The Fog Descends On Deal

With a disappointing weekend of weather (and an enforced stay indoors due to a new sofa being delivered…which I can’t complain too much about given the state of the old one…) and a half-term off with the kids to look forward to (no sarcasm!), I fully anticipated a quiet week ahead with very few opportunities for photography. How wrong I was! After eagerly watching the weather forecast, hoping for some late morning fog, it looked promising for Tuesday morning. The forecast was for a pretty much widespread fog, covering the whole of the south east. The only question now: can I get up and get the children ready and out the door in time to catch the fog in Deal?

I’ve had my eye on Deal in the fog for sometime now. I’ve been intrigued by the possibilities around the pier, with the fog enveloping it and giving it that air of a concrete road to nowhere. In recent years, I’ve appreciated just how rare it is for this kind of occurence. Either I’ve just been unlucky in recent years, or the fog has always been something that occurs a handful of times a year and, even then, trying to predict when and where is a fool’s errand. So not only have I been keeping my fingers crossed for fog, I’ve been keeping my fingers crossed for fog in Deal. Given it’s a 40 minute drive from our house, there is always the risk of getting in the car, driving through the fog and finding…nothing on my arrival at this little seaside town. Fortunately, this was not one of those occasions…

After driving through thick fog on the A2 (and counting the number of cars without lights on, despite the visibility being down to a few metres), we arrived in Deal and were presented with the kind of foggy conditions I had hoped for. Armed with only my XT-3, no tripod, no zoom lenses, just a 23mm and 33mm prime, I set off to see what I could capture. With my children in tow too of course.

After belatedly realising I had knocked the focus mode switch on the front of the camera (thank god I noticed that before too long), I started wondering around the beach to see what I could capture. This was one of my first shots:

23mm, f5.6, 1/250, ISO160

Of course, the obvious shots were the first shots I took, but this is the kind of shot I had envisioned when I imagined the fog descending onto Deal. In terms of the post-processing, I like my fog images to be tinted slightly green as I think it gives it more of a mysterious vibe to the image, like it’s something out of a horror movie. Otherwise, I keep the editing fairly light and just accentute the softness (so low contrast, minus clarity and very slightly minus on the dehaze).

After pottering around under the pier for a bit, I headed up (with the children, honestly, I didn’t forget them!) onto the pier itself and took a walk along to the pier head. At thist time of the morning, there were a few people milling around, but not so many it was crowded. This really helped in terms of picking out individuals or couples walking along the pier, and of course the fog helped to simplify the background and obscure any others that were in shot.

23mm, f8, 1/500, ISO500

23mm, f8, 1/500, ISO160

23mm, f8, 1/500, ISO400

As I got to the end of the pier walking back, the fog started to lift and we took a walk along the beach towards the fishing boats moored near the road. I kinda figured that was it for the foggy conditions and that the sun was going to start breaking through and it’ll be a typical bright sunny day.

However, just when I figured the day was done and we’d wonder off and grab some snacks and disappear, the fog came in again, much to the annoyance of the kids who I think, by this stage, were heartily sick of me continuing to drag them back to the pier to get yet more shots of it obscured by the fog. Nevertheless, I persisted. Of course, I wasn’t the only one…

33mm, f8, 1/500, ISO160

33mm, f8, 1/500, ISO160

Much as I enjoyed hanging around the pier, the kids were obviously getting bored so we took a walk along the promenade, and I’m glad we did as I think some of the best shots of the day were taken as we walked away from the pier and looked back on the people walking through the fog. With the sun behind them (albeit also obscured by the fog) the people suddenly became nothing but a series of silhouettes, ambling towards us. Like something out of a horror movie, these shadowy forms ambled towards us, through the fog, making for some really interesting opportunities. Whilst I was happy with the shots I got on the pier, the shots along the promenade were, I think, better and really had a lot of atmosphere to them. Given the silhouette effects and the nature of the light, many of them I switched up into black and white, there was little in the way of colour anyway, so it seemed like a natural switch.

