James, Author at Grays Life

Back to Penarth Pier

I’ve photographed it many times before, but wanted to get one last go at taking some digital pictures, as the only ones I have up till now are on film and scanned. So this was a planned shoot that I made this morning. Step 1, was knowing what the tide was doing. I looked it up on the BBC Tide Tables, and found the next tide that would be low around the same time as the start of ‘Blue Hour’. Low tide this morning was about 3:25am, and that was enough to know that I’d be able to get a shot of the stones on the beach, like the one above. Then, using the Photopills App, I knew that the Blue Hour would be starting around 4:15am. So I arrived at the beach about 3:50am and used my head torch to guide me across the rocks and into position…

Then, the next hour or so flew by, as I took one picture after another. The exposures were around f16-22 for up to 30 seconds. I was using my Sony A7iii together with a new Zeiss Loxia 21mm manual lens, which I am really pleased with. It is the easiest lens to focus and has a satisfying weight to it, as it is all glass/metal construction. It also makes amazing star lights on the lamp posts and lights.

The views out to sea were just as spectacular, and the light was a mix of reds and light greys. I was happy to see some clouds as there is just the hint of movement in the 30 seconds or so that the shutter was open.

Sunrise over the Bristol Channel at Penarth Pier

All the images were post-processed using CaptureOne.

Penarth Pier is about 20 minutes drive from Cardiff city centre in South Wales. Using ‘What-Three-Words’ the location of these images were around this point – https://what3words.com/deals.wide.author

25 Years On – Secret Station by Eilis O’Connell

Photography

Secret Station in Black and White — Secret Station in black and white soon after it was constructed in 1997

Updated: February 14th, 2022.

Secret Station, a Cardiff landmark from 1992 when Cardiff Bay Arts Trust commissioned artist Eilis O’Connell to design a monument for the gateway into the Cardiff Bay redevelopment project. The project transformed the bay area from an industrial wasteland into a permanent lake fronted by bars, clubs and restaurants and hotels and put Cardiff on the map at the turn of the Millennium as one of the UK’s up and coming cities.

Made using bronze, fibre optic light, and steam, which stopped working a long time ago, the landmark boosted the entrance to one of the main routes into Cardiff Bay and was an imposing sight.

For more than a few years now, though, Secret Station has stood derelict and gradually stripped of its bronze/copper skin, leaving it now standing naked and fully exposed to the elements. The inner workings were visible, which, when initially built, would puff out smoke/steam to passing traffic. Those days are gone, the smoke machine having long given up the ghost, but the structure still stands, although for how long, who knows?

Initially, I photographed Secret Station as part of a City and Guilds project for a Ffotogallery photography project on Cardiff Bay, a couple of years following construction. I wanted it to be in black and white and a long exposure of a couple of seconds to capture light trails from passing traffic. This was taken around the same time as my photographs of the Norwegian Church and St David’s Hotel.

In 1992 this was shot on a Hasselblad 501 with an 80mm Zeiss lens on Ilford Delta 100ASA black and white film. I developed this in the Ffotogallery darkrooms and printed it on Ilford fibre-based paper.

Lately, I’ve been using the PhotoPills app to better plan my photography. It has a fantastic amount of data on times of sun, moon, milky-way rises, and settings, plus you can plan ahead of time to see what time you need to be there to catch the perfect photograph.

Photographing this a second time, I used a Sony A7 iii with Voigtlander Nokton 40mm lens @ f16 for about 8 seconds.

Since posting this update, I reached out to Eilis O’Connell through my Instagram, and she graciously replied. With her permission, I’ve posted the replies here on my blog. It is such a shame that Cardiff Council have let this treasure fall into disrepair. See the comments below.

Link to artist’s page: Eilis O’Connell

Kodak High-Speed Infrared Film Landscapes

Photography

In the 1990s & 2000s, black and white was my preferred film, which I photographed regularly on. I had a book that i referenced a lot in those early days on landscapes, and in it there were a couple of images taken on infrared high speed film. I had bought a room of this film from Kodak – Kodak HIE Infrared Film, which was at the time fairly easy to get hold of.

Kodak High-Speed Infrared Film Landscapes

Another time I used Ilford SFX, which was more forgiving than the Kodak film. The Kodak wasn’t very easy to use, you have to load it in complete darkness and not leave your camera any place warm otherwise you’d fog the negatives. So it was definitely a case of loading on the day that you’d want to shoot with it, then get it out of the camera and into the dark room. At the time, I was using a shared darkroom so I knew that I would be developing this myself, rather than sending it away. Up until then, I kept the film in the fridge.

Once it was in the camera I headed out to a place not far from Cardiff, Nash Point, as the weather was looking stormy and I thought I might get lucky with some angry looking clouds with the lighthouse in the background. I was in for a bit of a treat as the sky was perfect for infrared pictures. The summer sky was deep blue with the whitest clouds, and behind a was storm coming in.

Focusing IR film is different to regular film, and in those days my camera had a small orange mark on the lens barrel, which wass the point that you’d focus at. I.e., find the right focus for the picture, then twist it back slightly to the marker. This is all because IR travels on different wavelengths that are shorter/longer than regular light/film. Also, there is no ISO on this film, so exposures are guess work. From memory, the trick was to set the camera up at f16 to ensure that everything was in focus, set the shutter speed between 1/60 and 1/125 second and hope for the best..!

I took more or less the whole reel of film here, and these were some of the best pictures I got out of the camera that day.

Pigeons that Fly

Photography

When photographing a flock of pigeons taking off, it’s important to have your camera ready in your hand. In this one, my daughter and I turned the corner and saw all the pigeons suddenly take off and fly away. I managed to get just one frame off before they were all gone.

The movement in the image is really cool, with all the pigeons flying away in different directions. The skyscrapers in the background make for an exciting backdrop. I’m happy with this one as it’s a great photo that captures the hustle and bustle of city life.

Pont Luis I Bridge over the Rio Duoro, Porto

Photography

The magnificent iron bridge over the River Duoro in Porto, Portugal, named after Luis I and constructed in 1886, is an impressive sight. It’s a steel bridge with two levels – a road on the bottom and a railroad track above. The bridge is a beautiful example of 19th-century engineering.

I had the chance to photograph it on a day trip to Porto, but it’s on my list of places to revisit, as it would be better to re-photograph the Luiz I Bridge early in the morning or just before sunset when the light is at its most dramatic. Taking pictures at dusk guarantees a great picture, with traffic in the foreground leaving light trails. You might even have movement on the river, with boats passing or clouds passing in the sky.

Today I decided to take this in colour and then post-process it in CaptureOne, but I’d like to try this in black and white to create a moodier picture. Also, this would be great after a rainstorm, especially if the sky is dark, like in Ernst Haas’s image of Route 66.

No matter what time of day you choose to visit, make sure you take your time to capture this magnificent structure in all its glory.