Looking through the window..
It was my intention to go out and take photographs this afternoon. Santa was very good to me this year and delivered a nice shiny new Nikkor 14-24 f2.8 super wide angle lens and I’ve been itching to test it but it has rained and rained and the rain keeps coming and if the rain has stopped for an afternoon, I’ve been unable to take advantage of those few hours of respite.
The ground is waterlogged, every drop of rain that falls runs off the land and into the ditches. From the ditches to the streams and from the streams to the flood plains of the rivers where developers have built houses because this was the only land available, or perhaps it was just cheap, meaning flood misery for thousands… In Cornwall, this isn’t so much of a problem, instead those deep depressions crossing the Atlantic, one after another, have whipped the seas into a fury and along with extra high tides, it has meant flood misery for thousands…
I’m lucky, the worst of it for me has been confinement to house or vehicle while pictures remain un-taken.. I thought I’d share my view of the world over the last couple of days. The first picture was taken from my lounge window. How sad the garden looks this time of year. Note to self, that wall really needs a coat of paint. The second, from my car, on location somewhere in mid-cornwall.. Such a dismal flat grey light..
On a technical note, I have been surprised and delighted with the depth of field achievable with this new lens. With the lens just 30cm or 12 inches from the glass, I have raindrops on the window and the trees in the far distance all in focus. Incredible.. Anyway, here are the pictures I have managed to take..
14mm f/22 1/2 sec. ISO-250
14mm f/11 1/80 sec. ISO-100
Oh and by the way, I’ve just built a new site, under my real name, for the purposes of creating a straightforward portfolio of some of my work. Your clicks (on the link below) would, as ever, be much appreciated. :)
Cornwall Photographic 
Reblogueó esto en Roberto Cabral.
January 27, 2014 at 6:26 pm
Reblogueó esto en " Una Voz en el Silencio ".
January 27, 2014 at 6:35 pm
Pictures are very good, it is amazing what some bad weather can do for photography! And by the way, you seem to have got all the precipitation we normally get (as snow). PS. Love your change of fonts, much easier to read now.
January 27, 2014 at 6:42 pm
Thank you Bente. I guess that’s a good thing for you, not so much snow, although not so good for the skiers I suppose.
January 27, 2014 at 6:51 pm
A very special feeling with rainy windows – not quite like you..or maybe it is? Congratulations on your exquisitely built new site as well. It’s always like opening a Christmas present coming to you – I know I will be overwhelmed when I finally open it!
January 27, 2014 at 6:52 pm
Thank you so much Anne Christine. That is such a lovely comment. :)
January 27, 2014 at 7:20 pm
I had rented that lens for the one and only wedding I shot (my sister-in-law’s wedding), and I too was really impressed. I was not impressed with the weight and bulk of it.
I’ve seen some spectacular shots taken with it, and maybe someday I’ll break down and splurge.
Meanwhile, I look forward to seeing what you can do with it.
January 27, 2014 at 7:09 pm
Thanks Emilio. You’re right of course, it is heavy and bulky and with the Lee Filter system attachment and 6″ ND grads, even more so. But, I am almost exclusively always using a tripod and once I’m set up, I tend not to move until I have my picture so this isn’t so much of a problem. I too am looking forward to seeing what I can do with it. ;-)
January 27, 2014 at 7:23 pm
That does look dreary indeed. I think you’ve taken all of our rain. Though today is looking a bit more encouraging. Looking for the new blog now. Perhaps I’ll have to quit calling you ‘Chilli’. :)
January 27, 2014 at 7:16 pm
Love the new site. Very well done, Adrian!
January 27, 2014 at 7:20 pm
Thank you Gunta and thank you for looking. Always means a great deal to me. :-)
January 27, 2014 at 7:28 pm
Thank you Gunta and please don’t, I would hate for you to stop calling me Chilli. :)
January 27, 2014 at 7:24 pm
Beautiful new site Adrian! Congratulations! Can I add it to my web links?
January 27, 2014 at 8:49 pm
Yes please do Chris. Thank you.
January 27, 2014 at 8:58 pm
It is done, my pleasure. Any other links you would like?
January 27, 2014 at 9:07 pm
No thank Chris. That’s great, much appreciated.
January 27, 2014 at 9:40 pm
k
January 27, 2014 at 9:43 pm
I don’t like the rain, but I do love the photos, especially the first one, quite refreshing.
Love the new site, Adrian, it’s clean, uncluttered and easy on the eyes.
January 27, 2014 at 9:17 pm
Thank you Gracie. Much appreciated.
January 27, 2014 at 9:40 pm
Well done.You don’t have good luck with the weather. Next time better!
January 27, 2014 at 10:40 pm
I hope so Lou, thank you. :-)
January 27, 2014 at 10:46 pm
Hi, we are having the same grey sort of days over here across the Irish Sea. Dismal !
