This is just a quick post to let my friends out there know that I am still here. We are back in the Golden Valley, and I am trying to spend as much of my time out with the camera rather than stuck inside, especially while I have the weather.
I am so sorry to hear of the passing of Robin Gibb.
It appears that the whole family are having a pretty rough time of it lately. I feel very much for Barry who is the last remaining member’ he must be totally devastated.
RIP
Robin
Hi all,
Ok, I have tried to make some sense of the pics of the discarded Bra via a screen grab. I trust it works.
Screen grab of Sunday Times on line article on litter
A closer screen grab of the said Bra.
Now I should make it clear that I really don’t know much about the quality and costs of such under garments, but it looked like it was fairly expensive. How on earth could it have been forgotten? What did the owner think when she got home and started to get undressed for bed? Surely she would have missed it then….if not sooner. Of course I am presuming that it was a her, could have been a him, then maybe he wouldn’t have missed it until he looked in the mirror.
:-0)
Well, I have been up in the Golden Valley now for 11 days, and it has rained every day! In fact when we first arrived we had snow and hail stones as well as floods. So as you can imagine I have taken very few photos. In fact I would go as far to say that I think that Spring is about three to four weeks behind in this neck of the woods. Birds are still nest building! And, yesterday I saw what I believe to be a Grey Wagtail and it’s mate attempting copulation, how late is that? The same thing in the river – which is usually 6 inches deep and was until two days ago 6 feet deep – a pair of Mallard floating down stream at about 10 knots, trying to mate. Every time the drake jumped on her back she nearly drowned! All this time they were coming towards me in the gloom, and they were so interested in what they were doing that they hadn’t noticed me, plus they were white water rafting! (imagine trying to make babies the same time as you are hammering down the river at 70 mile an hour). Anyway, I think I did the duck a favour because as they reached me they saw me he jumped off, they did a mid air spin and flew back up the river.
The Pair of Love-Birds?
I had some good news last week. The Sunday Times Magazine (on line version) did an article on ‘Litter’. As it happened I had taken a few pics over time on litter so submitted what I thought may be suitable. I’m pleased to say they chose a photo of a black Bra that I had spotted in a wooded ‘Pull-In’ up near Tintern Abbey ruins in the Wye Valley in Wales. It was on a Sunday morning so I guess the Bra was left there from the Saturday night before! The mind boggles. Check out the link to the post here: http://tinyurl.com/c9pwgv9
Oh well…..let’s see what the weather is like for the next couple of days…that’s all I have left for this month in Herefordshire to get the shots on my list. Unfortunately, I am not holding out too much hope. It’s actually pouring down as I type!!!
Well I turned up an hour before the shoot was due to start and was directed to the ‘Guard Room’. It was just inside the portcullis. I got a backdrop up and a couple of strobes and did a few test shots and waited. The Record company boss turned up on time with the Make-Up Artiste and his assistant, we then waited for Queenie to show. Unfortunately, she had an art exam that morning and was late getting away from school but she duly arrived with her Mum about 45 minutes late.
Next the Make-up girl had to do her thing, unfortunately (unbeknown to me) Queenie is having some trouble with her skin/complexion at the moment and requested the make-up girl to use Queenie’s make-up. So by the time all was finished I guess we must have started the shoot proper about an hour late!
I had a couple of main problems:-
Anyway, we finally finished, Queenie was a little angel. She never once complained (even though it was obvious she hadn’t done any modelling before) and she just tried everything that people were shouting out to her (including me, but I was allowed). The last thing she said to me as she left was “thank you very much and can you please touch-up my skin before you submit them?” I repied that I would add a little blur here and there if it was needed, she said “NO not a little blur a whole lotta a blur!” And she was deadly serious.
I must say that I did need a lot of time in the digital darkroom but at the end of the day the record boss selected about six or seven shots that he liked and that was that. As many photographers will know, it is strange how the client never choses the photos that you think are the best. They always chose the ones that you wished they hadn’t for various reasons.
I have included a small number herewith, not fantastic I know but chosen by the company. Please feel free to comment, I would welcome any feedback good, bad or indifferent.
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I am just about to leave the house to go to Caldicot Castle. I have a commission to shoot a new young girl singer, her name is Queenie May and she appears to be about to break into the big time!
She certainly has a very sweet voice from what I have heard, but I’m sure most of you will know that it doesn’t end there, sometimes it doesn’t even start there! Image is so important and of course the quality of the song. Apparently, her single which was released not so long ago was released very surreptitiously and yet still managed to make the number 4 spot on the Amazon Chart. It is currently at 34. Not bad at all for a first release from a singer with a self penned song.
Once the shoot is over, and the pics processed I will post some for your perusal and feedback. Meanwhile, Queenie – who incidentally is only 15 – can be found on iCloud and Facebook.
Watch this space I guess!!
The front entrance of Caldicot Castle in south Wales. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Mar 12
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I was going through some old images recently and found these. The Rikki Alan Trio was my first Pro group. We formed in about 1957 and used to play all the rock numbers of the day and especially the Everly Bros. Both Rikki (bass) and Gerry (guitar and Piano) were brothers and the close harmony [...]
I know, it’s been an age in between posts! But I have finally found a few minutes to jot something down.
During my recent trip to the Golden Valley, I was fortunate enough to actually get out and explore the immediate vicinity, (my apologies if I repeat myself here and there).
You will recall that I went to a village in the Valley known as Vowchurch. Well this time out I went in the opposite direction and visited Peterchurch. Then the next time went back to Vowchurch and then on to the next little village which really was like stepping back in time. However, the first thing that I saw as I entered Peterchurch was a Second WW US Army Ambulance up on a ramp! Not something I expected to find in the depths of darkest Herefordshire.
