Andy Wallace’s Photo Blog

Why, if it's not my old mate Eddie running an RYA Powerboat Course ...

Sun, 5 Feb 2012 12:22:15 +0000

It was good to see a ‘craftsman’ at work this week in the form of Eddie Hadnett, a PLA pilot, who
in his spare time has started to run RYA accredited courses. The course I was invited to ‘capture’ was the practical part of an RYA level 2 Powerboat Course down at Denton. His two trainees, Colin and Ian, looked as if they were having far too much fun whilst giving the pilot launch a bit of ‘welly’, mind you I enjoyed being out on the river probably just as much, even though it was freezing cold. No posed photos on the launch but a few smiles broke out on the RIB as the guys tried to simulate movement on a boat that was going nowhere!

Reflections ...

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 19:41:54 +0000

Not many opportunities to take photos this week.

My favourite images are of reflections taken in the Canal Basin in Gravesend one sunny lunchtime, most of which have had the Snapseed treatment (see last week’s blog).

Every photographer needs a Doug!

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 09:24:32 +0000

Bumper ‘crop’ of photos this week.

First of all I have to give Doug Kempster, PLA’s (amongst other things) editor of Tidal Thames, credit for being my very able assistant after asking me to take some publicity pictures of a new Thames passage planning chart that’s due to be available for purchase soon. Doug often ends up holding the flash or suggesting different views, backgrounds etc but this time, after grabbing a few props, he became a prop himself by crouching underneath the chart and holding it at an angle so I could get some of the Operations Room screens in the background. It was no mean task ... he was starting to wobble after I kept saying ‘mmm one more shot’ or ‘mmm that doesn’t work’. After thinking we hadn’t really got the image we wanted I downloaded the photos and we were pleasantly surprised ... mind you I’m not sure which one will be used for the final advert, John Pinder (PLA’s Port Hydrographer) who produced the chart liked different shots from Doug and I. Mind you, I think John was disappointed that we didn’t use flash during the shoot as he kept distracting Doug and I by pressing the test button and ‘flashing’ at us!

Dilapidation ...

Sun, 15 Jan 2012 08:44:41 +0000

Not many opportunities for photos this week, but a walk along the river front at Gravesend one lunch hour gave me the opportunity to capture, what must have been, a thriving industrial area many years ago, but is now well past its best and is obviously a magnet for the local spray can artists!

A Rough River …

Sun, 8 Jan 2012 09:42:39 +0000

It was pretty rough on the Thames at Gravesend o Thursday this week ... probably the worst I’ve seen it. It was ‘draughty’ anyway but with the wind against the tide plus a brief squall, which blew through, it all added up to some good waves. The ferry stopped working but the pilot launch still braved the conditions. As always I had my camera with me but I’d put the 300mm lens in my bag just in case there was a chance of some good longer distance photos. It was definitely rougher just before I took the photos (the pilot launch had already made one trip across) but on the basis that it was chucking it down with rain with 60 knot gusts I decided to stay in the car! It was amazing how quickly the clouds disappeared cleared and then the sun lit the waves with a golden glow.

Happy New Year …

Sun, 1 Jan 2012 09:18:02 +0000

I can’t believe another year has just gone flying by.

Another brief blog from me this week, still not enough hours in the day ...

This weeks’ photos are a collection of ‘odds and sods’ taken over the last few weeks. I particularly like the images of Tower Bridge taken in late afternoon light taken after an abortive trip to St Paul’s Cathedral Carol Service on Christmas Eve - I couldn't believe how long the queue was!

There’s also quite a few of ships, again in the late afternoon light, mainly taken from my office window.

And finally, although it took quite a lot of time to get the right pose I eventually got the photos I wanted of my daughter Heather and her boyfriend Chris.

Happy Christmas

Sun, 25 Dec 2011 12:47:36 +0000

Happy Christmas to all my family, friends, colleagues and everyone who who takes the time to have a look at my website.

Brief blog from me this week ... a couple of photos taken in London yesterday plus one of Heather and Chris taken on Christmas Day ... more next week.

A different view ...