33mm, f8, 1/500, ISO160

33mm, f8, 1/500, ISO160

33mm, f8, 1/500, ISO160

After our walk along the promenade, we headed into the town centre to have a browse around. By this stage the fog was starting to lift and the sun was now shining through, leaving a beautiful morning, but taking all that lovely fog away. Regardless, it was a pretty spectacular morning on the seafront, with plenty of compositions to work with (I think I took around 370 photos in the end!). The scenary that morning certainly made up for a disappointing weekend and that half-term week of entertaining the children did present some photography opportunities after all. So everyone was happy…well, maybe not the kids. I think they’ve forgiven me now…but we’ve still got a few days of school holidays left yet, so jury is out I guess…

A few more photos from the day are in the gallery below, I’ve managed to cull my shots in Lightroom down to around 190, but I still need some work to do to cut that down a bit. I’ve tried to limit the gallery below to the best bits. Let me know what you think!

ian

Winter came...

After a hot summer and a pretty mild autumn, it came as quite a shock when winter hit last week. Of course, we didn’t get snow in this part of the country, but we did have freezing conditions, fog and some good hard frost across the county. Fortunately for me, this cold snap hit on a week where I had a weekday off work - huzzah! A rarity for the conditions to suit my diary, so of course I grasped the opportunity with both hands.

Between Thursday and Sunday I managed to squeeze in four locations and a couple of evening street photography walks too. All in all, a pretty great week. And it all started, where else, but in Fairfield.

Fairfield

Now, I’ve not been to Fairfield since that epic day earlier in the year that had me giddy as a school child. It’s one of those locations that is easily overdone, and so I like to space out my visits (helped somewhat by the long drive to get there from our neck of the woods). Taking the opportunity of a weekday off, I checked the weather forecast, got excited about the potential for thick frost, packed my camera bag and prepared myself for an epic trip.

After a swift detour to pick up Aga McPherson (the famous girl in a yellow jacket), we headed down to Fairfield, wrapped up warm and eager to capture the wintery scene we had pictured in our minds the night before. And we weren’t disappointed. Sheep roamed the fields, the water was frozen, the grass thick with frost…you couldn’t ask for better conditions (well, I guess you could ask for fog…but then, you know, there’s always something isn’t there?). I tried to get a few different compositions, some worked, some didn’t. But then there’s no point driving all that way only to get the exact same composition as before, right?

Of course, the photo above isn’t really a new composition, but there are a few in the gallery below. Just in case you doubted me!

Fairfield was great, it was freezing cold (as you’d expect in a relatively remote location this time of year), but it was fantastic. Sheep roamed around the church (which resulted in some very careful tripod placement!), and we were the only two photographers to enjoy the scene as the moon went down, the sun came up and the light caught the frozen grass. All in all, well worth the trip. And a brief nap awaited me on my return home before setting out into Canterbury and onwards to Folkestone for some street photography. Then it was all about planning for the weekend and considering where would be best to make the most of the freezing conditions.

Hothfield Common

On Saturday I had planned to go to Wye. But the roads were all closed, it looked like a horrorshow to get to the top of the Downs, and so I changed my plans and instead headed towards Hothfield Common. It’s only relatively recently I’ve “discovered” Hothfield. I had never been before last year, but there’s something about the place that’s quite captivating. Whether it’s the Highland Cows, the Konik ponies, the heather or just the unusual nature of the landscape, there’s something about it that makes you feel you are not in Kent at all, that you’ve been transported to another place altogether (at least until the dog walkers arrive and you hear the familiar East Kent accent).

Anyway, I’d not yet been in the winter time, and I’d had a few shots in mind if there was ever the opportunity to go in ice cold condtions. And…well, I wasn’t disappointed.

