Vesna Armstrong Photography

Top Withins (or Withens, both are correct spellings). What an incredible place! It is just a farmhouse ruin with a weather beaten tree next to it on top of a hill amidst windswept moors, but if you know anything about its history and background it becomes a most charming, evocative, inspiring and atmospheric place you can imagine. The farmhouse is believed to be the location model for Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights in her novel of passionate love and revenge. The novel is considered to be one of the greatest works of fiction ever written and even many who have not read it are familiar with the names of some of its characters and places. It was a bit breezy but sunny, a perfect day to do the 6 and half mile circular walk on the bleak but beautiful moors above Haworth. From the photography point of view a grey and moody day would probably suit the location better in terms of creating drama and atmosphere, but I am sure it is more pleasant to explore such an untamed terrain in fine...

One of the things that make me happy is having an idea for the season's still life. On this occasion the idea actually came from the Trevillion Images wish list which they send to their photographers every Monday. When I read that bags were one of the sought after subjects my vintage satchel I use on daily basis immediately came to my mind. Since it is really an old style school bag (the kind of which I had as a schoolgirl too), and children and students are just back to school and uni/college now I thought I'd pair it with a nice notebook (my garden diary), a fountain pen, and an apple which is a symbol of learning and teaching. The composition is quite simple and unusual in my opinion and I like the fitting paper texture and desaturated tones underlying the vintage look.

Every summer I like to go to some beautiful English gardens to capture the essence of summertime with my camera. In fact to capture not just the essence but the entire exuberance and magic the season brings along. I was very excited when I learned about East Riddlesden Hall, a National Trust property near Keighley, not far from where I live, and very easy to get to. I was surprised I had not already known about it. It is a beautiful 17th century manor house with delightful gardens. I first had a look around the house, a rather hasty one, as on this occasion I wanted to concentrate on outdoor photography, and then I walked in the gardens losing myself in their beauty and in taking photos. I was thrilled to find so many shots. My favourite garden is Mollie's garden, a secluded garden which children help maintain. It is shown in the last four images. I spent a lot of time there marveling at so much wonderful detail. The whole place is just amazing and I am very pleased to have discove...

This was a short but beautiful and satisfying summer walk on the border of Batley and Morely, West Yorkshire, in the heart of which are the ruins of a fine Tudor mansion demolished three centuries ago. The countryside was dominated by vibrant fireweed, beautiful grasses and all sorts of unusual plants and vegetation I wish I knew the name of. It was a nice day for photography too - sunny with a lot of white clouds, so the sun was often going behind the clouds creating different and some lovely lighting conditions and colours.

I photographed this remote, lone cottage back in May, on my last visit to the Lakes. We went for a walk around Tarn Hows with its spectacular views, and this cottage, situated above the lake, about 20 minutes away, was a great finish to the walk. I fell in love as soon as I saw it. I took many photos from different distances and angles because I knew I would be able to make a few different images. It was a grey and dull day which was better for photography then blazing sunshine seeing overcast weather is much more manageable and easier to work with in post processing. There was no sky detail in the original so I added a texture layer that also included sky and clouds and played with the colours a bit. I went for a serene and airy look. I think carefully before I use bird brushes and here I felt they do add to the magic of the image. The cottage is part of the National Trust and is available to rent. Although it has a lovely interior it is apparently basic as far as utilities and elect...

I have recently joined another (third) online photo stock agency - Arcangel. It is just that sales with Getty Images have been almost non existent lately and Trevillion are very particular about what they accept so I am left with quite a few images just sitting on my hard drive. I thought I would give them a chance to sell with Arcangel who have struck me as stocking the type of images mine would fit in well with. They are also a lot less restrictive about what they accept for their database so I hope they wil accept most of the images I submit. Right now I have had  my first photos  accepted and a lot more are in the pending queue awaiting consideration. I am sharing here just two of them which I have not posted on my blog before. Taken in my dining room. I love white roses and they render themselves so well to a vintage still life. I always wanted to include my dresser in one of my images and finally it happened. I felt I had all the props I needed when I bought the old...

I bought this magnifying glass at an antiques market in Zagreb. It was an ideal memento that I could easily fit in the suitcase and a great prop for a new still life. I had already bought the newspaper in a vintage shop in Haworth and had an idea of using the two together. After considering what else I could use I thought of an old ashtray with a burning cigarette in it. Then I decided I did not want to wait till I find an ashtray when I can just use something I already have in the house. So I chose one of my old oil lamps. I shot many a frame trying to find a good angle and perspective. The newspaper tended to appear too large in the frame so I got in quite close to the set up and used a 50mm lens to slightly "squash" the perspective. A dark red background seemed a good colour option that would add a touch of mystery and intimacy to the image so I used a red curtain texture layer in Photoshop. I like the painterly look of the curtain, the turquoise reflection in the magnify...