Sat, 17 Dec 2011 21:51:45 +0000

After taking several photos of the Thames from Gravesend’s Windmill Hill last week, I returned again this week to see if I could get some more photos of the London Gateway port development in the distance for a presentation by Peter Steen, PLA’s Director of Marine Operations. Peter wanted to show how close the new port is to Gravesend but after trekking up the hill in the cold and wind he didn’t use the photos .... thanks Peter :) but whilst I was up there, complete with 300mm telephoto lens and 1.4 x teleconverter, a perfect moment unfolded in front of me ... a view of the river not often seen, stretching out towards Coryton (Essex), with ships almost perfectly lined up and showing that the river is still a busy place. The wind was very strong at this point and it was difficult to hold the lens still but I clicked away and the result is a very happy photographer knowing that the image will be used in PLA publications ... and Peter even used it in his presentation on Thursday during the visit of the DP World CEO (see below).

More Marco Polo ...

Sun, 11 Dec 2011 08:35:14 +0000

Brief blog from me this week as there’s plenty to do coming up to Christmas.

Not content with ‘overdosing’ on the cruise ship Marco Polo last week I obviously felt that I needed more, so I jumped at the opportunity of taking photos of her as she came in to Tilbury in the beautiful morning sun.

Not a lot of photos to show for the week but I did get a few during brief lunchtime walks around Gravesend. During one walk along the promenade I captured my favourite photo of the week ... the young cygnet partially bathed in sunlight.

The remainder of this week’s ‘keepers’ were taken from the top of Windmill Hill, at the back of Gravesend, with the 300mm telephoto lens.

Which side looks best … my left or right?

Sun, 4 Dec 2011 09:16:49 +0000

One of my favourite photos of the week was taken during a walk along Gravesend promenade one lunchtime. I noticed a swan preening itself on a wooden jetty with the river as a backdrop. I crept up slowly, crouched down, and asked the swan which was her best side for a photo ... she immediately responded with putting her head to the left and then to the right .... well of course I’m lying, I took loads of pictures trying to anticipate when her head would be in the right place, making whistling noises to try and attract her attention. Not only that with a ship coming in to view I thought that would be the perfect background but would she look at me ... no ... and if I started to get too close to her she also started to walk away! Actually I don’t even know if the swan is male of female but, whatever, I have a lovely photo!

Lots of reasonable photos this week., many taken during a short walk along Gravesend promenade. I was lucky to get the pictures of Black Tailed Godwits searching for food along the foreshore - I’ve not seen them in Gravesend for a long time and so close.

I’ve probably over-dosed on pictures of the Marco Polo which was in most of the week ... some in the morning, some in the afternoon and some at night and different angles ... just goes to show how the same subject can be photographed in many ways ... and I’m sure I would have found many more if I’d got closer!

I started the week off with some photos of the PLA’s Operations Room at Gravesend for Barry Goldman, the PLA’s VTS Manager. Not only did he want a specific angle he wanted ships going by as well! The problem with the operations room is that it’s quite dark compared to the outside world through the windows, so what gives you a good exposure in the room only shows white (blown highlights) through the windows. So I decided to take the photo late afternoon when the light was more evenly matched inside with the outside ... I even got a ship going past!

There’s a few photos of vessels taken from the Gravesend Ferry in the early morning and a couple of a Hamburg Sud vessel as it passed the Tilbury landing stage at night, taken with the fish-eye lens.

And finally, just before going out to her work Christmas party I took some photos of my daughter Heather looking stunning! .... now is that because I’m a good photographer or that she looks naturally beautiful ... there’s only one way to find out .....

I know it doesn't look like Tilbury Power Station ...

Sun, 27 Nov 2011 08:24:40 +0000

The most colourful picture I took this week was of Tilbury Power Station from the Gravesend Ferry. You’ll have to take my word for it that It’s the power station! To create the image I zoomed in on some reflections just below the Power Station jetty then, with a slow shutter, zoomed out quite quickly.

When the Thames is still at night you get some great reflections of the many lights along the river and with a fast ISO and a vibration reduction lens you can just about freeze the action without a tripod.

