Autumn colours, Baden region, 2015
It often stays warm and dry well into the Autumn in Switzerland and there are some lovely colours to be seen in the trees. The river is the Aare, where it is met by the Reuss, near to Lauffohr. Other shots are taken in the vineyard in Ennetbaden.
A postcard from Fribourg, 2011
A couple of shots from the Swiss city of Fribourg, taken in 2011. In one, I have used a combination of tone mapping, high pass sharpen and heavy saturation to give the impression of a 1960s postcard. The steps in the black and white shot reminded me of some of M. C. Escher’s artworks.
Venice, March 2003
During my first year on the committee of the Southampton University Photographic Society, we organised a trip (on the cheap; Ryanair flights and campsite-style accommodation) for 36 of us to Venice. At the last minute, I chose to substitute my then-new EOS5 in place of the two Olympus OM series manual-focus SLRs I had intended to take. I don’t think I regretted that decision.
Ireland tour August 2007
Starting in Dublin, we drove around 1600km in 7 days in a hire car clockwise around Ireland, visiting; Glendalough, Hollywood, Killkenny, Cashel, Cork, Killarney, Dingle, Limmerick, Galway, Cong, Clifden, Cliffs of Moher, Sligo, Enniskillen, Navan and back to Dublin. Overall perception was of a rugged (and often damp!) island, but with a certain charm, not least because of its friendly inhabitants who enjoy partaking in locally produced beers and spirits and traditional music and dancing.
Prague March 2008
My first visit to the Czech capital revealed a bright city full of tourists, where a few relics from the Communist era can still be found hidden amongst the new cars and shops.
Innsbruck, December 2010
A pre-Christmas visit to this Tyrolean city. Somehow the snow seems to suit it and having never visited before, I struggled to imagine it without snow. One of the notable features is the Goldenes Dach (golden roof) located in the centre of the town.
London in black & white
Architect Sir Giles Glibert Scott was responsible for the iconic red phone booths of the early 20th century and the Art Deco “Cathedral of Power”, Battersea Power station, the last part of which closed in 1983. This example of the phone booth has been left on the north bank of the Thames near Pimlico, with the power station the other side of the river. Although derelict and having changed owners several times as their development plans came to nothing, the coal cranes that would have unloaded the fuel from ships travelling up the Thames still stand. February 2009.
