Christopher Cockroft 5/1/23 Christopher Cockroft 5/1/23

I’m done with Bluebells.

So this may not make me very popular with Landscape photographers here in the U.K. for whom come late April there seems to be only one option to point the camera at, but I for one, am done with Bluebells.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not done with the flower, I love Bluebells, but I am done with trying to photograph them. For the last few years, along with everyone else, I have been on a Bluebell hunt during April, scouring the islands woodlands for a composition of that carpet of Bluebells, but I now have to accept that it just doesn’t exist here, and actually I am more than okay with it.

Don’t get angry with me, but I’m starting to see the carpet of Bluebells shot in woodland as a bit of a cliche, I can admire a lovely Bluebell shot, but once you’ve seen one, it’s difficult to get excited about to 200th shot of straight trees rising from a sea of flowers and if you spend any time on instagram over the next fortnight, you’ll see a lot more than 200 I’d wager.

There have been some incredible shots from within the woodland, featuring Bluebells and I find these much more interesting to look at than the traditional carpet, but our island woodlands just don’t seem to hold this same interest.

So for the rest of this spring, along with future springs, I will give the woodland a miss and instead focus on finding new areas to shoot, like this lovely scene I found yesterday…on my way back from getting annoyed in another woodland!

Well, until the wild Garlic blooms at least….wild garlic we do well here!

Christopher Cockroft 12/18/22 Christopher Cockroft 12/18/22

In the grip of Winter

One of the many attractions of the Isle of Wight, at least for a lot of people, is the milder winters we see here compared to a lot of the country. It’s often possible to count the number of frosts we get in a Winter on one hand, and I’ve only experienced snow 3 times in the 11 years I have lived on the Island.

However in early December 2022, the Island, along with the rest of the country was in the grip of a real cold snap, with temperatures rarely above freezing for about 10 days. This allowed some amazing conditions to develop and I was out as often as possible capturing images in these incredible conditions.

The first frosts on The Duver, St. Helens

I started with a trip to one of my favourite spots and the view of the beach huts at the end of the St. Helens Duver. I had planned to go to Alverston, which as one of the most central and low lying areas I figured would probably have some great conditions. Unfortunately the road there was closed due to an accident. One of the issues of not having these conditions very often is we are not really prepared for them and icy conditions are generally accompanied by a spate of accidents. Therefore I headed to The Duver. The location will be familiar to anyone who followed along on the 12 Significant Photos project. I had always thought this location would look lovely in Winter conditions, but being right on the coast it is fairly rare that we get frost here. On this occasion it worked out with the frozen ground and a heavy frost on the roofs of the beach huts. It was bitterly cold standing waiting for the light, and unfortunately a bank of heavy cloud came in just as the sun was rising, but I was happy to leave with my first shot of the conditions.

The Needles under the light of the full moon.

The freezing conditions also coincided with the full moon, and on Saturday morning I headed out early to get over to the Needles to re-take a shot I had captured previously of the moon over the Needles. The last time I went I was a day late and the moon was more off to the left so I didn’t quite get the shot I wanted. After a very steady drive over to the west of the Island with all the roads covered in a thick frost and a very careful walk up to the headland it was a cold wait for the moon to drop low enough in the sky to capture the shot I had imagined. It was a beautiful still morning under the moonlight with the lights of Poole, Bournemouth and Swanage on the Horizon. The image also includes Mars to the right of the moon. The freezing conditions really added clarity to the sky and the lights in the distance.

After a very slow walk / slide back down the hill to the parked car it was off to Yarmouth where the River Yar was looking stunning in the still and freezing conditions. I spent a good couple of hours composing and capturing a variety of images around the area, stopping only to recharge and warm up with a cup of coffee. I was very grateful to have my Jet Boil and Aeropress set up with me this morning.

Saturday evening brought the coldest temperatures yet along with freezing fog. With the potential of freezing rain forecast for the Sunday morning I decided to stay local on the Sunday and walk from the house to avoid having to drive on the frozen roads. I started with a walk into Firestone Copse and down to Blackridge Brook where it joins the Old Mill Pond at Wootton. The amount of water here can really vary as the level in the Old Mill Pond is controlled via the sluice gate at Wootton Bridge. On this occasion the water was high and had started to freeze. It was amazing to see, however I was really struggling to capture the scenes. it was only once I put the long lense on and started trying to pick out individual details that I started to unlock the potential of the scene, and I ended up capturing one of my favourite images of 2022, and one of the images for my 2022 Island Interior project.

After spending a bit more time at Firestone Copse, I heard the familiar hoot of the Steam Trains whistle from the Isle of Wight Steam Railway. It’s a familiar sound during the Summer months but doesn’t normally operate during the Winter. However for December they run Santa Specials and this was the first weekend of operation. I therefore decided to walk to Ashey where the line runs through the open fields in the hope of capturing the Train surrounded by frozen fields.

However on the way there I had to stop and capture the image below, the Farmhouse looked wonderful in the frozen countryside with the snaking road providing a lovely S Curve through the image.

After capturing this image I had to rush slightly to get to the train line to capture the train, which I could already hear setting off from Wootton, otherwise it would have been a long cold wait for the next train. Fortunately I had a bit of time as I wanted to capture the train as it returned from Smallbrook junction to ensure the engine was the more pleasing forward facing. I made it to the spot I wanted to be just as the train was arriving from the Wootton direction which gave me a chance to capture a couple of test shots to make sure I had a fast enough shutter speed to freeze the train, and then I had a little time to get my composition right and set up ready for the return of the train from Smallbrook.

The Isle of Wight Steam Railwy’s North Pole Express travelling through frozen countryside at Ashey.

Whilst waiting the sky really darkened and it soon started to rain with the freezing rain that had been forecast, so after capturing the image I packed up and heading home with the rain getting heavier and heavier. Fortunately this meant it warmed the ground and didn’t freeze, unfortunately it meant I was drenched and very cold by the time I got home. I was definitely ready for a coffee when I got back.

Amazingly the cold conditions then remained for another week. It has been recorded as the longest cold snap on the Island for some considerable time. This meant there was one last chance to get out with the camera and capture some more images. On this occasion I headed to Bembridge and the Lagoons. Its a scene I have captured on several previous occasions but with the lagoons frozen and a heavy frost everywhere they looked better than ever.

A frozen lake and frosty reed beds at Bembridge Lagoons.

Bembridge Lagoons in the grip of Winter conditions.

The derelict water pumping station at Bembridge lagoons surrounded by a frozen lagoon.

Whilst capturing that final image of the pumping house the sun rose and with it a slight breeze filtered in, this breeze really heralded a change in the weather as your could feel the warm moist air coming in on the breeze. As I walked back to the car you could hear the frost finally starting to thaw, there was just time to capture one final image before the frost fully melted. When I had parked the car the temperature was -3 centigrade, when I returned the temperature reading was showing +6, quite the change in a couple of hours.

A final winter wonderland scene at Bembridge Lagoons before the thaw set in.

During the day temperatures remained high, although with the wind becoming cold again the wind chill was significant, however the following morning bought a return to more normal conditions with persistent rain. Until the cold returns, if it does, this would have to be the end of my winter photography!

Many thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed the images.

Christopher Cockroft 9/3/22 Christopher Cockroft 9/3/22

August - A trip back "Home"

Can’t quite believe August is already over and we are heading into Autumn. I’ve had quite a good summer photography wise. Despite it being one of the more difficult seasons for Photography with the early starts and late sunsets I’ve captured some images I’m really happy with.

In addition the month started with a trip back “Home” Despite living on the Isle of Wight for over 11 years now, Dorset will always be home for me as it is where I grew up and lived for 10 years after University. It was great to be back with the camera and spend the weekend with an old school friend who is also a very good photographer so we headed out a few times to capture some images.

We started at Portland for some Astro Photography. Unfortunately there was some low cloud around so I didn’t get a good clear shot of the Milky Way Core, but was happy with this image of the Great rift section of the Milky Way and was very happy to see a Perseid Meteor fly through the frame. I didn’t head out for the peak of the Meteor shower this year as there was a full moon which always washes the sky out making astro photography pretty difficult.

The following morning we went to Kimmeridge, which is always a special place to visit and has many happy childhood memories of visits. We were treated to a wonderful sunrise with great colour in the sky. But it was this image some time after sunrise with the light hitting the hill and the Clavell tower on the hill that was my favourite from the morning.

