How did it begin part 5?
Here we stand on the 5th part already. In this part we move into a new decade of 2020. This will be the most interesting year that I will ever witness, but more on that later. This year was going to be another step up for my photography both in taking more time taking photos than just point and shoot. I will also make more improvements in my editing process in post production.
In this year funnily enough I am back in the capital city once again, we then couldn't go anywhere in the world, went on plenty of beautiful walks through the countryside, celebrated a big anniversary of a very big moment in history. Then went to the beauty that is Cornwall. That is all to come…
So lets begin, at the beginning of the year I went to celebrate the New Year in London again. This was the second time I have done this. Me and my partner at the time stood on the same bridge but at a different end. We was used to waiting around until the fireworks started. We entertained ourselves by playing games and watching the world go by.
The fireworks began at 00:00am on the 1st January 2020. The new year and new decade had began. The display was very different to the one from last year. I will say this I learnt from last time and while I was filming on my iPhone there is a button which allows to take photos while you are still filming. You will see a few photos from the firework display. The photos were taken off my iPhone XS Max.
(As you see in this photo you will see a watermark in the bottom left hand corner, this was my first ever watermark. Mr Randos is my name that I have gone by for the last few years which is also my podcast name, twitch name and YouTube name. I then started to change the watermark name under the name of my photography account on instagram) (mr_agh_photography)
Date-01st January 2020
What you will see now is a small collection of the firework display. When I was looking through these photos I didn’t watermark them at the time which I will get around to doing. None of these needed to be edited because they are vibrant and full of colour.
Date-01st January 2020
Date-01st January 2020
Date-01st January 2020
Date-01st January 2020
Date-01st January 2020
Date-01st January 2020
Date-01st January 2020
Date-01st January 2020
Date-01st January 2020
Date-01st January 2020
Date-01st January 2020
As the firework display comes to and end (which again didn’t last long) we made our way back to the hotel. The next day we was in Trafalgar Square and saw a parade of many floats, displays and vehicles that were parading through the streets of London. I have a few videos of what the parade was like…
Once we did the parade I know we didn’t do a full day in London because we up quite late the night before. We chilled and went home not long after, don’t worry I will be coming back to London again (who would have thought).
At the end of January was a big birthday for my mum, she celebrated her 50th birthday. I was the photographer during the afternoon tea. I will not put any of the photos on here our of respect of the people in the pictures as they are my family. It was a good day and plenty of happy faces around.
Right at the end of February I took a trip down to Portsmouth/Southampton with my partner at the time had a night stay down there. I will say it was definitely a fresh one while we was down there. We went up the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth and visited a small air museum in Southampton.
The landmark of Portsmouth which is the Spinnaker Tower. We was going to head up here on the 1st March 2020 (the next day)
Date-29th Feburary 2020
The lighting for this photo was really nice not to take a picture. The pinky/purple of the Spinnaker Tower brought this photo more together. This was shot on my iPhone.
Date-29th Feburary 2020
The next day we went up the Spinnaker Tower. On the second floor there is a cafe where you enjoy the views of the surrounding area. Knowing what some of my styles of photos that I like to edit, this was one of those hint of colour photos. The iconic red telephone box which you see all around the United Kingdom, My focus was on the telephone box and I just knew when I came to edit this photo I would only focus on the red.
Date-01st March 2020
While up the tower you can see a lot of maritime ships around such as this one above. This is a vessel that is anchored off the port. I am not too sure what this ship does but I thought it looked pretty cool to take a picture of. The size of ship compared to the other smaller boats you can see above.
Date-01st March
Sticking in the month of March and this is where the world completely went upside down. On the 23rd of March 2020 the United Kingdom went into a state of lockdown due to the outbreak of COVID-19. This was a huge pandemic that was hit all around the world. What this meant was everyone was to stay at home and only go out to get essential items or visit the hospital for emergency situations. The NHS (National Health System) worked there socks off during the pandemic dealing with people developing COVID-19. This was the biggest outbreak in my life time so far. Being confined to my house and only allowed to go outside for exercise for an hour everyday was very interesting.
In this time I then started working from home, it was good because I wouldn’t have to travel that far to get to my desk. At the end of March/beginning of April I was then put on furlough by my company which meant that I would not be working but was still being paid 80% of my salary (bonus really). In this time I was confided to taking pictures in my garden which you will now see…
It was a beautiful spring afternoon so I sat on the grass and took photos of the garden flowers as they are starting to grow.
Date-3rd April 2020
Date-3rd April 2020
Date-3rd April 2020
Date-3rd April 2020
Date-3rd April 2020
Date-3rd April 2020
Date-3rd April 2020
Date-3rd April 2020
Outside the front of my house, my neighbour has beautiful flowers in her front Garden.
