On Location | Photographing a Wintry Snowdonia

Ever since taking up landscape photos, I’ve been fascinated by the Welsh landscape. From the beautiful waterfall country in the south to the rugged, mountainous terrain in the north, but as I am based down in the Southeast of England, I’m a good 3 hour’s drive from the Welsh border and even further from the likes of the Brecon Beacons or Snowdonia in the north. This means heading there for a sunrise shoot or even just for an entire day is tricky as the round trip alone would take half a day. To make a trip worthwhile, it really needs to be at least 24 hours and even better, 48.

Starting off in The Brecon Beacons in 2021, I’ve since made a couple of trips to photograph the amazing waterfalls on offer but in January this year (2023), I drove further north to spend 48 hours photographing the more dramatic landscape in Snowdonia.

Although I had a few locations in mind, I wanted to focus most of my attention in and around the Ogwen Valley, so I booked an inexpensive hotel close by and set off for Wales.

With some inevitable hills to climb, I needed to strike a balance between having the right gear with me and keeping the weight manageable, I packed my Fujifilm XT5 body and two lenses, the 16-55mm standard zoom and 50-140mm telephoto.

With the scenery on offer, there was no way I would be travelling without the drone, so in the bag that went along with my Kase filters, batteries, memory cards and head torch.

Although a little on the heavy side, I took my Benro tripod and geared head as I wasn’t sure how windy it might get up on the mountains and wanted to ensure I had a good, stable tripod to work with.

For more detail about what I carry in my camera bag, check out my latest “What’s in my camera bag?” blog post.

Heading off first thing on Friday and arriving in the national park later that afternoon to a beautiful snowy landscape and clear blue skies, I spent the first few hours getting to know the area around the Ogwen Valley, scouting a few locations for when the light would hopefully improve. Typically, when in an environment I know well and the light doesn’t lend itself to photographing the wider landscape I will focus my attention on smaller scenes and take more intimate landscape photos, but when in a new landscape, especially those as beautiful and dramatic as this, I often get distracted and just end up wandering around in awe of my surroundings.

Photographing Tryfan from across the Ogwen Valley

Being the middle of winter, the sun started to dip quite quickly so I made my way up to the first location I had planned, which was this classic view of Tryfan and Llyn Ogwen. Back in June 2022, I spent a week in Snowdonia with some family and friends and while there, managed to fit in a couple of landscape photography shoots. One of the locations I went to back then was here, to photograph the same view of Tryfan from across the valley.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF16-55mm F2.8 | 16mm | 1/5th Second | f/16 | ISO125

There is a popular composition up on the edge of Pen yr Ole Wen which features a stone wall and stile. The one I’ve seen plenty of is to the right of the stream (as you’re looking back down the slope) but in that composition, the wall seems to cut a horizontal line straight through the middle of the scene which I find quite distracting. Instead, along the same wall, on the other side of Afon Lloer, there is another Stile, but this time the wall comes into the frame from the left and leads the eye a little further into the scene and at this time of year, straight towards the setting sun.

It took a bit longer than I planned to climb as the higher I went, the deeper the snow got so I had to take it slow, being careful not to lose my foot in a snow-covered gap between the rocks. When I did finally arrive, the sky hadn’t improved at all, so I positioned my camera ready to capture the sun just as it dipped behind the horizon and managed to photograph the picture above featuring a small sunburst before the sun disappeared for good, leaving a beautiful landscape but a rather uninteresting sky.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF16-55mm F2.8 | 16mm | 1/60th Second | f/9 | ISO125

Happy with the sunburst image at least and with the sun now behind Cwm Idwal across the valley, I decided to make my way down the mountain, following Afon Lloer to the same spot I photographed back in June. I like this position on the hillside as I’m able to use the small waterfall in the foreground to help build a stronger composition and although the partially snow-covered ground made for a messier landscape than I would have liked, there was still a shot to be had. Being careful not to slip into the water, I set my tripod as low as I could and framed up a composition.

By this time, some high-level clouds had drifted in and although the sun had already set, there was a lovely post-sunset glow emanating from behind Cwm Idwal, so with the light levels dropping fast and not wanting to miss the opportunity, I clicked the shutter and bagged this photo below.

This is the first of two times I found my 16-55mm lens just a bit tight and could have done with a slightly wider focal length to include a bit more foreground and a little more sky but overall, I’m pleased with the picture I took.

