The Lonely Sea and the Sky.
As soon as I had been awarded my LRPS and enjoyed the moment I knew that there was a project in me that would work for an ARPS. I had discovered that my photography love is for the sea and the waves and so an idea was born.
I can happily spend hours on the foreshore looking out to sea and there is so much to attract the eye; amazing skies, lively seas and patterns on the sand and this formed the basis of my statement of intent. It is an essential part of a successful submission and must accurately reflect the photographs in the panel.
On impulse I decided to investigate weather conditions at Saltburn with a view to wandering around on the beach looking for reflections and shapes in the sand. The runes were very promising with showers forecast and a low tide late morning. This would allow for a a couple of hours on the beach with fish and chips to follow for late lunch.
Whilst on holiday in Beetham my friend suggested that I visit Jenny Brown’s Point for a sunset shoot. It is a western facing promontory overlooking Morecambe Bay and is situated south of Silverdale in the Arnside and Sandside AONB. It is also owned by the National Trust.
I thought that it would be good at high tide so that I could try to capture cloud reflections and the sun on the water; but as usual I didn’t get what I expected.
I have seen quite a few photographs of Marsden Beach and have studied it on OS and Google Maps. (Vera has also filmed there in a recent series}. In addition to long sandy beaches there are a large number of sea stacks standing just off the cliffs which have water swirling around them most of the day.
A couple of weeks ago Storm Ellen struck and for me it was great news. For once the winds were being driven in from the south and the Yorkshire coast was experiencing a spring tide with high tide at 6.00pm. After an early meal and a check of my wellies I was off to Hartlepool. Really? Oh yes! Those of you that watch Vera as avidly as I do know that there is a long breakwater there that juts out in a westerly direction. There is also a promenade on which to stand and keep safe.
On my recent holiday based in Kettlewell I visited a couple of waterfalls. I have been to Cauldron Force many times at different times of the year but for the first time I went to Aysgill Force which is situated about half a mile up Gayle Beck. I also discovered Aysgill Force which is about half a mile upstream from the village of Gayle.
My first holiday after lockdown was a week in Kettlewell which is in the heart of Wharfedale. I love Wharfedale with it’s beautifully defined valley and small villages peppered along it’s length. At the north of the main valley the River Wharfe turns sharply west past Hubberholme and Yockenthwaite. This is a gorgeous area as the road passes right by the river and there is ample room to park and then wander about taking photographs.
Before I head inland for a week in the Yorkshire Dales I thought that another trip to the coast would ease the withdrawal pangs. Rather than drive to my usual haunts of Whitby or Fraisthorpe I decided that a bit of sea action on rocks was the requirement. The wind was forecast to be a reasonable easterly so Flamborough Head and in particular Selwicks Bay seemed to provide the best potential.
I promised myself that the moment I was allowed out from lockdown I would drive to the sea at dawn and watch the sun coming up and celebrate my relative freedom. On the Thursday morning I was up at 3.00am and off to Fraisthorpe and it’s wonderful sandy beach with all it’s features. It didn’t disappoint as there were lovely clouds in the sky, a crescent moon and wonderful patterns in the sand. Oh how I had missed the sea and all it’s delights!
Askham Bog was under threat from developers, (Barwood), that had applied to build 500 houses on adjoining land. However, the Secretary of State has recently ruled that the development cannot go ahead so the reserve owned and maintained by the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust is safe and available for everyone to enjoy.
I am very pleased to have been asked to exhibit at York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in their Seascape Exhibition which is on the main corridor until the end of October 2020.
I submitted seven of my storm wave photographs and made them as big as possible in order to capture the mood and the detail in the water. Together they are extremely dramatic and from a personal viewpoint they perfectly reflect the nature of the storm I was watching.
I’ve just spent 5 days on a fabulous resort on the Maldives and loved every moment of my holiday. Not only was the resort a wonderful place to relax but the island was everything I had imagined from my perusal of online videos and photographs.
I have just returned from a wonderful holiday in Sri Lanka and the Maldives and one of the many highlights was the drama on the south coast near Yala and Galle. It is the Sri Lankan equivalent of Newhaven as the waves come roaring onshore from the Antarctic and after thousands of miles they hit the Sri Lankan coast.
This year I stayed in a new apartment high on the West Cliffs which had fabulous views of the abbey and the sea. As I only had to cross the road and walk down the cliff to access the beach I spent a lot of time wandering about at different times of day looking for patterns and reflections in the sand as well as photographing the waves ricocheting off the sea wall.
After favourable comments from numerous people who have attended my coastal photography talks I am very pleased that I have encouraged people out to the coast to have a go for themselves. My friend Debbie Dixon was recently inspired to visit Marske-By-The-Sea which is the next town north of Saltburn and after a discussion of her photo on Facebook I decided to go there myself.
Druridge Bay is often overlooked by photographers visiting the Northumberland coast as they prefer to visit the well known locations around Bamburgh, Holy Island and Craster. However the beach at Druridge is worthy of closer attention as it is a diverse and interesting location. It has fabulous wet sand which holds reflections well and the waves are relentless. They are also deceptively high and you have to be very watchful of frequent rogue waves.
Every year I spend a week in a house in Amble, Northumberland. It is a bit south of the usual Northumberland honeypot locations but there is a wonderful pier walk and beach that overlooks the iconic Coquet Island. As Cresswell and Warkworth beaches are 2 of my favourite places for walking and photography Amble is ideally situated.
The workshop run by Jon Gibbs was based in a wonderful cottage in Sheringham and was only a stone’s throw from the promenade. Consequently we paid a few visits to the front at different times of day with different weather conditions.
I’ve just returned from a 4 day workshop to the North Norfolk Coast run by Jon Gibbs and we had a wonderful time exploring the little towns and beaches.
One morning we drove off to Overstrand to watch sunrise and it was glorious. We went through the blue period and wet promenades to watching big orange waves being lit up by the early sunlight. At the end of the shoot we captured the shapes of the groynes and seawall which were being lashed by the sea.
I am ashamed to say that in all the years that I’ve been exiled in Yorkshire I’ve never been to the arboretum at Thorp Perrow. The leaves have been late to turn this season so it was only at the end of last week that I decided that it was worth a trip to photograph some autumn colours.
