Tuesday 11 August 2009

It's time for tea! - # 09/115

The weather has indeed been very unhelpful: the weather along with a load of other things that have got in the way of taking photos, and demanded my attention. The loyalties of "cyber-friends" have been severely tested.

The weather has driven me indoors and underground. Today I've been practicing some tricky stuff with difficult lighting.

Here's a scene straight out of the 17th Century. The light and shade, the textures of the wood and stone, the rough-cut carpentry, the odd angles, the primitive, massive metalwork, the way the light reflects from the flag stones, polished by 400 hundred years of footsteps are worth capturing (if you can!). It's a view of the servants' area underneath Ham House. Every day I stop and take it in. It's not just about a taking a photograph but about trying to capture and an atmosphere. The windows are so well placed as to provide natural light in the days before electricity. Visitors to Richmond should not miss it.

6 comments:

  1. It's like you're drinking tea "in secret!" Come out of the TEA closet - we coffee drinkers will happily accept you! Great artsy tea photo!

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  2. I just like this photograph, simple, arty and nice composition!

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  3. You caught the moment exteremely well and the atmosphere is breathtaking! Is it only me who see something mysterious and even sinister about that scene?

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  4. Il se dit qu'il suffit de changer son regard sur un endroit pour faire tout un voyage et c'est ce que tu fais en visitant Ham House. Il n'est pas dit que ses maîtres au XVIIe siècle connaissaient leur demeure aussi bien que toi qui fréquentes aussi bien les communs dévolus aux domestiques.
    La lumière, le cadrage grâce aux volumes riches et simples à la fois, le mobilier. Et nous voici cette fois-ci dans un tableau de l'école flamande...

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  5. PS : Le faible différenciel de lumière entre l'extérieur et l'intérieur de la pièce que tu as obtenu grâce au temps disons... un peu maussade... n'est pas innocent de la qualité de l'éclairage que tu as obtenue.

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  6. This is sensational. You expect the 'girl with the pearl earring' (or her Ham House equivalent) to appear any moment. Fantastic atmosphere and feeling to this shot. Oh well done. You must be dead chuffed. I know I would be.

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