With the best of the light now gone, I made my way back down the hill to the car and headed for my hotel.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF16-55mm F2.8 | 16mm | 1/4 Second | f/5 | ISO125

Photographing Snowdon from Lynnau Mymbyr

Fast forward to the next morning and my only full day of the trip, I decided to drive the short distance to Lynnau Mymbyr to photograph the well-known view of Snowdon’s horseshoe from across the lake. With very little wind and the potential for nice light, my hope was for a calm lake with plenty of reflections to play with but as it got lighter, it became clear that the lake was completely frozen over. This may not have been what I had hoped for but at least the surface was still, meaning there were at least some reflections to play with.

As the blue hour started to creep in, the cool tones that draped across the landscape were simply stunning and the snow-covered peaks were illuminated by the early light, helping them to stand out in the distance. Taking a few minutes to find a composition, I found this spot here behind some rocks which I could use to provide some interest in the foreground and with the tripod resting on top of the lake’s frozen surface, it was time to take my first picture of the day.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF16-55mm F2.8 | 18mm | 2 Seconds | f/8 | ISO125

Starting with the wider composition above and using the rocks to build a stronger composition, I tried to create as much symmetry as I could using the banks on either side and adjusting the height of the tripod to allow plenty of space between the layers of rocks, reflections and background but still staying as close to those rocks as I could, I managed to take one of my favourite photos from the trip.

To make a real feature of Snowdon’s horseshoe, still using the 16-55mm lens, I zoomed in to around 42mm and with a 2:1 crop, I took this blue hour pano of the frozen lake and snowy mountains. The great thing about my new Fujifilm XT5 camera is that I now have 40MP to play with and even after cropping this image to a 2:1 ratio, the resulting image is still 28MP. That’s plenty of resolution for creating reasonably large prints and still more than my old 24MP XT2.

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Fujifilm XT5 | XF16-55mm F2.8 | 43mm | 1.3 Seconds | f/8 | ISO125

As the blue hour faded and the pre-sunrise light started to get more intense, the sky became awash with these wonderful pastel pink colours. Being from the Southeast of England, our landscapes are nowhere near as impressive as those in Snowdonia, so for me, I was simply in awe of the scene and the conditions I was witnessing.

Like with my first blue hour picture above, I switched back to a wider focal length and captured the image below and all its wonderful pastel pink colours reflecting from the lake’s frozen surface.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF16-55mm F2.8 | 17mm | 1/3rd Second | f/8 | ISO125

For the picture below, I decided to make it a multi-image panoramic. As the vivid pinks started to fade, I switched to the 50-140mm telephoto lens and zoomed in to around 70mm. With my tripod and camera completely level, I swept the camera from left to right taking pictures along the way which I stitched together later in Lightroom to produce this close-up 3:1 panoramic of the Snowdon peaks basking in the warm sunrise light.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF50-140mm F2.8 | 72mm | 1/15th Second | f/8 | ISO125

With the 50-140mm lens still attached, for my final picture of the morning, I zoomed in to 106mm to pick out a much tighter wintry composition of Snowdon’s snow-covered peak (the one on the left). with the beautiful pink clouds above. What I like about this image (apart from the light and colour), is the repeating horizontal and diagonal lines you can see through the scene which provide some interesting repeating patterns while adding a sense of depth at the same time.

After the best of the light was gone, off I went to my next location.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF50-140mm F2.8 | 106mm | 1/13th Second | f/8 | ISO125

Photographing the Ogwen Valley with my drone

After a fantastic and successful morning photographing Snowdon, I headed back to the Ogwen Valley. By the time I had found somewhere to park and refuelled with some food and a coffee, it was getting close to midday. Although I had flown my drone a little that morning, I didn’t manage to take any good photos with it, so I sent it up again to see what I could see.

I parked just west of Llyn Ogwen, along a small country road and flew the drone up and around this area of the valley.

With Tryfan over in the background, I focused my attention on the contrasting landscape with snow-covered hills to the right and a greener, exposed landscape to the left. On top of this, there were sunlit areas with dappled light across the landscape adding more interest to the scene.

I admit, the sky wasn’t great, but given the time of day, I’m still pretty happy with how they look.

DJI Mavic Mini 3 | 24mm (effective) | 1/4,000th Second | f/1.7 | ISO100

I spent 30 minutes to an hour flying around the valley and from this flight, the picture below is probably my favourite. I like that there is more of the snowy landscape in the frame and the transition in the foreground where the snow stops, giving way to the ground underneath. This transition creates a subtle lead-in line towards Llyn Ogwen and further through the valley to Tryfan.

