Sculpture Vulture - Loughborough

The Watchers by Lynn Chadwick

Aftermath by Ian Tricker
Self Portrait with FED Camera.

Other than capturing real live humans at work and play, there can be few better photographic subjects available to us than Architecture and Art. More specifically for me it’s where the two disciplines collide in Contemporary Abstract Sculpture, that more visually interesting, and often challenging offspring of Figurative Sculpture which doesn't have quite the same appeal as a photographic subject for me. Happily there’s quite a lot of contemporary sculpture about if you take the trouble to look for it, which is of course what we aim to do when we carry a camera.

I know from my own experience that much of the Civic Art which started to appear in our urban landscape in the early 20th century is now practically ‘invisible’ to us. By which I mean that it's now so much a part of the everyday fabric of our busy lives that we rarely ‘see’ it, at least not in the way that the artists and their benefactors would have envisaged when their works were originally unveiled. I've walked past numerous sculptures over the years without really seeing them, hidden in plain view, just another piece of street furniture to navigate. Social Media and Phone Cameras have changed this for many of us. We're all 'Content Providers' now, and as such we're all finely attuned to, and eager to record the unusual and interesting in everyday life.

House Martin by Willi Soukop
'You Are Here'

The 'abstract' is everywhere of course, in the design and shape of Buildings and Highways, Signs and Infrastructure. But for the consciously designed 'abstraction' of sculptural art it's urban centres that are usually the best hunting grounds. Whilst Villages and Market Towns are certainly not sculpture-free, it's perhaps safe to say that their communities may not be quite as open to the challenge of difficult artworks as their City neighbours might be...

If there's one location that practically guarantees space for contemporary sculptural art, it's our many seats of learning. Leicestershire schools and colleges are particularly blessed with works of contemporary art thanks to a programme of acquisition in the 1950's and 60's pioneered by Stewart Mason of the Leicestershire Education Authority. Loughborough University in particular is littered with modern sculpture, so much so that it warrants its own map in Terry Cavanagh and Alison Yarrington's essential book on the subject, Public Sculpture of Leicestershire & Rutland (Liverpool University Press, 2000).

This (slightly out of date) map would be my guide on a day wandering around the campus, which is refreshingly open to all-comers even during term time. Wear sturdy footwear though, I did a few miles and didn't even get to see all of the sculptures. There are also a handful of interesting sculptures across the road in the Loughborough College grounds, though not nearly as easy to view, and of course Loughborough Town itself is well served with art, and for this you could do no better than following this extensive Sculpture Trail on the Lynn About Loughborough blog.

Abstract by Bernard Schottlander
These three leaning steel scrolls or cylinders got more interesting as a photographic subject the closer in I got, highlighting the colour rather than the form. Easter Eggs for a hunt were being deposited inside by students when I took this, hence the inclusion of a real live person.

UK Swatch Olympic Art Clock by Ron Arad
I can't say I was particularly taken with this sculpture, and yet this is one of my favourite images from the day. The colours are almost pastel, and with a nice grain, giving something of an album cover feel to it. 

Pulse by Paul Wager
A substantial steel edifice at a crossroads, a powerful monochrome industrial form that contrasts well with these colourful eggs, deposited by students for the Easter Egg Hunt that encompassed many of the sculptures on campus. 

Per Saeculi Quartum by Michael Dan Archer
A stone sculpture in four segments formed the bulk of this sculpture, but I concentrated on the geometric bronze mounted on top, the more interesting shape which contrasted nicely with the blue sky. 

The Watchers by Lynn Chadwick
The one sculpture on the campus that I simply had to see was The Watchers. One of three examples of this work, the others are in Denmark and London. With building work going on nearby it wasn't easy capturing an interesting view of these figures. This is from the rear with the striking roof of the Edward Herbert Building 'floating' behind, and branches of the huge Cedar of Lebanon tree in the foreground.

Brockington Building Figurative Reliefs, (sculptor unknown)
More of an architectural photograph than straight record of the three reliefs, for information the top one shows figures running and swimming, the middle relief depicts figures engaged in debate and study, this lower one woodwork and metalwork.

