The post today is from a fairly recent visit to Gowbarrow Fell at sunrise. I've visited this location several times in the past and with some success, but most recently with a client on workshop. Unfortunately on that particular day we didn't have the best of conditions, not that it spoilt the view, but at the time is was very misty with low cloud so we didn't get any nice light (the joys of landscape photography)

The area from which I took these two images is another example of side light, and this time year in my opinion it works better here than say in summer when the sun would be rising more or less behind you. Not that there is anything wrong with that as such, but the last thing you'd want is your shadow in the image particularly if you had foreground interest close to the camera. I was also trying or having a last attempt at capturing some autumnal colour. Over the last few weeks of Autumn here in the lakes it has been very windy so the leaves have been coming off the trees pretty quickly, so having the time to get out and getting a day when the weather has been good has also been a challenge. 

The image above is one I hadn't planned on taking at the time but it was in the back of mind, and I was reminded of it when I was a little higher up. Basically I'd seen the little tree out of the corner of my eye on the way down from the workshop a couple of weeks prior, and although I didn't check it out at the time to see what potential it had, I gave myself a reminder to check it out next time I visited.

On my way up to the fell I did keep glancing over to my right to see if I could see the tree, but even with my head torch on it was too dark to see where it was. By the time I'd got to where I wanted to be it had slipped my mind that I wanted to take a better look. I'd say about 15 minutes or so before sunrise was due to finish I noticed the tree catching the light from further up the fell where I was stood so instantly made my way down to it and managed to get a couple of images whilst there was still some nice colour. Judging by how the light was slowly creeping over the trees below, had I gone here to start with all the trees below me would still have been in shadow.

To get to this location I parked in the National Trust car park at Aira Force where it is free to members, but pay and display to non members. From here you head towards Aira Force and head right up on to the fell which roughly takes about half an hour depending on your fitness, and it's all up hill. Due to covid there is a one way system up and around the waterfall, but if you are there for sunrise you're unlikely to bump in to anyone that early so you could anti clockwise around the route making the journey time a tad shorter.

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