Twitching On Death Rocks, Northumberland

Hello again,

Welcome to another blog entry form the Roaming Mackem Photographer.

Today I'm gonna cover another outing with my camera - a recent visit to Dunstanburgh Castle, on a stunning stretch of coatline in Northumberland. The location is just over an hours drive from my home in Houghton le Spring, so that would give me time to wake up properly after a 5.15am alarm call after a night on the lager. I didn't have much of a hangover, to be honest, and nowt that a McDonald's breakfast wouldn't fettle. So a wash and a quick cup of coffee was in order, before hoying my gear into the car and heading out. The camera bag was organised and ready the night before, and all batteries fully charged. Nowt left to do but pick my brother up and head north out of God's Country. It was 6.15am and we were on the A1(M) - a straight road to our turn off, one hour up the road.

On arrival we dropped anchor near Dunstanburgh Steads, a small holding with surrounding houses, just south of Embleton. A dirt track reaches a dead end near a golf course, so we dropped anchor and I changed into wellies for the assault across Death Rocks and the outgoing tide. Another car pulled in next to us. A guy got out and we greeted each other with the obligatory 'Good Morning' salute. He saw me with my wellies on and asked if it was muddy where we were heading. I told him it was going to be very wet, hence the footwear, and he just laughed. I asked him if he was here to take photographs, which he was. I then asked if travelled far. He replied 'I'm from MANSFIELD' !!!   'Bloody hell' I replied ... 'You're keen aren't ya'. He then said he hadn't travelled from there, he was staying nearby for a few days. Oh well, that makes more sense, ha ha.

So, we headed off near sand dunes towards Death Rocks, laden with camera gear, tripods, drone, etc. Oh aye, the drone was along for the ride too. No show without Punch. We walked along the edge of the golf course towards the castle, which was far easier than negotiating the heavy sand dunes with all that weight on our backs. It was from here that I took a first good look at the dawn sky backdrop of the castle. After all, this is where my camera is going to be pointing towards, and also being the purpose of this morning's trip north. Plan A, to photograph the ruins of Dunstanburgh Castle @ Sunrise. Plans are never that straightforward though, are they? We can but try. But this particular plan involved a scramble across a rather tricky boulder field, known as DEATH ROCKS! Without further ado ...

After a ten minute walk across the golf course we headed down towards the sea, which was rolling in quite aggressively. Quite big waves were crashing in, which was a reminder that what was about to unfold was going to be no walk in the walk. This brings me nicely on to the title of this blog entry. Twitching, eh. Oh, he's gone out to look at sea birds through his binoculars, you said. Gulls, cormorants and Shags, you said. Ticking them off on a nerdy tick list with his little pencil, you said. Oh no, not in the slightest. You see folks, when I say 'Twitching' I refer to the actions of my arse. Yes, ya know when you're shitting bricks and sweating profusely at your actions? Well, that's what I'm talking about. This was nee chilled out stroll along the beach, whistling merrily with a smile on my face. It was more akin to walking across slippery rocks like Bambi on ice. Oh yes, I wish I could see myself. Is that really me? In my defence I hasted to add, these rocks aint called DEATH ROCKS for nowt. No doubt I was following in the footsteps of many a tog. I remember a fellow tog called Terry Cavner (from Blyth) being airlifted off the rocks by a rescue chopper, when he fell and broke a leg. Hopefully I wasn't about to do a 'Terry' me'sel!

I was in position on the rocks around 30 minutes before sunrise. As the tide retreated I found myself moving further out with it, as I wanted to catch some water movement when the sun finally showed up. A couple of other togs joined us, pitching nearby and both waiting for some nice colour in the sky. Just then a freak wave crashed in and around us, spilling over my welly tops and giving my feet a nice north sea welcome. The tripod stayed upright ... just! One of the blokes lost his tripod bag. I noticed it floating away with the receding tide. Unlucky eh. I was lucky myself. My camera bag was sat on a nearby rock when that wave came in. I managed to lift it up at the last second to avoid the wave. Now, that would have been messy ... and expensive! Get the bloody bag on your back, I told myself. Can't be dealing with another wave like that. Oh yes, me arse was twitching again. Bloody mad. The things ya do for a decent shot. Well that put paid to me pushing the envelope. I wasn't gonna move out with the tide, I was staying put - water movement or not. Guess I'll just settle for some rocky foreground and hope for some colour in the sky.

A few minutes later a hint of red showed up amongst the clouds behind the castle. That'll do nicely. A few minutes later there were nice red ripples spreading out, offering a great backdrop. Time to start shooting that scene in front of me. I was cold and very wet from the waist down, but what the hell, eh. Par for the course, I told myself, in a consoling way. In a flash the colourful sky had diminished and the sun was up behind Dunstanburgh Castle. By this time I had my shot in the bag, so it was another job done - time to get off those ghastly rocks. Bye bye, see you again soon ...NOT!

