Steam Up

I seemed to have got my cycling mojo back following the weekend. I missed not riding yesterday and when I saw the we were due for a clear night I made a plan to get the mountain bike ready for a ride over the moor. The morning dawned duly clear and appropriately chilly, but by the time I'd ridden halfway up the old Keighley Gate road I was sweating up a storm and had to stop to remove a layer. On the top of the moor, in bright sunshine, it was already feeling quite warm but dropping down the other side, into the Aire valley, it felt distinctly cold and the extra layer had to go back on again.

I got quite excited as I descended for I could see thin veils of mist in the valley bottom. I feel a little adrenaline rush now whenever I encounter good conditions for photography, a sense of anticipation at what kind of magic nature is going to conjure up! I wasn't disappointed. The reward for my slog up over the moor was a stunningly beautiful ride along the canal to Shipley in the most gorgeous diaphonous light. There were lots of great photographs to be captured, but they weren't necessarily just there for the taking. These were also quite difficult conditions for photography and I'm still very much learning! This shot has ended up being my favourite after a little bit of procrastination! Although you can see some mist on the surface of the water, most of the sunbeam effects here were created as a result of someone on a barge getting the stove going to keep warm!

Edit Note: I've done something I only rarely do. It's a bit naughty I think, after people have commented, but I've changed the image. It's the same photograph, but I've cropped it and processed it to try and better capture the feel of the morning. There was something about the original colour image that, despite quite liking it, started to bug me. I think it was just too busy. I think this simpler photograph is now far more engaging.