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Showing posts from January, 2016

Getty Images Sale: "A scene From Countryside"

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I decided to share on my blog only more substantial sales from the two online photo agencies I submit my images to. Getty Images have some very low tariffs for low resolution images, so some of their sales amount to as little as a dollar or so per image. I make such small sales nearly every month but it has been a while since I had a good sale. So I was pleased to learn that back in December I sold a license to this image to one of the world's largest film and TV production companies based in London. I do not know how or where the client is going to use my image as this is not something Getty Images communicate to photographers. I took the photo in Adel, a suburb in North Leeds, not far from where I live, on a beautiful June day back in 2010. It dates back to the time when I was still relatively new to using textures in Photoshop post processing. The scene can be seen near Adel Church from the road leading to it. There are beautiful countryside walks around this spot and surro

Wycoller Hall and Country Park,10 Jan 2016

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At last we had a dry, no rain day coincide with our days off, so G, a friend of ours and I set off on the long planned, first trip to the beautiful, historic Wycoller in Lancashire. It is the starting point of the picturesque Bronte Way leading to the Bronte Parsonage Museum in Haworth. It also has direct connections with Charlotte Bronte as the Wycoller Hall, a 16th century ruin today, is thought to have been the model for Fearndean Manor in the "Jane Eyre" novel. We expected a lot of mud and large puddles of water everywhere, but it did not occur to us there could be snow as well. So we were surprised and rather delighted to see quite a bit of white dusting covering the landscape. The first snow we saw was from the car around Queensbury near Bradford, and from there onward there was more and more of it as we neared Wycoller. Lovely winter scenery around the entrance to the Wycoller village . I was thrilled to be taking such pics, the more so because I was complete

First Snow

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There were two very unusual things going on this morning: last night it was snowing heavily for a few hours so we woke up to a beautiful white blanket covering the view outside our window. And secondly, G and I were due to start work at similar time so we left the house together. Going to work had never been more joyful! I love snow even though it always slightly worries me whether we will still be able to get places living on a fairly steep hill. But snow means new photo opportunities and that matters a lot to me. Took this walking through the park next to our house to the main road, the route I always take to work. I like how the red brick wall contrasts the white surroundings. G waiting for me rather impatiently to take that photo. G took this one with his phone. It's a bit soft, but of course, I don't mind that when it comes to a photo of me. However, it is interesting to see the difference in quality between photos taken by G's phone and my one even thou

Hollens Farm Cotage, Grasmere, May 2015

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Our first major getaway this year will be another visit to the delightful Hollens Farm Cottage in the Lake District in February. So in the excited anticipation here is a post on our stay last spring. G and I love the Lake District and tend to go there every year. This time instead of the usual B&B accommodation we decided to rent a cottage for a week. We were open to the location, but it had to be an old cottage with original olde worlde interior and decor. I searched and searched various sites for days on end but nothing jumped at me. I almost thought what we were looking for existed only in our minds when I finally stumbled upon the Hollens Farm. It was free the week we wanted it for, and I was so pleased to find it was situated in Grasmere, one of my favourite Lakes villages. Dove Cottage, the poet William Wordsworth's home, which I love, is only a short walk up the road. And Grasmere has a more or less central position in the Lake District which means that from there it i

Happy New Year!

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New Year always means a fresh start for me. With the festivities over and Christmas decorations tucked away till next year it is time to cleanse the mind and body, reflect and think about what can be done to better yourself and your life. Not that I necessarily keep up with all of my resolutions, but it is good to have positive and honest thoughts about things. One resolution I do hope I will realize is to post here more often, and to generally improve my blog. For me January is the least inspiring month for photography unless we have some snow which we have not and it has not been forecast. Short, cold, dark and usually wet days and muddy countryside paths will almost certainly keep me away from the moors. Instead I plan on exploring and photographing some nearby towns and villages like Thornton - The Bronte sisters' birthplace, Saltaire and Bingley. I have quite a few shots from last year on my drive that I need to edit so I hope there will be posts in the next few weeks rem