On the right-hand side of the picture, you can see the reflective surface of Llyn Idwal and that’s where I’m heading next.

DJI Mavic Mini 3 | 24mm (effective) | 1/6,400th Second | f/1.7 | ISO100

DJI Mavic Mini 3 | 24mm (effective) | 1/1,000th Second | f/1.7 | ISO100

DJI Mavic Mini 3 | 24mm (effective) | 1/6,400th Second | f/1.7 | ISO100

By this point, it was mid-afternoon and with sunset around 4:30-5pm, I started to slowly make my way to my final spot of the day which was part way up Y Garn. To get there, I first needed to get to Llyn Idwal. Once there, I spent a while looking for some interesting compositions of the lake but there was a small problem. Although the scenery was absolutely stunning, the frozen lake had lots of broken ice spread across its surface. I assume from people throwing it on to see if they could break the surface. This meant any attempt to capture the clean reflections in the ice from the edge of the lake would be thwarted by the inclusion of lots of broken pieces of ice. So, after trying and failing to take a picture from ground level, up went the Mini 3 Pro once again to see what I could see from the air.

DJI Mavic Mini 3 | 24mm (effective) | 1/6,400th Second | f/1.7 | ISO100

While flying above Llyn Idwal, I took a few pictures, including these two panoramas. The first (above) was taken from just a few feet above the lake, away from the banks and the messy ice, and by keeping the drone low, I could make the most of those fantastic reflections across the lake’s icy surface. Without the drone, this shot would have been impossible, so this alone made the inclusion of it in my bag 100% worthwhile.

The second pano (below) was taken from much higher and further back from Llyn Idwal to get more of the scene in the frame. I wanted to capture the contrast between the dark water and the brighter, snow-covered scenery. While processing the image, I did consider cropping out the green valley floor on the right, but I like the added interest and with the mountain range falling away towards the right-hand side, the colour contrast adds a touch of visual weight and balance.

For both drone panoramic photos, I rotated the DJI’s camera to a vertical orientation to get more foreground and sky in the frame. I then swept the camera from left to right, turning the drone on its axis and taking overlapping images as I went. I simply stitched the images together later in Lightroom.

DJI Mavic Mini 3 | 24mm (effective) | 1/8,00th Second | f/1.7 | ISO100

Photographing the view from Y Garn

Finishing up with the drone, I carried on past Llyn Idwal and part way up Y Garn. Although I had appropriate clothing on to photograph in the snowy mountains, I didn’t have hiking sticks or shoe grips and due to the conditions, such as hardened snow and Ice, I decided not to push my luck too much and climbed only part way up, stopping just before the incline became too slippery for spikeless walking boots. I wasn’t overly concerned about not climbing higher because my main intention was to capture this panoramic view of Llyn Idwal and Llyn Ogwen down in the valley.

Once high enough, I found a useful plateau to shoot from. With it getting late on this midwinter’s day, I knew this would be my last opportunity to take photos so with plenty of layers on I settled in for the hour or so I would be up there.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF16-55mm F2.8 | 22mm | 1/125th Second | f/8 | ISO125

The picture above was the first of two panoramic images I took of this wide, wintry vista which features both Llyn Idwal on the right and Llyn Ogwen further down the valley. The mountains in view start from the base of Pen yr Ole Wen on the far left, the mighty Tryfan across the valley nearer the middle of the frame and moving right you have Glyder Fach, Castell y Gwynt and Glyder Fawr and the Devil’s Kitchen just out of view.

With a perfectly level tripod, I took this pano by mounting my camera vertically and sweeping it from right to left, overlapping each image by around 30-40% to make sure I had enough overlap to stitch easily later in Lightroom. This final image is around 140MP and although you can’t appreciate this fully when viewing the image on the screen, the amount of detail as you zoom in is quite astonishing.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF50-140mm F2.8 | 91mm | 1/30th Second | f/11 | ISO125

Fujifilm XT5 | XF50-140mm F2.8 | 115mm | 1/30th Second | f/11 | ISO125

Over the previous 24 hours, I hadn’t used my 50-140mm lens too much and I could see over in the distance how the snow-filled crevices against the darker rockface were creating all sorts of interesting textures and by zooming in on the mountains on the other side of the lake, I was able to fill the frame, creating the above abstract pictures of the mountain range. If you scroll back to the panoramic image above and look closely, you can see what part of the mountain these two are from.

