2017 in general has been a much quieter year for me when it comes to photography. I have learned so much and struggled to find the time to be able to express it in all the right ways. I have found that there are a only a few local areas that consistently tie in with the sort of work that I like to explore, and the locations which represent the style of photography that I like to develop. Holme Fen is one of those areas.
Every year, I like to spend some time visiting and capturing the seasonal transition that happens there. It's like nowhere else in Cambridgeshire, and perhaps the UK too, considering the size of the birch woodland. The green ferns and silvery birch create a beautiful contrast that I can't seem to find anywhere else. The bright silver bark contrasting against the dark, shadowy and deep greens results in some interesting shots due to how the information is captured. You can almost remove the background entirely if you exposed just to the silver birch in the right light. It is a technique that this one unique area of woodland has taught me.
This year, I have been looking throughout the different parts of the woodland reserve. Not much has changed, but I have managed to find a few new fallen trees, which I'm planning on shooting a series of at some point as well. I just need to find a few more. The colours work so well. The greens turn yellow to brown, the birch, forever silver and purple in the highlights, with the birch leaves turning a pale yellow and falling quickly. It's the perfect epitome of Autumn. 10 minutes of walking through the woodland and you get this incredible array of senses triggering, from the marshy soil rich ground, the scattered mushrooms of all types and varieties to the large bodies of water that offer refuge for the birds that migrate from all over the UK. It truly is a place of sights, smells and sounds. Autumn is the best time of year to visit. During the October / early November transition, you won't find another place quite like it. Something that Cambridgeshire does sometimes lack, is variety, and Holme Fen is like a gem within a very flat, field and hedge dominated landscape.
As an added bonus, one of my pictures taken this year has been featured in one of my most respected and favourite online publications, If You Leave. I have been a huge fan of the work they do and the people they share for so long, and to be a part of what they do was incredibly touching. You can buy a print of my work from them, and many others, by following this link to their site.
You can find my full write-up on my website here.
Camera: Canon EOS 70D
Lenses: Canon 70-200mm f/4.0, Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8
Location: Holme Fen National Nature Reserve, Cambridgeshire UK. (You may find out more on the Great Fen website)
Date: 10/2017 to 11/2017
Lenses: Canon 70-200mm f/4.0, Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8
Location: Holme Fen National Nature Reserve, Cambridgeshire UK. (You may find out more on the Great Fen website)
Date: 10/2017 to 11/2017
