OUTER SUBURBS 72 – PATH THROUGH MODERN HOUSING 6

 

 

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Another functional and not unattractive pathway through modern housing, and something very different from the previous one.  Unusually for me, colour and mono images here – for me the black and white gets it – and I think its worth enlarging >>> click onto it to open a larger version in a separate window, and click onto that image to enlarge it yet again.

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Earlier pictures of a paths through modern housing are here: 1 2 3 4 5 .  Each will open in a separate window.

The first image in the Outer Suburbs series, with context, is here: 1 .  Subsequent images are here: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 53a 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 .  Each will open in a separate window.

Technique: TG-5 at 25mm (equiv); Lightroom, using the Camera Vivid film simulation; Silver Efex Pro 2, starting at the High Contrast Orange preset and adding a light Coffee tone; south Bristol; Jan & Feb 2019.
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OUTER SUBURBS 71 – EARLY MORNING GUTTER WITH LAMP POST, FROST, MOSS AND BANANA SKIN

 

 

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Click onto the image to open a larger version in a separate window, and click onto that image to further enlarge it – recommended.

Walking – and looking down – in the early morning.

The first image in the Outer Suburbs series, with context, is here: 1 .  Subsequent images are here: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 53a 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 .  Each will open in a separate window.

Technique: TG-5 at 25mm (equiv); 800 ISO; Lightroom, using the Camera Vivid film preset; Color Efex Pro 4; south Bristol; 31 Jan 2019.
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OUTER SUBURBS 70 – A GOOD NIGHT OUT 3

 

 

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A carrier bag full of small metal canisters dumped into a gutter from a passing car (not the car in the photo, as it happens) – the remnants of another good night out in the Outer Suburbs.

So what is this?  The canisters contained laughing gas (nitrous oxide) and, in the image below, here is their provenance – their “official” use is for whipping cream to float on coffee etc, and laughing gas is also still used as an anaesthetic in dentistry and childbirth.  But all over the UK, although not on sale to kids aged under 18, those same kids and many others use the laughing gas to get a brief high.  The kids puncture the cylinders, release the gas into a balloon (a deflated blue balloon can be seen in the third image), and inhale it.  I’m told that its often used by kids too young to buy booze.

So, a good night out in the Outer Suburbs: stock up with cylinders and balloons (and probably booze and ciggies too – as in the third image down with its empty cider and ciggy packaging), drive to somewhere not too much in the public eye and have a good time >>> and toss the bag of used canisters etc out of the car on the way home.  But the image below was taken at a bus stop: the revellers were waiting for a bus, or perhaps just sitting in the bus shelter, beside a main road, in the middle of the night.

I’m not being at all judgemental here, laughing gas is not for me but I do after all very much enjoy getting highs via alcohol.  That our society considers booze legal, perhaps because it has been enjoyed/used for millennia, is not a central argument to me.  Laughing gas is thought to be mainly harmless, although I recall seeing details of a person with very serious side effects on TV recently.

Oh and the feet in the final image are … now just how did Mick Jagger so succinctly put it? … “Please allow me to introduce myself, I’m a man of wealth and taste …” …

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There are earlier Good Night Out images here: 1 2 .

The first image in the Outer Suburbs series, with context, is here: 1 .  Subsequent images are here: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 53a 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 .  Each will open in a separate window.

Click onto each image to open a larger version in a separate window, and click onto that image to further enlarge it.

Technique: TG-5; flash in the second image; Lightroom; south Bristol; autumn and winter 2018/9.
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OUTER SUBURBS 69 – A GOOD NIGHT OUT 2

 

 

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Self-expression on the walk home, after a good night out in the Outer Suburbs.

Or perhaps this is the good night out.

And maybe fuelled by booze and banned (but eminently available) substances, or a perceived aimlessness and emptiness in modern life, or a desire to impress, or … who knows?

I’ve never felt the need to express myself in this way but then, as I do deeply believe, we are all different.  But then again, as I do also deeply believe, there is the question of whether those causing this carnage would view such damage to their own property with composure.

And subsequent events?  Well, the bus company will carry out the repairs, after which events may repeat themselves.

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There is an earlier Good Night Out post here: 1 .

The first image in the Outer Suburbs series, with context, is here: 1 .  Subsequent images are here: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 53a 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 .  Each will open in a separate window.