Still using the telephoto lens, I decided to pick out a few more features in the landscape like this here of Llyn Ogwen and the mountain top further down. I just love the soft, cool tones in the closeup photo of Llyn Ogwen below, particularly that vivid blue water. The two different tones across the surface of the lake are created by the partially frozen water. A very cool effect but signs that the temperature was rising.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF50-140mm F2.8 | 50mm | 1/40th Second | f/11 | ISO125

Fujifilm XT5 | XF50-140mm F2.8 | 56mm | 1/50th Second | f/11 | ISO125

With the wind increasing fast, I decided to throw the drone up one last time before it became too windy to fly. I few around capturing different compositions and the below images are two of my favourites. No panoramic images this time but I did manage to capture some different compositions of the two lakes.

DJI Mavic Mini 3 | 24mm (effective) | 1/1,600th Second | f/1.7 | ISO100

DJI Mavic Mini 3 | 24mm (effective) | 1/1,600th Second | f/1.7 | ISO100

Just before the light dipped too much, I took my final panoramic picture of this epic Snowdonia vista. Although it’s a similar composition to my first pano from this spot, I decided to go even wider and included all of Pen yr Ole Wen on the left-hand side. I think this addition adds more weight to the left-hand side and emphasises the distant view down, through the valley.

By this time, it was getting very cold out there and with the light levels dropping the resulting cooler tones work well to portray the freezing temperatures I was experiencing up on the side of the mountain. Just looking at this picture makes my toes feel cold again!! The resulting panoramic is made from 11 vertical pictures and even after some cropping, the resulting image is nearly 200 megapixels. I plan to print this image nice and big and can’t wait to see all that glorious detail!

Fujifilm XT5 | XF16-55mm F2.8 | 23mm | 0.4 Seconds | f/8 | ISO125

Photographing the Nant Gwynant Valley

Originally heading out at sunrise on my final morning to photograph Llyn Gwynant, I arrived in the dark and with my head torch on to guide the way, I climbed up the south-eastern side of the valley to get to a higher, less visited vantage point, offering a fantastic view down the valley towards the lake. Well, today, the views of Llyn Gwynant were far from fantastic. The air was hazy with light rain and there was very little clarity or contrast in the scene so as much as I tried, there was no image to take pointing down the valley.

I did, however, point my camera across the valley towards Gallt y Wenallt. Although at 619m it would be considered small compared to some of the 900-1000m peaks, from where I stood, the contrast provided by the snow on top gave it all the drama I needed to attach my telephoto lens and take the picture below.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF50-140mm F2.8 | 50mm | 1/125th Second | f/3.6 | ISO400

From where I stood, I had a pretty good view of Snowdon so, before heading back to the Ogwen Valley for the last time of the trip, I pointed my lens over at its partially obscured peaks and took the photo below. With the light so bad that morning, I’m pretty pleased to have come away with a couple of images I like.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF50-140mm F2.8 | 80mm | 1/200th Second | f/3.6 | ISO400

After climbing down and driving back in the Ogwen Valley, I did climb up to get another view of Tryfan once more but with the melting snow creating a very messy foreground, I decided against climbing all the way up and instead, used the 50-140mm telephoto lens once more to take a few closeup pictures of Tryfan’s peak and (I think) Glyder Fawr off to the right. It was the stark contrast and textures created by the dark, menacing rock and the bright, partially melted snow that I like about the photos I took. With poor shooting conditions, getting in close and seeking out alternative ways to photograph these epic landscapes was a great way to avoid coming away from this morning’s shoot empty-handed.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF50-140mm F2.8 | 54mm | 1/200th Second | f/9 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT5 | XF50-140mm F2.8 | 140mm | 1/100th Second | f/9 | ISO200

Photographing Llyn Idwal and the Devil’s kitchen

My very last stop before heading home was back up at Llyn Idwal. I had passed the waterfall at the foot of the trail a few times during the trip, each time hoping to stop and get a good photo of this view looking up at the falls with Y Garn’s peak in the background. Frustratingly, each previous time, the conditions weren’t right for the picture I wanted to take. Either the sky was bright blue with too much contrast or, the sun was directly in line with the view meaning the sky was too bright for my taste.

