Seasons of Mist

Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they? Think not of them, thou hast thy music too, While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day, And touch the stubble plains with rosy hue; 
Then in a wailful choir the small gnats mourn Among the river sallows, borne aloft
Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies; 
And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn. - To Autumn, John Keats

Outside of somewhere like Canada I would argue that wales is one of the best places to experience autumn. The leaves on trees shift from green to red to gold and are finally swept from their moorings by autumnal storms.

Mist veils the world in an ethereal haze and crisp mornings leave fields frosted over with dew. And after a days of kicking your way through leaves you can always retired to your local pub to warm up and get in a pint.

These pictures were taken on a day out in abercynon, on a particularly scenic trail that carried you up into the hills and wooded areas that surrounded the area. With sunlight filtering through clouds, leaves crunching underfoot and stunning views over the surrounding fields it proves autumn in Britain really is an inspiring time to get out and take some pictures.

A neon sea

I got the chance to experiment with different types of lighting recently after going down to the bay at night.

As much as I love street lamps as sources of lighting, sometimes I long for an alternative colour to the neon orange glow that is most street lighting. And down the bay proved the perfect place to do that.

Car parks to local apartments were filled with greens, blues, purples and whites that created much more variety and colour then I would otherwise have found on the streets.

Futhermore the sea created wonderful patterns to the light on the water that when distorted through long exposure became a fantastical canvas through which to create abstract paintings.

Kenfig Nature Reserve

Located in the desolated and wind swept heart of the South Welsh coastline, lies Kenfig Pool Nature Reserve. This beautiful reserve is home to a wonderful selection of nature due to its impressive freshwater lake, sweeping sand dunes and expansively lovely coastline.

I volunteered at this site for a year and a half and it stills holds many good memories for me. Whether it involved sloshing through flooded reed beds hunting for elusive Waterails (a type of wading bird that squeals like a pig when it gets territorial), hunting by flashlight for the rare newts that dot its pools or (like today) exploring its beautiful beaches it really is an extraordinary home for nature.

I was there with a friend and together we stomped over the dunes, gazed across the lake, took a moment to rest in the bird hide by the lake before finally making our way to the sea. The coast stretches for miles and is made even more amazing by the fact that just over the hill lies a steel mill that seems to exist to pump clouds into the sky.

After walking a fair stretch of the beach we climbed over the now rocky shore before looping our way back the local pub The Prince of Wales to take in a pint. It really is an excellent place to relax, filled as it is with warmth, old worldly charm and some truly exquisite food. This historic pub and the reserve itself is also home to many legends of ancient apparitions and ghostly goings on. After all if you visit the reserve on a lonely night you just might hear the toiling of a church bell from far beneath the lake or feel the icy chill of the local lich that wanders Kenfig's local graveyard.

Overall I would thoroughly recommend Kenfig as a wonderful and beautiful spot for a day out.

Trees

Trees and nature have always inspired in me a sense of love and peace. Their leafy domes offer a place of respite and relaxation in a hectic world of city life.

They offer home to countless animals and birds, providing the air we breath and a substantial amount of the food we eat.

In summer days they are gently respiring giants, adding a breathing green pulse to the city. At night they become silent sentinels, passively observing the secrets of a nocturnal city.

As the year turns to autumn their shifting colours usher in the changing year and shed their leaves in autumnal swirls that leave the streets crunchy underfoot.

And in winter their bony fingers reach to the skies under baleful moons, like witches summoning a multitude of stars into the heavens. 

If there is any one thing on Earth that we should protect our trees and our forests should be a treasure we should seek to protect, safeguard and propagate for ourselves and our loved ones, now and for the future.