Date-4th April 2020
The big tree outside the front of my house was starting to develop leaves for spring time.
Date-4th April 2020
On the 8th April, one evening the full moon was out. This was my time to attempt to do nighttime photography of the moon. This was my first attempt of the moon picture, this wouldn't be the only time I would take a picture of the moon.
Date-8th April 2020
8th of May 1945 was a day in history that is so significant to our world. VE Day or Victory in England day is known for the ending of World War ll. The biggest war that has ever happened. We celebrated 75 years of VE Day. This was during lockdown but we made the most of it. Their was no street parties, everyone was keeping their distance on there drive ways but made the most of this momentous occasion. We made the most of decorating our house for the day and here are some of the photos from the day…
Hanging from the window from my room the Union Flag is out on show.
Date-8th May 2020
Outside front of the house decorated in bunting and flags.
Date-8th May 2020
The hint of colour is back but this time with a poppy. Yes the poppy is used during November time for remembrance day but my brother wanted to wear it. Again it was another one of those photo I just knew while I was taking it that I would do the black and white with a hint of colour.
Date-8th May 2020
Up close of the bunting of the Union Flag tie around the house and to the post along the brick wall. It is very patriotic flag and very recognisable.
Date-8th May 2020
Date-8th May 2020
In the middle of May it was a bit sad time as I was suppose to heading to New York that me and my partner had planned. We was going for our 21st birthdays but sadly due to COVID-19 we couldn’t have gone. Luckily we got our money back for the trip.
My brother and I went for walks in the countryside to get our exercise as in May the lifting of an hour exercise was dropped as long as you kept your 2m distance. The first place my brother and I went to was our local park which is Nonsuch Park. We know it very well when we was air cadets and used to do night exercises in the park in the middle of the night. We went to Nonsuch a couple of times in the year and also went to Horton Country Park as well.
The next set of photos are a mixture of Nonsuch Park and Horton Country Park photos…
(Watermark was added later on)
The first picture I took on the lockdown walk. The Canon 80D came with me along with the 24-105mm lens.
Date-17th May 2020
Tall trees in Nonsuch Park are great centre subjects for photos.
Date-17th May 2020
Small pathways off the main path way in Nonsuch. Means more exploring into the woods located in the park. The leading pathway always makes good leading line for the photos.
Date-17th May 2020
The flowers were starting to bloom in the park which was beautiful for close up photos of this.
Date-17th May 2020
Capturing my brother without him knowing. Black and white seems to crop up a lot in these blogs. I mean most of my photos are in colour but there are quite a few that are in black and white.
Date-17th May 2020
Horton Country Park is bigger and covers a wider area. You find small things such as bench like this. Benches that are dedicated to people who loved the park or wanted to dedicate a bench to the ones they loved who sadly they have lost. It is very beautiful to see.
Date-24th May 2020
Located on the edge of the park is Horton Golf Club golf course. You are able to walk past it. I made the life ring the centre piece for the photo because that was going to be my subject. The ring is their just incase that if someone falls into the water.
Date-24th May 2020
Long snaking pathways always make good photo opportunities. No matter where I go I will try and get photos like this.
Date-24th May 2020
Off one of the pathways is this massive open field. You wouldn’t think you are in the same place. It felt more like I was in America than the UK. I always quite like this photo due to the fact you have no greenery around and you have these telephone lines which makes it look like its more abandoned.
Date-24th May 2020
Located close to the park is Hobbledown farm which you can walk past and see beautiful animals such this small pony.
Date-24th May 2020
A happy alpaca always makes this photo that little bit more happier. He was not posing for the camera I just caught his good side or he was happy to see me. You can see faint lines that’s due to the fence that was at the farm. Bright yellow flowers also help with this photo making it a little bit more cheerful with everything that is going on at the time.
Date-24th May 2020
Sticking with walking and nature photography, in June my brother and I went for another walk in Nonsuch Park. This time summer was starting so the sun was beating down on us, the skies were blue and I tried out using my lens filter to help make the clouds pop in the photos.
Black and white with hint of colour is always going to pop up once or twice through these blogs. What I like about this one is that I took the grass colour out, kept the trees and sky with a burst of colour.
Date-5th June 2020
In the middle of the dog zone is this one big tree. I have spent many times chilling under this tree. Making this the subject of the photo was my main priority. Using my Canon 80D with its crop sensor means I was actually standing further away from this tree.
Date-5th June 2020
Walking out of the dog free zone to get through was to get through the gate. I stopped and looked at this and thought there is no one in this photo, the gate is the main focus point to this photo. With the lens filter really helps with the pop of clouds and shows a faint pathway that leads to the gate.
