The weather. What could be more stereotypical than a blog post about the weather? Well, you know what, it’s part and parcel of life in the UK, and it’s something that obviously has a significant impact on our photography. So, I think it’s justified, even if it does smack of “I’ve run out of things to blog about” (I haven’t, honest).
Back when I used to do landscape photography (I still miss those days, although not the 5am alarms on overcast days), I was quite partial to a stormy day. Wind, rain and thick cloud just seemed to elevate coastal images into something more…evocative. The mood. The darkness. The big skies and sense of foreboding. The feeling of being an insignificant element on planet earth. Better a moody sky than a limp sunrise with barely any colour. Of course, it helps if your camera can withstand the elements (rip Nikon D7200).
I still like to do a bit of photography on days where the weather isn’t all blue skies and nice light, even now I’ve switched to more street photography. Rainy days can be tricky, and grey skies can make you think twice. But I don’t mind getting the camera and going for a wander in almost any set of conditions. There is one exception: wind. I just can’t take it for long before I lose the will to live. The energy sapping…the ear ache…nah. I just can’t…
And then we have weeks like this that really try your patience. As a part-time photographer, I rely on weekends and annual leave to get my fix. Most of my week is spent checking the weather forecast for the weekend, or for any upcoming leave. Usually how it goes is I make plans, check the weather forecast, get increasingly demoralised as the plans draw every nearer, only to abandon the plans because it’s not quite how I hoped it would be.
This week I was planning a day trip to Brighton. Was. I gave up on that idea when I saw the forecast was cloud, rain and wind. A hard nope from me. This is not the first time I’ve cancelled a trip to Brighton. I have been there before. Once. But that was before I really started to take my photography seriously. I’ve not been since, and I really need to get back there and properly explore with my camera. So instead, it’s “just” London for me this week (I was planning on both, but in the end decided on London…on account of I don’t need to pay for the train fare - c/o my season ticket for work). Woe. Not sure where yet. Maybe Soho. Maybe Shoreditch. Maybe somewhere new. It’s not like there is a shortage of options.
As for today…I made do with a short train ride into the city (it’s four minutes by train, twenty by car this time of year…and the train is less than a fiver…cheaper than parking in the city!). I didn’t get much worth writing home about, but I was more interested in experimenting more with reflections (a continuation of my windows obsession it seems). Some work, some don’t. Some are more reminders of things to go back and try again at a later date. I’ve posted a few below. I guess that’s my weather post for 2025…