Far North Abstracts

Hi all... below is a final set from my trip up to the Far North West of Scotland (Sandwood Bay on the mainland, and Luskentyre in West Harris) back in February of this year... essentially, it's a set of abstracts... a bit of a look beyond/beneath etc. what is a pretty extraordinary raw landscape... I particularly enjoyed putting these together, in that they tend to be things that don't immediately present themselves... sometimes they're things that you bump into, sometimes things that you just happen to notice, sometimes things that you need to work quite hard at... all K1 II, DFA 15-30, DFA 24-70, PLM 55-300...

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All thoughts/comments/observations gratefully received as ever...

Best

These are simply a pleasure to view Bill - the apparent simplicity belies the effort that's gone into composition/cropping and I love the variety you've found and your colour palette once again is subtle and serene.

You clearly had a great trip and produced superb results once again - thanks for sharing

Excellent set again Bill.

I do love abstracts derived from landscapes and nature...you don't have to 'sell' these to me.

Standout image for me is definitely No.9.

Also particularly like 2,13, 14, 17 and 19 in no particular order.

regards

Karlo

Another fine set that gets under the skin of what the place is all about. The Outer Hebrides (and no doubt Sandwood Bay too) is the sort of place where looking down and looking small is just as rewarding as looking up and looking large.

Impossible to pick favourites, partly because some remind me of similar pictures in my own collection! But if I was allowed to have just one with me on a desert island it would be No. 19 - a total abstract, a picture that has a lot to give and a reminder of happy hours looking downwards through a lens on a beach while keeping a close eye on the tide!

Steve

Some really nice images here. I especially like 17 where the curve of the grass follows the ripples in the sand.

K.

Me too.

All so good I almost cannot choose. But if you twist my arm I will say 6/7/8/12

....followed by the rest.

A request Bill, can you link to a larger image. I use a 2560*1440 display and these are tiny for me.

Ah Sandwood Bay - a very special place. This is a great set Bill, well done. I particularly like 3, 7, 9, 12 and 17 - I guess because they recall my memories of the place.
They have a real Zen-like simplicity and calm.

Paul

Beautiful set Bill, as usual. As said by others, the attention to detail, the colour palette, the feel of the place are all spot on. I do like them all, but will mention those that grab me more:

1 is graphically mesmerizing thanks to that blue corner inviting us outward.
3 evokes feelings of sheer loneliness, and of awe before what I can try to describe as 'emptiness-filled emptiness',
5 might be the 'cutest' of the set, yet that cuteness speaks strongly of life (I remember a geologist saying that, although we find it difficult to understand, the mineral world is alive - even beyond the obviousness of volcanoes, for example - rocks get compressed together, they get disintegrated to small particles of sand... over very long periods, yes, but still).
I really like 6, for how much you have expressed with such a limited colour palette (and the blue sky seems to be pointing that out), and for the scythe shaped shadow which gives its dynamics to the image.
8 is in the cuteness category again, as I immediately saw some kind of alligatoresque creature lurking in the snow (its eyes and nose the clumps of grass). Can't unsee that now...
14 is pure abstraction, yet somehow hints at something familiar, a coastal region viewed from on high perhaps? Really grand.
Great stuff at the end too - 18 is so beautifully framed, and contrasts with the strangeness emanating from the last two.

I really appreciate how you transmit sensation through your art.

Another successful and compelling set. For me a great part of the skill in these is seeing the image in the first place followed by the framing, all finished off with your well judged development makes for as I said earlier a compelling set.

Thanks all for general and specific thoughts re these...

Steve: yes, I often forget to do the looking down thing... have read a lot of David Ward (who's work I love), and seen him talk too, who is very big on the subject... one of those things I tend to have to remind myself to do every now and again (a bit like remembering to look behind you)... but very rewarding when you do...

Peter: yes, gd point you make re size... am a bit of a luddite on the tech front, and don't have a flickr account (where I think you can do the full size thing?), so I'm afraid this is probably as big as it gets for me, outside of the originals (although they're a bit bigger on my website I think)... do let me know any tips/suggestions you may have on the subject...

John, Karlo, Kris, John, Paul, Serge, Nigel... thanks as ever for observations and favourites... always useful, partic in terms of what they may/may not communicate (if anything)... really enjoyed taking/making them, partic on the seeking/finding front...

Cheers all...

Best

Wonderful set of pictures, Bill! No. 2, 3, 9 & 12 are just stunning! Great to see such an amazing set.

Thanks DSP...

Best

What a wonderful set of images.

Cheers Martin...

Best