After the weekend it was back to the Island for the remainder of the month, and the first objective was to capture the very low tides we had in the middle of the month. I had always wanted to capture the dinghies at Seaview during a very low tide when some of them go aground as the water retreats. I spent some time capturing one boat that was well aground when I noticed this one, still slightly afloat in a little pool that had remained when the tide retreated. I really liked the sea grasses and the mooring line.

After that it was back to a bit of Astro towards the end of the month. I had always wanted to capture the Milky Way at the Pepperpot, but had never made it up there. On one previous occasion I managed to go in completely the wrong direction in the dark and ended up round the side of the hill in a field of cows and calves. Fortunately they friendly and didn’t mind the interruption. On this occasion I made it up there with a fellow photographer who brought their drone to add a bit of extra effect to the image by getting some light trails around the top of the Pepperpot. I had to jump in for a bit of a selfie as well!

After that we had a bit of a holiday and didn’t take the camera out. But I’ve been back out at the start of September already, but more on that next month.

So that’s summer done, and the mornings already have that lovely autumnal feel. Very excited about the next couple of months and have lots of shots planned if we get the right conditions.

Thanks for reading.

Chris

Christopher Cockroft 8/21/22 Christopher Cockroft 8/21/22

The Blog is Back

Wow, 2022 seems to have gone by in a blur, and already we are approaching the end of August. I’ve been very poor at writing blog posts this year, I think the routine of the monthly updates around my 2021 project has been missing a bit in 2022.

I’m going to get back to posting at least monthly with updates on what has been going on. So to start here’s a look back over the first 7 months of 2022 with my favourite image from each month with a bit of the story behind each image.

I’ve been a bit obsessed with this tree, capturing it from all different angles trying to get a shot I was happy with. This one from January with the snaking sea wall in the foreground is a composition I am quite happy with. I quite like the moody sunrise sky, and this became the front cover for the north east section of the Isle of Wight Location guide. (I’m sure you’ve seen it already, but just in case…. Location Guide)

We had some pretty wild weather in February, including 2 named storms in the space of a week and during the first of these a new U.K. record windspeed of 125mph on the Island. Between the two storms on the Sunday evening there was a lovely clear evening and I quickly headed down to the edge of Bembridge Harbour. It was still pretty windy so there is quite a bit of motion in the grasses, but that reminds me of the conditions at the time.

A bit of an unusual one for March, using a much longer local length then I usually shoot at. Another Windy period led to some amazing conditions over Tennyson Down with the spray off the channel appear as mist on the cliffs and the down. I was stood next to the Military road on the cliffs above Freshwater to capture this image. I included the trig point in the foreground to mirror the Tennyson Monument on the top of the down.

April: The Yarbourgh Monument on Culver Down

April and the Milky Way was back in the night sky. Captured here behind the Yarborough Monument on Culver down. There was quite a lot of light pollution which made capturing the detail of the Milky Way a challenge.

Priory Bay is somewhere I have always struggled to find a photo, but at low tide I had always thought there was an image with the channels and textures in the sand. On this occasion these wonderful lumps in the sand made a great seascape image.

June: Round the Island Fleet passing Cowes Green

June, and one of my favourite events of the year was back, the Round the Island Race. I captured the starts at Cowes and this image of one of the fleets passing the shelters at Cowes Green was my favourite image of the year so far. I think the image is made by the wonderful cloud formation in the sky.

July was tough with 6 or 7 images I was really please with to choose from. For me though, this shot of Yarmouth harbour in the soft evening light was my favourite, it was such a still lovely evening down there and I had the area to myself which was nice as the Island hit its busy times.

So those are my favourite images from each month so far. August has been a good month too with a trip to Dorset yielding some really nice shots along with more time out and about on the island so I’ll be back to doing my monthly updates at the start of September.

Thanks

Chris

Christopher Cockroft 2/19/22 Christopher Cockroft 2/19/22

January 2022

Sorry this post is a bit late, seems odd to be posting a January update half way through February.

Its been an interesting start to the year and I must admit I have felt a little lost photographically since completing the big 2021 project, and haven’t really been able to get into my grove with the 2022 project yet. The weather in January didn’t really help either with some really grey days.

Despite that I have managed to get out and about with the camera, and did capture my first image for the 2022 Project focused on the Islands interior.

Bembridge Lagoons - The January location for my 2022 Project focused away from the Islands Coast

The year started with some better weather and the first sunrise of the year was amazing, having not partaken of any celebratory champagne the evening before I was up bright and early to capture the sunrise at Castlehaven. It was quite a windy morning and the sea was very lively.

The first sunrise of 2022 at Castlehaven

After that with the long dark evenings and grey days I put some effort into completing my Isle of Wight location guide. I had been planning this for a while and hopefully it is something that visiting photographers may find and will be useful for finding spots to visit. You can explore the guide here. https://www.cjclandscapephotos.com/isle-of-wight-location-guide

I haven’t got very far with my plan to explore new locations yet this year, the weather has not really been conducive to days exploring and so when I have gone out with the camera I’ve tended to go to spots that I have been before. I have found a couple of new spots though and am looking forward to getting out to them with the camera soon.

Its also getting into Milky Way season, I have been out in the early hours already in February but it was a bit soon for the core to be visible so looking forward to getting out again in the coming weeks if we get a clear night.

I was also very excited to be contacted by Style of Wight magazine during January and they have produced a feature on my work which will be in their next edition which is released in March, its free to pick top from many locations around the Island so look out for that.

Chris

Christopher Cockroft 12/31/21 Christopher Cockroft 12/31/21

December - The End of the Project

Nothing like being in site of the finish line to provide some extra enthusiasm to complete something, like a marathon runner managing a sprint finish I was keen to complete my project so hit my locations early in December.

1) Bembridge Lifeboat Station

A early December morning at Bembridge, it started out with some lovely broken cloud that held the promise of a spectacular sunrise, unfortunately most of the cloud cleared away before any light appeared leaving just one small band.

I liked the contrasts on the dark and light sand in the small area where a rock pool was draining into the sea which I used as leading line up to the Lifeboat Station.

2) Brook Down

I have really enjoyed visiting Brook Down for the project, it has been different every time I have visited and has been a nice spot to avoid the crowds in the Summer. For my final visit for the project I returned to the composition I initially shot in March. Unfortunately the clouds cleared leaving a rather less impressive Sky then I had in March. I will definitely continue to visit this location as there are lots of other potential compositions still to explore.

3) St. Helens Duver

What a Surprise this morning turned out to be, leaving home it looked as if the sky was flat and heavy with low cloud so I was not expecting much in the way of light. However as the dawn started to lighten colour filled the sky and cast lovely reflected light onto the scene at The Duver catching the sides of the Beach Huts. Unfortunately the sun disappeared behind the clouds shortly after rising so it was a short lived sight and there was no direct light on the scene. I still really liked what I managed to capture and it became the featured image for December.

4) Watershoot Bay

The final image captured for the project was at Watershoot Bay, which seemed fitting as it was the final location to get added to the project after Binnel Bay proved impossible to get to. (I have now had some intel on the only route you can use to access Binnel Bay so will get there finally in 2022!) I must admit I had already decided the night time shot of Watershoot Bay was going to be the October featured image, and was happy with my Duver shot so I went to Watershoot Bay just to complete the project rather than waiting for better conditions. I do like the image though and it is certainly reflective of the moody conditions we had through a lot fo the second half of December.

So that was all 48 images captured. All that remained was to select my Final 12 which I have done and can be seen here.

View the project

In addition I have produced a zine for the project, this has a full page image for each of the final 12 images but also shows all the other images captured during the project. I’m really pleased with how the images look in print and with the final Zine overall. I have made it available to purchase, although there are only a limited number available.

Buy the Project Zine

I am so pleased that I have completed the project, there have been some challenging months but overall I really enjoyed it and I am really proud of the final 12 images, and many of the other images captured during the 12 months. I think having a project to focus on is really important and I have therefore decided to complete another project during 2022, it will probably be on a smaller scale than the 2021 project and will focus on the Islands Interior, an area I haven’t really photographed much previously. I am quite excited about exploring to find locations for the project.

Thank you so much for following along with the project through these blog posts, I will keep the blog going through 2022 as well, with more general updates as well as the project updates. In the meantime though I wish you a very happy new year and all the best for 2022.

Christopher Cockroft 12/7/21 Christopher Cockroft 12/7/21

November - A Poor Month for the Project

Welcome to the November blog post and the latest update on my 2021 Project. Apologies this post is a bit late, its been a busy start to December with lots of trips to see Friends and Family.

November was a difficult month for the project, I struggled to get out with the camera during the month due to travel and other commitments so had to grab the four shots in the few opportunities I had which meant the conditions were often not the best. I must admit I am struggling with which image to use for November.