Date-5th June 2020
I remember the lens I was using in these sets of photos, I changed it up and used the 16-35mm f4. This gave me a wider angle on taking landscape photos to capture more around me. The crop sensor from the Canon 80D is that it doesn’t capture all of it. Due to the sensors cutting of edges so you have to stand further back to get the better image.
Date-5th June 2020
Once again the tree was at the focus point in this picture. Nonsuch Park does have its fair share of big trees located around the park and capturing its tallness compared to the people walking by.
Date-5th June 2020
In the middle of June I celebrated my 21st birthday. This was going to be a unique birthday due to us still being in a lockdown. My family made it work and it was great. Now you're thinking where does the photography come involved?? One of my presents was I got a new camera bag to store my equipment in or more like the lens that I will use more than others. It came in very handy and still have it to this day as I am writing it (22nd September 2022)
A couple of days after my birthday I took a trip up in the evening well more like sunset to the beauty that is Epsom Downs. I took my camera bag, my equipment with most of my lenses and my tripod. I also took my GoPro (which I don’t have anymore) I went up to capture the evening sun as it was setting over Surrey. I was still in the learning phase with lower light photography, I still felt that I needed to improve but here are some of the shots I took while I was up there on the downs…
When I got to the downs it was still quite light in the sky. The sun hadn’t really set a this point. It is a wide angle lens that I was using. The 10-16mm wide angle lens captures so much in one photo. This lens doesn’t work on a full frame camera such as a 6D mark ll
Date-22nd June 2020
The evening sun was getting lower. I remember sitting in the boot of my car while I was taking pictures. It was such a great evening for photography.
Date-22nd June 2020
The bight sun just above the tree made for an interesting photo because it made it look like a silhouette photo. This didn’t need much editing actually none at all. This is how I left it. The one thing is that I didn’t seem to watermark this one. There are quite a fair few photos that still need to be watermarked, I mean if you saw how many photos I had located in many different folders on my MacBook and external hard drives I would be here for a very long time.
Date-22nd June 2020
July came around quite quickly, I would be getting prepared for RIAT but sadly that got cancelled too. Yes it was the year for cancellations. If you had something booked in 2020 most likely was going to be cancelled. What did I do instead?? I headed back to the downs and did some photography around the area. It was in the heat of July but there was a nice breeze while I was walking around.
The famous Epsom Derby. One of the big horse races in the calendar year alongside both Royal Ascot and The Grand National. I remember I was sitting on the floor with my tripod focusing towards the main stands, This was about a month after the Epsom Derby happened.
Date-20th July 2020
The wider 10-16mm lens came in handy when taking photos like this. Not just capturing the stands but capturing the surrounding area.
Looking back on these photos I realised how much I really liked using the 10-16mm lens to get that ultra wide angle photo.
Date-20th July 2020
This time it’s more of a front on picture of the main stands. This was me getting closer to the floor and taking photos like this and trying something different. Having the flowers makes great composition for the photo.
Date-20th July 2020
No you are not looking at the Windows wallpaper. The best thing about this time of year and with COVID going on was that there wasn’t many people around. Making some of the photos look really nice with no one in them. Like this example above.
Date-20th July 2020
Getting down and close with nature is the best thing about this world. I wanted to try and capture our nature as it stands.
Date-20th July 2020
Once again capturing the beauty of nature and the plants that we have in this world. The Dandelion is one of those plants that come out during spring and summer. I think I may have mentioned it in one of my previous blogs but I also like making some of my photos in the style of panoramic, to give it a different feel.
Date-20th July 2020
Another angle of the grand stands at the Epsom Downs racecourse. Getting low with the flowers to have them in the picture while the main grand stand is what I was focusing on.
Date-20th July 2020
More pathways that lead somewhere new. I love finding these paths located in open countryside places. You never know where they are going to lead to. Luckily there wasn’t any people in the photo which made it better because I don’t want people spoiling a beautiful photo like this.
Date-20th July 2020
Another pathway shot (which I realised I took a few of) this time parallel with the fence line of the race course. I quite like this because of the pure white fence line.
Date-20th July 2020
August came around quite quickly and that meant a new job for me. Sadly being made redundant from my previous job due to working in the travel industry. I started my new job at LEGOLAND Windsor. I got hired quite quickly and started mu new job on August 10th, which is an important day because it is also Lego’s birthday.
