Light and Shade Amongst the Trees

On my walk through the woods at Cwm Green on the Gower in South Wales, I felt like I was walking through ancient woodland. I cannot say how long the trees have been there but I know, from the evidence, that they are managed – there was even a footpath, thought not very well defined in places.

The woods are on hilly ground and so there were times when I was deep in the shadowy depths, and others when the effect of the sunlight making its way between the trunks or shining on autumn leaves in the canopy was . . . (searching for a word here) . . . emotional!

The first image I have posted today is one of those few occasions when I felt that a black and white panoramic crop was the best representation of the scene.  The last photo is looking out of the woods and across the fields to Parc-Le-Breos House, a fantastic bed and breakfast hotel in whose grounds the woods are situated.

Cwm Green Trees-4

Cwm Green Trees-2

Cwm Green Trees-3

Cwm Green Trees-5

Cwm Green Trees-1

You can use the new Donate button below to help StillWalks. Pay how much you want and receive a high quality download of this week’s featured StillWalks video – “Woodland Walk” which is from Penllergaer Woods near Swansea, South wales. Click the image below to watch the video.

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The Rolling Out of Autumn

Autumn comes at different times in different places, even within a relatively small geographic radius. A few weeks ago I was at Cwm Green on the Gower Peninsula, South Wales and, as you can see in the second photo, the trees are just starting to change colour.

I am hoping that the recent strong winds we have been getting here will not shorten the process of falling leaves too much as there are a couple of places I would like to catch  for a StillWalks production during this process.

This week’s photos and sounds (lots of pheasants) are from my early morning walk at Cwm Green although the featured StillWalks video this week is from another nearby woodland.

The pheasants and many other sounds can be heard below.

Cwm Green Fence

Cwm Green

Cwm Green

Cwm Green Pheasant

You can use the new Donate button below to help StillWalks. Pay how much you want and receive a high quality download of this week’s featured StillWalks video – “Woodland Walk” which is from Penllergaer Woods near Swansea, South wales. Click the image below to watch the video.

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Cwmdonkin Water

Cwmdonkin Park Water

Cwmdonkin Park Water

Cwmdonkin Park Water

You can use the new Donate button below to help StillWalks. Pay how much you want and receive a high quality download of this week’s featured StillWalks video – “Autumn Lakeside Walk” from Gnoll Park, Neath, South Wales. Click the image below to watch the video.

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Dragonfly Hunt – People and Paths

Visit the StillWalks website for videos and more

Those dragonflies from yesterdays post were hunted and found in two places – Three Crosses Community Woodland near Swansea and Gelli Hir Woodland on the northern side of the Gower Peninsula.

Both places are beautiful and the weather was perfect for finding what we were after. I wasn’t doing any sound recording on this visit but I will be going back, so yet again, watch this space!

StillWalks is about promoting a sense of health and wellbeing, enjoying the sights and sounds of your local environment. Both the Three Crosses and the Gelli Hir woodlands are places that I will be visiting again with the assurance that, whatever the weather, I will enjoying a sense of wellbeing while I am there.

Images from this series are available on the StillWalks Photography website.

Pylons in the Hills

Coming down from the hills at the end of the day and heading into the sunlight can provide some remarkable views of the landscape – dependant, of course,  on the weather conditions and time of year.

The end of my journey home from Felindre brought me down from the hills towards Pontarddulais in South Wales where there is a vast network of metal giants criss-crossing the land as part of the National Grid.

Electricity pylons seen against the light and the land need not be a blot, but rather a fascinating part of the composition, creating patterns and networks of lines that may not be natural, but are something we are happy to live with in order to have the power we need for modern life.

These and more photos can be seen and purchased at StillWalks PhotoShelter.

Bont Landscape Pylons Pylons detail

Looking at the Loire – A French Evening Stroll

This time last year we were in France, the Indre et Loire region. It is our current beautiful weather that has brought this to my mind.

On a few occasions I went for a walk along the  St Christophe road from Faye la Vineuse and on one occasion at least I took my cameras and sound kit. I have not been able to do anything with that material since then but looking at the photos again brought back memories of a great holiday.

Over the next couple of days I will be putting up a selection of these images. I have arranged the sequence of photos I want to use for a StillWalk video and now need to work through the sound recording for it. This should take me back there even more than the photos.

From Faye to St Christophe

Indre et Loire Countryside

From Faye to St Christophe

Indre et Loire Field

From Faye to St Christophe

Indre et Loire Woods