Porthtowan & St Agnes Head - Photography Week 22 (2016)

The link between the latest photographic equipment and better results is debatable. Either way the list is always longer than the pocket!

My latest acquisition is a Lee 105mm circular landscape polarising filter. The purchase was the result of an analysis of the last 6 to 8 months of coastal photography in Cornwall and my desire to control as many of the conditions at the point of capture. The idea is to manage the amount of reflected light from the sea by reducing glare and deepening the colours: an effect that can't be wholly replicated using software applications.


To test the polariser, I took a selection of images on the beach at Porthtowan in bright conditions. To get the best from the filter the shots were taken along the beach and broadly at 90% to the light source. I was able to virtually eradicate the white light (or glare) from wet rocks, include or exclude cloud reflections, and deepen colours in the cliffs and the blue sky (1):

Like any new piece of equipment it takes a little time to adjust the workflow and maximise the benefits. During my second outing I noticed that the polariser was able to cut through some of the haze further along the coast from St Agnes Head but in doing so there was a noticeably uneven polarisation of the sky with a darker blue patch appearing in the centre of the frame. Rotating the filter corrected this but I can see is something to look out for on future occasions:

All my pre-reading about polarising filters (2) stated that the effect does not work when shooting into the light. I tried this on both outings and sure enough the impact of the filter was almost negligible. I noticed only a slight change to the light trails across the sea and in the foreground reflections:

(1) For anyone unaccustomed to polarising light, it works by rotating the filter which is fixed either to the lens or a filter holder. The Lee system requires the additional purchase of a circular holder which attaches to the Lee filter frame. The relative large size of the filter (105mm) is required to prevent vignetting and it works comfortably with a wide angle 17mm lens. As the filter is rotated the polarisation becomes more or less pronounced.

(2) My pre-reading on polarisers included this very informative article by Cambridge in Colour. 

Porthtowan - Photography Week 18 (2016)

Back in photography week 6, I had some success at Porthtowan capturing a glorious rainbow reflected in the wet sand. I planned a return visit for evening light and low tide. It took a number of weeks to come around but it was worth the wait.

I arrived early enough to walk the coastal path towards Portreath. I got as far as a rather modern looking chimney stack. At the time, I thought the stack may have had something to do with the airfield which has a boundary near the path. Researching this later I discovered that the airfield was a remote radar head operated by the RAF and was used in the 1950's for the production and storing of chemical defences (1). I couldn't find too much information about the chimney apart from one reference suggesting it is the remains of the Wheal Tye/West Towan mine (2):

As I returned along the coastal path I was reminded of the area's mining heritage with this view towards St Agnes Head:

From the top of the cliff overlooking the beach at Porthtowan I watched the many surfers making the most of the conditions:

For the last hour of the day I concentrated on the main purpose of my visit, the evening light and the rock pools left by the retreating tide:

(1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RRH_Portreath

(2) http://cornish-mining.org.uk/areas-places-activities/st-agnes-mining-district

Best of the Rest - Photography Week 6 (2016)

These are a selection of other photographs taken during photography week 6 (8th to 14th February, 2016).

Porthtowan

Having captured a glorious rainbow on Porthtowan beach earlier in the week I returned on a less promising weather day to walk along the coastal path. The first part of the path is a steep climb up the cliff and whilst I do not take many people photographs, I do like the Lowry-esque nature of people (and dogs) walking on the beach below:

The view from the cliff top stretches all the way to St Ives Bay. Godrey island and lighthouse is highlighted by sunrays in the distance and the closer island/rock is Gull Rock off Portreath (I think). The greyness of the day and a few shafts of light created an atmosphere that suited a grainy black and white:

I stopped above Chapel Porth on the coastal path when there was a brief break in the cloud and some watery sunlight. Wheal Coates can be seen in the distance:

Rock Studies

With a couple of miles of coastline around Falmouth to explore there are always new bits of the rock formation to photograph:

Falmouth and Photo-Art

Walking along the seafront and the harbour is great for weather watching:

There is also opportunity to experiment with photo apps. These are a series of stylised black and whites around Falmouth harbour:

I created this pastel-like photo drawing of the Prince of Wales Pier in Falmouth:

Coverack

We spent a greyish Sunday afternoon looking around Coverack harbour: