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Châteax de Lastours

Thu, 09 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Châteaux de Lastours (24mm f/16 1/400s ISO800)

Lastours is a town near Carcassonne in the south of France, which boasts four castles crammed onto a hill just above the town. Built between the 11th and 13th centuries, the castles can be reached by a steep climb.

This picture, taken from about halfway up the climb, shows two of the castles: Cabaret and Tour Régine against the backdrop of the hills at the edge of the Montagne Noire region.

Eclipse

Thu, 09 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Solar Eclipse, March 20th, 2015, near Glencoe (42mm f/11 1/4000s ISO125)

It looks like a crescent moon, but this is actually the moon covering the sun. The March 20th, 2015 solar eclipse was the last total eclipse visible from Europe until 2026, though the path of totality only crossed land in the Faroe Islands and Svalbard, so in the UK I knew it would be best viewed further north and so I booked a short holiday in Scotland.

On the morning of the eclipse I went outside to find the sky was completely overcast, rendering the sun completely invisible. Not wanting to waste the holiday, I set off to do something touristy.

While driving, the light slowly got dimmer, and then suddenly I noticed there were some clearly defined shadows forming. I pulled over into a lay-by and grabbed my camera to see the sun coming in and out of view from behind the clouds and took this shot somewhere by the side of the road on the A82 outside Glencoe.

Scarborough

Thu, 09 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

South Bay Beach, Scarborough (55mm f/11 1/4s ISO200)

Scarborough is a seaside town in North Yorkshire and has two beaches, the North Bay is generally quieter and doesn't have the arcades and shops that are on the promenade on the South Bay.

Here I was shooting across the South Bay beach towards South Cliff. The grand looking building on the right at the bottom of the hill is the Scarborough Spa complex, a Grade II* listed building built between 1877-80 on the site of a natural spring reported to have healing properties. Nowadays the spa is closed to the public for health and safety reasons, but the building continues to be used as a music venue.

This shot was taken towards the end of the day as the light began to fade and the street lights had just come on. With lower light conditions, I was able to use a slow shutter speed to blur the movement of people on the beach, with only a few figures remaining sharp as they were stood still.

Whitby

Sun, 19 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Whitby Harbour and St Mary's Church (25mm f/8 1/400s ISO200)

Whitby is a town on the North Yorkshire coast, perhaps most famous for its association with Bram Stoker's Dracula, though it also has ties to the explorer Captain Cook as the place he learned to sail. Today it is a popular tourist destination and a fishing port.

This first image is a shot across the harbour from the more touristy side. I believe I was stood right outside The Dracula Experience. At the top of the hill is St Mary's Church, a Grade I listed 12th Century building close to the well-known ruins of Whitby Abbey.

The buildings further down along the edge of the harbour are the back of a busy, narrow shopping street leading to the 199 steps (counts vary) up to the abbey. The pier in the foreground is the RNLI lifeboat station.

Harbour Wall, Whitby (49mm f/13 1/250s ISO200)

This second image shows the northern pier extension at the entrance to the harbour, which protects ships from rough seas as they come into the harbour at the mouth of the River Esk. Visitors looking to get away from the more crowded areas of the town can stroll down to the end of the wall which is usually fairly quiet, though not advisable in bad weather.

Although quite a few people are walking further down the end of the pier, I wanted the focus of this picture to be the couple on the open section and the swirling texture of the sky at the top contrasted against the calm water at the bottom.

Beach at High Tide, Whitby (14mm f/4 1/1000s ISO200)

The final photo shows Whitby Sands, the beach to the north end of the town. While it's quite a large beach when the tide goes out, at high tide, the sea comes right in and cuts off this little section by the harbour from the rest of the beach, forcing everyone into this tiny cramped area.

Stanage Edge

Sun, 02 Aug 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Stanage Edge from Hookcar Sitch (17mm f/11 1/200s ISO200)

Stanage Edge is a gritstone ridge in the Peak District near Hathersage, popular with rock climbers. I visited on a late summer afternoon with my camera to get some photos of this local beauty spot.

This first photo looks northwest down the valley alongside Stanage Edge from near to the car park at Hookcar Sitch. A feature of the nearby section of the edge, though not visible in this photo, is Robin Hood's Cave, a small hole in the side of the cliff on a balcony just below the top.

Climb to Stanage Edge (16mm f/11 1/125s ISO200)

Once you've left the car park there is a short but fairly steep climb up to the top of the ridge. This next photo is taken from about halfway up the main path through some thick bracken. Here you can start to see some walkers standing at the top looking out over the views of Hathersage and the Derwent/Hope Valley.