Thankfully, as I crossed the bridge on this very last visit, the shot was on! The low, dark clouds kissing the peaks in the background added the right amount of drama and the dark rocks flanking the falls helped to emphasise the water making its way down the hill.

With the tripod up and the 16-55mm lens attached, I opted for a longer exposure to smooth out the water as it cascaded down, between the rocks. With the ND filter on the lens and with everything in the frame lined up, I took what ended up being one of my favourite shots of the trip.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF16-55mm F2.8 | 18mm | 1/5th Second | f/10 | ISO200

Happy I had the waterfall shot I was after and having arrived up at Llyn Idwal, I wanted to take a picture of this classic view of The Devil’s Kitchen. The wind was getting up by now and it was creating ripples across the lake’s surface, giving it a messy, cluttered look, so before taking the shot, I mounted my ND filter (6-stop I think) to smooth out those ripples and help simplify the composition.

I just love the texture in those foreground rocks, for me they are the main subject of the composition, so I got the camera as low down as I could to make the most of them. Along with the ND filter I was using, I also attached my circular polariser which worked a treat to remove any glare from the rocks and eliminate any reflections in the water and bringing out some of the details from underneath the surface closer to the camera.

In an ideal world, I would have liked just a bit more sky but if I lifted the camera, I would have lost some of the foreground elements, so this would be the second time in the trip that the 16-55mm lens was a little tight. Next time I visit, a wider lens will be in my bag for sure.

Fujifilm XT5 | XF16-55mm F2.8 | 16mm | 13 Seconds | f/8 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT5 | XF16-55mm F2.8 | 22mm | 10 Seconds | f/8 | ISO200

With a long drive home ahead of me and with the rain now falling hard, it was time to call it a day and head to the car.

As a photographer, when you visit an area for the first time and don’t get the opportunity to return often, luck plays a huge part in whether you walk away with any keepers and it would be unrealistic to expect to come away from every location with a banging shot, so I am incredibly grateful for those I did manage to get on this trip and with some lessons learned and experience gained, I feel a little more prepared for my inevitable return with the camera.

Thanks for sticking with this incredibly long post1

Until next time,

Trevor.

On Location | Photographing Waterfalls in the Brecon Beacons

In April 2022, I visited the Brecon Beacons to spend a couple of days exploring some of the various waterfalls this beautiful national park has to offer. This was my second visit to the waterfalls, the first being October 2021 when they were surrounded by autumnal colours. During that previous visit, I managed to take a couple of photos I really liked but at the same time, I couldn’t help wonder what it would be like to photograph the falls surrounded by the fresh green leaves of spring. So, thinking that April would be the best time to ensure the trees had new leaves and the greens would still be lush and vibrant, I booked a hotel for a couple of nights and with a full tank of eye-wateringly expensive fuel and my camera bag packed, I headed out to the Brecon Beacons National Park once again.

Just a couple of housekeeping notes on the photos below. I decided not to post them chronologically, but to group the photos I took across both days based on the falls they were taken at. So, although you might see some similar compositions, you should see a difference in time of day, light and weather to see how the falls look in the different conditions.

Additionally, it will be obvious to some that there is a 4th waterfall, Sgwd Clun-Gwyn missing from this post. The truth is I just couldn’t find a workable composition during my visit. I’m not sure if it was the lack of flow from the river, the light at the time or my ability in finding a good composition (probably all three), so, I came away with no photos of this particular fall.

What was in my camera bag for this trip?

Talking about having my bag packed, here’s a quick overview of the gear I took to photograph the waterfalls in the Brecon Beacons. Along with the usual camera and tripod, I had with me the three lenses I take on all landscape photography trips, the wide 10-24mm, the standard 18-55mm zoom and telephoto 55-200mm. The XT2 camera is an APS-C sensor so feel free to convert the lenses to the 35mm equivalent.

Along with the camera, lenses and usual accessories, I had my set of Kase filters with me which I used consistently throughout the shoot to achieve two very important jobs. Firstly, the circular polarizing filter was used to reduce the reflected light and glare from bouncing off the water and wet rocks, control the highlights and boosting the colours. Secondly, I used the neutral density filters to reduce the light hitting the sensor, allowing me to use longer shutter speeds, helping to smooth the water, giving it that silky look as it flows and falls.

Where is the best place to park when visiting the Brecon Beacon Waterfalls?

