FUN FACTS

A lifeboat station was first established at Filey in 1804, The station was taken over by the RNLI in 1852 and they erected a new lifeboathouse, In 1890, the third lifeboathouse to be built in Filey was opened

On 15 June 1998 a Tornado  RAF aircraft crashed into the sea, 30 miles away from Flamborough Head. The Filey all-weather boat, searched for 13 hours for the two aircrew

THE GALLERY

Pesky Seagulls & The Wave

Of course I took more images than the RNLI action I stumbled upon, but that was the main feature and I have been itching to share this with you all

Usually when I am at the coast I always try and get some photos of those pesky seagulls that are always trying to steal everybody’s chips haha!  They are quite bold and I can normally get quite close to them before they fly off. I know people moan about them but they are an endangered species (believe it or not) and I quite like them.

Finally after I had finished messing with the seagulls the tide had come in and was crashing in to the tide barrier. I took this opportunity to try and capture some action shots of the wave actually hitting the barrier. Me being me ended up laying on top of the barrier with the camera hand held waiting for the perfect wave.

That perfect wave came and I got drenched, but I got the shots i was looking for, I got a great sequence of the wave showing how the wave actually dissipated through its motion. Water is a very powerful element, let me tell you!

See the wave sequence below

Then there is the rest of the galley

I really hope you have enjoyed reading about my visit to Filey and all the action with the RNLI.

All my work is available for purchase, if there is anything you like, whether for commercial purposes or wall art for your home, just contact me and we can discuss what formats are available and suitable for you.

Until next time, THANK YOU and take care.

Don’t forget to donate to the RNLI

THE HIDDEN DRUID’S TEMPLE

Address

Ilton Druids Temple

Ilton, Ripon HG4 4JY

Fun Facts

The Druids Temple was built in the late 1700’s by William Danby as a replica of Stone Henge

It is said that a hermit lived there for many years ( Unfortunately I couldn’t find the hermit to take a picture of it ) 

Wait! Maybe I did?

YAY!  You’re Here

You are now at the curiousity that is Ilton Druids Temple and it is yours to explore

Who are these hermits?

While I was exploring around and taking photos  came across a group of people ( I don’t think they were hermits but…….  You never know these days ;)) 

Maybe you know them or you are one of these guys, check them out on the pic I took of them. 

ARTHINGTON VIADUCT

Sunday 28th March I decided to visit Arthington Viaduct. The weather was good, the sky looked interesting. By interesting I mean there was a blue sky with white fluffy clouds that were moving quite fast in the sky, I will speak more about this later in this article.

First I will run through a little history of Arthington Viaduct.

The viaduct was built between 1845 & 1849 supervised by chief engineer Thomas Grainger of of Leeds & Thirsk Railways. Randomly Arthington Viaduct goes by 2 other names; Castley Viaduct and Wharfedale Viaduct, Arthington Viaduct is the name people refer to most as it lies in the middle of the village of Arthington.

Fun Facts

*There are 21 semi circular arches that make up Arthington Viaduct and the rise of each arch is 21 foot!

*An excess of 50,000 tons of stone was used in the construction of Arthington Viaduct

How to get to Arthington Viaduct.

If you have a sat nav, the postcode LS21 1NZ will take you right there :). Otherwise once you arrive in Arthington Village you  should be on the A659 Arthington Lane, depending on the direction you are coming from you need to look out for a small turning onto a road called Warren Lane. Warren Lane is more of a dirt track and you will need to follow this right to the end. You will feel it is a road to nowhere but it leads to a dead end. From the dead end park up (for free) and walk down the hill by the side of the viaduct. If you cant see the viaduct from where you are, then you must be in the wrong place lol. Your now here

The Composition

Once at Arthington Viaduct I had a wander down the side of the riverbank looking for an interesting viewpoint. Although the Viaduct in itself is quite spectacular in photography you need something to give the image some oomph & interest. As I mentioned before the skies were blue and the clouds were fluffy, white and moving quite fast in the wind. I had already decided to use these fast moving clouds in the image that I wanted, but I needed some foreground interest to add some depth. As you can see on the image I have shown you, I decided to use the 2 bare tree trunks that were growing out of the side of the footpath on the river bank.

So, I decided to use the tree trunks, the viaduct and the fast moving clouds. To do this isnt really hard to do but you do need some equipment to achieve this, namely a tripod and a filter. I used a 10 stop filter.

