Saturday, 19 October 2019

Saturday, 12 October 2019

Leaf Cutter

Another visit to the Eden Project over the summer and more images of leaves. Portrait format in this post, landscape in the next post.

Mono image of a leaf made at the Eden Project using an Olympus Pen-F.

Mono image of a leaf made at the Eden Project using an Olympus Pen-F.

Saturday, 5 October 2019

Don't You Know There's A War On?

This was a long-form post that I wrote a couple of years ago and never used, for reasons that escape me now. Perhaps I couldn't think of a title. Anyway, enjoy:

Its the nineteenth of August 2017, which is two weeks after the right wing violence in Charlottesville, and there's a Confederate flag flying in a Wiltshire field.

Fortunately, this is not a white supremacist rally - not overtly, at least. There are an awful lot of people in uniform, most of them white, middle aged men. But no, this is a meeting of military vehicle enthusiasts and re-enactors.

We're in Laycock to visit the Abbey, but this event proves to be more interesting, at least initially.

Colour image of a military vehicle festival at Lacock in Wiltshire, made using a Sony Alpha 77.
I didn't notice this chap's rather quizzical look until I came to process the image. 


Colour image of a military vehicle festival at Lacock in Wiltshire, made using a Sony Alpha 77.
This bloke with the faraway look in his eyes was busy polishing his weapon. No, really.

Out on the high street, there is a slightly surreal addition to proceedings. The allies and the axis powers have each set up a check point, about ten yards apart, complete with machine gun nests, and were busy stopping traffic.


Colour image of a military vehicle festival at Lacock in Wiltshire, made using a Sony Alpha 77.
Checkpoint Charlie

World War II wasn't the only historical era represented, however...

Colour image of a military vehicle festival at Lacock in Wiltshire, made using a Sony Alpha 77.
Status update: The Vietnam war has been over for while now.
Colour image of a military vehicle festival at Lacock in Wiltshire, made using a Sony Alpha 77.
The new Axis of Evil...

It isn't entirely fair to say that it was an exclusively white, male event. There were a few women knocking about.

Colour image of a military vehicle festival at Lacock in Wiltshire, made using a Sony Alpha 77.
Air Raid Precautions. Because you can never be too careful.

Colour image of a military vehicle festival at Lacock in Wiltshire, made using a Sony Alpha 77.
There was a fashion show in the marque.
As the event broke up in the late afternoon, people in vintage uniform dispersed around the village, like this WRAF in the grounds of Laycock Abbey.

Colour image of a military vehicle festival at Lacock in Wiltshire, made using a Sony Alpha 77.
Look...over there!