IMAGES BY ASHLEY & IAN

This painterly image of Birdswood, the Friends of Cromford Canal’s
own narrow boat quietly gliding through the Cromford Canal waters
on a pastoral autumnal day, is a corner of England that we should
cherish. I’m sure Friends of Cromford Canal will ensure this waterway endures, not least because it was quite a feat restoring it in the first place.
One extraordinary fact about the building of this waterway in 1794
was that in spite of the rolling hills hereabouts, this stretch of the
canal through to Pinxton -12½ miles - was built without one lock.
As Friends founder and trustee Mike Kelley points out: 'Even today,
that would be difficult, let alone 230 years ago when all they had to
work with was a pick and shovel and a wheelbarrow. So, we wanted
to restore something that was not just beautiful but also a remarkable engineering achievement.

Many thousands have flocked to Darley Park for the annual classical concert to behold the splendid firework display at the close of the evening, invariably accompanied by Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture. Photographing firework displays is tricky, and not helped when surrounded by tipsy revellers who could bump into your tripod at any moment – and several did! I know of many photographers of fireworks who take several exposures of the one scene in order to fill the sky with pyrotechnics. Frankly, I amazed myself by capturing a full sky with just one shot of 1/8th of a second at 1000 ISO, with the all-important concert arena captured in the bottom of the frame.

This historic Darley Abbey Mills building is framed by foliage on a bright summer morning, showing the verdant nature of the River Derwent’s edges.
The conversion of these historic mills is arguably the most remarkable success story in our World Heritage site as it’s a thriving place of work. The quiet industrial revolution here has returned a hive of industry to its former glory, one that is buzzing with a wide and varied colony of workers.
Furthermore, the ‘dark, satanic mills’ of Blake’s Jerusalem were far from my thoughts when I first beheld the freshly designed interiors, many with light, bright, airy spaces, and some with attractive beams and high windows inviting shafts of sunlight. One business owner said: ‘It’s a unique, inspiring place to work.’ Another said: ‘I’ve worked in so many commercial premises but I’ve never encountered one that has such character, energy and magic as this Mill’. He also added that his clients much preferred visiting him at the mill than other businesses he visits in modern industrial units.

If you walk beside the River Derwent you may spot a hardy species known as pictor expositus aeris: the open air painter, armed with brush, easel and canvas. This is just one artistic creature constantly drawn to the river: Colin Halliday, a Duffield-based painter whose abstracted landscapes have brought him international renown. What I love about this image is that you can actually see what Colin is painting. And why does he paint en plein air? ‘Seeing the beauty around me is enough in itself’ says Colin; ‘but even more is that sense of light I get in my paintings as it far exceeds what I can do in the studio.’

This image encapsulates and celebrates the achievements of both Sir Richard Arkwright in building his cotton mills in Cromford, and the Arkwright Society in restoring these two legacies of his work, as it shows part of Arkwright’s original mill complex looming above Bonsall Brook, the very water source he utilised to power his
machines.

The Tower of London installation Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red by Derbyshire’s Paul Cummins is, undisputedly, the greatest art event of this century, so it was very moving to see this smaller version, Weeping Window, at Derby’s historic Silk Mill in 2018. A few years before, a photo book of the Derwent Valley Mills was mooted and we hoped to have the book available around 2016. Work commitments meant a frustrating delay. However, when I came to shoot this glorious and dramatic cascade of ceramic poppies, I realised that had we published the photo book on time, we would have missed out on this poignant artwork. Given that 2021 was also the 300th anniversary of the Silk Mill, the book’s publication couldn’t be timelier.

These images from the Shine a Light audio-visual display at Cromford Mills in October 2021 show stills of the large scale video projections onto the mill buildings.
The projections, created by internationally-renowned video projection artists Illuminos, revealed fascinating stories and hidden gems that bring local history to life.
This inspiring 11 minute story was repeated over 2 nights and enjoyed by thousands of visitors. A second display was held at Chatsworth.
Shine a Light was extended in 2022 to include Elvaston Castle,
Barrow Hill Roundhouse, and Hardwick Hall

Taken on 18th April 2010, the rising sun behind Crich Stand appeared a dull pink/ orange colour, due to the large amounts of ash in the atmosphere considerably reducing the intensity of the light, and was the result of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano erupting in Iceland a few days earlier. The viewpoint is some distance away, on the hill above Wirksworth, which gives a clear view across the Derwent Valley. A telephoto lens compresses the landscape and increases the size of the landscape, relative to the sun.

Dimons Dale is a small area of woodland below Black Rocks. These slender beech trees create a mass of different layers as they descend into the mist. Mist is the master of mystery; providing conditions that are perfect for creating simplicity and intrigue in an image.

The view from Black Rocks is always impressive. The river Derwent winds its way through the valley, with Masson Mill, Willersley Castle and the busy village of Cromford all key features. There is a huge amount of history to gaze down upon. On this occasion, the low cloud and slight mist are briefly illuminated by the early morning light streaming up the Derwent Valley.

The Derwent Valley is home to a variety of orchids, including the Early Purple Orchid, Frog Orchid, Bee Orchid, Common Spotted Orchid, Fragrant Orchid, and Pyramidal Orchid.
The Early Purple Orchid is a familiar sight in the valley, with its deep purple flowers and sweet scent.