The wind had picked up quite a lot, so I decided not to send the done up. Maybe next time. All that was left to do was head back to the car and get those feet warmed up. Heaters on full pelt, off in a flash and back onto the A1(M). Not for lang though, as we stopped off at McDonalds near Alnwick, to refuel, so to speak. Hey that coffee and breakfast wrap was summat else. You better believe it. I felt like laughing when I was drinking that liquid life saving lotion that is hot coffee. Odd behaviour, granted, but when in a state of semi-hysteria, this is what happens to me LOL. Much needed, especially after freezing me balls off on a cold December morning by the north sea. I hope you like the photographic fruits of my labour. I think it was worth it. The sky could have been a lot worse, unlike those rocks and waves, but all part of the fun. A couple of weeks on and I'm glad to report that my arse has finally stopped twitching. It was an experience, to put it mildly. All in a days work of the Roaming Mackem Photographer. Until the next time folks ...

Be good, AC

(thanks to Chris Corr for 3 photo's of me, when the tide had backed off)

Welcome to 2016, Aurora Style!

Hot on the heels of my last blog entry is another Aurora experience to share on my blog page. The Aurora Borealis, more commonly known as the Northern Lights, made it's last appearance of 2015 and a first for 2016, a spectacle that coincided with a firework display at midnight to see in the new year. And what an experience it was! Throughout the day of December 31st, Aurora prediction alerts were bombarding my mobile phone via an app, grabbing my attention once again. Being New Years Eve and all, any chance of getting out with the camera would usually be a bit tricky due to other commitments, but this time round no plans were made in advance, so a couple of hours were spent on the causeway at St. Mary's Lighthouse, Whitley Bay, in anticipation of seeing a show that was worthy of a New Year's Eve/Day spectacular. And it certainly didn't disappoint. What a way to see in the new year. Does it get much better than this?

Well, once again it was a case of 'Suck it and see'. My last blog entry covered the 'Dunstanburgh Aurora Chase' that never really materialised, despite the KP8 predictions and the BZ reading hitting South in a massive way. So would the New Year;s Eve bash follow suit? Time to find out. Upon arrival I was amazed to see the car park almost empty, but when checking out the night sky it quickly beacame apparent as to why that was. The clouds were calling all the shots once again as the weather front ruled. At this point I'm thinking 'Aye...here we go again, Dunstanburgh part 2'. The wind was strong too, as I stood at the causeway at high tide, looking across to the Lighthouse. A northerly direction held no clues at this point as to whether the Aurora was about to kick off. Above the horizon it was completely clouded out and I wasn't too impressed. another photographer showed up at this point - Jake Cook. We chatted for a while, which was the only option, before heading back to our cars to play the waiting game. It was nice to get out of the cold for a while, with the heaters on full pelt, checking Facebook for any Aurora sightings in the area. Twenty minutes passed and suddenly there was a loud knock on my car window. Why man.....ah neely shat me'sel!!!!!!  It was Jake Cook, I rolled the window down and he showed me a photo on his camera that he had just taken. The Aurora was showing. That was it. Leaving our cars behind we were back on the causeway within a matter of seconds!

Within twenty minutes a green glowing arc could be seen on the horizon, stretching across the sky behind the lighthouse. The camera was working at this point. Can't be missing any of the action eh. The word Aurora must have spread quickly, as car after car arrived at St. Mary's. It wasn't long before the place was crawling with photographers, all keen to bag a slice of the action. A few of them joined us on the causeway, including Alison Leddy, who I hadn't previously met but had seen many of her fine photographs on the TV and internet. I did have one previous 'encounter' with Alison back in 2014 - click here to find out all about it.

On the stroke of midnight the sky was filled with fireworks and everyone around wished eachother a Happy New Year. The noise from the fireworks added to the atmosphere as well as the obvious colour in the sky behind us. However, the midnight firework spectacle that was got out played by the Aurora to the north. What was the chance of that happening? This was undoubtedly the most eye-catching Aurora chase I've been involved in during my relatively short 18 months involvement in the game. It doesn't come any better than this - does it? And on that note I shallwith everyone a belated Happy New Year. All the best!

Ash

Northern Lights - KP8 Predicted !!!

18 months ago, whilst on holiday at the Isle Of Wight, I decided to try and photograph the Milky Way. When I say try, it’s because I hadn’t previously attempted this type of photography, known as Astro, so my first objective was to locate the Milky Way and then set about capturing it with my camera. Until this point I had never seen the Milky Way – I had only seen very recent photographs of it during a brief research earlier in the afternoon.  At the time, during the Summer of 2014, the Milky Way stretched across the night sky from South to North, so I decided on a location to head to and set about the task of photographing it. The night in question will always be a one to remember, especially when I first saw the Milky Way for the very first time, in pitch black conditions, which was ideal as it stood out like the proverbial sore thumb. Photographing it was a lot easier than I had imagined. Infact, the hardest part of the whole experience was keeping my nerve, as the location was out in the sticks and under a blanket of pitch darkness, but I got the shot I wanted and that was very satisfying. And that was my introduction to Astro Photography, the night it all started for me and which continues to this day.

