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

Chester Cathedral

The last time I visited Chester was in April 2003, when I was teaching on a course in the city and it’s long been on my list of places I’d like to return to. As we prepared to drive home from Liverpool last November that moment finally came as it was a fairly easy detour to Chester via the Mersey Tunnel. We spent an hour or so in the Cathedral and I was thrilled when the sun finally appeared, creating some beautiful play of light on the stonework.

Photos taken 22 November 2024

Museum light

There are certain buildings which never fail to get my photographic juices going. Sometimes that’s down to the architectural lines; on other occasions it’s because of the way the light falls within the space. The Museum of Liverpool falls into both these categories, and when we visited last November I found some new angles on a space I thought I’d already explored pretty fully.

Photos taken 21 November 2024

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

Salisbury Cathedral

I never pass up the chance to visit a Cathedral, even if it’s one I’ve been to many times before. In April we passed near Salisbury on our way to a concert so naturally we popped in for a look around. I’ve photographed here in detail before, so on this occasion I ended up shooting two mini projects - the first was to explore the many different animals I found lurking among the choir stalls.

My other mini project was looking for interesting light and as the sun came out there was no shortage of that…

Photos taken 19 April 2025

Christmas Eve on the beach

It’s become a bit of tradition over the years for me to visit the seaside on Christmas Eve, usually with one of my pinhole cameras in hand, and in 2024 I did exactly that. The Sussex coastline isn’t know for its drama, and on this particular day I had a double dose of calm in that the tide was out and it was misty too - no dramatic crashing wavescapes for me!

One lovely thing that West Wittering does have though is some sand dunes and I couldn’t resist featuring the marram grass in some of my photos.

There may not have been many folks using their beach huts, but the owners of this one were getting in the festive spirit.

There’s always time for a slow motion selfie…

Photos taken 24 December 2024

A tale of two cathedrals

It was inevitable we’d visit both of Liverpool’s Cathedrals while we were there last November. It never fails to amaze me that both of these buildings were completed during my own lifetime and they’re so different. When we arrived at the Anglican Cathedral the sun was gradually dropping in the sky, creating some beautiful effects as it hit the stonework.

Downstairs in the Lady Chapel.

The seats had all been removed from the nave, creating a very uncluttered view as I looked back towards the crossing.

When in Liverpool it’s only correct to photograph a Liver Bird!

The last time I visited the Metropolitan Cathedral I took lots of photos, documenting the modern architecture, so this time I decided to take a more abstract approach, using the shapes and light I found around me.

One thing I missed out on last time was seeing the crypt as it was being used for university exams. This time it was open and it was wonderful to finally see a glimpse of what Edwin Lutyens had in mind in his design for the Cathedral. This huge crypt was built from millions of bricks, but the advent of World War II stopped construction and the Cathedral which was eventually built above it is very different (and much smaller) than Lutyens’ original design. It’s estimated that is Lutyens’ design had been built in its entirety it still wouldn’t be finished today!

Photos taken 19 & 20 November

Literary lines

Yet again I find myself horribly behind on my Photoblog posts so I’m starting another attempt to catch up with more regular posts. Some photos will be recent, while others, like these, were taken several months ago!

One of the places on my ‘must visit’ list when we went to Liverpool last November was the central library. Admittedly, not a typical holiday destination, but I’d see photos of the modern atrium and the 19th century circular reading room online and they struck me as places I’d like to photograph. I didn’t get very far with the modern part of the library as I could really have done with having a zoom lens on my camera to make more of the shapes. But that gives me a good excuse to come back sometime!

The Picton Reading Room, on the other hand, suited the two small prime lenses I had with me just perfectly and I spent a happy half hour exploring its beautiful lines.

Photos taken 21 November 2024