Big Bang in Them Hills...

 

A bucolic Thursday down in the inch high Devon as a grain wagon of malted barley is being dropped off. Officially it’s going to be turned into jars of sweet malt extract for weedy anaemic types who refuse to lick rusty iron railings.

Back in olden times all children were encouraged to lick iron railings, or if they didn’t have such, they could always lick rails, busy railway lines being ideal because of the tiny iron filings resulting from passing trains as the wheels wore down the tops of the rails. 

 

Unofficially, the malted barley will be turned in to a mash and fermented as the first stage of moonshine production before distilling. The flatbed lorry on the left will shortly depart with a crate of freshly potted ‘shine. The set up here is all very professional and organised with Barry Bullhead from The Ministry of Misery in charge - this of course being just a side hustle for him, for the Ministry would almost certainly not approve. 

 

Meanwhile, several miles away in Somerset, moonshine production is somewhat more ‘agricultural’, with explosions occurring most days, many of which can be seen from up to 40 miles away. The cloud here most likely being the result of such an incident high up on the Mendip Hills. 

 

And finally, a bit of trivia - the famous cheesy Cheddar Gorge tourist trap, whilst most people think it was formed by natural erosion over millions of years, it was in fact the result to a major moonshine explosion in 1883 when a truckle of cheddar cheese was accidentally dropped in to the still. 

 

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Let’s start a campaign to bring back licking iron railings to counteract childhood anaemia - you can help here www.buymeacoffee.com/Nevardmedi3 - cheers 

Mid-week shenanigans...

 Mid-week shenanigans...

Working from left to right (or for those down under who’ll be looking at this photo upside down, from right to left). 

 

Barry Bullhead is striking up a deal with local pub owner Shamus O’Shandy for a crate of his latest ‘Devon Shine’, an all malt 190% proof liquor. 

 

Retired boxer, top geeza bloke and now loco driver Gaylord Grip is thinking about all the ladies he’ll be out to charm later this evening. He’s very good at “ello darlin’, do you want to see my naked armadillo photos?” The pretty ladies of Somerset falling for his loveable rogue cockney tones and cheesy one-liners.

At last count he had 5 ladies on the go at the same time. Dotty the delicious tea lady at Highbridge station, a psychic called Magical Melanoma from Glastonbury, Buxom Babs the barmaid from The Olde Hook, Line and Sinker in Bridgwater, B&B & brothel owner Miss Miggins in West Pennard, and finally Polly Pops a posh pony breeder from Pylle. 

 

Deliberation Dave looks at the engine which is pottering about. He’s always amused by the random shunting moves and often how inefficient many of them are. Well, to his eyes anyway. 

 

Waving Waymond (one of Waving Wayne’s brothers) is on the ground giving instructions. Though he might simply be waving at someone or something out of shot to the right. It’s difficult to know. 

 

That’s Clive in the brakevan, he’s alway in it. And since his wife threw him out he’s been living in it for the last 6 weeks. Guards rostered to this van are often amused to find his freshly laundered underwear hanging off the wheel that operates the brakes, and his mattress in the corner near the stove. 

 

And finally Bob Geeza cat is standing just out of shot to the right, he not realising the the photographer is using a standard rather than his more usual wide angle lens.

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A heart warming thank you to those who chuck me a sov from time to time www.buymeacoffee.com/Nevardmedi3 - cheers 

Never Trust the Cat

Deep in the Forest, a magnificent sunrise greets High Vis Harvey and Fluorescent Fred as they arrive on shift to start the engine. But as usual on a Tuesday they’ve lost the key to wind it up. Bob Geeza Cat is in shot all bright eyed and bushy tailed, he’s most likely involved. Never trust the cat...

Mixed Weather

The mixed weather (now known as 'very scary global warming, but if you buy and electric car, all will be good weather') in Little England continues, as the autumn firmly makes its mark. The last portion of the goods train which originated at Poole, passes Combwich shed, some of it being a consignment of empty French made mason jars for the local thriving moonshine industry and empty tins to be filled with the much sought after Combwich crab. 

 

Meanwhile Standard Class 3 tank engine number 5 sits on shed between duties, with the crew most likely having a cider or two in the nearby Royal Oak. You can just make out the pub roofline in the distance, it being just to the right of 53809’s chimney. 

