Carlton Chambers, Hebden Bridge

This is the view of Carlton Chambers on Carlton Street, looking up towards the clock tower, at Hebden Bridge, Calderdale, West Yorkshire.

The image was shot as a single RAW file at around 4pm on the 22nd April 2017 and developed with On1 Photo RAW nearly 6 years later in April 2023!

Winter Photography

Now our caravanning holiday season stops in October, thanks to the Caravan Club no longer clearing any snow and ice from its roads and entrances, winters can be rather unfulfilling from a photography point of view. So, despite me having very little spare time these days, I spend some of it trawling through folders of photographs from past years looking for anything of interest.

Somehow, I’d forgotten about this shot, despite me having done a quick and rather flat Lightroom development for my old teaching website at the time (above/ left).

This is a good example of how RAW files shot years ago can benefit from the latest software and improved technique.

Modern Software

In the photo above, developed with Lightroom in 2017, one of the windows is blown out. In my latest On1-developed version, I was able to use part of another well-exposed window to replace the blown one – not to mention all the other possibilities the software offers.

Yes, you can do this with Photoshop, but to me, that’s always felt like an old-fashioned pixel graphics application clumsily adapted to photography – not built from the ground up to be a modern, comprehensive and nondestructive RAW development application like On1 Photo RAW.

These days, when developing an image with On1, I take my time using lots of effects and local adjustments, often to a subtle amount, in order to get the most out of the file. I often do this over some time, going back to review the image hours, days or weeks later. I find it pays to return with fresh eyes and not get carried away in one session.

Pragmatism

As I know from both previous and more recent visits, it’s rare to be given the opportunity for such a composition in Carlton Street, because of parked vehicles, people and other obstructions – including scaffolding!

Photography has its challenges of course, but for me, it has to fit around the rest of my life and responsibilities. I’ve never been one to seek golden-hour shots. I just make the most of what I see, and try to improve my observation and techniques with minimal gear.

Photography and publishing here are all I now have to satisfy my need to be creative.

Comments welcome below ….