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England, Day 1

Arrived safely in Brighton, Jasper and I went out straight for a photo tour through the hills above Rottingdean.

Airport#

Flying from BER meant leaving Leipzig around 4:30am, by 7am I was at the BER and 7:15 passed security, passport control was fully automated, same as immigration checks in Gatwick. As I was out of security controls so early I had to wait two hours until the gate and passport control opened. The whole setup of passport controls has been improved a lot compared to ten years ago when on both sides of the border personnel checks and long queues were normal. For next time I can definitely plan less time at the airport.

Boarding gate B08 seen through reflective glass, with a plane tail visible outside and a white van parked belowSONY · ILCE-6400A · 23mm · ƒ/5.6 · 1/100s · ISO 100

Bird Walk#

I’ve been using a Canon EOS-1D X Mark II and a Sigma 150-600mm F5-6.3 for today’s bird shots, and a Sony A6400 for the wider scenes. I love how accessible that Canon rig is while being super heavy on the other hand. This is something I need to get used to.

Same problem as Jasper: first day with the camera and I completely messed up the modes. Shutter speed way too slow in Program mode, while I had everything dialled in on M for the bird shots. Lucky that a few photos still came out okay.

A male house sparrow perched on a thin branch among lichen-covered twigs against a bright blue skyCanon · EOS-1D X Mark II · 600mm · ƒ/7.1 · 1/400s · ISO 100
Close-up portrait of a young lamb with grey face and large pink-lined ears, green ear tags, looking directly into the cameraCanon · EOS-1D X Mark II · 600mm · ƒ/6.3 · 1/160s · ISO 100
A black and white magpie standing on a weathered red tiled roof with a clear blue sky behind itCanon · EOS-1D X Mark II · 562mm · ƒ/8.0 · 1/400s · ISO 100
Close-up side profile of a herring gull's head and neck, bright yellow beak with red spot, sharp eye, against a deep black backgroundCanon · EOS-1D X Mark II · 600mm · ƒ/6.3 · 1/2000s · ISO 500

Evening Walk#

To bridge the time until we picked up Jasper’s daughter from training we spent the evening walking the town with cameras and had a stop in a local pub watching Premier League darts in Falmer. I love British pub culture, feels like a small slice of life: beer, darts, savoury snacks. Something that doesn’t really exist anymore in the rural area where I live.

A flint stone village church with a square tower and slate roof, lit by low evening sun, gravestones scattered across the sloping lawnSONY · ILCE-6400A · 16mm · ƒ/5.0 · 1/160s · ISO 100
Fallen willow branches half-submerged in a still pond, with a pair of swans in the distance and the water reflecting the blue skySONY · ILCE-6400A · 47mm · ƒ/5.6 · 1/160s · ISO 100
The illuminated sign of Woodingdean Fish Bar glowing at night, with two black seagull logos flanking the name and a dark empty interior visible through the windowsSONY · ILCE-6400A · 33mm · ƒ/6.3 · 1/2000s · ISO 12800
Topics: Daily Photo, Travel, Photography