It’s about time I made one of my quirky little videos about one of my favourite local spots, the iconic White Nancy on top of Kerridge Hill overlooking Bollington.
This video constitutes something new for me, it is the first (to go online) which actually features a sort of reflexive monologue, it also has a few unique technical features which attempt to off-set the very lofi characteristics of the video from a Sony W50 P and S camera. I have recorded the monologue sound direct to the computer with a high quality system then spent hours re-syncing it with the video, loads of trimming and ‘nudging’ was required. Unfortunately, a couple of shots were lost (ha – accidentally deleted) so there are a few unintentional jumps in the flow. The idea was just to make homage to White Nancy in my own inimitable poetic style. I do like to create something with technology that is less than perfect and where some degree of technical coaxing and invention is required — and this is very definitely an end product of that kind of activity.
New Gallery format I have also updated / reverted my new gallery page to old-fashioned html page displays for the large versions of the photos rather than having them come up in java lightbox effects. It has taken the best part of two years for me to realise that lightbox was preventing my images from getting into the google image search results. Hopefully this new (old) approach will do wonders, it also enables me to write much more in depth descriptions / narratives on my photos which is always a good thing.
Movie of the month — I will let this speak for itself. Suffice to say that it includes a sequence showing me throwing shapes to Donn T which may cause hilarity.
Donn T is a relatively recent find courtesy yet again of Giles Peterson. She is quite an interesting artist with an unusual but also highly varied style embracing ‘broken disco’ and ‘vox house’ genres, two new ones on me.
Morning Bell by Donn T
I love this particular track for its shear kookynes and classic deep jazz inflections. I gather that this is an example of the ‘broken disco’ style which fragments aspects of disco funk and jazz, separating parts that would normally be integrated into a combined mix. It has fantastic Max Roach like drum work toward the end and I am still not sure if that is a live kit or electronics or a combination of both?
Firstly, the movie ‘describing’ my September visit to Mr Partridge in London. All of course shot on a basic Sony PAS camera and edited in MovieMaker. Limited material has been configured into the definitive poetic impression of my short but enjoyable trip.
It is starting to feel a lot more autumnal today, the light is changing subtly and becoming more ethereal. I must endeavour to be active with my camera(s) over the coming weeks and have a few ideas for out door light painting stuff as well as some more moody black and white landscapes. Once we get more fully into the season of long afternoon shadows, the “chiaroscuro season” as I call it, I think I will also make some B&W movies up in the top fields. Been experimenting with a red filter on the Sony W50 with camera in B&W mode and it does make a dramatic enhancement to contrast and sky detail.
The house move business is gradually grinding to a halt now, as both of my desired properties in Bolli have been sold. If I am going to move at all it is more likely to be next year but by that time all of my financial problems should have been sorted anyway. I’m still quite loathed to move away from Prestbury; it seems like an odd thing to do.
That’s right, another saint’s day about which I know almost nothing, how shameful is that? Whilst working in the churchyard yesterday I was lucky enough to be able to accompany Rob up the church tower for the ritual St George’s cross hoisting. Rob and I decided to do a homage to English radicals — I made a little video which is just below.
The spring flora has been quite magnificent this year, or maybe I am just noticing it a little more as so many previous seasons have been marred by the dehumanising and soul-dulling situation of urban office confinement. Never a good situation if you really need to experience the seasons in all their glory!
This is a shot of the white blossom on a tree, which I planted myself about ten years ago, it is now a fine specimen and compliments its pink neighbour quite well. I decided to process this image in black and white as I thought it looked so much more ‘photogenic’, I like the almost zen-like tissue print quality of the tonality in this image which has been processed for infra red. I must admit to a general gravitation toward black and white treatments on everything now. After all BW is a traditional photographic quality, sometimes I find the colour in digital images to be a little too intense and unnatural regardless of camera colour space settings though the images from my D80 yield exceptional quality in black and white.
Last Sunday was a glorious day, full wall-to-wall sunshine and very clear air. I made another mini movie, sense impression?
Prestbury Solar Sunday sums it all up really, everything started to feel like magic in that light.
