The magic of candlelight

Last autumn an event popped up on the Southwark Cathedral website which piqued my interest - a candlelit photography evening. I assumed there would be at least some electric lighting so I was surprised to find the Cathedral entirely lit by candles - quite a photographic challenge. Fortunately tripods were permitted, so that made life easier and the slow nature of the photography did at least mean I would have a limited number of images to edit at the end of the evening!

There were only a few dozen of us taking photos so it was easy enough to keep out of each other’s way, and the gloom at the back of many of the scenes made it easier to camouflage the odd photographer who did walk into shot!

As I set up for the photograph below I was initially frustrated when the verger walked into the frame and sat down to check his phone. With hindsight though it’s actually my favourite image of the evening and I think he adds a welcome focus to the picture.

Candlelight reflected off parquet flooring.

Photographs taken 13 November 2024

Light and colour in Docklands

Every January the Canary Wharf area of London’s Docklands puts on a light show, with illuminated installations dotted among the buildings. I’ve never been able to go before, but as Peter and I were in London to visit St. Paul’s Cathedral last Monday we decided we’d stay on to see the lights.

We started off at the new Elizabeth Line station at Canary Wharf where the access tunnel was covered in an ever-shifting display of colours.

One of the installations was a tunnel full of fine fibre optic cables hanging down from the roof. I used their movement in the breeze to create an abstract image with some intentional camera movement.

Striking a pose in a crimson tunnel

Photos taken 23 January 2023

The rainy streets of Bishop's Stortford

It was workshop night at the camera club again last night and one of the practical activities on offer was a short photowalk around the town. A small group of us braved the rain (which quickly changed from a light drizzle to a downpour!) to go and forage for photos.

Most of my photos were pretty underwhelming, but I found a couple which appealed to me. I’m attending a workshop next week focused around the style of street photographer Saul Leiter, so I decided to ty and get into the zone ahead of time, using things I found around me to shoot through, creating a sense of depth. The bicycle shot makes me think of a scene from a gritty old movie - although I’m not sure whether to expect a hero or a villain to appear from the shadows!

Photos taken 10 January 2023.