Also at the end of August me and my partner took a trip back down the south coast which was Portsmouth. Hotels opened up by this point but with COVID rules (which we followed). We only went for one night but we went and sat on the beach one day and went into Gunwhalf Quays the other. There was a selection of photos that I quite liked from the trip which you will now see below…
Located in the small docks in Gunwhalf Quays is this massive super yacht with the Wightlink ferry which was heading to the Isle of Wight. Two very different ships doing two different things, one transports cars and passengers to the Isle of Wight, the other takes passengers on a luxury anywhere in the world.
Date-27th August 2020
This was taken standing outside of the Spinnaker Tower and what I like about this is what is in the photo. The composition of the ships name (St Faith) with the flats located in the background. This gives me an Eastern European vibe when I looked back on these photos. I am not sure if the flats are under the Royal Navy accommodation.
Date-27th August 2020
I feel like this doens’t need any introductions as I have talked about this iconic landmark before. Capturing the full length of the Spinnaker Tower.
Did you know that you can abseiling down the side of the tower??
Date-27th August 2020
Located in around one area of Gunwhalf Quays is this small waterway. There was a small bridge that we was crossing at the time and looked down, saw the reflection from the water and building and then took the photo. In the middle of this photo is a statue of a diver holding onto a bomb. This is a statue to remember the sailors in World War l and World War ll.
Date-27th August 2020
Even while COVID going on me and my partner took a trip to the most beautiful place in the United Kingdom. Cornwall is like its own country within the UK. We went for a lovely 5 days down to the south west. I took my Canon 80D with two of my lenses my 16-35mm and 24-105mm lens as well, so a mixture of close up photos and wide angles to capture the beauty of Cornwall. I took around 750 photos when I came back and I edited a few which you will see. The beaches and seaside towns make it good for photos, especially capturing the movement in certain places such as the Padstow.
The first place we went to after the long drive down was a beautiful place called Crantock. I have never been here before and I really loved the beach and the surrounding areas. This rock was located in the middle of the sea which made this a perfect photo to take as you can see the sea waves hitting the rock. I remembered that it was quite windy and wet when we got there. This made the waves more rough so would get bigger waves but I didn’t capture the big waves.
Date-28th September 2020
Making our way down to the beach at Crantock. The sea was very wavy due to the wind but made for a good background for this photo. Sand dunes cover part of the top beach which was fun to walk through to get to the bottom part of the beach. We walked down a steep path to get to the main part of the beach which was interesting.
Date-28th September 2020
Once again the panoramic photo came about with this photo. Capturing most of the beach in one photo and capturing the beauty that is Crantock Beach. This was the closest beach to where we was staying so it made it accessible to get there. The waves would have made it perfect for surfing.
Date-28th September 2020
Once we was on the beach I took a few photos what was around me. It wasn’t very busy as the weather (typical of Cornwall) wasn’t the absolute best but we ploughed through. Capturing the wide aspect of the beach to show how big it really is. The waves do come in quite close to the sand dunes which we did see once I think?? The sea was quite far out at this point but I think it was coming back in.
Date-28th September 2020
Part of the sea and waterway comes down one side of the beach (picture above) it leads quite far in-land. This made it a great opportunity to capture down the middle of sand and sea.
Date-28th September 2020
Any dog owner would know that a beach is a perfect place for a walk and a run around, like these dogs (pictured above). Capturing the moment of the dogs leaving the sea (probably had the best time) and the owner realising that they had to take the wet dogs home. This is a fun and cute photo also capturing the fun at the beach for animals.
Date-28th September 2020
The next day we went to the Healey’s Cider Farm where the famous Rattle cider is brewed. I went here when I was younger but didi’t remember much from it that time. In the middle of the courtyard was this beautiful horse just chilling and minding its own business. I hadn’t branched into animal photos but this was my chance to do that. I think horses are beautiful animals and have beautiful faces like this photo above.
Date-29th September 2020
Located at the back of the courtyard is a small little farm. We walked into this small wooden budding and inside were baby goats and they were very cute. When doing my planning for this blog I got my photos together that I was going to add, this one in particular always caught my eye because the goats look intrigued about something outside. It kinda looks like they are siblings that go everywhere together.
Date-29th September 2020
The town of Perranporth is a firm favourite of mine and my family. Once again typical Cornwall weather came into play while we was there but that didn’t stop the day. This was as we was walking into the town, very typical from a seaside town is the shops located in the area. This one in particular was selling house items but when you walked around the corner you would find similar shops that sold beach items like bucket and spade, boogie board, wind breaks etc….
Date-30 September 2020
Located on Perranporth beach are some small beach huts or are they beach huts?? Small little huts that are selling the famous Rattler cider. I mean at the time of shooting the photo it was 10:00am so serving cider at that time was not the best choice…
Having the composition of the huts in the foreground and the big hills in the back shows the vast place of Perranporth.
