Lionel Callow Photography: March 2016

Sunday, 27 March 2016

Wimpole Hall

This Easter Sunday the weather has been bright sunshine one minute and then pouring with rain the next so I have started another project that I have been thinking about for sometime. Shooting in wet conditions, what would normally be considered as very poor light. Using bokeh , reflections, wet surfaces and glowering skies. Ann Miles gave a lecture sometime ago on using all the light conditions that come your way so here goes I have made a start.

Friday, 18 March 2016

Coast

This week I was continuing with my winter coastal photography. I picked another very bright day with strong sunshine so once again I was shooting into the light. I arrived at the coast at low tide so as to try and get a different prospective I donned my Wellington boots and ventured out with care onto the mud looking for different views. This is definitely something I will be exploring further in the future. I love these almost empty beaches the winter brings with wide open spaces & minimal clutter. My first location is at the mouth of the Thames estuary on the Essex side, Shoebury East Beach.

I found this 12 volt car / boat battery in the mud just 100 yards off the shore. I find it very annoying that we humans just use our outdoor spaces as a rubbish tip. This battery is full of toxic lead and will do damage to wildlife, now it is possible that it just fell over the side when the tide was up but I doubt it.

Southend & Two Tree Island

After Shoebury I moved on to the Southend, the beach here is a bit more used to having loads of people sunbathing and swimming through the summer months but as you can see the winter is a much better time to visit.

Two Tree Island is just off the coast opposite Leigh on Sea. When I lived in the area it was not a pleasant place it was used by the council as a tip & waste disposal for all of the Southend area. The only wildlife was millions of seagulls circling the island but now it has been cleaned up and returned to a wildlife sanctuary & it is a much better place.

Fisherman collecting bait for the next day's fishing trip.

This was a Ford 'Y' Type converted into a hotrod. It is street legal with it's 4.4 litre Rover engine.

Castle high on a hill.

Towards the end of my day out in Essex I visited this ruined castle overlooking the foreshore of the Thames. There is not much of it left but the view is magnificent.

Monday, 14 March 2016

Epping Forest Biker's Cafe

High Beach is one of the popular meeting places for motorcyclists within easy reach of London. Sunday afternoons will see 50 plus bikers arriving for an afternoon get together, a chat & a mug of tea. There is just about every motorcycle ever made to be seen here from the vintage Vincent with it’s years of patina giving it that wonderful original look, all the way through to the shiny Yamaha R1 a bike that is capable of doing hundred and ninety MPH, so I am reliably informed. The people that meet here are absolute biking enthusiasts they are very friendly and ready to tell you all about their bikes.

Photographically I arrived late in the day and so the light was not at it's best. I will return and try and get some better shots in the very near future.