Stonehenge Landscape Photo

Photographer’s Note

This is the 3rd and final image in a short series of shots taken at Stonenenge.
there were lots of people at the site so I had to 'remove' some from this shot.
I have posted the original as a WS.
Although very impressive the stones are part of a much larger landscape, this is what I have tried to show here.

The following text is taken from this site.

http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.1914

'Stonehenge was built in three phases. The first stage was a circle of timbers surrounded by a ditch and bank.
The first henge was built in about 3,100 BC.
56 holes have been located, now known as Aubrey Holes, named after the 17th century antiquarian, John Aubrey, who found them in about 1666.
We know that these holes were dug to hold wooden posts, just as holes were dug later to hold the stone pillars.
This was the first stage built about 5,050 years ago, a wooden post circle surrounded by a deep ditch and bank.

Then about 4,500 years ago – 2,500 BC it was rebuilt.
This time in stone, bluestones were used which are the smaller stones that can see in the picture.
These came from the Prescelli Mountains in Pembroke, South Wales 245 miles (380kms), dragged down to the sea, floated on huge rafts, brought up the River Avon, finally overland to where they are today.
Each stone weighs about five tons. It required unbelievable dedication from ancient man to bring these stones all the way from South Wales.
Before the second phase of Stonehenge was complete work stopped and there was a period of abandonment.
Then began a new bigger, even better Stonehenge, the one that we know today- this was approximately 4,300 years ago, about 2,300 BC, the third and final stage of what we see now.

The bluestones were dug up and rearranged and this time even bigger stones were brought in from the Marlborough Downs, 20 miles (32 kms)away.
These giant sandstones or Sarsen stones, as they are now called were hammered to size using balls of stone known as ‘mauls'.
Even today you can see the drag marks. Each pair of stones was heaved upright and linked on the top by the lintels.
To get the lintels to stay in place, the first wood working techniques were used.
They made joints in stone, linking the lintels in a circular manner using a tongue and groove joint, and subsequently the upright and lintel with a ball and socket joint or mortice and tenon. This was all cleverly designed on the alignment of the rising of the mid summer sun'.

Rinie_Hoff, feather, AmiBe, jhm, FORJP001, Cos, zenitlady, pady, izler, MLINES, david, DLM, nunop, InasiaJones, batalay, jvachon has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

timotey (1926) 2005-08-09 5:01

Amazing picture and a great composition for this so famous place. The main subject is perfectly placed in the frame, the area given to the sky is well choosen because of a great play of clouds with nice colours and contrast. The exposition is well managed to get good details on the stones. Very well done !

fabio_ts (13674) 2005-08-09 5:02

One other great scene! sky is absolutely AMAZING!!!
wonderful shot!
Have a nice day, Fabio.

alainh (35367) 2005-08-09 5:14

Bonjour Stephen.
tres belle image avec une grande part laissée au ciel.
Stonehenge est un coin fabuleux et ton cadrage favorisant les cieux rajoute au coté mysthique du site.
une tres belle prise de vue
amicalement
alain

Rinie_Hoff (9332) 2005-08-09 5:41

Hi Stephen, really awesome picture! The clouds almost look 3D and are so beautifully white. It's a very impressive picture to see the rolling hills, the beautiful Stonehenge, under this sky!
Really breathtaking, on a picture, and I try to imagine what it feels when you are actually there.

dkeus31 (26182) 2005-08-09 6:08

Hi Stephen,
Nice and almost unusual framing on this munument.
The sky is nice.

djnik2004 (1696) 2005-08-09 8:11

Beautiful shot of stonehenge, i like your composition very much, most people put the momument in the middle with more ground than sky, youve done well to get away from the norm, stunning shot, well done!

feather (49860) 2005-08-09 8:45

Amazing sky! I think your composition here emphasises that well. Also a good idea to show the WS so we can see the scale with the people in. I don't mind the odd person in a landscape shot for this reason. I know some people say it is a no no in any circumstances, but in some instances, they add rather than detract from an image.

AmiBe (6042) 2005-08-09 9:53

Hi Stephen,
I like this composition with the big part of sky. You're right, it's splendid !
Good job to remove the tourists but the colors are better on the original in my opinion.

Cormac (26449) 2005-08-09 10:58

Very dramatic shot! I like the composition, with the stones in the lower left and the huge sky with interesting clouds. For some reason it seems more timesless and mystical like this. Well done!

jhm (82545) 2005-08-09 13:27

Hi Stephen,
The sky with its special clouds its wonderful, excellent composition and splendid of colours.
Best regards,
John.

naxius (16679) 2005-08-09 13:29

Hello Stephen,
Superbe shot..
The polarizer did his work!
I like the view and your pov..
Well done.
Alex

FORJP001 (3819) 2005-08-09 13:29

Great: Stonehenge is better whithout people. Now this scenery look like it was taken in around 2500 BC. (Jean-Pierre) P.S.

vincent24 (9038) 2005-08-09 17:21

good choice also,you've beem so lucky with the sky,it gives a mystical atmosphere,very well done,
vincent

R_Chevalier (344) 2005-08-09 18:26

My home county, i haven't been back for a while. I miss the countryside and on a clear day it is beautiful and you have captured the scene well. However i think stonehenge is too strong to be tucked away in that corner, but the sky is beautiful. Well done.

