A metal and plastic sky

A year or so ago I discovered the joy of finding reflections in unorthodox surfaces; puddles, rivers, concrete and windows. All these I poured over looking at new angles from which to take photos at.

One day I was at a bus stop with my camera and when I looked up I was inspired for above me was a second sky, one of metal and plastic. I always meant to return to explore more of the strange sky but I never did, until now.

Its been raining over Cardiff today, so I was taking shelter under a bus stop with my camera when I looked up. Immediately I knew what my latest blog post would be about. I explored a number of stops in my area as the light over head changed from a grey grizzled sky, to a deep bruised colour before finally setting into night.

It was a new world, a colourful and bright on that shimmered and shivered with all the colours and reflections of a metal and plastic sky.

A neon twilight

Street photography at night is something I have a real passion for, the glow of neon lamps, the way car lights reflecting on metal and the glitter created off metal and sheet plastic all create wonderful and unearthly subjects which I love to capture.

Street signs, windows, bits of plastic and sheet metal. All of these can be used to capture and distort the way light falls and is reflected at night and these were very much the things I love to capture once night has fallen.

For when night falls the world becomes for me a neon twilight, a mysterious world rip for photographic capture.

Night city lights

Cardiff city is a really attractive place to go out and photograph at night. Its bright, bold and practically shimmers with multi coloured neon lights. Or at least it normally would be if I hadn't chosen the one night of the week where it pissing it down with rain.

Still after hiding in doorways, dodging howling blasts of wind and the considerable amounts of water pouring from the heavens I was able to capture the essence of Cardiff at night.


If anything the stormy weather only added to the mystique of the city further, adding hazy reflections and a dramatic imposing sky with which to contrast the night lights against.

After getting all the shots I had wanted I left for home and a hot chocolate happy in the knowledge I had done my best to capture the night city lights.

Abstract landscapes

Creating landscapes isn't something I get to do much in the city. With the rare exception of the down the bay, I find it difficult to find the open spaces I need to compose them.

With a recent trip to the countryside I had the perfect excuse to do this however. But because my last set of pictures had been more realistic I decided to experiment by creating a series of much more impressionistic images.

By setting the camera to a five second exposure and gently shaking the camera or moving it to side to side I was able to create images of flame filled fields, musical cities, dancing lights and Van Gogh inspired starry nights.

I was in Glastonbury again and by using this technique I felt I was able to capture and cast an air of mystery and magic over the town befitting this land of myth.

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.