New Forest - part 1

New Forest - part 1. Part 2 is (as of 1/1/25) in preparation. For a taster you'll find examples on my Instagram account: @barryedgeimages

A year long weekly series of dawn visits to the New Forest in Hampshire - 2021 to 2022.

This project arose because I was becoming increasingly disillusioned with my approach to photographing the forest. I'd drifted into the mindset of constantly seeking the Wow! shot. This was in part a hangover from when I was selling my work and partly from the unhealthy (for me) 'pressures' of social media. So I decided to visit with the intention of just trying to capture what caught my eye and made me pause - often with coffee and my go everywhere Kindle ...

I managed most weeks, but drew the line at times when I had to set the alarm earlier than 3:30 am. Here are a sample of shots taken with a few brief annotations:

The beginning ...

April 2021

No pre-dawn magic. No glow. Just heavy cloud. But this was the point of the project - just to see what happened ...

As April turned to May the leaves started to emerge.

Good to see the sun, albeit briefly. I'm not bothered by cloudy weather as often in the woods the colours become richer, especially after rain.

Where's the mist? The forest often enjoys lovely misty light, but my selected days hadn't so far coincided with them...

... but then I got lucky, briefly, before the sun quickly burnt off the beautiful conditions.

As spring developed the alarm clock got dangerously close to my 3:30 am limit. A couple more visits before I took a summer break, halting the household disruption caused by creeping around in the wee hours ...

August is not my favourite month, photographically. The summer greens become dull and heavy. I actually made two trips in August where I didn't bother to take my camera.

In all my forest trips during this project I didn't have a plan. I just picked a location from the OS map, arrived early and wandered around. These non-camera trips were intended to scout the identified areas. However, I didn't manage this as I find I'm now programmed to just wander. Hey ho ...

As autumn arrived the forest built up its colour overload...

I do find I like a path or three. I suppose it's the journey/narrative thing, but my photos rarely seemed to capture what I felt at the time. The following one was taken soon after a walker appeared on the bridge. It was around dawn and I'd had what is an all too often 'awkward moment' as I was spotted loitering i.e. looking for a composition. Seconds later two massive Rhodesian Ridgebacks came bounding up to her. It suddenly felt much better. I hate it when my lone presence in the woods unsettles folk as they suddenly come across me. Maybe I should borrow a dog for each trip ...

I couldn't resist this B&W. I do struggle seeing tones because my sense of colour tends to dominate, but this was an obvious candidate for a conversion...

By now the season was changing to become wet and wetter still. I seemed to be getting frequently caught in showers. I was determined not to let poor weather forecasts deter me, but arriving in the dark, with the rain drilling down on the car roof, wasn't ever too great. That's when the flask and Kindle came in handy as I waited for the rain to ease.

Yet more rain and the Forest was starting to flood. I was frequently having to retrace my steps as I was aware of the potential damage to the fragile soil and flora/fauna so I kept to paths. Progress was often slow, but that mattered little. What mattered more were the many trips I had to shelter from a sudden and prolonged downpour.

Here's one when I assume I 'heard' a weather front arriving. Is that possible? I was aware rain was forecast (again). It was calm and dry and I was engrossed in trying to photo the saturated landscape. Suddenly I was conscious of a change. I thought I'd heard forest machinery throbbing nearby when the tree tops started to bend violently, the wind picked up rapidly and the rain began to lash down. I spent a good few minutes sheltering in these trees. Might as well record them I decided ...

Here come the frosts - briefly. Last winter was mild. The frost rarely penetrates the tree canopy, but across the open heathland, spectacular sunrises in the clear, frosty air can be special.

As I look back through my albums I recall how I felt on each occasion. Unfortunately, I find translating these emotions to a photo, nearly impossible. On this occasion I was like an excited six year old as I arrived at the car park. It's even more difficult to translate that particular reaction ...

Normal service resumed. The weather returned to cloudy and cloudy and ... cloudy for weeks on end.

So far through this project I've deliberately used one lens, a 15-30 mm. Taking woodland shots is typically done with a telephoto as it simplifies the compositions. However, as I started these weekly visits I wanted to 'do things differently' (personal moto post- Covid), so I forced myself to use a lens I wasn't comfortable with in the woods - it had been my go-to interiors lens, but that work having ceased I thought I'd re-purpose it.

The next few shots during the winter were taken with a short telephoto prime to isolate and create more intimate images.

Hi there!

When my mind is free of the clutter of modern life - and these forest wanderings help enormously - I find I start to see imaginary shapes. This 'owl' stood out, but only from a particular angle and briefly, as the transient light struck through the nearby trees.

... and to finish the year.

I spent so long sitting here with my cheese, beetroot and chutney rolls - try them, you won't regret it :-) - I only took this one shot. At the start of this project I'd probably have fretted over my poor return from this trip, however by this stage my perspective had changed ... and maybe so had I ...

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