Boldly going to take a picture

It's no secret that I like 'gimmicky' photos.  Not photos that have been 'shopped, but ones that take odd tricks to get.  It struck me today, as I was bobbing around off Langstone Rock, just why.  It's not a fetish for novelty or toys (though I surely have both in spades); it's that I love getting photos that show something you can't normally see. 

Back when I did my first year of triathlon, I remember being utterly captivated by, particularly, the sight of the swimmer pack from within.  All that sleek eager thrashing, usually at dawn - once in fog - and the sight of all the swimmers felt like a very privileged view.  Something which, to see, you have to learn a trick or put some effort or take some risk or endure some modest hardship to see. 

Langstone's just a lump of sandstone, but as a walker you only see the landward side.  The seaward side with its little columns and tiny secret beach is hidden until you take out a boat (and waterproof a camera - Aquapac for the win).  Just a little effort, for a completely novel, hidden-in-plain-sight view.

The kite aerial photography - again, a gimmick and a toy, but you can't get these images any other way (well, apart from a balloon or a small plane: same deal with those).

Timelapse, now that does even more magic.  I'm just dipping my toe in right now but even this little test reel shows something you can't see as a regular person looking around: you can see how the clouds don't just move around but form and unform within defined (but invisible) frameworks.  The clouds are just emergent properties of these different air masses.  Timelapse lets me photograph air.  How cool is that?

I still haven't tried to get that swimmer-pack shot.  Maybe this year...