Click onto each image to open a larger version in a separate window, and click onto that image to enlarge it further.

Technique: TG-5; Lightroom, using the Camera Vivid film simulation; south Bristol; January 2019.
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SOMERSET LEVELS 318 – LOOKING TOWARDS GLASTONBURY TOR

 

 

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A very muted winter sunrise, and the view from Tealham Moor towards the iconic landmark of Glastonbury Tor, topped by its ruined church tower.

What can we see?  The water-filled ditch in the foreground is known locally as a rhyne (rhymes with seen); rhynes pervade this wet landscape, and act as liquid fences to the fields.  Follow the line of the rhyne off into the distance and, just right of where it disappears, are two Mute Swans, visible only as two white dots, and these great white birds pervade this landscape too.

And, as already mentioned, off at top right is Glastonbury, instantly recognisable by its Tor.  When these wet flatlands were actually lakes and marshes, the high ground of Glastonbury was an island.  The Romans had a harbour there: Glastonbury is 14 or more miles inland now, but in those far off times seagoing ships could still reach it.  And in addition to its world famous pop music festival, it is the centre of a vast mythology which, amongst other things, encompasses King Arthur, the Knights of the Round Table, the Holy Grail, the Isle of Avalon and other medieval stories.  I dearly wish that each and every one of the Glastonbury legends were true, that would truly be wonderful, and so it saddens me that I cannot find it within myself to believe them.  That said, this small town really is a unique place, and I feel very fortunate in not living far from it.

And finally, if you look very carefully, you’ll see a line of tall electricity pylons marching across the horizon, on either side of Glastonbury’s high ground – evidence that, here, we are not that far from the Hinkley Point nuclear power station, which is something somehow highly incongruous in this flat, quiet, peaceful landscape.

Composition: the bright line of the rhyne takes my eye straight up to the top left of the frame, and less prominent pale and dark, horizontal lines come across the frame (just below the Tor) from the right margin to meet the rhyne’s vanishing point.  Hence everything drags my eye to upper left, but the Tor is such a strong feature (to me, a local, at least) that my eye swings to upper right too, so that there is a dynamic here.

Click onto the image to open a larger version in a separate window, and click onto that image to enlarge it further – recommended.

Technique: X-T2 with 55-200 Fujinon lens at 143mm (equiv); 6400 ISO; Lightroom, using the Velvia/Vivid film simulation; Tealham Moor, on the Somerset Levels; 11 Jan 2019.
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OUTER SUBURBS 68 – MODERN LIFE 7: BRING IT HOME

 

 

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Modern Life and bins of by-products.

There are earlier Modern Life posts here: 1 2 3 4 5 6 .  Each will open in a separate window.

The first image in the Outer Suburbs series, with context, is here: 1 .  Subsequent images are here: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 53a 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 .  Each will open in a separate window.

Click onto the image to open a larger version in a separate window, and click onto that image to further enlarge it.

Technique: TG-5 at 25mm (equiv); 1600 ISO; Lightroom, using the Camera Vivid film simulation; south Bristol; 29 Jan 2019.
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OUTER SUBURBS 67 – MODERN HOUSING 9

 

 

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Bees around a sunflower.  And – unseen – imaginative south Bristol inhabitants.

There are earlier Modern Housing posts here: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 .  Each will open in a separate window.

The first image in the Outer Suburbs series, with context, is here: 1 .  Subsequent images are here: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 53a 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 .  Each will open in a separate window.

Click onto the image to open another version in a separate window, and click onto that image to enlarge it further.

Technique: TG-5 at 100mm (equiv); 800 ISO; Lightroom, using the Camera Vivid film simulation; south Bristol; 29 Jan 2019.
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STANTON DREW 60 – FROSTY MORNING

 

 

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Early morning in the village.

Already posted images from this early morning shoot are here: 1 (with context) 2 3 4 5 6 .  Each will open in a separate window.

Click onto the image to open another version in a separate window, and click onto that image to further enlarge it.

