PLEASE; read this quietly.

HHHCB is asleep as I write. Or at least pretending to be. She won't like me showering her with praises on here, so I won't.

But you won't get a more purrfect cat, albeit a near Royal one, as HHHCB. The same cannot be said of snap - which is, I must admit, a near disaster. I used polypan-f film. I know it's 50asa copy film but I reckon you can use it at 200asa with a good soak in Rodinal. And one can - if you don't mind the sort of mush grain along with it. And a scratch across the neg and a hair now thankfully removed from the camera gate. Apart from that. Just purrfect.

Where did my mojo go?

No idea where it has gone to be honest. Spent ages looking for a book Spirit of Salts yesterday but it was only when my dear Eve came home that it revealed itself. My mojo has disappeared though. Lost and gorn. For the moment anyway. It will come back again, whack me round the back of the head with a thrwupp. That's the plan anyway.

I was looking at these snap of my 'futurist' phase and thought I might explore that again. Got to be better than spending my time trying to conquer oilprints again - as I am doing.

Eve. And everything

Probably not everything. Eve wouldn't like that. Hopefully Eve won't get to see this snap taken with the Kodak Cresta she bought me as it, I must admit, is not the best snap ever of her. Never mind, Eve is riding her bike home from work through the showers and wind and will not be bothered to look here. I mean, dinner is in the oven and everything.

No, not everything. I wasn't going to tell you everything although I think the Cresta does a fine job of explaining most things. Like, summer must be on its way if Eve dresses down like this.

I had a shock

The phone rang. In itself not a surprising thing these days. It's usually someone trying to sell me something or trying to scam some money from me. But I answered it all the same - it might have been Eve. It wasn't Eve but Toots talking down the line from his gaff in sunny Spain. Apparently the phone was working now although I suspect Toots was really gloating about the weather they have.

Ah well, it was nice to hear from him all the same.

It has to be done

Mr Bac Pharmacy was out doing his husky impression Saturday pulling a poor unfortunate who was dressed in a red cow suit and sat in Mr B-P's kite pram thing from Tolsta to Bac [or Back, but not back as it were]. I know what I'm talking about - and they were doing to raise monies for charitable purposes. So it's allowed. Trust me.

We went to cheer them off and Eve rode with them - and laughed at there downhill antics!

This is where they ended up. Here one I made earlier [quoting Blue Peter].

Window

Don't hassle me today of all days!

It's the Ronde today :-)

Don't look too closely

The lens I was using at the time with its accompanying yellow filter seems to have flared a tad. Or maybe its the film - Agfa400s which is a bit UV sensitive and what have you. All the same, it does make the moor look 'interesting' doesn't one think?

Just DON'T look too closely eh?

Shall I or shan't I?

Dear reader,
I need your help.

Ove rthe las tanount oftime I haveb een Snapp inup andpos tingh ere. The images are 'straight' in that they either come from a print or a neg without too much messing about with on the pooter to make them them look as bad as they do. I like them that way in the main. I may 'mess wif them' a bit in the darkroom using tissue paper or whatever comes to hand - but it is organic as they [I] say. However, and here's the rub, I rather like images that have a  painterly look. And I like some images that have been messed wif digitally. You know the sort of thing - like here. And no, I have no idea how I did it to be honest.

The question is; should I do that more? I might add as an addendum here that I will take little notice of what you say but I really value your comments all the same. Possibly.

Anyway, back to sort sort of reality;
Mr Unknown has posted a fine albeit pixeled up image on his site. Yes, go and have a look then come back. Please.

I tried holding a piece of old paper in front of this neg but I couldn't see through it so here's the thing 'straight' as it were. Some castle thing in DurHam, England. Used the Kodak Cresta for this shot. Now, don't you all rush out and buy up stocks of this little gem, the idea is mine, all mine. Apart from all the other people who thought of using one. Obviously.

Ok, I was bored

Got the old pinhole going and all that. A pinhole camera made from some black foamboard, glued and gaffer taped to an inch of its life. Loaded with old Agfa RC paper and pointed at,,,, at,,, Me.

I almost stayed still but I forgot to remind myself while I was doing it. Bother. Still, I rather like it.

Camera test

I'm not sure I've done one of these before. Sort of a new direction for me. Anyway, the camera in question is the Kodak Cresta. And no, I have no snap of it either. You will have to follow the link. As with this type of camera it takes 120 roll film and has a knob thing to make the film move on to the next frame - if you can see the film number through the little red window on the back.

It fits snugly in one's hands and the black modern plastic gives it a classy feel. The optical viewfinder is excellent as one might expect from a device of this price [ £1 - charity shop] and some of the new electronic imaging device makers could do well to copy it.

The shutter is set off by depressing the little white snib-bit poking out the top. I called it all names under the sun. I even ignored it for a while but it still remained annoyingly perky. So I pressed it down with my finger instead - which seemed to do the trick.

