A couple walking their dog one cold January morning. Classical composition dictates that they should be further to the right of the frame - but sometimes, you have to take the opportunity when it's presented, rather than missing the moment altogether.
This beach is less frequented than the others near Lyme, but I like the backdrop of Golden Cap and stretches of natural sand
A companion to White Wood in spring, this photo was taken just a few metres, and six months, from the other one. The bright russet of the bracken caught my eye, as did the repeated wavering patterns of the trunks. I didn't appreciate, until I saw the image full-sized, that there was a narrow window to the opposite side if the Dart valley almost in the centre of the frame.
Dartmoor is commonly thought of as a bleak and treeless waste, but is home to a number of ancient oak woodlands. In these sheltered woods, mossy boulders and lichen-festooned branches combine to lend a primæval atmosphere, almost unchanged since lowland England was almost entirely forested. The oakwoods are special places at any time of year, but especially in Spring when the young ochre foliage is just budding, and sunlight can shine on the floor.
One of the tricks to photographing woods is to find a viewpoint that imposes some sense of order on the fractal, chaotic nature of trees. Here, I have focused on a single specimen whose fanned branches lead the eye about the frame.
Lyme is home to several colonies of beach huts. Glorified sheds by the sea, they have a quirky charm that has inspired me to take quite a few photos over the years.
These are on Monmouth Beach, and for a few weeks each spring and autumn, the setting sun strikes the front faces at just the right angle to pick out the zig-zag patterns of the gables.
Most people drive up and down the A303 oblivious to the wonderful rolling chalk country either side of the road. But I have to make a conscious effort to concentrate on the road rather than admiring the scenery. A few times, I've been lucky enough to be able to stop when the weather, light and crops were just right for a photo. My A303 series photos all look quite tranquil, but in reality, I was standing on the verge with traffic thundering past at 60 miles an hour! However, while I was concentrating on the scene in front of me, I was able to entirely ignore the intrusion of modern life.
This field of almost-ripe oats reminds me of those old-fashioned scratchy plush seats you used to get on buses and trains. I used a telephoto lens to accentuate the topography.
This beech avenue is part of a grand estate, rather than a humble farm track like the one at Bindon. After an exploratory visit to find a good viewpoint, this photo was snatched in a few minutes just as the winter sun was setting, balancing my tripod on a steep bank at the edge of the road. Passing traffic cut down the time available even more!
I liked the contrast between the late golden light and the cool tone of the road, and of the natural and man-made.
You can read more about the beech avenue on the National Trust web site.
Holyford Wood is a local nature reserve, near Seaton. In early summer, it has acres and acres of massed foxgloves (Digitalis purpurea) - a quite remarkable sight. I took many close-up and general shots - but this one best sums up, for me, the amazing pinkness of the experience!
At the end of my visit early one morning, my mind's eye was full of magenta daydreams that were difficult to shake off. I felt rather like the dormouse in A A Milne's poem, The Dormouse and the Doctor:
"The Dormouse lay happy, his eyes were so tight
He could see no chrysanthemums, yellow or white.
And all that he felt at the back of his head
Were delphiniums (blue) and geraniums (red)."
In my corner of East Devon, there is a tradition of planting single or double rows of beech trees alongside some country lanes. Bindon, a couple of miles west of Uplyme, has a fine row which can be seen from the distance. I've photographed them several times, and this is my favourite image. It was taken late one summer evening, when the sunset brought a warm glow and long shadows to the stubble.
A chance snap of a rather wonderfully textured field of 6-row barley, just at the point when the green was turning to gold. I've never seen the same blowsy crop since. Near Chapman's Pool in East Dorset.
Taken with a 3MP digital camera - which just shows that sometimes the subject can transcend the kit!