Man and Child (1511 Neg Purchase) Sometimes an image can be so visually stunning, that it leaves a lasting impression on you. This particular image is taken from a medium format negative that turned up in a job lot of old, discarded negatives I bought on eBay a number of years ago. I suspect I … Continue reading Strangers 1
Author: Alan Burnett
Home 10 : The Abattoir And Cart
We hear a lot these days about the changing nature of town and city centres, but the centre of gravity of our conurbations has never been static. I took this photograph over fifty years ago from the waste land at the bottom of Woolshops in Halifax. Widespread demolition had already swept through the narrow streets, … Continue reading Home 10 : The Abattoir And Cart
Expectation And Warning
All photographs capture time: old photographs capture history. This is a random image from my "Lost and Found" box - I know neither man nor dog, neither time nor place. There was a pencilled caption on the reverse of the tiny print which said "D and Louchs", but which is which I have no idea. … Continue reading Expectation And Warning
Home 9 : My Halifax
This is a photograph I took 55 years ago, looking over Halifax from - I think - Bradford Old Road. This is not just Halifax, this is my youth. Part the smoke fuelled clouds and you can see my school, the streets I walked down, and the parks I played in. Walk up the hill … Continue reading Home 9 : My Halifax
Dividing Lines
People have always fought over Fixby. It's the Alsace-Lorraine of West Yorkshire, subject to an eternal power struggle between Halifax and Huddersfield. It was originally one of the townships of Halifax, but a state-sponsored land-grab in the 1970s saw most of it transferred to Huddersfield. An old dividing stone showing a clear demarcation between Huddersfield … Continue reading Dividing Lines
Compressed History : Down The Pit
Is it possible to compress more history into such a small space as with cigarette cards? These tiny illustrated cards were given away free with packs of cigarettes back in the mid-twentieth century, so all the family could benefit from the tobacco trade: mum and dad could smoke themselves to death whilst smiling children stuck … Continue reading Compressed History : Down The Pit
Home 8 : Pre-Decimal Market
Geologists sometimes date rocks by reference to seismic events, mass extinctions and the like. I tend to do the same with my old photographs. This photo of Halifax Borough Market fits into the pre-decimal period which means I must have taken it over 50 years ago.
A Hazy Shade Of Summer
The power of this summer heatwave acts like some kind of Photoshop filter: bleaching the strength out of colours, blurring the distance into a hazy shade of summer.
Albert And The Machine
This is one of my favourite photographs from the family archives - or rather the box of old photographs that has been given that somewhat grandiose title. It features my father, Albert, and a group of other mechanics, gathered around a machine that looks like a prop from a 1950s low-budget science fiction film. I … Continue reading Albert And The Machine
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