Photo Diary: Rediscovering Lagan

Another forecasted nice day, another autumn walk to enjoy. That’s how I found myself hopping on the 8A bus to walk on a forest I have loved so much. I’ve always thought of Lagan as a mostly evergreen woodland. It wasn’t really at the top of my list of places to visit come fall, to be honest. But I never knew it could transform to this extent.

The weather transitions very quickly in this place. The temperature dips from time to time so it’s always handy to have gloves just in case. Sunshine teased it’s way around the movement of the clouds. And whenever that golden light shows itself, the place changes again. I love how shadow and light transforms this place. I’ve walked this path a lot of times already. But somehow, whenever I visit, I always feel renewed awe.

I particularly like how things were reflected on the river surface: the trees, the sky – it’s magical. The River Lagan runs through central Belfast and served as the backbone of Lagan towpath – which is one of my favourite walking paths in the city. The deeper you go into the forest, the more it comes alive with its colours. It’s an amazing place to have a walk and to just appreciate nature, to enjoy the music it plays on its own.

Walking further, this foliage-covered path got my attention. It was the first time that I actually went up these stairs as I felt that it was too steep and too much effort in the past. However, with the blanket of freshly fallen leaves, I just can’t resist it. So I tried going up.

I was treated to this meadow, dotted by reds and golds all around. There are a couple of dogs playing and walking along the trail with their owners. Going down, there were even two sausage dogs that trailed me – they were so cute!

There’s always a distinct feeling of satisfaction when you work to get to something without knowing what’s on the other side, and end up being surprised. I know it was just a random, usual small-ish meadow. But nothing beats that feeling of random discovery: everything seemed vivid.

I’ve always been fascinated by details: the contrast of colours among the woods; the way a drying leaf holds on it’s branch against the wind; the way the light dapples amongst a canopy of leaves. I’ve always tried to capture these little things in photos, but somehow always fail to; which is also one of the reasons why I always take a lot all the time. The way it appears to the eye could never be captured through a lens, but I try my best nonetheless. I am obsessed with Bokeh because of this. But so far, my favourite photos I get with this effect are still in turn not that deliberate – I still have a lot to practice on.

My walk around this area is always punctuated by seeing this red bridge, one that whispers that I am almost done, that signals rest. This leads to one of my favourite cafes in the city, The Lockkeepeer’s Inn – more so because of where it was situated, right in the middle of this forest. Al fresco brunches in this café have always been a treasured memory of mine, especially when the sun is shining and you get to feel the gentle warmth of it against your face.

And of course, my walk wouldn’t be complete if it’s not dotted by one or two book photoshoot. I took Dolly Alderton’s Good Material for a whirl for the first time this day. When I take out a book or two during my walks and start photographing them, I swear one or two people always turn their head. But It just is a nice feeling to photograph books in the wild like this.

I know that this place is not really the prettiest woodland path there is but there’s something about attaching memories to places. And I just know that Lagan will always hold a special place in my heart. If you’re ever near the area, try visiting it! 🍂⋆｡˚

P.S. I don’t know if this will be my last autumn photo walk this year as the temperature is getting colder and the colors are almost gone. But we shall see. ˙✧˖°📷 ༘ ⋆｡˚

📍 Lagan Valley Regional Park
Belfast, NI
November 11, 2023

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