Rugby pictures

Just found that my 2 best rugby pix, that I posted on www.morguefile.com have become the 2nd and 4th highest downloads on 'Rugby' in that sites pix.

 the one above one with 582 dowloads - Now 633

and this one, has had 500 downloads. - Now 584

Nice to think that well over 1,000 pictures posted on Morguefile of Clevedon RFC are being used to represent Rugby Union all over the world.

While sorting out stuff that should probably have been thrown away many years ago, I came across some negatives taken in the early 60's. It's odd that although I can remember the day of the week they were taken I can't for the life of me state the exact year. I know it was early 60's because they had been taken with my treasured Agiflex III  
The day was a Monday because I had driven the oil van into the Coleridge Estate and noticed the work going on. Although I had not been contributing pictures at that time for the Clevedon Mercury I took a series of shots, purely for local history records.

The Somerset Rivers Board workmen had sealed off the water flow in order to clear the mud from the tunnel that passed under the road there and also under the Binding & Paynes garage complex. I was so intrigued that I even put on gum-boots and climbed down the bank to get pix of the work going on in the tunnel.

They had laid a truck rail under the road way and were manually shovelling (slubbing) around a 2 foot deep mud deposit into a tub to be wheeled out and then hauled to a waiting lorry by crane. When I got back up I found :---

A somewhat eccentric local resident expostulating with the lorry driver on some point of the work. I believe - according to tale - that he had been an architect of some sort but had had a 'brain-storm' and had to retire.
Needless to say he acquired a nickname. 'Cess' Poole The driver was very forbearing but eventually gave the nod to the crane driver who hauled the bucket load up and deposited it in the back of the lorry. 'Cess' who had been splashed a little immediately left off his diatribe and went on his way.

Home made saying files

Came upon one of my JPG's from morguefile that had been used as an image upon which to plant someone's idea or notion; I had the same idea when seeing the JPG they had used, and decided to make my own comment (or Izaak Walton's) on it.
Although I have now had to give up any idea of going off with road and line at times I cast my mind back to those heady days.
Wandering along the length of Black Ditch casting for pike. Satisfied if one tried a lunge at my lure even if I didn't catch it. Mainly because it had proved my notion that 'that' was a good place for a pike to lay up.
I understand that doctors recommend golfing as an ideal recreation for keeping oneself in good health. I have never found any appeal in knocking a little ball around with a stick.
If they could do the same thing for angling by recommending pike spinning, their patients would get just as much exercise and with far less cost than the fee at a golf club.


I thought I would put a comment of my own on a picture. 

The stillness of the early morning on the Somerset moorland is fantastic. The sun starts to light the sky and slowly images appear surrounded by a low hanging mist. Then we know that it will be a fine day and that all is right with the world. 
No matter the wars or disturbances, no matter the idiot rioting in some of the big cities. 
Here on the Somerset Moorland, all is peace, all is quiet and we are alone and able to contemplate our inner selves.
I would recommend even just a five minute period, leave the world and its problems and soak in the vision.
Better than any psychologist can do for you.  

Went out to Mud Lane on Wednesday to get shots of Britannia running up from Plymouth to Bristol on the Round Britain day 2. They were timed for Worle at 17.57 but ran 15 minutes early.

I had been hoping to get a shot something like this but with the countryside as a background. She was pushing a Diesel in front of her.
Why? To have had the Diesel hooked on just behind her yes - but who wants to take a steam pic that was occupied by a Diesel loco. I was rather disgusted, I wonder how many other steam fans were disappointed as well.

Copy Stand

Found space to set up my Reflecta copy stand at last.

I last tried it when using digital for the first time and found the camera did not like the link up with the Aico tubes because they only had 5 contact points.
Since then I purchased a Kenko tube that has the required 8 contacts. So happy with that and the ease of working that I managed to buy a set of 3 to add to it.
Foolishly I had forgotten about the Aico tubes and sweated a bit trying to use them with my Sony A55. When the penny dropped I hiked out the Kenko's from my bag and got full control back.

Took the pics of the "Buffalo nickel" using only two of them.

Looks complicated but works easily; as the JPG shows I am using energy saving bulbs for longer life and less heat. Using a BPM sliding mount for simple control of focussing.

I only wish that BPM were still active in the camera  world.

I am sure that by now they would have bellows that would work with full control for Sony cameras and lenses; after all Praktica managed to do that with their B200. That was well over 25 years ago too. What has happened to innovation? 

Praktica did it by running wires through the bellows to the contacts points at each end. True they had but 3 contacts but it only requires an adjustment to a standard bellows set with a Sony bayonet fitting, Could be done for all fittings too if it came to that. Cost in China? Paltry; but it would be a sure thing for the firm that manufacted the bellows.

I have just purchased a fitting that is Chinese manufactured for around half of the price of the original Minolta bellows attachment. It gave perfect control of focussing that assisted in the photo of the Leopold 1861 coin. I could creep the camera up or down until there was a flicker of the green "in-focus" light and then use the auto-focus built into the camera. At f36 and 1/4 second exposure I had perfect control over the manoeuvre all the way.

This post is dedicated to Rudyard Kipling

Who wrote the poem - - - Oh why are my Gods afflicting Me?

I am sorely tempted to pray to the Gods that he wrote of, who are afflicting me at present..

When sorting out old files and getting rid of outdated but hoarded ‘rubbish’ that was kept back “In case it came in handy” with the help of one of my neighbours;. what should turn up?

Hiding itself away was a box containing at least 200 colour slides (and maybe even more) that had been carefully put by and covered over during the years.

Some (after a very quick glimpse) are of archaeological digs that were done at least 45 years ago and maybe even earlier.

These treasures will have to be scanned and saved electronically.

It seems that each time I say to myself, “Thank the Lord that is the last” within a week or so another batch appears. 

Now can I respecfully ask:---

My Gods PLEASE stop afflicting me 

Discovered today that one of my Photo and Poem pages in Flickr has had over 2,700 views.
Makes me feel it is worth writing and matching with pix.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/60892750@N00/10455886993/in/photolist-gVVJtC-pxJLwd-phdfX8-5KHH2o-phcmaf-gVX9VF-oecXf-h1Mzm5-gZp9eG-dhss4r-dhssir-dhsrNs-3yNqSz-45zSCo-rrkmY-78nKrA-3jBiJJ-3jwSKn-qQXyW-9LMFZa/