Mist / Priddy

Blue, White & Gold

by Jeff Bevan · 23rd October 2021

Priddy Mineries – Mendip Hills, Somerset, UK. ID BR59598

North of the small City of Wells in Somerset is an area of the Mendip Hills called Priddy Mineries. It was once an industrial mining area for the Romans and then again for the Victorians. Leaving behind a mosaic of grasslands and ponds that was once a Somerset Wildlife Trust nature reserve. Despite its recent change of ownership it remains a popular local beauty spot and a great place to look for dragonflies and owls.

I came to the Mineries in the hope of a sunrise but what I got was a landscape that rapidly changed colour as the morning broke – blue, white then gold.

Blue

The blue hour is when the sun is still below the horizon, only the blue light gets to illuminates the landscape. The blue colours are best when the sky is clear.

During this time, before sunrise, it is obviously still very dark.

Waldegrave Pond – Priddy Mineries, Mendip Hills, Somerset, UK. ID BR59032

It is a peaceful time. The Canada Goose hardly moving on Waldegrave Pond – just as well with the 3 second exposure needed to get enough light into my camera.

Waldegrave Pond – Priddy Mineries, Mendip Hills, Somerset, UK. ID BR59032

Gradually, the other colours of the spectrum reach the scene as reds are added to mix.

There was not a lot of colour in this mornings sunrise. It it had we would have had – blue, red, white then gold!

Waldegrave Pond – Priddy Mineries, Mendip Hills, Somerset, UK. ID BR59178

Soon the pond is full of colour. Sadly, the geese had now disappeared. Perhaps going down to the fields on the Somerset Levels.

Waldegrave Pond – Priddy Mineries, Mendip Hills, Somerset, UK. ID BR59418

White

But before all that light reached the scene, there was the white hour. This is when the morning mist hangs around, before the heat of the sun burns it away.

This small tree grows between the pond and the Stockhill Woods behind.

Early Morning Mist – Priddy Mineries, Mendip Hills, Somerset, UK. ID BR59101

It provided a great focal point for the misty pictures. Behind the mist moves about, coming and going around the lumps and hollows of the mineries.

Early Morning Mist – Priddy Mineries, Mendip Hills, Somerset, UK. ID BR59099

Early Morning Mist – Priddy Mineries, Mendip Hills, Somerset, UK. ID BR959129

The white hour is over quickly in early autumn.

Gold

The golden hour is the famous one. That time when shadows are longer than the subject is tall. In fact, it can be a lot longer than an hour at this time of year. Even all day in the middle of winter.

The tall grass of the mineries is perfect for soaking up all those rich golden colours.