Combs Lane in Mono (October 2021)

Occasionally the photographic conditions shout black and white harking back to days of photographic film. Although it was a long time ago for me, I can still see how colours translate into monochrome and how contrast can to be enhanced with filters. 

For example, deep blue skies with fluffy clouds are great for black and white photography. In the film days a classic red filter might have been used to gain extra contrast, turning the blue sky towards black, making the white clouds stand out, adding to the overall drama of a scene. 

In today’s digital environment it is down to the software to simulate this impact, either in the camera itself, or with external applications - there are many options. Of course, the black and white purists would say this is not the same as using film and I would tend to agree, but I doubt I will ever return to chemical processing. 

When I saw the following scenes along Combs Lane, I immediately thought black and white making the conversion later in Adobe Photoshop using a red filter mix:

Bales Revisited (October 2021)

During August I documented hay baling in one of the local fields off Combs Lane and then posted the results, later than planned, in October. The posting coincided with a fresh mowing of the field and the appearance of a new set of bales. This led to a further selection of abstract images capturing the reflections from the tightly bound film covering, which might seem like an odd subject but one that is quite compelling once spotted. These were some of the results:

Autumn Expectations (October 2021)

There was a longer wait than normal for the full autumn colours this year, the season seemed to be a couple of weeks behind, or so the chatter on social media concluded. 

Now when I look back to previous years photography, matching date for date, the perceived gap doesn’t look as big and/or the season had eventually caught up with itself. 

Certainly in early October, the expectation of autumn colour wasn’t fulfilled. A walk around Sherwood Forest saw mostly green leaves with the exception of of a few notes of colour in the birch and red oak trees. In Foxcovert, a small wood and nature reserve, part of the wider Sherwood Forest, the colour was confined to a few sweet chestnut trees high in the canopy.

That said, I particularly welcomed these chances to get out with the camera. Woodland photography is a peaceful activity, barring the odd dog owner bellowing instructions to deaf eared mutts, or inquisitive walkers that assume I have spotted rare wildlife…a few disbelieving that tree photography could possibly be a motive!

Ash Trees in Autumn (2021)

Ash trees in autumn is a subject I cover each year on the Southwell Trail. In doing so, I have become familiar with individual trees and the order that they generally change colour, some turning to a vibrant yellow at the peak of the season. 

The ashes are one of the first trees change colour on the trail, although the change is quite subtle. The dense summer greens are gradually replaced by an almost spring like freshness that shines in the sunlight. These were some of the scenes in early September:

By mid-October, perhaps a couple weeks later than normal, the ash trees were showing their peak colours, captured below on one of the rare blue sky days in the month:

A few weeks later in early November the trees had start to thin out and some of the brighter yellows had turned towards a warmer orange: