Golden light during a Birmingham Sunrise

The low sun during winter provides a special time in Birmingham.  The best place to experience sunrise in Birmingham is Moor Street train station.  The four platforms line up with the sunrise throughout the year and using one of the several phone apps, predicting the sunrise is relatively straightforward.  In winter, the low sun makes it extra special and if you are lucky the station concourse provides great opportunities for golden hour pictures.  I arrived around 8 o’clock on a late November morning and the sun’s rays were beginning to touch the station.  The reflections of the glass surfaces of the trains adds to the special golden hour light that occurs. The scene below made me think of the KLF song Train to Trancentral. The man pushing the button to release the doors, the sunrise and the golden train in the distance all came together at once. A very fortunate capture at Moor Street Train Station.

The light was still good as I passed through the Bullring onto the Mailbox. The sun was creeping into Gas Street basin creating warm colours with the red bricks which are a feature of the area.  Whilst the golden glow was disappearing, the light was low and beginning to light up several buildings along the canal.  There were also long shadows as people walked along the towpath.  I missed several good photo opportunities as the sun moved quickly and I lingered in some spots more than others.  The unfolding scenes of light and shadow do not stay for very long.  Over the years, I have learnt that the winter sunrise works well from the basin up to National Indoor Arena.  For a few minutes, the place looks as if someone has shone a torchlight onto the water. Then it disappears and light intensity drops to normal levels. I captured many pictures from the morning both in the city centre and the westside of the city. Enjoy my selection as you scroll down the page.

Enjoying it so far then here are some pictures from November 2020.