Date-30 September 2020
For me Perranporth beach is hands down my favourite beach i’ve ever been to. I had many beautiful memories with my family here on our holidays. The river Camel flows through the beach and out to sea which made it fun to dig small trenches to let the water flow into our small sand castle design that me and my brother did. Capturing the full size of the beach and it extends quite far to get to the sea. You have to walk a while from where this picture is taken to get to the sea edge. I love making these edits from standard photos to panoramic photos.
One of the iconic landmarks for Perraporth beach is the rock located near to the sea. On top of the rock is the Cornish flag, the black background with the white cross makes it simple but also unique. I loved capturing this rock with the beach leading up to the giant rock. I think I saw people climbing the rock to get to the flag, which I didn’t get to capture.
Date-30 September 2020
The rugged coast line of Cornwall is something to admire, looking back on this photo I realised that I really wanted to capture it in a cinematic feel. The grey clouds mixed with the crashing waves (because it was quite windy). It felt very wintery when we was walking on the beach but nothing was going to stop me being on my favourite beach.
Date-30 September 2020
This photo was taken while I was standing on a small rock (close to the big rock). What I love about this photo is that the RNLI car is the only subject in this shot. I wanted to capture what their role was during the windy season. The red flag that is currently out signifies that no one can be in the sea as it is very dangerous. The fact I didn’t capture anyone in this photo apart from the car is what I tried to achieve, there was a few attempts to get this shot I won’t lie but then I got the photo I wanted.
Date-30 September 2020
Then I decided to capture another wider image closer to the sea. This time I wanted to capture people in it, they were admiring the rough sea and getting some what close to it (which was a bit scary). Using the lens filter on the 24-105mm lens made the clouds pop a little bit more as it looked a bit more stormy. I went back to re-edit this one last year (2021) I use a specific preset which makes it look a bit more cinematic. I use this present a lot for most photos.
Date-30 September 2020
One of my favourite fishing towns, Padstow is known for its fishing market and the famous chef Rick Stein. The weather started to clear when we got to Padstow which was perfect because the sun should always be shining here. When we arrived I got my camera out straight away, starting taking photos and one that I look back on is this one. The small marina where boats will come in to bring in their fish to then sell in the market.
What I love about this photo is that the water is very calm so gave a somewhat reflection. I wish I could retake this shot where I would use a slower shutter speed so I could get a better reflection.
Date-30 September 2020
Another picture of the small marina at Padstow, capturing the bigger fishing vessel, waiting to go out to catch a huge batch of fish for the local shops and market. The clouds were bubbling again with a chance of it raining. If I could have re-taken this photo to make the water more smooth with a lower shutter speed then I would have done.
Date-30 September 2020
We went on a small walk away from the fishing town and caught a view of the small town of Rock on the other side with Rock beach. There were some small boats located in the middle of the waterway which made this photo a good opportunity to have the centre boat as the subject. With it appearing just above the bushes and trees.
Date-30 September 2020
Back in the heart of Padstow this was another one of my favourite photos from this trip, the sailing boats were always going to be my centre subject. Making use of the cinematic preset helps with many of my photos like this one. Padstow is a very beautiful town with it mixture of modern building and older buildings which have been there for a long time. You can also see in the right side of the photo a pink house. This reminds me of Balamory TV show.
Date-30 September 2020
Not just my favourite photo of the whole trip, but also in my top 10 photos i’ve taken of all time. This was not planned at all. We headed back to Crantock beach in the evening to capture the sunset over the beach. I grabbed my camera and took quite a fair few photos while the sun was out but there was one in particular which was this one.
It is a very special moment when your child sees the sea for the first time or taking them to the beach many times. I didn’t know if it was the child’s first time on the beach and seeing the sea but you can make this picture into what you want. For me it’s a moment that the dad won’t forget. Taking his son to go and put his feet in the sea. I love that there is no one else in this photo which for me makes this photo more special to me and I don’t think anything can come close to how perfect timed shot this is.
Date-30 September 2020
Another panoramic edit with the rugged edge of the Crantock beach area. This time of day the sea was getting closer to the sand dunes. Where I was standing in this photo, a couple of days before there was more sand than there was water.
Date-30 September 2020
Another one of my favourite photos from the trip. This took me a while to do. I didn’t want to screw this photo up, This is my foot prints in the sand and then got low with my camera to then produce this photo. What I also like is that if I didn’t mention that these was my foot prints it could have been the dog walkers foot prints which makes this photo more creative.
Date-30 September 2020
The sun setting was getting lower. The waves were calmer then the first day we visited the beach. The blueness of the sky and pinkness from the sunset made it a good combination for this photo.