Climbers on Stanage Edge (67mm f/11 1/200s ISO200)

On any day with decent weather, you can be sure to find some climbers at various points along the edge. While the cliff is not particularly tall, it is about 3.5 miles (5km) long and has a huge number of climbing routes available.

Here, near the top of the path, I captured a pair preparing to tackle a section of the cliff face.

Couple on Stanage Edge (14mm f/8 1/400s ISO200)

Finally, once I'd reached the top I could look back westwards down towards Hathersage and managed to capture this couple sat on the edge enjoying the view.

In a rare break from my usual black & white images, I decided to render this one in colour as there was simply not enough contrast to make it work in monochrome. While the foreground had some nice bright sunlight giving deep shadows and bright highlights, the background was darkened by some overhead cloud, which also dropped in the faint, shimmering set of crepuscular rays.

Hathersage Moor

Fri, 07 Aug 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Hathersage Moor (14mm f/11 1/250s ISO200)

Hathersage Moor is a popular walking destination on the eastern edge of the Peak District. Probably the best-known part is Carl Wark, a rocky outcrop near the centre, believed to be the site of an Iron Age hill fort.

This picture was taken near the southern end of the moor not far from Millstone Edge, a steep drop down into the Derwent Valley. I think the rocks on the right might be the edge of Over Owler Tor, but can't be completely sure.

Through the Fence

Wed, 21 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Through the Fence, Wisbech (29mm f/11 1/30s ISO200)

This photo was taken on a holiday near Wisbech staying on a farm. Llamas and alpacas seem to have become much more popular on UK farms in the last decade or so. Their wool, especially alpaca wool, is softer than sheep's wool and is less likely to trigger an allergic reaction.

Native to the Andes in South America, llamas were domesticated around 5,000 years ago and have been kept both as pack animals, and also for their meat and wool. They are naturally curious animals and generally friendly towards humans which has led to their use in tourism for llama trekking.

In this photo, our dog, Dougal, is peering through a fence into a field of llamas which he was quite interested in, but didn't seem to quite know what to make of them. He was much more interested in the farm's chicken population and had to be kept on a short lead.

Brighton

Fri, 09 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Brighton Pier (22mm f/13 1/200s ISO200)

After having to replan holidays to Europe and the US again due to the coronavirus pandemic, I ended up spending a week in Brighton on the south coast. A popular tourist destination, Brighton also hosts a lot of students at its two university campuses.

Here I have tried to capture the seaside atmosphere with a shot of the well known Palace Pier, a grade II* listed building built in 1898-99. While only a small section of the pier is visible in this photo, it extends for over half a kilometre out into the sea with food stalls, arcades and an amusement park.

Seagulls, Brighton Pier (90mm f/11 1/800s ISO200)

As with most seaside places, Brighton is host to a large number of Seagulls. Here, three of them stand perched on various parts of the entrance to the pier, lying in wait to swoop in on any slightly unattended food.

Taken from a seafront bar, I had already witnessed them stealing people's fish and chips in at least two incidents.

Brighton Marina Building (135mm f/11 1/80s ISO200)

I don't normally do much in the way of purely architectural photos, but while sat on the balcony of the hotel in Brighton Marina, the setting sunlight on this apartment building on the eastern side was too spectacular to miss.

Place d'Albertas

Fri, 31 Dec 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Place d'Albertas, Aix-en-Provence (14mm f/8 1/500s ISO640)

Aix-en-Provence is sometimes called the city of a thousand fountains. This example was built in 1912 to sit in the Place d'Albertas. This square and its surrounding buildings were built in 1745, commissioned by the d'Albertas' an influential family in Aix at the time.

The square has been designated as an historic monument and has undergone restoration work in the early 21st century.

Nîmes

Sat, 01 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Arènes de Nîmes (14mm f/16 1/640s ISO640)

The Arena of Nîmes is a Roman ampitheatre built shortly after the Colosseum in Rome. While it is not as large as its more well known cousin, it is well preserved and is still used for public events today, including musical events and bullfighting.

The statue in the foreground, called "Hero", depicts Nimeño II, a famous French bullfighter during the latter half of the 20th century whose name is also on an annual trophy handed out during the bull fighting festival.

Nîmes Street at Night (45mm f/5.4 1/13s ISO6400)

Tour Magne, Nîmes (14mm f/16 1/250s ISO640)

The Tour Magne stands at the top of Mont Cavalier, a short, but steep, climb from the Jardins de la Fontaine. Another of Nîmes' Roman monuments, the tower offers panoramic views of the city and its surrounding area.