Far Flung Corners

Over the past two years I've had a lot of success selling my work to the Tourist Board in Sunderland, the town where I was born and bred. I originally submitted two framed prints back in November 2008 and both sold within their first week of display, so I was promptly invited to replace them with new offerings from my photo collection. I had more good fortune as my second batch sold shortly afterwards and by this time I was now beginning to establish myself within the organisation. A steady supply of new stock, including mounted prints and framed prints also sold quite soon after I submitted them and the trend has continued that way for the last two years. I have sold a variety of frame sizes, all of which carry 'Ashley Corr Photography' images that have been captured in the North-East of England. My finished work is all numbered and are offered as 'Limited Edition' products, and I have recently branched out with the production of 100% cotton canvas prints. This is a new line that I have recently developed and initial sales have started very well.

Because of my involvement with the Tourist Board this has attracted interest from the European Team who are based at Sunderland City Council. The European Team represent Sunderland and act on behalf the City to develop existing partnerships between other countries and to attract foriegn investment to Sunderland. The delegates regularly visit foreign shores and have been buying my work to exchange as gifts during their visits abroad. Consequently my work has very recently been shipped to Russia and China, with more visits to other countries being scheduled for early 2011. Naturally I'm very pleased that my work is now being recognised outside the UK and long may it continue.

I am currently in talks with representatives from other business which may well see an expansion of my work within the local area. Stay tuned for further developments!

Cheers, Ash

Another Autumn Stroll

You may have read a recent blog entry of mine that was titled 'Autumn Stroll'. It was a blog entry that covered my trip into Durham City, finishing off with a brief visit to Lumley Castle in the neighbouring town of Chester-Le-Street. Well, the second Autumn Stroll of 2010 again found me in Durham City but this time it was around dusk that I was taking my photographs, from a spectacular viewpoint near the railway station. The station itself is perched quite high on a hill near Wharton Park, and as you can imagine, it offers some of the best views you'll come across in Durham City centre.

I planned this one a few days in advance but the weather conditions had me cancelling my visit at least three times before I actually made the trip along the A690 to Durham, Land Of The Prince Bishops. No overcast skies this time, plus there was little or no wind, even up a height. I arrived at my location a couple of minutes after the sun had set over to my right so it was now a simple case of waiting a few minutes until the sky darkened and the illuminated cathedral became more prominent.

It wasn't long before I was taking my first shots. The conditions by this time were as near perfect as I could have hoped for, so I wasn't going to waste my opportunity. Just in front of me stood a tree with it's golden-brown leaves - an ideal subject for some Autumn foreground interest. Even at low-light, the colours on the leaves were clearly visible and I knew a long exposure would capture them quite well so that was my intention as paired the shutter speed with a mid-range aperture. A very mild breeze ensured very little movement in the tree's so I expected very little blur in my finished shot. It was a good one - the leaves weren't pin sharp, but no more than you'd expect from a two-second shutter speed.

The second shot, shown here, saw me pulling in the Cathedral with manual zoom. Different settings, but once again I was running with selective spot focusing, magnified through 'Live View' and set precisely on the furthest point of Durham Cathedral. The Canon 7D has an excellent auto-focus facility and after zooming in the finished shot it was apparent just how pin-sharp the shot was, right across the frame.

Before packing my gear away and heading back to the car I panned the 7D across the rooftops of Durham City Centre, grabbing a series of staggered shots (portrait format) to use later in a panoramic stitch. Retaining identical exposures, I ran off six frames that overlapped approximately 30% which would make stitching a lot easier in post-processing as the details would be identified easier by the software - an important element in photomerge. Stay tuned as I will be uploading the resulting panoramic image in the next week or so.

In the meantime, I hope you like these two efforts, taken during 'Another Autumn Stroll'

Until the next time...see ya.

Ashley Corr

Tyne-Tees Television - Part 19

Presenting another video clip, taken from the local weather bulletin on Tyne-Tees Television, this is Penshaw Monument At Night. My son Christopher (9) accompanied me on this swift sortie up Penshaw Hill and he even found himself on the photo, and the television!

I've taken many low-light photographs at this location but very few with people in the frame. I think it worked quite well to be honest as it gives a sense of scale to the viewer who may not know how big the monument actually is. When Pip chose this photo it came as a big surprise to us when we were sitting watching the weather bulletin and there it suddenly was. It was a case of little fella - big smile. He cant wait to tell his mates at school.

Til the next time, cheers.
Ash

Northumberland Coast

Hello again to you blog readers - all 3 of you, he he!

What better way to brush off those cobwebs eh - a trek through the dunes on the Northumberland Coast near Dunstanburgh Castle. A favourite spot of mine for seascapes, the weather at Dunstanburgh Heugh's was quite mild today and the sea was very calm. You'll find a lovely sandy beach up here - a long stretch of it infact, before you hit the bolder field on your approach to the castle which is perched high on a crag behind Lilburn Tower.

