Ade McCabe
Black.
An unfortunate name for the title of a much photographed image but if you can be bothered to read on then hopefully all will become clear.
I came here to photograph this tree as many others do. If it's your first visit, as it was mine then I don't think you are prepared for this location offering much more than just this one image. If you have the conditions I guarantee you will have a months worth of keepers. It's a horseshoe shaped bay, with a small island in the distance, reeds on the shoreline, treelined on both sides and an oasis of tranquility.
I've followed a springer spaniel on Facebook for over 5 years, called Max. The FB page is called 'Max Out in the Lake District' and across platforms his following extended to 60k+. Over the last year you can see he had been going downhill. He was 14 after all and for a pedigree springer that's quite an old age. He had a couple of seizures about 3 weeks ago and it was obvious his time was coming to an end.
Kerry, his owner had done live feeds every morning during lockdown of his morning walks/permitted exercise. Just seeing them out in the lakes, which I was missing like crazy was the highlight of my day.
These continued when we were allowed out to play, with many meetups to raise money for Keswick Mountain Rescue and the PDSA. Throw in how Max became Kerry's, how he was the reason that Kerry overcame depression after an awful accident, and some marvellous photography by his wife and it was a potent mix for any dog lover. Over the years Max was joined by Paddy and Harry, his two adoring younger brothers. Both springers.
For any dog lover you couldn't fail to be touched by the three of them and by the story of Max. It led to a number one best selling book called 'Max the Miracle Dog,' which I can highly recommend. It will have you in tears, but in a good way.
Max was put to sleep in his beloved Manesty Woods at the southern end of Derwentwater about a week ago. It was heartbreaking reading about it but I have nothing but admiration for how Kerry has handled it. There is a lot to be said for having such stoicism in the face of adversity, and Kerry has shown it in spades.
After I left here and with it still early, I visited the statue dedicated to Max and his brothers that is a permanent fixture in Hope Park to pay my respects. The work and amount of money they have raised for the PDSA is nothing short of remarkable and there is a donation box next to the plinth and statue.
Anyway, the image. You either need to be 7'ft 4"or make the short climb and have a right leg like Chris Hoy.
It's only about 4ft up some rocks that stick out with an overhanging tree that's in the shot unless you lean outwards. All sounds relatively simple so far until you realise a tripod is out of the question and you have to adjust your settings accordingly to hand hold.
There is one rock that sticks out slightly, but it is as slippy as anything and to make matters worse to ensure the branch remains above the top of Blencathra and to get Otterbield Island in the right place aesthetically you are dangling out on this slippy rock, hand holding and also slightly crouching with all your weight on your right thigh, hence the Chris Hoy reference! It's not easy and nigh on impossible to focus stack, unless of course you happen to play for the LA Lakers.!
I was listening to Black whilst driving here. It's a song about loss and dark clouds, fear and the hopelessness of the unknown, and whilst feeling fitting at the loss of a dog that has touched thousands of people worldwide, my mind was in photoshop selection mode and decided that if I clicked the 'Invert' box then instead of sadness, I'd have happiness:) So in my mind I clicked the invert box and after the short walk down to Otterbield Bay, that is exactly what I felt.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgaRVvAKoqQ
Black.
An unfortunate name for the title of a much photographed image but if you can be bothered to read on then hopefully all will become clear.
I came here to photograph this tree as many others do. If it's your first visit, as it was mine then I don't think you are prepared for this location offering much more than just this one image. If you have the conditions I guarantee you will have a months worth of keepers. It's a horseshoe shaped bay, with a small island in the distance, reeds on the shoreline, treelined on both sides and an oasis of tranquility.
I've followed a springer spaniel on Facebook for over 5 years, called Max. The FB page is called 'Max Out in the Lake District' and across platforms his following extended to 60k+. Over the last year you can see he had been going downhill. He was 14 after all and for a pedigree springer that's quite an old age. He had a couple of seizures about 3 weeks ago and it was obvious his time was coming to an end.
Kerry, his owner had done live feeds every morning during lockdown of his morning walks/permitted exercise. Just seeing them out in the lakes, which I was missing like crazy was the highlight of my day.
These continued when we were allowed out to play, with many meetups to raise money for Keswick Mountain Rescue and the PDSA. Throw in how Max became Kerry's, how he was the reason that Kerry overcame depression after an awful accident, and some marvellous photography by his wife and it was a potent mix for any dog lover. Over the years Max was joined by Paddy and Harry, his two adoring younger brothers. Both springers.
For any dog lover you couldn't fail to be touched by the three of them and by the story of Max. It led to a number one best selling book called 'Max the Miracle Dog,' which I can highly recommend. It will have you in tears, but in a good way.
Max was put to sleep in his beloved Manesty Woods at the southern end of Derwentwater about a week ago. It was heartbreaking reading about it but I have nothing but admiration for how Kerry has handled it. There is a lot to be said for having such stoicism in the face of adversity, and Kerry has shown it in spades.
After I left here and with it still early, I visited the statue dedicated to Max and his brothers that is a permanent fixture in Hope Park to pay my respects. The work and amount of money they have raised for the PDSA is nothing short of remarkable and there is a donation box next to the plinth and statue.
Anyway, the image. You either need to be 7'ft 4"or make the short climb and have a right leg like Chris Hoy.
It's only about 4ft up some rocks that stick out with an overhanging tree that's in the shot unless you lean outwards. All sounds relatively simple so far until you realise a tripod is out of the question and you have to adjust your settings accordingly to hand hold.
There is one rock that sticks out slightly, but it is as slippy as anything and to make matters worse to ensure the branch remains above the top of Blencathra and to get Otterbield Island in the right place aesthetically you are dangling out on this slippy rock, hand holding and also slightly crouching with all your weight on your right thigh, hence the Chris Hoy reference! It's not easy and nigh on impossible to focus stack, unless of course you happen to play for the LA Lakers.!
I was listening to Black whilst driving here. It's a song about loss and dark clouds, fear and the hopelessness of the unknown, and whilst feeling fitting at the loss of a dog that has touched thousands of people worldwide, my mind was in photoshop selection mode and decided that if I clicked the 'Invert' box then instead of sadness, I'd have happiness:) So in my mind I clicked the invert box and after the short walk down to Otterbield Bay, that is exactly what I felt.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgaRVvAKoqQ