Southern England experienced one of the hottest and driest summers on record in 2026. The duration and intensity of the extreme heat was unprecedented. But heavy rain began to fall during the night of 18 August and in the morning I wanted to record the vestiges of the downpour. The puddles and damp surfaces felt miraculous after months without any rainfall. These images are a celebration of water, precipitation, rain, damp. Some of the pictures show the dessicated grass, golden, against the wet concrete and tarmacadam. Some of the images show reflections inside the still surface of the water. Some show drying surfaces, as the last vestiges of the rain evaporate into the atmosphere. All of the images try to capture something of my gratitude for a few hours of rain.
The pictures were made with one of the final mirrorless compact system cameras that Samsung made, the NX500. Samsung built a reputation for the quality of its NX series of mirrorless cameras in the 2010s. The cameras went through a number of iterations, and culminated in the acclaimed NX1 and NX500. Both were counted as leading edge products when they were released in late 2014 and early 2015. In five years Samsung set out to challenge the dominance of Sony and other manufacturers in the CSC market, and, by some measures succeeded. The NX500 and NX1 are still well specified cameras in 2026 and produce superb images.
The NX500 is a viewfinderless compact camera. I used the 60mm macro lens for images, along with the 16mm wide angle lens in the NX series. Both are very good lenses. The best images using the macro lens (as a telephoto) were made standing a short distance from the focal point and framing at a shallow angle. This created the opportunity for interesting reflections and some unusual perspectives. Images made looking straight down into a puddle were much less successful.
In the following photographs, the images follow a story from full puddles to nearly dry pavements. As the morning warmed, the surfaces began to dry rapidly and the vestiges of the downpour were gone. In the space of an hour or so, any sign of the rain’s blessing had disappeared.
Readers can find a companion piece at A Study in Deep Shade. This records my experiences on a ferociously hot morning in the same vicinity in which these images were made. I was struck by the contrast between that day’s heat and this day’s damp after the rain. I think the link between the two pieces is actually the resilience of nature in an urban environment. This is something to be celebrated.
Many thanks for reading my thoughts on ‘After the Rain’. I hope that you enjoyed the piece and the accompanying images.
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