Westerly
During February 2022 I took two photographs every morning at about 7:30am from the same spot:
Latitude 56.964523, Longitude -5.827721.
The images above are from the camera pointing West-ish and those below, the camera is pointing East-ish.
Latitude 56.964523, Longitude -5.827721.
The images above are from the camera pointing West-ish and those below, the camera is pointing East-ish.
Easterly
These photos have now been exhibited as part of the Magdalen Road Studios Photo Oxford 2023 exhibition. The photos were displayed as an installation - as shown in the photo below - with the photos being shown on two ipads (West and East respectively). The picture above is a painting of a representation of a map (not accurate) indicating the sort of terrain from where the photos were taken, (charcoal, graphite and watercolour on paper); on the big shelf, the printout is of the reflections I wrote daily during the February22 project, the text of which is available below.
Of light and dark February 2022 daily reflections
1 February 2022 Lunar New Year
First day 7:30am on the rock, at the photo-spot. The digital camera says ‘light too low’ and even the iPod can’t be pressed until 7: 34. At 6:30 I’d been in the bedroom discerning a lightening of the sky outside but the photo-machines were reluctant to respond even an hour later; leads to thinking about eye-mind discernment in contrast to digital light capture.
2.2.22
It seemed lighter today as I walked to the photo-spot and as I was a bit behind schedule I fell into doing-mode: initially job-like, but returning journey-like. Mysteries open up during journeys.
3ii22
Although there appeared to be more light just before 7:30 this morning, the digital camera still did not agree! It was peaceful and anticipatory to wait at the photo-spot for 7:30 and take the two photos with the iPod. There is the issue of car headlights occasionally visible; although I had intended to avoid pressing if I saw a car, maybe this doesn’t matter?
4ii22
As I was going out this morning about 7:20, it was calm and there was light in the sky to the NE direction, but by the time I had got to the photo-spot the hail and wind had started and I lost the camera’ lens cap. My hands got really cold just in those 10 minutes I was out there. Respect those rapid change of weather conditions!
5ii22
Almost missed it this morning – good thing I set two alarms! Paused after taking the photos to observe the lightening of the sky and felt that the progression towards the Light season had indeed started.
6ii22
A much lighter sky today fewer clouds and further progression towards the Light season. Went for a short walk on the beach after taking the photos; the increased visibility of paths and streams made walking easier, yet already there was a nostalgia for the mysteries of the darker mornings.
7ii22
And getting lighter today, even though the digital camera says “too dark”. The iPod screen is showing disenable outlines even if rather fuzzy due to the still-quite-dark conditions. With the South Island NZ coat on, the cameras are easy to tuck away and so walking the beach after the photo taking is easy and a perfect balance to the start of the day.
8ii22
Before going out, sitting on the bed, noticing the lightening of the sky and having a rush of, well…not panic, not as strong as that, but a sense of: oh, it is getting light already, I should be out there, I’m/I’ll be missing the dark-to-light moment. But of course, there is not just one moment but a gradation, which is why I am doing this project. Yet how come this arising of the feeling of loss? And lighter on the photo-spot, easier, more visible reminds of the Seamus Heaney poem that includes “the light coming… bright guarantee of god” and goes on to say that poems do not begin and end with their first and last lines and so with visual art too.
9ii22
It seemed quite a bit lighter this morning than the day before and the path to the photo-spot was easy to take. I use different routes. Why? Hmm, I am aware of not wanting to be noticed too much and prefer to be in the dark rather than the light for this project.
10ii22
A weariness this morning and an awareness of a sigh of ‘oh, it’s light already’ subtext ‘do I bother?’ I do ‘bother’; and though the light from the bedroom seems substantial, out there on the photo-spot, it is still tentative. After the ritual of snapping the photos I walked by the gentle incoming wavelets and gazed at the ripples made visible by light and dark.
11.2/22
There’s almost a feeling that the rate at which it is lightening at 7:30am is too fast, though the cameras still complain it is ‘too dark’. The dawn broke in the most beautiful colours, which would not be capturable on a snap, and the cold had left remnants of snow on the tide-out beach in shapes that could be imagined as polar bears or great egrets.
12ii22
Rain sounding as I get up. When I go out to the photo-spot it is not too heavy but the sky is discernibly darker than it was the day before. Because of the rain I go straight back inside after taking the daily snaps.
13ii22
Weather changing: from super windy and raining on awakening to fairly dry and less windy when out there on the photo-spot. The terrain was in the light today with no particular strong cloud shapes or sunlight. It was an average dawn-to-light as if there was ever such a thing!
14ii22
Awake before 6am today and it seemed to be light already, but was it the moon which would be full about now? It was raining lightly when I went out to the photo-spot and the level of light was about the same as the previous day.
15ii22
It really felt like morning today when I went out to take the photos; even the SLR camera thinks so! As I was walking back, I caught a glimpse of gealach mòr (big moon) in between the guiding arms of the rocks. Huge it was and then quickly hidden behind unyielding clouds.