1) Ventnor Seafront

The Month started well enough with a stunning sunrise on Ventnor seafront. I had missed an amazing sunrise the morning before so had set out the following day expecting a grey morning! As I drove towards Ventnor I could see there was some high cloud and as I arrived at the location and saw the big gap on the horizon for the Sun I realised we were going to be in for another colourful sunrise. It was then just a case of setting up and waiting for the sky to light up.

A Colourful sunrise over Ventnor Seafront

2) Firestone Copse

Autumn has been very late this year throughout the U.K. and its been the same here on the Isle of Wight. I always find Autumn a little disappointing on the Island as it takes a long time for the temperature to drop low enough for the leaves to change colour, and often the Autumn and Winter storms start to arrive and strip the trees before the colour can really appear.

I headed to Firestone Copse on a misty morning and captured the image below as the sun rose through the trees.

A late Autumn Sunrise in Firestone Copse

3) The Pepperpot

The third location visited this month was the Pepperpot. Towards the end of a rainy and cold day I climbed up from the Car Park at Blackgang hoping a break in the cloud might appear as the sun set and create some dramatic conditions.

Unfortunately that didn’t happen but there was the briefest of gaps in the cloud that allowed some light through that caught the side of the Oratory and the coastline beyond. I quickly grabbed the shot and then headed back down to warm up in the car on the journey home.

4) Havenstreet Shrine

Being the most local of the 12 locations I seemed to leave getting the shot from here till last in each of the seasons and with a few days of November left I still hadn’t got the Autumn image. I therefore had to get the shot on the one opportunity I had one morning.

Unfortunately it was a perfectly clear morning and therefore the sky held no interest. There was however some lovely golden light as the sun rose lighting up the front of the shrine.

So those are my November images, just one month left of the project and 4 images to capture. I have already got 2 of the December images captured so have made a good start to the month. Then it is just a case of finalising the 12 images from the 48 captured that will be my featured images. I’ve got a pretty good idea on most of them now however there are 2 locations which could change depending on how the December images for them both go.

I’ve also started producing a zine to showcase the project. It will be an A4 magazine with a full page for each featured image, along with a second page for each location with the other 3 images captured and some background to the location and the image. Its coming together really well and i’m really excited about it. I will be making it available to purchase in my online store soon if anyone would be interested in a copy.

Thats all for now, I hope everyone has a great December and a wonderful Christmas and I’ll be back for my final update on the project in the New Year.

Christopher Cockroft 10/31/21 Christopher Cockroft 10/31/21

October - Disaster strikes!

I can’t quite believe we are through October already, and there are only 2 months left of my 2021 Project. It feels quite sad visiting the locations for the 4th time as I am now doing and capturing the final shots for the project from each location. I’ve really enjoyed having the project to work on through the year so already thinking about what I will do for 2022.

1) Watershoot Bay

October however was a bit of a disaster month, it started well with a really enjoyable astro shoot at Watershoot bay. It was quite a windy evening so I was worried the long exposure shots would not be sharp but I managed to get the tripod secure and was really pleased with the final image. I had always planned to do an Astro shoot for the project at this location as it is one of the darkest spots on the Island. Initially I had thought to capture the Milky Way but it never quite aligns with the composition I wanted so took my second favourite night sky option, Ursa Major.

Ursa Major shining brightly over Watershoot Bay

This is definitely my favourite image from the month.

2) Bembridge Beach

The next location I visited was Bembridge beach. It always amazes me when visiting Bembridge how much the beach changes on each tide and I have never been able to find the same composition twice as sand is moved and reveals and covers different rocks on the beach. On this occasions the light wasn’t brilliant as there was significant cloud cover and the tide was higher than I would normally like. The resulting image is okay but certainly not the best I have captured from this location.

After that disaster struck, during an early morning shoot on Apply beach my camera fell off the tripod and landed straight in a sea water pool. Unfortunately it failed its bronze swimming certificate and sank straight into the pool. Despite retrieving it quickly it had ingested a lot of sea water and suffered pretty bad damage as a result. Fortunately I have specialist camera insurance, which paid out and a new camera has arrived. It did take a few weeks to sort out though so I was without a camera for a few weeks. I did use this as an opportunity to decide a second camera body would be a good investment so I now have a backup Nikon ZFC camera which will also be a useful camera to use when out walking as it is much lighter than the Z7ii set up. Despite the set back of the camera accident I did still manged to capture 4 images for the project this month using a combination of the ZFC and the replacement Z7ii when it arrived.

3) Compton Beach

Another beach trip later in the month with the Nikon ZFC. It had been an overcast day but the forecast was for the cloud to break up towards sunset. I wasn’t sure this forecast would be right, but as the afternoon progressed there were signs of the cloud breaking up so I took the new Nikon ZFC I had purchased for its first outing.

It was definitely an evening to be patient as when arriving at the location the cloud was still very thick and it seemed there was little chance of any light breaking through. However I decided to be patient and set about finding a composition as the tide retreated. I was glad I waited as the cloud did break through and as the sun sank towards the horizon the most amazing golden light was cast across the scene.

The ZFC performed really well and I was very impressed with the camera. I think I prefer the portrait orientation of this scene that I also captured without the sun actually in frame. The light on the Tennyson Down cliffs is just lovely in the portrait version.

4) Headon Warren

My final location for the month was Headon Warren and the first trip out with the replacement Z7ii. It was a tough first test as I definitely put the weather sealing on the camera to the test as some heavy showers were rolling through during the late afternoon. Despite getting several soakings it was great to be in the right spot as the sun burst through the cloud and lit up the sky and the land in front of me.

Away from the project there hasn’t been much other photography this month due to a combination of the camera accident and the weather. I think Autumn I pretty much a write off here on the Island, there was very little Autumn colour to be seen before the first big storm blew through and stripped a lot of the leaves from the more exposed woodland, and as I write this a second storm is blowing through which will probably strip the remaining leaves so Autumn colour will have to wait for next year I think!

Thanks for reading.

Christopher Cockroft 10/9/21 Christopher Cockroft 10/9/21

September - Time away from the Island

Wow, can’t believe we are already well into October, I’m a bit late getting the blog post for September published.

September went really quickly, mainly because we were away for a big chunk of the month, with international travel still difficult we had another road trip up to Scotland and the Lake District. It was a lovely couple of weeks and included time with friends and family. I even managed to get out on a 1-2-1 with Chris Sale when I was in the Lakes.

Hodge Close Quarry captured on a 1-2-1 with Chris Sale.

Despite being away I still managed to get out shooting on the Island and capture the four images needed for the project.

1) Wellow Farmland

When I included the farmland in the project I was hoping for a harvest shot with the straw bales in the field. I was really lucky to get the shot as the farmers had a small window to get the harvesting done and the bales into storage so they moved quick! Fortunately I spotted the bales on the field and managed to get out one evening. Even whilst I was there the farmers were picking up bales at the far side of the field. Fortunately they didn’t get across to the section I was shooting before the light got good.

Straw Bales on the Wellow farmland with the Solent and the mainland beyond.

2) Brook Down

After this location falling behind and having had only one visit for a long time I did two in quick succession, after visiting in August I was back again in September. It was a lovely calm evening with some lovely light. Unfortunately the clouds that had been passing overhead cleared away before the light got good so the sky was a little less interesting then I would have liked. I think the winter image might be the one for this location when the sun is further to the south and hits the land right before sunset.

Brook Down on a September Evening with the blackberries in fruit.

3) St. Helens Duver

Another early morning at the St. Helens Duver and another morning that held a lot of promise but as I waited for the sun to arrive the clouds once again moved away leaving a clear sky with little interest. It was still a lovely morning as I made a cup of coffee to enjoy the morning getting light.

I don’t think I have managed to replicate the warmth and mood of the spring image I captured at this location so I think that might be the image that makes the final 12 from this location.

4) Norton Spit

When we got back from our holiday we had a week of incredible sunsets over the Island with the sky lighting up in incredible colours. Unfortunately I was busy every evening and couldn’t get out with the camera. When I eventually did make it out it was the same story as the rest of September, the clouds cleared leaving a clear sky! Once again I focused on the light on the land and captured the spit as the sun lit the grasses before sinking below the headland.

Away from taking the photos I have started to look at how to create the final 12 images. Initially I thought I would leave this until the end but I suddenly realised with 3 months left I needed to make sure that any images I didn’t have a photo I was happy of didn’t get visited in the same month so had to be a bit strategic about the last 3 months of the project.