This was pretty much the compostion I had in mind. I’ve been returning to this tree a few times ever since my first trip to Hothfield, and been fascinated by the potential given it was surrounded by ferns and heather. As always, I had hoped for something slightly different. I felt like a bit of fog in the background would have helped simplify the scene, and it would have been nice for none of the branches to overlap with the background (I could get no lower than this) but nonetheless, I was pleased with this shot. I felt like it really captured the conditions that morning. And, fortunately for me, it was a scene that I had pretty much to myself.

Seasalter and Whitstable

Finally, Sunday saw a trip to Seasalter and Whitstable. The conditions once more were epic, with the added bonus of some fog (finally!) thrown into the mix. Although this time the problem was too much the other way…perhaps a little too much fog! Yes, I’m never satisfied. Seasalter was particularly pleasing though. The long grasses were frozen solid, the water in front of the beach huts was a sheet of ice, robins danced in amongst the grasses around me…you couldn’t really ask for more.

Not quite satisfied with my lot, I decided to head down the road to Whitstable and see what was on offer there. I’ve been wanting to capture a foggy view of the harbour for some time, and this seemed a good opportunity. And so it turned out. Thick fog enveloped the harbour. To the extent that, once more, you wished it was just a little less thick. But, again, one could hardly complain. These conditions don’t come along very often and expecting perfection is asking a bit too much. You just have to seize the opportunity and get what you can get.

And so that was a pretty hectic week. Freezing cold, but wonderful epic conditions the likes of which we rarely get the opportunity to shoot. And even now, a week later, it’s not quite done yet. Milder conditions are not forecast to hit for another 24-48hrs, so there might still be some time left to grab some epic wintery conditions before we head into Christmas. Fingers crossed there’s more to come, and maybe some snow at some point…just not around Christmas itself (we’re flying to Spain). If it can just time itself as well as the conditions did this time, I’ll be happy.

Thank you, Fairfield. It was epic.

Decisions, decisions. Trying to work out where to shoot on a particular day seems to take up almost double the amount of time the actual shoot lasts. Not just the trying to decide where to go, but the planning. Checking weather conditions. Looking up tide times for various locations. Checking the weather conditions again. Thinking about potential compositions. Checking the weather conditions again. And so on and so on. Before you know it, hours have passed and you still don’t know where to go.

Sometimes, even after all the planning, I still can’t decide where to go. To the extent I wake up, pack my stuff, jump in the car and decide while I am on the road. Which has its drawbacks. No point driving west only to decide that you want to shoot somewhere east. But, you know, sometimes you just go with the flow and see where it takes you. Yes, sometimes I can be spontaneous. Sometimes.

And so it was that I packed my bag, grabbed my winter coat, jumped in the car and headed off…somewhere. All I knew was there was going to be fog. Question was…where should I go? Wye? Folkestone? Somewhere else…? Hmm, tricky.

Left for Folkestone, right for Wye. I’ll take a right I think.

Fog looks promising…could be a great morning if things pan out as I hope…

It’s looking good in Wye and around Ashford…left turn to the Devil’s Kneading Trough or straight on?

Hmm…straight on.

Where am I going? It looks like it’ll be epic in Wye, why would I not stick with Wye? No, let’s chance it…let’s head to…FAIRFIELD.

Fairfield. That magical Kent location that every photographer visits looking to capture this unique church on the Romney Marshes. I’ve been a couple of times before and got some decent shots, but never anything quite as good as I would have hoped for. Largely because the conditions have never really been that epic. Someday that has to change, surely?

And so on I drove to Fairfield…through the thick fog in Ashford to…er…no fog at all. At least, I could see for a fair distance without any difficulty. Where had that fog gone to? I…I think I may have made a mistake. Why not Wye? Oh well, too late now…let’s just get there, get some shots, get home, have a cup of tea and pretend I made a good decision on the A28. No point dwelling on what might have beens…not whilst I’m driving on a national speed limit road at this time of the morning.