Technique: X-T2 with 55-200 Fujinon lens at 300mm (equiv); 1600 ISO; Lightroom, using the Velvia/Vivid film simulation; Color Efex Pro 4; rotated; flipped; Stanton Drew, in the Chew Valley south of Bristol; 14 Dec 2018.
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OUTER SUBURBS 66 – A GOOD NIGHT OUT

 

 

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Early morning at 13 – and OMG I’m looking at street furniture again!!!  But this time its because of what’s up on top of it – the remnants of a good night out in Bristol’s outer suburbs.

And, as well as early morning for me, its also early morning for those drinkers who were here last night – wherever they are this morning.  And this morning is hangover alley, the famous “morning after”….   But after what?  Well, lager with vodka chasers and maybe other variations on The Electric Soup too, together with ciggies and certain “illicite substances” perhaps.  Which irresistibly brings to mind a drinks order from the wonderful (and cult) film Withnail and I,  which I totally recommend (the film, not the drinks order) – the order in question being “Two large gins, two pints of cider, ice in the cider.”.  That’s what I call real class.

But why were these party people in this alley anyway, when there’s a pub only yards away across the road?  Well, underage drinkers maybe – which brings to mind my youthful dalliances with rough cider in Somerset.  Or then again, perhaps these drinkers didn’t want to pay pub prices – booze is cheaper everywhere else, especially in supermarkets.  Or then again perhaps they’d been banned from the pub.  Ah, Life’s rich tapestry …

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So what were they knocking back?  Click onto the image twice to have a closer look!  The vodka is a cheap supermarket brand, and only 37.5% proof.  The white cans are Stella Artois lager at 4.8%, which is a Belgian lager that is very popular here and not bad, especially on draught.  Its Belgian, yes, but it in no way compares with the likes of the Duvel and Westmalle beers.  The green bottle is also “Stella”, as its known here.

And on the left Tennent’s Super, an 8% lager that an ex-partner of mine used to favour.  And if you have the nerve or curiosity to enlarge this image substantially, you can see two rather telling messages on the front of the can – one above, and one below, the “Alc. 8% Vol.” message.

The upper message, in large font and capitals, says “PLEASE DRINK RESPONSIBLY”.  This message may well have to be on the can by law but, in any case, it is just there for appearances, it is just there so that someone – the manufacturer and/or the government – can be seen to be doing something, no matter how trivial and ineffective, in respect of drinkers’ health.  I do not aspire to epicurean tastes, but I do remember how foul my former partner’s Tennent’s tasted, which to me indicates that drinkers of this 8 percenter are thinking more of the oblivion that 8% can bring rather than savouring delicate its bouquets and flavours.  And should this be true, then I wonder just how many are “DRINKING IT RESPONSIBLY”, even when the can says “PLEASE”???

And the lower message, again in capitals, reads “SERVE ICE COLD” – doing this of course mutes the flavours.  Indeed, when I bought a can in a beer merchant’s long, long ago – it was a time when I was on an exploratory odyssey through beer – the proprietor of the shop actually came out with something like “I should put that in a fridge for a long time if I were you.”.  A nod’s as good as a wink, squire, say no more …

But, anyway, a good night out.

The first image in the Outer Suburbs series, with context, is here: 1 .  Subsequent images are here: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 53a 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 .  Each will open in a separate window.

Click onto each image to open a larger version in a separate window, and click onto that image to enlarge it further.

Technique: TG-5; 800 ISO; Lightroom, using the Camera Vivid film simulation; south Bristol; 22 Jan 2019.

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ARCHIVE 399 – MAYHEM AND VIOLIN

 

 

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Young violinist; 9 Sept 2012.

I’ve mentioned before that I’m fortunate in having four darling little girls in my life.  Two are our granddaughters, the other two the children of friends.  Yesterday we went to visit those friends, so that my wife could measure the kids for knitware that she is giving them for Christmas.

As is usual when I get together with these little ones, who are now aged 7 and 2, mayhem and anarchy reigned!  Within minutes of arriving, I was down on my hands and knees on the kitchen floor, giving a ride to the two delighted and squealing monsters, and things just got better from there on in.  But I have no aches or pains this morning – must be tougher than I thought!

And the family have a beautiful new cat, who seems to have a very calm and friendly personality.

So, here is the elder sister with her new violin and a pensive expression.  She can’t play it yet but these are early days, and she is now playing pieces on the piano.

Technique: D700 with 105mm Nikkor lens; 1250 ISO.

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