are always some incredible models available , whose time would normally be out of my budget and that is a genre of photography that I really am not great at - portraiture. I think my issue with portraiture is that it involves telling someone how they should look which I find difficult to do…anyway something else to practice.

One thing this year I will look to avoid is buying too many things , mostly I have everything I need to capture the images I want, it is the time and energy that is missing mostly and that is something I need to put more effort into…

Anyway onwards to the show…

Canon RF 200-800mm f6.3-f9.0…a few thoughts from a week in Winter

So March has arrived here in the UK and with it some life is starting to return , firstly with the blooming of the Snowdrops which covered my rather small front garden transforming it from the barren dark brown it had been since around November.

More wildlife is visible as well, notably here the Short Eared Owls can often be seen gliding over the moorland in search of their next meal.

So this gave me a thought to try out a lens, the Canon RF 200-800mm f6.3-f9.0, which many on Social Media have been praising , particularly for its reach and ability to bring smaller subjects to be much larger in the frame. So I checked on Lenses for Hire website in the UK and saw that it was in stock and available to hire and with that placed an order for one weeks hire. This is now the third time I have used Lenses for Hire and I have to say I have been thoroughly impressed each time.

So the lens arrived on the Thursday afternoon and excitedly I unpacked it , what a monster this lens is much longer when at its shortest length than any other lens I have used , and this is where the first issue that I had with the lens arose - my current camera backpack wasn’t able to accommodate it when mounted onto the Canon R7. Not a major issue but would be a further expenses needed if I was to purchase this lens.

Anyway due to other commitments I was unable to use the lens before the Sunday , so I headed out to Peak Wildlife Park to test it photographing the animals they have there, starting of course with the Red Squirrels - here, as the light was OK the lens performed really well capturing the flighty little creatures easily and with great detail whilst allowing me to stay further back from them so as not to disturb their normal behaviour. In some instances I did find that 200mm was just too far a reach and felt I would prefer to be somewhere around 150mm , but that isn’t the lens issue it is more to do with photographing animals in a controlled environment. I did notice sometimes the lens didn’t focus as accurately as I would have hoped but again some of that was down to lower contrast in the image I was trying to capture. I tried the lens on most of the animal subjects at the park and overall was pleased - however on this occasion the light was fairly bright giving good contrast.

Next I attempted to photograph short eared owls , here I was less successful , mostly my error of incorrect settings on the camera initially but later the failings were again down to the less than ideal light gathering of this lens. I tried twice more to use the lens to capture the owls but never got a good sharp image to be happy with.

Then the weather turned with dark dense winter fog and rain , so no point to trying to use this lens under those conditions - hence I waited until Saturday , my final day with the lens and again I tried to use it across the entire day. First attempting to photograph Kingfishers , here the sky was badly overcast and very little light was reaching the pond where I knew the Kingfishers would be, so whilst I could zoom right in and the camera would focus on the bird the shutter speed and ISO available where not ideal - typically 1/320 second at ISO12800 - the images just lacking enough for any denoise software to recover.

Moving on I had the idea of photographing the Red Deer on the moors , but again the light was the big issue with the ISO having to be pushed way beyond what would produce a clean image perhaps on a camera such as the R3 or R6 Mark II this would have been different.

So then onwards to an area I knew there would be some small birds to photograph , and here the light did return and once more I found that the lens performed reasonable well , even allowing some good out of focus background with shallow depth of field.

Overall thoughts then , well both Phil Thatch and Christopher Frost on You Tube have hit the nail squarely on the head - paired with the R7 this lens is just not quite there…sad really as I was contemplating it as an option. For now I’ll stick with my trust EF100-400mm L MKII which although its reach is a little short gives me more consistent results.

Anyway next week its back to the NEC to the Photo and Video show , this time not taking my wallet…

February (part II)

Wow, what a privilege.

