Night photography of the River Hull
Thought I’d get closer in on this construction, what surprised me was how much the sky changed. I was working at dusk, because I wanted detail in the sky, but that window of opportunity doesn’t last very lon
This is part of the industrial area next to the river Hull in East Yorkshire.
I didn’t feel particularly safe doing this session. You’re in the middle of nowhere where all the buildings are part brightly lit and the rest very much in shadow.
I’d passed this way in late December when it had been foggy, and thought the whole thing very atmospheric.
No fog this night, but perhaps next time.Hull by night
The Navigli Milano
This was St Valentine’s night, and most of the streets seemed very quiet. Romantic night in I guess, but it did lend a different atmosphere to what is already a very interesting area.
I do like the guy walking, he gives a sense of scale as well as loneliness – or maybe he’s on his way to his girl.
Interiors : Milano
This is part of an on-going series of bar life. So where’s the ‘life’ you are probably asking?
I agree it is a bit bleak, but then I like it.
Edward Hopper is one of my favourite painters, I like to feel he would find this subject interesting.
The girl who never smiled : Cape Town bar Milano
I’d seen this young woman around the Navigli area of Milan, she was very striking, but I never saw her smile, not the once.
She came into the Cape Town bar, a very lively place to be, the bar owner Sergio makes it his business to know everyone else’s whilst dispensing lethal size glasses of excellent wine.
I came back to Milan on another trip and tried to find the girl, I did, she was talking to a waiter, she smiled; and the place lit up.
The girl in the yellow trousers : Navigli Milano
The girl in the bar was very striking, to look at and so were the yellow trousers. There was a practical reason for them however, we’d had a series of downpours in Milan, where sometimes if it decides to rain heavily it can do a spectacular job.
I’m very proud of this shot – it’s in focus.
I’d spent the late hours prowling round the bars of Milan like Dracula, looking for interesting subjects, then in the last bar I saw these glasses.
This is a hand held shot using available light.
A case of being able to hold your drink as well as a camera.
Tea Dance France
This place was a find.
A small town on the Normandy coast with a Casino. I always thought Casino meant gambling, and it does, but it also means a place of music and dance.
In the afternoon this room was given over to a Tea dance.
Everywhere I looked there was a photograph desperate to be taken, the only problem being the lack of light, and a wish not to be seen as so crass as to try any obvious photography.
A cable release gave me a lot of failures and a couple of gems.
Bar in Via Savona
This must be one of the darkest bars I’ve ever taken photographs in. When I asked the girls if I could take their photographs they said “Fine” – then completely ignored me – something I’ve grown used to over the years.
The last of the light
I’d spent a frustrating time trying to photograph Morston Quay one glorious afternoon.
At the end of the day I had nothing to show for my efforts. On the way home I stopped for one last look at the sky and the sea. The sun had already set, but this was the view.
I needed a fifteen minute exposure, which I estimated is just enough time to listen to the Archers. I sat in the car while the exposure took place.
The result I thought was stunning, which just goes to show you should never give up.
The view to Cromer
I find the cliffs of Norfolk difficult to photograph, I prefer rock,granite, chalk, anything other than what this stretch of the coast has to offer.
But things are changing, especially with the scourings the North Sea produced last year.
I’ve seen some terrific patterns and textures in newly uncovered cliff faces.
And here I was caught off guard. The early morning light and the wet sands produced a remarkable effect.
Mussel beds Hunstanton
I camped overnight and was on the beach at 4.30 am with the intention of photographing the rock formations on the shore. Instead I saw these shapes in the distance.
The rights to these mussel beds go back a long time.
The LeStrange family, after the Norman Conquest were granted the fishing rights to this part of the coast in perpetuity. The area is defined by how far a man at low tide can ride a horse into the sea and throw a spear – good stuff isn’t it, our history.
The streaming sky
The cloud formation was stunning.
I loved the way everything raced to the horizon. Even the sea was reluctant to
come ashore.
I used a slow shutter speed to slow down what were very slow moving waves, to produce something that would compete with that sky.
American Dream
I called this photograph ‘American Dream’, because to me it feels for all the world like a shot taken in some one horse town in America; it’s actually Bawdsey a Suffolk fishing village. The old timer turned up in his car and I guess bought some fish, then he was gone.
I love the leaning pole, and no the driver didn’t hit it.
This is a tri-tone print which I think adds to the atmosphere.
A white wall
Photographing waves is not as easy as you may think.
Mostly you press the shutter just a tad too early, or too late. And always the waves look better further along the beach, never where you’re standing.
I used a tritone print process to add depth to the image.
Sea horses
A sea mist had been hovering
for a few hours, threatening to disappear, but then returning as dense and mysterious as before.
Riders appeared from no where, moved along the coast and then were gone.
The walker with the dog added a strange perspective to the whole event.
The surfer The white cliffs of Norfolk
I couldn’t believe the cliffs along this stretch of the coast were so white. The early morning light really made a dramatic difference. I’ve been back since at different times of the day, and you could quite easily walk past this spot and never guess this was were the photograph was taken.‘The surfer’ towards Cromer The white cliffs of Norfolk
Quiet woods
You can become seriously hot and bothered lugging your photographic gear around the countryside even if it is freezing cold. You can end up struggling along just looking at your feet. The trick is to periodically, stop, look – and listen.
White beach huts France
The beach huts along the Normandy coast seem to follow their own dress code. A previous town sported pastel shades, here they favoured white. It is a remarkable sight with a slightly unreal quality.
See the other gallery for some different views of this subject.White beach huts Normandy
Breaking the waves No1
It’s not often that I’m at the right spot at the right time.
Known as ‘Scoop’ Morris I’m often seen to arrive with all my gear just after the great event.
Here I was lucky. The tide needs to be at the right level for the waves to break like this.
It’s surprisingly difficult to get the right composition.
Here a cable release proved to be really useful in allowing me to spot incoming rollers.
The long reach
I had to use a very tall flimsy step ladder to get this shot from the top of the cliff.
It was breezy, and it was a fine judgement as to where I would land if the ladder fell over – the top of the cliff or the bottom.
Because of the breeze and the long
exposure, very few shots worked.
This one did, and I really liked the fine tracery made by the retreating tide.
email: dmbandb@hotmail.com : telephone: 01263 517118 all images copyright David Morris