Treading the boards once more at Cley NWT

On 5th December a huge tidal storm surge hit the east coast of England and Scotland and left huge destruction and devastation in its wake.  The North Norfolk coast was hit particularly badly and just over three months on the clean-up operation is continuing.  There are still large breaches in many of the sea walls all along the coast and the future is still uncertain for places such as Blakeney Freshmarsh.

The famous nature reserve of Cley Marshes, owned and managed by the Norfolk Wildlife Trust, was totally inundated during the surge.  The morning after the surge I saw for myself North Sea covering the coast road, rats running for higher ground and where once there were cyclists on the A149 there were swans swimming! It was an altogether surreal experience.  This week the central hides and boardwalk officially re-opened so I went on a brief visit to see how the reserve was looking.

Here is the view on Dec 6th 2013 from along Old Woman's Lane looking over marshes, you can see the central hides in the middle of the shot.

And here is the same view today!

The paths and boardwalks are now in great shape and if nobody told you about the storm surge it would be difficult to tell anything had happened.

The future is definitely uncertain for North Norfolk's grazing marshes and it is true that the coastline will never remain the same forever.  But for now at least they seem to be have begun their recovery.

These are the central hides which have now reopened.  Although looking a little bare and exposed, the whole area is in great shape, no doubt down to the hard work of the staff and volunteers at Cley NWT.

And this is view from inside one of the reopened hides.

Looking west towards Blakeney, that's Blakeney Church you can see on the horizon. 

Looking east along a ditch at Cley NWT

So despite the North Sea's best efforts Cley NWT is beginning to look like its old self again.  No doubt the ecological impacts will take longer to heal than some of the cosmetic parts such as hides and boardwalks. But it is obviously in safe hands and on a day like today it reminds you why it is such a special place.

Spring is in the air so get out there and tread the boards once more...

Amazing Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) over Cley next the Sea, Norfolk, Feb 2014

Wow it has been a mad few days following the amazing display of the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights as they are more commonly know, across the UK including Norfolk.

As you can see here and here I have photographed the aurora in Norfolk on a couple of occasions in the last two or three years.  As I rushed out of the house on Thursday evening I thought it was going to be another case of getting some half decent images but not really seeing much with the naked eye.  As we now know things turned out very different.

From my previous attempts I knew that I needed some foreground interest in the photos but I also wanted to give them a real sense of place.  So I headed to the one of the most iconic landmarks on the Norfolk coast, Cley Mill.

When I got there I could see a bright glow over the North Sea and having looked at this view on so many starry nights and seen the dark horizon I knew it was the aurora.  I fired off a quick test shot and although it showed a bit of green on the horizon it was nothing I hadn't captured before.  Within five minutes however the green glow intensified and a warm red colour started to appear above the green.  Another couple of shots on 60 sec exposure and I could see the wall of pinky red blush on the back of the camera and knew this was something special.

I ran inside to Cley Mill to alert the guests what was unfolding outside, however as it is having its sails replaced there were no paying guests inside, only the owner Julian.  Together over the next hour or so we looked out over the marshes and the North Sea with Cley Mill illuminated in the foreground and the aurora preforming its magic above us.

It was a truly unforgettable and magical experience.

Below are a few photos from the evening.

You can purchase prints of the photos from my PhotoShelter site

More lights in the north Norfolk sky

So another week and another display of the Northern Lights in Norfolk!  Well OK they are not that frequent but twice now within a few months is still pretty impressive this far south.

Just like last time I think it is only right if I say that I couldn't see a great deal in the sky with my naked eyes.  Although you could see a faint  glow and the odd vertical shaft of light it wasn't all that impressive, unfortunately.  However over a 3-4 minute exposure it was possible to see the green glow on the horizon and in some of the shots some reds and pinks.

One day we might just get a proper display, hopefully I manage to see and if I am lucky get a few photos too!

Ordering Prints
I have had a number of enquiries about these photos since taking them including a few about purchasing them.  As soon as I have done a few test prints I will put up a link where folk can purchase prints directly.  Although I took them on quite low iso the long exposures meant there was quite a bit of noise in them and I don't want to sell any prints until I am sure they look OK on paper!  If you are interested then please drop me an email and I can send you the link when it is up.