Astro Photography has lots of strings to its bow and it can be quite addictive, especially Aurora chasing, which I’ve been doing for a year, since my first sighting on 29 December, 2014. This brings me nicely on to today’s blog entry – another Aurora chase on the Northumberland Coast, almost a year to the day when I first saw the Northern Lights with my own eyes. In the hours prior to our road trip north on the A1(m), my mobile phone received lots of Aurora alerts through an app I have installed on it. A CME (Coronal Mass Ejection) had fallen from the sun two days before and was earth bound, which in turn causes the natural phenomena known as Aurora Borealis (or Northern Lights). The strength of the magnetic storm is measured in KP units and a reading of between 4 and 5 is usually the least you need to be able to view the lights from the North-East coast of England. Other factors need to come into play too, such as BZ, a reading which is created by waves and other disturbances in the solar wind. The further south the BZ reading is, the better chance of a display. Today the Aurora forecast was KP8 and the BZ was as far south on the dial as it could be. I’d never seen a forecast as strong as this so I wasn’t gonna miss an opportunity to get involved.

We arrived at Craster at 6pm and headed across the pastures to Dunstanburgh Castle, an ideal location looking North, in the direction of the Aurora. Clear skies had been predicted on the Met Office app, but by the time we reached the castle a huge cloud bank was heading our way. Not in the plan at all. A green glow could be seen in front of us and it was quite high in the sky – much higher than I’d seen before. It was very windy upon the crag where Lilburn Tower is perched and the winds got worse as the night wore on. A steep drop to my left wasn’t an ideal place to set up shop, but the vantage point was the best I could find considering a few other photographers were in place alongside us at this point. Over the next four hours we waited for the clouds to disperse, which they did to some extent, but as they headed north it was the last place we wanted to see them. Any colour that was on display was clouded out and before long we were closed down altogether. The plan was falling apart and although those mad KP alerts kept on coming through, the clouds made sure we had little or no chance of seeing the display we had earlier expected. Home time.

After the 30 minute walk back to the car, feeling somewhat deflated, I reflected on the one decent shot I managed to pull in (see above). Not a great display be any means, but at least I got something for my efforts. The night wasn’t a complete cloud-out however. We decided to stop off at St. Mary’s Lighthouse, Whitley Bay, on the off chance that the Aurora may still be firing closer to home. It was around midnight when we arrived and a green glow could be seen behind the Lighthouse. The tide was incoming and the late night display had brought plenty of photographers to this location, eager to catch a few shots of the display. A Lunar Rainbow could be seen next to the Lighthouse, which a first for me, so I quickly grabbed the opportunity to photograph it before it faded, which it did in a matter of seconds. We spent a couple of hours at St. Mary’s, hoping to see an upturn in fortunes, but the Aurora never really got out of second gear the whole time we were there. Again, I grabbed what shots I could before calling it a day, or night in this case.

The night had so much expectation riding on it, but looking back now it was a big disappointment. Maybe I expected too much, but then again… when a KP8 forecast comes through, along with a weather forecast of clear skies to the North…well, you can’t help but get drawn in by it all. Experience tells me that most Aurora chases often turn out to be a waste of time and effort. The best ones I’ve been involved in have been very much unexpected, so you learn to simply go with the flow, cross your fingers and hope you hit lucky. You win some and you lose some, it’s all part and parcel of the game. I suppose that’s what half the attraction is. I wouldn’t change it if I could. The expected or unexpected? It is what is. I’ll keep on chasing (wink).

Until the next one…

Ash  

Northern Lights, Bamburgh - April 2015

Hello again and welcome to another blog entry. I've been looking forward to writing about my recent sighting of the Northern Lights, also known as the Aurora Borealis. After a brief showing back in December 2014, I was hopeful of catching a better light show before the end of the Aurora season, which is normally in late March. There had been a handful of decent Aurora activity since December, notably the big one on St. Patrick's Day, but sods law kicked in and I missed them, mainly due to work commitments, and not for the first time either. So, when a predicted forecast of Aurora activity was on the cards in late April, I decided to push the envelope and get myself up the coast to photograph it. As it happened I was working until 11.20pm on April 20th but that wasn't going to stop me making the 130 mile round trip, even though I was quite knackered at the end of my shift. The opportunity was too good to pass, especially as the aurora prediction also coincided with clear skies and no moon, which are ideal for this kind of photography. So, with everything in place, it was all systems go!

I made the journey north with work colleague and friend Ryan Pearce, who like myself has only been doing Astrophotography for a few months. We were both excited as to what the night had in store for us and we weren't disappointed. After an hour or so on the road we were soon in position with our cameras at Stag Rock Lighthouse, Bamburgh, on the Northumberland coast. This was the same location as my first and only sighting of the Northern Lights, so we were more than hopeful of a good light show to reward us for our efforts. Pointing our cameras in a northerly direction we fired off our first test shots to see if we could pick up any activity. Bingo! A magenta cloud was fairly prominent on the horizon and what a start to the night that was. Soon we could see small spires and they shifted fairly quickly to the right, along the horizon. The spires got bigger and more appeared as the minutes passed. To the naked eye they appeared as a grey hue, but the long exposures that the camera pulled in showed them as bright green and magenta. I ran off a time lapse sequence whilst watching the dancing lights, which consisted of around 80 x 20 second exposures.

