January is always a bit of an odd month for most of us. Friends and family are so busy giving up, working out or staying in that those of us who just want to get on with the new, can sometimes find ourselves a bit bored or isolated. During these times, it is best to find things to keep me active, otherwise I start thinking… never a good thing for me.
And so to Sunday, after a nice afternoon out in Brighton with the boys, I found myself up stoopid o’clock this morning and thoroughly bored out of my mind by 10am. It was about at this point that an idea started to form, I am always a danger when I am not hungover.
One of my goals for this weekend was to take a walk out to Battersea Park an hour or so before sunset. In the middle of the park is an old bandstand, with a long pathway either side moving east to west. I reckon, with the right light at the right time of day, there is the potential to get some really very nice shots.
But, how important, really is the light? I have read a lot about how a great photography can create lovely images making use of whatever light is available. With post processing techniques these days, I must be able to get a good shot at any time of day right? Well, this was the idea that sprang to mind this morning. Why not, head out to the park mid way through the day, take some photos when the light is normal, then return during that oh so respected golden hour, and see what happens.
I will admit at this point, my second trip of the day was somewhat shorter than the first. This has a lot to do with the considerable drop in temperature outside. It was ‘taters’, as they say. Still a few photos were taken, and I’ll be honest. I found it difficult to tell the difference in quality of light. The one thing that was evident was, it was noticeably darker. This gave me the chance to play a little more with longer exposures. I had anticipated this, and made use of my tripod.
The first 6 photos below were taken during the lunchtime visit, the final 3 in the evening. I’d love to hear your thoughts, on whether you think the “golden hour” light has indeed made any difference to the quality of what is below.
The 3 images below are from the evening session.
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