As a part of this I have started to put together the Zine that I planned to create to present the images, and I have to say I’m really pleased with how it is looking which has spurred me on to complete the project over the next three months.

Christopher Cockroft 9/1/21 Christopher Cockroft 9/1/21

August - A farewell to Summer

It has been a challenging month for my 12 in 12 photo challenge in August. Conditions have been far from favorable and the Island has been so busy with visitors it has been difficult to relax and enjoy time out on location. Even in the mornings when normally it would be quiet I have found wildcampers on beaches and the downs and in the evenings there has been large groups with loud music in lots of the locations making enjoyment of being out difficult.

This has definitely impacted the photos, both the quality of them as it was difficult to wander the locations to find the perfect compositions, but also how I feel about the images. Each photo I look at has a memory of me not enjoying the time out attached to them and I think it is fair to say the August image will be my least favorite of the 12 when I come to make my final selection.

So how have I got on with the project this month, well these are the 4 images I captured for August

1) Ventnor

My third visit to Ventnor took place on the 1st of the month, nothing like starting early. However I arrived with low hopes as there was low cloud and not the most interesting sky. I decided to shoot from the hill at the Western end of the Prom with the view over the Spyglass Inn and the esplanade beyond.

What an amazing pre sunrise show I was then treated too, it was short-lived but the colours in the sky were incredible for a couple of minutes. I was very happy with the image I captured and I think my favorite of the month.

2) Brook Down

It has been odd during Summer as I have been visiting some locations for the third time and yet Brook Down I had still only visited once in Spring, Its winter visit awaits in December. So I was starting to get a little worried and therefore headed up there one evening. There were a lot of people up there and I suspect many were camping at Compton Farm in the valley.

My pervious composition for this location did not work in summer, the mid gound was full of messy weeds and I found it really distracting. I therefore moved slightly lower down and focused on the track leading down to the farm in the valley. There was a slight sea fog forming and this was blowing off the sea and up and over the down creating a lovely atmosphere as it drifted across the sun.

3) Compton Beach

I should have known this would be a bad location for summer! its a really popular beach and therefore lots of people have beach bbq’s here in the summer evenings. I had therefore avoided the location in the evenings. What I hadn’t expected was to arrive in the mornings and find the beach filled with wild campers.

I had almost given up on the location for summer when we had a really cold evening towards the end of August, this combined with a really low tide allowed me to venture to the far end of the beach which is quite a walk from the car park and therefore generally quieter even on a nice evening. On this cold day I found the place deserted and I was able to take advantage of the pools the receding tide had left behind to capture this image.

4) Firestone Copse

At the monthly call we have on the project at the start of the month, a discussion was had about how difficult this time of year can be with people out and about. A suggestion was made that a good place to go in Summer was woodland, and I was happy that I had a woodland location in the project that I could visit.

I headed there on a rainy August day when the drizzle was thick in the air creating an almost mist like atmosphere. I captured this image of a tree that looked to have been damaged in some summer storms we had at the start of the month. The light was filling the opening and the rain was creating a lovely soft atmosphere. I was happy with the shot I captured.

5) Headon Warren

I wasn’t happy that my previous image from Headon Warren for summer capture the essence of Summer in the location, however it is another difficult location for Summer, it only really works in the evening when the light will catch the headland as the sun sets. There was a lovely display of heather this year, so I decided to try and improve on my image from earlier in the year. I actually made several visits to the headland during August to try and capture an image I was happy with. The first was early on in the month when it was really windy. The Fastnet race had started from Cowes that day and you could just make out some of the slower boats on the far side of Poole Bay.

I had this composition in mind from a visit last year, however the heather and gorse had grown and covered a bare root that had been on the right hand side of the image that I really liked. I think that disappointment along with the experience of sharing this lovely location with several large groups playing loud music has really impacted my opinion of this image. I have never been happy with it. Aside from that I think the image does suffer from having too much of the bare green area on the right hand side of the image. Unfortunately I couldn’t move left to minimise this. I also wanted to get closer to the branch on the right to use this more to lead into the image, but as I did that I started to lose the Needles behind the bush so had to remain higher up to capture the Needles.

I therefore made a few more trips up to the headland but found similar issues with groups each time. Towards the end of the Month the Needles Attraction hosted a fireworks party to celebrate the coming end of the holidays. I decided this might present an opportunity and I headed up with the camera. The resulting image is quite fun, but I’m not sure it would meet Ansel Adams description of a significant photo that inspired this project, so I’m not sure it should be included. but it was nice to see the return of an event after all the cancellations over the last 18 months, and who doesn’t love a fireworks display. The Cows seemed to enjoy it anyway!

Fireworks at the Needles from Headon Warren

So that was summer, already the freshness of Autumn seems to be creeping in with cooler mornings. It will still be several months until Autumn really shows itself here on the Island with the leaves not turning until late October and into November, however I am excited to get round my 12 locations again, although slightly sad that this is the start of the final lap of the project and for most of the locations this will be my final visit. I have really enjoyed the project, despite the challenges of the last couple of months. I’ve already started thinking about what to do for 2022 as having a project has definitely been a great motivator to get out and shoot this year.

Thanks for reading and look out for the next update at the end of September.

Christopher Cockroft 7/26/21 Christopher Cockroft 7/26/21

July - 12 Meaningless Photos

Arrh the summer! Most landscape photographers will tell you Summer is their least favourite time of the year and many will stop shooting for a time during the summer months.

I don’t mind summer, its far from my favourite season, I much prefer being wrapped up in my winter coat on a deserted beach in January, but I enjoy being out in summer as well. The early starts and late finishes don’t bother me, how busy places are is more of an issue for me and I have to be selective where I go, especially in the evenings.

So how has June gone, well I have to say it has been a difficult month for me with my 2021 project. The name of the project is 12 Significant images based around an Ansel Adams quote. However this month far from producing 12 Significant images I feel I am producing a body of meaningless work.

Thats not to say I am producing bad images, far from it, I feel I am getting some wonderful shots for the project and I am really happy with some of the shots. Its more that as a body of work it lacks meaning and impact. It is ending up as a series of nice photos from the Isle of Wight, however it feels I have missed an opportunity to highlight some of the issues facing the Island. Its an isolated community due to its Island geography and like all isolated communities that creates issues. The last 17 months of the Pandemic have only served to highlight these issues and a drive through the towns of the Island show how bad things are getting with rows of boarded up shops. Its the side of the Island the tourists don’t see and I feel I may have missed an opportunity to tell the story of this other side of the Island.

However in a way I am glad to feel this way, one of the things I wanted to get from the project was to develop my skills in building a body of work rather than just single shots and this has been an important learning point.

So despite all that I have continued with the project and captured 4 more images for the project.

1) Watershoot Bay

The month started with the Round the Island race, one of the biggest mass participation sporting events in the U.K. After being cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic it was so nice to see the the boats back racing round the island, it felt like a huge slice of normality returning.

It wasn’t the best day but I enjoyed being out with the camera, I started the day at the Needles hoping to see the first few boats pass the iconic landmark. Unfortunately as the first boats rounded I was sat in thick fog and then got absolutely soaked as a heavy rain shower came through. However it was worth it to be in the right spot as the rain cleared and the start of the main fleet came into view passing the rock stacks.

The Round the Island race fleet passing the Needles as the rain cleared.

After capturing this shot I followed the fleet along the south of the Island to arrive at Watershoot bay, one of my locations for the project. The sky was pretty Grey at this point but I’m still pretty happy with the shot I captured. I’m not sure it will make it in to the final 12 but it is nice to have this in the collection as a reminder of normality returning.

Watershoot Bay with the Round the Island race fleet passing

2) Bembridge

For me Bembridge is all about low tide. At low tide the rock ledges and shelves reveal themselves and help tell the story of why the Lifeboat station is built at the end of a long pier and not on the beach. It needs to be out there to provide safe water for the lifeboat to launch into. So I tend to only go to Bembridge at low tides. On this occasion we got some lovely light as the sun rose into a mainly clear sky. I liked the pebbles in the Rockpool so used my Polarising filter to cut through the glare and make sure these could be seen in the image.

The two ships on the horizon are another important element of the story, that’s another reason the lifeboat station is here, its on one of the busiest Shipping lanes in the world as ships turn out of the English Channel and head into the Southampton to go to Southampton or Portsmouth docks. A shot from Bembridge without ships would not feel right.