The Creation

I decided upon my composition; I just needed to set it up using my photography equipment. As this was planned to be long exposure photography, a sturdy tripod is recommended especially in the wind like it was on this day. I use a Vanguard Alto pro Tripod and love it, it does everything I need it to.

Once my camera was mounted on my tripod, I went about setting up my composition using the trees in the foreground and also using the “rule of thirds” composition technique both vertically and horizontally. I had my shot set up, but there was one last thing I needed to do. It was too bright to achieve movement in the clouds by using the camera, even on ISO 50 I still couldn’t get a long enough shutter speed to show enough cloud movement.

Time for the BIG STOPPER! The Big Stopper is a filter that blocks out 10 stops of light, meaning you can extend your exposure time tenfold. By using the Big Stopper it allowed me to achieve a 30 second exposure, which is plenty of time to show movement in clouds I wanted.

This is the famous Arthington Viaduct!

TOP TIP

When using filters that impede any sort of view through the viewfinder it is always good practice to focus your lens without the filter on. Once the focus has locked in flick the switch on the lens to manual focus. Then screw on or place your filter in it’s holder and your ready to roll.

By switching the ens to manual focus stops the camera from hunting for focus in the dark as the filter is stopping light from coming through. Once the camera starts hunting for focus, your shot could be ruined because it will no longer focused on where you want the focus to be.

Another little tip, if you are not using a remote trigger to take the shot, make sure your camera is on the 2 second timer so you don’t cause any movement when pressing the trigger switch.

Of course I did more than the one shot, I had my dog Chip with me too so it was a great opportunity to do some shots of him running about, bless him. He loves a run   I saw a red kite bird of prey and managed to get a quick snap of that and randomly I found a stone that had the sun painted on it.

You can see the full batch of images below.

The reason for this trip to Malham was to visit and photograph Janet’s Foss waterfall and then a further walk to Gordale Scar.

Malham, a small village found in the the North Yorkshire Dales which boasts spectacular landscapes such as Malham Cove, Janets Foss Waterfall and Gordale Scar.

These iconic natural wonders attract visitors and tourists from all over the UK.  When you get to witness these places in person, you will see why a trip to Malham is so popular and also why I chose to visit this amazing place for one of my photography projects.

On this visit I didn’t do the walk to Malham Cove, I am saving that for a project of it’s own on a later date!

Where to park

Once you arrive in Malham village, you will see the Pay & Display visitor car park on the left, this also has public conveniences which are free of charge. These can come in handy after a long drive, well they do for me anyway, lol.

If the main car park is full, there is free parking on the road into Malham and also another car park further past the main visitor car park.

The Route to Janets Foss Waterfall

Leave the Car park and turn left and head towards The Malham Smithy.  The Malham Smithy is a blacksmiths art shop run by a lady called Annabelle Bradley, sadly I wasn’t  able to meet her or see inside when I visited Malham due to Covid-19 restrictions, so rest assured I will be back and definitely pay her a visit very soon.

Once you reach the Malham Smithy turn right and walk over the little bridge and onto the little pathway that goes to the right, you will now be walking more or less back on your self. You will come to a kissing gate ( there are quite a few on this walk) Follow the pathway that is sign posted Janets foss.

The Paths to Janets Foss are easy walking, and well maintained. You will walk approximately 1.5 mile in total to get to Janets Foss itself. The view once there is quite breathtaking and well worth the walk.

It is now time for a picnic and a flask of coffee, but don’t fear if you don’t have a picnic with you as the next part of the walk to Gordale Scar has a mobile sandwhich shop on the way

Janets Foss

Janets Foss

This is the stunning Janet’s Foss waterfall you are greeted with once you have walked from the Centre of Malham .

Well worth the walk, don’t ya think?

Fun  Fact

In it’s time Janets Foss has been used as a natural sheep dip for farmers!

Legend has it that the home of Jennet the queen of the fairies resided in a cave behind the waterfall or in the cave the to the right of the falls, which is accessible with a little climbing. 

Here is Gordale Scar

I really hope you have enjoyed reading about my little adventure to Malham. I am planning another visit soon to photograph Malham Cove, so keep an eye out for that one soon.

Fun  Fact

Gordale Scar was created in the Ice Age by melt water creating a cavern that collapsed and eventually forming the gorge we now know as Gordale Scar

Prints

If you do like any of the photographs I have taken on my trip to Malham,  I am able to supply prints of any size and in any format.

Simply contact me with the size of the print you need and I will get this printed in a professional lab and shipped direct to your door.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

The Autumn Sessions

The Autumn Sessions are now available.  Book now for some beautiful family portraiture.