Well, there I was again with time on my hands all early of an incredibly windy, atmospherically-void Summer's morn and a desperation to get out with a camera.
So what did I do?
Yep - I plopped m'laddo at his work and drove off post-haste to somewhere I'd vowed to try and photograph before - the footings of the Tay Rail Bridge.
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| Remnants Of Original Rail Bridge |
If you are really interested as to why there are two lots of footings, the disaster is writ long and well explained here:
it is well worth reading, if only to find out that its echoes mean that (all bar a few circumstances) bridges are better designed these days.
So there I was - the tide was relatively low, and I was itching to go.
Drove over the water, parked up, got set . . the excitement was mounting - Oh yes:
Hasselblad SWC/M ✔
Film ✔
Light Meter ✔
Wellies ✔
Notebook ✔
Trekking Pole (for assisting climb over seaweed and sewage slick rocks) ✔
Tripod ✔
Handwash Gel (for any ghastliness picked up on hands etc) ✔
Note to self - always make sure your Hasselblad QR platform is actually
attached to your Arca Ballhead BEFORE you go somewhere . . .
I only went and forgot to pack the QR plate didn't I - if you've got an Arca ballhead, you'll know that it only operates with Arca style QR plates . . mine is attached to a very old Hasselblad QR system - it was a lot cheaper than buying a few plates, believe you me.
Anyway, forgot it - it was a moment of looking at the tripod, looking at the Gitzo carry case, looking at the tripod, looking at the case et al . . .
Och well I thought to myself - we'll have to be as handheld/tripod with no attachment point as we can be . . and that wasn't too easy as it was blowing a gale.
Still I did manage to extract something, albeit not exactly at the apertures I was requiring . . but them's the breaks.
Please excuse the over-exposedness of these - since my two heavily underexposed films earlier on in the season I've been a bit paranoid about such things and have rather over-compensated just to be sure.
It is a bad move though - some of those really dense negs are torture to print through - I must achieve a better balance methinks.
Film #66/59
17/8/19
FP4 EI 50 (! just in case)
1./ 1/2 f16 ZIV shadows tripod rest
2./ 1/2 f16 ZIV shadows tripod rest
3./ 1/8 f8 Z III Pear tripod rest
4./ 1/8 f8 Z III tripod rest
5./ 1/4 f11 Z III tripod rest
6./ 1/15 f8 Z III hand-held
7./ 1/15 f11 Z III hand-held
8./ 1/30 f11 Z III hand-held
9./ 1 sec f22 Z III tripod rest
10./ 1/30 f16 Z III hand-held
11./ 1/30 f8 Z III hand-held
12./ 1/125 f11 Z III hand-held
All difficult - wind buffeting no tripod plate so rested!
Mostly cable release, though some it was just easier with a finger!
PHD new 22 C - usual to 15 mins, stand to 17.
Great (if a little overexposed) results.
Where it says "tripod rest" it means I've just rested the Hasselblad on top of the Arca head without actually attaching it and tried not to move the camera - all things considered it was better than expected.
"Hand-held" means just that; no tripod was used.
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| 'New' Rail Bridge Footings Seen From Slipway |
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| Recent Graffitti On 'New' Bridge |
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| Footings Of Both Bridges At Low Tide |
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| Remnants Of Original Rail Bridge |
And whilst that all looks lovely and relatively clean, what it hasn't got across was the hefty wind which was pushing me everywhere, nor the omnipresent slick layer of sewage strewn around the place - not that it stinks, but it certainly does make you go Gargh!
Anyway, that's the results - I actually intend to go back with the 5x4" as I feel that will do it justice - certainly being able to manipulate the verticals and the wider spread of everything should (hopefully) work. I've actually wondered about a 6x9 or 6x12 back for the Wista - that might well be the way to go for stuff like this - not that I am an architectural photographer or anything, but I do enjoy photographing large man-made structures - it's fun and usually a challenge.
The prints by the way were very quick and nasty jobbies on Ilford MGRC - I didn't have much time, but wanted to get something down before the urge passed me completely.
So that's it. If you are tempted to photograph it yourself, be my guest, just don't blame me if you come down with Hep-C or Dehli Belly - you really don't know what's in the water these days.
Take care and watch out for that sewage-slick roc . . . . !
See, I told you - now how are you going to explain to your Mum why you've got a massive shite-splat down the back of your shirt . . . ?
I like the graffiti photo the best, closely followed by the picture of the original rail bridge. It looks like a great place to explore and photograph. Except for the sewage, of course. How fast does the tide come up there? Is it something you always have to keep in mind?
ReplyDeleteI've remember the tripod and forgotten the plate several times in the past. I now have a plate for every camera that I regularly use and I leave them attached at all times. That seems to have solved the problem.
Thank you Marcus -always nice to hear from you.
DeleteI don't actually think I have done the negatives any justice in the printing - it was all approached too quickly - I'll get there (maybe). But yes, tide is every 6 hours approx, give or take 20 minutes + or - every now and then.
The tide is relatively slow, but it is access to the bit I was at that was difficult - you really need low tide in order to pick a path or otherwise you really will be skiting everywhere - it is very rocky and slippy.
There used to be access for railway maintanance, but that got heavily vandalised and was actually bricked up and closed, so you have no recourse but for the slippy route.
The Arca plate (with Hasselblad QR) is now FIRMLY ATTACHED!
Some interesting stuff here. Must be worth going back a few times. It looks as though there are now opportunities around each corner, possibly waiting for a different light.
ReplyDeleteCan I recommend overkill in the matter of plates? A spare one tucked away in the bag, hopefully never used. And for me, spare cable releases in every crevice. I'm really good at losing them.
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DeleteThanks David - appreciated as always. Yeah, I think I will actually - there's all sorts of old bridge stuff lying around too. I quite like it in a slippy, seweragy sort of way ';0)
DeleteSpare cable releases too - usually 3.
Last comment deleted for bad spelling.
A wicked thought has come into my empty head.
ReplyDeleteAs you are bound to know, there is a literary masterpiece concerning the Tay bridge. Have you ever been tempted by combining words and images? I don't mean direct illustrations, but something like Fay Godwin and Ted Hughes' joint work. Parallel rather than linked. Perhaps I say too much...
That's quite a thought David, and no, I hadn't thought of it, but I bet someone will now!
DeleteAnton Le Moose
Interesting subject, Phil. I've done the tripod thing as well. Bloody annoying. I wouldn't worry too much about the slimy stuff lying around. I've written loads of stories about the water quality of the Tay and it's excellent. Here's a link to Sepa's relevant page if you're interested. http://apps.sepa.org.uk/BathingWaters/ViewResults.aspx?id=10308
ReplyDeleteBruce