Truth, Labour and Knowledge by Emlyn Budds
Just the space-age pinnacle of this complex stone structure which features four bronze reliefs around the pedestal, but the one photo I took of these fell foul of the minimum focal distance so was only partially in focus.

Towers Hall (designed by Gollers Melvin Ward Architects)
Student accommodation from the glorious 60's. A local landmark that simply has to be photographed, but apparently this building has an uncertain future.

 

National Centre for Sports and Exercise Medicine (Broadway Malyan Architects)
I was hoping to catch someone walking through this area because there's nothing like a human to give a sense of scale, but sadly not.

Aftermath by Ian Tricker
During graduation ceremonies this highly reflective sculpture is designed to become a fountain. The self portrait with FED camera above was the principal subject here, one of thousands of unique reflections available to the photographer.

The Signaler by John Atkin (Rushes Retail Park, Loughborough)
This sculpture is made with Cor Ten steel which weathers uniquely dependant on local atmospheric conditions, the colour and texture of the metal is therefore my subject, contrasting (or reacting?) with the nearby Tesco Store.

Repairing A Vintage Rangefinder, So You Don’t Have To!

Whilst I have no particular desire to acquire yet more camera gadgets (other than lens filters, I’d like some lens filters), Car Boots and Charity Shops present temptation that few of us are strong enough to resist. It's not as if I need another Rangefinder attachment, in fact I don’t really need the ones I’ve got, but at the very least the leather case that this example came with makes it a useful item, and all for just £1.50!

I say ‘useful’, even a cursory examination revealed that this bargain wasn’t in fact a worker, reason unknown. However, previous experience means that I now class myself as a competent repair man when it comes to these vintage Rangefinders and Viewfinders. They’re all basically the same design as far as I can tell, a very simple design utilising basic secondary school physics and the kind of rudimentary mechanics even I can understand. Easy to repair then, once you’ve managed to get into them, which is by far the biggest problem...

Most of these Rangefinder accessories were designed to be easily calibrated by the user, but they certainly weren't made to be disassembled for repair. In fact more often than not there appears to be no obvious way to access the optical innards. I know from my own and other peoples experience that to repair these things you often need to damage them a bit more first…

This British made Amplion Rangefinder is no exception. To reveal the screws that hold the device together you need to carefully peel back the cheap vinyl covering on the rear of the instrument (above), and even more carefully prise the distance scale off the rotating wheel (right), inevitably causing some damage in the process. This is where I made a slight mistake.

The rear plate is fixed to the main body by two screws, one hidden under the vinyl, the other similarly obscured by the wheel. There's also an additional screw in the middle which fixes the copper mirror assembly to the rear plate. This doesn't need to be removed, in fact you don't even need to peel the vinyl back to reveal it, though needless to say I did, at which point a small Ball Bearing dropped out and onto the floor...

The second screw is obscured by the wheel that functions as the distance scale. To remove the wheel requires the removal of the thin black disc, which you'll find is firmly glued to the wheel. I used a craft knife to prise it off, a tricky task which caused minor damage to the plate, but a necessary evil because you now need to (partially) unscrew the smaller screw that's now been revealed. This screw prevents the wheel from fully rotating in use (above), so once it’s been unscrewed a little you'll be able to fully rotate and remove the wheel, revealing the second screw that holds the plate in place (also above).

We now have access to the innards, which in this case appeared to be in good working order, albeit I'd now created extra work by unnecessarily removing the mirror mechanism from the back plate (above). So why wasn't the damn thing working?

Well in fact it was working, mechanically so at least. The problem was the Yellow Filter that sits over one of the glass 'windows' and helps to give contrast between the two images that you're aiming to line-up (right). This had darkened and bubbled up to the point that it was difficult to see through. Once I'd removed it (below) I found that I could see the two images perfectly well so decided it didn't really need replacing, although a yellow permanent marker pen would do the job adequately should I ever change my mind.

Reassembly of the device was simple enough in reverse, though it took some experimentation to work out that the Ball Bearing sits in a depression at the end of the mirror mechanism, and the calibration screw at the centre of the wheel sits on it (left). In fact if the calibration screw is completely removed, the bearing can be dropped down the centre of the wheel.