Date-30 September 2020
Another photo where this wasn’t planned or staged, the sun beating down to create a nice reflection of the water and sand.
*Disclaimer* I did speak to the family that had this child in the photo that I took and explained that you cannot see her face.
Date-30 September 2020
Date-30 September 2020
There was a windsurfer out on the sea enjoying himself. I didn’t think this would come out as well as I thought but it came out quite well. The arc shape of the parasail brought more to this photo.
Date-30 September 2020
Second to last day we went to the beautiful small village of Port Issac. This is where they film Doc Martin. As we was walking down the steep road towards the small cove I took this photo of the very rugged coast line.
Capturing the ups and down of the coastline with the greenery of the land on top. This is peak Cornwall and English countryside. It was very sunny on the day which worked beautifully because the green of the land and the blue of the sky mixed really well for a photo like this.
Date-1st October 2020
Date-1st October 2020
As we kept walking down towards the cove I turned around and saw how beautiful this area was. The calmness of the waves coming into the cove made it a good time to take a photo. With the mixture of the trees, grass and the rocks had a great composition for this photo.
Date-1st October 2020
Made our way down to the bottom of the cove. The sea wasn’t too rough but the waves made for a good photo opportunity. The sea was quite far out but setting the right settings so I wouldn’t miss the wave hitting the rock.
Date-1st October 2020
While we was down in the cove it started to rain. Luckily there was small caves that we hid in while it was raining. When we was waiting for it to clear I saw an opportunity for a photo, there was this house or hotel?? not 100% sure. I used part of cave as composition with making the white hotel/house as the centre subject.
I used the cinematic preset for this photo and the reason why this one makes it look more cinematic is because it reminds me of the house that is used in Alfred Hitcock Psycho.
Date-1st October 2020
My partner at taking a photo of me in action. I always quite like this photo because its one of the only photos of me while using my camera. I don’t have many of me and my camera. Especially capturing it in landscape shows the rocky and rugged area behind me is.
Date-1st October 2020
That now comes the end of the trip to Cornwall. It was beautiful, it was wet but overall had an amazing time and captured some truly amazing pictures in some truly special places. When I looked back through the photos to put into this blog it made me realise that I want to go back and explore more of Cornwall. I really want to explore more of the unknown areas of the county and explore the beauty of the Cornish coastline.
Here we are in the middle of October, me and my partner went to London. This was going to be the most unusual time going to London because of lockdown restrictions. I have been to London before at Christmas time and London never looked more quiet, but this time London would look even more quiet. I feel like this trip really changed how I take my photos as you will see below. I looked and compared 2020 to 2019 and noticed that I took time over the photos this time around, thinking about the composition in the photo and what is my main focus point. There was just something about this London trip which really changed my photography to what it is now. Seeing London so quiet felt so weird but I really enjoyed capturing the streets with no one in it.
Leaving Waterloo Station and heading towards the London Eye, this was the first photo I took in London. It was blue skies, I was using the 24-105mm lens and captured this building looking up. Splitting each side of the building having one side of windows with blue tint from the sky and the other window with a white tint.
Date-15th October 2020
Doesn’t matter how many times I take a picture of this iconic landmark, I would say that this is the most photographed building/landmark i’ve taken of in London. I think every time I have gone to London I have always taken a picture of it. The difference this time is that there was no one around. I edited this photo to make the leaves on the tree to be a bit more browny/orange.
Date-15th October 2020
Making our way along the Southbank and looking back seeing the Houses of Parliament with Queen Elizabeth Tower (Big Ben). I really like how this photo came out as I captured Westminster Bridge leading to the Houses of Parliament. Bringing out more of the colours from the building and adding hints of blue from the sky.
Date-15th October 2020
Located along the Southbank was this ice cream van, this was my time to capture it side on photo showing off the name of the company and the van. The pattern design of the van was unique, but made it look like it was part of a kitchen floor tile. I was debating to make this photo black and white but I really liked the blue of the van so I stuck with a coloured version of the photo.
Date-15th October 2020
Yes of course there was going to be a black and white photo with a hint colour. This time I highlighted the iconic London red bus crossing Westminster Bridge. This was originally black and white but I saw that there was a bus on the bridge so I re-edited it so that only the bus would be in colour. If I cast my mind back when I started editing photos, this was one of the first photos where I would do the mix of black and white and colour.
Date-15th October 2020
Walking up a very quiet Whitehall street. This street being really busy during the week with buses, workers and tourists didn’t have any of those. It felt very weird walking down and seeing nothing. Lockdown and COVID was not great for everyone but if I could retake all these photos again or go around London again during this time then I would have done.