Bembridge Beach and lifeboat station on a calm morning at low tide

3) Yarmouth Spit

Phew, July has been Hot! and that has also come with long clear evenings. I tended not to go out with the camera too much as the clear skies didn’t hold too much interest. However on this occasion I needed to get out to enjoy some time with the camera so seeing a small amount of cloud in the sky was enough to get me out to Yarmouth Spit where I knew the Sea Holly would be in bloom.

Its a lovely spot that not many people seem to know about so where as every other beach I drove past was packed with people trying to keep cool in the heat I had this spot to myself. I managed to find a nice patch of the Sea holly to use as a subject and the last wisp of cloud aligned nicely with the composition. I think this is my favourite image from July.

4) The Pepperpot

I’d always envisaged a sky on fire at sunset as my Summer shot from the Pepperpot, but with the clear skies we had for most of the month it never happened. There was one evening that looked really promising with a bank of high cloud but a clear horizon.

I grabbed the bag and drove down to the south coast of the island and quickly climbed the hill to the Pepperpot. As I climbed the hill I quickly realised the vision was not going to come to be as the cloud was quickly moving away to the south over the sea. However just as I got to the top of the hill the cloud was framing the Pepperpot perfectly. Unfortunately the sun was right in the middle of the frame as well but by narrowing the aperture a bit I managed to get a nice sun star to make a bit of a feature from the sun.

After this quick shot the sky cleared and was pretty uninteresting for the remainder of the evening.

So that was July, its funny to think I only have one more trip to some of these locations to complete the project, whereas there are other locations I have only been to once so far! Four more summer images to capture before we can start to look forward to Autumn!.

Thanks for reading

Chris

Christopher Cockroft 6/30/21 Christopher Cockroft 6/30/21

June - the half way point

June, traditionally a difficult month for Landscape photography with early starts and late finishes due to the sunrise and sunset times. Despite this I have been cracking on with my 12 in 12 Photo challenge. Its amazing to think that we are already half way through the project, and that I’m already visiting some of the locations for the penultimate time (although there are also some I have only visited once so far!)

So in June I captured 4 more images for the project.

1) Havenstreet Shrine - A dash up the hill

This location really is local to me, and I can get there very quickly from home. I had always envisaged a summer image with a blazing sunset sky. One evening in early June whilst doing a few jobs at home I suddenly realised the sky was catching fire as the sun set. I quickly grabbed my camera bag and headed out. A few minutes later I was stood, slightly out of breath at the Shrine and captured the image. I’m quite pleased with the image and its certainly what I had in mind for summer at this location.

This image is doubly special as it was the first image captured for this project with my new Camera, during June I upgraded from my beloved D800 to a Nikon Z7ii. I must say I am really enjoying the new mirrorless system and the improved sharpness and detail captured. Very happy with the upgrade so far.

2) Headon Warren

This year seems to have been the year of strange weather, after having frosts into April, which is unheard of for the Isle of Wight, we then had days of fog in June. On the first day the fog arrived I was checking out the webcam at Alum bay to see how thick the fog was, and noticed that whilst there was fog on the Needles headland Alum Bay was clear. I quickly headed to Headon Warren to see if I could capture a shot of the Needles as a gap in the fog appeared. Unfortunately the fog continued to thicken and after waiting for several hours I didn’t get the clear spot I was hoping for. I’m still really happy with the image captured and its probably my favourite image from June. Shortly after capturing this image the fog became really thick and you couldn’t even see the end of the Headon Warren headland never mind Alum Bay or the Needles. It stayed like that for 4 days straight before finally clearing, very strange weather!

Sea fog over Alum Bay and the Needles from Headon Warren

3) The Duver

I really like the first image I captured from The Duver, but there was one issue with it, the Sun was on the opposite side of the image to the Beach huts that form the main subject, and therefore was competing with the main subject as the eye tends to go to the brightest spot.

I had always intended to capture the summer image during June with the sun rising at its most Northern point and therefore behind the Beach Huts. In the third week of June I had an early morning trip out to The Duver and captured the image. It wasn’t the best of mornings with thick cloud, but there was a brief moment of light as the sun found a gap in the clouds and lit up the cloud, before hiding away for the rest of the day.

We then had a week away, it was lovely to be off the Island for a week for the first time since our Scotland trip in September. We had a lovely week down in Dartmoor, with amazing weather and some lovely walks on the Moor. Although it wasn’t a photography trip I of course had the camera with me and managed to capture a few images.

4) West Ashey Farm

After the week away it was back to the project on the last weekend in June. It was another strange weather day with mist and fog forecast for the early morning. I headed to West Ashey farm to capture the three trees from my last visit in their summer plumage. It was a lovely pre sunrise scene with the valley full of mist but the three trees in their slightly elevated position clear of the mist.

It was slightly surprising to see the trees looking quite bear, I had expected them to have much more foliage on then they have.

I am really looking forward to my final visit to this location to see them in Autumn colours.

So that is my June update. I am already thinking of options for July, we have the round the island race at the start of the month so I’m thinking some of the coastal locations might look good with the boats of the race featuring, will have to see how the weather goes on the day.

Thanks again for reading and following along with the project.

Christopher Cockroft 5/29/21 Christopher Cockroft 5/29/21

May - What a long month!

Welcome to the May update on the #12in12photo challenge, and what long month May has seemed. Probably not helped by some really awful weather with several stormy weekends. Despite some challenging conditions I have continued to progress with the project for the year and managed to find a few good days of light to get out with the Camera.

Compton Bay

The start of May saw me make my second visit to Compton Bay, this time I managed to time my visit for low tide at sunset. Its a fantastic beach at low tide as there are so many rocky ledges and pools that make for interesting subjects. On this occasion I found a small rock that aligned perfectly as the sun sank behind Tennyson Down with the wet sand reflecting the clouds. It really is a wonderful spot in good light

NEW LOCATION - Watershoot Bay

So my quest to include Binnel Bay in the project has not gone well, on two previous occasions I had been beaten by closed paths due to dangerous conditions. Neither of those paths have been reopened, however I thought I had found a third route to the bay. However despite getting close (with the help of a boat) on the final stage I was confronted by….

Another closed path on the route to Binnel Bay

Yep, another closed path! Now I have seen an image from Binnel Bay recently so I think it is possible to get through to the bay if you ignore the signs, but personally I don’t want to ignore the signs and really don’t want something to happen on a closed section of path, that would be rather irresponsible. Therefore I have decided to drop this location from the challenge.

Instead I will use Watershoot bay. This is another location I hadn’t been to before despite it being just along the coast from one of my favourite spots at St. Catherines Lighthouse. It is a really interesting spot with lots of lumps and bumps where the coastline has slumped and risen. I captured the image below as the sun touched the horizon just off the headland at the Western end of the Bay. I really liked this spot and am already looking forward to my next visit.

Bembridge

Another trip to Bembridge, but this time I had some company. Melvin Nicholson, a professional photographer was visiting the Island for a couple of days and had asked on Facebook for ideas of where to go. I’d sent him some locations and got a reply asking if I would like to join him. I nearly always go out photographing on my own and really enjoy the solitude of it, but it was also really nice to go out with someone else and have some discussion as we enjoyed a couple of shoots. Initially we met up for sunset at the Needles, If you only have one sunset on the Island I guess you have to visit our most famous landmark! (And now voted one of the 7 wonders of the U.K.)

Whilst there we discussed where Melvin should go for sunrise the next morning and he settled on Bembridge, and asked if I would join him again. Initially I was reluctant on the basis that I’ve never had good conditions when I visit and I didn’t want to hex his one visit! Fortunately he insisted that I join him and I’m really glad I did as it was a stunning dawn on the beach. The best of the light actually happened about 40 minutes before sunrise when there was an incredible glow in the sky and I was very happy to capture the image below at that point.

Interestingly Melvin commented that he would have preferred the tide to be higher with water covering more of the ledge, however for me Bembridge is all about low tide and the rocky ledges which are the reason that the lifeboat station had to be built at the end of the long pier, low tide tells the story of the location better for me.

So I was very glad to have joined Melvin and really enjoyed the two shoots, and it was nice to capture an image for the project as well.

Yarmouth Harbour

And then the weather changed! The second half of May was rain and wind, we had weather more associated with Winter storms then late spring with 80mph winds hitting the Island over one weekend. Despite the storm being forecast I headed to Yarmouth in hope that the sun might break through. It didn’t! However there was an incredibly dramatic sky as the storm arrived overhead and that strange light that accompanies a storm which gave a really interesting colour to the water in the Harbour. I’m not sure the resulting image will have a place in the final 12 images but it still has a certain appeal to me.

