Alan Thomas Photography

Alan Thomas Photography Photographic prints and individually tailored photography courses in Cornwall and Devon Do you have a DSLR or Mirrorless camera that you aren't sure how to use?

Would like to understand it better? Would you like to get off the Auto settings and take more control? Would you like to try long exposure or black & white photography? Are you confused by the technical jargon regarding ISO, F/stops and shutterspeeds? If the answer to any of these questions is YES, come and join me for a fun, relaxed and totally informal day of photography in Southeast Cornwall or

out on Dartmoor where we can work to improve your understanding of your camera and its possibilities. If you think I can help please get in touch and we can tailor a day to suit your requirements. A one day course is £190 (extra days can be arranged)

I look forward to seeing you!

The Boss and I are mid way through planning another road trip in the van. This time up to the Yorkshire Dales area. Whil...
17/05/2026

The Boss and I are mid way through planning another road trip in the van. This time up to the Yorkshire Dales area. While we're there we will be catching up with family, some of who live on the NE coast.

This image is of one of the groynes that are scattered along Redcar beach and I have always meant to go back and reshoot them. Access is really easy, just walk along the prom at the south end of town and you will be spoilt for choice.

We are not sure how long we'll be away this time so my posts could be missing for a while, but I will be back!.

This is another archive image that I have re-edited. I have posted it before but like my last posted photo I thought it ...
11/05/2026

This is another archive image that I have re-edited. I have posted it before but like my last posted photo I thought it worthy of having another look.

This is a long exposure shot taken at a local reservoir and is a location I will have to visit again soon while it still has some water in it!

I have now had a play with my new camera and I'm itching to get out and have a full day out with it. Watch this space!

I've said before I'm not a great fan of Bluebells, that doesn't mean I won't photograph them!
29/04/2026

I've said before I'm not a great fan of Bluebells, that doesn't mean I won't photograph them!

This is the last of my images from our Wales trip. It was never intended to be a photo road trip and to be honest I took...
25/04/2026

This is the last of my images from our Wales trip. It was never intended to be a photo road trip and to be honest I took very few photo's in all the time we were there.

Wales is definitely on the list as somewhere to re-visit, with maybe a little more time taking images.

This is the famous landmark bridge at Barmouth and can be photographed from various places along the estuary. If you haven't visited Barmouth, this is a combination of rail bridge and pedestrian bridge and is well worth walking across.

As you can see, the weather on this day was one of the nicer ones we had although it was still quite cold and windy. The backdrop to the bridge is just fabulous and the whole area is surrounded by mountains. Definitely a location and area to go back to.

Another image from our Wales trip. This little cascade was on the same path that the white tree image was taken from and...
20/04/2026

Another image from our Wales trip. This little cascade was on the same path that the white tree image was taken from and it was the colours of the rocks that caught my attention.

It is one of the most colourful stream beds I have seen and when I processed this shot I had to de-saturate the rocks just to get them looking real. I don't much about the geology in this area (Bala) so if anyone has any ideas about these rocks let me know.

Here's another image from our Wales trip. This image is a pano crop from a single shot (not the best ratio for Facebook ...
12/04/2026

Here's another image from our Wales trip. This image is a pano crop from a single shot (not the best ratio for Facebook it has to be said) taken from a forestry track and is looking back towards Cader Idris from the Bala/Dolgellau side.

The mountain is about 8 miles away at this point and raises a question that I have been asked about on many occasions.

The camera is a Canon 5d mk3 and has a 22mp sensor and for this image had the 24-105 F4 L lens attached. If you were to zoom in and view the file at 100% magnification there isn't much detail in the mountains themselves although the foreground is sharp and clear. Would the shot look any better with more megapixels to show more detail in the far landscape?

The answer is probably yes, although there are lots of factors that come into play, not least how much of a pixel peeper are you.

