Stewartby Lake – Post LockDown Activity

I have visited this lake before, but it was a while back, before the current lockdown, yet it was ironically less busy on that occasion. Free from the recent restrictions, the Public were out in force, often in quite large groups, which I am presuming are family-related. I was in no hurry, so taking any gaps in the trees that led to the bank of the lake was not always an avoidance manoeuvre, but an opportunity to explore. The shoreline mostly displaying the roots of its past by the vast numbers of broken bricks present. Every so often there are sections of mortared brickworks, and one of these actually resembles the shape of a small submarine with a conning tower, which certainly was not going to be missed by my camera! 

The surface of the lake was largely given over to sailing dinghies, with a few powered boats as spectators as well as rescue craft. As there was quite a brisk, though gusty wind, the swan families were keeping often close to the shore, in the areas where the trees and bushes kept them more protected from the human visitors. There was one spot where the bricks have been carefully arranged to presumably improve angling, by keeping an area clear of more of the invasion of nearby foliage, but what surprise me is there are so many steep and muddy banks which could benefit from the use of stacking such bricks to make access safer.

Perhaps, because the wind was often quite strong on this visit, I saw fewer butterflies than I had hoped, and I also witnessed a wasp attack one butterfly, and I thought this was likely to have a bad outcome for the butterfly, but surprisingly, it did not succumb, perhaps the sometimes ragged wings I see an assume as general wear ‘n’ tear are in fact evidence of such attacks from predatory wasps.

On this trip, I saw no dragonflies and only a few damselflies, so perhaps the wind was a deterrent to flying operations at this time. I did notice that the blackberries were certainly coming on, but the few that looked ripe I was not prepared to attempt to eat, in case the Virus had contaminated them, and they had definitely not reached the numbers where considering picking numerous fruit that could be washed after collection; there were simply too few for that to be a viable option.

It was fortunate that despite the powered boats were not ever close, this lens was still able to capture some shots of them at a reasonable quality, but the carrying of a longer lens and a heavy tripod was never an option for this visit. The cloud cover was often not conducive to good quality, but it was still great to be out and in some sunshine, and to chat with some of the other visitors.

2020 New Year Concert – St Mary's, Eaton Bray

 

             A New Year and New Decade begins for the Aylesbury Concert Band, with its opening Concert for the Season. At the rehearsal the Car Park was filling steadily as I brought my Sax-playing daughter in, and as she went in to set up, a steady influx of Band members continued as I gathered my kit, locked up and walked in with the Day's Conductor.

               Inside St. Mary's Church, Eaton Bray, the atmosphere was alive with the sounds of animated chatter and the setting up of numerous music stands, and arranging of seating for the Band. The numbers of Band members arriving continued to swell, gradually giving way to the more musical sounds of tuning up – Cacophany in C; if there was any nervousness amongst the players it was certainly lost amongst the general hubbub of greetings, re-arrangements of seating and constant flux as Chaos gave way to Order. It was during this phase, I realised I was missing a vital component if I was to use my monopod. I left my kit on a couple of chairs close by the aisle towards the front, and when I returned two reserved tickets had been placed where my camera bag was, so I had to find an unreserved place, one row nearer than planned.

               The Vicar greeted me to generously offer access to the Organ loft, which I accepted gratefully, but from which, on this occasion I found I was unable to use. Once I felt sufficiently organised, I took a few shots to gauge the lighting levels and set my base exposure, and learning that a very full congregation was envisaged, realised that the majority of images of the Band playing were going to be gleaned not from the Concert, but during Rehearsal, where I was free to move around, and take shots of musicians who were in the rear rows or hidden behind pillars.

               It does mean that many views were framed by clothing over chair backs, and many of the musicians were in mufti, rather than their formal dress, and only certain players were visible from my static position during the main event. Hopefully though the spirit of the occasion is carried by the overall range of images I have captured, When listening to music, my feet take on a life of their own, but somehow my hands manage to keep sufficient control to retain their stability; sometimes in post production it does mean verticals do have to be restored, or judiciously cropped to ensure the viewer does not suffer vertigo! It is all a measure however of my enjoyment of the occasion – a Happy New Decade to all who read the blog and enjoy the images captured.

Brogborough Lake — Slightly Less High Wind

I missed out on the Gale Force winds at the Lake, but on the Sunday, it was less fierce so naturally attracted a range of different levels of windsurfer skills. It was interesting to not that André had come along with a commercial hydrofoil, and was finding it far easier to remain aloft, and with less effort than when using his own self-designed and manufactured model. I managed to discuss this with him, and since has more experience, he will revert to his own one to check out its handling relative to his new found knowledge, to assess how much his earlier difficulties related specifically to his design, or to his inexperience. I look forward to learning his thoughts on that.