So now we are five months through the project and I am still really enjoying it, and am genuinely excited to get back round the locations throughout the summer, even if that means some early mornings and late nights! Even those spots that I think I have an image I would like to include in the project I am excited to see if I can do better or if the location looks better in Summer. So far I have captured 22 of the 48 images for the project. I have 2 locations that I need to visit in December for the Winter shots. I also have 2 shots from earlier in the year that i’m really not happy with (Brook Down and Bembridge - The later only because I only got a portrait shot and am going to use Landscape images for the final images) so will revise those in December as well.

And with that, Spring is done! it has been an interesting three months as the Covid restrictions have been eased in the U.K. and we have been able to get out and about more and meet up with friends. I’ve had my first dose of the Vaccine for which I was very grateful. We still haven’t been off the Island (8 months now!) however, we are venturing off to the mainland tomorrow to finally meet some family which will be great. In addition we have a little holiday planned for June so will be heading down to Dartmoor for a week. Its not a photography trip as such, but the camera will be coming with me, and I’m sure there will be at least a couple of early mornings!

All the best

Chris

Christopher Cockroft 4/30/21 Christopher Cockroft 4/30/21

April Update

Another month has flown by and whilst I’ve captured some more images for the 12in12Photo challenge I have been a bit quieter on that project this month as conditions have led me to a few other locations and particular photos I had in mind. That said the three images I have captured for the project have been some of my favourites captured so far.

1) Headon Warren

Over the Easter weekend I went up to Headon Warren and took a slightly different approach to normal. Previously I have always gone to the top of the headland and tried to find a composition on the top of the hill. On this occasion I dropped down the Alum Bay side of the headland and looked at options on that side. The Gorse was in full bloom and the light was lovely. I really liked this spot with found a composition I was quite happy with. I captured this image with the sun sinking behind the spur of the headland. I like this image but I’m not sure its done yet, I think it can be refined further.

Headon Warren at sunset on Easter Sunday with the Needles headland beyond

2) Brook Down

I really wasn’t happy with my first visit to Brook Down, I had gone to the top of the down and tried and failed to find a shot around the 5 Barrows that top the down. On this occasion I stayed on the side of the down (there is a theme developing here!) and used the view towards Compton and over Compton Farm as the focus of the image. It had been a very changeable weather day with heavy shows and sunny spells. I arrived at my location just as a shower was clearing and quickly captured this shot as the light hit the valley. I’m glad I caught this as shortly afterwards my camera started misbehaving and refusing to take any shots. Fortunately after a good clean it seems to be fine again. I really like this shot and the spot will definitely be the spot I use again for visits 3 and 4. I think I can refine the composition a bit and it may be more interesting in late Summer and Autumn when the Rowan bushes are covered in berries. We shall see!

3) Firestone North Copse

April is Bluebell season right? Well not this year, we’ve had some really cold nights on the Island in April (as well as in March) and it seems to have delayed Spring by a good couple of weeks, however in the final week of April Spring finally seemed to get going. I grabbed the opportunity to head into Firestone Copse to capture the Bluebells one morning with some lovely soft light. I know the path leading through the wood shot is a little cliche for Bluebells but I did like this scene and how the trees fitting into the composition. It was also the best batch of flowers I could find as they still hadn’t peaked. I think Early May will be the peak. I do like the shot overall though and happy to include a Bluebell shot in the project.

So after 4 months I’m really pleased with how the project is going. I’m really enjoying going back to locations and trying to get something better each time I go. I’ve been to most locations twice now, but still haven’t made it to Binnel Bay as keep getting thwarted by closed Paths, I do have a cunning plan that I might put into action this weekend or next. I’m really pleased with some of the images I’m capturing and filling my tracker up nicely.

Away from this project I’ve captured another couple of images that I am really proud of. One was the result of planning and one was by pure chance.

One Sunday morning I was heading out to a location, however as I came down off the downs at the Eastern end of the Island I noticed some fog hanging over Bembridge Harbour so a quick change of plan and drove round to the harbour. I then spent a very enjoyable 1/2 hour stood at the side of the harbour as the fog rolled in and out and the sun rose. Fortunately the fog lifted slightly just as the sunrise light up the clouds above and I managed to capture this image. I really like this shot and I’ve already got it on the wall at home. I’ve also added it as a limited edition print in my store…

The second image was more planned. I recently commented that I had never taken a photo of the Needles, whilst not strictly true as I had captured them from Headon Warren, I had never taken the classic shot of the Needles from the viewpoint above the Old Battery. Mainly because there is only really one place to stand and lots of people wanting to stand there so not easy to set up and take your time over the photograph. However I found a way round that and planned a trip in the early hours of the morning as the nearly full moon was setting over Poole Bay. It worked out better than I imagined with the moonlight being so bright it was almost like capturing a sunset. I also like the fact that I’ve been able to keep the detail in the lights of Poole, Bournemouth and even Swanage on the Dorset coast in the Distance. I’m really happy with this image too and have made this available in store as well.

So overall a really nice month for photography, some great conditions and some images I am really happy with. I’ve also managed to complete my 2020 Newtown Project which was good to close out. Its been nice having some more freedoms and meeting up with a few friends. I still haven’t made it off the Island and as a result haven’t seen family, hopefully that’s something we can do in May, especially as I have my first Jab booked this coming week.

Thanks all

Chris

Christopher Cockroft 4/8/21 Christopher Cockroft 4/8/21

Finally completing my Newtown Project

So as you may remember in 2020 I set myself a project of Photographing the old boathouse at Newtown once per month for the whole year. Obviously 2020 threw a couple of spanners in the works and I was not able to get to Newtown during March or April that year.

I’m very pleased to have now finished my project in April 2021 having captured an image in March 2021 as well.

My final image for my Newtown 2020 project

Overall I am very happy with how the project went, and really pleased with the images captured. I think the last two captured are two of my favourites perhaps showing the development in my photography over the year.

Two other images stand out as highlights for me as well, the July image capturing Comet Neowise over the old boathouse will always be a memorable moment and I was so happy to be able to feature that in this project.

A memorable night with Comet Neowise and Noctilucent clouds over Newtown

Not selected for the project but another capture of Neowise over Newtown

Another highlight was capturing the Ursa Major constellation over the boathouse in September. I’m really please with how much Astro photography I was able to do in 2020 and how my technique improved through the year.

The September image has been added to my portfolio and has proved popular

There are a couple of images that I’m not especially happy with but I think that will always be the way with a project such as this.

Although at times I have found the project restrictive I’m really pleased I have completed it and overall am really happy with the body of work. Its been really pleasing to see the progression in my work during the year as well.

I’m now well underway with my 2021 project “12 Significant Images” and you can follow the progress here in the blog.

To see all the images from the 2020 project follow the link here https://www.cjclandscapephotos.com/newtown-page

Thanks

Chris

Christopher Cockroft 3/27/21 Christopher Cockroft 3/27/21

March - Sunrise Bonanza and surprise frosts

Month 3 of the 12 in 12 photo challenge is coming to and end, and I am really pleased with how March has gone. We have had some amazing weather and some lovely sunrises out with the camera. The initial easing of the lockdown meant that I was able to be out for recreation as well as exercise so was comfortable setting up the tripod and taking time over the images rather than grabbing a quick handheld shot whilst out walking.

I must admit to being pretty down at the start of the month, a year of restrictions taking its toll, in addition I realised I had been on the Island for a whole year other than 2 weeks Holiday in September and a few days at Christmas. For someone who used to travel either in the U.K. or internationally every week that was a bit of a shock. I was becoming pretty jaded with with the Island and uninspired at the prospect of revisiting the same locations over and over again this year as it looks like travel is likely to be restricted this year as well.

Bembridge - Saving my project

All it took was one trip to Bembridge to reinvigorate my passion for photography and get the project back on track. I arrived feeling uninspired and not really sure why I was there. As I walked down to the beach it looked completely different to how I had ever seen it before. We had gone through some strong Easterly winds and they had really moved the sand about on the beach. Yes it was photographing the same subject of the Lifeboat station but the whole area was new and exciting to explore.

New shapes and textures in the sand on the beach at Bembridge.

This is why I love living on the coast and photographing seascapes. Every time it’s different, the tide height will be different the water will be different. Its endless opportunities. I left Bembridge reinvigorated.

The Pepperpot - Visit 2

Amazingly we had a frosty weekend at the start of March, frost is pretty rare on the island but certainly so in March. The gorse around the Island had been in bloom for a week or so, I therefore headed to the Pepperpot to capture the gorse in bloom with some frost on the ground. Unfortunately the land owner had other ideas and had removed a lot of the Gorse and trimmed back most of the rest. It gave the area a completely different look to what I was expecting but as the golden light of sunrise illuminated the tower it was still a lovely scene to capture.

