Mike Barrett

Lake District – Waterfall near Coniston Water

27th November 2018 By Mike Barrett

This was a great find while bimbling around the Lake District. A set of stunning water falls cascading down a small gorge. There were about 20 to 30 different compositions to be had at this location. I spent most of my time focusing on this particular fall just because of the way the water split in different directions as it came over the top of the two major rocks at the top of the frame. I was interested in the multiple directions that the course of water took after hitting the small pool just above mid frame. Shooting wide angle so as to capture the whole scene. I’m really pleased with the way this composition fills the frame and takes the eye on a complete journey around the image. Plus I loved the autumnal reds and oranges caught in the rock juxtaposed against the earthy greens of the moss and foliage clinging to the stone.

This shot was taken using a HOYA Variable ND filter set fairly dark in order to achieve a bit more of a distortion in the flow of water achieving a slightly longer exposure time.

Lens 17-40mm @ 17mm, F16, ISO 320, 6 seconds exposure, Tripod Mounted. Time – 14.26 (21.11.18)

The Lake District – Last Light

27th November 2018 By Mike Barrett

‘Coniston Jetty at Sundown’

Having spent the day in the Lake District in fairly dull, grey weather with not much drama going on at all, I was happy to get these late shots just before calling it a day and heading home. I could hardly see what I was doing setting up. I was lighting up my kit bag using the torch on my iPhone in order to find the kit I needed. Lens, remote trigger etc. I put the tripod in place and did a couple of test shots. The light was literally falling away by the second. Off in the distance there was this wonderful patch of light forming in the clouds and moving across my composition. Not wanting to waste this opportunity, I waited until it had come across enough to frame the end of the jetty and then took the shot.

Lens 17-40mm @ 27mm, F11, ISO 100, 30 Seconds Exposure, Tripod Mounted. Time – 16.44 (21.11.18)

‘Coniston Jetty – Blue Hour’

Interestingly, this image was made 6 minutes earlier. A very slightly different composition and focal length. The difference in the quality of light is fascinating. This shot was taken at 16.38 when the blue hour was very much in evidence. The image above is a good example of how quickly the light was falling off as the sun sank deeper beyond the horizon when you compare it to the image below which was taken just minutes earlier. It’s also a really good example of how light changes quickly in landscape photography. This is an extreme reference of course as the sun had well and truly set with only ambient light left to play with. But even so, light, colour and atmosphere can change in an instant when you’re out shooting the landscape and you very much have to keep your wits about you as wonderful and compelling shots can be easily missed.

Lens 17-40mm @ 25mm, F16, ISO 320, 30 Seconds Exposure, Tripod Mounted. Time – 16.38 (21.11.18)

Northumberland 2018

12th November 2018 By Mike Barrett

Northumberland for me is a home from home. I am always at peace when I’m in there. Of course it also offers an incredible amount of stunning scenery, so the seasoned photographer will never get bored. With it’s vast coastal areas of beauty and an insane amount of beautiful and rugged countryside to explore, this place is an absolute must for anyone with a love for landscape photography. The skies seem to be bigger as do the vistas across the countryside. I have heard many people say so, so don’t just take my word for it.

The history in this part of the country is also very rich. It is home to Hadrian’s Wall and marks the Edge of Empire in terms of how far the Romans were willing to march North in the conquering of Great Britain. The settlements and artefacts and other historical wonders that are constantly being unearthed along the wall and in other areas in this part of the country are vast. The walks along the wall are also stunning and it is well worth a trip to see this marvellous and beautiful landscape. The wild winds blow away any cobwebs that might be lingering that’s for sure.

Below is some of the imagery I managed to shoot on my recent trip the the wonderful North East Coat of England.

Mam Tor – The Peak District

12th November 2018 By Mike Barrett

It’s great to get about the country and to see the stunning landscape that Great Britain has to offer. So much so that I can sometimes forget what I have got on my doorstep. The Peak District is one of the most stunning locations in Great Britain. The beauty in the landscapes that the Peaks has to offer is just breathtaking. It always surprises me when I go back there just how devastatingly beautiful the Peaks are.

