Thursday the 27th of March 2025, A beautiful Spring light and an unusual flight. Taking a unique look at Highfields Park at The University of Nottingham.

One of the most unique things about the city of Nottingham is perhaps the size of it, for it is a small city by a lot of means and that of course has its advantages, the amounts of green spaces and countryside that surround it, that are located within the suburban areas and that all seem "within easy reach and close proximity of the City centre." And one of those places happens to be Highfields Park at The University of Nottingham - for it is an area of parkland that serves as a place of escapism just a short distance away from the busy rushes, hustle and bustle of the city centre of Nottingham, and yet here at Highfields it also feels a million miles away, for you seemingly forget that you are surrounded by suburbia, and yet with a beautiful Spring light and warmth in the air, I just had to capture Highfields Park, from a completely different angle, from above, but of course below are the photos that I managed to capture of this truly delightful and unique area of parkland that exists and forms parts of the grounds of The University of Nottingham. 

"Cloudscapes above, the beauty of the lake below."

"The Clocktower, Highfields Beauty below."

"A Highfields of a Panorama." - (Panorama.)

"Architecture, Parkland, Cityscape and Suburbia beyond."

"Just floating above the lake. A Trent Building of Beauty."

"Trent Building, the Beautiful Spring Light, a Glorious Sight."

"Lake, Beauty, The eyes towards Suburbia." - (Colour.)

"Lake, Beauty, The eyes towards Suburbia." - (Black and White.)

"Looking ahead, the Highfields beauty of Spring."

Wednesday the 19th of March 2025, a Rock with vistas, the village below, A "Reservoir" Glow, and the beauty of a Spring Sunset.

"Hold on a moment? What is that? Clear blue skies and a certain element of Warmth?" For that is what I had encountered on Wednesday the 19th of March 2025, but where was I going to visit? Well first of all I had a little bit of time to spare, and when I had arrived in the locality of Ashover, I just had to head up to Ashover Rock - lovingly known as "The Fabrik." And perched high above the village of Ashover, and on a clear day, well views towards Sheffield, Bolsover Castle, Hardwick Hall, Ogston Reservoir and Ratcliffe on Soar Power Station can be seen, but again a harsh blue sky made for some challenging compositions as I captured the beauty of Ashover Rock, after which it was time to head down into the village of Ashover, and again I also managed to capture some interesting perspectives of this beautiful and peaceful village, and below are the photos from Ashover Rock and Ashover that I had managed to capture. But did you know that Ashover was also used as Cardale, in Peak Practice, after filming had finished in the nearby Derbyshire village of Crich? 

"Spring Glow of Ashover Rock."

"Beautiful is the Spring Blue, The Rock below."

"Abstract, Ashover Rock Patterns Below."

"Gentle perfection of Floating, the magic of Ashover Rock."

"Abstraction, Pathways, Routes."

"A Fabrik of an Ashover Rock Panorama." - (Colour.)

"A Fabrik of an Ashover Rock Panorama." - (Black and White.)

"Springtime Calmness above Ashover Rock." - (Colour.)

"Springtime Calmness above Ashover Rock." - (Black and White.)

"Light casts perfection over the Village below."

"Springtime Floating above Ashover Church."

"Ashover, The beauty of the Amber Panorama." - (Panorama.)

After spending time and of course a delightful lunch at The Crispin Inn, it was then time for me to head to another location, that location being Ogston Reservoir, a location that I last visited in November of 2023, me though I was also observing the sky, and awaiting for the colours to change, hoping to get something of a decent sunset, it was not to be, but I did manage to capture the following photos with a gentle and beautiful light. 

"A Gentle Ogston late Afternoon Glow." - (Panorama.)

"Ogston, the late Afternoon glow, a glorious sight below."

But then I had to move on from there, only two photos but at least it had given me some inspiration, but when I had arrived back in Nottinghamshire, on the Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire Border, I noticed that the sky was creating artwork, and once again I just had to capture the beauty of the gentle colours in the sky, overlooking The Erewash Valley in the distance, and this is the view that I had managed to capture. 

"Gentle Pastel Spring, the Sunset Painted." - (Panorama.)

Tuesday the 18th of March 2025, The beauty of a perfect kind of "Wirksworth" light made for something magical.

