Rainy Shopping in the Hull

The wet conditions on Friday gave some great photographic opportunities with the lights from the shops etc  reflecting on pavements and the umbrellas.

Blacktoft Sands Landscapes

A few images of the landscape etc of Blacktoft Sands which lies on the south bank of the River Ouse, where the waterway widens to become the Humber Estuary. Reedbed covers much of the site and this is England's largest intertidal reedbed. There are six shallow saline lagoons with hides, an area of grazing marsh and a small area of mudflat. Scrub between the hides attracts a great variety of warblers and a thriving colony of tree sparrows.

Grand Day Out in Scarborough

Yesterday, we decided on a day at the seaside and travelled by bus to Scarborough. As Barry and Sue were unfamiliar with the town, I introduced them to my favourite part - South Bay and the Spa Complex. It was originally built around the source of Scarborough's spa waters, discovered in the 17th Century, but has been rebuilt many times as a result of flooding, fire etc. The present buildings built in the 1870s have undergone rennovations in two phases, a 40 week £2.9m renovation in 2007 followed by a major £4.9m refurbishment in 2010-2011.The complex now includes a 2,000 capacity Spa Grand Hall, 600 seat Victorian theatre and smaller Spa Ocean Room for dances, conferences and other events. A £13.453 million scheme to stabilise the cliffs behind the Spa complex is now underway!
Other areas of South Bay await rennovation such as the toilets, sunbathing deck and undercliff areas but make great photographic studies.
During the afternoon, we walked slowly long the beach and by the time we reached the harbour, the rain clouds had gathered.

Fountains Abbey, Yorkshire 2

A few colour images from my walk at Fountain's Abbey on Thursday, trying to find a few different views, starting with a Polypody fern and Jelly Ear fungus. The oranges. pinks and reds in the sandstone blocks that comprise the Abbey showed up well in the sunlight.

 

Fountain's Abbey in Infrared

Yesterday's sunshine and a walk at Fountain's Abbey suited infrared photogaphy, here converted directly to monochrome. The very many visitors seemed to fit well into the scenes in infrared. Although sunny, it certainly wasn't spring warmth and I was glad of my gloves.