The Port

When you live in Portland you have a deep water harbour right in the centre of town. It IS the heart of the town and you can't escape it. Few days go by when I don't find myself walking past the foreshore and looking at what is going on, and i am naturally attracted to the sea, so it is not surprising that I find many opportunities to take photos there.

The sea is a wonderful subject for photography as it changes from day to day. The varying combinations of wind, cloud, swell and tide mean you rarely get the same mood twice. Not only that but the ships and boats are constantly coming and going so there is always something new to photograph.

THUMBNAIL (click to view 1200px image)	PARAMETERS	COMMENTS
	Canon A610 10mm (46mm) f/4 1/1250 sec ISO Auto P Mode	"Enterprise" (Portland, 2006) The two trawlers moored together, neatly painted in blue and red make an attractive pair. The clear light from a blue sky helps as always.
	Canon A610 10mm (46mm) f/4 1/1000 sec ISO Auto P Mode	"Zeehaan" (Portland, 2006) A good shot of a fishing boat is always a winner and this is no exception. There is little to more to say except that I used a little rotation to get the mast perfectly vertical and that as always, a blue sky makes a beautiful background.
	Canon A610 13mm (60mm) f/5 1/1250 sec ISO Auto P Mode	"Sharon" (Portland, 2006) I guess this is as close to a perfect photograph as I have taken. The subject perfectly compliments its setting, the exposure is perfect, the light is ideal, the framing is perfect. All I did was see the shot, frame it and press! You could spend hours planning the shot, setting the white balance, waiting for the perfect time, setting up a tripod etc and still not get it so right. It all goes to prove that technique is not always the most important thing in getting the best shot.
	Canon A610 13mm (60mm) f/5 1/1250 sec ISO Auto P Mode	"Still Harbour" (Portland, 2006) Most people like this image. I was walking past the harbour one morning when I saw this incredible silver-grey light. This is not a monochrome shot, nor has the colour been adjusted, you can see patches of colour in the sky and along the jetty, this was really the colour of the harbour on that morning. I took shots from various places and various perspectives and this was the best. I couldn't get too close to sea level from a distance or the sea was too narrow. Other places had a distracting foreground or the wrong mid-ground. Here the sea and the sky match perfectly and the harbour wall is the dividing line, with the mouth in the centre.
	Canon A610 22mm (106mm) f/4 1/1000 sec ISO Auto P Mode	"Canal Boats" (Portland, 2006) A shot of fishing boats in their moorings is always popular with photographers and often seen in jigsaw puzzles. I just stood on the bridge over the canal and framed a number of shots. This was the least against the sun so it proved to be the best. With post-processing one can rectify many of the problems of glare but it is still better to shoot with the sun if one can.
	Canon A610 29mm (140mm) f/4.1 1/800 sec ISO Auto P Mode	"Lee Breakwater after Storm" (Portland, 2006) One of the great things about the sea is its changing moods. You never get two days exactly the same. I have taken various shots of the Lee Breakwater of Portland Harbour on different days but this one is the best. The overcast sky, the washed up seaweed from a recent heavy sea, the turbulent water and the dark rocks all combine to give the picture a brooding, ominous weight.
	Canon A610 7mm (35mm) f/4 1/500 sec ISO Auto P Mode	"Port Entrance" (Portland, 2006) The Port is a hive of activity at all times and this entry point is a good point to catch some of that action. Here we see the pine chip hoppers and the grain silos.
	Canon A610 15mm (72mm) f/4 1/640 sec ISO Auto P Mode	"Alumina Conveyor and Pitch Silos" (Portland, 2006) One of my personal favourites, this shot of the Port shows the main breakwater with the pitch silos and the alumina conveyor, both of which are essential to the functioning of the Aluminium Smelter some kilometers distant. I think it is the blue of the silos and the long white line of the conveyor that make this pic a winner. Along with the green grass they stand out well against the monotonous grey of the sea and sky.
	Canon A610 22mm (106mm) f/3.5 1 sec ISO Auto P Mode	"The Port at Night" (Portland, 2006) A good night shot is always a winner on account of the fact that they are fairly rare, and because the velvet black of night makes a perfect background. Ideally one would use a tripod for this shot but I didn't have one with me at the time, so I simply sat cross legged on the bluff and held the camera steady on my shoe. The articulated viewfinder let me frame the shot in that position and I was able to get a blur-free image. If you haven't got the gear, improvise.
