Drained

The apparent lack of anything in the local landscape has always frustrated me when walking with a camera. Yet the ditches and drains which abound are what make the land what it is. Martin Mere (not the WWT reserve which has appropriated the name) was at one time the largest lake in England. The flood plain of the local river would no doubt be largely marsh for most of the year.

I have photographed these watercourses in the past, but it was only recently when I sat down to consider where my photographs are heading that I realised that the constant need to drain the land around me could be something worth paying more considered attention. The same could be said of the contrary need for irrigation of the crops which grow on this land. There is an irony in seeing irrigation reservoirs built alongside drainage ditches, of watching farm-workers clearing field drains in winter and watering crops in the same fields come summer. It hadn't been my intention to progress this idea yesterday, but it worked out that way.

In my film days landscape always baffled me. For some reason digital makes it easier for me to see pictures in the landscape. Perhaps it's the ability to review things instantly, or perhaps the fact that trying shots out doesn't cost anything, so I am getting more practice. Probably a combination of the two.

On first review I preferred the black and white conversion of the picture below. The more I look the more it is starting to look somewhat over-dramatic.

The blogging software reduces the quality of photographs when it resizes them. They should look a little better when clicked on.

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