Ever heard of "Barmy Dale?" No well neither had I, but it is a comedy podcast set in a fictional town in Derbyshire - however the fictional town in question is based upon The Derbyshire Town of Wirksworth, a small and unique town located in the Eccelsbourne Valley, a somewhat hidden and beautiful valley with rolling hills and some impressive views that can be had. Yet Wirksworth is located between Belper and Matlock, but there is just a "certain something else" about Wirksworth, for maybe it is the unique history that the town has to offer that makes it worth exploring, perhaps it is the unique and independent shops that are just waiting to be discovered, even the architecture and it really is the perfect place to explore. But it was on Tuesday the 18th of March 2025 after a delightful spring walk along The Cromford Canal, that a visit to Wirksworth was on the cards - but the big question was, 

"Just where to get the best vistas, the best views of this unique town and landscape from?"

And in the end it resulted in a decision being made, that decision was to visit the rather impressive and quirky modern stone circle, quite simply called "Star Disc." Which is located just above Wirksworth and offers the perfect vantage point to capture the delightful vistas and views of this unique town and its surrounding landscape, and below are the photos that I had managed to capture, yes the skies were beautiful, a spring light, although it was also rather a harsh light, but what I found was something truly magical. 

"A Wirksworth of a Panorama." - (Panorama.)

"Discworld." - (Colour.)

"Down to The Valley, The Town nestled Below."

"Towards where The Black Rocks are."

"Discworld." - (Black and White.)

"Floating above Star Disc." - (Colour.)

"Floating above Star Disc." - (Black and White.)

"The town at the top end of the Eccelsbourne Valley."

"A Sense of Wirksworth, a beautiful Landscape surrounds."

"Like a Model town, Wirksworth below." - (Black and White.)

"Like a Model town, Wirksworth below." - (Colour.)

Sunday the 9th of March 2025, And yet again another creation of art by Nature, a stunning Sunset over Suburbia.

March 2025, eh? For we are still within the somewhat "early days of March" but it goes without saying that it has also been an interesting start to the month and of course meteorological Spring time - and I say interesting because of the arts that nature has graced us with, what with the recent spell of delightful sunshine, a gentle and mild temperature as well which has been somewhat of a blessing after what has been a rather mundane, grey and meh kind of Winter. 

Yet in the skies, magic has been happening, especially on an evening, when the skies really have had the work of nature creating some truly spectacular colours, and once again on Sunday the 9th of March 2025, I was observing the skies, and knew yet again that something spectacular was going to be visible, so I just had to send the drone up, to catch the last of the delightful evening skies over Suburbia, and below is what I had managed to capture. 

"The Fire in the Sky, Suburbia Below, The Evening Glow."

"Atmosphere, Arts, A Sunset Glow."

"Above the rooftops, Sunset and Beauty."

"Painted arts over Suburbia, a glorious Sunset Glow."

Saturday the 8th of March 2025, A Spring Sunset of just a glorious Watercolour sky.

W.H. Davies, famously wrote the following lines, from his poem called "Leisure." Which go like this, 

"What is this life if, full of care, We have no time to stand and stare?"

And they perfectly sum up life as we know it today, for those words, lines they describe a world in which nobody takes the time to stand still and observe the beauty that is around them, the magic of nature around them, even if it is just for a moment, a minute even or perhaps two minutes or five minutes, and yet when you do take a moment in time to stop and look at nature, observe the beauty of a landscape that is around you or the arts in nature you find something else, and it was on Saturday the 8th of March 2025, that I was observing the colour changes in the early evening sky, I knew that there was going to be potentially a glorious Sunset, and so I just had to capture it, and from above, I was amazed at what I had seen, a truly glorious work of art being painted by nature and being ignored by many.

"Soft, gentle, A Watercolour glow, Suburbia to the Valley below."

"Gentle is the sky, a Watercolour glow."

"A Band of Spring Gold. Suburbia Below."

"Artwork of the Springtime Skies."

"Springtime Watercolour. The arts above."

"Watercolour Sky, The art above Suburbia."

Friday the 7th of March 2025, For a return to an "Iron Giant." And the Landscape surrounded by lost industry.

It was on Wednesday the 5th of March 2025 that I was up early, the reason being was to head to a location that prior to "The Covid Pandemic and Lockdown's." That I had walked across, of course that was when the top of the infamous Bennerley Viaduct had been reopened. But on the 5th of March 2025, I was at The Bennerley Viaduct to capture the sunrise happening, and wow, I encountered something truly magical, of course if you want to read about that and see the photos from that visit then it can be found here: fromadifferentperspectivephotography.blogspot.com/2025/03/wednesday-5th-of-march-2025-sunrise-and.html