But wait…it’s picking up again…it looks like it might be promising…just take this right and follow the road and just maybe…oh bloody hell…I can’t see a damn thing in the field…the church is definitely there somewhere, but…this could be interesting. I’ll just pull over into the laybay…oh dammit…someone else is here. Ah well, I guess it’s too much to ask for me to have all of this to myself. Just grab my bag and let’s go have a look…

Ok, this looks like fun….let’s head around this way…there should be a good composition from this angle…it’s a bit creepy walking around here, but I’m sure I’ll be ok…ok, maybe I probably should have told my wife where I was…I can’t see more than 5yds, what if I fall over and have an accident…I could be here on my own for hours…ah, here we go, just around here and…oh shit, I can’t get there. There’s a fence in the way. The light is changing. Oh crap the sun is coming through and the light is looking epic. Shit. Run. No wait….climb over the fence…now run…Christ I’m so unfit…I can’t run all the way down to the main gate again. Dammit, I’ll climb back over the fence…one leg over, now…crap, my foot is stuck…down I go….I’m ok. I think i’ve got everything, nothing has fallen out, has it? No, still got my inhaler, car keys…right…QUICKLY!! GET THE COMPOSITION FOR GOD’S SAKE BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE.

Got it, right, set up…I think I need the wide angle lens for this one…let’s go for f8, ok, check the light meter, set the shutter speed…got it. I BLOODY GOT IT! YES! I’m knackered, my knees hurt, my shoes are wet, but I bloody got it! Now…let’s check the focus…it’s looking good. Hopefully not disappointed when I open it in Lightroom, but it looks like it should be ok.

St Thomas Becket, Fairfield

The fog is shifting again….it’s getting denser…it looked like it was lifting, now it’s getting denser again…I need to move to change the composition to make the most of it…where should I go? Maybe get the sun behind the church? Yeah, that might work…at least I don’t have to climb any fences! Ok…this looks good. I think the focus is ok…can’t really tell with the light shining in my DAMN EYES. But i think it’s good. Ok, let’s take the shot…

St Thomas Becket, Fairfield

Bloody hell, the fog and light are shifting around again. Where to now? I guess over the other side? Yes, over the other side…OF COURSE OVER THE OTHER SIDE, WHY WOULDN’T I HAVE TO NOW CHASE TO THE OTHER SIDE OF WHERE I AM SHOOTING NOW, IT MAKES PERFECT SENSE.

Damn, this is the best workout I’ve had in ages. I mean, it would be nice to stay in one spot, but I am suffering from a bit of a post-Christmas energy lull so maybe this is doing me some good. And besides, LOOK AT THIS AMAZING LIGHT EVERYWHERE.

I don’t think I’ve seen anyone yet. Have I seen anyone yet? No, I don’t think so. I can’t believe it. Have I got Fairfield all to myself? I must have. I HAVE THESE EPIC CONDITIONS ALL TO MYSELF?!? The photography gods have shone their light on me today…I can’t believe my luck.

Ok, this is good, let’s shoot it this way…get the framing right, this looks like quite a creepy shot with the fog around the church, the stillness of the water…I think it’s frozen…I don’t want to test it, but I think it is frozen…wow, what’s that noise? Ah yeah, it’s definitely frozen…sounds like the ice is cracking. Good job I didn’t put my tripod on it after all…

Ok last shot…was that a gate opening and closing? Yeah, there’s a figure there in the fog…doesn’t look like a photographer. Looks like he’s running. Seems it must have been his car in the laybay. Dude, you’re missing the most epic view! Don’t run away…well, not until I’ve got you in at least one shot anyway…

Person walking from a bridge across a field with heavy fog

What’s the time? Man, I’ve been here 2 1/2 hrs. I need to go. But I can’t. I want to stay here all day. But what about your wife and children? They’ll understand, right? I mean…LOOK AT IT. No, I better go. Ahhhh. What a morning. What an unbelievable morning. I took a chance and it was quite the reward. Thank you, Fairfield. It was EPIC.