Well I went to Brighton to have lunch with some friends. And after we parted I took a stroll along the seafront. The sky was dramatic and the sea calm; perhaps Gaia had had a good lunch with a couple of glasses of decent pinot noir too. The images were lovely yet looked a certain oomph. So I played in photoshop; pushing the contrast, lower the brightness. Definitely more oomph. So then I pushed the colour to the extreme; now I was getting somewhere yet the image lacked focus. So I stole a yacht from an image (something I have just learned how to do) from my much loved West Wittering; actually I stole it twice, What you see is the result. Hope you like it.

So; moving on from waves … or maybe not. This is taken at one of my favourite locations, West Wittering beach and although nit is not an image of waves it is an image of the actions and movements of waves have sculpted and moved on. And these shapes and textures will remain only until the next tide, when the waves will sculpt something new, every time something new, down to slight differences in tides and winds and currents.

Waves have so many shapes, so many textures and forms. I could watch the sea for hours; oh yes … I do.

There is an episode of Frasier where Frasier and Niles go into a coffee shop and the barrista asks them if they want their usual. And Frasier is so pleased to have a place where someone knows his usual … so OK it is a comedy show and they have walked into the wrong coffee shop and are mistaken for someone else. Well my usual is to go for powerful colours, strong contrasts and intense textures. So one day I was playing with this image and did the opposite; pushed the brightness up high, lost most of the detail and muted the colours. The result, an impression of a wave; just the hint. I like it; so perhaps we all need to lose the usual at times.

In Greek mythology one of Gaia’s daughters is Tethys, the sea or ocean. And Gaia dances with her daughter, this source of life, yet also this destroyer of life, for in this dance so many different facets can be displayed, so many different forms, patterns and textures; from absolute stillness, to the gentlest ripples, melodious waves and onto raging furious deadly torrents. And whilst I have never heard it stated, I suspect that, like snowflakes, no two waves are ever the same. Subtle differences in wind and tide and current will create subtle differences in the dance. Waves are mesmerising; I could watch them for hours.

These images are to complete the current set on Buttermere and Crummock Water; I couldn’t decide between the two, wanted to move on to other subjects, so I posted both. The first is, unapologetically, another view of Fleetwith Pike and Buttermere. I have photographed variations on this view so many times and do not tire of it, Gaia truly dances here and shows many moods; I have seen this when the strip of land I was standing on had flooded and re-joined the two lakes (separated normally by alluvial deltas from streams on each side), on sunny days, in snow and ice, in storms; all beautiful in each in their own way. And so, like many artists, I will continue to photograph it and enjoy the sometimes subtle nuances between each trip; and sometimes unsubtle.

The second is taken whilst climbing Brandreth, starting from Honister Pass, over Grey Knotts and then finally on to the top. A good stiff walk but achievable without hanging over terrifying precipices. The view shows both lakes so a suitable way to end this series. It also makes the point that landscape photography cannot always be about tripods, slow deliberations, large format cameras and patience; you can get frozen, wet and roasted that way (in Cumbria all on the same day). Sometimes you have to get sweaty and out of breath, and with the weather changing by the minute you have to grab the shots whilst they are there; thank goodness for digital cameras and large memory cards too … And yes I do possess a tripod and medium format camera … no patience though.