Tag Archives: bristol

The Best of 2010 – Light Trails


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As the year is drawing to a close, I thought I’d put together a short list of what I consider my  most memorable shots of the year. The selection is based on both viewer feedback and my own attachment to a particular shot. For behind each photograph is a story to tell, a little something for me to remember them by, and some have proven to be more memorable than others. If you have not followed my work on Flickr, this is a good sampling of my work.

I’ve decided to categorize them into such : (1) REFLECTIONS (2) BRIDGES (3) FOUNTAINS (4) LIGHT TRAILS and  (5) MY PERSONAL FAVORITES.

#4 MOST MEMORABLE LIGHT TRAILS

It’s no secret that successful photographs are the products of perfect light and perfect timing. Capturing great light trails definitely needs perfect timing, and obviously, it helps to be in a location with a good flow of traffic, but not necessarily. Sometimes, all it takes is one bus to come at the right time. But there are other factors to a successful light trail shot other than perfect time – and those are – lots of patience and being on the safe side of the road.

My Top Ten Most Memorable Light Trails of 2010:

VALENCIA, SPAIN - Torres de Serranos. The flow of traffic was not ideal on this night so I had to wait quite a bit; in the meantime, the light in the sky was changing fast. I knew that buses, instead of cars, would complete my vision here, and fortunately 2 buses came to a halt just when the last bit of blue hour light was fading away.

[...Click for the rest of my Top Ten Light Trails...]


The Best of 2010 – Bridges


Posted by

As the year is drawing to a close, I thought I’d put together a short list of what I consider my  most memorable shots of the year. The selection is based on both viewer feedback and my own attachment to a particular shot. For behind each photograph is a story to tell, a little something for me to remember them by, and some have proven to be more memorable than others. If you have not followed my work on Flickr, this is a good sampling of my work.

I’ve decided to categorize them into such : (1) REFLECTIONS (2) BRIDGES (3) FOUNTAINS (4) LIGHT TRAILS and  (5) MY PERSONAL FAVORITES.

#2 MOST MEMORABLE BRIDGES of 2010

Where there’s a body of water, there’s usually a bridge somewhere. And in Europe there is a plethora of beautiful bridges, all filled with rich history and character. There are big-city modern bridges and small-town old-fashioned bridges. The bridge list is endless – suspension bridge, cable-stayed bridge, drawbridge, pedestrian footbridge, even bridges with built-in houses, shops, and a city hall.

Here are my Top Ten Most Memorable Bridges of this year.

MAINZ, GERMANY - Theodor Heuss Bridge. I had to visit this location a second time because I ran out of light the first time before I could go under the bridge. The second time I went, the river level was high so I can't go down. Wanting to be dead-center under the bridge so I can get all 4 starbursts in, I had to squeeze myself and my tripod in between a tiny spot in front of a car parked behind me and the edge of the embankment. I barely managed without falling off, but I got my shot.

[...Click for the rest of my Top Ten Bridges...]


The Bridges of Avon River


Posted by Yen Baet

I have just found out the name Avon is of Welsh origin and means “river”, so the River Avon literally means “River River”, that explains why many English rivers are named Avon. The Avon river that runs in Southwest England crosses the cities of Bristol, Bath and Bradford-on-Avon, which I’ve had the pleasure of visiting this past weekend.

Don’t let the blue skies fool you, because it actually rained a lot during my time there. I was merely lucky I had some “divine intervention” during twilight – that 20 to 30-minute window of clear skies was all I needed to do my shots. What can I say? I have friends in high places. :-)

BRISTOL - Clifton Suspension Bridge, taken from the Leigh Woods Observatory. What a view! not only do you get the Avon river, but also the gorge and a sweeping view of the city.

BATH - The three-arched Palladian Pulteney Bridge of Roman origins can be seen just down the river. According to Wikipedia, it is one of only surviving 4 bridges that has shops spanning the whole bridge. I've been to 3 of them: the Pulteney bridge in Bath, the Rialto in Venice, and Ponte Vecchio in Florence. I don't know what the other bridge is, do you?

BRADFORD ON AVON - The Town Bridge of Bradford on Avon. It was actually a sunny afternoon during my visit here.The city was named so because it crosses the "broad ford" of the river Avon. It's interesting to note that the small house at the end of the bridge used to be a prison for town drunks and troublemakers during the 18th century.

BRISTOL - Down Bristol Harbour is where one will find Pero's bridge, also known as the Horny bridge. It was named after Pero Jones, a merchant's slave who lived and died in Bristol. Bristol was built, in large part, on the slave and tobacco trade during the early centuries.