It's oop here

That Colditz place [see yesterday]. The one where them cats and dogs live and whales visit from time to time to chase the dolphiniums and Porpi away. That's where it is.

Colditz

Occaisionally, we get off the island but without HHHCB who hates travelling. In that case we book her into the very fine Colditz cat hotel for an enforced rest. She loves it.

I snook up that way - it's over the other side of the bay - to see if there were any whales playing there again. There wasn't that day so I took a snap of the place instead with the 6x6. Almost like a proper snap!

Do bother me when the sun shines

I seem to spend an inordinate part of my life on my lonesome during the day. HHHCB keeps me entertained/annoyed as she taunts me each day. But I do get to see The Crofter from time to time - especially when the sun shines like this recent morning. After a light dusting of snow the land looked wonderful and the sky sublime. I couldn't resist a stroll to see the Crofter, point a camera in his general direction and gaze o'er to the mainland 40 miles away.

The film is the FOMA retro 320 but shot at 640asa and developed in the specialist developer. Not bad at all.
Soon, dearest Eve will be home from work again and all will be well.

1600 x 2 mins

Put old semi-cooked hp5 bought from a dodgy dealer abroad, rate it at 1600, shoot the roll off in 2 mins whilst lying on the bed. Develop in PQ Universal developer 1:10 for 5 mins and there you have it. Usable negs. EH?

More playing

On the day I saw whales

So excited was I to see whales waving at me and jumping out the water [and back in again] to attract my attention, I felt I had to celebrate with a binscape. This is it. At Portnagueran.

Waved and was waved by whales - probably humpback whales at Tiumpan Head. They were in the sea and everything.

Ackermann ed

O'er t'road

Callum

This is Callum. He works in An Lanntair our lovely arts centre. I like Callum. Actually, I like them all in there but Callum and I go back some. Maybe a year. When He had a proper job. Anyway, he always has a smile when you see him. Granted this must have been an exception. The only time I've ever seen him not smiling - except when he is playing his bass banjo thing. Then he is not allowed to smile - uncool and all that I'm told. Does a mean foot shuffle when he plays too. I tried to get him to listen to Mr Bruce , Mr Mingus or better still Colin Hodgkinson [yes go on, clicky. You know you want to. I'll be waiting here ] but it goes straight over his golden locks. Kids eh?
I still like him - even if his smile goes when the film - AgfaVista in this case - is exposed in his direction.

On the way out

Sometime back, against my better judgment and fueled merely by the thought of saving money I bought some cheap HP5 off the tinternet. Bad move. It was cheap but obviously had been well cooked in  a warehouse somewhere and was fogged extensively. Even though it had  been a nightmare to use, my inner cheapskateness stopped me from heaving it into the bin.
I tried Rodinal DDX and all sorts of developers including most recently PQ Universal with the film at 800asa. It works! But not well at all. Oh, well I think I should chuck the rest out.

@800 - PQ universal 1:10 5mins

It was sunny once!

A "selfie" portrait

Is this a 'selfie' I hear people talking about? I took wif me own camera [6x9 Agfa Record], using me own fair hand. Developed jt too and scanned it. Must be a selfie.
See how much I have aged since the last one I took. I must have put on weight and have more wrinkles.
See?

Did all this before strolling out round the village in the sunshine just after the shower of snow and no doubt before rain again. The pleasure was all mine. The sheeps are looking big, the fields wet and the houses battered from the winter storms. I had a camera with film in my bag and a smartish phone in my pocket and neither came out to capture the likes of the day. I wanted to remember this stroll in my mind alone.

Tree.

I know nothing

Actually, that's a change from the past when I knew less than nothing.

Not sure why my last masterpiece elicited no responses. Perhaps I'm not 'doing it'.

How about this 'proper snap' from a  recent stroll just outside the village - and yes, the sun was still shining. I had an old Pentax P30 with me loaded with Foma200.

Despite this being 'normal' or something, I quite like it.

Dearest Eve

Sorry and all that. Didn't put up a snap of dearest Eve on the 14th Feb. I hear one should do such things.
So here she is - not as she is but it is her, trust me. Only, the camera does lie.
I love her all the same though

down there

Another masterpiece.

I think I have got this composition thing sorted. Just have to work on the interest, and the technique then I can start to think about considering myself an occasional snapper. If I must

Gravity begins at home.
Don't mess with me mind. I'm loved you know. And I love too.

Thank goodness it's Sunday

I'm sitting on the top of the world

.. with my little black buzzer beside me.

& about

Look

Out

The sun was shining between the light rain showers so I took off to the town to bank a cheque. Mr Toots was in there too so I let him have the pleasure of buying me a coffee then accompanied him on a snapping of the concrete decorations on buildings round the place for a book he's writing. VERY accomplished this Mr Toots I can tell you.
I shot off the rest of this Retropan320 in the P30 - as you do.

And the ferry goes by

It's meant to be 'soft'. I think it is anyway.

I've had a closer look

I don't know. The light went back to normal. I felt a little better so went a little closer.
I am none the wiser. I can't speak alien either  [in case I met 'something'. ]
I didn't. I shall have to go back.

I found a spaceship over yonder.

I can't tell you much. I'm sworn to secrecy but it is there - at the moment.

There you are; I told you and everything. The sheeps don't seem to mind but they have probably been bought off. I'm not fooled easily though.
Tell me, why did the light go yellow if that's not a spaceship? Tell me that?
Tell why no-one was there at all if it wasn't a spaceship? Tell me that too.

Don't tell anyone; I going to try and make contact. Wish me luck.

I know it's early in the year but ....

I like this snap. Snook it up on the beach yesterday in the cold breeze. The coldness didn't affect the film although the breeze did tug at the lightweight tripod I was using.

Nice eh? That's a beach in the village. Just there, that stone and everything.

Modelling

I am short of people wanting to sit for me out here - especially when it's cold wet and windy. And all other days too as it happens.

So I sat for my self here on the machair at Garry beach. The pinhole camera came in handy!

Now I have a bug. My voice has gone so all I can do is squeak. That;s why this post is short.

Out here

No, no more snow left here. Move right along, nothing to see.

It was here briefly and coldly before Henry the storm came and huffed and puffed and blew it all away - along with a few wheelie bins and the like.

Still, come a bit of snow one likes to go out on the prowl and find an image or three. This is one.

In there

I go in there. An Lanntair that is.
Into town for a wee shoppe - coffee in An Lanntair.
Into An Lanntair for a film, dance or song or even a meal.
Into An Lanntair on a wet windy day.
That's what i do.
Other cafes are available but it is a great Arts Centre too.

Bother

I was just about to write something interesting for a change when I hear my dear Eve is stuck in Glasgow [Monday] as the planes home have stopped due to the breezy weather. Fair miserabled me up I can tell you

So I give you Toots in his lair on Foma Retropan @640. Love the grain.

Toots bought me a cake Monday in An Lanntair - and very nice it was too. Better than toast me thinks :-)

Weather

We get weather here.
A lot of weather and we are just in the middle of some proper weather. Snow, sleet and wind on the way again. In fact I'm hoping that the planes still run on Monday so Eve can get on the island. Only, they have been a tad disrupted of late.

Makes for nice snaps though.

Retro

I am retro. Old really. My film now is also Retro. Retropan 320 to be exact. I didn't like it at first but now I have developed a bit @ 640 in the proper Foma developer, I like it!