Between rain that somehow knows when I want to get on my bike and rack up a few miles, and just not being able to get out, I haven’t been able to keep an eye on the work going on in Strathclyde Park to install solar lighting on some of the paths.
That said, I have been back for a look, but only when the rain stopped for a while, and at the moment that often means not getting out until after 9 pm, so not really much fun as it’s dark, and still very wet.
Yesterday was better, although it still got dark even though I was out before 6 pm.
Previously, the installation covered the southeastern shoreline, along the path from the car parks at the bridge over the River Clyde to the western end of the loch. There was also a short section along the path at the watersports centre.
From there, it was being extended past the theme park.
Since I was there last, that has been completed, and that section now ends where the path meets the road through the park, between the roundabout that leads up Bothwellhaugh Road, and the Roman Bathhouse area.
The new bits
Somebody’s been busy while I’ve been away.
I found two new area of lighting had been completed.
The first, I expected, and runs along the northern shoreline at the eastern end, a path with seating, facing the watersports centre.
The second was something of a surprise, given the existing line of lights along the path running from the footbridge to Hamilton, along the edge of the watersports centre. I found more solar lights had been installed along the path that run along the shoreline at the cat park area, and even leads into one of the car parks.
Some pics
I hadn’t planned on taking pics on this run, and the camera just happened to be in the backpack I grabbed.
I’m almost surprised I came back with anything useable. By the time I’d found the new areas, it was, as usual, pitch dark, with almost no lighting in the park (except near the watersports centre), and in this case, almost nothing to brace against for handheld shots – with almost no ambient lighting, even high ISO setting aren’t going to work without at least a vestige of support. The long exposures even THAT needs, and lack of anything to focus on means things suddenly become complicated.
Post-processing no longer works either – taking pics in even low lighting night areas provides enough light spill for shadow detail to be recorded, which can be raised from the depths. Without even that light, there are scenarios that just don’t have any detail to lift!
So, on with the fun…
I should add that I couldn’t deal satisfactorily with the blue effect in these images using the simpler tools I usually fix most issues with – they just didn’t make things better. I still forget I have the option of darktable with its overwhelming number of tools (most of which I’ve barely explored). That said, when I did remember it, and gave it a chance, the colours were easily corrected. Expect a revised view of some of these pics when I get a moment to revisit them.
This was the end of the path at the Bothwellhaugh area, near the Roman Bathhouse and Bridge, and the only place that had enough light in shot to be completely hand held. Guess I chose the right time to let the ISO ramp up to 6400. Maybe try even more in future as noise is not as bad as I expected.
I didn’t even see these people arrive with their doggie (I could hear them) – it was just too dark, despite the illusion of light in these pics.
Next, I went along to the road approaching the watersports centre, which is well lit.
A grabbed a couple of easy pics here, and couldn’t decide if I liked the one with, or without the street light in view, so here’s both, showing the start of the solar lit path which faces the centre from the shore opposite.
It’s harder to see the new lights in the second pic, and I just avoided a nasty surprise as I went t stand on that barrier on the right, for a little more height above the lights – it’s covered with slime, and I’d have gone flying if my foot hadn’t just slipped off as stepped on it.
This is the same lit path as viewed from the other end.
Not sure what happened here – despite being braced against a handy tree, all the pics were marred by light trails around the path lights. I guess the tree might not have been as solid as it looked, or the bark was soft, and allowed a little movement.
That’s a lifebelt mount on the left, and there had been people with torches (maybe just their phones) wandering along and lighting the trees. I’d been trying to catch them too, but as you can see, took so long to get a stable pic they had walked some distance by the time that happened.
Next stop was at the car park area near the footbridge over the River Clyde, connecting to Hamilton.
This spot is in complete darkness, with nothing but the sky to spill any light.
It would need a proper long exposure to catch anything – and probably to be done later, as the light in the sky would just blow it out.
At this level, all you see is the new path lighting, and the top surfaces of the picnic tables and seats – there is NO further detail to raise from the dark/shadow area (I tried).
Turning to face the other way, the path can be seen to be lit and leading through the gates into the watersports centre.
While there’s some light in the background, again it fails to reach the ground in this area, so there wasn’t any shadow details to raise in this pic either.
There IS only ONE line of lights here – this view looks over a large triangular area of tarmac, and the ‘other’ line actually disappears below the bottom of the pic, so can’t be seen.
Just for fun, I grabbed this pic too – it was so dark here, again it was impossible to see anyone walking towards you, and I was surprised by people appearing from ‘nowhere’, with no warning unless they were with someone they were talking to, or had torches/phones.
Secret Scotland 