Nesscliffe Hills

I recently went for a walk around Nesscliffe Hills in Shropshire. I’d not been before so was really pleasantly surprised by how nice a woods it was. I’d taken my Fujifilm XF 10-24mm f/4 and Fujifilm XF 16-55mm f/2.8 plus a Lee Circular Polariser and 0.9 ND Filter.

Nesscliffe Hills is apparently famous for being a hideout spot for ‘Shropshire’s Robin Hood’. Wild Humphrey Kynaston, the Robin Hood of Shropshire, is reputed to have lived in the cave up 24 steps cut into the rock face on the west of the hill with his horse, Beelzebub, stabled alongside. Here, he could watch out for rich travellers on the road below.

According to folklore, to survive, Sir Humphrey took up with local highwaymen who robbed Welsh wool traders on their way to and from the Oswestry markets. His knowledge of military strategy made him and his gang highly effective and soon he became notorious, though endeared himself to the locals by redistributing a good proportion of the stolen money and goods amongst them.

As hideouts go it’s not a bad one, I found myself thinking, as I took a relaxing walk up the hill and through the woods in the early autumn sunshine. The views from the top as the sun was setting were especially nice.

All photos of the Nesscliffe Hills were taken with the Fuji X-H1 and with the Fujifilm XF16 - 55mm f/2.8 Lens and the  Fujifilm XF10 - 24mm f/4 Lens, processed from RAW with Capture One.

Please visit the rest of my website, www.lukebennettphotos.com for much more content, including further landscape and nature photography from the UK and visit my Print Gallery to buy high quality prints of my UK landscapes.

Also, if you are interested in hiring me as your  wedding or events photographer in Solihull, Birmingham, Coventry, Warwickshire, the Midlands or Beyond, please say hi!

Finally, please Help Support This Blog by Buying Photography Equipment on Amazon via this link and following me on social media.

Oat Fields and Storm Clouds

The weather in the UK, as everyone here will know, has been a little bit erratic of late… One minute we’re experiencing record breaking temperatures, the next we’re enduring months worth of rainfall in a couple of hours.

Personally, I love it. I think the extreme weather keeps things interesting (although I am lucky not to live within a flood plane). Much like when snow hits the country, the extreme heat forces you to slow down and abandon your usual routines. This can either prove stressful and frustrating, or, if you’re prepared to embrace it, it can be strangely liberating!

Lately, in an attempt to embrace the stormy conditions, I’ve been desperately hoping for thunder and lighting. I have a couple of locations planned out where I really would love to capture some extreme weather on camera. Sadly, the lightning seems to be hitting everywhere but near me. I’m still hopeful though…

In the meantime, last weekend I ended up in an oat field near Kenilworth after taking a chance on a footpath I’ve driven past multiple times but never explored before. The sky was looking incredibly moody, threatening some of those vast showers I mentioned earlier. I exaggerated the stormy effect with a Lee Circular Polariser and 0.9 ND Filter to save the highlights in the clouds, and I’ve made a black and white conversion to my own tastes in Capture One.

All storm cloud photos were taken on the Fuji X-H1 with the Fujifilm XF16 - 55mm f/2.8 Lens, processed from RAW with Capture One.

Please visit the rest of my website, www.lukebennettphotos.com for much more content, including further landscape and nature photography from the UK and visit my Print Gallery to buy high quality prints of my UK landscapes.

Also, if you are interested in hiring me as your wedding photographer in Solihull, Birmingham, Coventry, Warwickshire, the Midlands or Beyond, please say hi!

Finally, please Help Support This Blog by Buying Photography Equipment on Amazon via this link and following me on social media.