The Milky Way was very prominent and stretched across the sky between the Aurora and Bamburgh Castle. I was hopeful of bagging a shot of the full vista in front of me, although the vast expanse would only be achieved by taking several shots and stitching them together in Photoshop. The photo at the top is the result of taking 14 exposures and letting Photoshop do the rest. Once stitched I edited the image, which took around 15 minutes to complete. I would say it's one of my best shots to date. This time last year I didn't even know what the Milky Way and Aurora looked like, so to grab myself a shot like this meant a lot. A rare phenomenon!

The lights danced on the horizon for two and a half hours before an orange glow began to appear. Yes, the sun was on its way. We left Bamburgh at around 4.15am and headed home. Job done. This was a memorable night, to say the very least. I have compiled a time lapse video of what we saw on this eventful night and it can be found on my website. Visit ashleycorr.com and head off to the TV page where you will find the 2 and a half minute footage. Alteratively, if you have access to a Smart TV, go to the YouTube app and search for 'Bamburgh Aurora'. The search results will show the thumbnail image with my name next to it. The video has been produced in High Definition and I'm sure you'll enjoy it. It's only my first attempt at this kind of thing, but I think I done ok. And that's about it. Hope you enjoyed this blog entry. Cheers, Ash  

 

Bamburgh Sunrise

Hello again.
Miserable weather today, which is no surprise on a weekend after you've been grafting your arse off on the days leading up to it. Ah well, the camera stays in the bag and out comes the laptop. It's update time once again at ashleycorr.com.

By contrast, this blog entry features some recent sunrise shots that have plenty of colour in them, unlike today's flat sky that I see out of the living room window. This Winter sunrise outing that had me travelling north up the A1 on a very cold January morning. It was a 5am alarm call that started the day. I was hopeful of a good sunrise, as I was about to begin the round trip of 130 miles. I've only done a couple of sunrises at this location and I was luck both times in the past, so three in a row would do very nicely. Sooner or later I would fall victim of the false dawn, so I had my fingers crossed that it wouldn't be on this occasion. A long way to go for a big fat nowt! One hour and fifteen minutes up the road and I was soon dropping anchor at Stag Rock, next to Bamburgh Beach. The sky looked promising, as I looked south down the beach towards Bamburgh Castle and noticed the first warm hue on the horizon. From the parked car it was literally a short walk down the sandy bank onto the beach, eventually settling for a spot near the rocks. Foreground interest was the first thing on my mind and I also observed the incoming tide so that no unnecessary soakings took place. I've had a few of them in the past and didn't wanna go back down that route, even though I was decked out in me new £12 wellies from B&Q. I don't get too bothered about getting soaked, to be honest, I'm more concerned about the camera keeping dry, especially after the kicking my old 5D2 got on the rocks at St. Mary's Lighthouse. Once bitten, and all that.

The tide offered plenty to the shots as I fired off my first few frames. The cascading water had to be the main player in the foreground. Not much point of doing a seascape with little or no water action going on. The tide did breach me wellies on more than one occasion. It was only then that I really started to feel the cold. Toes were like ice. A few of the fellow Tog brigade were positioned ahead of me but they never really got in the way, so the clone tool in Photoshop wasn't called upon for the selection of shots you see here. In fact, all three efforts are pretty much straight of camera, with only a very minor levels adjustment on each. After 15 minutes of shooting, the tide had dropped back noticeably, so with it I went, repositioning myself to include the blurred motion of the North Sea. The sun was up in no time but was obscured by the low cloud cover. After a few more minutes the magic had gone. By this time I'd already bagged the shots and was quite chuffed that it was another successful long journey. I couldn't help but notice the heart shape bubbles that drifted past on the surface of the water (shot 3). Maybe this shot should be entitled 'Love on the rocks.'

From here it was back up to the car and time for a coffee and a few chocolate biscuits. Off with the wellies and on with the heaters. Time for the journey south - job done.

Until the next time...
AC

 

Toploader, Alnwick Pastures, Northumberland

Following on from part one of the Alnwick Pastures trilogy, here is the middle instalment of my Summer 2014 live music photography. Toploader was the warm-up act that followed opening artist Ella Janes onto the stage in this picturesque countryside location near Alnwick Castle. I have absolutely no familiarity with this band other than the well known chart single they released back in 1999 (Dancing In The Moonlight). The forty minute set went down quite well with the audience and the band certainly enjoyed the experience. An insight into the bands career was copied and pasted from the Wikipedia page and can be found below...