	Canon A610 22mm (106mm) f/4 1/400 sec ISO Auto P Mode	"King Tide at the Jetty" (Portland, 2006) Yet another example of the photographer's prime truth that you have to be there at the time to get the shot. A king tide like this is pretty rare and it isn't going to wait so you must act fast. I saw the height of the water and went straight home for the camera. Wild and woolly isn't it!
	Canon 400D Tamron 70-300 70mm (112mm) f/11 1/400 sec ISO 200 A Mode	"Ocean Patriot" (Portland, 2008) The giant oil rig "Ocean Patriot" came into port in early 2008 for extensive maintenance and refitting, causing the popular Lee Breakwater to be closed to the public and many tradesmen throughout the district to close their books for the period to service the vessel. The thing was so large that it just had to be photographed and I tried out my brand new 400D on it. This shot was about as good as that camera got.
	Canon 400D Tamron 70-300 154mm (246mm) f/8 1/750 sec ISO 200 A Mode	"Great Immensity" (Portland, 2008) A Chinese vessel loading pine logs. No Port portfolio would be complete without some ship shots so that's why its here. it stands out well against the sky and its sharp enough. "Great Immensity"... seems that there is some redundancy there. Perhaps it's a Chinese thing.
	Nikon D60 Nikon 18-55 VR 40mm (60mm) f/5.3 1/800 sec ISO 100 A Mode	"Trawlers" (Portland, 2008) And then I took the D60 for a test drive on a clear, still morning and got a series of picture postcard shots. This one looks like a jigsaw. It's not always easy to quantify your expectations, but you know it when you find it. Compare this to the 400D shots. For me they were chalk and cheese. Yes I bought the camera!
	Nikon D60 Nikon 18-55 VR 55mm (83mm) f/5.6 1/640 sec ISO 100 A Mode	"New Coastguard Vessel" (Portland, 2008) A dream shot. The bright yellow of a new boat against the green of the gardens and the whole reflected with just enough waviness. Just perfect. Incidentally my brother got an equally good shot with his Panasonic compact, proving again that when it comes to outdoor shots you often don't need an SLR.
	Nikon D60 Nikon 18-55 VR 40mm (60mm) f/8 1/100 sec ISO 100 A Mode	"Fenders at the Trawler Wharf" (Portland, 2008) And the great shots went on on this blessed morning. Not everyone values this shot as highly as I do, but for me the blue sea and sky, the rusty iron and the black tyres and the ripply reflection make this a lovely image. It's amazing where you can find beauty sometimes.
	Nikon D60 Nikon 18-55 VR 55mm (83mm) f/8 1/50 sec ISO 100 A Mode	"Water under the Jetty" (Portland, 2008) This is another shot that indulges my love of the partial reflections of water. You can see both the rocks under the water and the reflection of the jetty at the same time. The pale grey of the concrete contrasts beautifully with the grey-green and the blue. Most people miss this stuff, you just have to see it.
	Nikon D60 Nikon 18-55 VR 30mm (45mm) f/8 1/320 sec ISO 100 A Mode	"Judith" (Portland, 2008) An attractive, well maintained Couta boat. This was a perfect day to catch it. I just had to frame out any extraneous objects, lock the focus and snap. Photographers bread and butter.
	Nikon D60 Nikon 18-55 VR 22mm (33mm) f/11 1/100 sec ISO 100 A Mode	"The Launching Ramp" (Portland, 2008) It was a lovely morning for photographing anything really and I got the launching ramp from the other side so that some of the town was behind it. A lovely shot (IMO). It's not quite as sharp as I would wish however and I'm not sure why not. Distant shots on the SLR seem not as well focused as nearer shots.
	Nikon D60 Nikon 70-300 VR 180mm (270mm) f/8 1/400 sec ISO 200 A Mode	"Eurogracht" (Portland, 2008) A big ship at the smelter berth. Impressive isn't she. The shot is good and sharp but methinks it lacketh magic. The curse of the grey sky I think...
	Nikon D60 Nikon 70-300 VR 98mm (147mm) f/8 1/500 sec ISO 200 A Mode	"Tugs at their Berth" (Portland, 2008) Portland's 2 tugs are always a good subject thanks to their handsome red, white and black livery which contrasts admirably with everything else. Chimneys, wharfs, cabins, cranes and ladders with just a touch of yellow. I guess that just about covers it all.
	Nikon D60 Nikon 70-300 VR 180mm (270mm) f/8 1/500 sec ISO 200 A Mode	"Woodchip Nozzle" (Portland, 2008) If you like large industrial machinery then this is the nozzle for you! The woodchip wharf is the Port of Portland's most consistently busy wharf so it is difficult to get a shot of the gear, but on this occasion it was empty and I grabbed the shot. It's not really as attractive a shot as i was hoping. Again the curse of the grey sky. It is rare for grey sky shots to compare well with those taken under a blue sky.
	Nikon D60 Nikon 70-300 VR 185mm (278mm) f/8 1/500 sec ISO 200 A Mode	"The Corkscrew" (Portland, 2008) A real Portland landmark, stuck on the end of the main breakwater. The public can only get to it by boat now, and I got this shot from the end of the Lee Breakwater. I must try and get this in a different light.