RECENT NEWS
Comments on the TAKE A WALK Challenge
Finding ways to share our walks in lockdown!
17/04/2020
Comments are all in for EGG CHALLENGE (see the last RECENT NEWS) and are starting to come in for TAKE A WALK so keep them coming! They will be updated below during the coming week.
After a few days of experimenting with the virtual possibilities of Zoom, ( BIG thank you to those members who joined my trial meetings and played around, enduring the problems !) we took the plunge, and held a Virtual Meeting, which lasted about an hour on Thursday-and it was great fun! Involving eight of us in total, it was not without its technical hitches, but allowed us to see (except Suzanne) and hear all participants, who were happy to chat and exchange information, but also managed (mostly) to share a set of images they had taken on a recent walk for the weekly challenge. We need to learn more about the technology, and I shall be posting a separate article later today that will help you all in the coming week, get to grips with and solve the difficulties you might have encountered so far, before I hope you will join in again at the same same time next week. I could link the meeting with this week's challenge, but in the hope that MORE of the club get involved with the meeting even if they don't do the challenge , I am going to take a really good suggestion that Janice has made, and run with it:
For next Thursday's meeting, can each of you chose two photos that you have ever taken that for whatever reason are very close to your heart, or they mean something to you personally, and be prepared to share them, and to talk about why.
That focus is totally separate from the weekly challenge, news of which will be up by the end of Friday 17th, so make sure you do both, and read the BLOG , and send in comments on the TAKE A WALK Gallery which will remain up this week and next.!!
OK Here we go with the TAKE A WALK feedback on the Gallery pics. (Don't be afraid to make improvement suggestions as I know many are doing these to try and learn from others.)
Jane R says :
Suzanne love your tree with a view, good shape and colours, lovely. Flowers - spring is here!
Janice gorgeous blossom, have passed that policeman many times well spotted, your glove tells a story was the glove removing the weeds there?
Jenny well positioned and balanced beech woods. love the shadows in the rocks photo makes me want to walk there.
Rex love your clouds through the trees nice and peaceful.
Pamela I like your fresh water stream with the wild flowers, and good trails through the early morning dew.
Geoff Love your Clandown Road really sharp from front to back. Spring blossom gorgeous.
Jenny says:
Rex love the rapids and the way you blur the water as you keep the rest nice and sharp. I would take out the distraction of the grasses in the foreground. I also like the r ailway one with good lead in lines and the view withit Shame the sky was not interesting like it is in the third pic of the trees!
Geoff: fantastically sharp pigeon with nice light and detail in feathers! The blossom is nice but i am slightly distracted by what seems to be a bit of brown fence in the back left? I really like that view of Clandown with the colour the composition and the lead in line of the lane.
JaneR: That waterfall is worth returning to I like the diagonal composition and the frozen water but the rest needs lightening out of the shadows in the foreground and the far bank. Nature Reserve is great in chosen B and W and also you have used the vignetting nicely to emphasis the light pool Just right for me! Railway line leads the eye nicely as does the fence and takes me to the signal at the far end which is good. I am wondering if the signal and its surroundings would have been more sharply focused if you had a point of focus 2/3 in- I may be wrong but I think your focus point is closer to you than that- what was the f stop?
Tony: I am always a bit disappointed by my own bluebell shots because I can never really capture their awesomeness especially at a distance. Good try here! I might have gone in a bit closer. I do like the cowslips (my favourite spring flower) and the low angle. What lens? I think an even wider angle would have really been stunning. I also ask what lens on the deer? I can see why you would have frightened it if you had got in much closer, but he needs to be more prominent as a focus, and a zoom might have achieved this but I DID limit you to the one lens of course!!!
Jane L: now this deer is nicely up close and positioned well in the frame. His nose is sharp but I am not getting detail in the eyes? I can see why you like that Oak tree and i like the silouetting against the sky colours Might try cropping out the tiny tree-like things to the right of the main? The street photo i think is nicely framed by the blossom but spoiled for me a bit by the iron gate/fence which as positioned seems to be a bit of a barrier and stops my eye.
