simonharding

St Bega's Church, Bassenthwaite, Cumbria, England

St Bega's Church, Bassenthwaite, Cumbria, England

This delightful church, on the shores of Bassenthwaite Lake is in the middle of nowhere, but occupies an idyllic location. On this particular morning, the golde...
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This delightful church, on the shores of Bassenthwaite Lake is in the middle of nowhere, but occupies an idyllic location. On this particular morning, the golden hour sunlight was just reaching its close when I captured this view. The light was doing a great job of highlighting the beautiful tree on the right.
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NIKON D850

settings

Aperture f/11 ISO 100 Shutter 1/60 Focal Length 550/10

location

Cumbria, GB

upload_date

Jan, 2020

Views

Likes

+34

Awards

Summer 2020

Peer Award

Superb Composition

Absolute Masterpiece

Top Choice

Superior Skill

Emotions

Impressed

Top Ranks

Top 10 rank

Behind The Lens

Location

This is a photo of St Bega's Church, Bassenthwaite in the English Lake District. The church sits on the shore of Lake Bassenthwaite, and is only a short walk across the fields from the road. From studying the map of this particular area, I had been drawn to this small chapel as it seemed to offer a perfect opportunity for photography. This photo was actually part of a scouting exercise for night photography. I did return the following night to take some pictures of the church against the Milky Way and the constellation of Orion.

Time

The photo was taken at 10:43 on the 30th December 2019, and it was a crisp, cold morning. The forecast was for rain in the afternoon, so I nipped along to the church to capture the morning sunlight on the church against a backdrop of gathering rain clouds. An hour later, the heavens opened.

Lighting

Given the time of year, 10:43 was still early enough for the light to be warm and welcoming. As I approached the church, I could see the clouds gathering on the far side of the lake, and I knew that rain was on the way, so I quickly set up the tripod, mounted the camera, and waited for a break in the clouds to allow the sun to highlight the scene.

Equipment

For this particular view, I used my Nikon D850 with a 24-70mm lens, set to 55mm and f11. ISO was 100, and the shutter speed was 1/60th of a second. The tripod is a Benro carbon fibre Mach3 TMA38CL, and it goes everywhere with me! No other equipment was needed, just opportunity and patience!!

Inspiration

The English Lake District has always been my favourite location for landscape photography, and it never fails to inspire, whatever the weather conditions. The Lake District is the wettest region of England, so sunshine is something that needs to be exploited when it happens! The forecast for this day was sunshine and clouds for the morning, followed by heavy downpours of rain in the afternoon. This turned out to be very accurate! As for the subject itself, I had wanted to photograph this church for a couple of years but had never managed to get to it. This particular year, I was staying nearby, and so had no excuse!! The church is beautiful and its setting is very picturesque. It lies off the tourist trails, and it cannot be seen from the roadside. Thus, very few people visit it. This is good news for photography. I returned the following night (New Year's Eve) to capture the church against the backdrop of the Milky Way and the constellations of Gemini and Orion.

Editing

All my images are taken in RAW format, but only the conversion was required for this shot. The combination of soft, warm sunlight and dark grey clouds was always going to make for a simple exposure. So, all this needed was the very lightest of touches in Adobe Camera Raw before sharpening in Photoshop. I love the process of capturing the image, but I am not a fan of hours spent in front of a computer screen, editing.

In my camera bag

I normally have two cameras in my bag: a Nikon D800 and a Nikon D850, and I use these interchangeably as they are both excellent performers in any conditions, including night photography. My lenses of choice for landscapes are the Nikon 24-70mm f2.8, the Nikon 14-24mm f2.8 and the Nikon 70-200mm f2.8. I always have my trusty tripod, as high resolution sensors demand the best possible technique, and a remote shutter release so I don't have to touch the camera to make the exposure. All my landscapes are taken using Manual mode, as I believe that is the easiest way to ensure a correct exposure. The only filters I may use are the polariser and the 10-stop ND filter. I don't use ND grads any more, as there is simply no need, and as long as you pay attention to your highlights, the software solutions are much better.

Feedback

Wrap up warm, and make sure you have a waterproof jacket - for you and your camera!! The weather in the Lake District is very changeable in any season, but this is also why the area offers rich opportunities for photography. As with any successful photograph, the real work is done beforehand, using maps and apps to study the area, and to always keep your eyes open for potential shots. Although luck does play a role in landscape photography, you can generate your own luck to some extent, by keeping one eye on the weather, and another on maps and guides.

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simonharding

simonharding

St Bega's Church, Bassenthwaite, Cumbria, England

This delightful church, on the shores of Bassenthwaite Lake is in the middle of nowhere, but occupies an idyllic location. On this particular morning, the golde... Read more

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow simonharding

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This delightful church, on the shores of Bassenthwaite Lake is in the middle of nowhere, but occupies an idyllic location. On this particular morning, the golde...
Read more

Share photos. Enter contests to win great prizes.
Earn coins, get amazing rewards. Join for free.