Bluebell Wood near Preston

I went for another walk in a Bluebell Wood, close to Preston in Hertfordshire, and parking nearby found something resembling liana vines in a scene from a Tarzan novel. Before entering the wood I also noted how badly this year's weather had damaged our crops – in some fields between 30 and 50% had been lost – a sure sign the cost of our food in the coming year will be considerably more expensive.

I travelled up a lane, and accidentally strayed into the grounds of a cottage, but fortunately I was soon routed back to the public footpath, and despite the very low light levels managed to capture the abundance of bluebells carpeting the wood. The golden brown of last season's leaves formed the pathways through, and the lush new leaves seemed to float in horizontal clouds, with here and there brighter glimpses of open land beyond. There were even a few tentative signs of weak sunshine towards the end of my walk, but even 'fleeting' is an exaggeration for how long they appeared.

After I returned to the car and had a welcome sip of hot coffee, I drove first to Tringford, then on to Westcott near Waddesdon to return my grandson's coat which had accidentally been left behind, and as I approached Quainton, where a Thomas the Tank Engine can sometimes be seen, I spotted a bright Virgin Hot Air Balloon preparing to take off in the evening calm; I took some shots from where I first saw it, then drove to the railway bridge to get a couple of shots as it headed east towards Waddesdon and Aylesbury, and then I headed for Pitchcott and Whitchurch and home.

A walk Amongst Ashridge's Bluebells

Even though I instinctively knew that the rain of the last few days would mean that the bluebells of Ashridge would not be their best because they had been due to bloom at the onset of the rain, I made a point of getting up early as there was a good chance of early morning Sunday sun, and the Spanish Grand Prix was destined to be recorded by my computer.

As I arrived in the small designated parking area there were only a few cars already present, and absolutely no one anywhere to be seen. The sun was still slanting strongly from the edges of the wood, casting long shadows across the golden leaves of the numerous paths, and blobs of dappled sunlight across the bluebell patches. Once within the woods, I spotted a couple of others of a like mind, but either of more willpower, or lesser distance to travel, for they were other photographers whose tripods were already up, and were fully concentrated in the shooting process. I wanted some low level shots so had brought along a groundsheet, and I was very pleased at my forethought, as the ground in the pathways was often very soggy.

My preconceptions of the state of the flowers was regrettably very accurate, as the flower heads were small, often already dying, and definitely not at their best. They were also less abundant than in past years, but nevertheless the whole expansive area still manages to exude a charm that is hard to ignore. Looking up however I was sad to see that several of the trees showed signs of having died and shed their bark to leave bright dead, white wood to gleam in the bright sunlight. I hope this is not a sign of another devastating disease is to be visited upon our trees.

None of the images I managed to capture were outstanding, but I hope they provide a varied view of this seasonal event; it was certainly an excellent way to spend the early part of a Sunday morning, and it was pleasant to exchange a few words with others there to enjoy the scene. By the time I left, the woods were alive to the shouts of young children, and it was hard to take shots without other photographers in critical positions within one’s own pictures. And the car park was now full!

Bluebell Woods – Return Visit

I timed my arrival at Ashridge for the end of the day, when the lower level of the sun shone deepest into the woods, and was ever-changing. Remembering some of what happened from a lighting standpoint from my last visit was useful.

I happened to be talking to someone else with a camera, in an area with no sunshine, and I said that shortly the sun would go low enough to penetrate this far into the woods and would light up the log across the path in front of us. He was amazed that barely thirty seconds later a shaft of light fell just where I had indicated, and slowly spread wider! Sadly, he managed only the one shot as his battery then ran out. He was grateful however that I had suggested he take a longer exposure stopped right down and using his time delay.

Not long after there was a group of foreign twenty-somethings trying to use their time delay to take a group shot with much hilarity as the photographer made his way back to the group in a stooping run to fall in a heap as the shutter fired; they were all in hysterics after several failed attempts, so I offered to take the shot of all of them, at least admitting it could never be quite as much fun! They were happy for me to do so, and they then took a look at some of what I had taken, one girl then came over to ask how they might see my shots, and as I finished taking that shot, she came out with the immortal words: “Do you come here often?” to which my obvious reply was: “That sounds awfully like a chat-up line!” We both laughed. When I mentioned the incident to my younger married daughter, she was equally amused!

Oh, and yes this time I made very sure that Image Stabilisation was OFF!