First sight of Autumn 2 - # 73/10

Walking across Ham Common I was attracted to the appearance of the water under the willows, the reflections, the shadows and the knarly exposed roots on the eroded bank. The willow leaves have not yet turned brown.  The green reflection in the water was startling. The camera has captured it quite well.

Wavelets on Water, Teddington Lock - # 08/269

Recently I've enjoyed trying to capture different patterns on water. There's nothing dramatic......this is soft Richmond upon Thames, after all. Nevertheless, I took a little bit of time in choosing this. I find it interesting because if you study it you realise that you can see the green of the trees on the river bank and even a fleck or two of the brilliant blue sky. This is what gives the water that rather scratchy look.

In other words there is actually more in the image than you think: but don't spend as much time looking as I did preparing this post!! ;-)

Light on water, Pen Ponds, Richmond Park - # 08/246

A tiny f 22 lens aperture and a high shutter speed broke up the continuous carpet of glare from late afternoon sun to form a sprinkle of magic dust particles scattered across the water. The birds posed in nicely co-ordinated positions and the long grasses parted conveniently to allow the camera a nice low view point. Just for once the camera captured the magic I saw, but that may not be the case for everyone who sees the photo.

Wind on water - # 08/235

I know we see lots of these "wind on water" effects, and this is one is nothing special. But, the undeniable thing is that people enjoy just sitting and waiting to see what the wind will do next. We can conclude that this has been done by Man for thousands of years. That's interesting. It forms a long thread of common experience that we forget at our peril.

In yesterday's Richmond upon Thames Photo we enjoyed the shine of the rain on a wet footpath. Here we have the wind on one of the many ponds in Richmond Park. This is England in October. The sky was grey, so the water is grey. The rest of this week might be sunny. I wonder if Cave Men ever complained about being "stuck indoors all day" because of the bad weather? At least I'm finding October more photogenic than the past months of a bad Summer. Is that just my mood, or is it "real"?

Reflection of marker-post in the water at Teddington lock - # 08/232

The 26th September brought us the last moments of hot and brilliant sunshine before the strong winds of Autumn fell upon us.

Capturing September attempt # 21-019- # 08/225

As the quality of light and the angle of the sun change we see new lighting effects under the trees and the sparkle on the water and even the nature of the mud seems to change.

For other pictures of Pen Ponds in Richmond Park see Year 2007 # 4, 7, 339 & 354.

This is a typical example of how the eye handles contrasts in light and shade better than the camera. Fortunately the blue water is not too much over-exposed. Several attempts were necessary. I hope you enjoy the scene as much as I did at the time.

River Crane magic- # 08/137

Rain drops on the lens, sunlight breaking through, bright shining, fast flowing water, muddy bank. Wilderness within the boundary of the mega-city.

Water, mud and pebbles in Richmond Park (tweaked) - # 249

Not everyone will like this, but it I enjoyed playing around with the images. I just tweaked shadows and highlights and found the effect quite pleasing.

Richmond Park - Pen Ponds - #4

This post answers a special request from Tel Aviv Daily Photo. The Park is 8 miles in circumference. It is full of red deer and fallow deer, having been a royal hunting park for hundreds of years. The park is up on a plateau and offers stunning 360 degree 50km distant views of London and the surrounding lands. There will be more, later. It's a wonderful place right on the edge of London.