The Swarbourne River runs right through the heart of Yoxall as it makes its way east to join the Trent on the very out skirts of the village, on its way it passes through many of the areas I've already covered and effects the landscape in different ways as it makes this journey. With this section I didn't really know how I was going to approach it in the beginning because I new that I didn't want to go down the path of just looking for scenic river view because the area doesn't lend itself to that kind of photo so I took a little time to walk the area well and get an idea of what the personality of the river was.
Tech. Details
F-stops- f/6.3
Expo- 125sec
ISO- 500
Expo Bias- 0 steps
Focal Length- 21mm
The first thing that became plainly apparent to me was the fact that the river desperately needs some TLC, an example of the kind of problems I came across can be seen above in the shape of a cattle bridge that is beginning to crumble and collapse. What amazes me is that this bridge is used nearly everyday yet you can see the lumps of brick lying on the river bed and the way the whole structure is covered in ivy which can't be helping the problem. Its a good shot because it highlights the problem well but I like the way it also shows how nature can taken hold in a very short space of time.
Tech. Details
F-stops- f/32
Expo- 2sec
ISO- 400
Expo Bias- 0 steps
Focal Length- 75mm
Here it's the contrast between the smooth fast following water and the rough wall of the bank that create a interesting view, I used long exposure and a grad filter to create this shot because I really wanted to use the water in some way to once again create something a little abstract. Although it doesn't really fit into the theme of the river being in need of some attention it does highlight the nature of the river in a different respect because the movement makes it feel far more alive.
Tech. Details
F-stops- f/10
Expo- 320sec
ISO- 500
Expo Bias- 0 steps
Focal Length- 21mm
Moving back to the main theme here I wanted to show the opposite to the above rushing water but at the same time how natural factor are effecting the river. Here you can see the beings of a bend forming in the river, this makes the water slow and increases the lightly hood of flooding in the area because the increased water can't flow away quickly as it should. In this case the bend has been formed as animals (mainly cows) come down to drink at the same spot over and over again flatting the bank down into the river thous forming an ingress into the water and a bend forms. This is a problem for the farmer but what they don't seem to understand is that as they slow the river water beyond the village it forces flood water back up stream and increases the chances of flooding within the village itself.
Tech. Details
F-stops- f/9
Expo- 250sec
ISO- 500
Expo Bias- 0 steps
Focal Length- 18mm
This next shot actually shows a section of the river within the village that has been partially blocked dew to fallen tree branches and general rubbish that's found its way in over time. These kind of blockages seem to take for ever to get sorted because there's continual arguments between the landowners the river is running through and the Environment Agency about who's responsibility it is to clean these areas up.
Tech. Details
F-stops- f/9
Expo- 320sec
ISO- 100
Expo Bias- 0 steps
Focal Length- 18mm
The final shot in this section shows the end results when these factors I've talked about aren't addressed, I took this the other year when last we had a lot of rain in the area that resulted in flooding. It didn't actually this time reach the village but you can see the effect its had on the surrounding farmland beyond all because what you'd consider the simple task of keeping a stretch of river clear and able to run wasn't kept up.
I'm really happy with how this section is shaping up because it highlights an issue there is within the area, for many people living here it isn't that major a concern but I live in an area that the last time it did flood majorly the water was lapping up the fence panels at the side of the house and we did worry for a while that maybe for the first time ever the water might just reach us. Changes were made straight after this to the section running through the village to make it flow better like deepening and clearing it out but now as the years have past its starting once more to fall into the state you see above and you just have to wonder why doesn't anyone seem to care and will it only be a matter of time until history repeats itself (that's of course if we don't have a major drought this summer which at the minute is looking like it could be possible).
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