Welcome to my latest rambling after having grabbed some late Autumn sunshine yesterday. Always worth a visit at any time of year, I let my camera loose in the gardens at Levens Hall…

Striking pruning at Levens Hall.

Levens Hall is famous for it’s amazing topiary. Whether it’s

Delightfully contrasting Autumn colour were still in evidence and well worth a photo.

your  style or not, it’s impossible not to be amazed at the work that goes into it. With the light in the right place, you can bag some pretty satisfying photography too.

Weird and wonderful!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A great place for keen gardeners as well as entertaining for the kids, this is a garden with an element of fun to it and a joy to photograph. A clear blue sky gives a great background if you get the angle right and the sun adds the necessary contrast to give sharp edges.

‘Alien’ shadows.

I kept my eyes peeled for something different and found a shadow against a neat hedge gave an almost space-age feel. Hard to believe this is a living shrub!

Catching the sun

I experimented shooting with the sun behind me and as here (below left) in front. All the time I was looking out for anything distracting in the background. I wanted to keep the shots as simple and striking as possible.

Garden silhouettes.

My favourite shot of the day was probably this one of a silhouette, with a carefully placed glimpse of the sun through the branches looking very surreal. Of course, the blue sky is a vital ingredient.

Dew on the croquet lawn.

 

 

The dew covered lawn looked like frost in the sunshine. Lovely long shadows and a pair of planters in the foreground to frame it, added depth and contrast.

Lovely reflections in the pond.

Reflections of bare branches, blue sky and Autumn colours were a magnet for me. All the better with no breeze or ducks causing unwanted ripples!

Zooming in on reflections.

Sometimes it’s worth taking a closer look. I loved the subtle colours in this reflection in the pond in this shot (above). I even considered inverting it, but I’m ‘too authentic’ for such frivolity!

Magical’ a garden gate to a hidden corner of the garden.

Going in for a closer look.

 

 

 

 

 

Levens Hall is close to the Lancashire/Cumbria border, a few miles north of Milnthorpe on the A6. It’s open this weekend (6th-7th December) and admission to the gardens is FREE!

I hope you have enjoyed this article. My next ‘Rambling’ coming soon will take us south to Samlesbury Hall, another gem for photographers.