There are at least three car parks located near this stretch of the river. The larger, paid car parks are probably the most accessible, but it means a longer downhill walk (uphill all the way back) to get to the falls. If you are looking for a little less faff and are happy with a longer walk, see below for a link to two of the large car parks nearby. The falls are well signposted and easy to find. The cost for a day’s parking was £5 and both take card payments.

• Four Waterfalls Car Park: https://goo.gl/maps/gmsWApCx3drg71BP8

• Gwaun Hepste - Four Falls Trail Car Park: https://goo.gl/maps/R1xGWj8MV6dunLTC8

My preference, however, is to park at the Small Car Park which, as the name suggests is very small but a lot closer to the falls. It gets full quickly but if heading out particularly early then you should find a spot.

• Small Car Park: https://goo.gl/maps/MUPhkEokn6CexoX7A

One last option is a private field which is open most days right next to the Small Car Park. As far as I know, they also charge £5 but I’ve not used this car park before, so if you do manage to park your car here, do check when the gate is locked, just in case.

Photographing Sgwd Isaf Clun-Gwyn Waterfall

As I mentioned above, I don’t have any photos to share of the Sgwd Clun-Gwyn Waterfall so working down the river, the first set of images were taken at Sgwd Isaf Clun-Gwyn Waterfall. In my opinion, this cascading set of falls is the most interesting and provides a host of different compositions to choose from.

Starting at the top, this spot is a bit of a scramble up the hill but once in position, you’re greeted with this sweeping line which forms the edge of the upper falls. Compared to my visit in 2021 when the levels were higher and flow a lot stronger, this time around, it was very different. With less water flowing over the edge, the falls had less impact and the photos were less about demonstrating the power the falls can possess but more about the subtle beauty of the silky water, delicately cascading through the rugged Welsh landscape.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 18mm | 1/4th Second | f/4.5 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 61mm | 1/3rd Second | f/10 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 95mm | 0.8 Seconds | f/8 | ISO200

Along with the wide photos of the falls, I also made sure to use my 55-200mm telephoto zoom lens to take some close-up, intimate landscapes. I wanted to capture the shapes and textures of the rocks and water, because together with the wide-angle photos, they all help to document the trip, telling a more complete story of my time there.

Now standing towards the bottom of Sgwd Isaf Clun-Gwyn, you get a better view back up the falls and of the various levels the water has to work its way down, temporarily spending time in this small pool, before getting on its way again down towards Sgwd y Pannwr.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 19mm | 1/15th Second | f/9 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 50mm | 1/4th Second | f/11 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 100mm | 1/5th Second | f/8 | ISO200

For the photo below (and the almost identical version taken the previous day above), I wanted to get the entire scene into the frame, but I couldn’t get the results I wanted with the 10-24mm lens. The wide focal length was pushing the background further away, including too much sky, so I decided to forgo the wide-angle and take a multi-frame panoramic image with the standard zoom instead. Sweeping from left to right with my 18-55mm lens attached, I took 3 photos which were then merged together later in Adobe Lightroom.

Of the two panoramic photos I took of this scene, I much prefer this one below. The slight mist in the air helped to defuse the sunlight and by using the CPL filter when photographing the wet rocks, it helped remove most of the glare and distractions from around the edge of the frame.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 18mm | 1 Second | f/8 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 34mm | 1/10th Second | f/8 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 82mm | 1/3rd Second | f/8 | ISO200

The final photo from Sgwd Isaf Clun-Gwyn waterfall below was taken back near the top but this time on the other side of the river. It’s a photo I wasn’t able to take on my previous visit as I ran out of time looking for the route to the spot, but with the water level a lot lower this time, I was able to make my way across the river just a little up-stream and get to this location far easier.

As you can see, from this vantage point, you get a fantastic view of the entire top half of the waterfall as it flows down, cascading towards the pool at the bottom. Getting nice and wide with the 10-24mm lens, I placed the falls to the right and using the trees on the left to balance the composition. I think this is my favourite photo I took during my trip to the falls.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 13mm | 0.8 Seconds | f/10 | ISO200

Photographing Sgwd y Pannwr Waterfall

Just a little further down the river is where you’ll find Sgwd y Pannwr waterfall. A bit more unconventional as the main drop is at a 90-degree angle to the direction the river is flowing, so it makes for an interesting time finding a good composition here.