In the distance you can see Nelsons Column at Trafalgar Square.
(we did wear facemasks all the time while in London to be safe)
Date-15th October 2020
Nelsons Column is the heart of Trafalgar Square. Located behind the statue is the National Gallery and National Portrait Gallery.
When I edit photos I always think about which would look better in black and white, which one would look better in colour or the hint of colour. With this one I think about back in time with history and Nelson fighting in the Battle of Waterloo. Black and white that is related to history always works.
Date-15th October 2020
We did what we always do which is head over to North Greenwich. When we arrived it suddenly started raining which always makes good for photos. The water makes it a good reflection surface. The o2 is where events are held and now you can climb up over the top. Literally everywhere we went was just so quiet and at the o2 was even quieter so when it came to taking photos there was no one in them.
Date-15th October 2020
This photo would crop up a few times over the next couple of years because its now of my favourite spots to look down towards Tower Bridge. I mentioned it in the last part I think where there is another place where I would take a similar picture to this but in a different country. The rain was clearing up but there was still patches of rain puddles.
I didn’t stand in the centre of the pathway because if you look at it you can see that i’m slightly left of the path way. Just capturing one of the towers down the centre makes for good composition in the photo.
Date-15th October 2020
Turning the other way round along that same pathway. Behind me was the Shard and just below is London Bridge station. I was using the building to the right for a reflection surface. I wanted to use the Shard as my centre subject with it reflecting off the building which I achieved. I wanted the Shard not to be dead centre of the shot but more like it was appearing out of the left side of the building.
Date-15th October 2020
Moving the way down towards the river and capturing the Tower of London through the small fountains that are located this side. I knew straight away that I wanted to use these fountains for the photo. This wasn't the first attempt on this photo because I knew I wouldn’t be able to capture it straight away. I set to high shutter speed and setting high shooting rate so I would get a few photos of the fountain and then pick which one I would prefer.
Date-15th October 2020
This is another landmark that I have taken many photos of. Doesn’t matter which angle you take this from you always find something new or a hidden detail on the tower. Capturing both towers in all its glory. While I was adding the photos into this blog I started to realise that in 2020 I started doing more portrait shots than landscape shots in London. I know in 2021 most of the photos in London were more shot portrait than landscape.
Date-15th October 2020
A closer shot of the Tower of London. The iconic shape of the tower that has been used for many things throughout the years, but what it is known for is keeping the crown jewels.
Date-15th October 2020
A landscape shot of Tower Bridge with Canary Wharf in the background. If I stood back slightly I would capture the light just to the right side of this photo to be in the photo but don’t worry I would rectify that in the next coming year (2021).
Date-15th October 2020
Part of the city of London you have the Walkie Talkie building, the Gherkin as well and the Cheese Greeter. Yes I know what you're thinking they are weird names for building. That its not there official names but just what they look like.
Date-15th October 2020
The Gherkin in the background with the warship HMS Belfast in the foreground. I wanted to capture the name of HMS Belfast in the photo, but I didn’t want to zoom into just the name. I wanted to add some background scenery into it such as the Gherkin.
Date-15th October 2020
Another phot of the Walkie Talkie in the background with part of the HMS Belfast middle bit into the photo.
Date-15th October 2020
Moving our way down the Southbank I stopped and stood right in-front of the Walkie Talkie. I then saw a boat just siting bobbing on the river. I then thought this would make a good opportunity to capture the boat and the building together.
Date-15th October 2020
We then decided to do something different which was to catch the Thames Clipper or Uber boats as its now called. We caught the boat down the river to Vauxhall. We sat at the back of the boat because I would capture everything as we go past it bit not having people in the photo.
This was one of the photos where I knew I would make into black and white. HMS Belfast is a iconic British war ship that was used in World War l, is anchored and has been turned into a museum.
Date-15th October 2020
We set off on the boat moving away from HMS Belfast. We moved over to the right (if you see it as you was on the boat) this was when this photo opportunity came about. Having Tower Bridge in the background with HMS Belfast to the right makes it look like it is protecting the bridge and keeping guard of it.
Date-15th October 2020
Making our way down the river we made our way under the Millennium Bridge (The Wobbly Wobbly Bridge). The Shard standing tall with people walking over the bridge. The sun was setting quite low as well which made the lighting quite nice for a photo like this.
Date-15th October 2020
Capturing a side angle of the Cheese Greeter and Walkie Talkie.
Date-15th October 2020
Peaking over the top St Pauls with its iconic dome shaped design. This building was never hit during the Blitz in World War ll.