Suzanne: Do I see a waterdroplet on that yellow flower?? I like the blossom-nicely focused and diagonal very sharp and good against the sky. Now I can see that with the tree picture you are deliberately flaunting the rule of thirds etc by placing it in the middle and also the horizon is pretty much dead centre. Knowing you this is deliberate and the tree certainly has the view!
Pamela: I like the morning run composition and focus with the light which is nice and soft and the trails in the dew. The morning view is nice too but maybe would not have composed with dog in the middle. With Fresh Water I wondererd a) what f stop you were using and b) where the focus was because I am sure you could get better focus from foreground through to the distance with a bit of help from Jill Toman- particularly look at her Chew Valley Lake .
Jill: In your zone her and we could all learn a lot from you about set up for landscapes My personal favourite is the one of the Lake.
Janice: I like the colour and the composition of the Blossom tree but wanted to see all of it. I think the other two well illustrate your eye for a detail and and apt image that tells a story - certainly policemen and gloves are very much on everyone's minds in lockdown I like the way you tell stories or at least suggest a question!
Graham: Sorry I missed getting these up I am always intrigued by your e mails and get distracted !!! I like the tree best with the great sky and it is well taken and composed. The trees on the hill are very central and some of the sheep are disappearing left but hard to see how else you might record the scene. Great that you caught those two birds in flight and against a clear blue sky. Just wondering what lens you had on the camera and of course it would have been hand held. so difficult to get sharp and close .
Pamela says :
Jenny. My favourite is Beech Woods which I really love. I presume you know Valda Bailey's work? ICM is not easy to do well and this really works. It's artistic and the trees are well-defined. (Suzanne also liked that one and she said : I really like this picture Jenny. The two front trees lead you in and focus your attention on the advancing army of slender trees. Love the reflections and atmosphere this picture gives. Wish I had taken it!)
Rex. My favourite is clouds throughout the trees. I think it's well-balanced and the colour is lovely.
Jane R. Waterfall. Lovely light on the water but I prefer Nature Reserve. It's got an ethereal feel to it. The path leads my eye into the picture and then I find I am waiting for someone to jump out from behind one of the trees .
Suzanne. Tree with a view. This is the one I prefer. I like the layers but the tree still stands out.
Jill T. Tranquil Stream. I love the lines and the light in the river.
Geoff. My favourite is Clandown Rd. I like the way you have the road dividing the buildings and then disappearing.
Graham. The kites are a lovely sight but not very clear. I do like two tree hill but I would prefer it without the tree in the foreground. I think it would look more dramatic.
Tony. Spring meadow is so colourful. I think I would crop the left hand side to put more emphasis on the trees - but I am no expert!
Janice. The more I look at the glove the more intrigued I am. Where is the other glove? Thanks for making me chuckle.
Jane L. Because I love animals my eye is drawn to the deer. Such a lovely expression, just a pity not a bit more light on the face but it's a wild animal, why should it want to help?
Janice says :
Jenny, love the artistic effect of Beech Woods. Well positioned foreground trees.
With The Rocks you were right not to include a sky. A strong image with interesting shadows.
Rex, I wonder if your End of Line would be stronger without the sky. Clouds Through The Trees is a lovely image with a great sky and is well balanced.
Geoff, Bird On tree is very sharp and the light is very nice indeed.
Jane R, I like the treatment of Nature Reserve. It really suits mono and is atmospheric.
Suzanne, Tree With A View, a good landscape, breaking many rules but successfully. There is enough interest in the sky too.
Pamela, good action capture of the dog in Morning Run. In Morning View I feel the dog is a tad too central but I like how the dog's head has turned to look straight at you.
Jill, really enjoyed all three images. Chew Valley Lake is a beautiful landscape with very strong lead in lines.
Graham, bare trees are always interesting to photograph with the interesting shapes they form. I think your Two Tree Hill would be a strong graphic image if it was just the hill and the trees. The large foreground tree is a bit distracting.
Tony, such a pity you couldn't get closer to the Grazing Deer. A strong lead in with the hedge and nice shadows. Good low view point in Spring Meadow.
