A Stormy Evening on Crosby Beach: Finding Beauty in the Gloom

My first visit to Crosby Beach, home to Antony Gormley’s haunting "Another Place" installation, was one for the books. The plan was to catch the sunset, but as we made our way up from home, it felt like the odds were against us. The drive was plagued by torrents of rain, and we nearly called off the trip more than once. But one of our crew, Mike, was already en route, and his enthusiasm kept the plan alive. So, we pressed on, hoping for a break in the weather.

By the time we reached Great Crosby, Liverpool, the rain had relented just enough, leaving us with a drifting murk of mist and drizzle that made any hope of a sunset fade. But what we got instead was something entirely unique. The landscape was muted in grey tones, a super soft light, where by the detail in the distance was reduced to non descript shapes and outlines, this offered a brilliant opportunity to photograph the iron men, in their weather'd detail with little distraction in the distance, focusing the views and the photographer's eye. 

In that late-blue hour, the beach transformed, taking on a soft, ethereal glow that hung between sea and sky. The heavy, featureless clouds absorbed the light, and the moodiness of the evening began to work its own kind of magic.

We weren’t alone in making an unlikely commitment to this moody scene, though. Four photographers, all lined up in close proximity, yet with the conditions as they were, each of us found our own angle, our own shot. While dog walkers passed and the beach remained blissfully free of casual selfie-takers, the creativity required to pull an image from that blanketed, damp gloom felt like a true photographer’s challenge.

The truth is, landscapes like these, on a night like this, demand a special kind of madness. It takes grit, imagination, and a bit of stubbornness to persist when keeping the camera and lens dry feels like an uphill battle. Soaked to the skin and tired from the chill, we eventually called it a night and made our way to a local haunt, the Crosby Frier. If anything could take us by surprise after that evening on the beach, it was the hilariously chaotic energy of that place—a takeaway experience I won’t soon forget!

Looking back, this trip was a reminder that there really is no such thing as bad weather in landscape photography—only opportunities hidden in the clouds.

• Dreaming Replicant 1 of 5
• Pentax K-1 Camera used:
• SMC Pentax-DA* 60-250mm f/4.0 Lens used:
• 250mm Focal length:
• f/11 Aperture:
• 0.5 Sec Exposure time:
• 100 ISO:

• Dreaming Replicant 2 of 5
• Pentax K-1 Camera used:
• SMC Pentax-DA* 60-250mm f/4.0 Lens used:
• 250mm Focal length:
• f/16 Aperture:
• 2 Exposure time:
• 100 ISO:

• Dreaming Replicant 3 of 5
• Pentax K-1 Camera used:
• SMC Pentax-DA* 60-250mm f/4.0 Lens used:
• 128mm Focal length:
• f/16 Aperture:
• 2.0 Sec Exposure time:
• 100 ISO:

• Dreaming Replicant 4 of 5
• Pentax K-1 Camera used:
• SMC Pentax-DA* 60-250mm f/4.0 Lens used:
• 250mm Focal length:
• f/11 Aperture:
• 2.0 Exposure time:
• 100 ISO:

• Silent Gormley Techno Party
• Pentax K-1 Camera used:
• Pentax DFA 28-105mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens used:
• 220mm Focal length:
• f/16 Aperture:
• 20 Sec Exposure time:
• 100 ISO:

Other Images from this adventure