SEASONS GREETINGS.........

PROOF.....FATHER CHRISTMAS IS A CYCLIST

Seasons Greetings to all visitors to this blog whether you are a regular or occasional visitor.


I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.


I will be posting again in January 2012.

BEHIND THE GATE......

THE 'SECRET' BEHIND THE GATE

Earlier this year on the 8th January I posted an image on this blog of a gate. The gate was being overtaken by nature and I made the point that it had remained shut for over twenty years concealing what was behind the stone wall. 
A few days later in the comments section I said that I would share with you what was behind the gate after I had managed to gain entry. Well here it is....the 'secret behind the gate' and it is even more overgrown by nature than the gate was.

BOURNEMOUTH BEACH HUTS

BOURNEMOUTH  BEACH HUTS

Not as popular during the winter months, most of these beach huts won't be used again until the spring. The beach huts in Bournemouth are available for sale or rent and some of the new style of hut can be purchased for about £45,000. At that price I certainly will not be buying one!

REAR ENTRANCE....

REAR ENTRANCE.....

This was a rear entrance at Malvern Priory that I saw when I visited there earlier this year. For me this has lot's of interest...I love old doors...windows...& steps and if you also include the area that is partially hidden under the steps an air of mystery as well........

BONSAI......

BONSAI

ABSTRACT......

ROOF PATTERNS

ROOF PATTERNS.......

This is another image captured whilst I was in North Western France. I was staying at a campsite and in the grounds was a circular thatched open barn type of structure. I went inside and immediately noticed the underside of the roof. As it was pouring with rain at the time this roof seemed to do it's job pretty well as everything underneath was as dry as a bone. 

HARD TEXTURE

HARD TEXTURE

I noticed this when I was visiting a medieval building in North Western France earlier this year....
I was drawn to both the pattern as well as the texture of the stone.

X MARKS THE SPOT

CRANES AT THE PORT OF ST MALO

These cranes and their reflection were seen at the port of St Malo in North Western France.
St Malo has a history of being a home of the Corsairs - French Privateers and Pirates.

More recently (1998) it was the site of an Anglo-French summit which led to a significant agreement regarding European Defence Policy.

EARLY MORNING ON THE BEACH.

EARLY MORNING ON THE BEACH

During the day, Bournemouth beach can be a very busy place. Even during the Autumn months a lot of people visit the beach and with dogs and children running around and cyclists riding along the promenade it often gets too busy for me.
However if you are prepared to get up early and go for a walk along the beach you might be lucky enough to see the quiet side of the beach.
With the tide going out this fisherman is making good use of his early start by sorting out and repairing some of his fishing gear.....

MONT-ST-MICHEL....NORMANDY .

VIEW OF MONT-ST-MICHEL

Most photographs of Mont-St-Michel in Normandy Northern France are taken at some distance in order to show the Mont in its full setting half a mile off the coast. When I visited the Mont in the spring I also took a number of images of the Mont from some distance away and that is certainly the most popular view that we all see.

However the Mont can also be quite impressive when viewed closer as can be seen in this image of the massive structure which almost seems to be growing out of the very rock itself.

Mont St Michel and it's bay is included on the UNESCO list of world heritage sites. At the very top of the spire is a statue of the Archangel Michael.

WATER TOWER - NORTHERN FRANCE

Water Tower - Northern France

During my recent cycle ride from Gibraltar to the UK I saw lots of these water towers in Northern France. I have a real liking for them.....the various shapes and sizes make them interesting photographic subjects. I saw this particular one about twenty miles south of Chateaubriant and I was really attracted to it's smooth lines and great slender shape.

MICKEY ON THE SEAFRONT

MICKEY AT BOURNEMOUTH (SOLARIZED IMAGE)

It is no secret that I prefer black & white and toned images to colour. The reason for this is because I think it can give an almost 'not of this world' feel to an image and that is a style of photography that I enjoy. I will also use infra red techniques with some of my images particularly of old buildings.

One exception in my use of colour is to Solarize the image....This still gives me the 'not of this world' image style that I like but the unreal mix of colour....all most pop art in appearance...  can help to create a really unusual and bright picture that I find quite refreshing.

The solarized image above is typical of the effect. I took three images of this scene, black & white - colour- and this solarized one. Both the black and white and colour shots just did not work...they tended to appear flat and boring, however the solarized shot livened up the view and seems to work well with a colourful character like Mickey Mouse.

I prefer to make my image 'alterations' at the point of capture rather than post production.

**Remember to click or double click to enlarge the image to see it better.


For the next month I will be away cycling back to the UK from Gibraltar....I will resume posting  on this blog towards the end of September....Probably back to black & white again..

GASLIGHT AND CHURCH TOWER

MALVERN PRIORY AND GAS LAMP

Malvern Priory was founded as a Benedictine Priory in 1085.....one year before the Doomsday book. It was a monastery for over 450 years.
In 1541 it was bought by the local people for £20 in order to save it from destruction. Since then it has been the parish church at the centre of Great Malvern.
The Malvern gas lamps are thought to be the inspiration for the lamp in the forest of C.S.Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

A SUMMER SUNDAY...