Jane L, what a lovely expression and great capture of Hello Deer. I also like the burst of light in Favourite Oak. Possibly crop some of the left hand side to concentrate on the lovely shape of the tree.
Jane L says:
Jenny
Takes patience to get the blur right and works for me in Beech Woods. Maintaining a sense of the woodland floor grounds the picture (haha). Like the “swing” of the shadows on the path in Rocks. Find myself sauntering to the end. Wondering if I would prefer a tad less foreground and a little more tree top? Can’t decide.
Geoff
Nice sharp and colourful pigeon. I know these things can’t be controlled but would be better if heading into the picture rather than out to top right. Good walking perspective of Clandown Lane. Meanders towards the farm and picks up the shadows of the boundary trees nicely.
Jane R
Super picture of the reserve. The positioning of the walkway and its railings draws the observer forward and through. I find vignetting is overused but the light position makes it work for me here and provides mood for my virtual walk. It could be my screen but find myself wanting to bring out more detail from the surrounding walls/rocks in the Waterfall. Refreshing rushing water and not burnt out despite the high contrast.
Suzanne
Nice bright greens and great view. I’d be interested in seeing the effect on composition of siting the tree to right or left – I mean in the picture not the field silly. Enjoyed the sharp blossom with contextual blur.
Pamela The fresh water lacks interest for me. Would it work to include more of the setting? Love your dog’s ears and attention. Make more of him/her in the picture and remove the branches which don’t really frame imho? The third pic fits the walk brief 100% but a bit random in composition?
Jill
Find myself wanting to see a bit more of the pipe and balustrade top right but maybe that’s because I find the structure interesting and shall head out there sometime. Great walk picture of Chew Valley vista with classic fence positioning
Janice
I pass this policeman a lot heading for where I keep Alice the Camper. It’s not the best wood sculpture so you’ve captured it at its finest with the direction of light picking out the contours and texture. Like the meeting of the wall and the fence as background. Wonder if obscuring the brick ends would improve a tad? Rex
Good picture for the walking brief showing a different view of the railway from above and heading back east. Good balance of foreground and lead in to distant view of MSN’s northern edge. Like.
After a few days of experimenting with the virtual possibilities of Zoom, ( BIG thank you to those members who joined my trial meetings and played around, enduring the problems !) we took the plunge, and held a Virtual Meeting, which lasted about an hour on Thursday-and it was great fun! Involving eight of us in total, it was not without its technical hitches, but allowed us to see (except Suzanne) and hear all participants, who were happy to chat and exchange information, but also managed (mostly) to share a set of images they had taken on a recent walk for the weekly challenge. We need to learn more about the technology, and I shall be posting a separate article later today that will help you all in the coming week, get to grips with and solve the difficulties you might have encountered so far, before I hope you will join in again at the same same time next week. I could link the meeting with this week's challenge, but in the hope that MORE of the club get involved with the meeting even if they don't do the challenge , I am going to take a really good suggestion that Janice has made, and run with it:
For next Thursday's meeting, can each of you chose two photos that you have ever taken that for whatever reason are very close to your heart, or they mean something to you personally, and be prepared to share them, and to talk about why.
That focus is totally separate from the weekly challenge, news of which will be up by the end of Friday 17th, so make sure you do both, and read the BLOG , and send in comments on the TAKE A WALK Gallery which will remain up this week and next.!!
OK Here we go with the TAKE A WALK feedback on the Gallery pics. (Don't be afraid to make improvement suggestions as I know many are doing these to try and learn from others.)
Jane R says :
Suzanne love your tree with a view, good shape and colours, lovely. Flowers - spring is here!
Janice gorgeous blossom, have passed that policeman many times well spotted, your glove tells a story was the glove removing the weeds there?
Jenny well positioned and balanced beech woods. love the shadows in the rocks photo makes me want to walk there.
Rex love your clouds through the trees nice and peaceful.
Pamela I like your fresh water stream with the wild flowers, and good trails through the early morning dew.
Geoff Love your Clandown Road really sharp from front to back. Spring blossom gorgeous.