16ii22
And light and dark is making way for colour now- though what else is colour but light? I make my way to the phot-spot in subdued daylight and can now see that brier on the path over the top from the steps that has been trying to trip me up! Taking pictures does not seem so mysterious now and the feeling I had at the beginning of penetrating into unknown is not there; I would say I need to discern a new mystery to sustain interest.
17ii22
The ‘gealach mòr’ (big moon) was shining with all her might this morning! Beautiful contrasts in the light.
18ii22
There was a dusting of snow on the distant hills to the East. The tide was very high and no beach to walk on. The light was not dramatic, nor was the moon visible. Today’s photos will be part of the full picture of the time, season and place.
19ii22
A really sparkling dawn this morning; clear sky and the now waning moon still visible. The ground is hard with frost underfoot and crunches as I walk to the photo-spot. Everything is clear with a multi-coloured sky to the East.
20ii22
An overcast and mild morning, no need for wellies though the tide is 5metres at 8 o’clock. It is light now at 7:30 and today the grey skies were grey from cloud cover rather than from lack of daylight. The snow on the hill tops has now melted during the warmer night.
21ii22
It was light today, even though a little overcast with some light rain after the windy night.
22.2.22
What a great date! The weather at about 7am was very wet and windy but had calmed down when I went out and the views were clear though the clouds were still hanging about.
23ii22
Something reluctant about going out there to do the snaps this morning; I wanted to be alone out there and worried that the person I did not want to see would be out walking the dog already; a bit of darkness in the heart. There has been a lot of wind overnight which was still going as I went to the photo spot. My mood changed as soon as I got to the photo-spot as I looked out at the lively waves and took the photos.
24ii22
Can sounds be light or dark? The beating sound of hail on the roof this morning woke me and I saw the white grit it left when I opened the curtains. Was the hail sound light or dark? On the photo-spot this morning, the tide half-in half-out was pushing waves of hail to rest on the shore. I took some extra photos of the amazing marks they were making.
25ii22
A light morning and the tide out – a tremendous feeling of space, leading, perhaps to a lightness of spirit, and openness. Colour coming into the picture too: yellows, oranges and pinks show themselves in various parts of the sky and in reflections in the water. So different from yesterday! A bright, nearly-Spring morning! I even pulled up a few weeds.
26ii22
So much space this morning: not only was it light but the clouds were high up and the tide was out. That it was windy contributed to there being openness, emptiness and scope.
27ii22
Light outside now at 7:30am; why was there some darkness inside me then? I felt fugitive going out there this morning as if I ‘shouldn’t’ be doing these daily photo-shots. The photos seem rather perfunctory now, though the sky in the East had an attractive brightness that lifted my spirits and lead me to notice that the colours of the grasses and the water are vivid and beautiful.
28ii22
And it is well and truly daylight as I go up the steps onto the dunes and then down and up again to the phot-spot. I wave a good morning to a visitor walking their dog. The tide is coming in fast and the ripples are making beautiful patterns.
1 February 2022 Lunar New Year
First day 7:30am on the rock, at the photo-spot. The digital camera says ‘light too low’ and even the iPod can’t be pressed until 7: 34. At 6:30 I’d been in the bedroom discerning a lightening of the sky outside but the photo-machines were reluctant to respond even an hour later; leads to thinking about eye-mind discernment in contrast to digital light capture.
2.2.22
It seemed lighter today as I walked to the photo-spot and as I was a bit behind schedule I fell into doing-mode: initially job-like, but returning journey-like. Mysteries open up during journeys.
3ii22
Although there appeared to be more light just before 7:30 this morning, the digital camera still did not agree! It was peaceful and anticipatory to wait at the photo-spot for 7:30 and take the two photos with the iPod. There is the issue of car headlights occasionally visible; although I had intended to avoid pressing if I saw a car, maybe this doesn’t matter?
4ii22
As I was going out this morning about 7:20, it was calm and there was light in the sky to the NE direction, but by the time I had got to the photo-spot the hail and wind had started and I lost the camera’ lens cap. My hands got really cold just in those 10 minutes I was out there. Respect those rapid change of weather conditions!
5ii22
Almost missed it this morning – good thing I set two alarms! Paused after taking the photos to observe the lightening of the sky and felt that the progression towards the Light season had indeed started.
6ii22
A much lighter sky today fewer clouds and further progression towards the Light season. Went for a short walk on the beach after taking the photos; the increased visibility of paths and streams made walking easier, yet already there was a nostalgia for the mysteries of the darker mornings.
7ii22
And getting lighter today, even though the digital camera says “too dark”. The iPod screen is showing disenable outlines even if rather fuzzy due to the still-quite-dark conditions. With the South Island NZ coat on, the cameras are easy to tuck away and so walking the beach after the photo taking is easy and a perfect balance to the start of the day.
