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Antrim Treeline
Category: Landscapes
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Towards the Mournes
Perhaps this photo demonstrates as much as anything a change of direction in my photography. Having moved back to Northern Ireland I’m no longer photographing the North West England coast, but finding familiar sights from long ago, and other places that I’ve never visited before.
On Saturday we took a drive along the Mourne Coast and up through the mountains. We stopped here (wherever here is) to capture the road winding towards the mountains. I’m just beginning so many journeys (or perhaps recommencing some), but at least I know that the road is worth travelling.
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Sheltering…
Down by the Marine Lake in Southport the Victorian shelters have been given a lick of paint. Unfortunately the budget didn’t extend to repainting the railings too, so there’s a mixture of old and new colour schemes.
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The Sands
One of the things that I look out for as I drive along the Southport coast road is an overcast sky. I know that beach goers tend to prefer sunshine, but my favourite images always include a cloudy sky. The darker sky allows the image to balance much more naturally, and even in daylight the result is pleasingly soft.
This is just a simple image with my usual components: marram in the foreground, sand, sea and sky beyond, each element drawing the eye further into the picture. Simple, but deliberately so.
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No Focal Point
No focal point – I like to take images with no definite focal point. I think in the back of my mind I’m wondering how it would look on my wall – what I mean is, sometimes what makes a great photograph, because of a great composition with a point of focus in the foreground, actually is too busy to put on a wall and view over months or years. I think that the pictures on our walls (apart from family photos) should have a timeless nature to them, something that our eyes can ‘wander’ round without being drawn time and time again to that obvious focal point. I personally find this sort of image much more restful…
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The Strangford Ferry
The Strangford Ferry crosses the narrows of Strangford Lough from morning to sunset, carrying cars and people between the towns of Portaferry and Strangford. I was lucky to be able to spend some time in Portaferry and to photograph this beautiful part of Northern Ireland. One evening in particular the sunset was soft but stunning and I managed to capture the ferry as it crossed in front of the setting sun.
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Portaferry Sunset
One of the little known beauty spots in Northern Ireland is Portaferry! It’s tucked away at the very tip of the Ards Peninsula, not a busy place. But there’s a tranquil beauty to surrounding water and countryside. Bounded by Strangford Lough, and the Irish Sea just over the hills the light is wonderful and the sunsets can be spectacular. Taking a walk along the coastal road one evening I captured this image of the sun setting over the bend of the road. We were walking back towards the town itself at this point, but I kept looking back, watching the light, and here’s the result!
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Road Trip Audi A4
On holiday in Northern Ireland, the sun was shining and my dad had brought his new A4 out to play. We were pottering around the beaches on the Ards Peninsula and seeing the car parked up thought it would make a great image. The beach was slightly below the surface of the road which allowed me to get down low and surround the car in the grass. The farmhouse in the background made a nice contextual reference, and of course an ND grad was used to deepen the sky tones a little.
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Southport Pier Sunset
We went for a walk down on the beach last night. The beach, as usual was a mess, more mud than sand, not really pleasant. Also, as usual, the pier was locked long before sunset so I resorted to the usual method of sticking the lens between the bars of the gates. This was a multiple exposure combined to show the foreground detail while keeping the colour in the sky.
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Southport Sunset
At certain times of the year, the sun sets directly behind the end of the Pier in Southport. Sometimes the sky is dramatic, often it can be cloudless and flat. Occasionally the colours are rich and warm (this shot did receive a little help in that direction in post processing).
Timing it right I caught the last gasp of sunlight before it sank below the pier railings. I hope you enjoy the shot!