Although I think the water in the photo below could do with a bit more flow, I do prefer it to when I was at the same spot in 2021. Back then, with the water gushing over the edge, the scene was a lot messier and it was much harder for me to get a good photo from this angle. This time around, I was able to scramble around the edge of the pool and take the photo below.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 25mm | 1/3rd Second | f/7.1 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 34mm | 2 Seconds | f/8 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 74mm | 2 Seconds | f/11 | ISO200

On the upper level, the water has carved itself through the rock and although there was very little water up there, I still liked the way it created a useful lead-in line towards the interesting tree at the edge of the falls.

After taking that photo, I then climbed down into the gap and made my way out to the end so I could take a close-up photo of the water as it fell. I crept as close to the edge as I dared, mounted the 18-55mm and took this photo below which turned out to be my favourite from this particular waterfall.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 18mm | 0.6 Seconds | f/9 | ISO200

Photographing Sgwd Yr Eira Waterfall

Probably the most famous and for sure, the most popular waterfall along this trail is Sgwd Yr Eira. Located at the southernmost point of the four falls trail, it’s well worth the extra walk and steep climb down as you are greeted with this stunning view at the bottom of the gorge. Being so popular, I can’t recommend enough to fellow landscape photographers to get here as early as possible to avoid the crowds of people who start arriving around mid-morning.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 22mm | 1/3rd Second | f/9 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 10mm | 2 Seconds | f/8 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 61mm | 0.8 Seconds | f/9 | ISO200

What makes this waterfall a bit more special and the reason it’s the most popular spot along the trail is that you can walk right behind the falling water. Getting up close and personal and effectively inside the waterfall is a unique experience and one I just had to try and photograph. Although there is plenty of room to walk behind the water, finding a good composition turned out to be quite difficult because when standing directly behind the falls, you can’t get back far enough to fit it all in. To work around this space issue, I decided to walk to one side, mount the wide-angle lens and take the photo above, which not only allowed me to get more of the waterfall in the frame but also allowed me to include some of the textures and colour in the wet rocks behind it.

With the water levels being low (have I already mentioned that?), I was able to wade into the river and find some new compositions of Sgwd Yr Eira which is how I managed to take the photo below. Using my 10-24mm lens once again, I placed the camera just a few inches above the water to emphasise the rocks in the foreground. With the left-hand fall being a little lower than the other two, it does look a little unbalanced but there was nothing I could do about that and overall, I’m pretty happy with how this one turned out.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 10mm | 0.5 Seconds | f/9 | ISO200

Photographing Sychryd Waterfall

During the late afternoon on my first day at the falls, I drove a few minutes south of the four waterfalls trail as I wanted to pay a visit to Sychryd waterfall. Located on a small section of the river Sychryd and close to a village called Pontneddfechan I found the nearest car park was at Dinas Rock which you can find here: https://goo.gl/maps/mntGhXc1YDeDAgW76 and is free to park at. After a short 5-10 minute walk up and around Dinas Rock, you drop down into the Sychryd Gorge which is where you will find this charming multi-tier waterfall.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 17mm | 1 Second | f/8 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 58mm | 1/4th Second | f/6.4 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 190mm | 1/5th Second | f/6.4 | ISO200

The first photo above and probably my favourite is the wider composition of the water cascading down into this emerald plunge pool named Pwll y Berw. Being careful not to include any bright, distracting sky above the trees, I purposely lowered my tripod so that the small cascade was included which added some useful depth and foreground interest to the photo.

With the light levels still quite bright, I took all of the photos here using two Kase filters stacked on top of each other. Firstly, the circular polarising filter which helped to cut any unwanted glare from the wet, reflective surfaces and secondly, a neutral density filter (I forget what strength) to elongate the shutter speed, helping to create that silky smooth effect with the waterfall.

Once done taking the wider photos, I attached my telephoto 55-200mm lens and zoomed right in to take some close-up photos of the silky white, cascading water against the dark, wet rocks underneath.

Dinas Rock (Welsh for Fortress Rock) is a large limestone cliff face and a popular place for experienced rock climbers. On my way back to the carpark, I noticed these green trees growing out of the middle of it and was drawn to the way the green leaves contrasted against the grey stone. So, I mounted my 55-200mm lens once more and snapped a photo.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 55mm | 1/4th Second | f/7.1 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 105mm | 1/20th Second | f/9 | ISO200

Photographing the local Woodland

Given how much I enjoy photographing the local woodland close to where I live, there was very little chance I would leave this place without photographing some of the interesting woodland scenes which flanked the river and waterfalls.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 29mm | 4 Seconds | f/11 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 105mm | 1/60th Second | f/8 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 14mm | 1/15th Second | f/7.1 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 29mm | 1/15th Second | f/7.1 | ISO200

At the beginning of this post, I mentioned that I chose to visit again in April as I wanted to see and photograph the location while surrounded by the vibrant colours of spring but in truth, I feel I was still a couple of weeks early because although some of the trees such as those above were adorned with green leaves, others such as those below were only just waking up from their wintry sleep.

