#365daysofbiking Night falls:
October 29th – Travelling back home in the first of the end of British Summer Time commutes is always hard: I wasn’t late, but it was dark, and cold. I got passed by two gritters. Progress was slow.
Winter is upon me.
This means rejigging the photography a bit, as it’s had to find subjects in darkness, so the activity tends to shift to morning, or during errands or trips in the daytime.
Oh well, it’s here. Let’s do this.
December 5th – A very dark, grey and overcast day without anything really to commend it.
And then, just when you think there’s no beauty, these little fellows on a roadside verge, clearly oblivious to the season.
I think they were there specifically to cheer me up…
December 4th – Although it suddenly got warmer over the weekend, I’ve taken the plunge (late this year) and fitted ice tyres to a couple of my bikes as I do every winter.
Slightly fatter than my normal road tyre of choice at 35mm, these have a pronounced tread more akin to a cross tyre, with 4 radial bands of carbide-tipped spikes that bite into ice and packed snow.
Last week was cold, but mercifully, due to the dry spell, not too icy, but a close shave with a frozen puddle concentrated my mind. Although noisy and draggy, these tyres won’t slip easily on ice and wash down slime and will make me feel more secure on those dark, icy commutes.
If you’re out on the roads in a cold spell, here are my tips for safe cycling, even if you don’t have winter tyres…
Take it easy, folks.
August 11th – I had to pop to Shenstone on an errand on my way home from work, and the chance to ride these sleepy, familiar lanes, even on a dull day is wonderful.
I crossed Church Hill through the churchyard of St Johns, purely as I hadn’t been up there in a while. I have to say, the grounds maintenance at the rear in the old graveyard is currently not a patch on what it was, but I guess the wildlife appreciates the lack of disturbance.
The church remains what it has always been to me: A remarkable building in a beautiful spot, although not to my taste: A competent, muscular design in Victorian dark gothic that screams foreboding at me, not praise.
However, always good to see this landmark of my life. Love or hate it, it’s a remarkable thing.
March 1st – For me now is the time of the half-light. My morning commutes are well into light now, and most welcome that is; but evening commutes are mostly on the cusp of day and night, light and dark, optimism and pessimism.
This commute started in a grey, overcast light with a strong tailwind and and the threat of rain that arrived as I rode the canal back to Brownhills. The sky though, transformed from a grey murk into a remarkable, beautiful, luminous blue which captivated me.
Even though it was raining, I couldn’t miss capturing this.
Within 10 minutes, the light had died and night had fully fallen – but I was so glad I caught the moment.
February 19th – I had to be in work on a Sunday, unusually, early in the morning. After spending a few hours there, I decided to make the best of the day and head on to the canals of the Black Country. I shot over to Tipton, then through the Netherton Tunnel, wound around Brierley Hill to Stourbridge, out to Stourton and then all the way up to Wolverhampton on the Staffs and Worcester, heading back home on the good old Curley Wyrley to Bloxwich.
I love riding the Netherton Tunnel – at 3036 yards it’s a long one, and the effects of water seepage and time make it an interesting and dramatic journey.
Those air vents still remind me of something out of Doom or Quake.
Didn’t see another soul down there, either, which was odd. Bumble Hole at the far end was busy, though.
January 21st – An experiment with long-exposure photography was fun with these thirty second exposures. The first was off the footbridge over the Chasetown bypass, and the gentle undulation of the structure clearly affected the image. Better from the crossing of the M6 Toll, which is a much harsher image since their change to LED lighting.
December 2nd – I finally got the effect I was after at Clayhanger bridge. Hard, sharp, and a night shot with plenty of contrast and not too orange. I haven’t post-processed this image in any way.
Now, let’s see if I can do the same for Church Hill in Wednesbury…
November 22nd – Sorry, another night picture… I’m trying to avoid posting too many but life at the moment means I’m mostly cycling in the dark!
I had to take some documents into Birmingham late in the day, and returned on the train on a dry, warm-seeming evening, which was a welcome relief from the washout of the day before. Unusually, I alighted at Black Street for a change, and as I watched my train roll off into the dark, I realised what a great station this is at night.
Not as beautiful as Shenstone, or as dramatic as others, but I do like the lights, their interaction with the overhead lines and signals. All contribute to my my Late Night Feelings thing I have a bout rail stations at night.
October 8th – I looked hard for inspiration in the grey gloom of late afternoon, and found nothing, and darkness had fallen before I found anything that interested me. Hopping on the canal at Walsall Wood, I headed for Brownhills via Catshill Junction. The stillness of the canal in the dark was as beautiful as it ever was.
When the nights close in, it can be hard to find decent photos for a while as you shift expectations of what makes a decent image. There is no longer the abundance of plants and wildlife in good light, and the sunshine that makes even the plainest view special is far more sparing in it’s attention; but in the night shot there is a whole range from quiet, lonely peace to the bright chaos of a city centre rush hour.
It just takes time to adjust to the darkness again.
BrownhillsBob's #365daysofbiking 