The most important aspect of reassembly is making sure the wheel is screwed down sufficiently to achieve the correct calibration before replacing the backstop screw. Also it's useful to know that the whole copper mirror assembly can be adjusted on its mounting screw to ensure the two images line up vertically. It's now a simple case of gluing the vinyl back in place, calibrating the Rangefinder to a point at infinity, and hoping it gives an accurate reading for shorter distances.

As a postscript, whilst the Rangefinder now works properly, I've found that the steel 'foot' is too chunky to fit onto the Cold Shoe of either the FED or Baldessa cameras [groan!]

FED Shredding (inc. Thorpe Meadows Sculpture Trail Pt.2)

Modern film developing and scanning technology is what makes my return to film photography possible. I haven't got the time, space, or inclination to develop and scan my own film, relying on a very reliable local-ish business that almost certainly does the job cheaper than I could do it myself. The slight drawback is that whilst the developing and scanning machines I rely on do their job exceedingly well, they may not be flexible enough to deal with occasional idiots like myself who fail to do their job properly.

I knew there was something wrong with this film because the wind-on kept slipping a little on the FED. Not to the point I felt it needed investigating, just unmistakably not quite right to the point I was slightly worried the camera may have developed a fault. I'm delighted to say that the most recent film I put through the FED has wound-on and rewound without a problem, no slippage. So once again we're talking about user mis-op, doh!

There's a lot to like about these old Barnack style cameras, but the way that film loads through the removable bottom plate is probably not high on anyone's list of favourite things. The standard film leader needs to be trimmed for the job, the spool and film cartridge both require a pair of pliers to remove on many of the Soviet examples, and you can't see what's going on when it comes to the film engaging with the all important sprocket mechanism.

So a fiddly job that requires an element of care and concentration to get right, because if you don't get it right... shredded film at best, damaged shutter curtains a distinct possibility. The trick is to wind on a couple of shots before you replace the back, and make sure it feels right. Worth losing a frame or two to be sure.

So these scans are c/o an inexpensive family scanner, quality unknown. They include some of the 'detail' shots from my trip to the Thorpe Meadows Sculpture Trail, some of which I'm pleased with, plus some architectural highlights from Corby, a town much maligned but ripe with interesting photographic possibilities.

Gig Photography

In the absence of those semi-precious monochrome scans from the Thorpe Meadows Sculpture Trail, which I'm confident I'll manage to extract at some point, I’ll press on with the latest photographic (almost) success story.

The previous test roll in the Baldessa was partly to determine which of the two cameras I'd be taking to Derby for this year’s Psychic Dancehall Festival. As it was, I was highly sceptical that the FED would perform well in the low light conditions of an indoor venue so it was almost a foregone conclusion it would be the Baldessa.

I took the precaution of loading a slightly faster film for this adventure, a Kodak Ultramax 400 which nevertheless struggled to reach much above ‘tripod’ shutter speeds on the day. Something of a problem given that I wasn't carrying a tripod, just one of several problems on the day…

Quite how a legendary photographer like Mick Rock managed to capture so many truly iconic images at rock and pop concerts, and with all the complexities of fancy light shows and the tireless 'moving about' of its stars, all on a clunky old 1950’s Rangefinder camera! Well it's beyond me...

Perhaps he had a more modern camera back then. A fancy SLR with a fast zoom lens and even faster motor-wind. I imagine he didn't in fact need to struggle with a slow 50mm lens and limited range of shutter speeds. He also, I imagine, benefitted from unfettered access to the pit, the wings, and just about everywhere else he wanted to go in pursuit of high quality saleable images. Yes, that's probably it...

Haiku Salut - An excellent and very popular set from local Derbyshire heroes

Immersion

So a cracking day of top Electronic and Experimental Music in the heart of Derby, I certainly would again. Just not quite the successful photographic experience I'd been hoping for. I was fully expecting to shoot at least a roll of film on the day, but it ended up being a bit too much of a struggle, and I hadn't travelled to Derby for a struggle.

A well attended indoor gig can be a difficult enough place for photography at the best of times and with the best equipment, but add in glacially slow shutter speeds and limited places available to steady the camera, an inflexible fixed focal length, and perhaps most crucially, the fact you can't just hold the camera up above your head and frame the shot from an image on the screen, and you're really going to struggle.