Mam Tor (‘Mother Hill’) is no exception. Standing 517 meters above Castleton in the high peak of Derbyshire, this location offers some of the areas best and most breathtaking scenery. Not that it is in short supply by any stretch of the imagination. Here are a couple of shots I got on a recent visit to this beautiful place. A place I have been to many times and will continue to return to.

Goit Stock and Janet’s Foss Water Falls

12th November 2018 By Mike Barrett

Here are a few images from a couple of recent trips out pre fall. These were taken on the brink of the season change between summer and autumn. The leaves had only just started to show a change in colour. The hot temperatures of the summer had started to ebb away and there was a bit of a chill in the air. The two locations were Goit Stock Falls at Hallas Beck, Cullingworth and Janet’s Foss Waterfall, Gordale Beck, near to Malham, North Yorkshire.

One of the many things I love about Great Britain is the stark changes in the seasons. The diversity of colour, vegetation, skies, temperatures in the landscape from one season to another is just stunning. You could literally set a permanent tripod up looking at one perspective and get a million different photographs.

As much as it is important as a photographer to constantly seek out new locations and interesting places in which to take great images, it is also equally important to return to those places that we have already been to at different times of the year and at various times of the day as the scenery can, will and does change. The colours, the mood, the atmosphere can all shift literally from one moment to another, so imagine the change over the seasons. Experienced landscape photographers know this all too well. You can get to an interesting location and there is no shot at all, but if you are prepared to wait it out just a little bit of time, light can change, weather can change and magic can happen in front of your eyes.

Wast Water – The Lake District

1st September 2018 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

The Lake District is just one of the most phenomenally beautiful places in England. Come rain of shine, there is always something happening within the landscape that makes photographers like me twitch with anticipation. Recently I took my family over the Hardknott Pass looking for one of my favourite places in the Lakes, Wast Water. As well as being hard on the nerves, the clutch and brakes on your car wont be too happy with you after navigating the Hardknott Pass, even if you are taking it really easy. It is one of the steepest roads in England and at times has a gradient of 1 in 3 ( a 33% incline).

If the conditions are right though, and your nerves can take it, the landscape is absolutely breathtaking and well worth the trip. Wast Water is not a big a journey once you are over the pass. Perhaps another 20 minutes drive. It does have to be said that when you turn that final bend in the road when heading there and the lake opens up in front of you it is one of the most breath taking experiences. The screes that tumble from the mountains into the lake are a sight to behold alone. It somehow manages to convey the sheer magnificence of nature. A frozen rock fall of epic magnitude hung on the side of the mountain lending itself to the idea that time may actually be frozen. As an onlooker, as you are moving around it, this makes the scene quite eerie.

While we were there I set up the camera on the tripod and watched some formidable cloud formations drift in and out of the scene. Ideally, I would have liked to have been there at sunrise in perfect conditions, but I was on holiday with my family and we were just exploring and as I have said, there is always something happening within the landscape that makes photographers like me twitch with anticipation.

So, I played around with some different compositions and ended up with some photos that I absolutely love to bits. They show how beautiful this place is in the middle of the day when the sun is shining and there is some wonderful cloud formation skipping over the tops of the mountains.

Smash The Cake

21st August 2018 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

This was a super little shoot where this little fellow got to smash up a big cake for the photo shoot. Everyone involved had an enormous amount of fun and a lot of squashed yummy cake. Awesome.

Snowdoinia – Summer 2018

8th August 2018 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

A stomp with the family up Snowdon and some beautiful surrounding scenery.

We were recently in Snowdonia National Park on a short camping holiday. We always try to get there at least once a year as a family. My wife and I have been going ever since we got together so it is a little bit of a homage trip and we always end up staying in the same place. There is a little campsite at the foot of Snowdon called Tyisaf in Nant Peris. It is situated at the foot of the Nant Peris Pass where the road snakes down the mountainside following a meandering river. It is a stunningly beautiful place and one of which I will never tire.

Families come and go, many climbers stay there and plenty of D of E tribes move on and off this site during the course of the year. In the local town of Llanberis, there is a famous cafe called Pete’s Eats. This is where you go to have very large fry ups in the morning to set you on your way. It is the law!