Career
Toploader are an English alternative rock band from Eastbourne who formed in 1997, with over two million album sales to their name and a string of top 20 hits both home and abroad. Their debut album, Onka's Big Moka, sold over one million units and remained in the Top 5 of the UK Albums Chart for over six months. However, they are recognised most of all for their cover of King Harvest's US hit "Dancing in the Moonlight" written by Sherman Kelly, which became a global hit for the band. Their second album, Magic Hotel, reached number 3 in the UK Albums Chart. Their 3rd album was released in 2012, their comeback single "Turn It Around" was released in 2013.
Toploader's live career began playing with Coldplay and Muse in small venues across the UK. They later went on to back Paul Weller, Robbie Williams and Bon Jovi, becoming the last British band to play the original Wembley Stadium.

The band had a huge hit with their first album, Onka's Big Moka, which was released in 2000. It debuted at number five in the UK charts. They released a second album, Magic Hotel, in 2003. The album was vilified by critics and failed to match the success of the first. They struggled with a backlash from the UK music press and their single, "Time of My Life", could only make it into the Top 40. They would soon be dropped by their record label S2. After an extended hiatus, Toploader signed a one-album deal with Underdogs Music for their third album, which was released in June 2011. The album's title was Only Human, and the first single from it, "Never Stop Wondering", was released on 14 March 2011. Another single, "A Balance to All Things" (featuring a remix from Ash Howes), followed on 20 June 2011.

The present band line-up contains four of the six original members; Joseph Washbourn, Dan Hipgrave, Rob Green and Matt Knight. 
On 8 April 2012, they performed at the University of Gloucestershire Student Union Summerball. They also performed at Aberystwyth University's May Ball on 11 May 2012. In May 2012, they played at Lakefest festival. They are also due to play at the Tiree Music Festival (TMF) July 2012. During 2012 the band agreed to act as patrons for a UK-based children's charity called 'Time Is Precious'. In November 2012 they are set to perform a gig in Frome, Somerset with all proceeds going to the charity, which helps ill children and their families.

In 2013, Toploader released a new single "Turn It Around", co-written with Eg White and produced by Andrew Green. The song is included on a four-song EP. In the summer of 2013 they headlined the LeeStock Music Festival in Suffolk and the AmpRocks Festival in Bedfordshire.

That's two down, one to go. My next blog entry features headline act Simple Minds, who played an excellent set once again! Coming soon...
Ash

Planet Farnes, Northumberland

Our annual pilgrimage to the Farne Islands took place in mid-July, 2014. Once again it was an all day affair, courtesy of Billy Shiels boat trips, out of the harbour at Seahouses, Northumberland. Boarding the boat at 9.45am meant an early departure from Gods Country, at 7.20am, to be precise. We hit Seahouses just before 9 o' clock and headed straight to the local bakers shop, where we had breakfast, in the shape of a bacon and egg stottie. Just what the doctor ordered. Then it was a simple case of paying for our pre-booked tickets at the kiosk, although there's nowt simple about parting with £48 in the blink of an eye. That's the entry ticket for one plus one, and seeing that this whole affair comes around once a year, what the hell, let's get over to the Farnes and take it all in. And what a hive of activity it was, as expected, thousands of breeding birds in full flow, it was noisy and it was certainly smelly, and that was just my arse after scranning the bacon butty!!!!

And so we set off, heading towards the Farne Islands on a boat packed with people from all over the world. Again, it was camera equipment overload and there was a nation of it, worth thousands upon thousands of pound notes (or Euro, whatever the case may be). We were packed on board the Glad Tidings vessel like sardines in a tin, which came as no surprise really, it's like that every year we attend. Our tour of the islands was accompanied by the very informative captain, who's knowledge of the area and the breeding seabirds is well established. Then we hit the business end of the trip, our first landing, on Staple Island. From the boat we were led up the steep steps where the National Trust Rangers were waiting, taking payment from those who weren't holding a valid membership card. £6.80 for me and £3.75 for Chris! Ouch, and we had to do it all again on our second landing, at Inner Farne. Good job I was holding a pocket full of shekels!

Numbers of breeding birds were thriving, such as Puffin, Guillemot, Shag, Cormorant, Razorbill, Terns & Gulls. We saw a nesting Fulmar too, quite a rare sight on the Farnes. Our landing on Inner Farne had the customary welcome - the attack of the Arctic Terns, dozens of them! Well prepared for this as usual, with the baseball cap to take the sting out of those sharp pecking bills. If you stood still for more than a few seconds the Terns would have no hesitation in standing on your head, which was respite from their usual behaviour on the stretch of path leading to the Visitor Centre. And it was this area where activity was frantic, between the Centre and the toilets, where me n' Chris were dive bombed on countless occasions.