The resulting images are excellent - apart from the subject matter - obviously. The Kodet lens with its f14 aperture does all that is asked of it. It is not so sharp though. Moody I'd say.

The camera comes highly recommended in this format and if you ever passing through 1955 again, I'd buy a new one.

Snaps;

Fiat; Such a small car is no problem at all for the Cresta camera capturing its smallness perfectly.

Charabanc; Obviously, it would have worked better with a double decker charabanc as the Cresta would have recognised it quicker

Workman eating sandwich on a bench next to a postbox in which letters still reside; I suspect they were eggy sandwiches on account of no-one sitting next to him. I think the Cresta caught that very well.

Next up if you are really unlucky, a quick run through of my 2 1/4 square Box Houghton Butchers' sensor cleaning device.

There is going to be a bit of a change ahead

Here we are; our new blow-up toy. Next to the solidish floaty one - on the blow-up ones left that is. So now we move ahead with our plans to live afloat and eschew all that is land-based and what have you. Summer up here in the Isles and winter, well, up here in the Isles for the moment too. We do realise we need a little experience before sailing to Cuba or even Ullapool - as if anyone wants to go there, but soon the world will be our lobster as the saying goes.

Yes, I have figured a way to rig up a darkish room on the bigger boatee thing. It might mean HHHCB has to live on the blow-up toy but never mind, photographs come first and all that.

We are most grateful to our lovely pals Paul and Ellen Hunter [OBE] who furnished us with the blow-up tub with, and here I was touched, an accompanying motorised paddling device. Once we get it going again. Never mind, the big boatee has a motorised paddling device as well as big blanket things you hang from a tall pole on the boat to make it go forward pointed around by a lovely wooden and soon to be polished steering stick.

I have decided to take just 35mm cameras with me so will be giving away all my other stuff before we go. 

It's going to be a big change but a life afirming and interesting one. We will endeavour to keep you informed of our whereabouts.

In the meantime check out our sailing friends site here.

An Angel.

It has to be done, Snapping The Angel of the North and all that. I mean there were two other personages there at the time doing the same! Well, maybe not quite like this but I couldn't resist the opportunity to mess on the pooter with the negs on Polypan-f from the OM1n.

Looks a bit like a Lith print on nice Forte paper - but without all the fun. Having said that, I did have a fine hour in the tidy darkroom the other day. Produced a print or two as well. Though you are unlikely to see them - too good and all that.

It seems that Angels play football too if this snap is anything to go by. If I recall, they spend time in libraries too.

Scotland; I've been there too

It even looks like the Scotland you are supposed to imagine. Sorry about that, it won't happen again.

We've bin t'Yorshire, bar t'at.

And everything. The tat would have blown off if I'd tried.

It was windy down there too for some reason. Must have followed us down. It was just impossible to tend the rhubarb and train the whippet. So took some snaps instead.

I was channelling Michael Kenna at the time. I suspect he was blocking me to be honest. Can't really blame him.

I may have even taken this through the window of the conservatory. They have those sort of things down there don't you know. And I was stood sheltering in its warmth.

I don't think I'm striving for perfection - whatever that is.

You didn't think I was trying to hold this still did you? Trying for focus and everything? Shame on you. You should know me better by now - assuming you have been here before.

That's not what I'm about. No Anselette Adnams for me. No Cartier-Bressonette or whoever. I'm just looking for something. And when I find it I shall signal it to you.

In the meantime here's a snappette from a recent trip to DurHam. That's DurHam England.

Soon I'll be recovered from the driving there and back [and more] in a red car with a noisy wheel thing and will be able to make something nice to look at. I'm just posting these 'sketches to keep you coming back you understand.

Taken with an old camera and some sort of film.

It's lovely with Eve

Maybe that's why I take so many snaps of her. And why shouldn't I?

Demolition

 Clearing the frost. Frost William

Ferry

This is not quite Simone by C-Bresson is it?

Not quite Simone.

But it is Eve in DurHam. The only place I know where the place is thronging with people under 20 in the evening yet in the morning it's as if someone has been out calling "bring out your nearly dead". Eh!

We were looking for fairies; right?

It is true, I am easily led. That's got me into trouble in the past. But not now. Oh no, I am not easily fooled these days I can tell you.

That's why we were out looking for Fairies.

I'd seen a vid of a fine photographer who went up this way and found all sorts of things in his images. Sparkling things and smoke were two. We were determined to look for ourselves.

Only the wind was fierce, it was cold, we'd just got off he ferry from our island and we had a long way to drive. Apart from that it was perfect. Oh, and it was raining - but surely The Fairies would be around.

They might have been there only I am still analysing the data. Here's a couple of the snaps so you can look for yourself.

It'll be back to normal soon. Honestly

Whatever normal is!

Blast from the past

These are two proper snaps. Taken from a few years back when I took proper snaps. Out Scalpay way where we walked with Mr Windy and Deanne - that was before they had a Volvo!

Lovely wallscapes doesn't one think?