Being an April Born myself I have always found Spring time to be a wonderful time for travel and photography. There seems to be so much activity going on in nature after the stillness of winter.

After the success of my Photography trip to Yellowstone and The Grand Tetons during the spring of 2015 I decided once again to do a Spring Photography trip but to the UK and Paris this time. After about a month of planning and travel arrangements I was off to the UK to visit friends and also capture the beauty of nature in wales and the Cotswolds. I will talk about the Paris Leg of my trip in another blog.

Getting There

From Singapore

British Airways and Singapore airlines have several direct flights from from Singapore to London.

Many other airlines have connecting flights to London via either the middle east or via their European hubs.

Booking.com

From India

British Airways and Air India have direct flights from most Major Indian Airports. I flew from Chennai to London on British Airways.

Many other airlines have connecting flights to London via either the middle east or via their European hubs.

When to Go to Experience Spring in UK, France and Netherland

3rd week of March to mid of June is generally knows as Spring in the UK.

The Best time in my opinion is between 21st April and 21st May.

Typical Weather in Spring

Average Min/Max Temperatures: 9.3 ˚C- 15.4 ˚C

Average Min/Max Daylight Hours: 11-15 hours
Average Min/Max Rainfall (mm): 60 mm

Clothing

At these temperatures generally you don’t need heavy winter gear. The weather can be wet and cool though. So carry a good waterproof jacket with a bit of insulation.

For Clothing : Patagonia, Columbia, North Face

For Shoes : Keen, Merrell,

What was in my camera Bags?

As photographers we are ofter conflicted with what to take and what to leave behind just in case and this time was no different. I think I carried a little more than I should have but here is the list of equipment I carried for the trip.

Cameras

Canon EOS 5D Mark 3

Canon EOS 5DS 50.6 Megapixels Digital SLR Camera (Body Only)

Lenses

Canon EF 70-200mm F/2.8L IS II USM Telephoto Zoom Lens for Canon DSLR Camera

and a 2X Converter

Canon EF 17-40mm f/4L USM Lens

Zeiss Otus 55mm 1.4 Lens

Accessories

Gura Gear Bataflae 32 L Camera Bag

Gitzo Mountaineer Tripod and Arca Swiss Cube

Lee and B&W filters

Remote Release

Battery Grip for 5DSR

Torchlight

San Disk Extreme and Lexar CF Cards and SD cards

Lacie Rugged External Hard Drive for backing up my images

Macbook Pro

My Itinerary

Chennai-London-Cotswolds-Wales-London-Amsterdam-Paris-Chennai

Here I cover the areas i went to in a little more detail.

Cotswolds in UK

The cotswolds have long been a favourite place for artists and poets and even actors to go to get inspired. The cotswolds have held a special place in my hear ever since my first trip there during a trip to the UK during 2009. The Cotswolds is home to some of the most unspoilt, historic and famous towns and villages in England. The honey-coloured stone buildings provide a quintessential English charm found no-where else in the world. It really is a unique experience!

Beautiful villages such as Snowshill and Painswick nestle in the Cotswold Hills, are sure to delight any visitor. Historical market towns such as Cirencester, Tetbury, Stroud and Tewkesbury offer excellent local shopping with thriving markets bursting with local produce. For those visitors looking to enjoy the countryside from a more urban base the larger towns of Gloucester, with its historic waterfront, and Regency Cheltenham Spa offers impressive architecture, stylish shopping and world-class horse racing.

There are so many towns and villages to explore, you will need to start planning your next trip before you leave.

The Cotswolds official tourism website https://www.cotswolds.com is a great resource for planning your cotswolds trip.

I used booking.com to book my accommodation for this trip. On this trip I focused my efforts on three main areas namely 1. Bibury 2. Broadway and 3. Cirencester as I had some specific images in mind.

Getting there : The cotswolds are about a two hour drive from London. I rented a car at Heathrow Airport stayed overnight at a hotel the Holiday Inn Express London Heathrow T5 and headed to the Cotswolds in the morning. My base in the Cotswolds was the The Crown of Crucis Country Inn and Hotel at Cirencester. Using this base I was able to visit Bibury and Broadway and also shoot around the Cirencester area which had some nice woods with bluebells. The Image above was shot on a country road close to my hotel.

Booking.com

The highlight of the trip was shooting at sunset at Broadway Tower near Broadway in Worcestershire.I was up on the hill walking around the tower waiting for the right light from about 6pm to till about 9pm when magic happened in the form a fantastic Sunset. I shot the tower and sunset using my 5DS-R set on my Gitzo tripod and the Arca Swiss Cube for a precise composition. Its one of the best images I have ever taken. I also made a trip to the Cotswolds Falconry Center. Cotswold Falconry Centre is located 1 1/2 miles West of Moreton in Marsh, near the foot of Bourton on the Hill. The Cotswolds Falconry Center and the Batsford Arboretum are must visit places during your trip to the Cotswolds whether you are into photography or not.

Brecon Beacons in Wales

I always hate saying farewell to the Cotswolds but I had the next leg of my trip to look forward to. I set off for Cardiff, Wales which was an hour and a half from cirencester. The Severn Bridge enrolee to Cardiff is an impressive feat of Engineering. The Weather seemed to change the moment I entered Wales the rain started to pour and started questioning my decision to head the Wales. But Luckily the weather improved the next day. After a good nights rest at a friends place at Cardiff we set off to the Brecon Beacons to spend a day exploring and photographing in the Welsh National Park. I hope to come back to the Brecon Beacons for more extensive photography.

Idyllic Country Scene at the Brecon Beacons

On the 2nd Day in Wales I spent time shooting around Lake Roath Park and later in the day at Penarth Pier. Both scenic locations apt for photography. After this short introductory trip to Wales I set of to London and Heathrow .