Prestbury Snow

Still waiting for some decent snow this year, these images were taken in 2010 (Dec 18th) — it was a very cold winter, one of the coldest on record. Re-Processed with HDR and pre-Raphaelite lighting effects.

Fence to Summit

Re-working with heavy gold tone effect.

Last of the snow scene photos from winter 2010. The image has been treated with the intention of replicating the look of traditional printing on gold toned Ilford grade 2 fiber based paper.  Minimalism is one of the most difficult “design categories” to achieve in landscape photography but having much of the ground covered in snow does help.

Infrared treated with vignette – image of light snow in the Northern fields around the village of Prestbury in Cheshire.

I trudged through the fields (in inappropriate footwear) mesmerised by the transformation of the landscape and the sense of frost bitten (very painful) toes didn’t seem to matter at all. This total submersion in the art and craft of pictures taking and simple joy of recording my environment is one of the highest forms of pleasure that I know.

I do like the way these conditions make the landscape look so much more photogenic.

Climbing up the hill, steeper than it looks due to geometric distortion of a very wide-angle lens. I had to grab on to that barbed wire to get up here! Coming down was even more fun and I virtually slid all the way down on my backside holding precious camera aloft at all times — of course! I was taken by the simplicity of this scene, which has been enhanced by the optical effect of the lens. Can’t remember how I treated this image but it has been deliberately enhanced to create a more high key effect. It was (and still is) very cold indeed!

I am now preparing for my first ever gallery show which will be comprised of mostly B&W work with a mixture of landscape and ‘found object’ – like studies — joy of joys indeed!

Snow in the top field Prestbury, yes I have had another session in the snow, I’m in love with it all! Snow is still lying on the ground as I speak. These are fairly unusual winter conditions in the UK now and again it all makes for interesting change, photography wise.

Christmas is almost upon us and as ever I am looking forward to spending the day with my Bro and SIL with a good nosh up. I’m just a little concerned about not being able to afford to offer much in return this year but I do intend to make up for this later!

Listening to GP at the moment, usual recanting of the years new (more or less) jazz orientated stuff. It dawned on me that I have most of these tunes on my MP3 already!

We are trying pet coke at Oliver Wood towers this year, for those not familiar with the arts of solid fuel heating PET coke is Petroleum Coke, it is not a naturally occurring mineral coal but a residue of the ‘cracking’ process in oil refining. It is ridiculously hot and turns the dog grate into an incandescent glowing mass of metal. I am concerned that this stuff is pretty bad for the environment though, it also makes a massive amount of smoke in the early combustion phase which drifts throughout the whole village, but nobody has complained yet?