Ferry across the Mersey

The morning after my blustery day on the waterfront at Liverpool the wind had dropped and grey skies were replaced by glorious sunshine - time for a jaunt on the River Mersey! On my speedy walk downhill to the water I passed the concrete luggage which sits on the pavement in Hope Street and just had a to stop for a quick photo.

I made it to the river in time for the first of the day’s river cruises on the Mersey Ferry and loaded my pinhole camera with film ready for some action photography as we travelled up and down the river. With so much sun none of my photos took long, but a shutter speed of a second or two was still enough to capture a sense of movement.

I received a few inquisitive looks as I walked around the boat with my wooden camera and tripod, but in general most people were focused on enjoying the views across the Mersey…

Of course, with so much sunshine there were bound to be some dramatic flare in at least some of my photos….

As we headed back to where we started people began to gather on the deck to grab one last view and some sunshine.

Photos taken 17 April 2025

Waterfront wanderings

My few days in Liverpool back in April were very contrasting. My first day down on the historic waterfront was grey, windy and (at times) wet. My plan was to take a ride on the Mersey Ferry, but the river looked so choppy I quickly dismissed this idea out of hand - that could wait for another day! Instead I used the architecture of the Museum of Liverpool and the Royal Albert Dock as my base - somewhere I could escape the wind and rain as necessary.

Inside the Museum I was immediately advised that I wasn’t permitted to use the tripod I was clutching as I was blown through the entrance by a strong gust of wind. Of course gat wasn’t going to stop me at least trying to take pinhole photos inside this eye catching building! Stealth tripod use in the face of security guards who say they’re banned is a challenge I enjoy, so first shot was taken in plain sight in the lobby downstairs, with my tripod kept low, between my knees, with the camera facing directly upwards. As a I suspected, no one noticed me and I was able to capture the concentric shapes of the roof light above me.

Upon the top floor I tried again, this time with my large format camera, using the large panoramic window to frame the Port of Liverpool and Liver Buildings. Again, no one tried to stop me and by the time a member of music staff came into the room I had all but packed up my tripod again in readiness to leave.

By the time I left the museum the rain had passed so I took the opportunity to catch this view, looking back towards the window I’d just been looking through, before heading off to explore the Royal Albert Docks.

Using the different height pinholes on my Ondu 6x6 Rise camera gave me opportunities to frame some of my images in a different way - in this case using a high viewpoint to frame the view across the water with the arches.

By the time I took this photo the light was beginning to fade, lengthening the time my shutter needed to be open, allowing for some movement in the boats bobbing on the water.

Bicycle and fairy lights…

Photos taken 16 April 2025

A moment of calm

During my busy working life there are times when I just need to slow down for a moment and pinhole photography is a great way to make that happen. Back in April I headed over to St John’s Church in Duxford and spent an hour or so chasing the light. I’ve photographed here many times before but the light is never the same as the seasons change. On this occasion I started in the churchyard where the cowslips were flowering. Of course my photo doesn’t capture their vivid yellow tones, but I decided to shoot from a low perspective to catch them in the foreground anyway.

Inside the church, the light was as glorious as ever, creating pools of illumination around the building.

This was one of my slower shots (an eight minute exposure) but I couldn’t resist the textural details of this door and its latch.

Two different perspectives of the nave…

More pools of light, this time from the west window.

The light in the porch was very contrasty, creating some very graphic lines.

My final photo of the afternoon, taken from a higher perspective beside the pulpit.

Photos taken 11 April 2025

West Dean Gardens at a leisurely speed

When I teach at West Dean College I have a couple of hours to myself on the Saturday and it’s always an opportunity for me to head out into the gardens, camera in hand. On this occasion I took my pinhole camera along, with no particular agenda and simply photographed what caught my eye.

An ancient sprawling tree, waiting for the warmer spring weather to arrive along with its leaves.

A perfectly espaliered fruit tree in the walled gardens.

It may have been early in the spring, but there was plenty of blossom to be seen in the glasshouses.

Magical light falling through the folly…

Photos taken 15 March 2025

The remains of a Liverpool landmark

One of the places which remained tantalisingly out of reach when I visited Liverpool in 2019 was St Luke’s - a church in the city centre which was no,bed during the Blitz. On my latest visit I was delighted to find the railings were unlocked and I could finally take a look inside. Of course, with pouring rain and no roof I got rather wet, but it was worth it!

