Late autumn colour

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On a recent walk in the Forest of Dean we noted how most deciduous trees had lost a lot of leaf in a relatively few days. This autumn, in my part of the world, has been relatively calm and mild, but change was in the offing as we walked through the oaks and pines near the Speech House. Here, once again it was the fiery oranges and golds of the beech trees that caught the eye.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Autumn reflections

Reflections in water offer the opportunity of doubling the impact of a shot. This example shows, mainly, the deep colour of autumn beech and oak trees next to Hartleton Lakes, near Ross on Wye. I took a couple of photographs from this point. The other example didn't include the near vegetation or the fishing platform. When I asked a few people which of the two shots they preferred only one, my eight year old grand-daughter, liked the wider view with the platform, the view that I also prefer.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon P950

Beech avenue, Hereford

The public open space on the south side of the River Wye at Hereford is graced by a beech avenue. In November it looks its best as each tree shows colours slightly different from its neighbour's. There is no doubt in my mind that autumn brings out the best in the beech and I have long thought it to be the finest tree at this time of year, better even than the acers.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Sony DSC-RX100

Autumn at Cannop Ponds

Cannop Ponds in the Forest of Dean are man-made reservoirs that were designed to send a controlled flow of water to a water-powered wheel at Park End Iron works. They comprise two ponds and were built in 1825 (lower) and 1829 (upper). Today they are a popular tourist destination and a nature site.

 In recent years there was the possibility of the ponds being drained and the land returned to its former existence as a valley of the Cannop Brook. Fortunately this project was dropped and the habitats around the two ponds will be developed to benefit more wildlife. These two photographs were taken recently at the edges of the expanses of water.

photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon Z 5

Ginkgo biloba leaves

The tree, Ginkgo biloba (also known as maidenhair tree) has been called a living fossil. It is the last remaining living species of the order Ginkgoales which first appeared 290 million years ago. Fossils that are very similar to Ginkgo biloba appear in the middle Jurassic i.e. c.170 million years ago. The fan-shaped leaves of the tree are unique among trees today and are the easiest way of recognising it. If left unpruned the Ginkgo can grow to 50m tall and individuals are claimed to have live for 2,500 years. The tree's leaves turn to saffron yellow in autumn and it is this colour and the exclusive leaf shape that accounts for its popularity with gardeners.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon Z 5

Autumn cyclamen

In the corners of gardens and in church yards are there are currently pockets of pink - the autumn cyclamen are in flower. They are often in the place where spring crocuses flowered and the cyclamen might be taken for a last "hurrah" of summer. But I prefer to see them as an early sign of autumn because they are usually accompanied by dead leaves that have fallen from the sheltering trees.

photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon Z 5

Mallards Pike, Forest of Dean

Mallards Pike in the Forest of Dean is a small lake with nearby parking, a cafe and a tree climbing facility. The name seems to reference the ducks most commonly seen on the water and a type of fish that lurks beneath the surface. But apparently this isn't so. Mallard in this instance is a corruption of the surname Maller, the person who owned not only land in the area in the 1950s but specifically, a turnpike road and toll house. Maller's turnpike, in time, became Mallards Pike.

 photo © T. Boughen     Camera: iPhone

Water surface semi-abstract

There is often a disconnect between what the eye sees when looking at water and what the camera sees. This happens most frequently when a high shutter speed freezes the movement of water or a deliberately slow shutter speed blurs it. Today's example does neither of these things. Rather, the meniscus effect of leaves touching the water surface and the reflections are emphasised, revealing a quite pleasing semi-abstract effect that wasn't easy to see with the naked eye.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon P900

Autumn trees

I can't imagine what it is like to live in a place where there are no clearly defined seasons. For the photographer spring, summer, autumn and winter can offer the same subject clothed in different ways and so a simple walk in the woods can differ markedly depending on the time of year. Trees the colour of those above can only be seen in autumn. In winter they will offer their black skeletons, in spring fresh, light greens filtering the brighter skies, and in summer dense foliage will block much of the light reaching the forest floor.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: iPhone

Town Trail, Ross on Wye

In the 1960s a large section of Britain's railways network was declared surplus to need. The tracks that faced the axe were, in the main, rural lines or those where passenger traffic was sparse. The metal rails were taken up and the land on which they lay faced a number of new uses. One of the best was conversion into a public footpath and cycle track. Today's photograph was taken on one such at Ross on Wye, Herefordshire. Here the Town Trail passes along the edge of the built-up area and offers a quiet and leafy route fror walkers and cyclists.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: iPhone

