Steel City Snapper photography
35mm, medium format and large format film photography (with the odd bit of digital every now and then…)
Just around the corner from yesterday’s picture, I came across this opportunity to shoot towards the sun and highlight the wet road, which worked pretty well.
Yashica Mat 124G and Ilford Ilford HP5+. Ilfotec DD-X 9mins @ 20°.
Taken on 24 January 2026
There was something about this scene that caught my eye. The curving lane is a big part of it, certainly, but the wall, the height and variety of the trees, and the way the light was falling on everything all came together. There was a breeze blowing so some signs of movement can be found in the smaller branches if you look hard enough, but I knew and accepted that would be the case when I took the shot.
I was pretty happy when it appeared off the scanner.
Yashica Mat 124G and Ilford Ilford HP5+. Ilfotec DD-X 9mins @ 20°.
Taken on 24 January 2026
The thing that originally attracted me about St. Winifred’s church was not the structure itself, or its grounds, or even its history – it was the avenue of trees than runs outside.
Such things tend to be photogenic.
The first time I visited there was a wedding due to take place and so a number of cars were parked along the road to the church, spoiling my intended composition. This time though, I had the place to myself.
I took three frames of the road and its trees, the first on Ilford Delta 400 before I explored the churchyard, the latter two on Ilford HP5+.
I think I will try to revisit the location again to capture it at different times of the year, and under different conditions (a touch of mist would be very welcome!)
Yashica Mat 124G and Ilford Delta 400 / Ilford HP5+. Ilfotec DD-X 8mins (9mins for the HP5+) @ 20°.
Taken on 24 January 2026
St. Winifred’s church in Holbeck, Nottinghamshire, a former private chapel build for the 6th Duke of Portland between 1913 – 1916.
Holbeck sits within an area of Nottinghamshire known as The Dukeries, because at one point there were four ducal seats, one of which – Welback Abbey – was home to the Dukes of Portland, who still maintain ownership of the estate along with the Dukes of Newcastle.
It’s a significant estate and much of it is private, although there are public rights of way allowing visitors to explore the area. I have more photos to come at a later date where I did just that.
Yashica Mat 124G and Ilford Delta 400. Ilfotec DD-X 8mins @ 20°.
Taken on 24 January 2026
The rather splendid stone build lychgate at St. Winnifred’s church in Nottinghamshire.
Yashica Mat 124G and Ilford Delta 400. Ilfotec DD-X 8mins @ 20°.
Taken on 24 January 2026
Or, maybe “acorn” is a closer analog to the shape of this trimmed bush in the grounds of St.Winifred’s church.
Yashica Mat 124G and Ilford Delta 400. Ilfotec DD-X 8mins @ 20°.
Taken on 24 January 2026
Two shots of the same gate here, one looking straight on with the gate framed by a tree and a distant house peeking over the top. The second from a more oblique angle, showing the roof of the nearby St. Winifred’s church (more of that to come…)
Yashica Mat 124G and Ilford Delta 400. Ilfotec DD-X 8mins @ 20°.
Taken on 24 January 2026
I had one of those situation where I had just a few shots remaining on a roll to be used. I generally prefer to finish an entire roll on the occasions where I’m taking lots of pictures, but sometimes it doesn’t happen, and I’m not the sort of person who likes to waste frames on subjects I don’t find interesting just for the convenience of using up the film.
So on this frosty morning I went out to shoot the four remaining frames (three of which can be seen below). The first two are at Ulley Reservoir, where the cold weather had formed a thin skein of ice on the water’s surface, and the third is at Penny Hill Wind Farm, which lies a mile or so up the hill.
Officially, these were my first shots of 2026, albeit not on a new roll of film.
Nikon F80, Tamron 28-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD on Kodak Tri-X. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 8mins @ 20°.
Taken on 4 January 2026
Nikon F80, Tamron 28-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD on Kodak Tri-X. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 8mins @ 20°.
Taken on 27 December 2025
The village of Sheldon stands a short distance from Magpie Mine. It’s a pretty and picturesque place, although these days slightly blighted by the number of cars parked on the streets, I think. But that’s progress, and the inhabitants have a need for transport.
Pictured below are the village pub, The Cock and Pullet, the village hall, a nativity scene including two tyre snowmen (it was just after Christmas when these pictures were taken), some cottages, and a wreath on the church gate.
Sheldon also has an interesting local story:
Sheldon has a curious tale in its history. In 1601 a duck was seen by a local resident to fly into a hollow tree and not to come out again. It gained the name from then on as the Duck Tree. Some three hundred years later when the tree was felled and sawn into planks, each plank contained the life-sized outline of a duck. The wood was reputedly used to make a mantelpiece for Greatbach Hall in Ashford.
Nikon F80, Tamron 28-300mm F/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD on Kodak Tri-X. Ilfotec DD-X 1+4 8mins @ 20°.
Taken on 27 December 2025
Steel City Snapper photography 