 

Airfix kit aficionados will notice the similarity between the engine shed and the well loved kit. Allegedly the plastic kit was based on Combwich engine shed, with its distinctive ventilation fan being an old ship propeller salvaged from the sunken Good Ship Mermaid. I’m sure there’s a sea shanty in there somewhere. 

 

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These scenes take time to create and photograph - you can support me here www.buymeacoffee.com/Nevardmedi3

The Railway Automotive Club

 

Back in the olden days when there were more railways than roads, if your car broke down you’d use the services of the Railway Automotive Club - aka RAC.

Here we have such an occurrence, as Beryl’s supercharged Austin Seven is returned to her nearest station after it blew a head gasket and cracked the sump doing 98mph on the A37 flying over the railway bridge next to Pylle Halt. 

 

Not many know this, but the halt was originally called East Pennard before being renamed in 1928 to reflect the fact that drivers complained of a sore bottom as they bounced over the hump backed railway bridge even at quite modest speeds - especially those suffering from piles. 

 

Later she’ll ask Harry the Hammer to sort the issue out, for there is nothing Harry can’t do with his hammer. Though she’s quite enjoying the tiny pale blue brand new 3 wheeled bubble car the RAC have loaned her as a courtesy car, for it is marginally drier in wet weather and has yet to smell of mildew. Back in olden times all cars would smell of mildew after 3 months, that and leaded petrol and engine oil as they marked their territory on the driveway. 

 

And finally one of the axle boxes is missing on the well wagon. Harry will sort it with a couple of taps of his mighty tool.

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Harry the Hammer will need paying, can you help Beryl? www.buymeacoffee.com/Nevardmedi3 - cheers

Harman Phoenix 200

 

Some results from this new ‘quirky experimental’ Harman Phoenix 200 colour negative film made at the Ilford plant in Mobberley Cheshire. It’s definitely an ‘art’ film, with increased sensitivity to the warmer end of the spectrum, grain and limited anti halation layer. 

Box speed is supposedly 200 iso, but in reality it’s a 100 iso film as rated here. But could drop it further tbh. Probably not at every day film, but interesting nevertheless.

I wasn’t sure what to expect, so just shot a few images around the garden aiming for warmer coloured subjects that I’d read and seen suits the film well. Definitely a Marmite film, with very mixed reviews online, especially YouTube. I like Marmite with a dash of hot sauce on toast btw. 

Whilst I process my own B&W, I got Southsun lab to C41 process this set. Having done colour processing at college many years ago it’s not something I wish to get involved with, even with all the right gear it’s a real faff with processing temperatures around 40c and chemistry with very limited shelf life. 

Southsun provided these 25mp scans to download, which were nice and neutral so I could pop them through Adobe Lightroom to boost colour and contrast a little to suit my palette. When the negs arrive back shortly I’m keen to see how my scanning will compare, the film having a mauve colour mask rather than orange. 

Will I use it again? Possibly, it’s not something I’d use for my miniature photography, far too grainy and off the wall colour and contrast wise. But it could be interesting to use for some urban grot environmental photography, I imagine old brickwork and graffiti would respond well to it. Of course I could easily recreate what you see here shooting 100% digitally, but that’s rather too easy and throwaway. 

Zenit 12XP with 28, 58 and 135mm lenses.

Saturday Morning at Whitehall Halt

Saturday morning at Whitehall Halt, as Arthritic Arthur powers around the bend at breakneck speed with the 8.23 & 1/2am mixed goods from Hemyock to Tiverton Junction, there the wagonload behind his engine will be added to the 6.37am express milk and perishables train from Penzance.

Waving Wally waves at Arthur to slow down. For he has to collect a fresh consignment of country air which has just been loaded into the wagon. The air being destined for that there London.

In olden times, fresh country air destined for smokey towns and cities was always transported in open wagons, it helped to keep it fresh with the constant ventilation, thus avoiding a musty aroma upon arrival.

Alas, with forgetful Arthritic Arthur at the helm, the little train doesn’t stop, Arthur simply waving back at Waving Wally whilst shouting ‘see you in the pub later, it’s skittles night! To which Wally mutters to himself “no that was last night, and you were there with me.”