West Ashey Farm - An expanded location

I returned to the lone tree in Ashey but struggled to see how it was going to work as a location for the remainder of the project. I therefore expanded the location to be West Ashey Farm where the tree was located. As a result I was able to find this group of three trees which I think will make a much better subject for the project as they are living trees that will change through the seasons. On this occasion the frost and mist shrouded the Ashey Valley whilst the sheep grazed nearby. I really like this image and I think it might be my favourite of March. Its difficult to choose at this point though as it is possible I may capture an image I prefer from this location later in the year which means March might need another favourite!

Ashey Station - The photo project now leaving the station is the 2021 12 in 12 photo project….

So I don’t think Ashey Station is going to work. I chose it initially purely because it was close by and therefore accessible during lockdown even if it got really strict again. However it really doesn’t work photographically. It is difficult to tell the story of the location and there are just dead areas in every composition I could find. I will keep trying as it may work with the train in the station once the steam railway gets going again, but at the moment it looks like I will be substituting this location out of the project.

Ashey Station, I will persevere but am also adding another location in just in case.

Introducing The Duver

Duver is an old Isle of Wight word to describe low lying land along the coast, subject to occasional inundation by the sea. There are three areas still referred to as Duvers. The Seaview Duver, the Hamstead Duver forming part of Newtown Estuary and the largest and most well know, the St. Helens Duver referred to simply as The Duver.

Its a lovely area of marshes and sand dunes and there is an obvious draw for Photography with a group of Beach huts looking out to sea. I initially added this location in case it isn’t possible to get to Binnel Bay with the closed footpaths but it may also be the substitute for Ashey Station.

I have photographed this area often previously but never got a shot I am happy with so it will be nice to try and remedy that during 2021.

I love this fallen down fence, even if wire isn’t the prettiest of fences! I think this will work better a bit later in the year when the light is more to the left hand side of the image.

Ventnor

Phew it has been a busy month of photography, but there was still time to head to Ventnor for the second time for the project. Again I went out on the esplanade but on this occasion focused on the Haven at the Eastern end of the town. It was a lovely morning with some lovely soft colours in the sky. I was there as one of the boats from the Haven Fishery went out to check the local lobster and crab pots so included the boat leaving in the image.

Unfortunately I couldn’t stay for them to come back with the catch of the day, which is a real shame as the local crab and lobster is amazing and sold fresh from the fishery shop, highly recommended if you are ever visiting.

Havenstreet Shrine

There was time for one more location in March with a visit to the Havenstreet Shrine before a trip into the office. It was a beautiful morning with lovely golden light flooding the hill where the shrine sits and the daffodils were looking lovely as spring really got into gear. I capture a view looking towards the village with the downs in the background and managed to include the daffodils.

So after being a bit down at the start of the month, and unsure whether I would have the motivation to keep going with the project, its ended up being a brilliant month with several images I’m really happy with being captured. With the lighter evenings I’ve been getting out after work as well and have really enjoyed being able to do that. I even managed to capture the March image for my 2020 project at Newtown Creek after not being able to in March last year. Just April to go now to close that project out.

Really excited to see what April will bring both with the project and other opportunities. The Bluebells should be blooming in a couple of weeks so that will be great to see and capture. Come back at the end of April for the next update.

Thanks for reading.

The March image for the 2020 Newtown Creek Project - Capture in 2021!

Christopher Cockroft 2/28/21 Christopher Cockroft 2/28/21

February - Grey skies to clear blue skies

Month two of 2021 and month 2 of the #12in12photochallenge comes to an end, and I must admit I’m not too sad to see the end of February. Here on the Isle of Wight is has been unusually grey for nearly the whole month. For somewhere known as the Sunshine Isle with more hours of Sunshine than anywhere else in the U.K. that is rather unusual.

Between the grey skies and the continuing lockdown photography has been difficult this month, both in terms of practicality and motivation. However I have been out with the camera a few times and added some more images to my collection for the project.

The month ended on a brighter note, Both in terms of the weather and the upcoming gradual easing of lockdown. We had a beautiful few days over this last weekend and spring has definitely felt in the air. I’m really looking forward to revisiting the 12 locations over the next months to see how different they are in Spring versus Winter.

So how have I got on this month:

Havenstreet Shrine

Another very local spot, although actually quite difficult to get to currently. The rain we had in January and early February meant that the fields in the local area had turned to real quagmires, and we even had to have the fire brigade rescue someone who got stuck in the mud in one field. However despite this I managed to pick my way up to the Havenstreet War Memorial which sits on a small hill between Havenstreet and Binstead. It was a foggy morning and the moon had risen above the fog casting beautiful moonlight over the landscape. I am really pleased with the shot I managed to capture.

Bembridge Beach

February also marked the 2 year anniversary of my photography journey which started in 2019 when I headed to the local beach at Bembridge with my Camera and took my first landscape photos. https://www.cjclandscapephotos.com/blog/2-year-anniversary-and-a-return-to-bembridge It’s therefore a very special location to me, but also one I have struggled to get an image I am happy with from. I included it in this challenge specifically for this reason to see if I can finally get a shot I am happy with from the location.

So how did I get on this time… better, but still not quite right. Maybe next time.

Bembridge Lifeboat Station from Bembridge Beach

Compton Bay

Compton is a long sweeping bay at the western end of the Island with a wonderful backdrop of Tennyson Down working towards the Needles. I visited after work one evening towards the end of the month (Its so nice to have some lighter evenings coming back). However it was a really grey day and I just couldn’t get into the right mood to enjoy the photography and therefore came away with images I wasn’t happy with. Later in the week the skies were clear and we had a nearly full moon. I therefore headed back to Compton early in the morning to capture the bay under beautiful moonlight. I think this is my favourite image I have captured in February.

Binnel Bay - Disaster Strikes

Okay, so disaster might be a slightly strong word. However my trip to Binnel bay hit a significant issue.

So for background, Binnel bay is one of the most remote spots on the Islands coastline. Its the furthest spot from a car park or road you can get to on the coast. Its also part of the Niton undercliff, the whole area was formed by a landslip many many years ago. Its like our own mini Quiraing.

The issue is that occasionally the land slips again, and therefore on my way to Binnel Bay I was met with this…

The Isle of Wight council are very good at publishing the current state of footpaths and I should have looked on the website before heading out, turns out this one has been closed for some time and is currently not anticipated to be able to be reopened. There is another route to the bay from Ventnor, so I will try again as it is a location I have not been too before so I really want to include it in the project. The winter shot from this location will have to wait until December.

Headon Warren

Headon Warren sits at the Western end of the Island and has beautiful views of the Iconic Needles and over Poole Bay to the Purbecks. Before I moved to the Island I lived in Poole and when I first came over I used to visit Headon Warren and look back to where I still considered home at the time. Now its fair to say I am much more at home on the Island.

Headon Warren is a really interesting spot for photography, you have an obvious subject in the form of the Needles, however I find it really hard to get a composition I am happy with. There are lots of paths running through the headland that make nice leading lines but I am yet to find one that leads in the right direction! In late summer the headland is covered in Heather so I am hoping by then I might have found a composition I am happy with. In the meantime I think I’ve managed to tick off another one I thought might work, but doesn’t quite in my view.

Headon Warren and the Needles. Lots of good leading lines on the headland, but not necessarily leading the right way!

Brook Down/ Five Barrows

Brook Down rises above the Village of Brook in West Wight. It has wonderful views across to Compton Bay and also to Lymington and the New Forest from the Northen Side. On top of the down is Five Barrows a Bronze Age round barrow burial site.

I headed up to the top of the down from Brook for sunset, but also with a shot of the full moon rising in mind. I have been up Brook down a few times and really like the view over Compton Farm from just below the top of the down. On this occasion I decided to head up to the five barrows site right on the top of the down, and was… slightly underwhelmed. Its just a bare site with the barrows, interesting to look round for their historical significance, but rather uninteresting to photograph. The side of the down has lovely Rowan bushes which bloom in late summer / autumn and have wonderful berries so I think this might feature more as a summer / autumn location.

The best I could manage at Five Barrows. The view over Compton Farm will be my focus on the next trip up here.

However the view behind with the full moon rising over Limerstone Down was pretty special.

