Falmouth - Photography Week 14 (2016)

Much of  the detail in everyday life goes unnoticed. Photography has the ability to bring these into consciousness either a single image or as a panel. When presented the viewer should gain a new, or revised, sense of place. 

Selecting and capturing these details is one of the most enjoyable aspects of photography. It does not have to be complex. A compact camera or camera phone will suffice. 

With this in mind, I took this series of images in Falmouth during photography week  14:

Corralled Beach Huts

Over the winter and before the season gets going, beach huts are protected from the seas and penned in behind metal fences - their freedom is just around the corner!

Colours

Colourful flags, bunting and kiosks signal the start of the tourist season:

Harbour Chains and Mooring Rings

Light and Shade

Photo Art

Image processing can be used as a creative tool to provide a different take on an everyday scene:

Falmouth Mural

I have abstracted from a wonderfully drawn and coloured mural on Webber Street in Falmouth. More detail about the mural is shown in the first photo. I have reduced the contrast and clarity in most of the images to counteract some of the effects of weathering:  

Peaceful Resting Place - Photography Week 14 (2016)

Falmouth General Cemetery dates from the mid 19th Century (1) and is situated on a hill overlooking Swanpool. There is a very peaceful walk through the well maintained cemetery and this time of year there is an abundance of primroses and bluebells:

At certain places in the cemetery there are terraces and steps to counteract the steepness of the hill. This allows an unusual grass high view of the primroses and bluebells. Initially, I used a 100mm macro to gain some shots of the flowers but found that it didn't quite have the reach I needed. So, I stepped up to a 100-400mm and then had the thought of adding an extension tube for magnification.

The results were interesting - firstly there was a very narrow depth of field to contend with and then the closer I got to the flowers the more flaws I could see in the primrose petals. Many had rips or pieces of petal missing and normally when photographing flowers I tend to pick out the best specimens. On this occasion though, I decided that this was not important as each flower, despite any perceived flaws, was contributing to a beautiful display of spring flowers.

Mixed in with the primroses were some bluebells. I noticed quite a wide variation in colour and shape and with a bit of research I believe these may be hybrids of the Spanish and native British varieties (2):

Some red berries which look like rose hips but I am unsure due to the time of year and a worm's eye view of a daisy radiating light:

In contrast to all the colour in the cemetery this image of the cemetery chapel seemed to work best in black and white.

(1) http://www.parksandgardens.org/places-and-people/site/1297/summary

(2) http://www.downgardenservices.org.uk/bluebell.htm


Note: this post has been re-published with some corrections and additions. Whilst I enjoy posting my photographs with a written commentary, I don't find it particularly easy and some days are worse than others!

Godrevy Point - Photography Week 14 (2016)

Despite taking many photographs and posting quite a few on blogs and other photo websites, I am a ruthless editor when it comes to my favoured landscape images. Over the years, I can probably only identify perhaps 30 or 40 from thousands that I particularly like or would call firm favourites.

Identifying a favourite photograph comes rarely at the point of capture - the picture in the mind's eye often doesn't translate into pixels even with the benefit of the camera's live view and LED previews.

Post processing on the computer is a better time for judgement although there is no real objective criteria for deciding a favourite image. If pushed, I would say it is has something to do with a harmony of light, colour, composition, impact and may be a sense of place.

A strong indicator that those elements are in place is when the image makes me reach for the printer paper. When a photograph prints well it gains an extra quality that can't be replicated in a digital format and it is this quality I seek from my photographs.

With that rather long preamble in mind, I gained an image from Godrevy Point that provided that 'must print' feeling. It is one of my favourite images of the year so far:

These are some other compositions taken on the same evening including one showing a colony of seals on the beach below the cliffs. I think this beach is only accessible by sea which makes it ideal for the seals:

Best of the Rest - Photography Week 2 (2016)

These are a selection of  images taken during photography week 2 (2016):

Trebah Gardens

During photography week one I visited Trebah Gardens and the entrance fee allowed a return visit within one week. On this occasion I chose better weather to capture the very scenic view through the valley from the pond and bridge to the house:

I also took an opportunity to look at the garden's private beach and learned that it had been used for military purposes during World War 2 to launch the assault on Omaha Beach as part of the D-Day landings. All that remains today is a concrete jetty and it is a hard to imagine how it might have looked at the time. Later, however, I found this webpage which includes a photograph of U.S. ships being loaded from the beach. My image looks broadly in the same direction and provides a passable now and then:

Whilst on the beach at Trebah Gardens I took these abstract images of the rock formations:

Lastly, there is a amphitheatre in the gardens and I took these images of the stonework:

Dollar Cove, Gunwalloe

The trip to Dollar Cove near Gunwalloe was also a revisit from photography week 1. Returning to venues is important in landscape photography as it helps build a picture of the location, the compositions and the best conditions. On this occasion I was hampered by the tide and weather but managed a few shots before sunset. These few images provided a template for some better images taken and posted during photography week 12:

Photo Art

I have mentioned in previous posts how I use photo art as part of a loose 365 project. This particular image of reflections in Falmouth harbour is a multi-exposure blended in Adobe Photoshop:

Falmouth

Between Castle Sands and Gyllyngvase Beach in Falmouth is a stretch of rocky coastline. The patterns and colours in the mud and siltstone have provided a few interesting abstract shots but on this occasion I decided to make use of the light for some landscapes including a hastily composed rainbow reflection:

Finally, these are two shots at the end of separate days capturing the interestingly shaped MPI Enterprise sheltering in Falmouth Bay: