Tag Archives: southsea

Some Video of the Hovercraft

I posted some shots of the Hovertravel operations previously and, at the end of that post, I mentioned that I had switched to video. Sometimes, when the lighting isn’t great, the photos can look a bit dull. However, video seems to work better in such conditions because the motion is more dominant than the colours. It also gives a better impression of what is happening. A still shot doesn’t easily convey that something is drifting sideways or turning tightly. Video gives you that.

The wind meant that the motion was pretty dynamic for the approach and departure from the terminal. Also, there were a few other vessels in the vicinity and that needed to be routed around adding a bit more interest. I realised that, while the conditions weren’t great, it was quite clear looking across to Ryde. With the 200-800mm on one body and a steady support on a post, I was able to video the departure from Ryde and the whole transit. The Wightlink catamaran did time it really badly crossing in front of me just as the hovercraft was rotating on the slipway but never mind. Since it was 4k footage, I was able to do a bit of stabilisation and zooming in when processing the footage afterwards. It would be nice to have had more natural sound, but the wind was so strong, the footage only has the sound of buffeting of the microphones. Here is the video I pulled together from all that I shot that day.

A Windy Day with the Hovercraft

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On a quiet Saturday morning, I had a desire to get down to the coast. There were a few photo ideas I had been thinking about and, with no competing things going on, I decided to head down. The downside to this was that the weather was not going to be great. Potential for some showers and definitely some strong winds in the forecast. This might thwart some plans, but the lack of sun might also mean some angles were less problematic from a backlighting point of view.

A trip to Portsmouth means it is unlikely I will miss out on some Hovercraft photography. High winds can mean that the hovercraft service gets suspended but, on this occasion, luck was on my side. Moreover, instead of the regular schedule, they seemed to be running a shuttle with the one hovercraft running back and forth almost constantly. This gave me more chance to get some material without waiting for too long.

Southsea seafront has been undergoing a major refurbishment, and it had reopened on this weekend. The beach had been inaccessible for a long time so now it was possible to get back close to the operations at the Hovertravel terminal. I started off getting a bunch of still shots. The tide was not too high when I got there but there was a bank of shingle on the approach to the slipway. This meant the hovercraft was climbing over this bank before getting on to the concrete. It made for an interesting motion although the skirt accommodated the different sections with relative ease.

Having got a few photos, I decided that I would switch to video for the next rotation. That video will get its own post in due course.

A Tank Landing Craft

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Before mum took her hovercraft back to the Island, we had a stroll along the waterfront at Southsea. The construction work was blocking off a lot of the space, but the park area was open (if a little soggy). There is a museum to D-Day which I have yet to visit. I will have to check it out at some point. Outside the museum, there is a tank landing craft from the Second World War. It can be visited if you are in the museum but, even from the outside, you have a close view of it. Tanks in the war were a lot smaller than they are now but even then, carrying a bunch of them required a big boat. I have no idea what it could have been like to head to a foreign shore in this thing.

Remains of a Church

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The Royal Garrison Church is a ruin along the waterfront in Portsmouth. It was originally built in the 13^th century but it was bombed in the Second World War and has not been rebuilt. It sits as a reminder of what has been before while it still has a graveyard around it so remains the resting place of many. The lack of a roof makes for some interesting lighting and the shapes of the walls and windows are more apparent. As I walked back to the station, the church was backlit and I couldn’t help grabbing a couple more shots.

My Usual Hovercraft Spot is Out of Bounds!

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The family was gathering for lunch for my birthday and my mum was coming across on the hovercraft to join us. Whenever I have previously been down at the hovercraft terminal, I have been on the beach just to the east of the slipway. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that there is a large infrastructure project underway along the shoreline and that section is cordoned off. The only option is a small path on the other side of the terminal.

This was not an ideal spot as things are more backlit. I decided that video might be a better bet given the conditions. Even when mum was making her return trip, the light was still not great. We both stopped by to watch an earlier trip arrive and depart. As the departure headed out, the blast of propwash was a bit more than expected and my hat departed my head! Got to focus on the shot and then grab the hat later. Someone had caught it for me anyway!

Repairing the Beach

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There had been some pretty stormy weather shortly before we got to the UK. When we went to Southsea to pick up mum from the hovercraft, there was some work underway on the beach that sits below the terminal. By the look of things, the storm had moved the shingle around quite a bit and they needed to regrade the shoreline. Someone was busy working on it while the hovercraft was on its way over. They had to get out of the way before it arrived, of course, but they seemed to have done a decent job of it in plenty of time. I wonder how often they need to rework the shore to keep things where they need to be for the service.

Another Chance to Photograph the Hovercraft

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During our trip to the UK, my mum came across to spend some time with the family. She used the hovercraft to make the crossing and we went to Southsea to pick her up. Regular readers will know that I love hovercraft so it would have been churlish not to get some shots of its arriving – I mean her arriving! I skipped the long lens shots and instead focused on the approach and arrival. Here are those shots. Her return journey was frustrated by high winds, so we didn’t get a second chance to photograph the hovercraft when taking her back.

Can I Sneak In Another Hovercraft Encounter

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Our trips to the UK that involve some time on the Isle of Wight also are likely to include me trying to get a little time with the hovercraft. On our most recent trip, we didn’t go to the Island. However, we did pick up and drop off my mum when she came across and what form of transport did she use? Yep. I had a reason to be hanging around at the hovercraft terminal.

I did get some photos of the hovercraft but, this time, I decided to focus on some video of them coming and going. Not only were they running the regular service but there was also some training underway so we got an arrival that didn’t come up on the slipway but instead headed back out to see. Here is the video I edited.

Back To The Island So Back To The Hovercraft

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We left plenty of time to drive to Portsmouth to catch our ferry to the Isle of Wight so, naturally, traffic flowed smoothly and we got there with an excess of time. Nancy wasn’t in the least surprised that I decided to park up on the seafront at Southsea to kill some time. Oh, was this next to the Hovertravel terminal? Well, that’s lucky.

We had just enough time for one arrival and one departure before it was time to head to our ferry terminal. That wouldn’t be all though. The hovercraft passes the car ferry during its crossing so I was able to get some shots of it in operation from the deck of the ferry as we left Portsmouth. We also took a walk along the front at Ryde after lunch with Mum. Just enough time to see the hovercraft arriving and departing there too.

One interesting addition was Solent Express. This was used on Hovertravel’s services a few years ago but was withdrawn when the new hovercraft were commissioned. I had understood it was stored somewhere. Apparently, they needed space wherever that was because it is back at Ryde but still looks stored. There is plenty of seaweed around it making it look like it hadn’t gone anywhere for a while. I wonder what its future holds?

Trafalgar Anchor

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If you are used to a modern shape of an anchor, particularly one for a large ship, the old style of anchors in the days of the early 1800s will be rather strange looking. They look like a giant version of the sort of anchor you would see on a small boat. This example sits on the seafront in Southsea and comes from a ship that fought in the battle of Trafalgar. It seems in pretty good shape. I wonder whether that is a feature of the materials used or the result of lots of bits of it being replaced over the years.