I may come back to Anglesey, but in the meantime… On the way home we called in at Swallow Falls, located between Capel Curig and Betys-y-Coed in Snowdonia. There is a hotel opposite the entrance which makes for a great lunch stop, and the falls are only a short walk from the road. Swallow Falls is magnificent, and I will share an image of the full vista, but in the meantime both my artistic director and I were taken by some of the detail within the overall cascade.
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.
The vast majority of images from Penmon Point seem to focus (no pun intended) on the lighthouse. However, as you will have noticed in a previous post, the lighthouse comes right up close to the rocky shoreline. This can make it tricky to isolate other than at a really high tide. Often overlooked, there is a marker buoy a little further out which lends itself a little better to the minimalist style of photography. Probably better seen on a bigger screen, and if I have done it right, you should get a larger view by clicking on the image.
I haven’t finished with Penmon Lighthouse yet. There may be another, or I may move on to other images from our break in North Wales. Who knows…? The mist was a great help, meaning I did not have to blend the horizon to get a minimalist shot – there was no horizon visible. Result.
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…
Just back from a short break on Anglesey. On the way we stopped, as usual, at a National Trust property for a break. This time it was Penrhyn Castle. The castle itself is well preserved, as are so many in Wales, and this area of North Wales is renowned for its slate. Penrhyn has a slate splitting demonstration on site. Hopefully you can see from the photo, this guy managed the seemingly impossible, splitting a slate which was already only about 3mm thick.
Sometimes it is worth a play with an image to get somethnig different. This was one we used as a Christmas card a couple of years ago, one of the deer at Wollaton Park and a smattering of path blur from Photoshop. It almost looks natural – depending on your definition of natural I guess.
For those on the other side of the pond, that is checkered skies – only spelt correctly…
As previously mentioned, the Miroir d’Eau in Bordeaux creates a really nice mirror (would you have guessed from the name?) once the spray stops and the majority of the water drains away. The Bourse creates the perfect backdrop for an ad hoc meeting of friends.
One of the attractions of Bordeaux is the Miroir d’Eau. It makes an interesting sight when the water spray creates a misty cloud, and a perfect mirror when the spray dies down. Add to that a fairground, just beyond, and you have to go for a walk at night. Daytime reflections also work, but you will have to wait for that image…