Photography with an occasional poem
Wales is possibly my favourite country within the UK. Well it must be, as we are planning two more trips there this summer. The countryside is spectacular, and one of the treats is the steam train from Porthmadog to Blaenau Ffestiniog. The line itself was closely linked to the local slate industry, carrying both workers and slate.
I have previously posted a very dark black and white image from the same location, which is Wyming Brook just outside Sheffield. This one was a bit of an experiment. I took a long exposure with smoothed out water and also one with a faster shutter speed which had a lot of texture in it. Although I don’t personally like waterfall images with a lot of texture, sometimes going too far the other way can border on the surreal. So here I have blended some texture into the long exposure to add a little interest. Hopefully you think it works? Click to see it bigger.
It is April (just) and the bluebells are out. Much as I hate to be a follower of fashion or convention, there has to be at least one. Well there will be just one photo of the seasonal blue.
I hope people are taking the time to look at the galleries now I have spent all that time putting them together? There are images that have not beein in the blog, and hopefully the gallery makes it easier to see them. Don’t forget to click on an image to see it full sized.
Last one from Anglesey I promise. Another view of Twr Mawr lighthouse, It is not a lighthouse in the true sense of the word, but was a beacon. In fact it is the same shape as the windmills that were on Anglesey and it is thought it could have been one originally. So there we go, every day a school day…
Anglesey is known for three lighthouses. The first two I have already shared – Penmon and Twr Mawr on Llanddwyn island. The third is South Stacks lighthouse, famous as an RSPB site with a varied collection of bird life. I originally left it out of my Anglesey collection because I was really annoyed at the schoolboy error, cutting off the right hand edge. But for the sake of completenesss, and for those not in the UK who enjoy “virtual travel”, I am adding it. Just don’t judge me.
I did it!!!
If you hover over the Gallery menu there is now a drop down with different classifications of my images. It seemed difficult but was, in fact, easy.
This image is the Church in the Sea on Anglesey. It is cut off at high tide and only accessible via the little spit of land to the left. The long exposure has streaked the sky, helping to point out the church itself. This is such an unusual feature that I am amazed there are no direction signs to it. Not one. Unless you were looking for it you would not even know it was there… very odd.
In the background you can see the mountains of Snowdonia.
This time the entirety of Swallow Falls and another snippet. You can click on either image to see it full sized. One advantage of a country that is always wet is that the waterfalls are normally quite healthily fed.
Now, if I can work out how to do it, and I have failed consistently for the last two days, there should be a change to the gallery page. Unfortunately I am a little tight-fisted so I am not prepared to pay for the more expensive websites just for a hobby, so I am stuck with trying to push WordPress into doing things it was not designed for. Wish me luck.
Another from Llanddwyn island. The name Llanddwyn means “The church of St. Dwynwen”. Dwynwen is the Welsh patron saint of lovers, making her the Welsh equivalent of St. Valentine. Her Saint’s day is 25 January and is often celebrated by the Welsh with cards and flowers apparently. The island bears the ruined remains of 5th century St. Dwynwen’s Church, through which you can see the cross from my last post.
An over-photographed part of Anglesey is the lighthouse on LLanddryn Island. normally photographed from a raised aspect onthe right of my image to get the steps and path as leading lines. I admit I did that, but the contrast was so strong I was not happy with the result. Clearly a sunrise/sunset shot. However, there are a couple of crosses to give some foreground interest, so I did not leave empty-handed.
This image cost me. The seaweed is very slippery, and I was probably not wearing the correct footwear. The result, as you may have guessed, was that I slipped and cracked my elbow. I didn’t cry, and I kept the camera safe. So I was determined to get an image after all that.
The worst of it was that my wife, who was sat in a chair watching, didn’t see me fall and therefore I had no sympathy when I returned. She was too busy watching a heron.
So this is the lighthouse at Penmon Point on Anglesey, and you may see a couple of additional versions over the next few days…