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After all our students had gone home from Llanerchindda Farm, after our May course, I made the most of the free time to go for a gentle stroll down the hill towards the Cynghordy Viaduct. Once again the dappled sunshine was just perfect for black and white film so I found all sorts of scenes to pique my photographic interest.
Photos taken May 2025
One of the advantages of a half frame camera is the number of photos you can take on one roll of film. A couple of days after my stroll around Maidenhead I was still using up the same roll of film so I took it for a walk around Llandovery too!
Logging Lorrie’s driving through the town.
I can never resist a classic car…
Life springs up in the most unlikely of places…
I kept finding bicycles of all sizes around the town.
Photos taken 9 May 2025
During my recent travels to Wales I spent a night staying in the village of Cilycwm. I arrived mid afternoon and decided to make the most of the day’s remaining light to take a short stroll around the village. To my surprise the village church was open so I wandered in and spent some quiet time there exploring its photographic possibilities.
For some reason I’m always drawn to solitary chairs…
A lovingly crafted cushion on one of the pews.
There had evidently been a wedding in the church within the last few days and it was lovely to see the small posies of flowers adorn the pews.
Photos taken 19 September 2024
I may not have had much free time during my recent visit to Wales, but I did manage to sneak in a walk before breakfast each day. The fields around Llanerchindda Farm were filled with sheep and lambs, so I couldn’t resist catching a few of them on camera.
The early morning light was glorious and even the most insignificant details take on a beauty of their own - like this small fern growing out of the top of a fence post.
Of course, there’s always time to catch a photo of Jasper, the resident canine too, complete with his own Andy Warhol-esque painting the background!
Photos taken 15 & 16 May 2024
I’ve been coming to Llanerchindda Farm for twelve years now, but have never really ventured very far off the beaten track with my camera - largely because my free time has been limited by the work that’s brought me here. This morning I wanted to get out for a stroll before the rain arrived but, after a busy weekend’s conducting, I wasn’t in the mood for anything too energetic. I donned my walking boots and headed off along one of the farm tracks, in search of the pond - a little uphill and down dale, but nothing too taxing.
When I arrived at the lake I found the resident Canada Goose waiting to greet me with a solitary gosling. Sadly his or her partner (I’m not sure how you sex Canada geese!) was killed, probably by a fox, a while back so this was a single parent family. No wonder my presence elicited some hissing - I was undoubtedly deemed a threat.
As the first drops of rain began to fall I took that as a sign to head back, enjoying the swathes of bluebells across the hillside as I carefully picked my way down the steep, rocky incline which was more like a stream than a path in places,
Photos taken 13 May
The striking bronze exterior of the Welsh Millennium Centre
There was a time when Cardiff Bay was the largest coal exporting docks in the world, but you’d barely know it now. Known among the locals as Tiger Bay, on account of the fierce tidal current in the nearby stretch of the River Severn, it was home to workers from more than fifty countries at its peak. As coal exports declined it fell into a state of decay and the local area lost its sense of purpose for many years. Today it’s a thriving destination for tourists, the arts and the Senedd, home of the Welsh government, so I was excited to explore the architecture with my camera.
It may have been a Saturday when we visited, but the Senedd was open for visitors and it was fascinating to compare its in-the-round central chamber with that at the Scottish Parliament Building, which we visited last spring. Looking up from the viewing gallery allows you to see the cedar lined funnel which brings light and ventilation into the debating chamber.
Back out into the public area of the building, the funnel leads into a ceiling with the most amazing, swooping lines. These lines are made from Western Red Cedar cladding, a timber chosen because it will require no treatment for a century or more.
I spent ages looking for interesting juxtapositions withing the lines and these three are my favourites. I’m sure it contains many more possibilities, given enough time and a variety of different focal length lenses!
After lunch we popped into the imposing Pierhead building, which was built as headquarters for the Bute Dock Company in 1897. It was designed by William Frame, whose mentor was William Burges, the architect of Castell Coch, which I visited last year. With its Victorian gothic brickwork and colourful ceramic tiles you can definitely see the shared architectural genetic lines between these two buildings.
Some of the ornate details to be found among the terracotta features of the Pierhead. Click on any image to see it enlarged.
The terracotta fireplace caught my eye, but I wonder how clean those colourful tiles in the hearth would have remained in the days of coal fires?!
Looking back down that imposing staircase.
Photos taken 6 April 2024
I love visiting the beautiful redundant churches cared for by the Friends of the Friendless Churches, but on occasion it does take some persistence! Finding St Cadoc's in Llangattock-Vibon-Avel, near Monmouth, proved to be a serious challenge. It’s hidden away down a long drive, from where you park in a field of sheep and then have to walk through yet another field before you even reach the churchyard!
My first attempt to find St Cadoc’s failed, but once I’d backtracked to a place with a phone signal to check the exact location I finally made it and it was worth the effort!
Arches everywhere. Click on any image to see it enlarged.
I’m always fascinated by church vestries, with the detritus of church life left lying around.
Charles Rolls (of Rolls Royce fame) was a local boy and I found his grave in the churchyard, as well as a family memorial inside the church.
One of the locals was eyeing me up as I returned to my car!
Photos taken 14 September 2023
I had a day to myself during my last visit to Wales so I decided it was time I visited the castle I’ve seen high on the hillside from the motorway many times. Castell Coch (the red castle) was built by the third Marquess of Bute between 1875 and 1879, although it takes in the remnants of a much older building.
It may have been intended as a family retreat for the summer months, but the Marquess spared no expense on creating lavish interiors which I really enjoyed photographing.
I’m always drawn to interesting light and there was no shortage of that inside Castell Coch…
Photos taken 11 June 2023
It’s very rare I use colour film in my pinhole cameras but for my trip to Wales in June I loaded up a roll of Kodak Ektar.
Castell Coch
Getting really close to the daisies on the platform at Cynghordy Station.
Frustratingly the rest of the film didn’t quite live up to expectations. Pinhole photography often induces colour shifts because of the longer exposure times, but on this occasion the colours were completely crazy! I didn’t want to throw the photos away so instead I experimented with converting the negatives to monochome instead.
To my astonishment they work much better in mono than colour. I guess, with strong sunshine, I should have realised it was really a black and white sort of day so at least I’ve learnt a lesson!
Photos taken June 2023
My thrice yearly visits to Wales always offer some lovely photographic opportunities and it’s wonderful to see the area around Llanerchindda Farm in different seasons. During my recent visit we had one particularly misty morning so I took my camera along for my brisk walk to the Cynghordy Viaduct and back.
Photos taken 9 May 2023