I was so very proud of my little girl while we were there this year. She is only 5 years old and she walked all the way up to the top of Snowdon via the Miner Track. She did this without complaint. She has always loved the great outdoors. Something that my wife and I have instilled into her from a very early age. Climbing is one of her favourite things to do. So she was in her element.

It was an extremely hot day with temperatures reaching 36 degrees around mid day. I had all of my camera kit on my back so I really felt the climb. That said, we all got up in one piece having consumed about four litres of water between us. I had a well earned freezing cold bottle of pale ale and we all had a good rest before making our way back down towards Llanberis via the path that follows the train line.

Snowdonia is a fabulous place and well worth a visit for the views and the relaxation. Perhaps a bit of boating on Llyn Padarn, or maybe even a bit of hard climbing too.

Here are some images from our time there.

Sheffield Street Moments

6th August 2018 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

I went back to Sheffield recently with fellow TOG and good friend of mine, Graham Binns. It was a hot, hot day and we wanted to spend a our time doing something photographically creative. Due to the burning hot weather we thought that street photography was going to fit the bill. It was a little too bright for landscape photography and we had limited time also. So what better than to get out into the city streets and photograph joe public.

It was a cracking day but man was it hot. Like, exhaustingly hot. I think I must have perspired about 4 litres of sweat. That said, it was a fairly productive session. I have shot in sheffield on a couple of occasions now and have really enjoyed the vibe of the city. Many people approached us and spoke to us. My favourite image is the old guy sitting on the steps reading his book. I really like the leading lines in tis image. I really love the moment and the fact that the pigeon is just strutting around in front of him. You can feel the mood of time gently passing. Lost in a good book.

Here are a few from the pile…

Beauty is Everywhere

22nd May 2018 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

Images that I took on a recent trip to the National Trust property, Nostell Priory. It was the end of winter and I went on the hunt to find some interesting compositions and something beautiful in the grey murky conditions that I was faced with. Check out the YouTube video here… Beauty is Everywhere

NSEAD AD Magazine – Summer Edition (Issue 22) 2018

17th May 2018 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

I have recently had a photograph published in the NSEAD AD Magazine after working along side the Arts Council Collection with children from Gomersal Primary School.
You can see all the photo’s that I took on the day in this blog post here: Arts Council Collection and Gomersal Primary School’s own Arts Council

Fabulous to have worked along side the Arts Council Collection and a great experience to have seen some of the treasures that they look after within the collection.

The Complexities of Pizza and being 5 Years Old

7th March 2018 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

It’s difficult to manage those emotions and choices when you are 5 years old.

Take pizza for instance. What topping to have? What drink to go with it? To wear the free hat or not wear the free hat? To order a side of garlic bread or not! Etc.
Still, the best thing about being 5 and going out for pizza is that it can turn out to be a lot of fun too.

Click on images for slideshow.

Photographing Manifest Skateboards

26th February 2018 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

I recently went to spend a little time with an old and very good friend of mine Matt who resides over in Sheffield in South Yorkshire. Not too long ago he set up his own company making bespoke, hand made skateboards under the name Manifest Skateboards. About a year ago I did a small amount of work for him concerning some graphics for his decks. As a gesture in kind, Matt agreed to make a deck for my brother who is well into his skateboarding. For one reason or another I’d not seen Matt for a while, but I got to see the deck that he had made for my brother at Christmas time when visiting the family. I was blown away at what a beautiful thing it was. A well made, well finished, beautiful wooden skate deck with the Manifest logo emblazoned across it in black paint. Now I hung up my skate shoes many years ago, but the craftsmanship that had gone into this deck made me want to fish them out and start skating again right there and then. Made with the freshest, tastiest Canadian maple ply, (which is a Manifest tag line) this deck was an absolute thing of beauty. My brother was chuffed to bits with it too.

I got in touch with Matt to thank him for making this beautiful deck and to let him know how how stoked my brother was to have received it through the post. As old friends do, we got chatting about all sorts and putting the world to rights etc, but also during the conversation I said that I would like to come and make a video of Matt and his skateboard making endeavours and perhaps take some promotional photos for his company. He thought this was a great idea. So that is exactly what we did. It was great to catch up with my old friend too.

