Two more photographs of the flyover that spans the Rother Valley not far from where I live. I posted a couple of medium format shots of the same location about a week ago here.
The first shows a very similar viewpoint as the previously shot image in the linked post, albeit made on a different day and with misty conditions.
The second is taken from the western end of the field where it reaches the river and looking back to the east. I think this one works much better compositionally as the eye is led along the shaft of sunlight from bottom left, up the bridge support, along the curve of the road deck, and then – thanks to a lucky shadow – down into the field and to the electricity pylon. I’m really happy with this one.
As I type this the country is awaiting a briefing from the Prime Minister where he is expected (based on a leak earlier in the day) to announce a new national lockdown to combat the escalating rates of Covid-19 infections. It’s expected to last a month at least.
While I don’t know the details yet, it’s possible that any photography may one again be limited to photos I can make while out taking exercise. Not ideal for the point of view of my passtime, but fully acceptable if it helps slow the spread of the disease (although I’d prefer we hadn’t gotten back into this state in the first place).
The location of today’s photo is within excercise distance, so maybe I’ll make more photos of this individual subject if wider travel is prohibited.
My apologies. Today’s choice of photograph was almost 100% selected so I could use such a cheesy pun as a title. 🙂
No sign of Alec Guinness here though, just people enjoying the riverbank footpath alongside the River Wye as it flows through Bakewell.
It’s one of those photos where it looks like the people in the shot are looking at you as you take the picture but which, upon closer inspection, they’re looking elsewhere. The guy appears to be testing the capacity of his pocket to breaking point!
This interesting little street caught my eye while I wandered around Bakewell a few weeks ago. I think it would make an interesting photograph under most conditions, but the contrast caused by the emerging sunlight definitely brought it to life. I think stepping back a little might have benefited the scene but IIRC I think I was backed up against a wall. As a result the end of the Church Alley sign has been truncated by two letters.
The Controlled Zone sign kinda contemporises the scene somewhat, but I’m not one for trying to create faux oldy-worldy scenes with my photographs, and having this sort of street furniture in the shot will date it and make it old-fashioned at some point anyway I guess. Similarly the television aerials – in this ever more online world, I wonder how long it will be before television transmitted over the airwaves disappears, leaving these antenae as relics of a bygone age?
Today’s photo is a relatively straightforward composition made harder by the fact that the door is not perfectly aligned with the frame and stonework. As I lined up my camera to take the shot I was befuddled somewhat by the fact that, if I lined up the lintel of the door, then the door panels would be skewed. Line up the door and the masonry is now out of true. In the end I went for the door panels, but even there something looks awry.
A bit of a mini image dump of Ektachrome images today, mostly because I’ll get onto something else from tomorrow.
There’s not really any theme to them other than they were all shot in Bakewell. I liked them enough to upload to Flickr, but I’m not sure any of them really elevate above average. Perhaps I should seek a job in the art promotion scene, eh? 🙂
Olympus OM-2n, Zuiko Auto-S 50mm f/1.8 & Kodak Ektachrome 100 EPP (expired at some unknown date).
A couple of photographs today depicting things emblematic of the game of cricket: a pavillion, and a lawn roller for keeping the ground in good condition, particularly the pitch, where the bowling and batting takes place. Both pictures were made in Bakewell, a picturesque market town in the Peak District.
I’d say more about cricket but it bores me to the back teeth (apologies to any cricket fans who might be reading!). I place the origin of this lack of interest at my dad’s feet – he loves cricket, and indeed pretty much any sport for that matter, and I was subjected to it endlessly on television as a young boy. Where this might had nurtured a lifelong love of sport in some, for me it did the complete opposite. That doesn’t mean I can occasionally appreciate it though. And make pictures.
Olympus OM-2n, Zuiko Auto-S 50mm f/1.8 & Kodak Ektachrome 100 EPP (expired at some unknown date).
The title of today’s post isn’t intended as a metaphor for the subject of the photograph, although I suppose it could be. It refers instead to the fact that I was in a cathedral with only a film camera containing 100asa slide film. While I had a nice, fast, f/1.8 lens attached, there were very few places within the building that gave enough light for even a slow exposure. This table of prayer candles was lit by a bright shaft of sunlight however and I took the chance at handholding the camera at 1/30sec. Somehow I managed to avod camera shake and ended up with a nice looking photograph.
Olympus OM-2n, Zuiko Auto-S 50mm f/1.8 & Kodak Ektachrome 100 EPP (expired at some unknown date).
A few weeks ago I posted a couple of photos of pillar boxes (or post boxes if you prefer) that I shot on some Fuji Velvia 100 and which exhibited vividly saturated reds. Today I have a photo of a different pillar box, this one dating from the reign of Queen Victoria – hence the VR insignia on the front. A quick bit of Google research points to this being a VR Penfold model.
Once again, the slide film has delivered vivid reds. While I’ve tweaked the contrast a little which might account for some of the rich colour, I’ve not touched the saturation of vibrancy controls at all. It looks pretty much like this on the original transparency too.
Olympus OM-2n, Zuiko Auto-S 50mm f/1.8 & Kodak Ektachrome 100 EPP (expired at some unknown date).
One of two theatres adjacent to one another in Sheffield city centre, the Crucible is the younger of the pair, dating from 1971 (the other, The Lyceum, dates back to the late 19th century). It’s probably most famous for being the host venue for the World Snooker Championship since 1977.
As I write this today, Sheffield (and the rest of South Yorkshire) has been put on notice that we will be moving to the Tier 3 “Very High” level for Covid-19 restrictions at the weekend. While, for the most part, these won’t make much of a difference to what I do (it’s nothing like as restrictive as the full lockdown we had earlier in the year), it does place a restriction on mixing with people outside your immediate family or support-bubble, so it’ll mean I can’t see my dad for the next few weeks (assuming it’s lifted by then).
It also means that I’m not supposed to travel from the Tier 3 area to areas at a lower level of alert. This is disappointing as I have a week’s leave coming up and had planned to make a visit or two to the Peak District National Park. While I can still access part of the park (some of it falls within Sheffield, and South Yorkshire’s borders), it’s a relatively limited area and doesn’t include the places I’d hoped to go to. As I would be travelling in a private vehicle and not interacting with anyone, I’m not sure that there’s a problem or that I would be risking any sort of trouble, but I guess I’ll see what happens before making a decision one way or the other. If not, there are plenty of other places within South Yorkshire that I can visit, and not just the bits within the Peak District. I have a project that I came up with the idea for over a year ago, so maybe I can make a start on making the pictures for that.
Olympus OM-2n, Zuiko Auto-S 50mm f/1.8 & Kodak Ektachrome 100 EPP (expired at some unknown date).