Date-15th October 2020
Date-15th October 2020
The sun came out as we getting close to the London Eye. All the building close together from St Pauls to the Cheese Greeter. The sun light made it really good to capture all the buildings in the low level sunset.
Date-15th October 2020
We arrived to our station to get off, while we was walking up I saw an opportunity as I was going to use this bridge from the dock to land as my subject. Behind and thought the metal work is very snazzy flats/apartments. I remember when these when they were being built. This is close to the not so secretive MI6 building.
Date-15th October 2020
Once again we started with the London Eye and now we finish with the London Eye. This time at night with the pink outline around the wheel. The splashes of dots on the picture was not added in post production they just appeared on the photo when I was looking through them. I don’t think it rained that evening but it could have done and that’s why there are splashes on the photo.
Date-15th October 2020
Finishing off the London photos with a black and white photo. I wanted to highlight the lights on the wheel to make it a bit brighter and stand out in the picture.
Date-15th October 2020
London experience during lockdown will definitely be one to remember. This would be the last time I would be in London for quite a while but I would be back to visit again.
We now move into the colder month of November where we had this lockdown again. Where restrictions would be brought back in except the exercise where you could exercise for however long you wanted. I took this opportunity to go to Richmond Park and go on a walk around this beautiful park. As this lockdown happened meant that I couldn’t work so I was put on furlough again. The day felt very wintery, the ground had a bit of frost on it. I took my Canon 80D with my 24-105mm lens I think it took my 16-35mm wide angle lens as well to get the wider shots.
Starting off near the bottom end of the park I would stay around the same area as the park is huge! The leaves have sadly been starting to fall off but the colour of the leaves made the photos look good.
Date-23rd November 2020
Crossing the small river in the park so I took this photo of river run and trees on each side. The small reflection on the river with the orange from the trees brings more colour into the small river.
Date-23rd November 2020
Date-23rd November 2020
Making my way into the woodland I remember laying down on the floor and taking this upwards photo of the trees. You can see the branches and the orange leaves.
Date-23rd November 2020
The tree line of the woodland capturing the autumn in a nutshell. The leaves on the floor from the many trees in the park.
Date-23rd November 2020
The preset that I use for all my photos really brought out the orange on the trees and the ground where the leaves lay.
Date-23rd November 2020
There are tall tree stumps located all around the park and this was one that I came across while through the woodland. I think the tree hasn’t grown out its roots in a long time.
Date-23rd November 2020
Richmond Park is known for its beautiful wildlife such as the deer above. I came out of the woodland and I saw people in a small circle. There was a big group of deer so I stood quite far back, now that I come think of it I think I also brought my 70-200mm lens and I used the lens to take this photo of these beautiful animals.
Date-23rd November 2020
Date-23rd November 2020
Most of the Richmond Park photos were mostly in colour because I think I wanted to capture the autumn leaves on the trees and on the ground. This time I wanted to capture this photo with the reflection of the water. Luckily the water was very still so it made for a good reflection photo.
Date-23rd November 2020
Date-23rd November 2020
Well you weren’t going to think there wasn’t going to be one of these edits. Yes I edited a couple of these just to highlight the orange throughout the park. In this photo you can also see just under the tree a child in a yellow jacket and another person with them.
What I like about this picture is that it’s just them two under the big tree. The yellow coat always gives me autumn vibes. I felt like I could not just highlight the coat on its own I feel like it’s too small to see. So I thought I would broaden it to be the leaves as well that would be in colour.
Date-23rd November 2020
To finish off the Richmond Park photos is one of my favourite nature photos. This always stands out to me every time I think about my nature photos. I had feeing that this would easily be one of those hint of colour photos. There was a few leaves on the floor while there was plenty of leaves on the big tee in the open area. Also this always sticks out to me for the hint of colour photo. I have edited a few in my time but this one will be in my top 10 for these types of edits.
Date-23rd November 2020
Here we now are at the end of this blog. We have gone through the crazy year of 2020. The world turning COVID-19 had changed this world for a very long time. We have seen more nature photos in this part, been to the beauty that is Cornwall and experienced London in this pandemic. We shall see what 2021 will bring for my photography and where I would go.
Thank you for reading this part of the blog, someone who isn’t always best at English or good at writing I am trying my hardest to make sure I don’t screw up. I am pleased with how this is going and the pace of the writing. Now that I have a bit more time with balancing work and other items outside of work means that I can carry on doing small bits of writing for the upcoming blogs.
Stay tuned for the next part where we dive into another year, who knows where my photography will take me. Feel free to follow me on instagram and Twitter
Instagram-mr_agh_photography
Twitter-Mrrandos
Thank you very much and we will see you in the next part.