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Cheddar Gorge (Outdoor Photography July 2008) |
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Although Cheddar is just the other side of the Mendip Hills from my home, I had not visited the place since my misspent youth 20-odd years ago.
Last summer I decided to put things right, and after a few reconnaissance visits
I settled on photographing the view west over the gorge from the south cliffs.
Getting the perfect light was key here, in order to avoid dark shadows in the
gorge. I decided that a summer morning sunrise would probably do the trick, but
it was nearing Midsummer’s Day, and with the sun setting at its most northerly
point, I wondered if shooting directly into the sunset would work. |
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The weather last summer was dismal, and the week of Midsummer’s Day was no exception. However, the day before Midsummer was actually looking quite promising. Conditions were hazy, but largely dear of cloud. I was in position a couple of hours before sunset when a bank of cloud rolled in from the west. Typical. It was obvious that sunset would happen behind a thick veil, but my spirits were soon lifted when cloud and sun met, and I was treated to a wonderful display of light. As an added bonus the sun was still high enough to avoid the dark shadows I was worried about. I wasn’t planning on
including human habitation, but the rapidly moving rays of light were drawing my
eye to the town and reservoir at the foot of the gorge. As a result, I
reassessed my initial plan and set-up for the panoramic picture you see here. A
quick check of the light with my spotmeter confirmed that I had the correct
exposure. I waited until a ray of light met the reservoir and then quickly took
eight overlapping vertical shots of the panorama before me. |
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