US Army World War II Ambulance
Kind of weird really and something that made me stop in my tracks and just look at it, and wondered who would have driven it etc.
Immediately opposite the truck was the church of Peterchurch. This was a bigger one than the previous church I had visited but part of the same group (not the correct term I know) and administered by the same clergy. In front of the church was a magnificent example of an ancient Yew tree. The tree is recorded as being at least 850 years old! Apparently, in the Middle Ages many of the churches were used as a refuge and ‘forts’ as the villages were regularly raided by Celtic warriors from over the border in Wales. The main weapon of the day was the bow and arrow and, what wood do you think the bows were made from? Yes absolutely correct Yew. So that it is why in most of the church yards in the UK you will find a really old Yew tree in the yard.
Turnastone Court
Turnastone Court really would have been a beautiful place to live back in the day, and its garden backed on to the little River Dore. However, if I thought this was quaint, I wasn’t any where ready for what I was to see next.
Turnastone Village Garage
An Original 1940's Petrol Pump
It was almost like stepping onto and Ealing Studios British Film Set. It was absolutely wonderful, well it was for me, I must have take about 60 pics of the place from every angle.
I eventually came to St Margaret’s church and I went in side, it was a sweet little church and once again steeped in history. I took a number of photos many of which are still in the workflow but I will show them as soon as. Meanwhile, I will leave you with just one more pic. This was one I took of a memorial plaque on the wall inside the church.
It is written in old English where the ‘S’ looks like an ‘f’ and the Stonemason would abbreviate words to suit, as he was engraving to ensure it all fitted on the stone. The way that I read it is that young John Roberts Junior died just after Christmas on December 29th 1768 at the age of 22. Then just 12 days later his wife Catherine who was 25 also died as did their daughter Ann. I couldn’t find out anything out about the family or why they perished, but the Plague and the Pox were around at that time along with all the other diseases of the day, and obviously without any real pharmaceuticals to treat the illnesses with.
The poem at the bottom reads: In youthful years through pain and grief, we here retreat and find relief. Waiting in hope out of this dust, to rise and reign among the just.
As some of you may know, my dear wife is an MS sufferer. She is what is termed as Primary Progressive and is now in her 17th year. She has coped remarkably well but is now on Morphine patches to help with the pain. However, the reason I am telling you this is that, because of the Morphine, coupled with the fatigue of the illness, she tends to get knocked out! So, there was no way we were going to be able to leave for this trip before mid-afternoon, as hopefully she would be awake enough to travel by then. This we managed to achieve, we then proceeded to tow the Caravan up to the Golden Valley which is about an hour and a half’s journey, which is about the limit for Ondrea.
When we arrived it was freezing cold and dark – nothing worse than trying to site a Caravan in the dark. However, it didn’t take too long and I had Ondrea in the van, the next thing is to get the heating on and the hot water. After messing about and scratching my head for nearly 4 hours, I managed the heating and hot water task. I had made a major slip up and forgot to check the LPG Gas before we left, and needless to say, we had ran out! I managed to get a fresh bottle and the heat was on, but that took 4 hours!! I was not the champion of the day, to say the least!!!
The next day was a little warmer and by this time the van was warm and snug. We had breakfast and then I planned to go and explore the area leaving Ondrea with her Kindle.
The first place I found was a small village called Vowchurch. A tiny village that is mentioned in the Doomsday book albeit spelt fowchirche. As I drove into the village the first thing I spotted was this beautiful old church called St Bartholomew’s. To say it was old was an understatement. This lovely little church had been standing on the same spot, welcoming people since the early 1200′s
Now I have seen a large number of churches over the years, it is one of my delights to find a church and then try and find some of the history behind it. Having said that in more recent years, when I have attempted to enter the House of God, I usually find the door is locked! So no sanctuary there then. Imagine my surprise when I approached this ancient door and found a sign pinned to it.
Sign on the door of St Bartholomew Church
Needless to say I grasped the ancient iron door handle and twisted it in it’s rattling socket. The handle must have been 200 years old if it was a day. I wondered how many people before had turned the very same handle, back in the day when there was no running water, no sewage works, no electricity. And what had they entered the church for…a happy Christening or wedding, or a sad farewell to a loved one.
As soon as I entered the church it was slightly chilly and getting dark. What struck me most was the silence and the feeling that I wasn’t alone. I know, a number of you will be saying that I was making it up because of the age of the building etc. But I promise you, the feeling in that Ancient Old English church was welcoming. I sat down in one of the pews and said a prayer. I then looked around for some information leaflets or a booklet. Once I had found it I then looked for somewhere to put a donation. Many of these old churches have iron boxes build into the stonework and you post your donation through a small slot. I found what I was looking for and made my donation.
Looking down the aisle from behind the Norman built font, towards the alter
After spending about 20 minutes in the church, I realised that I needed to get back to the Caravan site. So I said thank you to whomever may have been listening and made my exit back into the daylight.
I had a quick look around the graveyard and the ancient stone bridge that crossed the river Dore and headed off.
This was a Headstone just to the left of the main entrance to the church.
The bridge over the Dore. Apparently not the original. The original was made of wood and was further down stream. This version was built in the 1800's.
The twisted root of an ancient tree in the grounds of the Graveyard and on the banks of the Dore. I couldn't resist a snap, the tree must have been at least 500 years old.
So, a wonderful hour spent in a time gone by, the next day I went to another village where there was an even bigger church, but more of that on another occasion. When I returned I was greeted by a chubby little Robin who just sat there and posed for me.
Robin - Erithicus Rubecula
I am currently away on a trip to the Golden Valley in Herefordshire, UK. It was supposed to be a Nature Photography trip! I say supposed because it hasn’t stopped raining for more than an hour yet. But it is such beautiful countryside that I don’t really mind. Hopefully I will post some pix soon.
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