Misty

I've never really taken photographs in heavy mist before, so when I went over to Southampton common this weekend it was with somewhat mixed results. The three pictures below are fairly representative though - very drained colours, detail lost in the background, but with the opportunity for some interesting effects.

Photographing this path from the middle of nowhere allowed me to get a lovely, strong line. I don't do an awful lot of black and white shooting, but the colours in this scene were so muted that I felt they only served to distract from the other elements. I especially like the way that the perspective draws the eye towards the couple on the path - you move from the distant, blurred background down the path to reach them in perfect clarity. This picture, for me, is all about the way that mist wraps around you, and leaves you in your own little world.


The boy with the scooter walked into my frame just as I'd composed a fairly boring picture of the tree on the far side of the lake. This was another picture I tried in black and white too, but I love the way his red jumper contrasts with the rest of the scene. It'd be nice if it was a bit brighter, but unfortunately he didn't have my dress sense! He looks so curious, but I have no idea what it was he saw in the lake...whatever it was, he went looking for it at just the right time for this shot. 

My final picture for the day is from a little bit further around the lake. I've got a nice series of this coot moving across the picture, getting steadily more and more interesting as the wake from behind him fans out. My favourite thing about this one, though, is the hint of red in the bush on the far side and its reflection in the water. It just lends a little bit of sparkle to an otherwise very grey shot. Last autumn that bush was a bold, brilliant red, but the mist saps the colour dramatically. Even so, it makes an atmospheric backdrop to the coot, who stands out as the only element not reflected in both the top and the bottom of the picture. He was one of the few moving, "dynamic" things I saw on an otherwise still, timeless day.

We've definitely reached the modern day now, so I'll try to get out there with my camera a bit more this week. I've got a lot of work at the moment though, so you might have to put up with an archive shot next time!

J