I managed to drag myself out again early on last Saturday morning to take myself for a walk to partly scout a new location and secondly to hopefully capture images of a Bird species that I have not seen since I was a child , the Kingfisher.

As I set out at 7am the weather looked terrible , the fine misty rain falling in a constant stream. To be fair some of the woodlands that I passed by on the way looked really spectacular and atmospheric. After about half an hour I reached the car park and having almost taken the sump out on a large rock began the process of changing to hiking boots and making sure I had everything with me that I might need. This gave the rain time to cease !!

Walking down through the woodlands of Porter Brook it was great to hear birdsong , a sure sign that we are heading towards Spring. There was also faint signs of growth in the plant life as well so this is definitely a positive step from the dark days of winter. I had the 100-400mm lens on my camera and so was looking for wildlife to act as subjects, unfortunately the light at this early hour meant that high ISO values would be needed or really low shutter speeds, but still it was great to look for locations that could be great photography spots. Finally I reached Forge Dam park and spent several minutes at the duck pond just looking for interesting images, the usual mix of Mallards and Mandarin ducks were around on the lake.

Continuing down the Porter Brook trail I enjoyed looking for potential spots to use in Landscape images and thoughts turned to when throughout the year it would be good to return. Finally I reached Bingham park and stopped at the Shepherd Wheel pond , as I reached the pond a couple passing the opposite way pointed to where a Kingfisher was perched , although at that moment in time it immediately flew away. I settled into a bench opposite where the Kingfisher had perched and waited (checking focus and settings etc while I sat there).

The Kingfisher didn’t return at this time so I chose to look at the next pond down and that is where the little chap was happily fishing away, just out of reach of my 400mmm lens and even adding the 1.4x teleconverter the subject was just too far out of reach on an overcast day.

So I sat , and watched the Kingfisher zooming backwards and forwards between perches, and decided to focus my attention on the other birds on the pond. After a while I moved on and looked around the rest of the park and found some crocuses that had begun to flower - purples , yellows and whites standing out on the grassy bank.

Returning back to the Shepherd Wheel pond, via the snack trailer , I once again settled in to wait and was rewarded with the Kingfisher landing on a perch that was well within the 400mm reach. Here the beautiful little bird fished and ate quite happily as myself and another Photography enthusiast snapped away - such an honour…

Finally it was time to walk back the nearly 3.5miles back to the car , which surprisingly was easy - possibly as I felt somewhat uplifted from the encounter with the Kingfisher..

February

So incredibly, it is already the middle of February…and what have I achieved (other than a twisted knee) . Sadly not a great deal…

I did go out to Spurn Point near Hull to have a go at the long exposure photography and enjoyed myself . The main issue I had was arriving at the wrong time , the tide had receded too far to get the best of images early on and this put me slightly on edge as to what I would be able to capture before the tide was too low , or risk the long wait for it to return..I opted for the former of these and captured what I could - actually this was more down to the weather forecast being worse later on and the chance that there would not be such good light. Having decided on a position and composition I was happy with it was then just down to experimenting with exposure times and making sure that subjects were acceptably sharp, not easy when the wind was gusting heavily and the cold was making my eyes water.

So I captured a series of images that I could work with , as this type of photography requires a fair amount of work in post processing - mostly to bring back the right amount of contrast into the image to get the right feel. Some of them are on the Landscapes page of this website.

In order not to freeze too much I decided to walk towards the lighthouse at Spurn Point again hoping to create a pleasing image (well to me anyway) and so I set off down the beach…

It was a short way down the beach that the sand shifted a little and I felt some discomfort in my right knee , as the pain worsened a little I decided to abandon my walk to the lighthouse and turned to head back to the car, still this was nearly 3 miles. Reaching the discovery centre near to the car I felt the need for some refreshment (stupidly the first since the previous evenings meal) - keep hydrated out there .

Anyway I spent another couple of hours in a hide close to the discovery centre hoping to see Owls as the light faded in the afternoon , no Owls came out during this time though I had witnessed three earlier that morning on the approach to Spurn Point - you know that time when you don’t have your camera ready.