I rather like your first picture though, the one out the window of the house.
I was up in Drogheda on Sunday (about 30 K north of Dublin) The town a total mess, (typically Irish chaos and neglect) yet still full of wonderful old architecture, from Romanesque and Medieval onwards. Was grey all day and raining half of it, including one monsoon-like downpour. But at one stage, some direct light got through,
and even though (or perhaps because) the sky was still so full of moisture, the light was zinging around every-which way, in the most unusual and magical manner.
Just then of course, the dam battery on my camera went.
But you’ve captured some of that quality above.
Great post. and keep up the great work.
-Arran.
January 27, 2014 at 11:24 pm
Thank you Arran. I know just the kind of light you are talking about and it’s what landscape photographers get very wet and cold waiting for. Sorry to hear you camera battery quit on you. Drogheda sounds like somewhere I’d really like to visit. :)
January 28, 2014 at 5:45 pm
You scored this Christmas, Adrian!
January 28, 2014 at 1:18 am
I did Marina, Thank you! :-)
January 28, 2014 at 5:46 pm
Your new site is stunning, Adrian. I’ve just been browsing through it, and your passion for all things Cornwall, really shines through your photography.
I hope you get some drier weather soon, to try out your lovely new toy, but the two rainy shots are lovely, especially the first one. What a great view from your window!. :)
January 28, 2014 at 2:19 am
Thank you Sylvia. That is very kind. :)
January 28, 2014 at 5:46 pm
Your new new site is quite beautiful. We are also having rain misery of the opposite sort — less than 3″ of rain in the past 13 months.
January 28, 2014 at 4:10 am
Thank you very much MK. Sorry to hear about your drought problems. The world’s weather is definitely in a real mess.
January 28, 2014 at 5:47 pm
I love the new site to show off your talents, Adrian. Superb DOF on the new lens, but the weather continues to be so grim. I had a dry day last week in London – to see colour and feel the slight warmth of the sun’s rays makes me yearn for Spring.
January 28, 2014 at 8:57 am
Thank you Andy, I really very much appreciate that. Glad you enjoyed a dry day in London. It really is the colour I miss but with snowdrops in my garden, I know Spring is not too far off now.. Lets hope the weather will be Spring-like.
January 28, 2014 at 5:49 pm
Splendid catch of real weather. A real blast!
January 28, 2014 at 9:17 am
Thank you Simon!
January 28, 2014 at 5:30 pm
Amazing clarity with that lens ChillB … roll on a break in this awful weather so you can just get out there and do what you love to do .
I had good look for those super sized leeks in the raised bed there – but perhaps they are hiding under the thatch ;-)
Congratulations on the lovely new website – quick and easy to navigate around to all my favourites !
January 28, 2014 at 11:16 am
Thank you so much Poppy. Ahh now the leeks, they reside round the back by the greenhouse. The raised bed is just a mess of weeds. A nice place for all the slugs to spend the winter, ready for them to wreak havoc on anything I try and plant in there (other than the leeks which they clearly don’t like) in the Spring. ;-)
January 28, 2014 at 5:51 pm
Brilliant surprises!
January 28, 2014 at 6:29 pm
Thank you Elena! :)
January 28, 2014 at 8:56 pm
There’s nothing like not getting our ‘fix’ to push our creativity :)
We live on the edge of a floodplain and I’m seeing my local patch in a whole new light – some great new opportunities :)
Will have a look at your website tomorrow with a little more time. Is there something in the air – or is it all the rain making us revamp our sites?!
January 28, 2014 at 7:09 pm
I think it’s these long dark winter nights Noeline and with Spring in the offing (hopefully) it’s a good time to have a make-over. I decided on the Portfolio site simply because several people have asked to see examples of my work, it’s good to have somewhere to send them uncluttered with the commercial side of things. :-)
January 28, 2014 at 8:59 pm
Sure looks like the new lens is doing a great job for you. Terrific image quality even though they are window shots.
January 28, 2014 at 11:57 pm
Nothing will stop a passionate photographer from taking photos. I love the colours you have captured through the window, and the ultra sharp raindrops
January 29, 2014 at 8:46 am
Thank you so much! :)
January 29, 2014 at 6:59 pm
Quite beautiful and you haven’t even left your confines yet! I can’t wait to see what is waiting for us next. I am now anxious to go exploring on your new site. Congratulations!
January 30, 2014 at 3:08 am
Thank you. Thank you very much! :)
January 30, 2014 at 8:50 am
Rain can provide also very nice photographs!
January 30, 2014 at 9:41 am
It can indeed Isabel, Thank you. :)
January 30, 2014 at 1:52 pm
I like the painterly effect of the first photo.
January 30, 2014 at 2:01 pm
Thank you! :-)
January 30, 2014 at 2:11 pm