It would seem over the winter Rochdale has seen every type of weather known to humanity, From Sun shine to Snow and last week was a snowy week. It had been snowing lightly on and off for a good week before the heavens opened on that Wednesday night. A good amount had fallen but unfortunately i was unable to take my camera out of it's bag as i had work commitments....then came Saturday...a glorious day any week but this time there was still snow on the ground.
I had always wondered what it would be like to photography cheesedon mill in the snow, This frail yet strong reminder of a distant past rising from the beautiful white covering and this was my chance i planned on waking up at 6 am and making my way up edenfield road towards the ruins hopefully before sunrise......but i sort didn't whoops....i got up at 8 and left at 8:30 also i didn't envisage exactly how difficult this walk would be, I had done it loads of times why would it be so hard now? it took me an extra half and hour to make my way up to the moors and my shooting location.
I slightly hoped the snow would be pure and undisturbed but i didn't hold out too much hope and i was right no too, Cheesedon mill is a favorite of local dog walkers and on a farmers land. Luckily it only seemed to be two sets of prints, A set of dogs and a set i presume was from the dogs master, Rather than get disheartened by the tracks i decided i should incorporate them into the image.
I was intrigued by the boot prints and the dent they had made in the snow but i was also interested by how even though snow looks smooth and silky up close it has a bumpiness too it. Almost like a pile of very cold rubble while also being soft and malleable to the slightest touch, I looked to capture this in the foreground of my image and using the tracks as a leading line to the building and waterfall below.
After working around this boot print for a while i followed the tracks down to the side of the plunge pool and worked out a few shots. I decided panoramic was probably the way to go.
Next i turned my attention to the icicles hanging across the other side of the pool. I liked how they looked like shards of glass clinging to the rock and vegetation in an effort to avoid the cold waters below.
I still wanted one last image, I liked the idea of what i might of had but i didn't feel they were 'The Image' i didn't feel like they has the same feeling the place gave me, the same awesomeness so o took one last go at a panoramic but this time not so wide.
This was the final image i took and it definitely gave me what i was there looking for. She has the coldness of the snow and ice the beauty of the river falling down the wall out from it's archway and off down the hillside towards Manchester. In the end this shot made the hard draining over a mile long walk into the snow piled moor lands worth while.
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