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Autumn is a wonderful time of year to be out and about with your camera. A stroll through Levens Hall Park in the southwestern corner of Cumbria is a favourite of mine, especially in autumn. The hall and gardens are entirely worth a separate visit of their own. CLICK HERE .

The River Kent snakes through the park

The park forms a partly wooded picturesque strip of land either side of the River Kent. It makes very easy walking and is well signposted. There’s parking at the hall and just off the A6 nearby. My first photo shows the early colours of autumn with Whitbarrow Scar in the background (one of the Lakeland fells’ finest viewpoints, in my opinion).

A fine pair of antlers.

If you’re luck you will spot black fallow deer in the park. These beautiful creatures, especially the young and males with antlers make great photos. I crept as close as I could then stretched my 20x zoom to max to get a reasonable close-up. Of course, they do rather blend in so try to catch one in the sun to avoid a dark blob in the shadows!

Bogot goats by the dozen.

There’s plenty of flora and fauna to be admired including a herd of bagot goats relaxing in the long grass. There’s also squirrels and numerous birds and that’s before I start to explore the autumn colours with my camera!

Nice

Nicer.

 

 

 

 

 

I find photographing autumn leaves an absolute joy. For best results you really need them brightly lit to bring out the colours and against a contrasting background. I look for a really nice branch and then zoom in on the best twig. The sun behind can make the leaves ‘glow‘ beautifully. Beech leaves seem to be a particularly photogenic.

Try the sky too.

If you have a lovely blue sky this can give wonderfully strong colour contrasts in sunlight. Note how the veins of the leaves stand out with the sun behind. Making observations like this can make a walk such a pleasure. In my case, I wish I’d taken my DSLR camera for more flexibilty and better quality, as opposed to my £99 Lumix compact . However, it still did itself proud!

Passing swans.

Don’t just look for colourful leaves though, try incorporating them in a wider shot. I liked them ‘framing‘ this pair of passing swans on the river. I then recomposed the shot to give a better balance, putting the swans bottom left in the frame. Always think composition too.

Tree from inside!

Near the end of my walk I was really excited by this hollow tree trunk along what’s known as ‘The Avenue‘; two stately straight rows of oak trees. I placed the camera (on self timer) inside the base of the tree and t’da, a striking and unusual view looking straight up. Pot luck with lighting and for Heaven’s sake don’t use flash! Let the camera use a longer exposure instead (and larger f-stop number on the aperture for greater depth of focus) to bring out the lovely texture of the bark.

 Look Out For More Photographer’s Ramblings COMING SOON. Happy Snapping!…