Monthly Archives: September 2012

Roundhouses and interesting skies, Grimspound and Merrivale, Dartmoor

I went out on the Moor twice this week by myself with my camera, we had some nice bright early Autumn days. I know Merrivale bronze age stone row quite well but I hadn’t, bizarrely ever discovered the roundhouses just next to the row before. On Tuesday I ventured out on the Moor and was met with bright skies, shadows on the hills and fast moving shadows, perfect light for Photography.

Merrivale is one the most important Archeological Bronze age sites in Europe it’s combination of stone rows, dwellings and a Menhir all in close proximity denote a settlement of some importance. The site is well know because of it’s closeness to the main road from Tavistock to Princetown.

I came away that day feeling better than when I arrived the open Moor has that effect on me I find and it helps also to get some good shots.

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I visited Grimspound, a simliar bronze age village with an outer wall and hut circles the next day. This site is not as charged with energy as Merrivale and the roundhouse remains are smaller but the place has a lovely atmosphere all the same.

I had to wait for a while for the sun to appear and a herd of schoolchildren bounced around the stones, I realised as their shouts echoed off the tors that this place would have been full of people’s voices when it was used as a settlement 3000 years ago.
The children ran off down the hill and the big cloud lifted and I was gifted with light.

I walked back down the hill and stopped to photograph a willow tree by a lovely brook tumbling down the hill. The last of the heather was out and I felt the seasons change under my feet.

Lydford Castle, Church and Norman earthworks 16/9/2012

I spent my Sunday afternoon visiting the nearby village of Lydford, West Devon which has many interesting historical features. The main place of interest is the Norman prison, better known as the castle… it was a grey afternoon but I managed a nice shot poining upwards from the trees, below:

I walked around the back of the castle and headed to the Norman earthworks, which I hadn’t been to before,the early Autumn colours helped to make a nice shot of an oak tree on the edge of the moat :

I walked to the C15th church, which has some of the 18th century gravestones that are promenient in the area.

The church has some nice medieval stained glass fragments that I managed to capture by raising the ISO and opening up the aperture on my lens.

I got the last above shot of the castle leaving the church, with a mill wheel that had been put in the churchyard in the bottom of the shot.
Today like a lot of days, especially this year shows you can get some passable shots even when the weather is dull given the right subject matter.:)

Shaugh Prior Photographic Shoot; Dartmoor Devon August 31st 2012

I returned to Shaugh Prior for this photographic shoot and met with my student in the busy carpark. We went over some basic work with tripods and experimenting with shutter speeds and composition.
I love this location down near Plymouth, it has so many different points of interest, and amazing boulders to capture.
There was a dinstinct feel of Autumn in the air as we continued up the steep hill to the massive rock climber’s Dewerstone Rock. The rocks at the top of the hill are dramatic and the forest below makes for lots of interesting compositional opportunities.

I think I am looking forward to the Autumn colour at this location, the beech leaves always look so amazing come October.