Normally I am not a fan of sunsets, but on this evening I made an exception. The sun is setting over the Gower Peninsula in Wales (I do go other places), and in the foreground is Worms Head which marks the most westerly point on the peninsula. Worms Head has nothing to do with worms, it comes from the Viking word “Wurm” which means dragon, and you can possibly see that the shape resembles a sleeping dragon. Ah… maybe that is why the sky was so fiery?
Well the answer is yes. In the last 15 minutes of the last boat trip on the last day, we managed it. I was resigned to never seeing a breach – after all David Attenborough’s crew can sit for three months and see nothing – but finally they played. What is more remarkable for me is that this dolphin was nearly a mile away and I could easily have missed it even being there. I may have mentioned before, but I love this camera.
Not a lot of landscape photography this week, as we went to Cardigan Bay looking for dolphins. Cardigan Bay has the largest concentration of dolphins in the UK, however, they can be a nightmare to photograph, and to track as they move through the sea. But, as the saying goes, the more photos you take the luckier you get. Now the question you have to ask is whether I managed to get one of the classic shots of a dolphin leaping and arching from the water. We will see…
I hope you are impressed that I can be bilingual? Bempton Cliffs on the Yorkshire coast is home to thousands of gannets. I would say you can’t move for them, but as they spend most of their time on the seaward side of a very tall steep cliff that is highly unlikely. Suffice to say, you can’t miss them. This is the classic pose of a mating pair making it known they are interested. Ornithology lesson over.
I realise there is an alternative crop, but that would have put the couple in the centre, and I like the steps leading nowhere. So they stay. This was taken in a village in Malta where tall buildings and narrow alleyways provided a welcome shade from the sun. The couple provided a happy stroke of luck.
As I have mentioned before, I struggle with flower photos, but every now and then I get something that I feel is ok. Seems a bit early, or I am losing track of the year, but the poppies are back. It is pouring down with rain and hailstones today, so I have not been out, but this is one from last year.
On the day that it seems Nottingham Forest have secured another season in the Premier Football League, it seems fitting to add a photo of the best manager that England never had. This statue of Brian Clough is in Nottingham city centre. For those who may be interested, the exposure time was 1.3 seconds, hand held. I love these cameras.
Just a gentle evening observation, as the sun lights up the clouds and the mist begins to rise from the lake. Sometimes you are in the right place at the right time. If you zoom in on the little temple building you can see a statue. This is one of a trail comprising twelve individually decorated models of Raymond Briggs’ Snowman at Clumber Park in Nottinghamshire.
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.
When I say I like black and white, not all of my images take it quite so literally. I quite like the minimalism of this, but I am aware that many will not be quite so enthusiastic. It would look good printed large though…?