Lock Keepers Cottage, a photo from Oxfordshire, England

Photographer's Note

There are so many things I can write about this little cottage.. some of you may recognise it and say Oh no- not that Cottage again, or others may say It looks different .. or WOW. it it looks cold. All I know it is a special place in English heritage..It was cold. The photo was taken at One o Clock in the morning with the temperatures below Minus 17 degrees..

So why post it in the middle of Summer? Maybe because I have gained new knowldege of PP from our TE meeting last week in Keswick (and I can practice on old images); Maybe for a friend from Hong Kong who I shared a meal in Oxford yesterday, who says that the English summers are like the winters in Hong Kong; or maybe it was to remind me that these summers are alot better than the winters in the UK..

This little Lock Keepers cottage was built circa 1789, at a time when the Oxford Canal was being dug (by hand), to allow for trade from Birmingham down to the Thames and London and possibly to the British Empire.

The little window on the side wall will have been for the Lock keepers to view the traffic( called Narrow boats) on the canals - (there is one on both sides of the house) without having to venture into the cold.. Up until 1920s it will have been the residence of the Lock Keeper who would have been required to open the locks for passing boats.. Today it is a private residence occupied by an ageing bachelor and for any friends who may wish to stay for a night or two...

And yes.. If I did have the chance to reshoot the image - it will be with a very different f stop

BluSimo, snunney, Kofman, tyro, RhodieIke, annjackman, adores, maloutim, fanni has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

BluSimo (9392) 2011-06-18 3:07

Hi Richard
I love winter, thus I I see this photo with great pleasure, although we are nearly in summer: -) I appreciate the frame and the illuminated house, and intimate and mysterious atmosphere of all the scene. In my opinion the choice of f 2,8 is valid, I like the path that get confused within the night, and all the uncertain aspect of this moment. cheers!
have a good week end
ciao
Simonetta

emka (57992) 2011-06-18 3:19

Hi a.b.,
is it the same cottage as here ? it looks so different. It looks very cold and the view of the frozen canal and so much snow on it is amazing. Well, we have colder days in Warsaw this winter. If this snow was removed a bit and the people went skating it could look like in Holland. Interesting colours, like sepia. I like the photo very much.

Warm regards
Malgo

snunney (67172) 2011-06-18 3:20

Hello Richard,
A very atmospheric composition so evocative of a cold winter's night. Very well composed with all the elements nicely placed and perfectly exposed. I like it very much.

tyro (13009) 2011-06-18 3:47

Good Morning Richard,

What a strange fellow that ageing bachelor must be. Have you ever met him?

I'm not sure why you are being so apologetic for shooting this with your lens wide open at f/2.8: there clearly was very little light around and, more to the point, it's worked perfectly - what more do you want? The other thing is that this was a 30 sec. exposure and you can just see that the two stars above the house are slightly oblong-shaped. A smaller aperture (and hence an even longer exposure) would have made them look like lines rather than stars.

I love this picture - it's almost monochrome apart from the warm browns of the house walls and a lovely warm (and welcoming) glow in the windows and behind the house. The composition is perfect too, the cottage being placed perfectly in the frame, the canal itself and the righthand wall leading the eye well into the picture through the well-trodden snow and the fabulous strong diagonals of the arms of the lock gates.

This is going to be added to my "favourites"!

Lovely!

Kind Regards,

John.

jaywalker (16061) 2011-06-18 4:08

Hi Richard, I know you didn’t take this photo on our weekend, however I love it, the lighting is really good & brilliantly managed, I love the way you have captured the snow, with an f2.8 you have still managed very good depth & still captured a super shot, I'm assuming that you believe that by using a different F stop the photo may have been better, however the quality of this picture is there for all to see & changing your camera settings may loose something you have here, kind regards Wilson.

wolf38 (28146) 2011-06-18 10:29

Hi Richard. Winter night with snow and a lighted house. A truly impressive photo. You have managed the difficult light well. Everything looks very atmospheric. For me, this is a masterful shot. Compliment. Rgds, Wolfgang.
Have a nice weekend.

batalay (32830) 2011-06-18 13:45

Hello Rich,

Superb shot. The light exposure is truly first rate. An aperture of f/2,8 and shutter speed of 30 seconds would be sufficient to shoot a black cat in a coal mine. I can imagine how this scene would look to the naked eye. The pinkish glow in the sky, so characteristic of moist atmosphere and city lights, permeates the scene. I remember remarking about one of your other shots about old hand painted season's greeting cards. This also has that old atmosphere.

I am writing you separately about the stopover in London.

Have a rejuvenating Sunday,

Bulent

RhodieIke (9207) 2011-06-18 15:08

Hi Richard, Fantastic chocolate box photo here,love the mood, especially the window light's,Nice to hear from you again, and hope you are well,Cheers Iain.

romanaa (7372) 2011-06-19 2:19

Hello Rich,

I have been missing the image of lock cottage in your files for long.
I can see nothing wrong with this image, if it is because of the lesson on pp you have had, then it was a good lesson ;-)... I like it a lot. It is different from the blue hours shot usually seen on TE and absence of most of the colours gives it a mysterious atmosphere.

Best wishes

Romana

siamesa (27449) 2011-06-19 2:30

Bom dia Richard

An atmosphera of mystery.Spectacular capture.
Beautiful and magic composition.
Abraços
maria

annjackman (13171) 2011-06-20 15:24

Helo rich,
Not sure how I missed this picture - too busy I guess. Anyway I really, really love it. The lights in the cottage give a welcoming feel and I think reflects the owners welcoming nature! The atmosphere is just magic.
Best wishes, Ann

adores (28178) 2011-06-21 18:45

Hi Richard!
Great exposure here! I like the composition and especially the atmosphere given by the lights inside the house. A very good capture!

maloutim (8586) 2011-06-23 13:44

Hi Richard,
Well, no this cottage under all sorts of weather conditions would never be boring. I love the partly black and white with the subdued colour only on the house. The lit-up windows are better than any Christmas illuminations.
A great place.
Best regards.
Marie-Louise.

korbee (6295) 2011-06-24 14:01

Wauw this is such a warm atmosphere youve created here Richard,Im almost looking forwart to the cold winter seeing this magnificent shot! ;]

jan

ruisc_pt (10111) 2011-06-25 7:58

Very well done Richard.
I like the misty ambiance on it.. Great image.
TFS
R

kmangwani (338) 2011-07-01 21:45

Hi Richard,

This is an excellent post, almost monochromatic except for the cottage which gives away the lit yellow and that makes it more fascinating. The shallow depth works well making the surroundings soft.

Kumar

jadesgran (3259) 2011-07-07 12:36

Hi Richard
I love snow scenes at any time of the year.I think probably because I associate snow with chestnuts roasting by an open fire.We know how to live in the country!!
A very nice picture with good P.O.V. I especially like the lights on in the house.
Kind Regards Gladys

Rafer (14205) 2011-07-11 11:04

Magic moment,,,magic light!!! Grretings Richard!!!

fanni (13864) 2011-09-03 13:07

Hi Rich,
winter and snow are coming sooner than we expect... well, this is a really nice season - snowy winter! but, imho, it shouldn't last tooooo long :)
I like this night snowy scene very much. The lights in the windows of the house look very inviting and enliven the cold scene a lot :) Excellent perspective and POV :)
I think I can almost feel the cold snow which I see in this picture.
warm regards,
Elena