Given the lack of spring colour in the canopy and the unfavourable light I had, I still really like these photos as the twisted, almost gnarled shapes and overall arrangement of the trees still appeals to me.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 33mm | 1/4th Second | f/8 | ISO200

Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 58mm | 0.4 Seconds | f/8 | ISO200

So, that was my second visit to these amazing falls and I’m starting to think I might make this trip once every two years or so as I really enjoyed the previous two trips and there are still plenty more trails to explore here.

I hope you enjoyed this on location blog post and although I’m clearly no expert, if you do have any questions about an upcoming visit, feel free to message me directly or leave a comment below and I’ll try to help as much as I can.

Until next time,

Trevor

Chaotic Colour | Weekly Photo #129

As promised last week, here’s an autumnal photo I took just a couple of weeks ago during a short trip to the Brecon Beacons in Wales. As mentioned in that previous post, I went to photograph the popular waterfalls along the Four Falls Trail but the Afon Mellte (River Mellte) and Afon Hepste (River Hepste) carve their way through some fantastic ancient woodland with an array of interesting trees so, despite some pretty miserable weather and flat light, I could not resist pointing my lens towards the trees and photograph some of the wonderful woodland they have there.

Before we get stuck in, I have some news. I’ve opened an online print store over on Etsy.com. I’ve been toying with the idea for a while, deciding where to host it and how to price the images and finally got around to setting it all up a few weeks ago. My plan is to offer all of the photos I post on my Weekly Photo series as prints but it’s going to take some time to get all 129of them up there, so if you see a photo anywhere on my website and you want to own your own print, drop me a message and I’ll get it added to the store in no time at all.

Here’s a link to the store https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/TrevorSherwinPhoto, alternatively you can always find it in the menu at the top of this page.

I’m not going to lie, I found this an incredibly difficult scene to photograph and even now as I sit here writing this post, I’m pretty sure it’s tumultuous nature won’t appeal to everyone but all being well, by the time you get to the end of this blog, you will know why, at the very least, it appeals to me.

The main path that takes you from the car park, along the Four Falls Trail remains on the higher ground meaning for each of the four waterfalls, you need to take a separate path that descends down towards the water in the valley. I came across this scene as I was heading down the steep path towards the Sgwd y Pannwr waterfall which, between descents takes you through this small area of captivating woodland. I was mesmerized by how it looked and even though I knew that trying to find an orderly composition in a somewhat chaotic scene would challenge my relatively modest woodland photography skills, I just had to give it a go. So, after finishing up taking photos by the river, I headed back up to this spot to see what I could make of it.

Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 32mm | 1/3rd Second | f/10 | ISO200

So, what drew me to this scene? First off, it’s a very different type of woodland to those I typically come across in good-old leafy Surrey. With the rocks and moss across the uneven floor, the quirky shapes carved by the trees and the plethora of autumnal tones, it just felt a little bit special. I probably spent a good 20 minutes or more working out how best to take this photo and eventually settled on this composition you see here. Along with the interesting shapes and textures, the order amongst the disorder is the way the rocks on the ground create a natural path leading the eye in towards an area flanked by the “V” shaped trees and splashes of vibrant yellow tones on either side.

As I mentioned at the start of this post, the weather throughout my trip was pretty miserable and in between the rain, the light was flat and uninspiring. In an ideal world, I would have had some nice, defused light to bring out more of the vibrant colours in this woodland scene, but it wasn’t to be and I had to make the best of the conditions I was given both on location and back home in Lightroom when processing the final image. I had to be careful with the colours, making sure I didn’t overcook them. Some might be tempted to boost the yellows too much and force them to be what they might have been with better light. I chose to make more subtle changes, so the final photo represents the conditions I experienced on that very day.

Once again, please feel free to pop by my new online print store and have a good look around. I’d love to hear what you think so feel free to get in touch.

Until next week.

Trevor

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This post is featured in my Weekly Photo series where I post a new photo every Monday. To have this delivered directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to the mailing list here.