Bedford Waterfront

[Graham Serretta]

My Best Beloved and I took Charlie walkabout along the embankment of the river Great Ouse at Bedford last Sunday.  It was a crisp, clear, cold day with harsh shadows and blue skies.  Noelin used her Nikon D3100 and I used my Nikon D7K.  Charlie used his imagination.  Bedford is an ancient market town but is perhaps better known today as the "spy capital of Britain".  More about this here:
http://www.visitbedford.co.uk/home/all-about-bedford/spy-capital-of-britain
Here are some of the snapshots of the day-


The town of Bedford


A view down the river


Kyaking


There are apes in England after all!


A Victorian Bridge


A 20th century bridge


The rowing club boat house


An "eight" at full cry.


It's tradition for the rowers who go out on the river in boats to leave their shoes on the quay - no-one would dare touch them and they are quite safe.


Kyaking


Winter trees dancing

[Dennis Gallus]

Graham,

Those are lovely shots, and once again the moderate climate you are experiencing amazes me.  I see what you mean in your introduction about blue skies and harsh shadows.  But although the scenes were contrasty, you rendered them in a very rich way. 

It is hard to pick a favorite.  The Victorian bridge is fascinating.  The lead-off shot of the town is interesting for architecture (and nice placement of that swan, by the way).  The whole series is excellent.

How do you like that D7000 compared to your former D90?

Best,
Dennis

[Graham Serretta]

Thanks Dennis.  I just loved the D90, although the GUI wasn't intuitive, and I expected the D7K to overcome the D90's faults and be a joy to use, but so far I haven't married with it.  Maybe I don't get to use it often enough for it to become an extension of my thought process - it's hasn't exactly been the season for photography.  I do think that it has far too many options, though.

[jamesmck]

Graham - These are all lovely, but the last one, Winter trees dancing, is truly superb in all respects.  With Dennis, I envy your beautiful weather.

James

[OpenWater]

I had no idea spies resided in such pleasant places!  (Maybe I've just read LeCarré too much; all the places he describes seem gray.)  They are beautiful photos.  I agree with James on the last one.

[br1078lum]

Beautiful shots of a lovely afternoon, Graham.  I had to catch myself, as I was about to ask what film you were using.  I'm still on the fence when it comes to DSLR's, not because I'm against the technology, but I would like to get one where I don't have to invest in a whole new lens system.  But then the only way to take full advantage of the camera is to have what lens matches it, instead of using old glass.  And then of course, there is the initial cost factor.  Back when a Nikkormat was an excellent entry point into the Nikon system, it didn't seem all that expensive (although it was nearly a month's pay for a sailor of my rank).  But now there are many tiers to the Nikon system, and each one has it's limitations, not to mention the difference in sensor size.  So I'll just keep on watching, and waiting for someone to bring some sense into the industry, and make a series of cameras that have the same sensor, and work the same way, but with increasing capabilities as you go up the line.

PF

[brazile]

Lovely crisp light and vivid colors. Really enjoyed the walk around town, thanks for sharing it with us.

Robert

[lesged]

Graham and Noelin,

You are the dynamic duo of NFF for recording landscapes and seacapes. Armed with different cameras and sets of sense organs, it's fascinating to observe your individual interpretation of scenery whilst having a walkabout in Bedford.

It’s a fine example of the Latin expression carpe diem! (sieze the day!)  Given the challenging lighting conditions, you both succeeded in rendering a splendid series of photos taken during your walkabout. My favorite of each of your sets are: Noelin's "Rowers shoes" and Graham's "Dancing trees."

[Graham Serretta]

Thank you for the appreciative comments, everyone. 

Phil - My advice is to jump aboard before the train leaves the station altogether.  I think that the APS-C size sensor is here to stay for a long while - in fact I would say that the full-frame sensor is more likely to become redundant as sensor technology advances - APS-C sensors are now doing things that not even full-frame could do a couple of years ago.  The decision that you need to make is whether to stick with a conventional VF (mirror box) camera, or to brave the new EVF technology from Sony.  I would advise the former.  My son-in-law bought one of the first Canon D300 DSLRs in 2003, and he still gets superb results from it, and all of my new Canon AF-S lenses for my Eos 7D will fit it, as well as my old Canon EF film lenses. He does not feel the need to up-grade to a later model camera.  I wouldn't be too concerned with future redundancy if I were you.  Prices won't get much lower than they are right now.

Les - "Snap!"  You and Claudia aren't too bad either.  The student has surpassed the teacher........

[br1078lum]

Phil - My advice is to jump aboard before the train leaves the station altogether.

Yeah, but I keep spending my money on all those film cameras I passed up over the years.  But that Sony NEX-7 is getting my attention.  And with adaptors, I'll be able to use my MD lenses on it.  Couldn't you just see what kind of shots I could get with a 500mm mirror hanging off that baby?

PF