It's back in the 1980s, and I'm walking along a canal towpath somewhere in South Yorkshire. The bridge creates a monumental frame for a picture of social and economic change. A man looks down, puzzled by someone wanting to capture such a scene. Film was expensive back in those times, but I don't think this … Continue reading This Frame
Happy Birthday
I have spent some time trying to work out where I was when I took this photograph of my father forty or more years ago. My best guess is Haworth - always a favourite destination for family visits - and one of the steep staircases to an upstairs café on the main street. It would … Continue reading Happy Birthday
Digital De-Cluttering
Trying to de-clutter and decide if I could part with a treasured book from my over-full bookshelves. Flicking through it, I find a wonderful old illustration of an advert from Barnsley Brewery (you could write a PhD thesis on the advert alone). Wouldn't life be easier of my collection of hundreds of books were digitised, … Continue reading Digital De-Cluttering
No Complaints
You can complain about this if you want. You can say it isn't a real photo: it isn't; it's one of my old photos from 55 years ago that I've messed with. You can say they aren't the real colours: they aren't; the original was in black and white, but that wasn't real either. This … Continue reading No Complaints
Seaside Drive
It's holiday time. It's time for the seaside. I'll try to remember to send you a postcard.
Movement On Parade
These days, any semi-smart phone would take a perfectly sharp, full-coloured photograph, but fifty-odd years ago in the parade ring at Sandown Park racecourse, the shutter speed was too slow and the colours were too grey. There is movement there, however, and a rainbow's worth of atmosphere.
Timeless Halifax
For most of my life, I have not been capable of walking down Shaw Lane or Boys Lane in Halifax without taking a photograph (or calling in The Shears for a pint, but that's another story). This particular photo dates from 1978, but it's almost the same as photos taken 10 years before or 40 … Continue reading Timeless Halifax
Huddersfield Piazza
I'm not sure how Huddersfield got a Piazza - it might have been near the end of a too-long Planning Committee meeting, it might have been a joke, and it was probably wishful thinking. But why shouldn't the town have a piazza if it wants one? Let it be filled with shops, and people, and … Continue reading Huddersfield Piazza
Letter To My Brother
Dear Rog, I think this is you, but I know from experience that you will be quick to correct me if I get the wrong place, the wrong year, or - heaven help us - the wrong person. My guess is that this is you on holiday in New Brighton around 1951. Let me know … Continue reading Letter To My Brother
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