Landscape Mode

For some reason I seem to be operating in Landscape Mode these days.  Perhaps it's a case of "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em" (there are a lot of landscape photographers about this neck of the woods) but it may be more a result of my inability to walk about much at the minute, for reasons already mentioned.  So when I'm out, I'm usually in the car or not very far from it.  I don't really mind - variety is, after all, the spice of life, or so we are told.  It's quite relaxing to set up the tripod and think a little more carefully about composition and such matters. Heck I’ll be doing Still Life soon if I’m not careful (Confession: Still Life has always held a bit of a fascination for me - but I really don’t know where to start with it).

When I’m out&about I find myself worrying less and less about waiting for the optimal weather/lighting conditions when it come to taking a shot.  If I think about things too much I find that I don't take many (enough?) photographs - "The light could be better", "It's too bright/dull/wet/misty". So lately I've taken to shooting away no matter what and perhaps being a little more authentic (that word again) with regards to the prevailing conditions.  Trying to capture what is there at the time, rather than waiting for the 'perfect moment'.

On the day that this shot was taken it was a little misty and there was a lot of precipitation in the air (Yeh, I know - not uncommon for this part of the world). That’s why it looks like I’ve smeared petroleum jelly over the centre of my lens, in case you were wondering.I was down on my usual beach (Portstewart Strand), most likely with The Hound in tow. This is looking West over the length of the beach towards Castlerock. Mussenden Temple, which you might remember seeing a day or two ago from the other side, looking East, is just about visible on the headland if you click on the image:

Portstewart Strand on a slightly hazy morning, Adox MCC paper

As you can also see, there were a few hardy souls on the beach that day.  Mostly it's the dog-walkers who brave the elements no matter what.  As long as you've full wet-weather gear on you're generally OK - the temperatures rarely drop below freezing here, even in winter, although the wind-chill factor can make it uncomfortable at times if you're in an exposed place.

It's pretty much a straight print, this one - a very slight burn-in along the top half, that was all. On HP5+ film via the Hasselblad, on Adox MCC paper, which I know I’ve said before but I really do like it.