Summer Solstice in Devon
In this blog post, I share my Summer Solstice Landscape Photography in Devon video. Join me as I head to two classic Devon locations, Dawlish Warren beach and Dartmoor, and take images either end of the longest day.
Summer Solstice Plan
I'm always thinking about what my next YouTube video will be about. I keep all these ideas in a notebook so that when I'm looking for a fresh idea I have some inspiration. I was looking through the list the other day and I spotted something that I had added some time ago. The idea was relatively straightforward. On the day of the summer solstice, I would shoot one dawn photo and one sunset photo.
With sunrise on the day being around 5 am I needed to go somewhere local. I like to get to a location 1 hour before actual sunrise so wherever I was going to be I would need to be there for 4 am. Now, I like getting up in the morning as much as the next landscape photographer, but even I was going to struggle to get up that early in the morning!
So I looked at my custom Google locations map and spotted a favourite local location, Dawlish Warren beach. Sure I would still need to get up at 3:15 am, but the weather forecast was good and the sun would rise from a direction that would give me some good light (hopefully).
For the sunset location, I would also need to go somewhere local. I knew that when I returned from Dawlish Warren beach that I would still have the school run to do, then a full day of work, and then I had some family commitments. In all likelihood, it would be nearly 8 pm before I headed out. Even with sunset being around 9:30 pm, that didn't leave me a lot of time to get somewhere. To be honest, even if I was able to get out earlier I didn't want to have a big drive to do when I'd already been up since 3:15 am!
I'm really fortunate that I live near Dartmoor so this seemed like a great place to go. I was thinking about going to Bowerman's Nose, but as I had just recently shot a video there, I decided that a good option would be Emsworthy Tor. Though Dartmoor would be busy in the evening with people watching the summer solstice sunset, Emsworthy Tor is a little bit further off the beaten track so should be a little quieter. It's a classic Dartmoor location and if I were to get some good evening light I could be onto a winner.
So how did I get on? Let's take a look at the video:
As I said in the video you can take a look at the images (plus a couple of bonus ones) in a bit more detail below.
Dawlish Warren
5:12 am, Nikon D750, Nikkor 16-35 f/4 @ 30mm, ISO 100, 4 seconds, f/13, Lee Filters Circular Polariser.
5:41 am, Nikon D750, Nikkor 16-35 f/4 @ 19mm, ISO 100, 30 seconds, f/13, Lee Filters Circular Polariser and Little Stopper.
Emsworth Tor
9:14 pm, Nikon D750, Nikkor 16-35 f/4 @ 24mm, ISO 100, 0.8 seconds, f/13, Lee Filters Circular Polariser.
9:22 pm, Nikon D750, Nikkor 16-35 f/4 @ 18mm, ISO 100, 1 second, f/13, Lee Filters Circular Polariser.
I hope you enjoyed watching the video and looking at the images. Did you go out for Summer Solstice to do some photography? What's the earliest you've ever got up in the morning to take a photo? What's the latest time you've seen the sunset? Let me know in the comments below.
My Favourite / Top 5 / Best Landscape Photography Locations in Devon
In this special blog post and video I take you on a mini tour of my 5 favourite landscape photography locations in Devon.
A Personal Selection
As a landscape photographer living in Devon I am spoilt for choice when it comes to shooting locations. I have access to Dartmoor National Park, large areas of the South West Coast Path, and everything in between. I shouldn't really ever run out of places to shoot.
Even though I have all this variety I can't help but have a few favourite locations. So in this video I'm going to take you on a mini tour of my five favourite locations to shoot landscapes in Devon. I've chosen a mixture of coastal and inland locations as well as choosing to shoot at dawn and dusk. Some shoots were more successful than others but I'm hoping the video will give you some ideas and inspire you to visit and photograph those locations yourself.
So why not check out the video below and let me take you on a tour of Devon...
If you need a little more information on the locations I have visited or just want to see the images in a bit more detail then please do read on!
Dawlish Warren
The groynes along the beach at Dawlish Warren offer some great lines for your composition. Long exposures often work well at this location as well, especially in poor light.
Don't forget to shoot the beach huts.
Venford Falls
Venford Falls as shot on the video. A polariser is very handy to control the reflections.
Spring is my favourite time to visit as all the moss is at its best.
Emsworthy
Both the rocks and the tree are great elements to include in your composition. This location is good to shoot at both dawn and dusk.
Turn 90 degrees and you'll find a few other compositions to shoot.
Froward Point
Shooting at sunset will typically provide the best light but what ever time you visit please be careful on the rocks!
If you've got good light shoot Daymark Tower as well.
Start Point
The classic Start Point composition. Shame about the weather!
Sometimes it pays to hang around a little longer. There is just a splash of colour in the sky in this image.
In Summary
Hopefully this video and blog post has given you a little inspiration to not only shoot these locations, but also the wider Devon. It really is a fantastic part of the country with huge variety in locations and conditions.
So what are you favourite locations either in Devon or further afield? Did you find this video useful or inspiring? Is there a location in Devon or the south west that you recommend I visit? As always let me know if the comments, and remember to like and share this post! See you next time.
Remember to Look Around
It's all to easy to concentrate on the scene in front of you, but as I discovered there can be a lot going on just behind you.
Photographing An Old Friend
I don't know about you but I have a few places on my location map that are easy to get to and provide a variety of angles to shoot from. So when the weather forecast for last Tuesday was a bit 50/50 for a good sunset I thought I'd go somewhere I know so that if it fails to be spectacular I won't have spent a significant amount of effort getting there.
How I saw the scene last year.
Heading down to my target location of Emsworthy Rocks just down from Haytor I was still confident that I was going to get a good shot. I decided to shoot the rocks and tree from a position that I hadn't used before. My plan was to have my back to the setting sun so that the tree and rocks would be bathed in golden light. There wasn't going to be much going on in the sky so I positioned the main elements higher up in the frame leaving some of the ground rock formations in the foreground.
Playing the Waiting Game
I went through all my normal checks for exposure and sharpness and then waited with the remote release for that magic moment where the colour would bath my subject in glorious golden light.
This is the scene I came to shoot but the light and sky just weren't what I wanted.
Well some time passed and I had shot a few frames but the scene just lacked a bit of punch. In my focus on the scene in front of me I'd failed to look to see what else was going on. It's all too easy to go out with a singular focus on what you want to achieve but this can sometimes mean you'll miss something a bit more special. I was convinced that my target scene would come good. However I casually turned 90 degrees to my right and was presented with a much more interesting scene. The light on the rocks was much more pleasing and the sky had a bit more interest about it.
Change of Plans
On the same spot as the last image but 90 degrees to the right.
I pondered if I should go to the hassle of changing my composition and moving my tripod (which had taken bit of setup to balance on the rock I was perched on). I knew I would regret it if I didn't at least try so I repositioned the tripod, got a Lee Filters ND 0.9 medium grad out and shot a few frames of this new scene.
I did go back to shooting a few frames of my original composition but I already knew that I'd grabbed the best shot I was going to get that night. So what did I learn from this particular adventure? Don't get too focused on one scene or shooting a particular direction. The landscape, particularly the wilds of Dartmoor, are wide open spaces and the light can look very different simply by looking a different direction from the same point. I was committed to getting the image in my head but I almost missed a much better one.
Have you had a similar experience? Have you looked round to find a much better shot or do you remain focused on what is in front of you? Let me know in the comments.