Category: England

Low tide Sunset

By cpadmin

Low tide sunset is one of a collection of image capture on the river crouch at the Hullbridge Crossing, South Woodham Ferrers side. The setting sun was a strong orange globe and offered possibilities. The brown mud tempered by enthusiasm. High tide would have offered much more photogenic opportunities, nevertheless we were where we were! This image shows the sun reflected in the pink finger of water which is extending to the shore from the centre of the river. While the sun is setting people are walking on the river bank. Their reflections also appear in the water. The chocolate coloured mud is also turning golden under the setting sun.

Low tide sunset
Reflections in the water at low tide on the River Crouch

Following other attempts, the position of the camera has moved to capture the globe reflected in the water. This shows the challenge of capturing images of a sunset at low tide. The position at high tide is different. Reflections are frequently offered from different positions. It is undoubtedly worth noting that a wet suit would be required to get an image from this position at high tide! So perhaps not! This image does show the pink water, which like a finger is lengthening as the water returns.

Six more images captured at this time can be seen on the Compass Photography website. Use this link to see them

RHS Hyde Hall after the snow

By cpadmin

Snow fell in Essex for the first time in several years, these images show RHS Hyde Hall after the snow. This had meant that local photographers have been short of recently captured local snowy images. Captured on two different visits the images show different aspects of the gardens in the cold conditions.

RHS Hyde Hall after the snow
RHS Hyde Hall after the snow
RHS Hyde Hall after the snow

The first image looks from the winter garden across the grass to Clover Hill. Our eye follows the tracks of an earlier visitor across the grass. The shadows tell us that winter daylight will soon be ending. Secondly, we have an image captured from the middle of the winter garden, note the cornus in the foreground. The eye follows the path as it winds this way and that up the slope to the hilltop garden.

Without doubt the red and orange of the Cornus Sanguinea midwinter fire stands out against the snow and the bright blue sky in image three. It was great to be at RHS Hyde Hall after the snow, however it was freezing cold. More images from this shoot at Hyde Hall can be found in the latest images section of the Compass Photography Website. These include inquisitive robins, lens ball images and snow blown over a frozen lake.

You can also look up the RHS Hyde Hall website from here

Frozen pond on a freezing day

By cpadmin
Frozen pond freezing day
Frozen pond on a freezing day

Frozen pond on a freezing day is the third image of the same pond I have published. Captured at 0900 on a very cold morning this image offers little comfort. Two previous images of the same pond have been published, however this one is darker and more foreboding. The sky is overcast and it is snowing. There is more snow on the ground in this image. Snow lies on the arms of the large tree.

There is a distinct wintery image to this picture of the pond. The tree does reflect in the ice, however they are much less striking and dull. Bare branches of the bushes frame this image as they reach out to the pond. Moving around the pond to capture the image was a treacherous venture. I have been asked where this photogenic pond is. It is at the rear of Blackwood Chine in South Woodham Ferrers in Essex CM3 5FZ. Top Barn Lane is what this stretch was called originally.

Snow is on the ground and the forecast leads us to expect more later. The plan is to make the most of the snow. We get it so rarely these days, however there is always the concern of safety. More snowy images will be published on the Compass Photography Website Latest Images – Compass Photography Group

Pond in the snow

By cpadmin
Pond in the snow
Snowy pond

Here we see the pond in the snow. This image captures the same pond from the same vantage point as the post of a few days ago. Snow, that local rarity, fell as the image is captured. It made the image less sharp and a little blurry in parts, however reflections of the tree are still visible in the water. Getting to the vantage point was a little more tricky though. Under foot the ground was muddy and slippery. Still you have to suffer for your art! This image was captured in the late morning yesterday, however the pond was frozen over this morning. The resulting image is much darker and not as attractive this one of the pond in the snow. The clouds are heavy and create a sense of foreboding.

There is a complete covering of snow on the ground today and it is so recent that there are no footprints in it. There is a covering of snow on the arms of the large tree today.

This image has a gentle sprinkling of snow on the bare bushes and snow in the air too. The falling snowflakes can best be picked off against the brown area on the trunk. Its such a rarity to have snow that I am going to go around and about to capture more images of snow later. Have a look for these over the next few days at Latest Images – Compass Photography Group

Reflections in the Pond

By cpadmin
Water in the pond
After all of the rain the pond is full of water

There are reflections in the pond! You may be scratching your head thinking why is this remarkable. Bear with me. This pond is very near to our house. Unsubstantiated legend has it that the pond was created in the dim and distant past when builders dug the Essex clay to make bricks. No one really knows if that is true. A neighbour who was present in the 1980s when the present houses were built said that the pond always used to be full. He said that “things” were dumped in the pond during the building process. When they were finishing off the builders pumped the pond dry and took the stuff away.

The pond is normally dry now days. When we get a lot of rain the water will accumulate. Recently, there has been enough rain to please Noah, so the level of water is high. There is more than two feet of water in the centre. One day last week the sun was out and I managed to capture an image of the water and the reflection of the tree in the water. There is just enough space to capture the spreading arms of the bare tree in the area of the water.

Last year a pair of ducks came quite regularly to take residence and its hoped that they will visit again this year.

This image is in the “latest images” section of the Compass Photography Website. Click here to take a look at them

Clements Green Creek SWF

By cpadmin

Clements Green Creek SWF is in South Woodham Ferrers in the County of Essex. The tidal River Crouch fills and empties from the Creek twice a day. At high or low tide there is either a wide expanse of water of a wide expanse of mud. When the water is high and calm like a mill pond it is possible to see reflections from the clouds. One of the images below shows that.

