Polperro, Cornwall - Unforgettable!

One of the most popular places in Cornwall, the village of Polperro is undoubtedly one of the prettiest. Packed tightly into a steep valley on either side of the River Pol, the quaint colour-washed cottages and twisting streets offer surprises at every turn: the Saxon and Roman bridges, the famous House on Props, the old Watch House, the fish quay, and a photography gallery.

With its protected inner harbour full of colourful boats. Polperro is still a working fishing village, although tourism provides the main source of income. Attractions include a Museum of Smuggling and a Model Village.

Of all the and villages towns I visited in Cornwall, Polperro was my favourite. It's a place that is full of character and is almost lost in time. A photographers dream. It was a pity that the tide was out and the tethered boats were on dry dock - a still river would have finished the photographs off well, but it wasn't to be. I stumbled across a photography gallery and popped inside to view the canvasses on display. It was a surreal moment as I felt a sense of familiarity with the place. Surely I'd been here before. No, impossible - this was my first ever visit to Cornwall. Then, as I admired the stunning landscape photography on display, I noticed many of the exhibits were the work of a certain Helen Dixon. Then it suddenly dawned on me, as I realized I had recently read an article about Helen and her work in a photography magazine. I remembered specifics from the acticle in question and how it said Helen's work was on display in 2 galleries in Cornwall. I was now standing in one of them. The magazine feature, on Helen's rise to fame in the photography world, also showed a photo of the gallery interior. My sense of deja-vu as I entered the gallery obviously stemmed from this photo. I've got to say though, her work is on par with the standard that Joe Cornish regularly delivers, and he takes some beating. Not bad at all when you consider Helen Dixon only took up photography as a hobby just a couple of years ago.

When I return to Cornwall I'll make sure Polperro is top of the list when it comes to photography. I'll be sure to check the tide tables too. This was an unforgettable visit.

See ya soon, Ash

A Day In Looe, Cornwall

In medieval times there were two towns on opposite banks of the River Looe. West Looe includes the fishing harbour, the main shopping centre and the sandiest beach. East Looe is quieter, but also has shops, restaurants and hotels and leads to Hannafore with its fine views of Looe Island. The two towns are joined together by a bridge across the river.

My port of call was West Looe. The weather was very kind, with soaring temperatures that ensured the beach was packed and landscape photography in these conditions were going to bring the best out of this lovely town.

I walked through the very busy shopping centre on route to the beach before taking more photographs at the fish quay that overlooked the Looe bridge during low tide. The journey from base to Looe was over 50 miles but well worth the effort. Next stop - Polperro.

Ash

Bath Stop-Over

On the road again!
Destination - Cornwall, and a rather hefty drive. I didn't fancy doing Houghton to Cornwall in one go so the trip was split in two parts, with an overnight stay in Bath.
Once again my travels had taken me to another place that I'd never previously visited and although I only saw the city centre, it was another lovely place that I enjoyed. It was early evening when we arrived and the overcast conditions weren't ideal for photography, so I didn't devote much time to it, opting for a bar meal and a nice cold pint instead. And why not - the week ahead would surely present plenty of photography opportunities, so there was no hurry.

The centre of Bath is an interesting place. Lots of historical interest in the architecture, especially the Abbey, Roman Baths and the picturesque Circus (pictured above). As well as the usual 'Run of the mill' city centre shops, there were lots of designer and antique outlets plus a good range of pubs and restaurants. Quite a few people had gathered next to the cathedral as a busker played ballads on an acoustic guitar. He was rather good.
My son suggested we should buy his £8 cd, which was on display next to his guitar case, until I said to him 'Well, he's not THAT good' he he. One place that we never got to see was the Royal Crescent. I'd seen plenty photographs of it in the past and no doubt a visit would have provided me with a few of my own, so maybe next time. Yes, another lovely place, one which will be revisited whenever I'm in the area next.