From here we headed off and over to the lighthouse, where dozens of Shags were nesting on the cliff face. I pulled in some decent shots here, including Puffins in flight. This was the last part of our visit as it was almost 3pm by this time. The day has flown by (no pun intended). I've added a few of my favourite shots of the day, all shot on a Canon 5D3, with 100-400mm L and a 24-105mm for close up shots. Hope you like them .Until the next time, catch ya later...
AC

Another Bamburgh Sunrise

It's been almost two years since my first and last visit to Bamburgh, Northumberland, and once again I arrived at the crack of dawn to photograph the sunrise. On that occasion, back in 2011, it was a very cold October morning, and I was fortunate that my 140 mile round trip was rewarded with a nice sunrise. So, after a fairly long absence it was time to make a repeat journey North on the A1(M), but would I be as lucky on my second jaunt? Well, if the truth be told, it was far from a cracker, but I made the most of what was served up. I arrived at the small village of Bamburgh at around 5.15am, after leaving Houghton around 4ish, so I had about 40 minutes play time before the show started. This gave me ample time to assess the location once again, and on this occasion the glow on the horizon suggested the sun was about to rise further north, up the coast, unlike my previous visit when the sun rose directly behind Bamburgh Castle. As most determined photographers are aware, the sun rises and sets at different points on the horizon during the change in seasons, so it was a simple case of adapting by choosing a location to shoot from to get the shots I wanted. I made the decision not to shoot on the sands, as on my previous visit, but to take up position on the rocks at the Embleton end of Bamburgh Beach. I was in company once again, as a small pack of photographers arrived at the roadside as I began to set my gear up. Soon they dispersed and took up positions of their own, with two or three setting up their stall on the same rocks as myself. It was friendly enough, as is always the case when a pack of snappers are chasing the light, with the occasional bit of banter being exchanged as we waited for the sun to make an appearance. And as sunrise was almost upon us, more last minute photographers arrived, scurrying about in a frenzied rush, not wanting to miss a slice of the action. By this time I'd reeled in my first batch of shots and the sun was still to come, so I was up and running and feeling quite pleased with my effort so far.

When the sun finally appeared the shutters were tripping all around me, which was expected. We were all in full flow by this time and making the very most of the conditions in front of us. It was a good 'un, once again. As the sun lifted further, and the light increased dramatically, one by one the like-minded folk on the rocks packed up and headed back to their cars. I decided a walk along the beach was a good idea, so off I went, lugging my rather heavy backpack as I trudged slowly over wet sand. Their were some good lead-in lines along the sand, with nice texture, so I made a couple of brief stops to capture the scene, as you can see below, including the Castle reflection.
In the distance, along the sands, dog walkers and others were taking advantage of the situation. There was a clear blue sky above, with little or no breeze and a calm outgoing tide to boot, which was ideal. I photographed a family, walking in the distance, with a nice sandy lead-in, which you can also see below. Well, it looks like I struck lucky once again. Two out of two at Bamburgh, and I was well chuffed with the pictures I had made.

And as I depart once again, I'll stop the prattle, always preferring to let my pictures 'Do the talking',
so here they are. I hope you like them.
Until my next excursion...
Ash

(Click an image to reveal enlarged version)

Farne Islands, Northumberland

It's been a few years since my last visit to the Farne Islands, so I was looking forward to another boat trip from the nearby harbour of Seahouses across to the bird sanctuary in high season. Thousands of seabirds breed on the islands each year, which attracts people in their droves who pay a visit to get much closer to nature. Firstly, a brief insight to the islands -

The Farne Islands are a group of islands off the coast of Northumberland, England. There are between 15 and 20 islands depending on the state of the tide. They are scattered about 2.5–7.5 km (1½–4¾ miles) from the mainland, divided into two groups, the Inner Group and the Outer Group. The main islands in the Inner Group are Inner Farne, Knoxes Reef and the East and West Wideopens (all joined together on very low tides) and (somewhat separated) the Megstone; the main islands in the Outer Group are Staple Island, the Brownsman, North and South Wamses, Big Harcar and the Longstone. The two groups are separated by Staple Sound. The highest point, on Inner Farne, is 19 metres (62 feet) above mean sea level.

Every year, between the months of May and July, the Farne Islands is an impressive seabird city. Naturally, with excessive numbers of birds on the islands this place is very noisy and smelly during the breeding season, but that doesn't deter the average visitor from making the most of their experience. Today I travelled with my son Christopher, who'd been looking forward to this day for some time, given his big interest in bird life, which made my experience even better. We pre-booked our places on the boat trip, which was all day affair, so we needed to leave home at 7.30am in time to catch our boat which sailed out of Seahouses at 9.30am. Of course, we checked the weather forecast before booking the trip, so we knew we were in for much sunshine, which gave us something else to look forward to. Quite often the weather plays its part and occasionally the tour operator cancels sailings because of it, but no such drama today as it was sunshine and warm temperatures all the way. We arrived at Seahouses at 9am, giving us ample time to park up before making our way down to the harbour. We paid and collected our boarding cards then waited for our boat, which arrived bang on time. We were at the front of a large queue, so we had pick of the seats once we boarded. By the time everyone else had joined us the boat was crammed with around 45 people, plus the 2 man boat crew. And that was it, we were off and running.

