A quick rain check and a frantic duck under cover on the North Pier in Blackpool. I was there for a photowalk, taking a brief break from proceedings while assisting David Nightingale (@Chromasia) on his recent ‘Creating Dramatic Images’ workshop. As the rain began to hammer down, I saw this scene unravelling; this family just marched down the pier, shoulders squared against the deluge, almost as if they owned the place.
From their expressions, I’d say the end of the pier didn’t quite meet with their expectations, but dogged persistence will prevail. I’m sure they will find what they are looking for elsewhere, even if it’s just a bit of dry ground. The weather really was relentless, but it gave me the perfect excuse to duck into the pier sweet shop and treat the kids to some ridiculously huge lollipops. To the lady in the lead: nice hat, whoever you are! It certainly added to the drama of the afternoon.
Technically, the Canon EOS 5D handled the flat, rainy light beautifully. I kept the Canon EF70-200 F2.8 IS/USM L Series pinned at 200mm to compress the family against the wet boards of the pier. Shooting at f/6.3 gave me just enough depth to keep the group sharp while letting the background soften into a rainy haze, and a shutter speed of 1/320 second ensured that even with the wind whipping at that hat, everything stayed crisp.
- taken|17 september, 2011
- camera|Canon EOS 5D
- focal length|200mm
- aperture|f/6.3
- shutter speed|1/320s
- iso|100
- flash fired|no
- exposure bias|-0.33 ev