A gentle breeze leads the clouds across the face of the water. High water and wind can make for some turbulence Low tide brings a huge expanse of dark brown chocolate coloured mud into view. It brings lots of bird to peck in the mud for food and as they do this they make whistling noises. The mud looks like a pancake rolled out by a rolling pin. At low tide a trickle of water progresses round the narrow channel and down the estuary to the sea. The second image shows the chocolate brown mud at low tide.

More images captured recently at Clements Green Creek SWF are shown in the “latest images” gallery on our Compass Photography website. Clements Green Creek – Compass Photography Group

  • Clements Green Creek - Low tide
    Mud looking banks with a brown chocolate pancake texture
  • Clements Green Creek SWF
    Clouds reflect in the water at high tide

Bright day at Hadleigh Castle

By cpadmin

Bright day at Hadleigh Castle. Hadleigh Castle in Essex is an English Heritage property near Southend. English Heritage’s website describes it as “The romantic ruins of a royal castle overlooking the Essex marshes”. Hadleigh was begun in about 1215 by Hubert de Burgh, but extensively refortified by Edward III during the Hundred Years War, becoming a favourite residence of the ageing king John. See more on the English Heritage website

  • Falling over
    The falling tower at Hadleigh Castle
  • Hadleigh Castle
    The Norman Tower at Hadleigh Castle

My visit to Hadleigh Castle in Essex took place in the week before Christmas 2020. It was a week day and there were not too many people about. A selfish thought but it was good for capturing images. The website also tells us that In 1215 King John gave this area of land, known as the manor of Hadleigh, along with many other gifts, to Hubert de Burgh, his chief minister. The castle is a ruin. Two towers are still visible, one of them leaning precariously. The other one is upright and it is possible to go inside it.

The bright day at Hadleigh Castle provided some magnificent views from the castle and its surroundings. Looking up the Thames the Great Cranes at Tilbury are visible. Looking down the Thames, the pier at Southend is visible. A bracing walk along the grass offers lots of opportunities to capture interesting images.

This post shows two of the many images captured. Go to the Compass Photography Website www.compassphotography.co.uk to see more images captured that day

Wimpole Estate in Autumn

By cpadmin

It’s great to visit Wimpole Estate in autumn, even though It may be wet and windy. A day in half term looking round the gardens provided some wonderful autumn colours. There was a one way system to the farm where the animals could be seen. See more about Wimpole Estate in Autumn by using this link.

  • Wimpole Estate in autumn
    Orange tree stands out
  • Wimpole Estate in autumn
    Green scene. Green lawns and a curve in the path towards the trees
  • Wimpole Estate in autumn
    Orange trees in the parkland

Many of the trees were losing their leaves. On occasion we were able to walk over a carpet of leaves. The leaves on some trees had fallen. In other cases they were changing colour. Two small trees had retained their bright orange leaves. In both cases these small trees made a really bright feature against the darker green trees in the background.

Green scene

One of the images I have called “green scene”. This shows a really green lawn, with a path sweeping across the image and round the corner into the trees. Golden leaves on some of the trees support this image by adding their colour.

These is a page on our website with more images from Wimpole Estate. Use this link to go to it

Use this link to view more of our garden galleries

Autumn colours

By cpadmin

Autumn colours

The leaves turn from green to yellow or going straight to an orangy brown. As the song has it, “The Autumn leaves are turning to the colour of her hair!” From Windmills of your mind sung by Noel Harrison. You have to be old to remember this song!

This post has three images attached

  • Autumnal colours
    Captured from Bolsover Castle, this row of terraced houses is surrounded by autumnal colours
  • Autumn colours
    Yellow, green and brown as the leaves change colour on this oak tree at Hylands Park, Essex
  • Autumnal images
    Calm waters in the lake at Danbury reflect the trees as the leaves turn golden

The image from Bolsover in Derbyshire, is captured from the ramparts of the castle. It uses a super zoom lens to bring the trees and houses close together. Trees surround the row of houses. The leaves on the trees vary in their shades of colour.

Hylands Park in Chelmsford is the location of the second image. It is a close up of oak leaves from a tree in one of the vast open spaces in the park. The leaves next to each other are green, yellow and brown colours.

The final image is from Danbury Lakes near Chelmsford. The lakes offer lovely colours and the calm waters have created complex reflection patterns. Too complex for a jigsaw!

A page on our website entitled Autumnal Colours has more images of autumn from this year and 2019. https://www.compassphotography.co.uk/autumnal-images/

Lens ball images in the garden

By cpadmin

Lens ball images in the garden. To me, sunflowers are an obvious target for the lens ball. The gallery below shows two images of sunflowers in the back garden. I found that I could capture the sunflower directly in the image as well as in the refraction. Trays and planters of petunias at the front of the house also made a target and one of them appears in the gallery below. To get the lens ball to the correct height I had to erect apparatus! This included the black and decker workmate, a plant pot and a towel. I also played with different focal lengths. All very worthwhile and enjoyable!

  • Small pastel colours
    Smaller lens ball image of pastel colours
  • Closer up sunflowers lensball
    Close up of sunflower through the lensball
  • Sunflowers through the lens ball
    Garden sunflowers through the lens ball
Lens ball images captured in the garden

The Compass Photography Website contains more lens ball images. Click here