WALKING TO CHURCH

Walking to church....across a field... on a Summer Sunday in rural England.

SENTINELS

SENTINELS ON GUARD AT THE ENTRANCE TO CROOME COURT IN WORCESTERSHIRE UK

From the 1950s to the 1970s Croome Court was home to nuns and their pupils as it was at that time a Catholic Boys School.
In the early 1980's it became a sanctuary and headquarters to the International Society of Krishna Consciousness and remained so for four years.
A good mix of both culture and faith........................

THE GHOSTS OF CHILDREN

CHILDREN'S ROUNDABOUT- DILAPIDATED AND UNUSED 

This childrens roundabout was seen in a field....now dilapidated and unused it seems to hold the 'ghosts' of all the children who have enjoyed many happy hours playing on it.
I find this a sad object....something that at one time gave so much pleasure and now just forgotten..!!

STOP ME AND BUY ONE..!

STOP ME AND BUY ONE

This seems like a good combination of two of my favourite activities......cycling and eating ice cream.
This was seen at Croome Court near the Malvern hills.

NO FLIGHTS TODAY.....!

NO FLIGHTS TODAY

One minute you can be flying along through life without a care in the world........the next moment it can all come to a grinding halt.
Our health is so important to us and must be one of our most valuable assets...we don't think about it much when we have it, but it can be taken from us in an instant and then we become only too aware of it's true value.

 Sorry for the recent break in my posts - I am pleased to be back.

PIER VIEW

PIER VIEW
 A View of Bournemouth Pier taken from near Alum Chine.

UNFORTUNATELY THERE WILL BE A HIATUS ON THIS BLOG FOR A FEW WEEKS.
I WILL TRY AND RETURN AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

FRENCH BIKE - ST MALO

FRENCH BIKE - ST MALO

Bike seen in a small back alley in the old part of St Malo.
Small alleys like this one abound in the older areas of towns across France....I just liked the way the bike  made  the alley more interesting to me.....it seemed to fit the picture perfectly...!! 

WORLD TRAVEL

WORLD TRAVEL

MORE....IN THE BISTRO GARDEN

BISTRO GARDEN VIEW

Some more objects seen recently in the Bistro garden in Genets Northern France.

ANYONE FOR TENNIS?

ANYONE FOR TENNIS?

Seen in the garden of a Bistro in the small town of Genets in Northern France. The garden had lots of objects dotted around that all seemed out of place, either because of the way and position that they were displayed or because of the item itself. I will post some more views of this very 'bohemian' garden in some future posts.

TIME FOR A HAIRCUT ?

TIME FOR A HAIRCUT

Another image captured in the town of Dinan in Brittany, Northern France. Stone heads and various forms of gargoyles have always held a fascination for me. Faces from the past...sometimes humorous.. sometimes grotesque.

ESSENCE OF FRANCE

FRANCE

Some images just seem to shout France......For me this is one such image. This photograph was taken in Dinan  during my recent cycle tour in Northern France.

CLOSED.

CLOSED

AS THIS CHURCH DOOR IS CLOSED AND LOCKED - SO IS THIS BLOG CLOSED UNTIL JUNE.
I AM AWAY CYCLE TOURING IN FRANCE BUT HOPE TO COLLECT MORE IMAGES TO SHARE WITH YOU UPON MY RETURN.

A WARNING..?

A WARNING..?

Seen on the Welsh - English border whilst walking along the Offa's Dyke National Trail.

BLEAK HOUSE

BLEAK HOUSE - DARTMOOR

Part of the ruins known as Bleak House which can be found near Great Links Tor on the western edge of Dartmoor NationalPark. The area just beyond Amicombe Hill which can be seen in the background is the start of one of the Military firing ranges which are marked on the map as a DANGER AREA. These areas are often open at the weekends and during bank and summer holidays. The general public are warned not to pick up any unidentified objects whilst walking in the area, as it is possible that unexploded shells or similar could be found. The local papers such as the Tavistock Times or the Plymouth Evening Herald have occasionally carried stories about youngsters picking something up that could have blown them all into the next world. 

MY MOTHER'S GARDEN.......

THE ROSE MY MOTHER WAS AND STILL IS IN HER INNER BEING

 My Mother is now ninety years of age and it is nearly three years since my Father died. This past weekend I visited my Mother at her house. It is uncertain how much longer she will be able to continue living there on her own because her health is deteriorating fast and her memory is also fading just as quickly. She has visitors each day  and the main tasks around the house and in the garden are done for her. While I was there I went for a walk around the garden and out-buildings and it struck me how periods and aspects of my Mother's life are reflected by what I saw - starting with the Rose that my Mother obviously was in her younger years and is still part of her inner being even now.....................

