A Day Out to Kynance Cove in Cornwall
Deep into Cornwall
During the spring and summer months, you’ll often find me making journeys down the A30 into Cornwall. With the increased number of daylight hours that these seasons provide I can venture further into Cornwall and explore the nooks and crannies of this most beautiful part of the South West Coast Path.
Even with those longer days, getting deep into the south-west corners of Cornwall for landscape photography is still a challenge for me. Well, I say it’s a challenge, but the biggest problem is with me and my willingness to travel that far. It’s a case of risk vs reward. With some locations being 2 to 2.5 hours drive, I have to be very certain that the effort (and cost) or driving there is going to yield worthwhile results. Unfortunately, the weather forecast is rarely that concrete.
A Winter Excursion
Saying all that though, sometimes all you need is a bit of extra encouragement. In this case, it came from a good friend of mine who also happens to be a photographer. He was also looking to do some exploration of the south-west area of Cornwall so when he suggested we head down towards Kynance Cove one day in December I jumped at the chance. Even if the photography turned out to be poor it would be a fantastic opportunity to catch up with a mate.
Dawn
After a long drive in the dark, I met my friend in the Kynance Cove car park. We chatted through our car windows (UK tiering restrictions were in place at the time) and wondered if we had done the right thing coming all this way. It was cold and wintery and neither of us fancied getting out of our nice warm cars.
This reluctance to get out of the car didn’t last long though and soon enough we were walking along the South West Coast path to find the first of our photography viewpoints.
Kynance Cove #1, Cornwall - Nikon Z7, Nikkor Z 24-70 f/4 at 29mm, f8, 4 sec at ISO 64, Kase Filters K9 CPL and ND.
The views were stunning, but the conditions less so. The wind and rain I can cope with, but flat grey light is always a challenge. That’s not to say you can’t get a photograph in those conditions, but you do have to work that bit harder to make it work. I’m not sure I managed it with that first image.
Kynance Cove #2, Cornwall - Nikon Z7, Nikkor Z 24-70 f/4 at 34mm, f11, 1 sec at ISO 64, Kase Filters K9 CPL.
I much prefer the result of the second photograph. Though the photograph would benefit from light and some interest in the cloud, the drama of the sea as it crashes around the coastline make for a pleasing image.
With no sign of the weather improving, we continued to explore the area making notes of any viewpoints that we might want to return to that day or at a later date.
Daytime
Landscape photography is demanding work!
After any dawn shoot, there is nothing better than grabbing a cooked breakfast and a cup of coffee and that is exactly what we did when we drove onwards to Lizard. As we ate breakfast, we discussed what we might do next and which other locations we might explore. As this was December, we didn’t have many daylight hours to work with so the more we discussed it the more we decided to keep it simple.
As we were in Lizard it seemed sensible to head to Lizard Point to see what we could see. We had a good walk about the area but couldn’t get inspired so decided to head to one of the cafes and have an oversized piece of cake!
The more we discussed what to do next, the more it became apparent that we should head back to Kynance Cove. The time between 2 pm and sunset would soon fly by and we felt it was best not trying to cram too many locations in and find ourselves in a hurry.
Kynance Cove #3, Cornwall - Nikon Z7, Nikkor Z 24-70 f/4 at 31mm, f8, 1.3 sec at ISO 64, Kase Filters K9 CPL.
Returning to Kynance Cove around 1;30pm I captured the image above and as it turns out, my favourite of the day. Though shooting in the middle of the day is rarely my favourite time, the combination of light, movement in the seas and the big clouds in the sky make it my favourite photograph of the day. I was glad we had returned to Kynance Cove and things were looking positive for sunset.
Sunset
Sunset was fast approaching when moved further south down the coast to see what else we might photograph. The conditions were more favourable than those we experienced at dawn, and despite some dramatic skies, I did find myself struggling.
Kynance Cove #4, Cornwall - Nikon Z7, Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4 at 14mm, f13, 4 sec at ISO 64, Kase Filters K9 CPL and ND.
I’m relatively pleased with the image above. The side light from the setting sun has added depth to the foreground, and there is an impressive storm cloud in the sky, but for me, the image is lacking something. Perhaps it has too much contrast or there simply isn’t a strong focal point. Maybe it’s an image I need more time with. Not all photographs are instant winners!
Kynance Cove #5, Cornwall - Nikon Z7, Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4 at 24mm, f13, 2 sec at ISO 64, Kase Filters K9 CPL.
I have similar feelings and reservations about the last of my photographs as well. It’s not a bad photo but I feel it is lacking something that would make it a great photo.
As the sun set, we packed up, walked back to the car park, and discussed the day. For me, it was a difficult day. Sometimes you go out with the camera and you know as soon as you take a photograph that you will be happy with the result. Other times like on this trip, it isn’t until you process a few images that you realise that you managed to capture a couple of good images. That image I captured during the day was the saving image of the day. I was pleasantly surprised by that one.
Overall, though, I had a fantastic day. Exploring Kynance Cove was a joy, but what made the day was spending time with a mate chatting, eating, and drinking. If I hadn’t had the company of a friend I don’t think I would have spent the drive home feeling it had been a good day out. Landscape photography can be a solitary past time, but never underestimate the power of company to turn a challenging day into a fun day.