Here is another photo that I took at Westward Ho! recently. I like the mood of this photo and the sense of motion. It was quite surreal because the wind was really strong and there was loads of brown tinted foam along the rocks on the water’s edge. I think it adds a bit of an extra dimension to the shot as it.

I’m hoping to get out and take some photos at the weekend but in case you live under a rock the UK is about to get a blanket of snow. No doubt the country will grind to a halt pretty quickly over a measly inch or 2 of the white stuff.

In other news, I am in the process of building a community website for UK photographers to share their favourite photo spots (or to find them!) It is one of those projects that I meant to start around 2 years ago but never quite got into the swing of. Hopefully it will be at a stage where I can at least open it up to users while I continue to develop it. The hardest bit will be attracting users and seeing if there is actually a demand for it, at worst it will have lots of photos of North Devon!

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If you follow me you may have noticed the lack of activity lately. I took a photography hiatus for a large part of 2012 due to a combination of studying and family health issues. All seems to be on the up now though and I’m looking forward to a very positive 2013!

I went to Westward Ho! the other day, the first time that I have ventured out with the camera in ages. I was hoping to witness a lovely sunset but the weather was pretty poor. I was determined to at least have ago and as worst enjoy a little time by the sea. It didn’t start well. Within 10 minutes of being on the rocks I got soaked by a wave almost to my knees. My feet were freezing (trainers weren’t a good idea) but I decided that after a 10 mile drive I was at least going to try to get a few more photos.

I bought a Hitech 10 stop ND filter so had a bit of a play with that, it will take a bit of getting used to so that I can fine tune long exposures. I thought I was being clever edging back up the rocks staying ahead of the incoming tide but the sea was rough. I got soaked by rogue waves twice more! On one of them I was mid exposure so found myself trying to wait for it to finish while preparing to grab the tripod and running. At one point the water was about a foot and a half below the camera as I hovered over it determined to not waste 150+ seconds of a shot!

I didn’t get any photos that I was completely happy with but it was nice to finally get out. In this photo I like the way the waves were wrapping around the boulders. I will keep my fingers crossed for better light next time although I like the mood in this photo.

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I think popular places look pretty cool when they are deserted. I think they suit moody or black & white photos. This is the amusement arcade at the seafront of Westward Ho! I found myself drawn by the missing lettering in the sign which I feel added to the deserted, empty mood.

I have been busy revising lately, learning to refine my web design skills as well as PHP. Sadly this has meant that I haven’t been out with my camera as much as I would have liked. I am looking forward to getting out soon. I went out last week and ended up drifting around Exmoor but couldn’t find much to shoot. I need to find some inspiring spots to visit before I go back. I also want to visit some of the Dartmoor features to expand my photography library and of course for enjoyment!

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I took this photo in Westward Ho! on a pretty unsuccessful evening. I liked the composition in this shot due to the boulders and the way that they lead into the image. I think the photo would have been much better if the sun and surrounding area wasn’t blown out, but hey that’s photography I guess, it can’t be perfect every time and rarely is in my case. I chose to post the photo anyway as I love the texture in the boulders and how they contrast with the rest of the rugged shoreline. Even if the photos don’t come out amazing I always enjoy my time on North Devon’s beaches with my camera.

As you can see if you are a regular reader I have changed the address of the blog. The main reason that I did this is because devon-photography.com is a much more relevant domain and it was available (I’m pretty sure it wasn’t until recently). I also find that it rolls off of the tongue easier when trying to tell people my email address.  If you link to me I would be grateful if you could update your links.

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I haven’t been out with my camera much lately. I’m hoping that as the evenings get lighter it will allow me to get out in the evenings after work.

This is a photo of the rocks at Westward Ho! taken at dusk. I love the way these rocks look in images after the light starts to fade. I think it is a combination of the textures that show in images along with the blend of tones present highlighted by the dusk sky’s colours.

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It is all too easy when taking seascape photos to just include a small amount of rocks to generate a little foreground interest. I opted in this photo that was taken at Westward Ho! in North Devon to make the rocks the main part of the photo.

Parts of Westward Ho! are very surreal when the tide is out. There are several plateaus of almost flat rock, much flatter than the ones in this image. I might post a photo of those rocks soon. I like the composition in this photo because of the contrast in textures, with the softness of the boulders contrasting against the rocks on the right hand side.

One thing that I have discovered since getting my wide angle lens is how more hands on that I have been in trying to find compositions. At 10mm I find myself in some awkward positions balanced precariously over the rocks while I get the shot. I wouldn’t have it any other way though, except maybe with less cuts and bruises from the sharp shells!

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I took this photo at Westward Ho! in North Devon while trying to make sure that I didn’t get cut off by the incoming tide, and just to add even more pressure there was rain coming in from the left of the photo. I like the way the longer exposure highlights the movement in the water near the rocks.

The thing that I have grown to love about the North Devon coast is that whatever area I chose to take photos in and that is often Instow or Westward Ho!, is that it is always different. I often just go along with the flow without planning an exact shot just to see what the light will present on that occasion.

In other news I recently made a blog post on my other blog about tips for SEO for photography blogs. It could be well worth a read, you might have done everything I mention already but you may not have!

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I decided to have a play with processing a colour version of my last photo of Westward Ho! I have to admit that although I love the black and white version, this colour photo is growing on me quite a lot. I really do need to get a decent ND filter as stacking the two graduated ones that I have and processing is getting tiresome.

Which do you prefer the colour version or the black and white one?

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I took this photo a few nights ago at Westward Ho! It was quite an unsuccessful night in the grand scheme of things, a lot of my shots had a lot of flare from the filters which I was quite disappointed about. I have pretty much arrived at the conclusion that I most definitely need a decent neutral density filter.

I really like the mix of textures in this photo and I feel it suits black and white. I especially like the splashes on the boulder as the tide started to come in. Because of the tide level it was impossible to get to an area where there was clearance beyond the immediate rocks.

While I was out I had a chance encounter with Nick Woodrow, another local photographer who was shooting a short distance from me. It’s quite surreal when you chat to a stranger to discover that they are actually one of your Flickr contacts.

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Here is another Westward Ho! photo from one of my recent trips. I like it although I could probably have done with a little longer exposure. This is where the lack of a decent neutral density filter is really starting to hurt me I think as it would give me more control. I pulled some of the detail out in processing but tried to keep it as natural as possible. I’m still happy with it though, it feels like I should have got a wide angle lens a long long time ago as it suits my photography very well.

In other news I have created a Facebook page for the blog. I’m still trying to decide what to put on it long term, so if you have any ideas feel free to let me know! I’d like to thank everyone that has liked it so far so that I could get a permanent username & URL for the page.

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