This is one photogenic coastal spot! Negotiating the bolders is a tricky one mind, so tread carefully if you're thinking of retracing my footsteps. Taking a few risks may well bring in those hot shots though, so it's a case of 'Who dares wins' I suppose. Waterproof footwear is the way to go, especially with the incoming tide crashing against the rocks. No problem in that department today though, I'm glad to report, so it was back to the car and a trip back down the A1 to Amble Marina. A nice chippy awaits and a big box of haggis 'n chips, weshed doon wirra bottle of ice-cold coca-cola. LET'S GO !!!

Ash

Tyne-Tees Television - Part 18

One of the best sunrises I've ever witnessed was at Roker Harbour in Sunderland, just a few weeks ago when I dipped my feet into sunrise photography after a spell away. The colours that were present in the sky shortly before the sun appeared were spectacular and it was a great reintroduction to low-light work during the 'Silly hours'. You may also have seen this photo here on my blog at an earlier date - I'm sure it's here somewhere!

Anyway, I give you the same shot in a short video clip that was shown on Tyne-Tees Television very recently.

Thanks again!

Ash

Tyne-Tees Television - Part 17

It's another video clip folks.

Once again I've been hogging the weather slot on regional television - I must give it a rest, eh. Maybe not. This time it's a recent sunrise shot of mine that you may have seen earlier on my blog page, it's Roker Pier in Sunderland, gods own back yard. A fisherman takes up position just I'm ready to trip shutter, adding a presence to this dramatic sunrise on the north-east coast of England.

Jobs a good 'un!

Ash

Autumn Stroll

After my recent outings at the crack of dawn to bag some low-light shots, it was nice to return to some afternoon photography on a mild Autumn day in Durham City. Not that much cloud kicking about to begin with, but very typically that would change as the afternoon turned into early evening.

Durham is a great place to visit during the Autumn season and the riverside pathways and walks are quite picturesque, offering plenty of colour when the sun hits against the trees. From a vantage point on Prebends Bridge overlooking the River Wear I spotted a break in the trees ahead of me, just off the river bank. I was drawn to this spot immediately as the ground was covered in golden brown leaves and I noticed a wooden bench in the middle of the plot. I suddenly imagined what view I would get if I were standing on that spot, looking towards Prebends Bridge where I was actually standing at that time. Only one way to find out so I got my arse into gear and headed across, passing a couple of elderly ramblers on the way. After reaching the spot the first thing that struck me was how quiet it was. I sat on the wooden bench for a minute or two and adjusted my camera settings, priming the toy for action. As I took my first couple of shots I was distracted by some movement to my left - a young couple walking along the path towards the bridge. They stopped behind me, looking straight ahead into my field of view and admiring it for what it was. A few whispers were going on and I got the distinct impression they fancied a bit of action - photography, that is!

Well, I got the shot I wanted so it was time to make tracks and head up towards Palace Green and the nearby Durham Castle. As I walked along the riverside path I looked over my shoulder and noticed that the young couple had nicked my position to take photo's of their own, he he. Aye well, it was worth it. I was probably one in a long line of folk who had been at the exact same spot at some point this Autumn, and no doubt not the last.

Ten minutes later I was amongst the people at Palace Green, a grassy area directly in front of Durham Cathedral. This was my main reason for visiting Durham today as I was after one particular shot of Durham Castle. Some idiot had parked a builders skip exactly where I wanted to take up position, so it was a case of pretending it wasn't there and simply working around it, compsing my shots the best I could . The house in the castle grounds was almost covered in red leaves, giving it that typical Autumn postcard appearance, but there were a lot of visitors kicking about, spoiling the shot. You need a lot of patience in these situations and especially when a pair of fishwives spark up conversation in the place where you least want them. Jesus, I must have waited a good fifteen minutes before they ran out of gas and buggered off, and when that eventually happened the sun went back in!!! Patience kicked in again as I noticed the clouds moving rapidly south - the sun would be out again within minutes. Whe-hey!

And it shone brightly, folks. I was just about to raise camera to eye when I noticed the pair of gasbags were walking back down towards the castle and bang-centre of my frame!!! I won't tell you what I was thinking at this point, he he. I quickly fired off a few frames and got out of there - relief - JOB DONE.

Before I knew it I was travelling back along the A690 towards Houghton. Although the sun was still quite high at this point I decided to pay a quick visit to Lumley Castle on the outskirts of Chester-Le-Street. The castle is tucked away in it's own grounds and is surrounded by tree's of all types, many of which have changed colour as Autumn reached its peak. I parked in the overflow just off the main drive and looked around for a spot to photograph from. I was drawn to a tree near the main lawn which was covered in golden brown leaves, just like the floor beneath it. Seconds later I was lying on the grass underneath said tree and focusing on the castle facade. The shooting angle was critical to the shot and the result I was aiming for - it worked well, as you can see here in the third shot.

As always, click on an image to reveal the enlarged version of it.

Thanks again for reading. I'll be back soon...
Ash