Our boat, Glad Tidings V, swiftly headed towards the islands. The all day boat trip is particularly suitable for the ornithologist/ photographer who wants to spend more time observing the wealth of nesting species. This trip only runs during the breeding season and lasts approximately six hours (two hours on Staple Island on the morning, and two hours on Inner Farne during the afternoon. The other two hours includes a cruise around the islands to view the nesting birds on cliff faces and the Grey Seal colony at several vantage points. Inner Farne and Staple Island are major sanctuaries in the UK for approximately 22 species of breeding sea birds, including Guillemot, Razorbill, Eider Duck and 4 species of Terns, not forgetting the small detail of 70,000 puffins!  

Our first point of call was the cliff faces at Inner Farne. The boat engine was temporarily cut as we took in the sight and sounds of the nesting birds. The skipper commentary was interesting enough, although most people at this point were snapping away with their camera's and seemingly taking little interest in it. From Inner Farne we then headed out to Staple Island, through Staple Sound, then onward to Brownsman, Bluecaps and Longstone, the furthest point of the boat tour. After circling Longstone we were now heading towards Harcars, passing Grey Seal as we went, plus many species of birds which were flying low near the surface of the North Sea. Apparently a Minke Whale was spotted near the Farnes two weeks before, and although the skipper asked us to keep our eyes peeled for it, the animal didn't appear. We had been on the boat for an hour and our first landing was coming up shortly - Staple Island. As this is a National Trust property a landing fee applies, which works out at £6.40 per adult and £3.20 per child. Obviously the same figures apply to the afternoon landing at Inner Farne, so the cost of your day out can work out quite expensive, unless of course you know someone who has a NT membership and he lets you borrow it for the day (wink). The sea was very calm today, so we had no problem getting off the boat and leaving our sea legs behind for a couple of hours. A queue formed as we stepped onto Staple Island, as most of the trippers weren't members of the National Trust. Those who were members were fast tracked past the queue before making their way up the entry path towards the action.

Staple Island is very flat and rocky. The numbers of Shag were well down compared to my last visit in 2008, and this was evident on the rocks where I only managed to see around half a dozen nesting pairs. This area was awash with them five years ago. There are no facilities on Staple Island so most people take a packed lunch, which we did, and it nice after an hour or so on the island to sit our arses down and take advantage of our packed goodies. After our pit stop we hit most corners and outreaches of Staple, pulling in a few decent shots of flying Puffins en route. Razorbills and Guillemots were top heavy as they gathered in their thousands on the ledges and outcrops that were readily available. Many were lined up, facing the same way and sheltering their single pear-shaped eggs, which was quite a sight. Almost everyone carried a camera of some description. I photographed a group of 'Big Hitters' who were positioned nearby and those customers were carrying some expensive kit. There wasn't a telephoto lens with a reach of under 400mm, so these punters were almost guaranteed the cream of the crop, as far as photographs are concerned. Me, well I was packing a modest 300mm Sigma piece of glass, so in essence I was a Conference League player up against the money men of the Champions League! Oh well, what to do eh - but then again, you can only pee with the tail you've got!!! I could only dream of owning one of those white Canon lenses, but ya never know, maybe one day...

In no time it seemed our two hour limit was up, so next thing we knew we were back on Glad Tidings and travelling around the remainder of the Farnes before our last landing on Inner Farne, which was scheduled as another 2 hours on land. By this time I was confident I had pulled in some decent shots, although my lens went hunting on more than ten occasions and had trouble locking on to subjects, even stationary birds. With that in mind I was expecting an uphill task when photographing birds in flight, but against the odds this is where I managed to pull in my best shots. We didn't see a great deal of eggs today, although Chris and his eagle eyes (binoculars) picked out a few here and there. He was loving the whole experience. As the breeding season was at an early stage we expected to see plenty of eggs, but the majority of parents were sitting, so that put paid to that prospect. It would be at least two weeks before chick were visible, but we had anticipated this before our journey, so we weren't gonna be disappointed on that particular score. Again, we passed a few Grey Seal en route to Inner Farne as they basked on the rocks. High tide isn't the best time to see them however, as low tide has many hundreds of basking seals on show around this time of year when they are also breeding.

At 1.20pm we approached our second landing at Inner Farne. We tethered to the jetty before disembarking and were told in no uncertain terms that the 'Head Bangers' were waiting for us just a few metres ahead. Enter the Arctic Terns, who were nesting in their hundreds along the path we were about to tread, and these customers don't take kindly to visitors who trespass their domain. We were well prepared for what lay ahead though, as I told Chris the tale of my last visit here, when an Indian boat tripper decided his turban was sufficient protection against the dive-bombing terns - WRONG !!!!!  The poor fella seemed to be singled out by at least five angry as fcuk Terns, who in turn (no pun intended) took it upon themselves to drop shat over his dark head wear. Hey, this was hilarious to say the very least, that was until I got whitewashed myself down the left side of my laughing face. Needless to say I wasn't laughing anymore, especially as I was now providing laughter to all around me, whilst poor Abdul scurried off, seeking refuge in the nearby visitor centre. Welcome to Inner Farne!!!

