A Pattern of Poo . . . sheep poo!

Posted on 04/10/201304/10/2013 by Alastair

Here are the culprits enjoying a mid morning meal in the old St Teilo’s Churchyard down on the marshes on the Loughour Estuary.

Walking along the old footpath beside the River Loughor last Sunday morning, I followed one of the gullies made by the flooding tide – the marshes are tidal and the salt marsh lamb that is produced as a result is very tasty indeed!

The gullies fill regularly with the tide but not all the way to the top except at those times of year when the spring tides occur. This means that the upper part of the gullies tend to be shallower and the mud exposed for longer periods.

Not just the mud of course – the sheep poo as well! You may not agree with me, but at the time of my walk, I was fascinated by the patterns left in the gullies by the mixture of mud and sheep poo drying out in the sun – a kind of burst bubble effect. Go on, say it . . . “simple things amuse simple minds”, to which I would answer, “to each their own” or “live and let live”. Don’t think of it as poo, just as pattern.

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Is This The Last Day of Summer?

Posted on 30/08/201330/08/2013 by Alastair

A couple of days ago we went to meet some friends for a picnic on Broughton Beach at the end of the Gower Peninsula. The weather was not as good as it had been but good enough for us to brave the odd mini shower.

One of the nicest things about a large beach is that it never seems crowded however many people are there, but in fact there were not many people around on that day, so we almost had the whole place to ourselves.

I love the space in places like this and if there is a bit of wind as well, that just adds to it!

The panorama shot below was taken on my iPhone and worked out pretty well. The video clips were also done on my phone and prove at least two things. First, there were children there obviously enjoying themselves. Second, the lack of sound on the other clip is because the phone mic didn’t like the wind, so I just took it out altogether. I love the patterns in the water though I miss the audio.

Click the image to view larger.

Broughton Bay, Gower

Signs, scenery and a pony in the woods

Posted on 22/08/201322/08/2013 by Alastair

This was the view I had from Three Crosses Community Centre whilst waiting for the rest of the dragonfly hunting group I was with last week. It was very pleasant sitting in the sun with a light breeze to cool me.

Looking across the Gower Peninsula, it struck me that there were a lot of signposts. However, they did not spoil the view but rather created an interesting mix of patterns and structures through which I could see the natural beauty of the landscape.

We accept or learn to accept a lot of things in our need for order in society and the power we want to run our lives – like the millions of electricity pylons and increasing number of wind mills, sky scraper skylines and network of roads to name but a few of the interruptions to our views. We want what they bring and they do not necessarily spoil the view – it is more a matter of how you think about them.

Having said that, there should be balance in everything and we cannot afford to lose much more of our natural habitat – after all, the horses need their shade!

Blind Patterns

Posted on 02/07/201302/07/2013 by Alastair

During a quiet time in the Sights and Sounds of the Countryside exhibition (see previous posts), I started looking around in more detail at the exhibition space (not the exhibition itself).

The sun was not shining and so the patterns of light on the floor in the room were not there (see previous post). Over the next couple of days I am going to put up what I found instead. NB This is not b & w photography – the images are a little darker than reality but I thought they were more atmospheric this way. I tried them in b & w but preferred this white balance.

Mesmerising Water Wheel Patterns

Posted on 26/05/201326/05/2013 by Alastair

Last Wednesday evening we went to Aberdulais Falls for the Green Routines exhibition opening which was about cutting carbon emissions.

Whilst there I took a couple of new photos and video clips on my iPhone which reveal some of the fascinating patterns of the drips thrown up by the waterwheel – they were mesmerising! Click to play the video below.

Netting Patterns – Extras from the Riding Shows

Posted on 07/05/201307/05/2013 by Alastair

Whenever I am doing equestrian photography I like to try and find a little time to take some extra shots of the things around the show field.

Last weekend I was there in time to take a short walk around the adjacent woods and the first thing I came across was this netting caught in some branches – it had been a windy week! The pattern of the netting seemed to echo the patterns in the trees and, perhaps because I am a tapestry weaver, I was intrigued by the effect it had blowing in the wind – quite ethereal really.

The Bluebells I found further along the path were more traditionally attractive 🙂

Tangled and Mangled

Posted on 13/04/201313/04/2013 by Alastair

The effects of yesterdays dreich morning can be seen in that old freezer I have been photographing recently. The wet metal reflects the weather we had at the start of the day which created new colours and patterns only seen in these conditions.

And the sounds this can make? I continued working with them and here are a couple of experimental mixes. Next week I will try to explain some of my use of metal . . . watch this space!

You can click the mp3 files below or play the SoundCloud files which only appear on the blog page, not in an email. Ideally you would listen to these through headphone but it’s no big deal.