Roger Bennion's photos with the keyword: Dunstable Downs

Thank you very much to Herb for inviting me to join the 'UK Landscape Photography Group'. It's gone midnight here, so it was yesterday afternoon that I decided to go to Dunstable Downs via the Whipsnade Tree Cathedral. When I arrived at the Tree Cathedral, I looked around the car and I couldn't see my camera bag! Started to panic a bit but then realised that I had been so pre-occupied with making a hot flask of coffee and finding an extra layer of clothing in case it was going to be cold that I didn't pick up the bag. Felt really stupid :-) There wasn't really time to go back home but I did have my phone with me so the only option was to use the phone camera and this, thankfully, saved the day :-) Will be doing a Check List before going out next time :-)

Dunstable Downs is the highest point in the county of Bedfordshire at 243metres (797 feet) Happy Fence Friday, All

This is part of a structure at Dunstable Downs. There is an explanation nearby saying - "Is it a sculpture? A crashed spaceship? Something the builders left behind? No. It's a wind-catcher, part of the ventilation system that enters the Visitor Centre. Fresh air goes in through the long vertical vents on each side and travels through an underground pipe into the Visitor Centre. In the summer this cools the air so that the building doesn't need electric fans or air conditioning. In winter it warms the air slightly so that the boiler doesn't have to work so hard to heat the building.". I have taken lots and lots of photos here and have always tried to look for an original angle without too much success. I had recently seen a photo of this structure in the Visitor Centre where the photographer had selected a small part of the structure. The sky was a rich deep blue and there were no clouds. It inspired me to try something similar. On World Photography Day the weather looked promising so I decided to head out to Dunstable Downs. There were a few clouds about and the sky was quite light but still blue :-) This is my attempt at a close view and a PiP is attached showing a general view taken way back in October 2021. I thought my photo was a little bit relevant with energy costs going up almost daily! And, I was thinking that I could, perhaps, get one installed in our front garden to save on our energy bills :-)

HAPPY FENCE FRIDAY, ALL. This was part of a much longer fence at Dunstable Downs. Not sure if it was the correct thing to do. BUT, decided to add a little bit of soft focus :-)

HAPPY FENCE FRIDAY I had to look at my photo a few times to make sure there is fence here. And, there is one.....honest :-) Another photo taken at Dunstable Downs.

Dunstable Downs are part of the Chiltern Hills in England and named after the nearby town of Dunstable. This is the highest point in the county of Bedfordshire at 243metres (797 feet).

Explored! Thank you very much :-) SATURDAY SELF-CHALLENGE 23 FEBRUARY 2019 WORK ON GETTING THE SHARPEST POSSIBLE FOCUS ON OUR SUBJECT A good challenge because it made me stop and think about where the point of focus should be......rather than just snapping away!!! I know it is sometimes said that with a landscape scene you should focus on a point approx one third of the way into the scene. But, here I was not entirely sure about the point of focus so I decided upon the nearest tree :-) This is Dunstable Downs, the highest point of the county of Bedfordshire. It is not too far from where we live and I love being here :-) Therefore, for 'Sight and Sound' I have chosen "Love So High" by Cher :-) Added to Sight and Sound : Pictures & Music ♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ Listen here ~ Love So HIgh ~ Cher

Explored! Thank you very much :-) HAPPY FENCE FRIDAY, ALL :-) This shot was taken on Dunstable Downs in southern Bedfordshire, England. The Downs reach a height of 797 ft (243 m), the highest point of the county of Bedfordshire. A slightly obscure musical link but "Higher Ground" by Stevie Wonder seems appropriate :-) Added to ~ Sight and Sound : Pictures & Music ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ Listen here ~ Higher Ground ~ Stevie Wonder

There seems to be lots of songs about flying so I have decided upon "Fly Away" by John Denver & Olivia Newton John :-) Added to ~ Sight and Sound : Pictures & Music ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ Listen here ~ Fly Away ~ John Denver & Olivia Newton John

There are a couple of kites flying here. And, that 'scratch' towards the top of the frame could very well be a plane flying to London Luton Airport :-) So, "Still Learning How to Fly" by Rodney Crowell comes to mind although I had kinda, momentarily, forgotten that this song features on "The Cicadas" album from 1997 :-) Everything that Rodney Crowell wrote and recorded is my fave :-) Added to ~ Sight and Sound Acoustic version ~ ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ Listen here ~ Still Learning How to Fly ~ Rodney Crowell with Kieran Goss OR Electric version ~ ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ Listen here ~ Still Learning How to Fly ~ Rodney Crowell