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A heart warming thank you to those who chuck me a sov from time to time www.buymeacoffee.com/Nevardmedi3 - cheers 

From our Westminster commentator Hilary Gove-Tuckshop-Fugg

I posted this one a year ago, but I reckon it’s worth another punt even though we have new leaders, but they’re all much the same - mostly self serving incompetence…. Obvs not to be taken seriously…

Today’s post is written by our Westminster commentator Hilary Gove-Tuckshop-Fugg (with apologies to any northern readers who can read and might be offended or lefty leaning southerners who want to be offended on behalf of others). 

 

So without further ado, over to Hilary….

Here are are in ’The Grim North’, which curiously looks like the Somerset Levels, but I’m assured it is ‘northern’ - I mean, just look at all the smoke, that melancholic sky and steam lorry, not a Tesla in sight.

Today’s the launch of the new HS2 ‘Network North Rail’ service between Birmingham and some northern town or village known as Manchester. But one being, as you lot call ‘a namby-pamby’ southerner living in the Westminster area of ‘that there London’, I know little of such, so please excuse any ignorance by my behalf. 

 

Here’s the first train, and most stylish it is in those bright colours designed to brighten up your almost monochromatic soot stained landscape. And because we in the south imagine most of you walk, use bicycles or horse and carriage to get to work ’at t’mill’, you’ll I’m sure enjoy this extravagant nod to Victorian times when Britain was at its height. 

 

And if you look beyond the fine red carriage, which at a push can get 78 of you grubby lot in, there’s even an unmanned guard’s van for your pet whippets, pigeons and of course your small children employed in the mills and pits (though of course we’ve closed them all now). 

 

You’ve never had it so good, so stop moaning and get back to your bingo, vape and betting shops or whatever you do after a 19 hour shift in the frozen rag pudding factory.

 

Yours,

Hilary Gove-Tuckshop-Fugg

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Thank you those who help to keep the miniature nonsense flowing www.buymeacoffee.com/Nevardmedi3

38 years ago (and a bit)!!

6998 Burton Agnes Hall, with the Blackmore Vale Express, heads away from Salisbury destined for Yeovil Junction on a dull misty 5 October 1986.

 

I took it on my 1959 vintage Rolleicord Va loaded with Ektachrome 200 colour transparency 120 format film. The camera is still fully operational and used from time to time, and here it is posed on Fountain Colliery a few minutes ago. 

 

I bought the camera in November 1983 secondhand from City Photographic in Southampton. It’s funny how we remember these things.

 

I doubt many of today’s digital cameras will still work 38 years from now, the electronics almost certainly failing well before then. But there are enthusiasts who’ll want to keep such alive….

Early 2000s digital cameras have a bit of a following, and often with younger folk who’ve maybe only known mobile phones. The other day I saw a young woman who was probably only just twenty with a Nikon D1x from around the year 2000. And fashion conscious young chap at my local station wanted a photo of him and his pal as he thrust a mint 2006 vintage Canon G7 Powershot in to my grubby mitt. Naturally I obliged and commented on his choice of vintage digital camera. 

 

The same goes for film, when out and about it’s the younger people who are experiencing and championing film photography, maybe with grandad’s old SLR. And there’s certainly no problem getting film these days. It’s having quite a renaissance, as people rediscover those old cameras. Rollei and Pentax have recently released brand new 35mm cameras, reinforcing the photography equivalent of vinyl.

 

And finally, the Rolleicord featured here is currently loaded with Ilford HP5 film for further adventures....

 

Watercress Line Autumn Gala 2024

A few snaps taken at the Mid Hants Railway Autumn Steam Gala on Friday 4 October. 

 

Most try to avoid people in their shots, but looking back at my old stuff, the ones with people in are the most interesting. Just as well, for railway nuts love wandering in front of cameras pointing in their direction. But they are part of the scene and have as much right to be there as me, the railway wouldn’t exist without them. 

 

No prize winners here, but for me half the fun is digging out the old cameras and using them,  this camera dating from when day to day steam was still working on Britain's railways.

 

All taken on my 1966 vintage Mamiya C33 with 80mm Sekor lens. Kentmere 400. Home dev.

 

Click to enlarge as usual....