Northumberland, St Marys Island and “The Couple”
9th June, Northumberland
I was driving up to Northumberland on Monday, 9 June. As my check in time was not until 4 PM and my arrival time in Northumberland was around 1 PM, I had a few hours that I could use for some photography. After reviewing the photography guide to Northumberland, and on the recommendation of a friend , I had decided to stop at St. Mary’s Island and photograph the lighthouse hopefully with the tide coming in around it. I was joined by my friend Keith Bringlow from the photography club who was also staying in Northumberland the same week. We spent about two hours looking for different compositions and waiting for the tide to come in. There were a lot of people walking to and from the island on the Causeway and a couple of school parties, so finding the right time to get the photo without these distractions was hard. The light was overhead and with the white lighthouse created problems in balancing the exposure. In the end, the tide came in very quickly and covered the causeway, resulting in my favorite shots.
Further up the coast is a seaside town called Newbiggen. I’ve never heard of it and only came across it when researching locations to photograph. It has an art installation called the couple. This is in the bay and is approximately 15 foot tall and consists of a male and female figure looking out to see standing on what looks like a shelf. Apparently, the locals liked it, and all the critics hated it. I thought it made an interesting minimalist photograph.