And if I'm honest, perhaps the genre didn't help much. Head-nodding music for (mostly) middle-aged chaps like myself doesn't necessarily make for a photogenic event, so on this occasion my time was better spent enjoying the music rather than concerning myself with capturing images that were never going to interest the picture editor of Mojo magazine. It was just as well I chose the Baldessa though, I doubt I'd have captured anything with the FED. As it was the rest of the film wasn't wasted, more of which later... 

Ivan The Tolerable in their impressive three-piece band mode that I failed to capture

Hexial - One of the better visual experiences, but still basically a fella twiddling knobs, albeit to great effect

Thorpe Meadows Sculpture Trail - Pt.1

The view from Platform 7 of Peterborough Rail Station, Crescent Bridge in the background

Loading up the new Baldessa with a full '36' of Fujicolor 200 was probably not the brightest idea in hindsight. I needed the film finished and developed ahead of a rapidly approaching trip to Derby, all the better to confirm my sneaking suspicion that the camera was in fact working. I guess it's camera testing like this that those otherwise inexplicable '8' exposure films are spooled for, but a 36 was all I had so clearly there was some work to do.

Cormorant by Elizabeth Cooke (2000)

So finding myself home-alone, and with a bit of a thirst, on what would prove to be a relentlessly grey day in late March, seemed a good enough excuse to take both cameras out for a run. Nearby Peterborough was the destination, and a long-overdue visit to the terrific Sculpture Trail at Thorpe Meadows on the outskirts of the town.

Whilst paintings of all types are probably my favourite visual art form, good contemporary sculpture comes a close second, particularly when it's set in an interesting landscape to give a bit of context (ie. not a Gallery). In fact I'm already planning an extensive (and probably very expensive) day out to Kew Gardens this year for the new Henry Moore exhibition, so a cheaper practice run at a location littered with modern sculpture would make for a good practice run, or so I thought…

The area known as Thorpe Meadows is effectively a Water Meadow, in fact the reason they survive as a largely undeveloped recreational area this close to the town is that they act as a substantial flood plain for the River Nene. So my advice to you is, do go and explore the Sculpture Trail, it’s a fine walk if nothing else, but also do take some regard to recent weather conditions. Needless to say I didn’t, and as a result found it a bit of a struggle to get around much of the trail, in fact some of the sculptures were only accessible with Wellington Boots.

The plan was to take three photos of each sculpture, one on the phone camera for reference, one general view on the Baldessa with Fujicolour 200, and one monochrome detail image using the FED and a roll of Kentmere PAN 100. And of course thoroughly enjoy splashing around in the mud and puddles for a couple of hours admiring the resolve of the rowers (below), before retiring to the Brewery Tap for beer(s) and a Thai lunch. As such, all went reasonably to plan...

Helios XVI by Barry Mason (1987)

The photographs in this post are all from the Baldessa, which I'm delighted to say performed admirably, and will probably perform even better under more favourable lighting conditions. These being the more general views of the sculptures, there's not a huge amount to say other than I was aiming merely for good focus, and as wide a depth of field as I could manage for any of the multiple pieces. The FED would be for the fancier stuff, unfortunate as it turns out because I have a slight problem with the Kentmere photos...

Whilst the Baldessa is a doddle to load, the whole back coming off the body so that everything is clear to see including the all-important workings of the Sprocket which helps advance the film. The FED has no such visibility, and for some reason the advance was slipping a little on each wind of this film. Having had it developed now, I can see that many of the sprocket holes have been 'shredded' or at best damaged, so clearly it hadn't engaged properly. Ho-hum! I've now taken to advancing a frame or two before putting the base plate back on, likely to lose an exposure or two in the process but at least I can be sure that everything's moving as it should do before I've taken important shots and it's too late.

Meanwhile, the exposed film resisted the efforts of my preferred developers to move through their scanner, so I currently have what looks like a good set of monochrome negative images, but sadly no scans as yet, something I'll be working on.

Heavily edited detail shot

Untitled by Miles Davies (1990)

Under the Ocean, Under the Sea by Christine Angus (1983)

I think this is a work by Jamie Paul Scanlon, aka. JPS

People by Tolleck Winner (2006)

Outside In by John Foster (1978)