Location notes - Combestone Tor (West)

These are my heralds, and behold! my name is written in blossoms on the hawthorn-trees

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow – The Poets Calendar

This one is all about the Hawthorns.

So far in this series on Comebstone Tor, I’ve discussed the wonderful sunrise opportunities on the east side of the rocks and the distant far-reaching vista from the north. Now though, it’s time to focus on the classic compositions found on the west side.

Combestone is probably best known for its two iconic hawthorns, situated just to the side of the rocks. They will always hold a special place for me, as I was asked by the Dartmoor Magazine to be their featured photographer in the spring of 2023 and one of my shots of the Combestone hawthorns made it to the front cover – my proudest moment as a Dartmoor photographer so far.

If you Google Combestone, you’ll see plenty of images of the trees. When photographers shoot here, they are the main focal points. Dartmoor has countless hawthorns, but these two stand out because of their windswept shape and their sense of place framed against the stunning landscape beyond.

So many great photographers have shot the trees, I don’t feel qualified to write about the best angles – all I can tell you is what has worked for me and hope that you might find my thoughts useful when composing your own shots.

The Hawthorn tree and Dartmoor are synonymous. Both are wild, rugged and shaped by the weather - In spring and summer they can be soft and golden and light, in the winter they are brutal, barren and dark. It’s this association that make them such great subjects for Dartmoor photography. In folklore the tree is associated with fairies and were thought to mark the entrance to the underworld. This association at Combestone is an interesting one, as piskies are said to live in a hollow on the side of the tor, using the sacred druidical basins as washing places. It’s also said that if you visit the tor on a still summer evening, you may still hear the strains of Piskie music drifting up from the rocks below. This area certainly seems to have a strong tie to Piskie folklore (see also the tale of Jan Coo in my Combestone north blog post).

In general, I have never found a composition I like with the trees in the foreground and the   rocks behind. Their twisted shapes are so iconic, that they deserve to be the stars of the show, but when they are shot in front of the rocks (ie when you are facing east) they get lost against the background. I prefer to face west (ish) and either shoot the two trees together or isolate each one as a portrait. To do this, I have had success standing back in the rocks themselves and shoot on a long lens or to get up really close and shoot wide angle. There are lots of positions that work well for this, but I like what3words location Pushes.Witty.Sulked because it gives you a number of options to use the clitter and grasses around the trunks as nice foreground interest.

The tree nearest the tor is arguably the more picturesque. It is harshly shaped by the wind – curiously much more so than its neighbour - and it’s flat top always reminds me of the acacia trees found on the African savannah. I’ve always found this tree to have more options for composition as it is better aligned with the Dart Valley and can be isolated better from a distance. For me, it is the tree that is best shot through a long lens and I have employed two techniques, both of which have worked well. The first, requires you to set up in the rocks of the tor, using the what3words location above, and line the tree up with the dramatic landscape beyond – Fernworthy forest or Bellever Tor make a particularly good backdrops. Set your focal point on the tree and use a wide aperture setting of around F5 to maximise the depth of field. The conditions will dramatically affect the composition too. Provided the sun has risen above the tor, sunrise gives a really warm reddish glow to the trunk and clitter. Sunset works nicely too, although the angle of the setting sun in June and July is directly behind the tree (if you are shooting from within the tor) so that may give you some problems. March to April generally give you the best side lighting for sunset. The other option is to stand looking north and line the tree up with the Dart Valley. This is perhaps the easier shot as it is less affected by looking into the setting sun, but still looks good in the golden hour glow. Because of the mist that forms in the valley on a cold winters morning, sunrise is particularly effective from this angle, giving an ethereal backdrop to your scene.

Although exposed to the same conditions, the neighbouring hawthorn is completely different. Whilst the other is angular and windblown, this one is more rounded and fulsome. Its perhaps less dramatic but still boasts a wonderfully gnarled trunk and twisted limbs that catch the light and give texture and interest to your shot. I’ve found that the best option in to get up close and shoot wide angle but, like with most subjects at Combestone, there are a countless composition and style options to make the most of your shot. I definitely feel this tree works best in the golden hour around sunset.

Perhaps inevitably with the popular locations on the moor, ponies are regularly found at Combestone. Its hard to tell whether they are attracted by the shelter afforded by the rocks, the scratching posts in the car park or the detritus left behind by thoughtless visitors (in truth, probably all three), but whatever the cause, they can usually be found in or in the vicinity and do make for great subjects. Dartmoor’s ponies were one of my introductions to photography and I’ll do a separate blog with tips on shooting them, but if you are looking for  a different style of shot, I would strongly recommend considering ponies as another option. As semi wild animals, you can never guarantee to find them at Combestone, but you’ve got a fairly good chance. Photographing ponies takes time and patience, but I can think of few better spots to sit and bide your time, observing these charismatic animals in the most perfect of settings.

This brings us to the end of this series of posts on Combestone. I hope you’ve found it useful. Don’t forget that the ideas I’ve mentioned aren’t just for photographers, they can be used to plan a walk, explore or just to sit and watch the world go by too. Whatever your reason for visiting, Combetsone has to be one of the most accessible spot on the moor. For me, it remains one of the very best locations for sunrises – especially in the winter when the mist fills the valley below, but really is worth your time all year round. And who knows, you may even spot a Piskie too!