England May or September?

[ken s]

I am going to England next year and am wondering about May or September. I will stay one week in Devon and one week in Yorkshire. A few years ago I spent two weeks in September in England, Wales, Scotland and had great weather. Any advice would be great. Will be shooting B&W 120. I love the stone circles the most, graveyards, really ancient stuff. Thanks, Ken

 

[Les McLean]

The weather in the the UK can be very unpredictable so it is always a bit of a lottery when deciding when to visit. IMO September can provide the best light you are likely to get in the UK and I think it is less likely that there will be heavy rain. Whenever you come be sure to pack wet weather gear.

 

[Leon]

yup - but late May early September are usually ok in the South at least ... but unpredictability is the keyword here.

For Stone Circles go to this site www.themodernantiquarian.com and do some searches on the areas you're interested in - lots of good info there.

 

[TPPhotog]

The light has been beautiful for the last few weeks, but we are known for our unpredictable weather. This is "Sunny Devon" and we've just has hail stones the size of peas coming down so hard you couldn't see through them to drive. It's taken most of the dirt off my car I forgot it's a white car.

Fortunately the light between storms is magical later in the year, so I'd recommend up till mid September.

 

[sparx]

Another vote for September. No particular reason other than it's my favourite time of the year running into November. Last year was fantastic with brilliant colours everywhere. This year has been a tad wetter though.

 

[Neil Souch]

I am going to England next year and am wondering about May or September. I will stay one week in Devon and one week in Yorkshire.

If you are coming to Devon don't miss Dartmoor. Also the north Devon coast has some of the best coastal scenery in the UK. Lotsa lovely graveyards in the Devon villages too. May and Sept are both good times to visit. But as othes have mentioned - don't forget your wet weather gear.

Neil.

 

[Dave Miller]

I am going to England next year and am wondering about May or September. I will stay one week in Devon and one week in Yorkshire. A few years ago I spent two weeks in September in England, Wales, Scotland and had great weather. Any advice would be great. Will be shooting B&W 120. I love the stone circles the most, graveyards, really ancient stuff. Thanks, Ken

Take my word for it, England is wonderful at anytime of the year, and there isn't a bad part to be found, you are never far from a photo opportunity, unless it's Prince Harry, best not to point a camera at him.
Having just spent a week of my holiday in Yorkshire I can recommend the area photographically. Both the East coast and the Dales will have you burning film at a great rate. Considering the summer droughts that we have had in recent years, I wouldn't worry about the wet weather, just make sure you rent a car equipped with a/c.

 

[Tom Stanworth]

I'd plug for september. There may be enough punch in the light for summery work but theres a good chance for a bit more mood with changeable weather. Autumn is the BEST in my opinion Oct, Nov...

Have fun,

Tom!

 

[Robert Kennedy]

Honestly, do it by hours of light in the day.

The UK is pretty far north. In fact Yorkshire is about where Edmonton is (latitude wise...or is it longitude..?)

In the summer you can get a LOT of daylight. Shooting intil 9 or 10 wouldn't be odd in some parts of the UK. So, go on-line and find the sunset-sunrise times for that area and go from there.

The Dales are just amazing. Especially when the heather is in bloom. Something to look up too. I recommend Whitby very highly. Very picturesque, if touristy at times, town.

And, as has been mentioned, the weather is crap shoot any time of the year. You could have an awful spring, or an amazing one. Same for late summer.

And any other time of the year....

Then again, I have seen winter days in England in December that are just breathtakingly clear and beautiful.

Followed by rain....

 

[Dave Miller]

Honestly, do it by hours of light in the day.

The UK is pretty far north. In fact Yorkshire is about where Edmonton is (latitude wise...or is it longitude..?)

In the summer you can get a LOT of daylight. Shooting intil 9 or 10 wouldn't be odd in some parts of the UK. So, go on-line and find the sunset-sunrise times for that area and go from there.

The Dales are just amazing. Especially when the heather is in bloom. Something to look up too. I recommend Whitby very highly. Very picturesque, if touristy at times, town.

And, as has been mentioned, the weather is crap shoot any time of the year. You could have an awful spring, or an amazing one. Same for late summer.

And any other time of the year....

Then again, I have seen winter days in England in December that are just breathtakingly clear and beautiful.

Followed by rain....

Sounds good to me, I think I'll go there!

 

[jrong]

I'll say Sept too (or preferably Oct when the light is better IMHO).
Everything is a bit too uniformly green in May. Of course, this is only a personal opinion, but I prefer not to go on photographic holidays in May unless its to the far, far north.... and I never go anywhere in the summer.