To me the clear choice here is "The Power Lines" by Nanci Griffith. One of my faves. But, then again, everything Nanci sings is my fave :-) This track is from Nanci's 1991 album "Late Night Grande Hotel". Added to ~ Sight and Sound ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ Listen here ~ The Power Lines ~ Nanci Griffith

This is a Wind-Catcher. I previously used a shot of part of this structure. For an explanation of its purpose please see following ~ www.ipernity.com/doc/292367/41450056 I am linking my shot to "Hear The Wind" by Gene Clark. 25 years ago (May 24, 1991) we, tragically, lost Gene. He was only 46 years old. Gene was buried at Saint Andrews Cemetery in his birthplace of Tipton. His headstone is simply inscribed "Harold Eugene Clark – No Other". Added to ~ Sight and Sound ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ Listen here ~ Hear The Wind ~ Gene Clark There is currently a Petition to Induct Gene Clark into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. "During Gene's time with The Byrds he penned many of their most beloved and influential works including “I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better” “Set You Free This Time” “Here Without You” “She Don’t Care About Time” and was the main composer of “Eight Miles High” considered by many to be among the greatest singles of the 1960s." Rest in Peace, Gene.

This structure is on Dunstable Downs and nearby there is an explanation :-) “Is it a sculpture? A crashed spaceship? Something the builders left behind? No, it's a wind-catcher – part of our ventilation system. Fresh air goes in through the long vertical vents on each side. It travels through an underground pipe into the Visitor Centre. In summer, this cools the air so the building doesn't need electric fans or air conditioning. In winter, it warms the air slightly so that our wood-chip boiler doesn't have to work so hard to heat the building.” Which, of course, leads to “Hasten Down The Wind” written by Warren Zevon :-) Linda Ronstadt's version with ace harmony vocal by Don Henley has always been a fave for me but I don't know why it has taken me such a very, very long time to properly listen to the awesome original version by Warren Zevon with wonderful slide guitar playing by David Lindley and superb harmony vocal by Phil Everly. Added to ~ Sight and Sound ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ Listen here ~ Hasten Down The Wind ~ Linda Ronstadt Original version ~ ♪ ♫ Listen here ~ Hasten Down The Wind ~ Warren Zevon One of the YouTube comments says "One of the most beautiful and saddest songs ever..." Yes, I agree.

Extracts from Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Townes_Van_Zandt - "Townes Van Zandt was an American singer-songwriter. Many of his songs, including "If I Needed You" and "To Live Is to Fly" are considered standards of their genre. He had a small and devoted fanbase, but never had a successful album or single and even had difficulty keeping his recordings in print. In 1983, six years after Emmylou Harris had first popularized it, Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard covered his song "Pancho and Lefty" scoring a number one hit on the Billboard country music charts. Much of his life was spent touring various dive bars, often living in cheap motel rooms and backwoods cabins. Townes Van Zandt died on New Years Day 1997 from health problems stemming from years of substance abuse. Townes died 44 years to the day after Hank Williams, Sr., who had been a songwriting influence." "To Live Is To Fly" is considered to be one of Townes' finest songs...No argument there!! And, it brings to mind my photo of an intrepid Paraglider at Dunstable Downs :-) To live is to fly low and high So shake the dust off of your wings And the sleep out of your eyes Added to ~ Sight and Sound ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ Listen here ~ To Live Is To Fly ~ Townes Van Zandt

Explored! ~ Thank you very much :-))) This guy was about to fly away so the obvious link for moi is "I'll Fly Away" by The Dillards :-) "I'll Fly Away" is the opening track on their 1968 album "Wheatstraw Suite". This track only lasts for 39 seconds and I am so used to "Nobody Knows" following on immediately :-) I have, therefore, found a link to the complete album. I wouldn't normally do this but I can now listen to the whole album without having to go searching for my cd :-) Added to ~ Sight and Sound ♫ ♪ ♪ ♫ Listen here ~ I'll Fly Away ~ The Dillards p.s. "Wheatstraw Suite" is one of my all-time fave albums :-)

Was having diffuculty deciding which track to use with this shot...........finally decided upon "Riders on the Storm" by The Doors :-) Added to ~ Soundtrack to Life Listen here ~ Riders on the Storm ~ The Doors Please view on black :-)