I am not a great fan of re-visiting places. Even in a small
island like ours, there are enough different places to keep us going without
having to go back to the same place continually.
So, when deciding to go on holiday we generally look for
somewhere we have not been to much. This year it was the turn of the Wirral.
If you don't know where the Wirral is, it is that bit
between Liverpool and Wales that looks like England is giving a one fingered
salute to Ireland.
Stuck, as it is, between Merseyside and Wales, it probably
is overlooked as a destination. Also being bordered on two sides by the Mersey
and Dee river estuaries, it does not have the beaches or infrastructure to
attract the traditional holiday maker, nor the hills of Wales.
What it does have however is easy access to Liverpool, a lot
of coast paths and abundant bird life attracted by the tidal marsh flats.
We decided to stay in Neston. A small town in the close to
the Dee, trying hard to decide whether to retain its industrial mining roots or
become a retirement/Liverpool commuter town. Not perhaps the most attractive
town, but a good base to explore the rest of the area.
...
This being a family holiday, my photographic ambitions were going to be curtailed, but I hoped to get out enough with my camera to make it interesting.
The 1st question was where? The problem with any new location is that degree of uncertainty with adds to your inertia. If I had been on my own I would of probably scouted areas in the car before committing, but I did not have that luxury. Liverpool was an obvious target, being a city I have never really had much chance to photographically explore. Also the coast hopefully would have areas of interest, but apart from that it would be a case of exploration.
Thurstanton
We chatted to a few people on the way down, and one thing that came up was to go to the "secret" beach at Thurstanton. So once we had had settled in and had dinner we set of. The secret beach was not hard to find. What was hard to find was Thurstanton itself. A continual theme from the trip was the in ability of Google maps to navigate us around the area.
Still once located, it was a relatively easy walk to the beach, which turns out to be part of the Dee estuary. While we were there the tides we against us with High tide being early in the morning and midday and being an esturay, the water goes oout a long way. Still we caught a decent sunset, and on the right day it would be stunning.
What we missed however was Thor's stone, a giant block sandstone above the town. Again as well as Google maps, we found the area was a bit of a trip advisor black hole.
Ness Botanic Gardens
Mentioning trip advisor, Ness botanical gardens, (part of the University of Liverpool) is hardly mentioned, but is an on oasis of calm.
Arriving in late spring we were just in time to catch the last of the Rhododendron blooms.
Photographically speaking however botanical garden create issues. Let’s admit it, 200 pictures of flowers are pretty boring. The best you can do is try and combine it with architecture etc, but even then, you are struggling. Fortunately however I had brought my IR converted camera, and the sky for once was playing ball with a nice set of fluffy clouds
Also the cafe is definately worth a visit if you are looking for a great lunch sandwich
RSPB Burton Mere Wetlands Reserve
On holiday, I am always torn how many lenses to take. Generally, I take to many and/or the wrong sort. Just before leaving my house, I grabbed my 150-400mm and tele converter. Now it’s a great lens, but not something you want to carry all the time.
However, being close to an estuary, means the area is great for birdlife, especially ducks and wader. The Burton Mere reserve provides a great opportunity for capturing birdlife.
Saying that one problem is that it is very difficult to get anything extraordinary. Yes, the hides allow you to get images of birds, but unless you are very lucky, they will be a bit dull.
Also, the light was not great. It was just too bright and harsh. What I needed was softer light due to cloud cover or late evening shadows. The good light did mean I could have a lower ISO and faster shutter, but in a way it might have been better to left the camera and just enjoy the walk.
Saying that we captured a few record shots...
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| A often heard, but rarely seen Chiff Chaff |
Liverpool
The plan was to park in Birkenhead and take the Mersey ferry. Not only does that give you a great view of the dockside, but it saves the hassle of parking. Unfortunately, we arrived just after the commuter ferry service had finished and therefore had to take the far more expensive tour ferry. This would not have been a problem, but the weather had closed in, so instead of a great view of the skyline of Liverpool we just had grey mist for 30 minutes
I had no alternative then to play. I recently bought a 4mm Laowa fisheye, for no other good reason than I always wanted one. I decided therefore to see what it could do on the boat and took a few images. One challenge I found was keeping my fingers kept getting in the way, because the field of view was almost 180 degrees. Also, the circular aspect is not to everyone’s liking.
I also played around with multiple exposure. It is an area I would like to improve, and I like the way i could give the impression of Liverpool extending from the dockside.
Our first call was the Open eye photographic gallery. Hidden on the dockside, it is a nice little photographic gallery, The exhibition was about Eastern Europe, its people history and the how loss is captured by photographs. The way photographs record the lives of people is a theme I have always been interested in, so we had a good 20 minutes wander.
Fortunately, the weather started improving and after a visit to the Atlantic approach museum we headed
to the Liverpool Anglican cathedral
You cannot really miss either Cathedral, since they dominate the skyline. The Anglican one was only completed in the 80's after 70 years of construction and is the largest Gothic church in the UK.
Inside it is impressive, but stark since there is virtually no decoration, and unlike traditional churches no fixed seating. It is a bit of a strange building. Built in a style already out of date to a scale that nowadays seems excessive. However, it did make a good photographic subject since there were no restrictions and it was relatively quiet
Finally it was time to head back. By this point the tour ferry had finished, so we had to take the commutter, but at least the weather had vastly improved for the trip back.
I still feel that I have not explored Liverpool enough and would like to spend an entire day exploring the city, but in the meantime a few more images...
