Tuesday, 18 November 2025

Autumn. 50 Shades Darker.

                                                 ALL PHOTOS CLICK FULL SCREEN.


As I have a large collection of autumn photographs I might as well complete the trilogy. Dumbarton Rock and Levengrove Park during a thunderstorm seen through a dark, homemade filter, held in front of the camera. Much cheaper than buying professional clip on filters. Very pleased with this effect I remember. Never worked as well as this again so only a passing experiment.


Dog walker. Clydebank Park in Autumn.


An autumn morning along the River Clyde at Clydebank.


A rhapsody in pink. Unusual bush in autumn colour.


Blue beauty. Hydrangea in September. 


All along the watchtowers. A walk along the deep water channel.


At maximum low tide, at certain times of year, you get up to an hour to walk dry footed along the towers. Wear boots or wellies as the mud in places is ankle deep and at the first sign of the tide coming in you need to retreat fast..... As it comes in fast.


But a unique day for photography. Same line of towers at high tide a few hours later.


The first tower opposite Dumbuck Quarry.


Tide rushing in. The haunt of mermen, mermaids, and seabirds. This human heads back for dry land... or dry-ish mud.


Tide rushing back in. You have to be careful as in certain spots it can creep in front of you unnoticed meaning you have to wade across for the unwary.


A busy Clydebank in autumn.


The Erskine path along the Clyde shoreline.


Around ten years ago they were pulling down some Glasgow tower blocks which made good silhouettes. Mosspark district here.


Pollokshaws Hi rise flats. These ones are now gone.


Large 'super moon' over Clydebank.


With shorter daylight hours and dark by 4:00 pm in December a walk along the Clydeside at Finnieston is often more colour filled than the daytime view of mist and grey mornings.


Bridge reflections at Finnieston. River Clyde. 


BBC Scotland HQ. A still evening required with zero wind to get perfect reflections.


STV studios right next to the BBC. Makes sense to have them together in one spot.



A kingdom of nature's stars.


A bird dog. Bellahouston Park.


A wildflower strip at Bellahouston Park. Unfortunately a lot of wildflower strips are one season only so I was lucky to capture this. By the second year very few came up, smothered out by completing weeds, like thistles and dock. Yet other verges I've noticed, seeded naturally by nature, come up 40 years in a row when untouched. Presumably because that's where the flowers wanted to grow by themselves and had the correct habitat to thrive in. Still something of a mystery to it. The dark arts. A lot going on unseen in the ground below. The sisters of mycelium perhaps, lending a hand in wild sown beds? I noticed one year outside a school several large circle beds of wild red poppies, deliberately dug and seeded. A beautiful display. By the second year few remained, smothered out by non flowering weeds. By the third year not one remained.


My birdland kingdoms.


Fun to watch them play in the evening sunlight.


Arthur's Seat crows.


The return to Glasgow in winter darkness. 8:00 PM.


And you do get rewards in autumn. A time of bounty.... hunters....


The Clyde is an old name. River valleys can be warmer than the surrounding landscapes. Before the UK joined the EU The Clyde and other UK river valleys held the nations fruit growing slopes, sheltered and hopefully frost free for the growing seasons. The 'warm valley'... though not as warm as hotter countries elsewhere, so most of the Clyde glasshouses are long gone, despite climate change warming further. But one future day...who knows... they might come back.


The warm valley view. The upper Clyde orchard trail.


Autumn is also good for sunsets, more moisture in the atmosphere. A82 at Mountblow heading towards the west.

The door into Heaven....

The living heart of the sun....


The sign of the cross.

Tuesday, 11 November 2025

Glasgow. 50 Shades of Autumn.

                                                ALL PHOTOS CLICK FULL SCREEN.


A Chestnut Stonehenge. With over 20 years of autumn photographs in my file collection I thought I could indeed conjure up 50 shades of the autumn season, Sept, Oct, Nov, so here goes. Many of them my favourite photos over the years.


A goldfinch. A five colour bird, at least. Some of them a lucky occurrence. Right place, right time.


 A thrush with a berry.


Others deliberately crafted, Waiting patiently for the right characters in my photograph to appear. A cyclist in Bellahouston Park with the great wood of Pollok behind. 


Arria. Up close and personal. Some achieved with a small drop of magical thinking.


An ant swing in Bellahouston Park. Illuminated with autumn sunshine.


Some real creatures I meet....


Some, charms of the imagination, perhaps....


We have all seen things in nature that could not possibly exist....


A trick of the light...           in a silent glade.


Or a lucky opportunity. At the right age to believe in such creatures... as I did once.


and a part of me still believes in 'doorways'    .....or portals into other realms.....


As I have glimpsed perfection in nature so many times over the years. 'That golden hour.'


Where everything just falls into place... 


....and I feel the euphoria of crossing over into another realm...


This strange mysterious kingdom called autumn. Lennox Castle with the mist rising off the forests after a cold wet night under the power of the sun.


and things just fall into place.... in nature. My lifelong companion outdoors.


A swan family....           without even trying...


City of Glasgow from the heights of Luddin Scar.


or a change of the light...at this time of year. 50 shades grey... with the curtains closed.


Autumnal splendour. The Scottish Border region.


Autumn rush. High Knightswood. Where my own fairy still lives.


Wet morning. The Fountain. A Clydebank Park.


Yet beauty is always my muse. Now and forever.


Birdland Sunset.


Friends at play....


And so much fun, even dogs join in....


before flying off to bed. Dog walking home of course. Dogs can't fly.... :o (   .... not without some shaken fairy dust sprinkled over them....


.....and from the lush abundance of summer flowers....


....to the equal abundance of autumnal hues...


 and a last feast for all creatures... like 'the last supper.' Wonder who first thought of that idea...?


before winter sets in. The grim months to endure and persevere... not as harsh as previous decades and centuries past mind you.... 


Freezing cold and still dark by 4pm though. Glasgow city centre view.


with the occasional bright sunset to lift the spirits....


before the dread of leafless trees...


The 'little death'....arrives.


five long months...................................before the great clock starts up again....


and Persephone rises from her underworld... to start spring again.... The Greek explanation of the seasons.....

maybe this is her here.... or maybe not. :o)

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2y8a21