Back soon, Ash

Chester - A Lovely place

A couple of weeks ago I visited Liverpool and Chester for the first time. I liked both places a lot and intend to revisit in the near future. Liverpool was a bit of a washout so I never bothered taking any photographs, but Chester presented an opportunity with much better weather on the day.
What a lovely city Chester is. Very photogenic. I wish I could have stayed longer and explored the place in more detail, but never mind. I'd recommend this as a place to visit as there's something for everyone. York is quite similar in style, although the Tudor style buildings in Chester make it a unique city in tradition. These 3 photo's were taken on my Fuji compact camera as I strolled through the place on a fairly busy day. If you intend to park your car in the city centre then be prepared for the steep charges. Ten quid for just over 3 hours, ouch, give me the good old north-east anytime. I checked out the Cathedral and riverside before I left Chester and it will definitely be a place I'll return to, probably with my DSLR with ye olde camera batteries fully charged.

Til the next time, ta ta, Ash

My Photograph On Tyne-Tees Television!

Hello again.
A couple of days ago I done the school run to pick up my son Christopher who is 8 years old. Whilst waiting for the school door to fly open before the stampede I was engaged in conversation with a couple of friends who were waiting to collect their grandson. They were complimenting me on my photographs that had been published in the Sunderland Echo newspaper on a few recent occasions. It's always nice to get feedback like that and equally as nice to know that my work has been spotted by people I know personally.

Anyway, I was encouraged to send some photographs into the BBC and ITV regional news programmes, which was something I'd previously considered but never actually got round to. Aye, well, time to get me finger out and do the necessary. BBC and ITV regional news programmes both run a similar slot by showing viewers photographs of a weather theme at the tail end of their bulletins. I selected a nice image that I shot a few weeks ago at the nearby Rainton Meadows Nature Reserve in Houghton-Le-Spring. I remember it as if it were yesterday. It was a lovely warm summer night so me and the little fella popped over to the meadows for some quality time together, hoping we'd catch a few tadpoles at the same time. I took my camera along as Christopher tipped me off the day before, telling me he'd seen a pair of Mute Swans on one of the ponds with it's brood of 8 cygnets. I've photographed these big birds on quite a few occasions and the key to close up Swan photography is...wait for it...a loaf o' breed!!! Yes, dangle the carrot in the form of a Warburton's thick toasty loaf and you're onto a winner...oh yes. A tried, tested and very reliable method of bringing the birds in close - just what you need when you're operating with a modest 18-135mm lens.

We arrived at the waters edge and they they were, at the far side of the pond. One rattle of the bread bag and across they came. A lovely sight - 8 chicks, probably 1-2 days old, flanked by their parents. We both through the bread into the water and although there was some aggressive hissing at first from both parents, they quickly got used to our company and polished off the full loaf within a few minutes. During this time I fired off a dozen or so frames of the swans, just as the sun had set behind them. We then headed back to the car and made the short journey home.

I was very pleased with the batch of photographs. One in particular caught my eye and this was the one I submitted to Tyne-Tees Television on the ITV1 channel. I emailed them the image on Thursday morning (16th) and it was shown just a few hours later on the same day!!
Here's the best bit - I missed the programme....arrrghhhhhhh!!! I only found out about it when I received a few text messages from friends who had been watching ITV when my photograph was shown. Typical eh. Oh well, never mind. I'm still chuffed about the whole thing.

I think I'll have some more of this. Time to submit some more images to those nice people on the telly. Maybe next time, if there is one, I'll be in front of the telly when my photograph is shown.
(Hangs head in shame...tut tut).

Ta ta for now, Ash

Welcome To My Blog...

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog. It is here where you can catch up on my latest photography exploits as I wander aimlessly around the North-East of England and occasionally further afield. If you've stumbled across my blog and haven't seen any of my work, then why not pop over to Ashley Corr Photography and get acquainted.

Meanwhile - I'm gonna tart this page up now as it's looking rather blank. Time to fill me boots.

Ta ta for now, Ash