Happy Halloween

To celebrate the official end of summer, the festival of the dead and my birthday, here is a quick shot of this years pumpkins. ISO 1600, -2ev exp comp (eval metering) and a dose of noise reduction. I might try and do a properly staged tripod shot over the weekend, if I get time.

The festival originated from an ancient Celtic festival first recorded in the 9th century, where it was believed that the spirits of all the dead from the previous year would come looking for someone to possess, to achieve life after death. To avoid this fate the living resorted to dressing up as witches and ghosts, lighting lanterns and leaving offerings of food on their doorsteps.

The tradition of going door to door asking for food or money was an old tradition practised in Britain and Ireland, with the American custom of saying trick or treat only becoming common over the last 30 years.

Originally the Celts used carved turnips as lanterns, pumpkins became the vegetable of choice when the commonwealth colonised North America where turnips weren't so common.

Dirty screw

Not exactly in-keeping with my current trend for landscapes, nature and wildlife, it's a gritty, abstract macro shot today. Taken with my trusty Sigma 105mm Macro lens in my garden, after wandering around and being dismayed that all the flowers had died off I found myself determined to find something that would make a good image. Sometimes my favourite photos are taken this way, with a little perseverance and pushing my eye for a shot beyond my imagination.

Pretty much straight from camera this one with just some sharpening. Since the weather was wet and cloudy, but bright, it already had the great contrast with the help of -1 ev exposure compensation. An f/2.8 shallow depth of field thanks to the lens and lots of great texture and subdued colour thanks to the subject.

Stourhead

Visited Stourhead at the weekend. Was beautiful with the trees getting their autumn colours and some great dappled Sunlight. I always try to avoid the muddied paths to the common viewpoints, searching for something vaguely different. This was the only landscape shot I took, looking down on the Temple of Apollo from above, decent colours, textures, contrast, framing and a bonus tourist in the perfect position to illustrate the scale of the shot.

Best seller

It's been nearly two weeks since I posted a church photo! I must be slacking.

Always nice when someone leaves an old tattered bible hanging around an old stone window, especially when I happen upon it when the Sun is at such a good angle through the stained glass window.

Some dodging, burning to bring out the light and texture, and a selective lightening blur to bring the highlights alive.

Swan Lake

Water glistening like stars as a Swan takes to the sky

Lacock Abbey

A window at Lacock Abbey reflecting dawn Sunlight through the morning mist, while the first deep frost of the year encrusts the grass.

Straight from camera except for noise reduction.

Had a great day on saturday, photographing the wedding with Paula, went really well and am very pleased with the shots we got, given the time constraints and conditions. Lots of processing still to do, but will post some shots here at some point, if the happy couple agree to it.

Geese, a duck and some luck..

Canada geese scramble to the skies en-masse, side lit by the setting Sun. It was a slightly difficult decision to convert this to greyscale, since their wings caught glimpses of glowing orange light, but the emphasis on shape and tone that mono brings really plays to this images strength.

Duck coming in to land, lit by the setting Sunlight.

Finally, I have another wedding photographer assignment tomorrow. Plenty of preparation, a handsome bride and groom and a beautiful venue will all help, but all wishes of luck gratefully accepted. Not least with the weather, which looks slightly mixed at the moment. Either way it should be an exciting day!

Sunrise

Taken at Sunrise on the way to work.

Was taken in landscape orientation, but this crop included all the best bits, so it has undergone a fairly radical chop from either side.

Creeping Crimson

A stone gatehouse window being over-run by the clawing, tendrils of a magnificently scarlet ivy.

Gothic Marble

I guess I should have held this one back until All Hallows Eve, but I just couldn't help posting it.

Maybe it is time to worry when I visit a beautiful country manor house, with stunning Victorian garden and my favourite photo is of a winged skull from the chapel!

Lit perfectly by cloudy window light, emphasised slightly with some subtle dodge and burning.

Midnight Express

Was out train spotting again last week and another two chances to catch the mighty Bittern passing by. In the end the weather and poor light scuppered both opportunities. However, with poor light comes high ISO and some nice old fashion noise, so I've decided to stray from the path of minimilist photoshopping and really go to town on this one. A sky import (taken afterwards), plenty of levels and curves layers, some dodgy burning, sharpening and of course de-saturating.. and we have a nice moody shot that kind of captures some of the spirit of the beast.

Corsham

With Autumn very much upon southern England it's time for another grapple with the task of photographing the migrating Canada Geese at the local lake in Corsham. I didn't get what I wanted last year, so we'll see what I can get this year. So far just a distant snapshot (with great reflections)..

.. and a young Great Crested Grebe against the reflected colours of the autumn trees behind. Again, not technically good, but nice colours.

Westbury Sunset

Panorama of Westbury White Horse, Wiltshire.

Taken on the 24th September, when the Harvest moon was rising in the East at the same time as the last summer Sunset faded in the West. However, with clouds obscuring the eastern skies I had to settle for this angle.

Was all a rush in the end, since a passing storm was throwing up amazing rainbows. I spent precious time trying in vain to find a nice spot with the rainbow and white horse in, before I gave up and headed up onto the ridge for the Sunset.

Is a composite of 14 images, 7 exposed for the sky, 7 for the land.

Salvation

Wilton Windmill at Dusk.

The only working windmill in Wessex, it was built in 1821 alongside the busy Kennet & Avon canal and produced flour for 100 years, until steam technology made it redundant. Renovated in 1976 it once again grinds wholemeal flour, while looking stunningly beautiful at the same time.

I see the light!

Sunset over St Marys Church, Great Bedwyn. Taken in a hurry as the skies glowed gloriously, thankfully with camera and tripod handy I took a bracketed trio of shots and composited two exposures. There is no colour saturation adjustment in this image, just; levels, curves to increase contrast on the church, sharpening and some dodge & burning on the gravestones.

The church itself was built between the 11th and 13th century on the site of an older church and has some of the heaviest bells in Wiltshire, with the Tenor bell weighing over a tonne.

In the garden

Taken in the back garden using my trusty macro lens and tripod.

Amazing colours and patterns, unfortunately I can't identify it as a specific species, despite the unique looking spike.