The Wave is the name of one of the University of Sheffield’s newest buildings. It’s pretty obvious why the name was chosen.
The building was hit by a significant delay during its construction when it was discovered that the original concrete pilings were not sufficient for the expected level of settlement when the final structure was built, and had to be demolished. This added an additional 18 months to the construction period andn the building finally opened two years ago in November 2023.
I took these three shots while walking past, but I expect there are a whole bunch of interesting pictures to be had from it.
Fujica STX-1 & X-Fujinon 50mm f/1.9 FM on Agfa APX 100. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 10.5mins @ 20°.
The large building in today’s picture is the Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield. It’s a large and imposing structure visible from many different parts of the city.
This shot was one that I just happened to catch offhand. Something about the positioning of the different elements – the zebra crossing, the road, the side-street, then the houses and the hospital lead nicely through the frame. The little Fiat perched above street level is a bonus.
It’s just struck me as I type this that I can probably see the window of the room my mum was in when the cancer took her. I’ve photographed the hospital on a number of occasions before but never really thought of it in that way before now.
Fujica STX-1 & X-Fujinon 50mm f/1.9 FM on Agfa APX 100. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 10.5mins @ 20°.
I liked how this post box was nestled in snugly between the trimmed hedge, gatepost, and wall.
Usually postboxes will have a tab showing the collection times, which this one doesn’t, which made me wonder if it’s been repurposed as a letterbox for the property, but then I expect it would cause considerable confusion and result in the owners of the property getting lots of mail that people had posted.
It’s probably just missing the tab. 🙂
Fujica STX-1 & X-Fujinon 50mm f/1.9 FM on Agfa APX 100. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 10.5mins @ 20°.
These follow on directly from the pictures in yesterday’s post, each being taken withing Weston Park.
The first is the wooden bridge that crosses part of the duck pond. There were few ducks around this part of the water and it was undisturbed by any breeze, so it looked somewhat stagnant, giving it an almost frozen-over look. You can also see the University of Sheffield Arts Tower at the right of the frame.
The Arts Tower is something I always seem to come away with at least one photo of when I’m in this area. It’s the second tallest building in the city at 256 feet tall (although, because of it’s position on the hilly Sheffield terrain, it’s actually much higher than it’s rival). Sheffield doesn’t have that many tall buildings (although the number is increasing) – and the ones we do have aren’t that tall in the grand scheme of things – especially compared to it’s closest city neighbours Manchester and Leeds, but neither of those are as hilly as Sheffield either, where the impact of skyscrapers is lost amongst the terrain.
Fujica STX-1 & X-Fujinon 50mm f/1.9 FM on Agfa APX 100. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 10.5mins @ 20°.
Weston Park Museum first opened 150 years ago, originally in Weston House before the building was extended with a neoclassical design. The building houses both the museum and the Mappin Art Gallery (named after a Rotherham businessman who bequeathed his collection to the gallery).
The gallery was partially destroyed during the Sheffield Blitz in WW2 and, while the museum remained open to the public through the 50s and 60s, the art gallery was not reopened until 1965.
The Weston Park bandstand is the last surviving bandstand in the city and was built in 1900.
These pictures, and those to follow in the coming days, were all taken with the Fujica STX-1 that I bought on a whim as part of a job-lot of not-working cameras from eBay.
Fujica STX-1 & X-Fujinon 50mm f/1.9 FM on Agfa APX 100. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 10.5mins @ 20°.
And so we reach the final set of pictures from my trip to Spurn Point.
The first three pictures are of the lifeboatmen’s (lifeboatpersons?) houses that were visible in my picture from the top of the lighthouse in yesterday’s post. They were built in 1975 and replaced the original cottages that dated to 1819. There are now no lifeboat crews based at Spurn with the service being covered from Grimsby and the new inshore lifeboat station at Cleethorpes.
And then a final set of pictures featuring the lighthouse. The first shot is probably my favourite of the whole trip. The Ultramax has produced some subtle but nice colours. The window at the top of the lighthouse is tinted and opens into the upper floor of the building (below the light) where there is a display on view.
So that’s the final post in this set. Spurn (and the Holderness coast) is somewhere I’d wanted to visit for a long time, and it’s somewhere I’d like to return to. There are lots more pictures to be had. Maybe I’ll get another chance next year.
Olympus 35 RC and Kodak Ultramax. Lab developed. Home scanned and converted with Negative Lab Pro.
On to the final set of black and white photos I made at Spurn Point. Following directly on from yesterday the first two images are of the views from the top of the lighthouse. It’s not possible to go outside and you have to stand on the platform where the light itself once stood in order to see out of the windows properly, but the views are good. I actually quite like the effect of the “leading” on the glass.
This first shot is the view looking back up the spit towards the Holderness coast (where the land disappears off the left middle edge of the frame). You can see the road, plus the sandy eastern beach, and the tidal mud flats to the west.
Looking the other way (roughly south east) gives a view of the tip of the point with the Humber estuary and the Lincolnshire coat beyond. The road is clearly visible as it makes it’s way to the former lifeboatmen’s houses. The sea traffic tower stands in the middle of the scene, and one of the Humber sea forts can be found at upper right.
Looking to the west give a view of the old lighthouse with its water tank cap. Some people were digging for bait on the mudflats and their electric bike can be seen.
After descending the steep steps of the lighthouse (not easy with a heavy backpack and a tripod!), I treated myself to an ice-cream and then set of towards the tip of the point, first following the road towards the sea traffic tower..
Beyond the tower the land gives way to dunes and a series of sandy footpaths. There are numerous ex-military buildings in various states of repair in this area.
As I reached the beach at the end of the point I turned round and took this photo looking back the way I’d come.
The beach at the end of the point shows clear signs of the tidal forces that come into play when the water is high, the sand sculpted into channels and craters. The fisherman who I’#’d earlier seen digging bait can also be seen putting it to use.
And the final shot from this roll shows a freighter heading up the estuary past the end of the point. This is a relatively small vessel and much larger ships pass through this channel.
The final set of Spurn Point photos to come tomorrow, this time in exciting colour! 🙂
Nikon F80, Tamron 28-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD on Fujifilm Acros. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 9mins @ 20°.
Other than a couple of electric bikes, the only mode of vehicular transport I saw while walking to the end of Spurn Point was this Unimog all-terrain truck, which carries passengers from the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust centre to the lighthouse.. It has to traverse the soft sands of the beach at the neck of the point until it can rejoin the remaining road that hasn’t been washed away by the sea. Here it is heading back north.
There are a number of trails leading from the beach, up over the dunes, and to the road. This one looks a little overgrown.
After crossing the road I stuck to the western side of the spit which is mostly flat, grassy terrain with a scattering of gorse and some bird-watching shelters overlooking the tidal mud flats of the estuary.
Given the length of the walk to the end of the point, it’s good to see a bench along the way. My telephoto lens has compressed the distance a little and it’s further to the lighthouse from the bench than it might appear in this shot.
Also present are the reamains of some WW2-era tank traps.
IAs I got closer to the lighthouse I made a number of photographs.
More to come tomorrow, including views from the top of the lighthouse!
Nikon F80, Tamron 28-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD on Fujifilm Acros. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 9mins @ 20°.
Steel City Snapper photography 