8ii22
Before going out, sitting on the bed, noticing the lightening of the sky and having a rush of, well…not panic, not as strong as that, but a sense of: oh, it is getting light already, I should be out there, I’m/I’ll be missing the dark-to-light moment. But of course, there is not just one moment but a gradation, which is why I am doing this project. Yet how come this arising of the feeling of loss? And lighter on the photo-spot, easier, more visible reminds of the Seamus Heaney poem that includes “the light coming… bright guarantee of god” and goes on to say that poems do not begin and end with their first and last lines and so with visual art too.
9ii22
It seemed quite a bit lighter this morning than the day before and the path to the photo-spot was easy to take. I use different routes. Why? Hmm, I am aware of not wanting to be noticed too much and prefer to be in the dark rather than the light for this project.
10ii22
A weariness this morning and an awareness of a sigh of ‘oh, it’s light already’ subtext ‘do I bother?’ I do ‘bother’; and though the light from the bedroom seems substantial, out there on the photo-spot, it is still tentative. After the ritual of snapping the photos I walked by the gentle incoming wavelets and gazed at the ripples made visible by light and dark.
11.2/22
There’s almost a feeling that the rate at which it is lightening at 7:30am is too fast, though the cameras still complain it is ‘too dark’. The dawn broke in the most beautiful colours, which would not be capturable on a snap, and the cold had left remnants of snow on the tide-out beach in shapes that could be imagined as polar bears or great egrets.
12ii22
Rain sounding as I get up. When I go out to the photo-spot it is not too heavy but the sky is discernibly darker than it was the day before. Because of the rain I go straight back inside after taking the daily snaps.
13ii22
Weather changing: from super windy and raining on awakening to fairly dry and less windy when out there on the photo-spot. The terrain was in the light today with no particular strong cloud shapes or sunlight. It was an average dawn-to-light as if there was ever such a thing!
14ii22
Awake before 6am today and it seemed to be light already, but was it the moon which would be full about now? It was raining lightly when I went out to the photo-spot and the level of light was about the same as the previous day.
15ii22
It really felt like morning today when I went out to take the photos; even the SLR camera thinks so! As I was walking back, I caught a glimpse of gealach mòr (big moon) in between the guiding arms of the rocks. Huge it was and then quickly hidden behind unyielding clouds.
16ii22
And light and dark is making way for colour now- though what else is colour but light? I make my way to the phot-spot in subdued daylight and can now see that brier on the path over the top from the steps that has been trying to trip me up! Taking pictures does not seem so mysterious now and the feeling I had at the beginning of penetrating into unknown is not there; I would say I need to discern a new mystery to sustain interest.
17ii22
The ‘gealach mòr’ (big moon) was shining with all her might this morning! Beautiful contrasts in the light.
18ii22
There was a dusting of snow on the distant hills to the East. The tide was very high and no beach to walk on. The light was not dramatic, nor was the moon visible. Today’s photos will be part of the full picture of the time, season and place.
19ii22
A really sparkling dawn this morning; clear sky and the now waning moon still visible. The ground is hard with frost underfoot and crunches as I walk to the photo-spot. Everything is clear with a multi-coloured sky to the East.
20ii22
An overcast and mild morning, no need for wellies though the tide is 5metres at 8 o’clock. It is light now at 7:30 and today the grey skies were grey from cloud cover rather than from lack of daylight. The snow on the hill tops has now melted during the warmer night.
21ii22
It was light today, even though a little overcast with some light rain after the windy night.
22.2.22
What a great date! The weather at about 7am was very wet and windy but had calmed down when I went out and the views were clear though the clouds were still hanging about.
23ii22
Something reluctant about going out there to do the snaps this morning; I wanted to be alone out there and worried that the person I did not want to see would be out walking the dog already; a bit of darkness in the heart. There has been a lot of wind overnight which was still going as I went to the photo spot. My mood changed as soon as I got to the photo-spot as I looked out at the lively waves and took the photos.
24ii22
Can sounds be light or dark? The beating sound of hail on the roof this morning woke me and I saw the white grit it left when I opened the curtains. Was the hail sound light or dark? On the photo-spot this morning, the tide half-in half-out was pushing waves of hail to rest on the shore. I took some extra photos of the amazing marks they were making.
25ii22
A light morning and the tide out – a tremendous feeling of space, leading, perhaps to a lightness of spirit, and openness. Colour coming into the picture too: yellows, oranges and pinks show themselves in various parts of the sky and in reflections in the water. So different from yesterday! A bright, nearly-Spring morning! I even pulled up a few weeds.
26ii22
So much space this morning: not only was it light but the clouds were high up and the tide was out. That it was windy contributed to there being openness, emptiness and scope.
27ii22
Light outside now at 7:30am; why was there some darkness inside me then? I felt fugitive going out there this morning as if I ‘shouldn’t’ be doing these daily photo-shots. The photos seem rather perfunctory now, though the sky in the East had an attractive brightness that lifted my spirits and lead me to notice that the colours of the grasses and the water are vivid and beautiful.
28ii22
And it is well and truly daylight as I go up the steps onto the dunes and then down and up again to the phot-spot. I wave a good morning to a visitor walking their dog. The tide is coming in fast and the ripples are making beautiful patterns.