Cotton Wool

This was taken along with some of my other 'snowy' pictures. I like the aspect looking upwards and the blue-ness of the sky against the snow. Particularly lovely is the effect of the snow, looking very fluffy -hence the name!

Lonely View

I've had some really lovely comments about this picture from photo blogs. Taken a few years ago on New Years day it has a nice composure i think. I added in retro afterwards as the original was a bit gloomy without it!

Reeds In The Snow

This is one of my more skilled photo's to date. The fading light is enhanced by using retro colours, and the snow covered reed stands out perfectly against that backdrop.

Country Living

I was toying with the idea of calling this post 'rain' as its the perfect symbolism i suppose, however based on the state of my boots upon getting home i thought country living was more apt. That's what you get for tracking down cows to photograph. This isn't my usual style of photography but was trying to do something a little different with my new toy. For an initial foray into new styles am quite happy with it!

Curious

This picture was humouring my husband's love of cows...yes you heard me right! We managed to get out for a walk whilst there was a brief break in the rain. Also a good chance for me to snap away with my new camera. Anyway this is our new friend and a special post for my lovely husband!

Bluebells

Another Easter pic just to finally see the showery blues away. Pretty Bluebells, in soft lighting. Gives it a lovely ethereal feel and the natural haziness of the picture makes it really inviting. Can wait for my first picnic of the year....just not today...obviously.

April Showers

Eugh April showers…I don’t mind a touch of precipitation normally but I just purchased my new SLR and was hoping to get outside to practise. So today it is definitely boo to rain, although it probably works in my favour in having more time to work out what all the buttons do! So to counteract that I thought I’d upload a nice sunny picture, taken last Easter actually, you can hardly believe the difference can you!

Wall Of The Dead

When we were in Mexico we did do more than just drink cocktails, our cultural excursion was Chichen Itza and it was a fascinating day out. It was quite hard to take photos as it was sooo touristy, that and it was so hot and dry that i was too busy wilting. There was however one part which intrigued me, I've called it The Wall Of the Dead (how morbid eh!). It was practise that when the Mayans went to war they used the skulls of their dead enemies in their walls. I didn't see any now you come to mention it, however they did reflect it in the bricks and every single skull was completely unique. There were so many to look at, id have been there all day taking pictures of them but here is two of them.

Snow

This shot was taken on Christmas Day a few years ago. You could absolutely be fooled into thinking that these were flowers but they were reeds covered in the snow. The overall effect i think is wonderful, i took lots of pictures that day but I'll stagger their upload. You'll recognise this one from the background on the blog, it wasn't initially on my favourite list but adding retro tints really worked.

Snowdrops

If you have read my earlier posts you may know my biggest obsession are floral shots. Maybe obsession is a little harsh however it is always my first port of call. Floral prints have been big for ages now, with some of them costing an arm & leg. They are so very easy to take yourself though and using software online you can mess around with the lighting etc. Anyway this is one of many shots, snowdrops in soft lighting which makes them sparkle i think.

Past Times

I was running out of names for my sky posts, so always best to move on when i hit a wall! Next on the upload list are some location based posts. These were taken in Ironbridge Gorge museum and are some of the industrial pieces at their Victorian museum. I wont lie to you, i have seen lots of variations on these style of shots from this same location. Having said that they are lovely all the same, especially in Sepia which gives it that truly Victorian look.

Pink & Blue

I am definitely on a sky roll tonight! This picture picks up some really vivid colours which i think is pretty cool....taken from the same spot on our drive! The sky looks so powdery....if you haven't heard of Lawrence Coulson check him out as it has more than a passing resemblance to his style of paintings.

Exotic Views

Not sure whether this really counts as a sky shot but hey i was actually looking up at the time....sunbathing, drinking a cocktail - ahhh! This was taken in Cancun, not a ground breaking picture but one of the shots where you can get a true sense of escapism. Makes you want to book a holiday anyway.....

