The Shed at Porthgain are doing takeaway fish and chips (thank the lord) so we went down on Friday night to eat something we hadn’t cooked ourselves for the first time in a while. It was one of those rare evenings in Pembrokeshire where the air was still but heavy and the sky was bruised with rain clouds that sat overhead. We took a walk around the harbour, skimmed some stones on the flat water and wandered out onto the headland to look at the harbour markers there. Dramatic light is always welcome as it shows off the landscape at it’s best but then a muggy evening of flat light and muted colours is also lovely; especially with a belly full of fish and chips and a drowsy mood.
Landscape
Time lapse on the doorstep
in Landscape
As the sun began to drop out of the sky last night, I dashed down the road with my tripod and set up my camera to create a time lapse. Taking a shot every 2 seconds this one is made up of over 700 frames. The card was full when I returned from my amble up the road which provided another lesson in timelapsing; make sure your memory card is empty before you start. Luckily I got most of the best part of the sunset. Next time I’ll hope for some cows or sheep in the field which would add a bit of additional interest and the lack of cars on the road during the lockdown didn’t help; although as a cyclist I’m not complaining about that!
Time lapses are an interesting challenge, I guess they are a midpoint between photography and film making; It’s important to compose the shot as you would a good photograph with elements combining to make an interesting frame but there’s also the movement of those elements to consider. This one could have done with some more action but I like the movement in the leaves in the foreground and the sun dropping into the clouds. I don’t have a fancy tracking device by the way, the panning effect is just added when making the video. It’s possible to get devices that will gradually pan the camera or move it along a rail for more versatility but they are expensive and not something I really need!
One factor that photographers and film makers both desire is good quality of light and it almost always makes the difference between an average and a good piece of work. I like the glow in the sky with this one and the sunlight through the leaves.
International Dark Sky Week at Roch Castle
in Landscape
This week has been International Dark Sky Week. Here in Pembrokeshire we are lucky that we have several recognised Dark Sky locations in the county but also, many areas are fairly dark compared to more densely populated (and lit) parts of the country.
International Dark Sky Week is a weeklong celebration of the night. This year, IDA is encouraging people around the world to come together online to celebrate the night and engage with authors, creators, scientists and educators whose works have been vital to the movement to protect the night from light pollution.
There was a time when I spent quite a lot of time stood out in the dark but these days I rarely do night and time lapse photography as it’s by its nature fairly time consuming and there are plenty of technical obstacles that mean results are far from guaranteed. But with recent clear skies and Roch Castle on my doorstep (and currently unoccupied) I left the camera merrily clicking away in the grounds on a couple of different nights. Unfortunately, on the first attempt, cloud rolled in and spoiled the view of the sky although I quite enjoy the texture of the mackerel clouds scudding across the scene nonetheless. As with any first attempt, lots of lessons were learnt so when the forecast looked good a couple of days later, I returned and managed to get a clearer night.
Below are several videos from different nights and a couple of stills. The first still is the star trail image that I created from the frames that made up the time lapse on the cloudy night, the second is one frame from a previous trip with a crystal clear sky and the third is the star trail from the clear night time lapse. The star trail images are made up of over 300 frames all stacked on top of each other to show the movement of the stars (more accurately the Earth rotating beneath the stars) In the first star trail image it appears that due to all the gaps in the clouds the stars peeked out enough to show the trails and that classic wheel shape as they appear to revolve around the Northern Star. It was quite a pleasant surprise as the time lapse video suggested that the stars would be hidden behind the clouds! The clouds have given it a purple haze and slightly uneven trails but I’m still pleased with it. The third image is the star trails from the clear night with venus (I think?) fading as it disappears below the horizon.
If you’re keen to have a go yourself, check out the detailed article on Night Photography by Pixpa, covering the basics such as camera equipment choices, various techniques and some more detailed tips for night photography. It’s useful to have pages like this saved so you can refer back to the tips as it’s difficult to remember everything when stood in the dark!