But that was then. Today there was just the usual pecking of the head and no whitewashing, not that we saw. At the top of that path lies the NT visitor Centre, and opposite is St Cuthbert's Chapel, originally built in 1370. All around this area is nesting Arctic Terns who are just as hostile as the others, with eggs on display. On my website slideshow there is one shot which shows a Tern heading straight towards my camera with a look of anger in its eyes (Link at bottom of blog entry).
We expected to see dozens of Eider Duck nesting on Inner Farne, as is usually the case in May, but numbers were down and we only saw three or four sitting females. Next to Inner Lighthouse there were many nesting birds on the cliff faces, including Shag & Kittiwake, plus the Guillemots across the way on Pinnacle Rock. It was the amount of Puffin burrows that caught the eye too, with literally thousands of them everywhere we walked. I dropped anchor near the path an waited for Puffin's to appear, which they did, any they were anything but shy, as my photo's prove. Puffin's are peoples favourite bird of the Farne Islands, or so it seems. The 'Clowns of the Atlantic' are certainly photogenic, make no mistake about that. In the visitor Centre there is a newly installed 'Puffin Kam', where visitors have the chance to see one incubating it's egg in a burrow. I saw a video clip of it laying its egg, apparently the first time it has ever been filmed. Photographing Puffin's in flight is one of the hardest tasks I've done with a camera, as these birds are quick. I managed to shoot one or two with a quick shutter and I was chuffed with the results - one is shown here, of an incoming bird above a small colony of 'Friends' on the cliff edge.

Before long we were back on the boat and making our way back to Seahouses Harbour. Everyone aboard seemed to have enjoyed their day out - I know we certainly did, and it was worth every penny. Chris reminded me that I promised him Fish & Chips when we were back on the mainland - he doesn't forget stuff like that, he he. And by this time we were ready for a meal. The sun was still shining brightly as we disembarked, so off we went, up the ramp and into the restaurant. A nice way to end the day. I'd recommend this trip to anyone who shares an interest in this type of thing, so if you do, then check out the links below for more details. And that is all for now. I'll be beck again soon with more ramblings and the usual photograph accompaniment, so until then I shall tootle off and return at a later date. Hope you enjoyed your read!
Ash

Farne Islands - Wikipedia
Book A Farne Islands Boat Trip
My Farne Islands Slideshow, 2008-2013 

Bamburgh Dunes, Northumberland

The Northumberland Coastal Route has a stretch of coastline that is up there with the best, at least in the UK. A few weeks ago I found myself driving these roads again and one thing is sure, you never seem to tire of them, no matter how often you cover them. Of course the weather plays a big part, as it does no matter where you travel, and this day in particular was fine, with almost clear sky despite the obvious chill in the air. After taking in Amble, Druridge Bay and Craster, I found myself at Bamburgh, just as the sun was preparing to set. I arrived at Bamburgh and headed along the Windings to a secluded car park next to the sand dunes. Bamburgh Castle sat at the top of a massive outcrop, dominating the skyline in front of me. I managed to get my gear set up as the sun threw a massive shaft of light through across the castle. I was alone in the dunes, give or take the odd person or two passing through, although the beach behind me was busy with dog walkers and the like, at low tide. As the sun was ready to set the deep orange hue threw the walls of Bamburgh Castle into fine colour, as was the grasses in front of me, although I had hoped for more movement which I never got due to the lack of wind and breeze. Never mind, the conditions were still ideal so I grabbed a few shots before the sun made its bow. It had been a great day for photography - stops at Warkworth & Alnwick proved more than worthwhile, as you may have seen the results in my recent blog entries. If you want coastline then get yourself to Northumberland, there's more than enough that catches the eye, plus there's even more further north in the shape of Holy Island & Lindisfarne, just take notice of the tides and the safe crossing times over the causeway!

Back soon,
Ash

It's Autumn Once Again

Last year I brought you a selection of Autumn shots in two parts - the first instalment was here and the follow up...here. Twelve months later and there's more of the same, following last weekends all day outing which took me to Penshaw Monument, Lumley Castle near Chester le Street, followed by a journey north into Northumberland, where I visited Warkworth, Alnwick and Bamburgh. It was a bright, sunny day throughout, so it was up to me to find those Autumn scenes and to capture them on memory card, so after a diesel top-up I was off and running. Historically, mid-October often throws up the best colours, although there's still plenty on display near the end of the month and even into the first few days of November. I'll say no more. Here are the results...

1. River Aln, Alnwick, Northumberland,
2. Lion Bridge & River Aln, Alnwick, Northumberland
3. Penshaw Monument, Houghton le Spring
4. Lion Bridge & River Aln, Alnwick, Northumberland
5. Lion Bridge & River Aln, Alnwick, Northumberland
6. Lumley Castle, Chester le Street

Back soon. Cheers!
Ash