In this shot, because of the distance, there is an awful lot of atmosphere in the way and there is a lot of movement and moisture in the air (in this case snow and hail!). The resolving capabilities of the lens is sometimes overlooked in this equation and can play just as big a part as the megapixel count of the sensor. In this case, the lens isn't the sharpest in the bag but was the one I had on at the time. I sometimes think that resolution and megapixel count can overshadow or unduly influence the reasons we take photographs.

I don't think I would want to print this image because of the lack of details in the mountains but it is a reminder of a place and time that I enjoyed and just for that reason I like it anyway.

This is my first post for a while but I hope to be posting more often in the coming months. Truth to be told I just have...
08/04/2026

This is my first post for a while but I hope to be posting more often in the coming months. Truth to be told I just haven't been getting out and taking photos, mostly due to the shocking weather we've had over the last couple of months.

I took this image on a road trip through Wales with the Boss a couple of weeks ago in our new van. We stayed on a variety of campsites and one of them bordered a forestry woodland. To say we had mixed weather is an understatement. A couple of days previous to taking the photo we were walking this exact same path in shirt sleeves.
The sharp eyed amongst you will see the white streaks across the image because this day we were treated to hail and snow. I managed to grab this shot before we were forced off the mountain to seek some shelter.

If anyone can identify the tree I would be interested to know what it is as the branches looked like they had been bleached. There was another one close by but they were the only two we saw.

I'll post other images as I process them.

I haven't posted for the last few weeks mainly due to the weather and my reluctance to go out in really heavy rain and s...
01/02/2026

I haven't posted for the last few weeks mainly due to the weather and my reluctance to go out in really heavy rain and strong winds. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind getting wet if I'm out taking photos, but I want to be able to enjoy the process of taking images and not have to fight the elements while I'm doing it.

I did manage to get a day out on the north coast at Boscastle last week, and I picked the best option that was available according to the forecasts I looked at. They said, 60% chance of rain, gusts up to 30mph and cloudy. That was the best it had to offer and I was OK with that as I thought of moody skies and plenty of wave action from the recent storms that we have had.

That's not what I got.

When I arrived at Boscastle it WAS raining, but as I made my way along the coast path I could see patches of blue skies coming in from the west. Shortly after that it cleared over completely and I had blue skies and patchy cloud for the rest of the day. Why do we bother looking at forecasts? I decided to stick around for sunset but the clouds conspired against me and snuffed out any chance of decent colour.

Regardless of the conditions, Boscastle has plenty of opportunities for photographers and I will be exploring it a bit more in the future.
With that in mind if anyone was interested in having a meetup there in April let me know and we can see about arranging a day.

Here we are at the end of another year. This year seems to have disappeared faster than ever. I don't think I have had a...
15/12/2025

Here we are at the end of another year. This year seems to have disappeared faster than ever.

I don't think I have had as many photographic outings as I normally have over the course of a year and to be honest, I have been struggling with motivation. Losing my Mam in the summer didn't help.

Looking back at the images I did take last year, this one of Roseberry Topping is one of my favourites for several reasons. First, this was probably my first outing since my Mam passed and it's of a place that she would know and I know well from when I lived close by, and second, it is a good subject for an image anyway and shows an iconic landmark that is familiar to everyone who lives in that part of the North East of England.

So, with a new year to look forward to, and new places to explore and photograph with our new van, here's wishing everyone a very happy Christmas and we hope the New Year is good one!

Now we're getting into Winter, I'm starting to think more about seascape and coastal photography. Sunrise and sunset tim...
26/11/2025

Now we're getting into Winter, I'm starting to think more about seascape and coastal photography. Sunrise and sunset times are more appealing in the winter and you don't have the numbers of people around that you do in the Summer.

From where I live I have lots of options for coastal locations and I have a few places marked down to visit or revisit this winter.

One of those places is Ayrmer Cove in Devon. I might look at incorporating a visit there in association with a couple of beaches nearby that I haven't been to.

This image is one of a series that I took on my last visit and I'm looking forward to seeing if I can get some better/ different compositions next time.

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