Below are some of the images I took for Manifest Skateboards. You can also see the video I made here: Crash, Bang, Wallop!

Chasing Light in the Snow

24th January 2018 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

It was a cold, cold night. Freezing actually. Snow and sleet showers were sporadic and yet my friend, fellow tog Graham Binns and I decided it was a good time to go out and take some photos.

We wanted to get some images based on traffic movement at night. Light tracers derived from long exposures against a cold, black night sky.
This turned out to be somewhat difficult as there was hardly any traffic on the roads. It had been a really bad day for people trying to get home from work many of which had abandoned cars in a bid to make it home and get some warmth back into their bones. It hadn’t been a particularly bad snow fall, in fact in many areas most of it had thawed. What had made things decidedly difficult during the day was that the temperature had dropped well below zero on a couple of occasions, freezing water on the roads turning it to black ice. It had then snowed on top of that ice and which had made driving conditions ridiculously tricky. Some cars had turned over, buses had got stuck etc.

We dug our heals in somewhat and stuck it out, even though we were getting colder and colder by the minute. Despite the conditions we were having a great deal of fun moving about from place to place in a bid to get a couple of decent shots. It was getting late and the handful of photographs that we had taken were nice enough, but I certainly felt that I needed something more. In a last ditch effort to get something worthy of the evenings efforts we happened upon a bus shelter while driving into a local town. We texted the number on the shelter to find out if there was another bus coming our way. It was quite late and we had wondered if all the buses had stopped running, especially due to the weather conditions. As it turned out there was one last bus heading our way and the text service had given us it’s time of arrival. So we drove into town to set up the tripods in order to capture the passing light when the bus eventually did turn up. Sure enough it came into view in the distance as promised and I managed to get my best shot of the evening as it moved past us. The leading lines in the resulting image are just insane. All of them leading to one vanishing point. Such a great shot to get at the end of the evening, which is this first shot in this handful of images taken on the night.

On The Phone But Not In The Box – Sheffield Street Photography

17th January 2018 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

My wife was recently lecturing at Sheffield Hallam University, so I went down with her for the day to do some street photography. I have visited Sheffield quite a lot over the years when visiting one of my good friends, but I have seldom got out into the city centre. So I took this opportunity to do just that. It was a good day for it. Not too bright, not too dull. A semi cloudy day with good diffused light.

Everybody seemed to be on their phones. It very much seemed to be a day of just that, or perhaps that’s just where my focus went on this occasion. One of my little tricks on the day was shooting through a couple of old red phone boxes to give a little framing to the images that I was taking. I really like how these shots have turned out. Here are a handful of shots from the day.

From Low Newton-by-the-Sea to Dunstanburgh Castle

6th January 2018 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

I have just got back from a week long break in Northumberland with my family. We tend to go up there a lot. It’s a stunningly beautiful place where we go to unwind and breathe in the fresh sea air and generally chill out and recharge the batteries. What is so wonderful about the place is that it offers an unreal amount of incredible scenery, which for a photographer like myself, is just too hard to turn down.
I had a brilliant time up there armed with my camera and tripod and I managed to get some stunning shots to bring home with me from the holiday. Here a three of my favourite images from our time up there.

The Hewenden Viaduct Reconnaissance Mission

30th December 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

Out on a recce mission with my mate and fellow TOG, Graham Binns.

This beautiful viaduct looked like it would be an amazing place to go and capture some interesting landscape photography. Having done a little research online about where exactly it was and how one might go about photographing this amazing structure, it quickly became apparent that it was impossible to make any solid plans without first having visited the site. So that’s what we did.

We travelled there one afternoon just to have a good look around and get a feel for the place. I have a little app on my phone called ‘The Photographer’s Ephemeris’. It’s a great little tool that shows you exactly where the sun will rise and set, using GPS to verify your exact positioning. While we were on location we used the app to determine exactly where would be a great position to set up, ready to get some interestingly lit shots of this vast structure as the sun was going down. Obviously a little common sense and intuition goes a long way too, but when time is of the essence and the site is as large as this structure proved to be, this little app can prove to be priceless for knowing exactly where to be and when to be there.
This trip was all about getting to know a place and becoming familiar with the surroundings so that we may return again and again at different points throughout the year to photograph and rephotograph this stunning structure.