But of course there was just something that made me want to head back to The Bennerley Viaduct, and it was on Friday the 7th of March 2025, that another visit to The Bennerley Viaduct happened, yes a mildness in the air could be felt, after all that is because Spring has arrived, and whilst the sky was not exactly that fantastic, it was certainly more moody and dramatic, of course though this time around instead of capturing the scenes of The Bennerley Viaduct, from the top deck, which is what I did on Wednesday the 5th of March 2025, this time around I decided to capture the scenes from a safe distance next to The Bennerley Viaduct, and what I came across was nothing short of truly spectacular, a landscape shaped by and surrounded by lost industry, that somehow looked a little bit more "Dystopian." And yet it also gave me an idea for a project, a project that can be found here: aviaductthroughtheseasons.blogspot.com

But from above looking down on The Bennerley Viaduct, not only did I come across this time around a Dystopian looking landscape surrounded by the scars of old industry, but a structure that somehow looks beautiful, with the landscape that it is located within, which makes The Bennerley Viaduct that little bit more unique, and yet sadly it seems ignored by many a landscape photographer, even though it provides a truly spectacular subject to photograph. 

"Moods, Bennerley, A Landscape and Old Industry forgotten." - (Colour.)

"Moods, Bennerley, A Landscape and Old Industry forgotten." - (Black and White.)

"Scars of Industry Gone, the Viaduct, a Winston of a view." - (Colour.)

"Scars of Industry Gone, the Viaduct, a Winston of a view." - (Black and White.)

"Dystopia of Industry Scars, The Winston Mood." 

"Marshland, and Viaduct Moods." - (Colour.)

"Marshland and Viaduct Moods." - (Black and White.)

Wednesday the 5th of March 2025, A sunrise and an "Iron Giant?" Capturing the magic and the beauty of Sunrise from The Bennerley Viaduct.

"There is just something about a landscape, especially when it has some form of Human Element within it." 

Okay, perhaps that sounds a little bit like a certain landscape photographer called James Popsys - who is known for capturing landscapes and scenes that always has something "human made" within them. For a start even in the most remote places a landscape can very often have some kind of human element within it, from an abandoned barn in the Yorkshire Dales with a glorious landscape behind it of drama, all the way through to a simple sign that can often tell a story or even get the viewer of the photograph asking questions. But what happens when you get A. A landscape and B. The meetings of Suburbia? Well you end up with a landscape that in this particular case is called quite simply,

"The Erewash Valley."

And it is a landscape that is unique, for a start The Erewash Valley, acts as a natural border between Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire and it is also a landscape that has a certain element of beauty about it, perhaps that of course could be due to The Erewash Valley and its unique landscape that has been shaped by humans and of course industry - industry that was of course mentioned in the books and stories by DH Lawrence who often wrote about the dehumanisation of industry within The Erewash Valley, near where he lived in Eastwood. 

And yet today though, the signs of industry can still be seen and it was on Wednesday the 5th of March 2025 that I was awake rather early, too early perhaps but hold on, I was going in search of a Sunrise, but where to go? For where was there going to be a location in which to capture the Sunrise and the arts of Sunrise - and in the end the location of course involved an "Iron Giant." Yes, The impressive wrought iron constructed Bennerley Viaduct (https://www.bennerleyviaduct.org.uk/history/) which spans The Erewash Valley from the Nottinghamshire side at Awsworth to the Ilkeston side, just near Stensons Lock on The Erewash Canal. And when I had set off at 5.30am in the morning, towards the east, I could see a sky that was incredibly painted, that artwork was already being created, and upon arriving at the location that I was also meeting another fellow landscape photographer, Craig Yates, (Yes Craig, also has a fantastic YouTube Channel, that can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/@craig.yates_photography4907) It was time to walk down towards this impressive structure, an Iron Giant, that at this early time in the morning was more akin to a sleeping giant, but as we were both walking along, towards the east, towards Awsworth what could be seen, a sky that was truly beginning to change, moments to spare and we had eventually made it onto the top of the viaduct, and well before long, the sky changed, a beautiful painting of nature was being created right in front of me, and below of course are the photographs that I had managed to capture, but it goes without saying, 

"Sunsets are one thing to capture, but the Sunrise and the magic and unexpected elements of what you come across as the sun begins to rise is just something else to behold, for you really are looking at nature creating artwork in front of you, but how many people in the mornings take the time to slow down and look at the beauty and colours, the arts of a sunrise? Not that many, and perhaps we should take the time to look at the beauty, the arts and colours of nature that create a spectacle called Sunrise."

"The dance of the light, a Magical Bennerley Sunrise." - (Panorama.)

"As the sun breaks, below a landscape it glows."

"The art of Colour, A Winston of a Sunrise." - (Panorama.)

"The Magic of Light, A Spectacular Sunrise Sight." - (Panorama.)

"That light, a Purple, and Pink Hue, the Valley Shines Below."