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This is the river Lambourn near Great
Shefford. The photo was taken in overcast conditions at the start of
the walk. There is a strong sense of autumn in this picture. The same
goes for many of the images on this page.
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The "soft" weather made for
subtle, almost monochrome images. If the weather had been clear, the trees
on the horison would have blended in with the ones in the hedgerow in
front. But on this day the mist exaggerated the air perspective so that
we see them as separate.
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Even more subtle, even austere. A tractor
has made this pattern in the stubblefield. Can you hear the crispy sound
and feel the resistance as you put your boot down on the stubble?
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| Through the boughs we see
the misty countryside. I like the contrast between the almost black foreground
and the milky green background. |
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Near the trees above, there
is a "trig point". It's a point that the Ordnance Survey uses
for mapping. On the map they are marked as a blue triangle with a dot inside.
In real life they are usually a concrete pillar with a steel inset, like
the one on the left. Usually you find them on high ground. |
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| Another monochrome image. The
even spacing of the lollipop shaped trees seems to deny the somberness of
the rest of the picture. Were they put there by a giant child and forgotten
when playtime was over? |
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"There is a budding morrow
in the night" wrote Keats. In this case it got this dark and oppressive
just before the light started fighting back. |
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Here we are starting to move into the
light and the colour. The sunlit spot draws the eye irresistibly, like
a single spotlight on a stage.
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And now the light is really
putting up a fight. It is slashing through the clouds in straight lines.
The scenery is transformed before our eyes. |
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Another image of contrast and conflict.
I like the way the dark foreground and the grey cloud balance each other.
At the same time the upper left corner is blasting with white light and
the road snakes its way on the ground as if trying to escape. I hear trumpets.
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At a moment in the fight when
neither side is a clear winner a calm, like the calm in the eye of the storm,
descends on the stage. Weapons in the air, everyone is poised, in a second
the clanging battle will commence again. |
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It is now obvious which side will win,
so we can take the time to appreciate the luxurious green velvet and sparkling
diamonds in the front row.
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After the fight we celebrate
with some colour. These leaves were lying under a maple near the bridge
over the Lambourn on Maidencourt Farm |
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| From under the branches of
that maple, I was looking along the avenue that leads to the road. |
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The final curtain call on our
stage and the willow hikes up its voluminous skirt to curtsey before the
audience. The sky is now clear and blue but the shadows are getting longer
by the minute. Soon the sun will set. |
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