I am ashamed to say that, proud Geordie as I am, I have rarely visited the Roman Wall other than the traditional school trips to Housesteads and the odd day trip. This visit enabled me to check out the National Trust`s Allen Gorge as well as shooting Sycamore Gap. Shame it now seems to be known as "Robin Hood`s Tree" as it was used as a location shoot for Kevin Costner`s "Robin Hood , Prince of Thieves" though Robin Hood had no connection , real or mythical with this area. Parking at Steel Rigg we walked up what seemed a much steeper hill than I remember as a boy and joined the throng of tourists asking the more seasoned walkers "Is it much further to Sycamore Gap?". We made it in the end but abandoned plans to get to Housesteads and get the bus back to the car as , unusually for Northumberland it was too hot!!!! 26 degrees celsius would you believe! We stayed at the Elk`s Head in Whitfield which was good value and featured some great food. Not impressed by the pictures on their website which do not do the hotel / area justice. Pondering whether to make another attempt at a cheeky trade for stay offer to shoot some images for them. It`s worked before at Kilham Hall and Beck Hall. Nothing ventured nothing gained eh! I`ll let you know how I get on.
I love reflections - this is in Allen Gorge shooting the river bank plants with reflections behind in the water on a glorious day.
Shooting into the sun in bright sunshine is always a challenge
The Elk`s Head - they use a stag`s head on the sign as an Elk`s Head is not so photogenic evidently - all say "ahh" for the Elk!
Sometimes a mono landscape works just as well and I like the rich tones in this one
I like to get a few people in from time to time to get a sense of scale - those hills each side are every bit as steep as they seem!
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