Summer Nights

We are really lucky to live where we do, although it's not rural we are actually quite high on a hill. The upshot of that is that is despite living on a housing estate you can get beautiful sky shots. There are quite a few of these in my collection....my aim is to get an epic lightning shot but its alluding me at the moment. This is a really moody picture and framed really well by the trees. I'm currently working through my other sky shots so more to follow......

A Man

I took this photo in August 2011 on holiday. We travelled around Bavaria and Austria and visited some absolutely stunning places. This particular one was taken in a very rainy Salzburg just outside the cathedral (of which i have many shots too). It is one of the most interesting statues/sculptures i have ever seen. It echoed many of the feelings i got from the haunted road picture. It draws you in to find the face....but the darkness creates that feeling of uncertainty....you could come across God or Devil under that cloak. I really struggled to get the right effect to match the picture but the final result was as good as i was going to get it with my current skill. I think it was harsh lighting but i just pressed everything until i was satisfied. The overall coolness of the picture reflects my feelings about it, would be really interesting to see what other peoples opinions are and whether a warmer version brings out a different side to it.

Childs Play

I decided against bashing out all my old stuff in one go and to mix it up with some of my newer pictures. This is another 'soft light' favourite and was taken in 2010 i think, at Powys Castle. I took loads of pictures that day, mostly of flowers which is my core obsession...that and leaves. It is brought alive by the statue which i think really conveys human emotion so well. I thought initially that it was a little off putting - the features although very realistic were also quite cold which gave it an eerie edge but in a softer light it brings it alive and gives it warmth. It's now one of my favourite all time shots.

More Sea...

This is my second offering from Majorca, although i think on a different holiday and on another part of the island. You can probably make out that the sea was pretty rough, it certainly wasn't swim able anyway. Not being a great fan of the ocean, sitting on a rock amongst bashing waves wasn't the most pleasurable experience but i have to admit it was worth only if to appreciate the beauty and power of the sea. I've used some soft lighting on this one and it turned what i thought was a boring picture into something entirely difference. It has given the waves an almost powdery look, which contrasts really well against the rocks. As with lots of my earlier pictures i think a certain amount was lost due to the camera....back in the days when a 5 mega pixel was rocking it. What is it they say about people blaming their tools.....

Holiday Snaps

I'l be uploading a few pics taken on holiday in Majorca. There were some really beautiful views, slightly obscured by a crane (that's where cropping is a God send!). The quality isn't great as the camera was pretty basic, that and i dropped it off a four storey high balcony....so i suppose i should be grateful it was even working at this point! I haven't quite made my mind up which variation i prefer, i feel as though I'm cheating by reverting to Sepia but equally i think it has a really nice effect on the ocean in particular. Looking side by side I'm almost tempted to do a collage of another two variations...hmmmm one to ponder.

How It Started

This is one of the first decent pictures i took, probably more impressive seeing as we were doing a 'drive by' at the time. I love the way the winding bridge draws you in. It looks lovely in Sepia however the use of Retro tones really brings out the autumnal feel i think! For those of you interested this was taken in Abermule, Powys. This particular stretch of road is well renowned for being haunted and for me the pictures plays on that. You never quite know what you will find at the end of the road!

A New Beginning....

The title says it all really doesn't it.....say no more - ha you don't get away that easily. I felt the need to 'christen' my new blog with some sort of introduction so here it is!

My name is Clare Mould and i am an avid internet/blogging fan and at the same time a great lover of photography. I remember when i was little i literally detested photographs however as i got older more and more i felt the need to record everything with pictures. My poor husband despairs at my endless picture taking however after some really lovely comments i suppose i realised i have some sort of talent (I'm sure there will be plenty of you to judge that later down the line). I also love writing and my first tentative steps into blogging were my wedding blog, set up..well for my wedding. When that ended i didn't have anything else to write about however using this as forum to present some of my photos was an epiphany.

So i hope you enjoy and any comments, feedback that you have would be really lovely.

xx