SPRING FLOWERS  AND WINDMILL

My Mother grew up in and around the Norfolk broads...Spring flowers for youth  and also a windmill. lots of these are seen in Norfolk.

A MORE MATURE PLANT REPRESENTING THE MIDDLE YEARS OF LIFE.

FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE THE COLOUR OF THEIR LIVES FADES AS THEY GET OLDER

LIFE'S CYCLE..?

A LOT OF THINGS NOW UNUSED...........

HOLDING THINGS TOGETHER....PATCHING UP...

RAVAGES OF TIME....OUTER APPEARANCE BREAKING DOWN

A HEART CAN STILL BE FOUND....LOVE OF A MOTHER.

AS TIME GOES ON MORE PATCHING UP IS REQUIRED.......

THE OUTER APPEARANCE CONTINUES TO BREAK DOWN.....

GUARDIAN ANGEL....

Throughout her life my Mother has always held Christian beliefs and has always believed in the existence of Guardian Angels......Even in her garden an angel can be seen...........!

ON THE BEACH.....

06.15HRS BOURNEMOUTH BEACH

06.30HRS BOURNEMOUTH BEACH

Over this Easter holiday with all the good weather, Bournemouth beach has been a real honey pot for holidaymaker and visitors.
The beaches have been packed and on Good Friday and yesterday there certainly wasn't too much space to be found.
With a couple more days of the holiday to go, the best time to pay a visit to the beach is first thing in the morning.....hardly anyone on the sands at all.
The sand itself is still silky smooth from the tide and the only footsteps to be found belong to our four-legged friend.........

NOT USED.......

GATE OBVIOUSLY NOT USED

Old gates and doors have always fascinated me as photographic subjects. This gate has not been used for a number of years judging by the plants growing around it. I saw this particular gate last May when touring in Normandy- Northern France. France is a good place to go if you are looking for gates and doors with character.....

ON EXMOOR....

TREE ON EXMOOR

Exmoor is a National Park in the south west of England. The area of the park is spread over two counties  - 71% is in the county of Somerset and 29% is in Devon. The entire park covers an area of 267.5 sq miles.
It is primarily an upland area with a dispersed population mainly living in small villages and hamlets.

Before it was a National Park Exmoor was a Royal Forest and hunting ground which was sold off in 1818. Exmoor was designated a National Park in 1954 and is named after the main river that flows out of the district - the River Exe.

COMPLETED IN 1762

THE CHINESE PAGODA

One building that can be seen from various parts of Kew Gardens is the Chinese Pagoda.
The Pagoda was completed in 1762 and at that time it was the tallest reconstruction of a Chinese building anywhere in Europe. The structure is a ten storey octagonal structure that is 163 feet (nearly50m) in height.

When it was built the Pagoda was very colourful  and had a dragon at each corner. There were 80 dragons in total- each carved from wood and gilded with real gold. Although over the years there have been a number of restorations the original colours and dragons have not been replaced with most of the work being done to the roofs.

The whole structure tapers, with successive floors from the first to the top being 1 ft (30cm) less in diameter and height than the preceding one.

THE JAPANESE GATEWAY

REPLICA OF THE CHOKUSHI-MON

As in the previous post we are still at Kew Gardens.
This Oriental building, the Japanese Gateway, surmounts a low mount. It is a four- fifths sized replica of a 16th century ceremonial gate, the Chokushi-Mon in the Japanese city of Kyoto.

After being shown at the Japan - British exhibition in London in 1910 it was transferred to Kew Gardens.
Skilled Japanese craftsmen recently restored it's superb wooden carvings and at the same time a Japanese landscape designer complemented it with a wonderful Japanese garden.

ZEN.........

ZEN

A famous ZEN master once said - when asked what ZEN was,  - "Your everyday thought".
Zen trains the mind...clarifies thought....
This image was taken at The Royal Botanic Gardens - Kew...commonly known as 'Kew Gardens'.
This is part of the Japanese landscape...it is divided into three main areas. The Garden of Peace & The Garden of Activity which are linked by The Garden of Harmony.
Peace and Activity linked by Harmony- the simple message is clear.............

INDOOR PLANTS...?

INDOOR PLANTS........?

Another  gem of the Cotswold Hills is Studeley Castle. This was once the home of Katherine Parr the last and surviving wife of Henry V111.
Nowadays the gardens of the castle are well worth a visit and the plants can be found both within the walls as well as out.........
I have always liked the combination of ruins and plants and in black & white can make a classic 'romantic' image......

HAILES ABBEY Nr WINCHCOMBE IN THE COTSWOLD HILLS....

ONE SMALL FEATURE OF HAILES ABBEY

Once a Cistercian Abbey , founded in 1246 by Richard Cornwall and dissolved on Christmas Eve 1539, Hailes never housed large numbers of monks but had extensive and elaborate buildings. It was financed by Pilgrims visiting it's renowned relic 'the Holy Blood of Hailes' - allegedly a phial of Christs Blood.