Lady Hill, Wensleydale
One of my favourite dales is Wensleydale. In comparison to others it's more lush and soft with it's undulating curves and slopes enriched by long meadow grass in the summer. I often run workshops in Wensleydale and of course I need to travel through it to visit other dales like Dentdale, Ribblesdale and Malhamdale for instance.
For years I've had my sights on a small clump of trees pleasantly situated on a small hillock just a mile or so west of Aysgarth Falls. Bizarrely named 'Lady Hill' (for what reason I'm unsure), it's a local icon which stands out against anything else around - in fact it gives the appearance of a tropical island with palm trees.
Well in October an opportunity arose when I was returning from Ribblesdale after running a one to one workshop with Gill, a long-term sufferer of my tuition!
As I turned the bend I came across the hill with the moon directly behind it - bingo! A pure coincidence of being in the right place at the right time.
I pulled up in a conveniently placed lay-by and set-up my equipment (Tripod, Nikon D800E and 70-200mm Nikkor f/2.8), running through my usual ritual so as not to forget any technical setting. By this time the moon had risen to an even better position which helped the composition enormously.
No messing, no fuss and a cracking image in the bag within 5 minutes of stopping - result!
Although it looks great in colour it works better I think in back and white and having printed it since I think I made the right decision.