When I arrived for this visit I did not immediately set up the camera, as I was keen to see whether there were to be some jumpers amongst those attending, and learned from Sam there was at least one possible contender. That slim possibility encouraged me to set up the Benbo tripod and attach the EOS R complete with the 2x Converter, which was one of the primary motives for my getting further experience of using this combination in a sporting situation. The issue is tracking a fast moving subject whilst retaining autofocus, and panning accurately when I know there is a lag involved in my viewfinder relative to the accurate tracking of the subject, especially when trying to keep that subject close to full-screen. What I have been doing is breaking the sequence into short, but linked exposures whilst panning, so any delay does not affect the overall capture too adversely.

There are two separate issues in relation to panning a moving subject, one is maintaining the subject in frame due to this lag, the second is tracking the autofocus point due to the lag; it is this overall aspect I am trying to understand due to the difference between mirrorless and DSLRs — the panning with the latter is comparatively easy to master, since every frame your eye sees is live and accurate, despite the interruption. With a mirrorless camera, every frame compounds the discrepancy so your eye is misled as this delay increases with the length of the action being covered. The obvious, but expensive option is a co-processor channel for the viewfinder, separated from that which is being recorded; in that way the delay remains constant rather than being compounded over the length of the sequence.

Since I am not in a position of having limitless funds available, such an option is likely to be out of my range, so I need to find a happy medium technique that lessens this effect. Another possibility does spring to my mind, and that is have a setting that feeds say, every third frame to the viewfinder to avoid the user having to keep removing pressure on the shutter release; this would have the effect of limiting the delay extending over an extended period. A point I think I need to discuss with Canon. This option would seem possible within the firmware and a means of selecting this option made available within the menu.

Having thought this through since making the jump to Canon’s full frame body, I have put this to Canon UK, but other than acknowledge that I am not the first to make this suggestion, no further feedback or discussion is possible, so perhaps other readers of this blog might also put this suggestion through to Canon, such that it is given due attention going forward. An implementation within the camera’s operating system, if viable, would certainly help the transition from dSLR to mirrorless which would seem in Canon’s best interest in the future.

End of thoughts on that side of the technology, enjoy the fruits of my labours of capturing those who were enjoying the wind and adding to their sailing skills on the water’s surface, or above it in the case of those venturing into hydrofoiling.

Briefest Brogborough Visit with Biting Wind

          I was thinking that with a stiff breeze, there might be a chance of some activity on the nearby lake, but upon arriving at the Car Park for Brogborough’s windsurfing and paddleboarder afficianados; I found there were few takers.

          It was a bitterly cold late morning, with an added bonus of a biting wind, perhaps the cold was enough to deter all but the hardiest of windsurfing sailors from venturing out on the lake. Only when the winds don’t blow do the paddle boarders take to the water. However, on this occasion the low temperature was enough to deter all but the most determined, unless some were hidden from view the total was a mere half dozen.

          Sam Barnes who runs the show reckoned the cold would not draw too many on this occasion, and it was a while before the number, rigged and on the water, rose to three, which meant it was worth my while to put the camera onto the Benbo tripod and set up on the shore or the jetty to get shots of any action that caught my eye.

          I cannot promise that what I captured was earth shatteringly exciting, but before leaving I did take a few shots of the Benbo with it as Hero, because last weekend I learned that the Distributors, Paterson would very much like to see shots of the Benbo in action.

          I moved it around the shoreline with the lake and windsurfers as background in a small gallery to say thank you for their very useful, and firm tripod. It takes to water well, since the lower leg sections are closed at the bottom, so can be immersed in more than a foot in water with impunity.

          Click this link to view the Benbo tripod I used for these shots with the 5D MkIII and Sigma Sports 60-600mm

http://www.fntn.co.uk/rodwp/BenboTerritory

Wind at Brogborough Lake – at Last!

General Gallery - (same link as from the Title)

Jumps 1

Jumps 2

Saturday looked really promising for wind, surely a godsend for the windsurfers of Brogborough, after such a long windless spell, but it did look as if it would be likely to end with rain.

I tried to clear the decks of all my essential chores, and gathered my kit for a trip down the road to the Lake. There was activity, but rather less than I had been expecting, but it was deceptive, since the activity was preparation; rigging the sails, and donning appropriate clothing, which ranged from the summer minimal to the regular full wetsuit. I wandered towards the water’s edge and found there several already on the water, but all at different points of the compass.

