Irvine Gold
The dawn glow on the horizon wasn’t looking great as the colours were decidedly muted, cloud was also drifting in from the west and the realisation then hit me that it was going to be difficult, if not impossible, to find a really good viewpoint. Capturing a decent image, with a perfect view looking along the water towards the town, seemed a million miles away and to make matters worse it was now starting to drizzle.
Pentax 645Z with 45-85mm lens at 55mm, ISO 100, 8s at f/16, cable release, tripod
Irvine is one of the oldest town’s in Ayrshire on the coast of the Firth of Clyde. It is rich in history and nowhere is this more evident than at the harbourside where the once busy harbour was key to the town’s prosperity and growth. For a time the harbour was one of the most prominent ports in Scotland outside of Glasgow such was it’s importance and volume of trade. It’s fairly quiet today, especially at 4am in the morning, and much changed however many of the original houses remain and you don’t have to look far to find evidence of the past industry.
With roughly 30 minutes or so before sunrise and having little to show for the dawn light, I went for a walk along the harbourside. I noticed the street lights were still on so it was quite dark. The short walk gave me the opportunity to stretch my legs and also, fingers crossed, hopefully discover a potential viewpoint that I might have missed. All the time cloud was continuing to drift in from the west and I wondered if I was just wasting my time especially when nothing seemed to catch my eye on the walkabout. For those who’ve not been to Irvine recently, a tall metal fence blocks access to almost all of the dangerous old wooden harbourside and some parts of the original harbour. It’s great for safety but sadly, from a photographer’s perspective, this also blocks off any potential views.
Pentax 645Z with 45-85mm lens at 45mm, ISO 100, 1/8s at f/16, 3-stop reverse ND filter, cable release, tripod
As much as I like to research a location beforehand and look at other people’s work, I always think it’s crucial to keep an open mind. I believe it’s important to never have a fixed viewpoint or image in mind as I feel this narrows my vision, stifles my creativity and overclouds my thinking. Potential images are everywhere waiting to be discovered so I always try and remain open to what I encounter. In reality there are so many variables with the weather, light and time of year that you just never know what you might encounter. The best thing is to plan but always be prepared for the unexpected and besides, I saw many nice images posted online of the harbour at sunset but not at sunrise. No viewpoint stood out as being the best so I would have to find one myself.
I was so close to calling it a day as I walked back towards the car. The wind was really getting up and although the drizzle had stopped it was cold and exposed. The thought of returning home to a warm cup of tea was looming large in my mind when I noticed a slight break in the clouds. The break in the clouds was drifting towards the horizon and very quickly a faint orange tinge appeared on the edge of the clouds. Just as panic was about to set in, I decided to return to a lower section of the harbourside which allowed, only just, a view eastwards towards the town and rising sun. This was where I took the dawn image so it was up to me to make it work for the sunrise as well so the pressure was definitely on. There was no time to ponder my decision as it was all about concentrating on getting the shot.
As the sunrise developed I framed up several compositions in the knowledge that the light could have been snuffed out at any time by the cloud. The colours in the sky gradually intensified and became more orange and vibrant and I just kept on shooting. I was in the zone having fun and with a couple of decent shots in the bag my focus was now on capturing the beauty of the amazing sunrise to reflect my own vision and style. It was time to experiment and have even more fun. Nothing ventured nothing gained as they say.
Pentax 645Z with 45-85mm lens at 45mm, ISO 100, 10s at f/22, ND filters, cable release, tripod
I often use a Lee Little Stopper neutral-density filter in front of the lens which extends the exposure time by up to six stops and transforms what would be a one second exposure into a one minute exposure. It’s basically a dark filter that allows you to lengthen the exposure to express any movement in the sky or water. On this occasion it allowed me to capture the movement of the colourful clouds as they streaked across the sky away from the camera and to soften the ripples created by the wind on the water’s surface. The effect is not to everyone’s taste, and I realise that, and sometimes I don’t always use the filter but it’s there in my armoury for when I want to. In this instance, along with the use of a reverse graduated neutral-density filter to balance the bright exposure of the sky, I felt it emphasised the drama of the sunrise over the harbour perfectly but you can be the judge when you view the images.
Some photographers believe that you no longer need to use filters in this digital age however I still do. Call me old fashioned, which I probably am to a large extent, but I much prefer getting the shot in-camera at the time rather than adding effects or filters after the fact in Photoshop. Time is precious for everyone and personally I prefer to use the time saved to be out in the fresh air with the camera or doing other important things instead of sitting in front of a computer. Filters allow your creativity to flourish and they are as important today as they have ever been in my opinion.
On one of the shots I took, the sun was just emerging above a large cloud as I pressed the shutter resulting in a spectacular starburst effect. The light is golden as it streaks across the water’s surface directly towards the camera so I’ve titled this image ‘Irvine Gold’. It’s definitely one of my favourites from that morning although I do like them all in different ways. The sky was indeed like gold and as quickly as the sunrise appeared the colours gradually faded and the sun disappeared behind thicker cloud. The shot was in the bag, or on the memory card to be exact although it doesn’t sound anywhere near as nice, and the magical moment had been captured forever. What a memorable morning it had been but it was now time to head home for that welcome warm cuppa.
