Discovering Butley Creek

In my search for new photographic locations I get to explore some amazing, tranquil and beautiful locations. This week was no exception as I discovered Butley Creek and Boyton Marshes for the first time. Despite living only 10 miles away from this deserted stretch of river I had never visited before, and now having been there, I can't understand why it took me so long to discover such a lovely place.
This seems to prove the point that it is very easy to ignore the countryside on our doorsteps. I am as guilty as the next person in planning big photographic adventures to far flung places, believing that the more exotic the location the better the photographic potential. But sometimes our local area can be much more productive and can often teach us some very valuable photographic lessons; maybe we ignore it at our peril?

Butley Creek

Butley Creek is a tiny tributary off the River Ore on the Suffolk Coast. It could be described as a bleak place, with mudflats and saltmarsh on both sides and grazing marsh beyond - not a tree in sight and the north sea on the horizon.
However if you explore, the area has vast photographic potential. The saltmarsh is a mosaic of tiny creeks and pools dotted with numerous species of plant, and the mud flats are fantastic at reflecting the light from the sky which can alter the appearance of the place in a second. Having visited at 2pm on a windy afternoon I have decided to return at sunrise which I hope will reveal a more tranquil and calm scene. That is the beauty of local locations; if you don't get the image you want first time you can visit again when the weather conditions are right.
Surveying a location will reveal which areas are interesting and have possibilities so that when you do visit again you don't have to waste valuable time searching for an image.


The mouth of Butley Creek where it joins the River Ore


I visited Butley Creek with the intention of finding a new location which I could use to illustrate the beauty and fragility of the Suffolk coast. For me Butley Creek offers the following photographic possibilities:
1. Landscapes and Waterscapes - the saltmarsh and mudflats taking on different dimensions depending upon the weather conditions and the available light.
2. Flora and fauna - the RSPB reserve at Boyton Marshes on the opposite side of the sea wall from Butley Creek provide great views of nesting Avocets as well as many geese and wading birds.
3. The Butley Ferry - observational shots of the ferry in operation and people using the environment as well as detailed landscape shots of boats on the water.
4. Boyton Dock and the old war time pill boxes- the remains of which add a historical element to the environment.
Having discovered Butley Creek this lovely deserted place is somewhere I will visit regularly, not least for its peace, tranquility and the variety of images that it offers, but also for the lessons in composition and use of light that shooting in familiar landscapes can teach us.