In this first shot you can see a very obvious green 'blob', this was visible with the naked eye.

This shot was taken at Cley Windmill.  Luckily a shooting star happened to go down right in the middle of the Aurora glow during the exposure.  The white streak of light under the shooting star is one of the service boats heading to the Sheringham Shoal windfarm, which are the red lights on the east of the horizon.  I also like how the plough is in prime position for this shot and although it has one of the weaker glows in all the photos I still like it.  It was picked up by ITV Anglia too who ran in during the weather bulletin during the week!

Another shot from from Cley Windmill, this time without the shooting star but with a stronger Aurora Glow.

The rest of the shots I took at Cley Beach.  Unfortunately the moon as out at this point which somewhat lessened the darkness of the sky and the effect of the aurora.  All the same you can clearly see a red glow in this photo.

Here you can just about make out vertical shafts of red light and the green glow on the horizon.  This was quite a long exposure, about 4 minutes, as can be seen by the length of the star trails and the distance travlled by the boat on the horizon.

This one has probably the strongest glow but again what a very long exposure.  It helps have a few clouds in the sky as it shows up the differences in the sky colour much more I think.  For the first 30-60 seconds or so of these photos on the beach I used a torch to illuminate the boat in the foreground.

Sneek Peek - Jo and Leonie - Cley Mill, Norfolk

I have been really busy the past few weeks with pre-wedding shoots and weddings and not been blogging as much as I should.  So to start making up for lost time here is a sneek peek from Jo and Leonie's civil partnership which I was delighted to photograph at the weekend.  

Cley Mill is without doubt one of the most unique wedding venues in the country let alone Norfolk and being right on my doorstep there is no having to leave hours early in case I get stuck in traffic.  The views from the mill across the marshes are spectacular and I just love shooting there  

Their ceremony was very special and a few tears were shed around the room as Jo and Leonie exchanged their vows. It is times like these that I am reminded how lucky I am to not only witness but be charged with recording one of the most important and special days in peoples lives.

Outside the late September sun was blazing but the wind was also blowing like only it can in Norfolk!  So being too windy for a trip to the beach we instead went for a walk through Cley village.  As is usual on a Saturday afternoon the high street was very busy with traffic and so Jo and Leonie were very brave to trust me with their lives!  We carried out a whistle stop tour of the very pretty locations in the village and despite the cold both Jo and Leonie never once complained.  In fact they were more worried about the update from Carrow Road where Norwich were losing to Liverpool!

So here is a sneek peek whilst I knuckle down with editing the rest of their photos.

Happy Birthday, to a very special place.

At the weekend the National Trust at Blakeney in Norfolk, just a stones-throw from my house, celebrated 100 years of ownership of a unique part of the British coastline.  This 3.5mile shingle spit which extends westwards from Cley is an internationally important site for wildlife and is without doubt a true gem on the North Norfolk coastline.  Near the end of the spit the old lifeboat house is home to the National Trust wardens who protect this unique landscape and its wildlife.  This unique building adorned as it is with blue and white paint is a landmark locals know and love and can be found on many a postcard and poster in the souvenir shops along the coast.

The National Trust laid on boats from Morston Quay for local people who are lucky enough to have Blakeney on their doorstep and who clearly care deeply about its protection and its long term future as a special place where people can enjoy the outdoors.

Upon arrival on the point there were guided walks incorporating the natural and social history of the site followed by a Bucks Fizz breakfast and the unveiling of a beautiful wooden commemorative panel to mark the centenary.

The weather Gods provided the sunshine and as I wandered amongst the guests with my camera it was obvious that they all thought it was a very special and memorable morning.  John Sizer, the National Trust property manager for Blakeney gave a wonderful speech before the unveiling of the panel.  Graham and Marilyn, two of the Trust's staff, had the honour of unveiling the panel, who between them recently celebrated over 40 years service for the Trust, quite an achievement.

Following the unveiling it was cake time and wow what a cake it was.  It was a model of the lifeboat house and was made by another member of the Trust's staff, Victoria Francis, who it has to be said is not known for her culinary skills (I know this only because I have to cook for her every night!).  As there was very little of it left at the end it obviously went down well with the guests, either that or they were being very polite, we will never know!

