Tag: beach

Categories
Landscapes

Minimalism and Colour

Purple Sky - Ainsdale BeachThere are many paths to making a striking, or memorable image; some images are engineered for instant impact – either colour or composition, but become just as quickly; other images are designed to grow on you – not that tug of instant attraction but the gentle pull of something familiar and pleasant to look on. Ainsdale beach, with it’s lack of features lends itself particularly to the kind of minimalist image that grows on you rather than hitting you between the eyes.

When one thing is lacking in an image I often find that it allows for the enhancement of another aspect. In this shot, for example there is not a lot of micro detail – lines, objects etc. There’s just nothing to work on. So, instead of going for detail I’ve worked on the colour. No, it’s not natural, but then this is a statement, not an objective and functional facsimile, but a bold mind’s eye imagination of what it should be like.

Categories
Landscapes

At the Water’s Edge

At the EdgeThe Sefton coast is a vast space, and once the autumn chill sets in the beach is largely deserted. On an overcast but warm autumn day you will see the occasional visitor loitering along the water’s edge. The tide comes in so gently on this gently sloping beach that it’s a rather tranquil experience standing and watching the water lap gently closer and closer to the tide line.

With the flat light on the surface of the water the sky and sea blend almost seamlessly into one vast bright plane of soft colour and light. The couple standing at the water bring a sense of scale and perspective to the image.

Categories
Dunes

Fence through the Marram

Fence PostThe vastness of the Sefton dunes is rarely broken, but in one or two places there runs a thin ribbon of wire supported on wooden fence posts. From a distance these fences leave barely a trace on the landscape of marram grass. But, get up close to a single post, and the grass becomes the backdrop, and the post becomes the focus.

 

Categories
Landscapes

Through the Marram Grass, Ainsdale

Wide View of Ainsdale beach near Southport

The wide open spaces of the Southport to Ainsdale coast are wonderful for a brisk walk, or for horse riding, kite flying/racing and many other pursuits, but for the photographer it can present its own problems. How do you hide all the cars and vans parked along the beach? What do you use for foreground interest. How do you get close enough to the sea? Really, the tide goes out so far that it’s vital to know when the tide is in if you want water in shot!

One solution I have discovered is to use a slightly longer zoom and bring the grass to the sea…