Well, the beginning of May arrived far too quickly! But conditions in the wood were ideal for photography: no wind with light cloud overhead. the latter ensured that levels of contrast under the trees were very manageable. By early afternoon the musicians and guests were arriving and soon the maypole was erected. As mentioned in the previous post, Beltaine 2025 was the inspiration for this project and this year’s celebration was due to be its finale. So I got busy with the camera.
It was my intention to suggest a sense of movement around the maypole by slowing the shutter speed right down. In my opinion this tactic was successful although the movement is perhaps not as smooth as I would have hoped. There’s a good reason for this…… two rings of people surround the maypole, each person holding a ribbon, and each ring moves in a different direction. No wonder people were confused…. I think you can see it in their expressions.
I often moan about the wet and windy weather here on a west facing hilltop in coastal mid-Wales, but at least we are spared the exhausting, record-breaking heat the south-east of Britain is suffering from at the moment. After ten days down there recently it is a relief to get back home, catch up with work in the garden, and wonder what to do next. I may sneak in a final visit to Coed Tamsin – just to tie up a few loose ends!
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