I returned to the boot of my car, and started to put the Benbo tripod up at least firm enough to risk attaching the camera with lens attached, which would by the EOS7D MkII and the Sigma Sports 150 - 600mm. I had also brought along the 1.4 Converter to give it an airing in the bright light. 

Heading to the jetty with the camera and tripod assembled, then rest the tripod legs to a convenient height, with its feet located at the junction of the jetty’s slats to ensure maximum stability for I knew from past experience, that in high winds the jetty could move considerably. I started by taking a few preparatory exposures to judge the lighting levels and apertures I might expect to be using. It soon became apparent that I was not as fully prepared as I thought — I realised I had not got my hat, nor put some sun cream on my hands; I also took the opportunity to grab my 1.4 Converter.

Later, I did attach it to give me the extended reach, but twice, it threw up an error and locked up, so I decided that was far too risky so removed it, I also took that opportunity to move the tripod further out along the jetty so the reeds to my left gave me a clearer view into that bay at the end, since many of the sailors were travelling that much further.

I knew from past experience bright and windy weather such as this meant I was making a proverbial rod for my back, in that I was going to be spending an inordinate time in front of the computer in post processing, but I seem to accept masochism is all part of a photographer’s lot.

At least during the first day the wind and rain made the task acceptable as it was a comfort since the great outdoors did not offer an enviable alternative, and my family were otherwise tied up. However, I was beset by my hard disc disappearing for stints of nearly an hour at a time, and I was unable to fathom exactly what was happening and it was frustrating as Lightroom had to rebuild the catalog each time, but resolving that issue would have to wait till after the images were up on the blog.

I have split the day’s shooting into the three galleries, one overall, and the other two contain various jump sequences I managed to catch, mainly of Colin Hunt.

I hope they give a hint of the joy of the day’s weather.

Stockwood Saturday – Warm and Windy

I had managed to clear everything in preparation for the family trip to Goodwood for the Festival of Speed meeting, so having used the Wednesday afternoon to cover Luton Hoo’s Walled Garden, I decided I would pay the Stockwood Discovery Centre a visit, as I was sure the flowers and insect life would not disappoint.

I was right, there was an incredible panoply of colour on display, and the Centre was crowded with young families enjoying the afternoon sun. I had found some interesting and unusual flowers with beautifully textured leaves in the bed at the entrance, so I took out the camera even before going in! I headed for the lavender once within the walled enclave, which I was certain would be attractive to the bees, I was not expecting to see just how hard it was for them to do their pollinating! The sensible ones didi not fly off when the breezes blew, they simply clambered from one flowerhead to any that were nearby, which at least meant there was more time they spent static than had there been less wind.

Once again the long greenhouse was locked, and on this visit I was too late for anyone to let me in there, and anyway there was plenty for me to shoot in the limited time I had left before they closed for the day. I only saw one hoverfly on this visit which I found surprising bearing in mind the moisture from recent rains.

Even though several days have passed since I took these shots, I have already used some of the images in a birthday card for my sister-in-law, and I have yet to load all the Goodwood shots from the following day, but the delay was all worthwhile as I was busy doing a ‘real’ job for a designer pitching for a Royal Mail project involving a hand colouring from an original black and white image; now completed and happily approved.

Windy Wednesday in the Walled Garden

I had had too much grief in front of the computer; I needed to get out, so even though I knew it would be rather late, and it was both dull and very windy, I took myself off to the Walled Garden at Luton Hoo.These winds were the precursor to autumn, or as the Americans would say Fall. I prefer autumn to the the more prosaic description to just the single aspect of the dropping of leaves. Autumn evokes the colours of the season, and today despite the inclement weather still had the colour of late summer flowers, and the leaves have yet to fall.

My patience was somewhat tried as some shots took several minutes of waiting for the lull in the wind, and nothing could be grabbed as I had little margin of error due to the low light level. And at the best of times patience is not really my strong suit, and these last few weeks have not been the best of times. I persevered, and the end result is more colourful than I had expected. Many of the volunteers had already finished, but there were still several hardy perennials determined not to be defeated by the weather, and they had obviously worked hard clearing the weeds and thinning out the plants and flowers that had past their best.

The handcart is nearing completion, and the next in line for refurbishment, now that most replacement parts have arrived, is the Drag Saw. It is hoped the handcart will be ready in time for the Pumpkin and Apple Gala Day, and certainly the Apples and Pears are the best I have seen, having suffered less from the ravages of wasps and the like.