The Vintage Sports-Car Club's Lakeland Trial: Honister
Each year on the first weekend in November the Vintage Sports-Car Club holds its Lakeland Trial rally in the Lake District in North West England.
I first heard about the event when I was staying in the area in 2013. I knew exactly where they would be going, and thought it would make an interesting change from photographing landscapes.
The Lakeland Trial attracts more than a hundred cars which participate in a series of on- and off-road tests. That November I had stumbled on the "Drumhouse" stage where after a gentle drive past Buttermere the competitors head up the Honister Pass and then climb the even-steeper quarry track to the top of Fleetwith Pike.
The first year I photographed the event, in 2013, the weather made it a challenging experience for the drivers - and for photographers. In the wind high up on the fells, with temperatures close to zero, waves of rain alternated with gusts of sleet. My hands frozen, at times I almost gave up and headed for the nearest pub.
There are a few of these 1920s Bugatti Type 23s in the rally. Some are recreations, but originals can cost nearly £1m at auction.
When I asked participants if their cars weren't too valuable to be risked on these steep mountain tracks, they were nonchalant. Apparently when these cars were built, most roads were pretty rough.
Landscapes with cars
I'm not a car nut and am not really interested in photos of cars or motorsport. What attracts me is the combination of the cars and the setting, and also the people behind the steering wheels.
I'm up in Cumbria each November for the autumn colours. So at these events I am often using techniques applicable to landscape work rather than action photography. You don't need a telephoto. A wide-angle lens and grad filters help capture lots of detail in the sky and convey the atmosphere of being close up.
After a couple of times photographing at Honister slate mind and in the pass, I then started looking at other stages such as the muddy tracks of Whinlater forest or on the old Buttermere Road.
Buttermere and Crummock Water
As well as driving up the Honister Slate Mine, the event involves a few off road stages and means the participants must pass around the beautiful Buttermere and Crummock Water. So each year I try to photograph different roadside locations, putting my local knowledge to good use.