(Wikipedia Info)

‘Hewenden Viaduct, situated near Cullingworth, West Yorkshire, England, stands at 123 feet (37 m) tall and spans 576 yards (527 m) with 17 arches each of 16.5 yards (15 m). The foundations of the viaduct had to be sunk more than 60 feet (18 m) into the earth because of the unstable ground below.
The viaduct originally formed part of the Keighley and Thornton Branch of the Great Northern Railway and, together with the mile-long Lees Moor Tunnel, opened to passenger trains in 1883.
It served as a railway viaduct along the Queensbury Lines and it now forms part of the Great Northern Railway Trail for cyclists and walkers. It is a Grade II listed building.’

It just so happened that we had our kit with us and were able to get a few decent shots within the short time frame in which we were there.

The Rubber Egg Shoot with the McConnells

21st December 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

Another lovely family photo shoot on a bright winters afternoon.
It was a bit touch and go regarding the weather as a large amount of snow had fallen across the country. The long range forecast had said that it was going to be ideal for photography for the week leading up to the actual shoot date, then at the last minute everything changed and Britain was hit by a boat load of snow. Luckily, everywhere except Yorkshire. Unlucky too in the sense that I couldn’t go sledging with my little girl, but nice that I was able to photograph these lovely people on a beautiful winters afternoon over at Cannon Hall in Barnsley.

Autumn Sunshine

12th December 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

This was another smashing family shoot with Dom and Gemma and family in some super late evening, autumn sunshine. It was just cracking colour in that golden hour towards the end of the days natural light. We had some fun throwing leaves around and spent some time getting these lovely family shots, before the sunshine disappeared completely.

Ice on Fire

12th December 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

I took this images with my iPhone. I was walking my little girl to school early one morning recently when there was a heave ground frost. These leaves were just stuck together in a frosty clump begging to be photographed. I didn’t have any of my camera kit on me, but I did have my iPhone which captured the scene beautifully. Autumn offers so much beautiful scenery. Such beautiful colours.

The Carters

12th December 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

This was a lovely photo shoot at Bolton Abbey. It was a bright day with lots of dappled light in the shade. We had a picnic and I took a load of lovely shots of this equally lovely family. Lots of laughs and smiles. It was lovely to work with such a happy family unit.

These guys have been friend of ours for many years and it was a privilege to be asked to take their photos.

Studley Royal Deer Park

5th December 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

On Sunday morning I was up bright and early. At 4.30am to be precise. I was headed to Studley Royal Deer Park, which is a medieval deer park near Ripon in Yorkshire. I was accompanied by my good friend and fellow tog, Graham Binns. We were both hopeful to get some images of the deer at sunrise.

The deer park is part of the National Trust’s Fountains Abbey where the ruins of the Cistercian Abbey are set beside the grounds of Studley Royal. We travelled there because the weather report had said that it was going to be the ideal conditions for some fantastic sunrise photography.

It was still pitch black when we arrived. We got the kit together and headed out to find the deer and to wait for the sunrise. When the sun rise did appear, it offered a little bit of colour for a very small amount of time before clouding over and becoming as dull as dishwater. Not great for the type of photographs we were after. Not to be disheartened, we pressed on and made the most of our time there and captured what images we could on a somewhat dull and overcast morning.

The wildlife was stunning however. I have never in my life seen such a vast amount of pheasants, shrews, rabbits, all manor of different birds and literally thousands of magnificent deer.

We shall certainly be heading back again at some point to get the shots we had planned for.

Here are a handful of the images that I managed to acquire on the day.

Ice and Fire – Studio Shoot with Sarah Thornton

14th November 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

Here are some images from the latest studio shoot at the Silkwood Studios with the lovely Sarah Thornton. Again, a little twist on the edits. I like to mix things up a little. Fire and Ice because of the way the edits came together. Hot and cold colours. I love shooting photographs, but sometimes I really enjoy the editing side of things. This was certainly one of those occasions.