Cos (1562) 2005-08-10 12:32

Hi Stephen
This is a great shot of Stonehenge which really illustrates the beautiful landscape around it. The "big sky" makes the stones seem tiny and emphasises how small our human achievements are against the might of nature. Fabulous, fabulous sky...I could look at it all day!
Regards, Sarah

zenitlady (219) 2005-08-10 14:00

Hello Stephen! Echo the composition comments, the sky was so marvellous, and these stones are certainly old enough to seem to meld into the landscape. Very imaginative capture! Great notes, and a lovely shot. TFP! Well done! Linda

pamastro (7213) 2005-08-13 1:27

I was going to ask how you mentioned to get this without any people in sight and now I see. You did an excellent job cloning them out. I also like the deeper hues of this version over the other. Especially in the sky which makes it really stand out powerfully again. But I have to admit I like the people in the shot. They are in good spots to sort of create a radiating feel from Stonehenge, thus echoing its shape. But it is different seeing it empty which is really neat, too. And it was so naturally done. Nice work.

dominique (11403) 2005-08-15 17:15

Voila un cadrage parfait a mon avis , j'aime cette large place reservé au ciel quand celui ci est intéressant , j'aime aussi le premier plan un bon sujet . Bien vu .

jkneze (506) 2005-08-18 3:14

Great shot of this very very interesting place. I like the composition and the DoF. There must be a milion pics of this place but I haven't seen one so clear and sharp. Great job.

lewiz (1293) 2005-09-17 11:11

Absolutely stunning! What a beautiful British sky!

It's nice (?) to see Stonehenge playing second best to the natural elements too.

Hanssie (9133) 2005-09-27 16:09

Fantastic view with "the stones" in the bottom, Steven, a lot of space, a mysterious place in the way, you've photographed it !
Great ! !

jb06 (150) 2006-01-19 9:03

This is a very good photo of the "mysterious" Stonehenge. Keep up the good work, and keep posting.

Abadpour (49) 2006-02-07 18:51 [Comment]

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Ladycroquette1 (112) 2006-02-07 19:06

Nice picture! The color of the sky is really great!

KevRyan (22378) 2006-02-26 9:48

This is great to see the stones in the landscape like this - I'd like to see a large aerial photo with the whole area marked out - I guess it would all make so much more sense - there must be one somewhere on the Net but a print would be fantastic.

A really stunning composition and very nice natural colour - I'm glad you took the people out!....and no horrible fences either.

best wishes Kev

david (3972) 2006-05-04 9:21

i think this counts as a unique view of stonehenge. especially considering when i was there it had a fence and hundreds of tourists around it!! :( heroic effort to photoshop them all out!

i like your framing and placement of stonehenge in the bottom corner. it shows of the beautiful landscape and rare blue england sky!

this shot has the appearance of not being straight! but i'm sure it is ... just an illusion because of the hilly horizon.

great shot!

DLM (6447) 2006-05-06 7:18

Hi Stephen,
This is a stunning composition,you must be very pleased.TFS
Dave.

dege_801s (25) 2006-05-06 13:26

Amazing Clouds, very very nice composition, and it show so dramatic....well done

iGirl (1223) 2006-06-24 17:50

Hi Stephen, great shot! I really like the composition, which plays up the sky while still keeping the rocks in view. And I think it helped the shot to remove the people... I hate it when I almost have the perfect shot and then someone strolls into the scene and then I wait for the longest time but by the time they leave someone else has walked into my shot. I sometimes remove people from my photos, too, because I see photography as an art, and as art it should reflect the world as the photographer sees it in his own mind.

Thanks for sharing!

Erin

aralda (1240) 2006-07-19 12:21

Great sky here, with those fluffy clouds and all the movement... I like the way you filled the frame, giving such prominence to this wonderful sky.
Raluca

carper (64878) 2006-07-31 12:01

fantastic Stephen,
out of you archive, a fantastic composition of this very famous place, the low horizon and the fantastic sky made it realy good, well done.
gr. jaap

pady (4800) 2006-08-18 16:58

To have removed the people give a mystery in your picture. The large place given to the sky add a lot of space and mysticism to your composition.
Greetings
Pierre-André

nunop (60) 2006-09-16 20:10

this photo composition and colors are very good. The sky is just amazing!!

I like it a lot, congratulations

rafid76 (2611) 2006-10-29 7:32

its really great how you placed stonehenge in the right bottom corner while showing the sky. makes me think the stones are communicating with the outer world!

ibhm (309) 2007-01-31 12:18 [Comment]

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norman_isaure (1278) 2007-03-18 16:04 [Comment]

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InasiaJones (20273) 2007-03-20 13:15

Hi Stephen,

A very creative and refreshing shot of Stonehenge. The big blue sky, full of puffy clouds linked by thinner ones, is awesome and largely contributes to the dramatic mood of your image.

The light is fantastic, the colours are vivid, the composition is daring.

Impressive!

André

presidente (1115) 2007-03-20 14:42

Wonderful shot! Amazing sky with a perfect composition. I like the low POV with the stone on the left side.
TFS,
Andrea

batalay (20940) 2007-03-23 22:59

Hello Stephen,

An imaginative presentation of the monumental artifice in Wiltshire Plane! The composition and exposure are impecable, as is the highly informative note. Indeed, this is one of the finest images I've seen. The light and shadows, the definition and colors, and a dynamic sky to boot. Well done!

Regards,

Bulent

mcenteesalas (1612) 2007-08-26 3:01

How very good shot and POV, how did you take the people out?, I know it is with photoshop but it would be nice to know from you, good light and texture, well done again, regards Salas

mjunge (77) 2009-03-23 11:59

Great shot, it is amazing how "deep" this foto ist. Looking at the picture I feel like beeing there. Great color of the sky!

bema (8755) 2009-03-26 9:19

Hi Stephen,

wow.. a lot of work between the original capture and this one.. but the result is great,
like this shot a lot..

have a fine day, best regards Bernd