Image of the Week – Berrow Mudflats

I love pink! By that I don't mean it's my favourite colour. If you asked me that I'd probably say blue which is the colour I'd generally choose for a car, mountain bike, or a pair of jeans (pink jeans – agggh!). No, pink is my favourite colour in the landscape and in particular in cloud formations at the start and end of the day when the earth's atmosphere causes the sunlight to illuminate the clouds in this wonderful pink light.

PINK SKY OVER BERROW FLATS, SOMERSET

This weeks image is one of my favourite examples of pink clouds. The picture took no effort to create. All the elements just fell into place, literally without me having to move a muscle. There was no chance of seeing the sunset on this day, but the patchy cloud above me was turning a lovely pink. The cloud seemed to be avoiding Steep Holm island in the Bristol Channel leaving a patch of clear sky directly above it. It was as if the island was keeping the cloud at bay through some invisible force.

DUSK AT BERROW FLATS, SOMERSET

A short while later as the pink colour started to fade to blue I made this second image from a slightly different position on the beach. The subtle colour in the sky matched the smoother patterns in the mud when viewed from this direction. The result is a more tranquil picture than the first but one I still like just as much.

Both these images are available as fine art prints from my website.

Image of the Week - Portishead Quays Marina

A strange thing has been happening to me recently. Despite considering myself predominately a colour photographer, I have been “seeing” the landscape in monochrome more and more lately. I have no idea why this has happened, and perhaps I will revert back to my colour ways just as unexpectedly, but I must say I am enjoying my new vision immensely.

PORTISHEAD QUAYS MARINA, NORTH SOMERSET

My family had been in Portishead last weekend and I had promised them an evening meal at a rather nice Italian restaurant that I knew of at the Quays Marina development. We had arrived a little early and the restaurant was still closed so I suggested a walk round the marina to kill time. Although it was a bright warm(ish) day, the sky was filled with cloud and a breeze was stirring up the water. Nothing like the lovely calm autumnal blue sky day it had been when I had last visited with my camera (see below).

As usual I took a camera with me for the walk and it wasn't long before the new apartment complex on the opposite side of the water grabbed my attention. In my mind's eye I could see the scene as black and white print.

The taller building naturally fell into the middle of my composition which I felt helped emphasize the regimental symmetrical nature of the structures. I only had one fixed focal length of “normal” length with me, but that did not matter because there was plenty of interest in the cloud overhead which added to scene. The picture would have lost it's purpose with a telephoto lens. Despite the ripples in the water, there was definitely the outline of a reflection to be seen (which would become much clearer after monochrome treatment) so I carefully adjusted the composition so that I include just enough of the water to show the full reflection.

PORTISHEAD QUAYS MARINA, NORTH SOMERSET

The finished image is quite a contrast to the images I came away with a few years earlier. While the blue sky and glass like water made for a nice pleasant pictures, I personally find my latest image far more interesting.