Vesna Armstrong Photography

Just a collection of random images from a fleeting visit to a lovely village of Barwick-in-Elmet which lies on the edge of east Leeds. This is my first collage of photos made on the online photo editing site ipiccy.com. I did not allow myself much time to spend in this village because I was under the impression that there is not a lot to it. How wrong was I?! It is full of charming houses, shops, interesting sites and detail, it has two lovely churches, Norman hill fort (bottom right image), and three most inviting old pubs. Cannot wait to go back there for at least half a day very soon!

This quaint cottage is situated on the edge of Farnley cemetery, Tong road, near the border between Leeds and Bradford. I have always been drawn to it because of its high roof with ladders on it, green shutters, bench outside the front door and lovely front garden with seasonal flowers in it. Since about two months ago I have been driving past it on my way to and fro work so it has been easier for me to watch how the weather, light and changing seasons affect its setting. This morning I noticed that the tree next to the cottage was in pink bloom, it seemed to me like it almost happened over night, so I decided to take a few shots on my way home. It was a quiet, very breezy afternoon with a lot of soft sunshine, blue skies and white clouds.

This must be one of the most charming traditional country pubs in England. It is situated in the heart of the picturesque village of Ledsham, just outside east Leeds. It has three small rooms full of antique ornaments and objects used in past times and a lovely beer garden. I have been to the pub for a drink before but this time I decided to have my birthday treat meal here. It is not cheap to dine at this place but it is well worth paying a bit more for the fancy and delicious home made food and cosy atmosphere. There is a restaurant upstairs but we chose to eat in the bar downstairs. I took the first photo from behind the table we were sitting at and the two outside images were taken on a previous visit a few days before.

I shoot almost all my still life next to a south facing window to the right of the set up. My favourite time for a shoot is on a day when the sun keeps coming in and out from between the clouds. You get a whole gamut of different lighting ranging from diffused to contrasty light and shadow conditions. I leave my set up on for as long as it's worth it and keep coming back to it for more shots as the light changes. The image below is one of the last I took on the day just before the sun disappeared for good. Literally seconds later the vase was enveloped in darkness and I knew the late afternoon sun would not come out again as thick rainy clouds buried it too deeply. 

Yesterday I went out searching for Spring - yes, Spring with a capital s, which surely should be upon us now it's already April. I drove to the lovely village of Ledsham on the outskirts of east Leeds. It was bitingly cold and after a short time of taking pictures my hands started aching with cold. But daffodils were out, yay!!!, a little smaller than usual though, not fully open yet, as if showing their faces carefully...tentatively... There were also a few primroses, mainly yellow ones and snowdrops that have gone over now. I am not sure what sort of tree or shrub this is in my photo but it bore the only blossom I came across. With the wooden fence and green field behind it and daffodils next to it it seemed just the scene I was looking for.

Today is the first real day of Spring! The sun is out and the air is much warmer. There is a light breeze carrying a fresh smell of new growth and birds can be heard from the branches of trees. At last! Hopefully, daffodils and other long awaited spring flowers will start coming out now. I bought this colourful bouquet at the local supermarket a few days before Easter. I was delighted to see two anemones in it as they seem to be rare in this part of the country. Since spring is also lambing time I decided to include the little Beswick sheep from my collection of porcelain farm animal figurines. As usual, I chose to go for a classic dark appearance with warm brown background shades.