My local camera club also held a development meeting in which we tried doing some light painting , sadly indoors as the weather outside was atrocious, and further to that having watched the latest edition of the Photography Online You Tube broadcast in which a really great local Photographer Stephen Elliott featured his skill at light painting I am determined that before the nights get too light I will go out and have another attempt at something more spectacular, knee injury permitting of course..

Bye for now

Phil

Almost…

So January so far has brought us a brief snow spell and some very windy days, both of which would normally offer up opportunities to get images to work with…

However, when you work full time during the week and the January days are so short for light here in the UK all those chances passed me by and I have had to be content to look at the great images produced by those who are able to take the time to get out in those conditions - well done.

Anyway with the prospect of the last weekend of January fast approaching I do need to get out and capture some images so it will need to be a case of pack my camera bag tonight (something I always struggle to do and then rush around on the day), get myself some rest and rise early enough to get somewhere as the morning light strikes, so no watching movies until beyond midnight.

What will I try and capture ? Well, in my head I have the plan to improve on my long exposure photography , some describe it as fine art photography. Its the kind of imagery which contains a simplified scene and muted tones. Anyway there are many examples of it on You Tube by some really good photographers so I am hoping to get at least something close to what they can achieve. If I do get something then I will include a new page under the images section…

I also really fancy having a proper attempt at some night time photography , that would be some astro and also illuminated city and town images, that would require me pushing myself to go and sit out in the cold to gather these but would improve my understanding of gathering light in more challenging situations.

And then it will be time to wait for the arrival of spring , snowdrops are starting to grow in the garden but are just not quite at that photogenic state yet….

Welcome to 2024

So here we are in January 2024 , start of a new year with hopes and dreams before us…

For me 2024 is going to be a challenge. mostly a physical challenge of getting fit enough to get out more with the camera but also a challenge in that I am planning to walk 192 miles across Northern England following the famous Coast to Coast walk of Alfred Wainwright.

As part of that I will take photos and some video along the way so I am also learning some elements of videography and boy my hat goes out to those out there that can create such wonderful stories to inspire us all. as the challenge of capturing , editing and expressing the emotion of the images is so tough. So bear with me on that front.

Already in 2024 my gear has taken a slight change, over the Christmas time I had two lenses on hire, the first was the Canon RF 100-500mm a lens which so many people on You Tube have spoken about and admired its quality, All of them were correct this is an amazing lens for the Canon RF mount system, on my R7 it easily outshone my trusty EF70-300mm L series lens and the Sigma 150-600mm Contemporary both of which I have enjoyed shooting with. The speed and accuracy of the autofocus and the incredible sharpness of the images produced has been truly eye opening.

Second I had the RF100mm f2.8 Macro lens on hire and that also is a truly incredible lens , I didn’t use this for quite as many shots as the 100-500 but those I did capture I am very happy with.

Sadly I had to return them to Lenses for Hire and face the prospect of not having them in my bag….

But having looked at how many images I capture with the 70-300 and 150-600 it became obvious that the focal lengths I mainly shoot at are in between these values - very few images are at the extremes. So I looked to trade them in for a single lens to cover the ranges I mainly shoot at and saw that by trading these two lenses in I could replace them with a Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM . This made more sense as I already had the EF 1.4x III extender in my cupboard which fits more easily on the 100-400mm lens. So I made the decision and took the plunge via mpb.com.

So now I am looking to get out and use this lens, alongside another purchase - this time a wide angle EF-S lens the 10-18mm , this is one area where the APS-C sensor shooters lose out with Canon, in that without 3rd party lenses some focal lengths are just not affordable for the masses. I may rent the RF10-20mm later in the year and try it for some shots but for now will be happy to accept that most of my forays into wide angle images will be on older glass.

Right that’s enough for now - hope 2024 brings everything you hope for..