Newent Lake

The small lake in the Gloucestershire market town of Newent was created from former medieval fish ponds as part of the grounds of Newent Court, a large house built c.1810. Much of this building was destroyed in a fire in 1942. Later, after it had been demolished to make way for housing, the lake and some surrounding land was given to Newent Town Council who developed it and now manage it as a public amenity. It is stocked with fish and large carp can readily be seen from the adjacent balustrade and other spots. Duck houses have been provided for use by the mallards that populate the lake. They can be seen in the distance of the photograph that was taken during a late afternoon in mid-November.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

Gilwern Hill and industrial landscapes

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The views of Gilwern Hill from the Blorenge are dominated by a telecommunications mast of the twentieth century and limestone quarries of the early nineteenth century and later. Tracks with man-made gentle inclines tell of horse-drawn tramway systems that moved the quarried stone. Dilapidated drystone walls mark out, as they have done for decades (probably centuries) improved grassland claimed from the heather and bracken. Old and derelict buildings and grassed over undulations can be seen, the latter the only remains of the village of Pwll-du that was demolished in the 1960s after the quarries closed and its inhabitants relocated to nearby valley villages including Govilon and Llanffwyst.

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Today the area offers walks for hikers as well as holidays and courses built around outdoor pursuits. On the day of our visit the cloud was rising from the hills and mountain tops but still lingered on distant Pen y Fan, the highest peak in the Brecon Beacons of south Wales.

photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Ross on Wye from Brampton Abbotts

The clarity of summer seemed to extend well into autumn this year but now that season's mist is regularly upon us. Hard outlines have become softened, strong colours muted and distant objects reduced to outlines. It's a time of year when I like to take landscape photographs with long lenses, stacking up the scene's layers in the image. Today's photograph shows a view of the town of Ross on Wye, with its prominent spire of St Mary, taken from near Brampton Abbotts church.

 photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Weather vane and autumn leaves

This weather vane has featured in one of my blog photographs before. It is on a building in Ross on Wye that was originally a church, then became an antiques shop and is now a collection of flats (apartments). I was drawn to the subject by its close visual juxtaposition with the top of a tree that had turned red for autumn.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Sony DSC-RX100

Autumnal silver birch

There are a number of striking trees in autumn - the lime trees with their yellow leaves, the beech with leaves that I suppose are orange but look like gold, and the acers seemingly capable of producing leaves of any colour or even any two colours. However, for subtlety the silver birch (Betula pendula) takes some beating. We came across this example as we walked home and the juxtaposition of the leaves and bark lit by the low sun was hard to resist.

 photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Two Hereford views revisited

There are photographers who, on principle, take a picture of a view or other subject once only. More common are those who revisit locations looking to get a better shot. Time of day, time of year, type of weather and other factors make such an undertaking quite rewarding. I'm firmly of the second camp. Here are two views in Hereford that I have posted once and photographed several times. The first shows a statue of Edward Elgar (with bicycle) looking at the cathedral. The second image features an interesting house called "The Fosse". Both take advantage of autumn leaves.

 photos © T. Boughen     Camera: iPhone

The brightest autumn leaves?

I imagine that if people were asked to name the leaves that produced the brightest colours in autumn most would mention the Acer, a tree that has been bred specifically to produce colourful leaves. However, this autumn, though I've photographed my share of Acers, I've also come across a leaf that could well be brighter than the brightest acer. I don't know the variety of Cotinus (also known as Smoke Bush) shown above, but I do know that its leaves "out-glow" most Acers. I came across this one growing behind a school fence, stretching towards the pavement seeking light.

 photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Walking disused railway lines

Disused railway lines can be found across much of Britain. The rise of the motor car led to fewer people using the railways and the politicians' answer to the problem of funding lightly used lines was to axe them. Many became cycle paths and footpaths. They were a welcome addition to the web of public rights of way, although they do have one disadvantage. Because they are straight or gently curved to accommodate trains, and have no sudden change of altitude or direction, they can be visually quite boring. Today's photograph shows dog walkers on a disused line near Ross on Wye, Herefordshire. This track stops where it used to cross the River Wye on a bridge (which is now gone): another drawback of disused railway lines.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

View from the Devil's Pulpit

The village of Tintern stands on the west(Welsh) bank of the River Wye where it cuts through a narrow valley. A bridge built for the now disused railway line takes a footpath across the river to the east (English) side where it begins its steep climb up to a limestone outcrop that holds a viewpoint called the Devil's Pulpit. From this vantage point Tintern with its ruins of a Cistercian abbey, made famous by a poem by William Wordsworth, can be clearly seen. Legend has it that the Devil used this place from which to taunt the monks below.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Lime and beech trees

Two of the most colourful native trees in an English autumn are the lime and the beech. Of the two, I would say that the lime is the most reliable, always changing its summer green for bright autmn yellow. Beech, to my mind, is somewhat less dependable in terms of depth of colour. But, in a good year its oranges and yellows outshines the lime by quite a margin. This year seems to have been a good one for the beech and this pairing of both lime and beech shows both trees off to great effect.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10