Tourists, eh?

If you're a regular visitor to this place, you'll know where I am here:

Oxford, of course - the entrance to the Bodleian Library is just behind me.
Pentax Spotmatic/28mm/HP5+/Foma133.

Last time my wife and I were over visiting our daughter (about a month ago) the city was in full tourist mode.  It's interesting how the way I approach my photography has changed since I first visited the city almost two years ago.  The first few times I walked around a little in awe of the College buildings and their associated establishments (libraries, churches, theatres) - well, it's hard not to be as they are very impressive.  The last couple of times I've been over there I've found myself looking more at the people  and trying to capture what they do.  Like in the shot above - taken from exactly the same place as this one you might have seen earlier.  There's a set of three or four steps which lead down to the street and I stand at the top, lean against a stone pillar and try to make myself inconspicuous.  It seemed to work, as this gentleman stood almost directly in front of me to take his phone snap of the scene in front of us.  What else could I do, except photograph him? 

Busy at the beach

Back to the beach at Downhill - the one with all the rock formations, as seen the other day (here).  This is near the entrance to the beach, where a stream carries water from the cliffs behind to the Atlantic.  It's an ever-changing scene, presumably due to winds and whatever volume of water is being deposited into the ocean.  The width of the channel cut into the sand and the position and number of rocks is different every time I visit. 

Busy at the beach. 
Spotmatic/28mm; FP4+ on Foma 133, with a slight burn in of the corners under the enlarger.

St Mary the Virgin

The Church that was just out of shot on my last post, St Mary the Virgin, Witney, Oxfordshire:

St Mary the Virgin, Witney, Ox.  
The village of Witney was an important place back in medieval times - on account of the wool trade, apparently.
Spotmatic/28mm/FP4/Foma133.

It was challenging to make this anything other than a shot of a church, which can be pretty boring in spite of the obvious architectural interest in a building of 800+ years of age and with a 156ft spire.  I opted to include the 'yellow’ box in the foreground of the shot, as it looked freshly painted and oh-so-out-of-keeping with the rest of the place.  For car drivers in the UK, a yellow box means Do not enter unless your exit is clear.  I guess some inconsiderate drivers were blocking pedestrian access to the church on days of worship.  It seems a shame that it had to be introduced as it stuck out like a sore thumb among the greenery and muted tones of the local stonework. 

Too close for comfort?

Now I like my graveyards, and have photographed many around The Liberties over the years, but I'm not sure I'd want to live this close to one:

Graveyard at St Mary the Virgin, Witney, Oxfordshire.
Pentax Spotmatic/28mm Takumar/FP4/Foma133.

I assume these cottages were originally for the officials of the Church, which lies just off to the right of this shot.  The church itself dates back to the 11th Century, and while I can't be sure, I reckon these cottages are also a right age.  Can you imagine walking back home on a dark and godless November evening, with mist and fog swirling around these old tombstones?  You'd need a strong constitution to keep your imagination in check as you fumble for your front door keys, trying not to hear those unusual sounds and whispers coming from you know where.

Bicycles

There are a lot of bicycles in Oxford.  If I understand correctly, cars are no longer allowed through the main city centre route, except for taxis.  That seems to work well, but it still feels like a normal city street, since it is chock full of buses and taxis most of the time.  And cyclists, of course.  Here's a small selection of the pushbikes parked up at the Railway Station:

Spotmatic/28mm/FP4+/Foma 133.  

I'm still getting these weird circular artefacts from time to time, which you can along the left of the print.  It seems to be a problem with some of the paper from the Foma 133 box.  I can only guess that it's a problem of my own making - perhaps letting some light stray in when I was handling them.  I've too much technology around me in the darkroom - a smart watch thing which was a present from my wife, phone and now a cochlear implant processor.  All of which have lights which fire up from time to time - when I turn my wrist the watch illuminates, when a message comes in the phone lights up and if I've Bluetooth on then I get notifications to the cochlear processor, which again causes a small light to flash.  

As a result, I now have a memo stuck above the darkroom sink - "Turn all off".  Assuming I notice the memo, that should avoid problems in the future.  For now, though, I'm stuck with some dodgy sheets of paper.

 

Down the pub

Ah, the English public house.  What an wonderful institution it is.  Particularly when it's a Ye Olde English Pub, as in this example from the village of Witney near Oxford:

Spotmatic/28mm, FP4+ on Foma 133 paper

I tend to be a bit sceptical when I come happen upon a Ye Olde pub, but in this case, it's the real deal.  It was the original home of Robert Brakspear (of Brakspear bitter fame) who brewed here around 1769.  Now it's owned by Greene King (a chain) but it gets good reviews for it's ambience and food.  I didn't go in, but captured the moment as I passed by.  The couple walking along on the right were just in the perfect place to give that part of the shot some interest.

English country pubs are hard to beat.  When I lived in deepest darkest Somerset way back in the mid 1980s there were some absolute beauties.  Unspoilt by TVs and piped music, just good convivial surroundings, with beer and locally made cider and usually a skittles alley out the back.  In summer the beer gardens would be popular places, particularly on a weekend when you could get a great Ploughman's Lunch served with warm English beer.  I know - who wants warm flat beer on a hot day?  I must admit it took a lot of practice on my part before I caught on to it, but now, when I find myself in England and fancy a beer I'll always go for an English Real Ale, ideally direct from the cask in a straight glass.

Psychologist?

Oxford Brookes buses run back and forth across Oxford City, from Headington in the East to Botley in the West.  For students living in Uni Halls they're a good deal - transport into and out of town or between campuses - free, or as near as makes no difference.   This was the next shot in the roll after the Shark and it wasn't going to be a shot at all.  I was framing the bus and had just lowered the camera from my eye when I noticed the old guy on this tiny little scooter zooming up the middle of the main street.  Fortunately for him there were no cars at the time, though it looked like he wouldn't have cared if there were.  So I raised the camera and tripped the shutter as he passed under the banner headline on the bus.  I guess it begs the question, Does this guy need a psychologist?

FP4+ on Foma 133.