Yarmouth Harbour

My final stop of the month, and the final of my 12 locations is Yarmouth harbour. Yarmouth is a wonderful little town / large village on the western end of the Island. Its one of the three ferry ports on the Island and links to Lymington. Its a really popular spot and in the Summer the harbour is rammed with visiting yachts and the moorings outside the harbour are full too. I chose this location for that reason, I though it would be interesting to see it in each of the four seasons as it gets busier through to summer. I have chosen the view from Norton Spit looking back towards the town across the marina, its an interesting spot with lots of composition opportunities so I look forward to visiting again soon.

So 11 of my 12 locations photographed, and 1 that has defeated me so far. I’m really looking forward to getting back round the different locations as we go through Spring and the easing of lockdown restrictions. I have a few ideas for shots at these locations through spring so fingers crossed I can mange to capture them, in particular Bluebells in Firestone Copse, Sea Thrift on the cliffs at Binnel Bay and Compton and the return of the Steam Train at Ashey Station.

Christopher Cockroft 2/18/21 Christopher Cockroft 2/18/21

2 Year anniversary and a return to Bembridge

So this last week marked a special moment in my photography journey, its been 2 years since I ventured down to Bembridge beach for the first time with my camera and enjoyed my first sunrise and discovered the most amazing activity of landscape photography.

I remember that morning so well, it was bitterly cold, but it was a beautiful sunrise. Probably the best I have seen at that location with wonderful colours in the sky. I really didn’t know what I was doing but the image I captured will always have a special place in my heart as my first “Landscape photo”

My First ever attempt at Landscape Photography. I like to think there has been some progression in the two years

So Bembridge will always be a special location for me, its a lovely beach and the lifeboat station makes a great subject for a photo. Sitting at the Eastern end of the island it also gets wonderful sunrises and in Summer it can also work for a sunset.

However despite everything it has going for it, I have never captured an image I am really happy with from the location, and you won’t see it in my portfolio. For that reason I have included it in my #12in12photochallenge in the hope that returning regularly improves my chance of getting that killer image.

I’ve also made a point of returning each year during the same week as that first trip down to the beach, work commitments means it can’t always be the exact same day.

Last year in 2020 I made it down and it was a grey old morning, which it seems to be every time I go to Bembridge. I managed to capture this image as a record of my 1 year anniversary.

My one year anniversary shot captured in February 2020.

So how did my 2021 trip go, well again I don’t think it is an image that I will add to my portfolio but it was a lovely morning on the beach. Fortunately Bembridge is local to me so I could enjoy my daily exercise on the beach and capture an image. It was another freezing morning with a bitter wind. There were a couple of moments of nice light. but nothing too special.

I certainly think this image shows some improvement over the two years but its still not the shot I want from the location, I know what that is and I’m hoping 2021 is the time to nail that shot. I’ll let you know if I do!

Christopher Cockroft 2/7/21 Christopher Cockroft 2/7/21

2021 Project - 12 Significant Photos - January Update

January has been a long old month this year with the 3rd lockdown and some pretty awful weather. Lots of grey skies and rain. However I have been staying positive and looking forward to better times and weather ahead.

One high point of the month was attending a webinar with Chris Sale ( https://chrissale.co.uk/wp/ ), Chris is someone who I find really inspiring and I really enjoyed having a 1-2-1 session with Chris when we were in the Lake District in September last year. The webinar was centred around Chris’ plans for a photo project for 2021. At the end of the webinar Chris challenged us to join him in his #12in12photochallenge. The aim is to pick 12 locations in your local area and visit each during each of the 4 seasons through the year to capture how the areas change through the seasons.

After some deliberation I came up with my 12 locations. Living on the Island makes defining the area quite easy, I’ve incorporated the whole Island. There was some debate in the household over what local means in the current lockdown situation, and I've currently focused more on the locations I can walk too from the house, with the others to be added once lockdown is lifted.

All the locations are either spots I haven’t been too before, or they are locations I have visited but never got an image I am happy with from (Bembridge Lifeboat Station, I am looking at you!) So I am hoping visiting through the year will help to remedy that.

These are my 12 locations, the yellow pins are those I have already visited for the project and the orange ones are still be be captured as part of the project.

So how has January gone? Well pretty mixed! At the start of the year we had some amazing conditions but most of January has been grey and uninspiring. However these are the spots I have managed to visit and the images I got.

1) The Pepperpot

Or St. Catherines Oratory if you must! This is one of those locations I have photographed before but I’ve never been happy with the images I have achieved. A freezing fog on this morning meant the whole area was covered in a hoar frost and a freezing walk up from the Blackgang Car park was rewarded with amazing conditions. This image was captured as the cloud lifted and the view across the west of the Island revealed itself.

2) Ventnor Esplanade

My second location is Ventnor esplanade. On a freezing morning we went for a walk on the beach and the cloud was hanging over the top of the hill above the town. I captured this image from the end of the breakwater. The light was very harsh from behind me so I have edited this in Black and White to make use of the contrast in the scene. Ventnor is a proper seaside resort on the South coast of the Island so it will be interesting to capture this as it wakes up from Winter ready for the tourist season and in full summer.

3) Firestone Copse

Firestone Copse is a local woodland owned and managed by the Forest Commission. It is not a particularly photogenic woodland but there are pockets of really interesting spots. On a foggy mid January morning I was able to get out for a wander round the woods and found a spot that I hadn’t been too before. It has a really interesting mix of trees and slightly more open feel to a lot of the woodland. On another visit at the end of January I noticed the start of bluebell shoots appearing so Spring looks like it will be lovely in this corner of the wood.

So after a really positive start to the project things turned….. grey! The second half of January has been nothing but grey skies and rain. We all forgot what the sun looked like and the paths in the local area turned into impassable quagmires. We even had someone get stuck in the mud in the field just outside the village that required the fire service to help extricate them. Despite this I have still got out (carefully) and ticked off another couple of locations.

4) Ashey Station

This is the most local location to me and is a small rural station. Previously a station on the Ryde to Newport railway before the closure of the line it is now part of the Isle of Wight Steam Railway and its lovely to see the train steam through in the summer. I think it is fair to say that my first attempt to capture the scene did not go well. I was very uninspired by the conditions and just couldn’t find a composition I was happy with. I ended up taking something I view as more of snapshot. This is certainly going to be an interesting challenge to unlock the potential of the location during the year.

5) Ashey Lone Tree

The final location I visited in January was this tree in Ashey, again an easy walk from the house - although trying to find firm ground was a challenge. This is going to be another interesting challenge as trying to isolate the tree is going to be interesting as in each direction there is something unappealing that gets included. This might be one to try with my new 100-400mm telephoto lease that I have treated myself too and see if I can isolate it from further away.

So that rounds up January. I’ve continued the progress in February and have captured one image I’m quite pleased with. Check back at the start of March for my February round up for that image (or you may have already spotted it on Instagram).

Thanks

Chris

Christopher Cockroft 12/30/20 Christopher Cockroft 12/30/20

The end (not quite) of my 2020 Project

So here we are in the final days of 2020, I won’t state the obvious about how I am sure we are all looking forward to saying good bye to this year and hoping for a better 2021.

For me this should also be the end of my 2020 Newtown project, and this morning I captured the December image for my project. Nothing like leaving it to the last minute

The December image for my Newtown Project

It isn’t actually the end of the project for me though, because… 2020! I couldn’t get to Newtown during March and April so I will have to continue this in 2021 and capture those images then to complete the series of 12 images.

So how have I felt about the project, well I have actually found it quite restrictive and challenging. Restrictive because there were times, such as this morning, when I wanted to go elsewhere, it was a frosty morning and conditions were excellent near to home, but I needed the December image so I had to go off to Newtown. In the end I’m happy with the image from the morning, and on the way home I managed to get a frosty scene at nearby Firestone Copse.

I’ve also found it challenging to produce a body of work that is original and of interest. I think i’ve failed in this as well as the area is so photographed it was difficult to find unusual compositions. I think there are a couple of different shots in the project but many are the classic Newtown views.

There are however several photos I am proud of in the collections, particularly the nighttime shots of the Plough and Comet Neowise. What a night that was.

So will I do a 2021 project?

Currently I am undecided. I don’t lack motivation to get out and take photos, I love doing it so a project doesn’t feel necessary, at the same time it is quite nice to have a focus to images to reflect upon at the end of the year, if I do a project it will be something less restrictive and that offers opportunities to photograph across the island and maybe further afield too, rather than always having to visit a single location, one thought I have had is beach huts as a subject.

Any other ideas, please let me know in the comments.

Beach Huts on Bembridge Beach, could these feature in my 2021 project?