Photos taken 16 April 2025

Brooklands Mini Day

One of the first trips we made after I bought my little half frame Pentax 17 camera was the Brooklands Mini Day - a gathering for Minis, large and small, at the museum in Surrey. I decided to travel light, with a roll of Kodak Gold loaded into my camera and an open mind about what I might photograph.

A quartet of Rover Mini Cooper 35 special edition cars - ours is the second from the left.

Mini noses in silver and red…

The odd non-Mini shaped interloper was allowed in too!

Minis as far as the eye can see on the old Brooklands track, and a few modern Minis too.

Minis of all sizes were welcomed in - even ones made from crochet!

Minis everywhere - even beneath the wings of aircraft.

We also took a look around the bus museum on site but it was a little too dark for my chosen film for many successful photos.

And finally, a triptych, created from an old petrol pump I found a corner of the museum

Photos taken 23 March 2025

From the South Downs to Birling Gap

Way back in February we’d planned a short trip to Eastbourne to be part of a podcast recording, after which I was then heading west for work. I had a free day in between though, and there were two locations on my photographic agenda.

The first was the Church of the Good Shepherd in Sullington, up on the South Downs. I learnt about this tiny little church from the YouTube channel of a fellow pinhole photographer, Will Gudgeon, and it’s been on my list of places to visit ever since. Will was kind enough to give some tips on where to park and how to find the church was it stands in the middle of farm land, some distance from the nearest road.

The Church of the Good Shepherd is genuinely tiny, with perhaps room inside for a dozen people. It originally formed part of a larger church, but all that remains of this larger structure are a few fragments of wall.

You wouldn’t expect the weather to be wonderful in February, but with the church’s exposed location on the South Downs it felt even more blustery and cold. To top things off we then had a hailstorm, so I was very grateful the door was unlocked. While I waited for the stinging hailstones to peter out I made the most of the opportunity to take a slow photo inside!

A small slit window in the stub of one of the walls from the original church.

After I’d meandered back to the car I headed once again towards the coast and stopped of en-route at the church in Litlington to finish off my roll of film.

My second destination for the day was Birling Gap. After a warming lunch in the cafe I loaded up a fresh roll of film and braced myself for an hour on the beach below the chalk cliffs. By now it was blowing a hoolie and keeping my tripod stable was a bit of a challenge - sometimes I had to place my body strategically to create something of a windbreak!

The beach at Birling Gap is a mix of chalk and flint which made for some very striking patterns. I’d timed my visit for low tide, just as the sea was beginning to return so I kept my eyes peeled for places where the water was running back in between these stony ridges.

Capturing the ridges of chalk and flint as the waves came in took a good sense of balance and timing. As I stop atop the larger rocks I waited for the waves to come in and hoped I didn’t lose my footing or find the water had inundated my return path to dry land!

Photos taken 7 February 2025

Are you going to Scarborough Fair?

Towards the end of our April holiday in Yorkshire I had a few frames of film left in my pinhole camera so naturally I took it along with me. Our day out in Scarborough seemed like a good pinhole photo opportunity so I brought along my mini tripod and an open mind and kept my eyes peeled for scenes which might work from a low point of view.

Down at the harbour…

Getting up close and personal with a selection of ropes from boats moored at the harbour.

Steps not in use…

A worm’s eye view of the lighthouse.

Photos taken 25 April 2025

Finding colour on the streets of Liverpool

This April I treated myself to a few days in Liverpool, with the aim of focusing entirely on pinhole photography. The day I arrived I checked into my AirBnB and then headed straight over to Jamaica Street to meet up with my friend Rachel Brewster-Wright who has her darkroom space here. After a cuppa and a catch up I had some time to spare before the light faded and I’d spotted some great street art in the area - the perfect excuse to crack open some Kodak Gold 200 film and take some colour pinhole images.

The area around Jamaica Street is full of interesting faces, colours and shapes. The portrait above, of Jurgen Klopp, was the first one to catch my eye - one of Liverpool’s footballing heroes.

This reminded me of ‘Back to the Future’, even if it’s a Ford Capri rather than a Delorean!

I discovered these curious characters around the local skate park…

It just wouldn’t be a complete visit to Liverpool without a connection to the Beatles.

Photos taken 15 April 2025