Not sure what my next move is to be, things are still just sauntering along and I am now running out of money but not to worry, mustn’t grumble! The “down turn” aka capitalism’s inevitable self-shafting implosion is having a noticeable effect in Prestbury now. The White House restaurant, which has been a village institution for as long as I can remember, has finally closed down and yet another landmark village building is left forlorn and vacant. I can’t remember any precedents for this in Prestbury. Even in the difficult times of the 70s I remember that the village centre still seemed to be thriving though I think it had a more residential character then anyway. The village had a very continental air about it 12 or so years ago when I first came to live here and I always enjoyed sitting out front of the Bollin Cafe with a beer. Tables, chairs and parasols on the main street really gave the Village a friendly and lively ambience I thought.
I have loads of ideas for local based photography and just waiting for more of the right kind of light and enough free time. Really need a camera upgrade too —- arrrgh!
Starting off with a little video to convey a seasonal mood all shot down by the River Bollin on my old Sony PAS. It’s been fairly warm, almost balmy of late, with plenty of clear sunshine to make up for the general dullness of the so-called summer. Everywhere is covered with a magnificent carpet of golden leaves at the moment, one of the many joys of living in close proximity to many beautiful mature trees, it helps me to keep from completely descending into depression.
The prevailing economic ‘situation’ vis ‘credit crunch’, ‘economogedon’ or what ever the hell the media are calling it this week is not, thankfully, effecting me too much — yet! Of course, one feels a slight pang of satisfaction at the prospect of superannuated bankers getting shafted by their own gambling exploits and the idea of nationalising and regulating the big banks and the finance sector generally sounds like a wonderfully sensible one to me. Nationalised banks! What next you say, an economy based on industries that actually make stuff, solve practical problems and need inventive creativity instead of one based on effete credit derivatives?
I’m getting closer to my camera upgrade and should soon have a Nikon D300 to play with. I can’t wait to start using an idle collection of old but exceptionally good Nikon manual lenses from the AI era, plus also some not so good Tokina ones with Nikon F mount. It will be interesting to see how these work with a super critical digital camera. Generally, I quite like good old manual lenses, I like a lens to be a lens, just high quality glass and metal not stuffed full of delicate miniature electronics and exotic servo devices in a warpable plastic body. And when it comes to lenses you can’t beat Nikon, the maker of some of the most enduring dream machines in photography to quote one reviewer — quite right too!
GP in the background courtesy of BBC online, a very interesting show tonight (actually last Thursday nights) lots of new (unheard before) Jazz tinged and full on Jazz fired tunes from the past and today.
Music of the moment (other moments) includes one old classic and one very new piece from Manchester’s own Matthew Halsall. Sending My Love is a very accomplished Jazz adventure in the classic post bop modal style — I wouldn’t go so far to say he is almost like a ‘white Coltrane’ but there are some leanings for sure.
Joe Henderson’s Power to The People from 1969 is a classic in a similar mode but much more familiar, it includes the ever timeless classic ‘Black Narcissus’. Herbie Hancock provides keyboard input on this album so there is something of a hint of classic modern jazz merging with that proto psychedelic funkiness of the late 60s. As the title suggests the album is rooted in the black political consciousness of the era which makes for a kind of purposefulness that always appeals to me.
Late Saturday night, It’s been a fairly quiet day in the village for yours truly, mostly dosing around at home. I decided to make another little movie for Youtube even though this rather strange and generally meaningless piece took most of the afternoon to cobble together with the help of my old friend, the Baby Auton, which unfortunately blew a fuse; or so it appears. For the first time I actually appear in the movie, in fact, it is made up of an edited sequence of shots with some nice jump cuts lined up to a piece of music by The Slapped Eyeballers AKA Dimitri Grimm and Co. It’s all rather indulgent activity for a lazy afternoon.See Here
Some of my visitors may have noticed a few minor changes to the layout (design) of parts of this site and that is due to an ongoing project to format the whole thing in CSS. Though, it has to be said, that this little venture has gone a bit cold on me at the moment—I spend much of the week delving into code and therefor feel somewhat less inclined to do same in my spare time these days.
Gill aka Urban Imp has set back to work on her own site which now contains a lot of information on various aspects of living green and wholesome. It does make for a good read.