Jenny says:
Rex love the rapids and the way you blur the water as you keep the rest nice and sharp. I would take out the distraction of the grasses in the foreground. I also like the r ailway one with good lead in lines and the view withit Shame the sky was not interesting like it is in the third pic of the trees!
Geoff: fantastically sharp pigeon with nice light and detail in feathers! The blossom is nice but i am slightly distracted by what seems to be a bit of brown fence in the back left? I really like that view of Clandown with the colour the composition and the lead in line of the lane.
JaneR: That waterfall is worth returning to I like the diagonal composition and the frozen water but the rest needs lightening out of the shadows in the foreground and the far bank. Nature Reserve is great in chosen B and W and also you have used the vignetting nicely to emphasis the light pool Just right for me! Railway line leads the eye nicely as does the fence and takes me to the signal at the far end which is good. I am wondering if the signal and its surroundings would have been more sharply focused if you had a point of focus 2/3 in- I may be wrong but I think your focus point is closer to you than that- what was the f stop?
Tony: I am always a bit disappointed by my own bluebell shots because I can never really capture their awesomeness especially at a distance. Good try here! I might have gone in a bit closer. I do like the cowslips (my favourite spring flower) and the low angle. What lens? I think an even wider angle would have really been stunning. I also ask what lens on the deer? I can see why you would have frightened it if you had got in much closer, but he needs to be more prominent as a focus, and a zoom might have achieved this but I DID limit you to the one lens of course!!!
Jane L: now this deer is nicely up close and positioned well in the frame. His nose is sharp but I am not getting detail in the eyes? I can see why you like that Oak tree and i like the silouetting against the sky colours Might try cropping out the tiny tree-like things to the right of the main? The street photo i think is nicely framed by the blossom but spoiled for me a bit by the iron gate/fence which as positioned seems to be a bit of a barrier and stops my eye.
Suzanne: Do I see a waterdroplet on that yellow flower?? I like the blossom-nicely focused and diagonal very sharp and good against the sky. Now I can see that with the tree picture you are deliberately flaunting the rule of thirds etc by placing it in the middle and also the horizon is pretty much dead centre. Knowing you this is deliberate and the tree certainly has the view!
Pamela: I like the morning run composition and focus with the light which is nice and soft and the trails in the dew. The morning view is nice too but maybe would not have composed with dog in the middle. With Fresh Water I wondererd a) what f stop you were using and b) where the focus was because I am sure you could get better focus from foreground through to the distance with a bit of help from Jill Toman- particularly look at her Chew Valley Lake .
Jill: In your zone her and we could all learn a lot from you about set up for landscapes My personal favourite is the one of the Lake.
Janice: I like the colour and the composition of the Blossom tree but wanted to see all of it. I think the other two well illustrate your eye for a detail and and apt image that tells a story - certainly policemen and gloves are very much on everyone's minds in lockdown I like the way you tell stories or at least suggest a question!
Graham: Sorry I missed getting these up I am always intrigued by your e mails and get distracted !!! I like the tree best with the great sky and it is well taken and composed. The trees on the hill are very central and some of the sheep are disappearing left but hard to see how else you might record the scene. Great that you caught those two birds in flight and against a clear blue sky. Just wondering what lens you had on the camera and of course it would have been hand held. so difficult to get sharp and close .
Pamela says :
Jenny. My favourite is Beech Woods which I really love. I presume you know Valda Bailey's work? ICM is not easy to do well and this really works. It's artistic and the trees are well-defined. (Suzanne also liked that one and she said : I really like this picture Jenny. The two front trees lead you in and focus your attention on the advancing army of slender trees. Love the reflections and atmosphere this picture gives. Wish I had taken it!)
Rex. My favourite is clouds throughout the trees. I think it's well-balanced and the colour is lovely.
Jane R. Waterfall. Lovely light on the water but I prefer Nature Reserve. It's got an ethereal feel to it. The path leads my eye into the picture and then I find I am waiting for someone to jump out from behind one of the trees .
