Hello
Yesterday I was up before dawn because I had wanted to see if I could make a picture of the City of London skyline in silhouette as the sun rose, as seen from Sydenham Hill here in southeast London. It didn’t quite turn out as hoped as the sun rose a ways to the picture’s right. Perhaps later in the spring or summer the sun might align just so.
It was worth the early morning rise and 25 minute walk in the cold wind as I came away with a good picture anyway.
I had made a picture like this before the lockdown with a person sitting in front of the bus on the top deck. This time I decided to wait for a bus that had gone out of service to see if I could incorporate the message into a picture. Several buses no longer in service passed by but they didn’t have their signs illuminated. As I was preparing to leave I noticed a bus with an illuminated sign slowing climbing the hill. I quickly repositioned the tripod and made a picture in the nick of time.
I’m not sure the picture works quite in the way I thought it might - as a metaphor for Brexit or the pandemic. But worth trying anyway.
One thing I did learn though, was how to better prepare the file in post production. The previous picture I made was a tad soft and the colours needed a lot of work. I put this down to the old Nikon lens I had attached to my Fujifilm camera not being able to properly resolve the large modern sensor. But with the above image I pushed harder in post and realised that the lens resolved the image very well indeed, it’s just that the RAW file was very flat. I will go back to the earlier image and use the same technique to pull out more detail such that I can prepare a better print for anyone who may wish to have one.
Immediately after making this picture I packed up and left taking a more circuitous route by staying on Sydenham Hill and heading towards Gypsy Hill before descending into Crystal Palace Park and home. Along the way I came across this strange scene.
I even checked the briefcase but it was difficult to open as one lock remained secure. However, I did leave my fingerprints all over it. Uh-oh!
Until next time. Keep safe, lovely people.