Tim's One Photograph a Day

The Adur Ferry Bridge, Shoreham-by-Sea.

Adur Ferry Bridge at Night.

Adur Ferry Bridge: Walking into the night.

Walking into the night.

Back to my favourite. Long Exposure photography. Today’s image is of the Adur Ferry Bridge at night. The footbridge over the river in Shoreham-by-Sea.

This is a modern structure replacing an older, narrower one. This one, like the older one, has a central section that opens for navigation. This facility is not used much – it is probably tested more than it is actually opened for shipping!

Whilst I like to shoot at dusk, when you get the deep blue sky, there are also times when it is preferably to have a completely black sky. This shot suits the black sky. It gives the impression that the people are walking off into the unknown. It draws the focus of attention to the bridge itself, rather than being distracted by the skyline.

There is still a lot going on in this shot. The glass sides create reflections – giving the impression of parallel walkways either side of the actual Adur Ferry Bridge. It is fairly rare to get a shot with so many panels in it with none of them broken. Glass sides may be attractive, but are not very practical.

The lighting is also better than last time I attempted this shot. All the lights in view seem to be working. Although the lights are linear, they give elliptical patches on the walkway.

Then there are the pedestrians. I had to wait a bit, but this group of walkers finally came past. With a fairly high ISO, I was able to use a relatively short exposure time despite the small aperture.

The plan here was to get some starring on the lights as well as ensuring the depth of focus was as great as possible. The shortish exposure creates the wonderful ghosting of the people. I was fortunate that the lady with the four bold rectangular patterns was well-placed whilst taking this shot of the Adur Ferry Bridge. She creates a fascinating cameo, and a main point of focus. Had the sky been brighter, I don’t think this shot would have worked anywhere near as well as it does.

Photograph Details:

  • Taken: 29 Sep 2017
  • Camera: Olympus OM-D E-M10 MkIIA
  • Lens: Olympus 14-42mm 1:3.5-5.6
  • Focal Length 14mm
  • F/14
  • 3.2 Sec
  • ISO 1000

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