Tag: black and white

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Path to Waipapa Point Lighthouse

A black and white image depicting a winding path that leads to a distant lighthouse, surrounded by native bushes and trees.

A lot of lighthouses aren’t that accessible. There are 23 active lighthouses in New Zealand. The Waipapa Point Lighthouse looks like it would be accessible from online image searches and The Catlins official website. These sites need to update their photographs. The native bush and trees have grown up around the lighthouse making it difficult to see and photograph. You can follow the path shown here to get closer to the lighthouse but it is surrounded by a wire fence. There’s also a lighthouse keepers cottage next to the lighthouse which is a private residence. So no jumping over the fence for a sneaky close up. It was worth the visit if you find yourself in the Catlins getting bored with waterfalls. The Waipapa Point Coastal walk as less than 15 minutes each way from the carpark. One of the best places on this part of the coast to watch the sea birds and marine mammals.

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Castlepoint in a storm

Monochrome photograph depicting dramatic waves crashing onto a tranquil beach, showcasing nature's force. In the background is a rocky cliff with a tall white lighthouse on top.

Cloudy and stormy days are often days where my camera stays in its bag. This means missing shots like this. After a clear and starry night sky over the lighthouse the clouds came in. The next day was very windy. Castlepoint is on the rugged east coast on the Wellington Region of New Zealand. The wind was blowing the waves and sand towards the camera. I felt that a black and white processing added to the drama of the scene. With how exposed the lighthouse is on Castle Rock it can be very dangerous to be up on the rocks in a storm. Thankfully I couldn’t see anyone up there. It’s a popular beach for horse racing and kite surfing too. Obviously not in conditions like this though.

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Molly Malone Statue Dublin

A statue of a woman in a long dress standing behind a cart with three baskets on it. In the background is the stone wall of a building. The photograph is in black and white and one the ground are three plaques of information about the statue.

Molly Malone is a bronze sculpture designed by Jeanne Rynhart and erected in 1988. She was moved to her current location outside the Dublin Tourist Office (formerly St. Andrew’s Church) on Suffolk Street in 2014. This is probably one of the most famous statues in Dublin. The song “Cockles and Mussels” or “In Dublin’s Fair City” is set in Dublin and has become the unofficial anthem. There were dozens of tourist surrounding her when I went to capture this photograph. I waited at least 10 minutes for a gap in people to capture this image. Since 2014 tourists have been rubbing the statue’s bosom area “for luck”. I saw dozens of people including children do this and it made me feel pretty uncomfortable. The statue is a dark brown colour but the chest now has a bright gold glow. The black and white processing has lessened this contrast and enhanced the texture of the overall statue.



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Dugald Stewart Monument

Black and white cityscape of Edinburgh, showcasing its historic architecture and skyline against a dramatic sky.

Walking up Calton Hill is a must each time I visit Edinburgh. It has the best views of the city in my opinion. Dugald Stewart Monument is a memorial to the Scottish philosopher Dugald Stewart. Made of stone it was completed in 1831. Having visited Edinburgh many times I wasn’t sure how much photography I would do. It was a lovely surprise to find that the City Observatory had been restored and open as a Collective, a visual arts charity. In previous years the observatory was closed and so this higher view point wasn’t accessible. You can actually see the wall surrounding the observatory in the foreground of this photograph. I did consider waiting until these two people moved off the wall. In the end I included them to give the image a sense of scale.