Day 23 - 22nd April 2015 - Chertsey to Hampton Court Palace

Today’s 8 mile stretch of the Thames Path took me to Hampton Court Palace; and the end of the route in the first of the two ‘Official National Trail Guides’ for The Thames Path - ‘In the Country’. The second - ‘In London’ - is a book of the same size but covering just the remaining 38 of the 184 miles to the Thames Barrier at Woolwich … plus a 9 mile extension to Crayford Ness. More detail and larger scale mapping in the second. Most of the 23 sections I’ve hiked to date have produced several images with which I have been pleased. But whilst today’s hiking was most enjoyable, it was singularly unproductive as far as my photography was concerned. Day 23 produced the smallest number of ok-ish images from the whole hike so far. Unsure of the reason for this but as I progress London-wards the river is widening and becoming increasingly urban making for less and less of interest to me. But, I mustn’t make excuses - I’ve often said that good images can be found anywhere and everywhere, if only you look hard enough!

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Moored - but Sunk

Wall Flower

No Way

Railing

Day 22 - 6th April 2015 - Runneymede to Chertsey

My early start to avoid the bank holiday traffic and crowds was a good idea but I still wasn't early enough to catch the early morning mist on the river. It had all but dispersed by the time I started hiking. I seem to be becoming obsessed with photography under some of the bridges, judging by the number of pictures I'm taking. They do offer very graphic images often with beautifully reflected and dappled light on their undersides. The amazingly warm and sunny Easter Monday weather was almost unprecedented. And no more mud!

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Under the A30 & M25

Classic Cumulus

Mind Your Head

Dappled Girders

M3

Spring Willow

Day 21 - 20th March 2015 - Windsor Racecourse to Runneymede

My second hiking day this week, the day of the spring equinox and the day of the solar eclipse which reached its maximum of about 85% at 09:30. Sadly the eclipsed sun wasn't visible at my location, too much featureless grey cloud, though its passing was apparent by the marked dulling down by about 4 stops (according to my camera's light meter) of the already grey morning. It would have been fortuitous if my arrival at Runneymede had coincided exactly with the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta in June - but I wasn't inclined to slow down. Not particularly photographically inspiring today - so I've even included a shadow selfie, just to make up the numbers! This segment of the hike passes under the flight path into Heathrow so the whole day was one continuous drone of planes landing at the rate of something like one every minute or so.

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Mural by Cosmo Sarson - 21.7.12

Weeping Willow and Mistletoe

Shadow Selfie - slowly does it. On one of the few road sections of the hike.

Windsor Castle & Mistletoe

My Love I Remember ...

St Mary Magdalene's - Boveney

Today's Symmetrograph

Day 20 - 16th March 2015 - Cookham to Windsor Racecourse

This stretch of the Thames Path is liberally dotted with impressive mansions - not subjects I'm interested to photograph. But two of the bridges provided much material with which to work. The first is Isambard Kingdom Brunel's 1838 railway bridge - the widest and flatest single span brick built bridge in the world. And the second is that carrying the M4 motorway over the Thames. For once I had difficulty selecting the ones I liked most from the many I shot. The Thames is populated by large numbers of pleasure boats, mostly moored up for winter, so it was a pleasant change to see a working boat on the river, particularly as it showed the most unusual reflection of itself in the smooth water distorted by its bow wave. Signs of spring are all around, most noticeably the early blossom and the first Chiffchaff of the year, just back from wintering south of the Sahara. The whole day was grey and at times drizzley, not the best weather to be giving my new camera (Sony A7II) and lenses their first outing. But the soft light of grey weather is often perfect for image making.

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Under the M4 - I

Under the M4 - II

Boulter's Weir

Blossom and Steps

Spring

Working Boat

IKB's railway Bridge - I

IKB's railway Bridge - II

Today's Symmetrograph

Day 19 - 18th February 2015 - Hurley to Cookham

In contrast with some recent days on 'The Path' today was blazing sun all day. The occasional rare cloud relieved the unaccustomed dazzle for a minute or so just a few times only through the day. But, for the first time whilst hiking The Thames Path there was a cloud worthy of including in my portfolio. It occurred at the end of the hike, just minutes from getting back to my car. It's included in the images from today's hike. I overheard a lady walking with her young daughter say of the cloud - "it's a dragon"! I'm an occasional contributor of cloud photographs to The Cloud Appreciation Society and sent this one in to them this afternoon. I just took a look at the website and it seems as though it will appear there shortly in their photo gallery. I suspected that my day's efforts would yield little to satisfy me but on working through my output in Lightroom and Photoshop I turned in a few that I am pleased with. And this time I've included a "Symmetrograph". This is a symmetrical image derived from a photograph (symmetrical photograph) through multiple manipulations to create what is usually a complex pattern. This one is actually from a hike a week or two ago. A Symmetrograph (my coining) has absolutely no significance, except that I enjoy making them. A few years ago I produced a (Blurb) book devoted to them - linked here. I may try to produce one from an image on each of my remaining hikes.

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Dragon Cloud

Symmetrograph

Hurley Footbridge

Zebra Bridge

Marlow Chimneys

Hurley Weir

Support

Day 18 - 11th February 2015 - Henley-on-Thames to Hurley

A quiet day's hiking which at first seemed like it wouldn't provide much for me to photograph. But, (almost) always, once settled into the business of hiking the business of looking took over and a few images came into focus. I took far too many photographs at Hambledon Weir leaving myself the task of choosing. In the end I selected a mono and a colour. It was another grey day - not a single shaft of sunlight - but that's often the best condition for photography - flat light, no harsh shadows.

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Hambledon Weir - I

Hambledon Weir - II

Fungi on Dead Wood

Footbridge - Hurley Lock

Boat Sheds

Day 17 - 4th February 2015 - Sonning to Henley-on-Thames

Not one on my best days for hiking - the mud was partly frozen on my outward hike but by the time I was returning it had completely thawed - so it was miles of sticky, slippery mud. Not at all conducive to calm contemplation of what might make a good photograph. Notwithstanding that, I did find several although this time the waters of the Thames played a lesser part. The area I'm hiking through is part of the Chilterns chalk downs in which flint stones are a feature. They are used in buildings, often to decorate and make patterns as well as adding strength to built structures. There are two photographs herein where they feature of the walls of St Mary's Church in Henley as an integral part of a property boundary wall. Colour has won out today - I tried several in b&w but most didn't work out too well.

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Laid up for the winter

Cloudy Ripples

Boat Shed Knots

Boat Shed

Flint Blocks

St Mary's - Henley

Flint Wall

On reflection, it's a tree.