A note on recent changes to the night sky… We have been blessed with good weather during this strange lockdown period and these events have conspired to offer great chances to go on long walks. The other night, gazing upwards we saw a string of satellites and I realised I'd not seen them before in all those times over the years when I'd been standing in the dark with the camera on a tripod. I had a google when I got home and was pretty shocked at what I read. The satellites are part of the SpaceX Starlink which are a series of 60 satellites designed for providing internet coverage. The eventual aim is to have nearly 12000. The night sky transformed for the foreseeable future just so people can use the internet!? It's really got me angry and seems like an attack on something sacred. It may seem like an overreaction but for me, simply taking time to stand and stare at the sky on a clear night gives a sense of our place within the universe and knowing that the sky remained largely unchanged from the times when our oldest ancestors did the same was a humbling experience. To see man made objects up there feels wrong although for example, seeing the ISS speed across the sky is acceptable to me because it represents a sense of international cooperation and a furthering of knowledge but to see a string of satellites racing across the sky to enable people to have better internet services seems like a less than worthwhile sacrifice. Another more serious issue is the difficulties it leads to for astronomers who find their field of view is obscured. but as space based projects become less exclusive I guess we will have to expect that the night sky will no longer be the tranquil sight it once was.
Framing a large piece
in Landscape, Commercial
The day before the lockdown became official, I went to see Justin at George the Framer to pick up a piece that he had framed for me. The customer had seen this image on my Instagram feed and wanted a large print to hang in his house near Whitesands that overlooks this scene. As a keen fisherman, he often takes trips around these waters and he loved the image. I had the print done at the excellent Trade Canvas Print in Tenby and Justin close framed it for me. Unfortunately, I haven’t yet been able to deliver it to the client who is marooned in Norfolk! Printing at this scale is always a pleasure as it shows off an image to its full potential so it was lovely to get the message from Russell that he wanted it printed large. It looks great and I throughly recommend the team at Trade Canvas Print and Justin for your framing needs; two local businesses offering high quality work. For now it sits in the corner of my house awaiting its new home.
Geology and multiple images
in Landscape
As you’ve probably already guessed, I have something of a love affair with the rocks of Pembrokeshire. The textures and colours that can be found in all the different and wonderfully named types of rock mean that no trip to the coast is complete without a look at what lies there. Ordovician shales, silurian volcanics, carboniferous limestones and many more can be seen here. In fact, Pembrokeshire is a popular site for geological field trips and yellow helmeted groups of students can often be seen poking around at the most interesting and accessible areas. I’m no geologist so couldn’t tell you which ones are which, but I can point out which ones I like.
I’ve often tried to make images of sections that are particularly attractive to me but the results have never quite pleased me. After a bit of time on photoshop this morning I thought I’d share this with you. I took three different images and combined elements I liked to create an image that was a bit more abstract. Something I might pursue or might leave as a project that didn’t quite work. Some parts of the image are out of focus because of the angle I was shooting the rock so I have to have another go and get that right at least. All of the images are taken in various places around the cliffs at Abereiddy.
Three different moods at Druidston - Workshop
in Landscape
On Saturday I went down to Druidston as the main venue for a one to one workshop with a client keen to improve his photography and increase his understanding of technique and composition. We spent a good few hours at the beach; arriving at high tide and shooting further areas as the tide receded and more beach became exposed. We shot a number of different angles and worked on understanding how placement of elements in a frame can make for stronger compositions and more pleasing results. Looking through the few frames that I shot during the afternoon it’s easy to see how different light, technique, composition and processing can lead to a set of images that offers varying mood despite them all being created at the same place within a short space of time. Below are three images, the first is a fairly classic view taking advantage of the low winter sun and dramatic clouds, the second; a longer exposure looking out to sea with a simple composition and the third, a somewhat more extremely processed image in black and white, giving another interpretation of the scene. Which do you prefer?
If you’d like to join me for a workshop either for a small group or on a one to one basis, please get in touch via my contact form for more info.