I took a few photos of an Oil Spillage exercise at Northfleet in the fog but due to difficulties at the site the exercise didn’t materialise in to what was planned. Still, I did get a few photos mainly of our TOSCA (Thames Oil Spillage Clearance Association) craft as it stood by. My favourite photo is of the 5 guys looking in to the gloom over the river wall, with PLA’s Howard LaRoche in the middle.

And finally, although I thought I’d missed the best of the Autumn colours this year, I managed to get a few photos during last Sunday’s walk with our dog Maisy, who managed to hoover up most of the leaves with her ears. I particularly like the photo of the bench, taken through the trees, in the fading sunshine. Like many of my photos it’s a case of being in the right place at the right time with the right light ... if I hadn’t had my camera with me I wouldn’t have got the shot and, as many of you who know me, my camera is nearly always with me!

As the sun disappears in London ...

Sun, 20 Nov 2011 09:57:21 +0000

Most of the photos It took this week were taken yesterday after a visit to the National and Portrait Galleries in London. For November the weather was amazing. After we’d visited the galleries the camera came out and I found plenty of opportunities to take photos as we walked from Trafalgar Square, down to the Embankment, across to the South Side of the Thames and the London Eye and then back across Westminster bridge.

The light was great, being either very low or creating an afterglow just after the sun had disappeared. All the photos were taken handheld, so for most of them I relied on increasing the ISO and/or Nikon’s vibration reduction system. I also used my favourite fisheye lens a lot!

Photos of the Thames, with a backdrop of some of the iconic buildings in London, made up the majority of the shots but I was pleased with all the images. If I’d had more time I would have liked to have done some more ‘street photography’ as there were many interesting characters about!

The only other photos I took this week were of the continuing work on the new Gravesend ferry pontoon and the first ships (in the dark) unloading ‘biomass’ at Tilbury Power station.

House of Commons ….

Sun, 13 Nov 2011 08:57:49 +0000

This week I was asked to take photos of a PLA event in the Strangers Dining Room in the House of Commons. Wow ... it’s not everyday you get asked to do that! .... but unfortunately, dear viewer, I don’t think I can put the photos up on my website as it includes shots of the inside of the building, which according to the House of Commons website isn’t allowed and, on this occasion, I don’t think I have the right to publish the photos I took of of MPs, dignitaries and PLA staff who attended. Oh well ... it was good fun doing it and I got to use a new flash attachment which looks like a ‘tupperware’ bowl to diffuse the light. So there’s just one photo below, taken outside after the event, of Big Ben in the dark

Other than that there’s a photo of piling work in preparation for a new pontoon on Gravesend’s Town Pier and some photos I took a few weeks ago of a silhouetted tug as the sun was going down, two Maersk vessels passing in Gravesend Reach and reflections of masts.

There you are Susannah … you now have your own page!

Sun, 6 Nov 2011 08:40:44 +0000

My young niece, Susannah, has complained to me on many occasions that my website hasn’t got many pictures of her so, hopefully, this will make up for it!

She’s not quite on her own this week because she shares the blog with Michael, his hamster (Dusty), HMS Mersey and a view of the river at night out of my office window!

I would have liked more pictures of Michael and Susannah’s hamsters but unfortunately they don’t tend to pose on command ...

A week in Kingsbridge, South Devon

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 08:17:30 +0000

Just back from a week in Kingsbridge, South Devon with our great friends ‘the Maltons & Nathan’ plus special guest appearances by Christina & Ollie. Plenty of rain during the week although, judging by the photos, we must have taken full advantage of the sun when it came out.

I particularly like taking seascapes and I got a few opportunities to blur the sea with some long exposures. It was also great to get an extra pair of hands in the form of Ollie & Nathan ... I’m normally on my own when taking these type of photos and it made a change for me to have to explain how I was setting up the shot.

As we were overlooking the estuary at Kingsbridge it wasn’t surprising that I took lots of photos of boats and reflections as well as the ‘Little Egrets’ that were hunting for food in the water.

The photos were mainly taken around Kingsbridge plus Plymouth, Blackpool Sands, Thurlestone, Bantham & Bigbury.

I’ve just managed to whittle down the list of my favourite photos taken during the week to a magic 100 which you can see by clicking on any of the photos below or by going to the ‘Places & Events’ section of the website.