Revealing the light in the darkest of places ...

Well, with just over 24 hours to go before emabarking on the India epic I have been reading an article by Larry Louie, the current Travel Photographer of the Year. Plenty of hints and tips, if only I can find a group of boys playing cricket in the streets of Agra, with the Taj Mahal in the background ... Assignment set ...

Some amazing images posted on his website which could tell a thousand stories ... What is really unusual about his work is that it is mostly monochromatic ... An interesting take ...

Have you met Miss Jones ...

On Saturday night I had the opportunity to catch up with some friends who I hadn't seen in ages, the occasion being Miss Jones' leaving dinner. I say the occasion was Miss Jones' leaving dinner, though that should probably be Mrs Richardson's leaving dinner, as we all know that she married the lovely Matt quite a few years ago now!

It was great to spend time with the St Anthony's crew both past and present, and to remember some of the weird and wonderful stories we were all part of together. (Anyone want a mars bar or a can of coke? How about an ice-cream?) It is a strange thing, but a wonderful thing as well to know that in one sense everything has changed, but in another sense nothing has changed. The threads of friendship continue to weave our story together and I feel priveledged to have walked even just part of the journey with some amazing people who have shown such courage and tenacity, and my life is richer for it!

To Shirley, Matt and Carrys. May the road rise to meet you, and the wind be at your back!

By default ....

The first blog update for a while ... I never anticpated that this would end up being a photographic blog - I had considered in the long-term this being a space for writing deep and profound things that might change the world, but in the mean-time let's not waste time! I spent some time in the Lakes a few weeks ago following up a Winter photography course in the Lakes led by Rob Ward, this time on the Spring course. With Summer approaching there was a great sense of excitement in the air, and the promise of catching that "ultimate frame" we all dream of...

However ... events (influenced by the weather) were to take a somewhat different turn and I was forced out of my comfort zone to photograph plants, flowers and even the sly portrait here and there. It was a great few days with a great group ...

Appologies to all who have seen these photos before ... But I am also learning the benefits of having your images backed up in a number of places .... As a Northumbrian turn of phrase goes - Lest said, best forgotten!

Seasons come, seasons go ...

This evening a few of us from the photography club ventured out for the first "walkabout" of the year, given that the club season is now closed and more time can be spent taking photographs, rather than talking about taking them!

While doing a lot of wandering about and not taking very many photos, I did however have some time to reflect, and I can't believe how quickly the last season has passed.So, in respect of this here are a few images that "sum up" the season. They're not going to make front page news, feature in a magazine, or win any awards; but for me they tell a story or part of a story...

Spring has sprung ...

Or so I thought! The rainy scene outside can't be much far removed from the pleasant, sunny afternoon spent at Dunstanburgh last Saturday.

Instead of being out and about this afternoon I have been experimenting with semi-desaturation techniques. I am also very impressed with the RAW picture quality from my new Nikon D5000. It puts my previous camera to shame.Only a few tweaks in levels and hue and saturation for the layers, and here are the results ...

Image 1 is the original.

Image 2 a combimation of hue and saturation layers, blending modes and opacity.

Image 3 uses a technique called bleach bypass.

Well, it filled part of a rainy afternoon, anyway. Maybe tomorrow will bring better weather ...

Take A Seat ...

Since returning from the Lake District I have had a wee photographic project brewing, which has involved me spoaching about for an old, rickety wooden chair.

I first saw the use of a chair in Rob Ward's The Chair project, whereby he has photographed different members of the local community in his studio using nothing but a chair. The resulting images are great, and tell a lot about the people from their "take" on the chair. You can see these images at

http://www.robwardphotography.com/

What I am interested to do is to take a different slant on the chair theme, putting it in a public space and take some shots. Whether these images are candid or staged, taken as close-ups or from further away, on the beach or in the hills somewhere it will be interesting to see what happens. In the back of my mind I can see a farmer and his Collie sitting on the chair in the Alwin valley, skaters in the market place in Blyth, and candid family shots on the beach. A kind of story-telling project ...

Throwing in a measure of mystery and intrigue, and the possibility of some perplexed onlookers wondering why there is a chair on the concrete pier at Blyth beach or at the top of a grassy knoll in the Cheviots kinda gets me excited ....

Maybe I have finally tipped over the edge ....

The Lake District Trilogy ...

The challenge was set by Rob, our photographic "guide" for the weekend to come up with 3 images based on the animal, mineral, vegetable theme to be submitted at the end of the course, linked together somehow by shape, colours or some other appropriate connection.

From the outset I knew I would find this quite a challenge, being more of a "big picture" person, at least when it comes to photography, so I feel that there is a bit of a story behind these images!

My neandothol photographic (female) side (if such a thing can exist) often thinks "Ooooh, mountain, photo!" Or "Oooooh, waterfall, photo!" I guess this is quite primeval, and so I was on the lookout this weekend for something beyond the bigger picture.

That was at least for the first 10 minutes of shooting, as everything after that seems to have reverted to "big picture" so I guess a lesson can be learned here somewhere! So, although I have found 3 images on the theme, I didn't actually initially set out to put these 3 images together. It has been more of a collage created in the editing process as it were!

Light on snow, Derwent Water

Abstract water, Aira Beck

Tree Bark, Hawes End

As for the animal, mineral, vegetable theme I feel that the links are somewhat tenuous. I can assure you that if you look hard enough in the landscape scene there is a beached whale or a sleeping man, or a large jurassic serpent-type creature lying by a pool!

Chasing the light ...

A rainy Saturday evening gave way to a fairly dull Sunday morning, but the light came out to play for just a few minutes as we drove down the road from the centre. It was difficult to capture in the camera what the eye saw because of the contrasty scene, but it was well worth trying to! The rest of the day was spent down at Aira Force capturing the waterfall and stream. I would like to return here when there is some foliage to add a bit more colour and depth to the photos.

A wild Saturday night out in Keswick ...

The rain finally ebated and we ventured into Keswick to do some evening street photography. It wasn't that busy due to the weather, but we had one or two rather "interesting" conversations with the locals who must have thought we were all completely insane

Hawes End ...

Back down at lake-level the weather was a little dreary, so time for some close-ups rather than the panoramics!

Snowy Honister ...

A few kilometres down the road, and a few hundred metres up over Honister Pass, it was a cold and snowy scene ...

Light and snow, Derwentwater

Last weekend I enrolled on a photography course in the Lake District. As we drove towards Honister the light changed and lit up the snowy ridge ...