Pete bridgwood

Pointing our cameras towards the sun can often create dramatic images. Overall contrast is obviously maximized, but because foreground and middle ground objects are being illuminated from the other side, they are rendered as desaturated, low contrast silhouettes. There is a controllable degree of texture detail within these shadows, depending on choice of exposure and subsequent digital processing.

    Shooting contre jour during twilight is the magic formula behind some of the most deeply saturated colorful images possible. There is no need for software saturation boosting here, it becomes possible to create honest images with striking colors appearing just as enchanting as they occurred in reality.

    Twilight begins the moment the sun sets and marks the start of a incredibly productive time for the landscape photographer. During this period, sunlight continues to shine through the lower, or denser, level of the atmosphere, which increasingly scatters the sunlight’s blue components away fro the direct beam. This intensifies the orange and red wavelengths reaching the western horizon. A darker, colorless band can often be seen immediately above the horizon. This is the shadow created by curvature of the earth’s surface beyond the horizon, shading the lowest levels from direct sunlight I spent a blustery evening on the deserted rocky shore of priest’s cove, cape Cornwall and after the twilight colors faded, I returned to the car and packed my gear away. As I drove up the hill on my back, this spectacular view appeared in my rear view mirror.

My sudden rise in attitude had provided me with a second chance to capture these intensified hues. I composed this scene as the beautiful twilight colors transformed the horizon. Avoiding camera shake is important with telephoto shots. With the camera on a sturdy tripod, I put myself with my back to the wind; mirror lock-up engaged and with a shutter delay of 2 seconds, I pressed the shutter release and used my coat as a makeshift wind break. An exposure of 2.5 seconds allowed some textural rendering of the ocean, but underexposing the headland helped create this powerful silhouette.

Bird watch journal

Over the last twenty years or so I’ve photographed many species of birds, both common and rare, in Britain, including some seen only once in the country. But of all the species I’ve tried to see and photograph, there is one common wood land bird that has always proved extremely difficult: lesser spotted woodpecker. This is a small woodpecker, the smallest of the ten different types that are found in Europe, so also the smallest of the three species that occur in Britain. It is about the size of the common house sparrow and likes to feed quietly and unobtrusively along branches of trees. Early spring, when birds begin to display and call, and before there is any heavy leaf cover, is the best time to spot this wonderful bird.

Unlike its larger cousin, the great spotted woodpecker, the lesser spotted rarely visits garden feeders, nor is it tempted to feeding stations but a log baited with peanuts; I know because I’ve been trying that for years! I have seen one on a peanut feeder in a friend’s garden and I did manage to grab a few good shots, but it didn’t stay around very long and it is certainly not a regular occurrence.