Suzanne. Tree with a view. This is the one I prefer. I like the layers but the tree still stands out.
Jill T. Tranquil Stream. I love the lines and the light in the river.
Geoff. My favourite is Clandown Rd. I like the way you have the road dividing the buildings and then disappearing.
Graham. The kites are a lovely sight but not very clear. I do like two tree hill but I would prefer it without the tree in the foreground. I think it would look more dramatic.
Tony. Spring meadow is so colourful. I think I would crop the left hand side to put more emphasis on the trees - but I am no expert!
Janice. The more I look at the glove the more intrigued I am. Where is the other glove? Thanks for making me chuckle.
Jane L. Because I love animals my eye is drawn to the deer. Such a lovely expression, just a pity not a bit more light on the face but it's a wild animal, why should it want to help?
Janice says :
Jenny, love the artistic effect of Beech Woods. Well positioned foreground trees.
With The Rocks you were right not to include a sky. A strong image with interesting shadows.
Rex, I wonder if your End of Line would be stronger without the sky. Clouds Through The Trees is a lovely image with a great sky and is well balanced.
Geoff, Bird On tree is very sharp and the light is very nice indeed.
Jane R, I like the treatment of Nature Reserve. It really suits mono and is atmospheric.
Suzanne, Tree With A View, a good landscape, breaking many rules but successfully. There is enough interest in the sky too.
Pamela, good action capture of the dog in Morning Run. In Morning View I feel the dog is a tad too central but I like how the dog's head has turned to look straight at you.
Jill, really enjoyed all three images. Chew Valley Lake is a beautiful landscape with very strong lead in lines.
Graham, bare trees are always interesting to photograph with the interesting shapes they form. I think your Two Tree Hill would be a strong graphic image if it was just the hill and the trees. The large foreground tree is a bit distracting.
Tony, such a pity you couldn't get closer to the Grazing Deer. A strong lead in with the hedge and nice shadows. Good low view point in Spring Meadow.
Jane L, what a lovely expression and great capture of Hello Deer. I also like the burst of light in Favourite Oak. Possibly crop some of the left hand side to concentrate on the lovely shape of the tree.
Jane L says:
Jenny
Takes patience to get the blur right and works for me in Beech Woods. Maintaining a sense of the woodland floor grounds the picture (haha). Like the “swing” of the shadows on the path in Rocks. Find myself sauntering to the end. Wondering if I would prefer a tad less foreground and a little more tree top? Can’t decide.
Geoff
Nice sharp and colourful pigeon. I know these things can’t be controlled but would be better if heading into the picture rather than out to top right. Good walking perspective of Clandown Lane. Meanders towards the farm and picks up the shadows of the boundary trees nicely.
Jane R
Super picture of the reserve. The positioning of the walkway and its railings draws the observer forward and through. I find vignetting is overused but the light position makes it work for me here and provides mood for my virtual walk. It could be my screen but find myself wanting to bring out more detail from the surrounding walls/rocks in the Waterfall. Refreshing rushing water and not burnt out despite the high contrast.
Suzanne
Nice bright greens and great view. I’d be interested in seeing the effect on composition of siting the tree to right or left – I mean in the picture not the field silly. Enjoyed the sharp blossom with contextual blur.
Pamela The fresh water lacks interest for me. Would it work to include more of the setting? Love your dog’s ears and attention. Make more of him/her in the picture and remove the branches which don’t really frame imho? The third pic fits the walk brief 100% but a bit random in composition?
Jill
Find myself wanting to see a bit more of the pipe and balustrade top right but maybe that’s because I find the structure interesting and shall head out there sometime. Great walk picture of Chew Valley vista with classic fence positioning
Janice
I pass this policeman a lot heading for where I keep Alice the Camper. It’s not the best wood sculpture so you’ve captured it at its finest with the direction of light picking out the contours and texture. Like the meeting of the wall and the fence as background. Wonder if obscuring the brick ends would improve a tad? Rex
Good picture for the walking brief showing a different view of the railway from above and heading back east. Good balance of foreground and lead in to distant view of MSN’s northern edge. Like.