We (Victoria and myself) were very honoured to take a local resident with us to The Point who is 97 years of age and who had last been in one of the buildings on The Point over 80 years ago!  Although getting in and out of the boat took a little bit of time I was absolutely astonished that someone of that age would even attempt such a feat, he is a remarkable man and could teach us all about how to live life to the fullest.

So here are a few photos from the morning.
Thanks for looking.


The iconic Blakeney Point lifeboat house

Disembarkation was a little tricky a times but only the NT staff and boatmen got their feet wet!

The assembled guests waiting for unveiling of the commemorative panel

And with a swoosh of the National Trust flag there it was!

National Trust staff and volunteers proudly showing off their beautiful new panel

Etched with the words "1912-2012 & Beyond... special places for ever, for everyone"  It is a very fitting piece with a very fitting message

And the cake, complete with marzipan seals and terns, the icing didn't quite like the sunshine but it held up pretty well all the same.

On our way back to the quay we were treated to an impromptu seal and tern watching trip at the end of The Point

Who is watching who?

Lifetime ambition fulfilled?

Last night after many years of trying I finally managed to photograph the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) in the UK.

Now I have to be honest from the outset and say that what you see in the photos below is not what I could see with my naked eye.  In fact apart from a brief period where there was an obvious vertical column mostly I spent my time trying to keep warm whilst waiting 2-3 minutes for each photo to be taken and then checking the results and tweaking the next shot a little.

The photos were taken a couple of minutes from my house at Cley in North Norfolk looking north (obviously!) with the Sheringham Shoal windfarm on the horizon. Whilst using the wind turbines to add some interest to the photo it did make me stop and ponder about their place in this beautiful stretch of coast.  The last (and only other) time I saw the Aurora in the UK was from the very same spot about 10 years ago when they horizon was completely dark. This very natural spectacle which has beguiled people for millennia, caused by solar storms and brought to earth in solar winds was all going on over our attempts to harness wind power to help save our planet.  As a photographer I was glad to have something else in the photo on which to help hook the shots but another side of me was sad that the turbines symbolise much of what we have done wrong as a species.  Trust me after four hours of gazing into the sky this is the kind of stuff which comes to you!    

Anyway, on with the photos.  They were taken mostly on 2-3 minute exposures and I really have done very little in post with them, straightened a few horizons and increased the black clipping (for all you togs out there) slightly but thats about it!

So in many respects it was a lifetime ambition fulfilled and in another it left a somewhat bitter sweet feeling that all this was going on above my head but I couldn't see it without my camera.  It also re-affirmed in my mind that a visit to Scandinavia to do them justice will happen in the next year or so watch this space.

Nicole and Jonathan - a wedding at Yaxley Hall, Suffolk

A little bit of blog catch-up from earlier in the season.

Nicole and Jonathan got married in April at the beautiful and intimate Yaxley Hall near Eye in Suffolk.

Even if you do have the wonderful barrel vaulted music room of Yaxley Hall as a back-up, planning on having an outdoor wedding in April is a brave move indeed.

So I was delighted when Nicole and Jonathan’s bravery paid off, the sun came out and they were able to have their ceremony in the orchard garden.

Yaxley Hall has been around for over 500 years and the old English meaning for Yaxley is Cuckoo Woods. It was a little early for any cuckoos to be calling but the blue tits, robins and dunnocks were in full song as Nicole walked through the orchard towards an expectant, and somewhat emotional, Jonathan.

After some family shots on the lawn in front of the hall we spent some time with the bride and groom getting some nice portraits before heading to the marquee for the speeches and wedding breakfast. A tremendous amount of effort went into dressing and decorating the marquee, bunting, fine china, home-made cinder toffee, cupcakes lots of lovely cupcakes! There was even a full size shabby chic dresser brought in especially for the table plan, fantastic.

After their first dance the floor was invaded by Nicole’s bridesmaids and despite some very high heels her maid of honour, Lydia, preformed a Busted style leap, very impressive.

As we departed the party was in full swing and it looked like it was going to be a very good night indeed.

Here are a few shots from the day.

Nicole and Jonathan - Yaxley Hall, Suffolk from Brian Egan Photography on Vimeo.