This studio shoot was in association with Bradford Photographic Society.

Film Noir Shoot with Zoe Margo

2nd November 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

On Monday night I had the pleasure of working with model Zoe Margo on a Film Noir shoot at Silkwood Studios. This is the third time I have been over to the studio and it was great to hook up with some fellow togs (who are fast becoming familiar faces) for this stylised photo shoot.

The studio is such a great space to work in. A really relaxed, friendly and productive atmosphere with a great set of lighting options, backdrops and props. Just as any creative space should be.

I have nothing but good things to say about the time that I have spent there and how friendly and approachable the proprietors Karen and Victor are. Really nice people.

Concerning the shoot, my modus operandi is to always look for a different slant on established themes which is very much reflected in the edit regarding the shots that I have presented here. Film Noir yes, but with a twist.

Zoe Margo – Vampire

31st October 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

During a ‘Film Noir’ studio shoot last night photographing the lovely Zoe Margo, we were having a bit of a laugh during the first portrait shots and I joked about turning her into a vampire for Halloween. So, that’s what I did. Just for fun.

Happy Halloween everyone, and remember, don’t stray from the path!

Three off camera flash portraits

21st October 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

When days are like this!

21st October 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

Look at all that water Mummy

21st October 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

My two favourites, bathed in the morning sunshine at Embleton beach, Northumberland.

Tough Mudders

21st October 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

A good friend of ours hired me to photograph her sons birthday bash. No probs I said.

This was a brilliant and fun photo shoot. Although I hadn’t quite anticipated just how difficult a shoot it was going to be until I got there. This delightful muddy course is the Fitness Success Obstacle Gym, Wakefield Road, Oulton, Leeds, West Yorkshire. Their motto is ‘Think Outside The Gym’. Well, we were well and truly outside the gym, that’s for certain and for sure.

My task was to follow over 30 lads around the course and get some decent shots of the action. That was the remit. Simple right? Nope!
I didn’t have time to recce the site before turning up for the event, so getting into the optimum positions to get the prime shots was difficult at best and a veritable nightmare for the rest of the time, certainly when you consider the ground conditions. It’s not that I was particularly concerned about getting muddied up either, that much was a foregone conclusion. I was, however, much more concerned about my kit. If I had dropped my camera in the kind of mud that I was surrounded by for most of the duration of the shoot, it would have been the end of camera and lens. So slipping and falling in was not an option at all. To further compound the issue I was wearing trainers; an old pair, as I don’t currently own a pair of wellies, and for much of the course it very much felt like I was walking on an ice rink made of wet dough.

That said, I did manage to survive relatively unscathed with all my kit in tact, even though there were some hairy moments, and also managed to get some cracking shots of the event. It was a lot of fun to photograph to say the very least. In fact, a fun time was very much had by all.

Success Obstacle Gym’s Website: fitnesssuccess-obstaclegym.co.uk

Melissa Alice – Silkwood Studio Shoot

17th October 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

Another great studio shoot at Silkwood Studios last night with the lovely model Melissa Alice, who was professional and very patient throughout the evening.

Managed to get a nice range of photos exploring different lighting set ups. It turned out to be quite a colourful shoot, especially when the umbrellas came out.

A super night with some really nice people/fellow photographers.

Tiger Tiger

1st October 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

Post Party Blues

The Boy loves adidas

24th September 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

Premier Taekwondo – Photo Sessions

14th September 2017 By Mike Barrett Leave a Comment

I have recently been working with Premier Taekwondo in Huddersfield. Premier Taekwondo is the largest Taekwondo club in the UK with over 600 members and caters for people of all ages. It has been great to work with the team there, looking at aspects of club photography including camera set up, off camera light/flash photography and studio lighting set-ups.

The club staff are really friendly as are the club members that I have spent time with.

If you are looking to get into a martial art along with wanting to get some exercise in a fun and constructive way, this club has got everything you need.

Check out their website here: premiertaekwondo.org

Here are some of the photos that I took while being at the club.

Mike Barrett

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