My Favourite Photographs

[The Old Ruminator]

Ha Ha. Got up early and have sneaked up on Photobucket again.


Shatter Cave . Digital.












Right. Enough of that. Its Tuesday so gone CAVING.

 

[Maj]

Just caught up with your last few sets of photos. It's great looking at photographs from the past and seeing how much some places haven't changed.

Looking at the club hut photos, it's quite apparent how British all the cars were then and how small too.

Keep them coming.
Maj.

 

[Sid]

Great photos Nick, thanks

A pic of MNRC under construction with MK1 Fiesta? For you Dave

https://flic.kr/p/qB8qGD

 

[The Old Ruminator]

Some historical stuff here Pegasus but lets go right up to date with this post.


At the dig face today.

 

[The Old Ruminator]

Other photographers  :-\

From deep within the archive of ancient photos this image of Peter Glanvill far too young to grow a beard.



Move forward a few decades and we have



What can I possibly say  ?

He says-

" Take the bloody camera ".



Pete Rose in Balch Cave.



C 1970 Shatter Cave.




Ahh we were all young once.

Off for a bath. Pity as Photobucket is behaving for once.

 

[ZombieCake]

From deep within the archive of ancient photos this image of Peter Glanvill far too young to grow a beard.

So nothing has really changed much.  Instead of a stinky attached to the side your head as back up that may blow up, we now have lithium attached to the side of your head that may blow up.

 

[The Old Ruminator]

Off to Western Australia soon. Can you see the kangaroo ?

 

[The Old Ruminator]

Hoping to get to page 3 before I go so --

Alum Pot c 1969.

 

[The Old Ruminator]

Bar Pot. 1960's.





Sell Gill c 1971.



Lost Johns c 1971.



Stake Pot. Lancaster Hole c 1971.



Long Churn- Alum c 1970.



Lost Johns.



Kingsdale c 1971.

 

[The Old Ruminator]

Me at Cuckoo Cleeves c 1965.



At Holwell Cavern c1965.



Sans wet suit beyond Sump One, Swildons c 1966.



Holwell c 1963.



With Willie Stanton at Herbert's Attic 1974. They dropped a plastic keg of cider on me.



Feeling horribly old all of a sudden.

 

[Roger W]

Feeling horribly old all of a sudden.

Ah, but you didn't have all these marvellous memories when you were young, did you?

Happy days!

At least, it wasn't a wooden barrel of cider!

Keep 'em coming!

Roger

 

[The Old Ruminator]

Thanks for ushering in page three Roger. Without you Tony and Laurie I doubt that I would have the will to continue.  :bow:


So one today so far as I am about to continue my monthly battle battle in Nat West where they make me qu for 20 minutes to pay in a cheque as I wont use the bloody robot.
Wanted a new credit card last week. Said I would have to wait half an hour to see somebody. Let battle commence.


So caving in the 60's here epitomised by Pete Rose on the Blue Pencil chain, Swildon's Four. Stinky lamp spare. Edison cell , Old boiler suit. You young 'uns never had it so good.

 

[tony from suffolk]

...and old miner's helmet of course. That old chain was best not looked at too closely - if you spread the links you noticed they were almost worn through.

Keep 'em coming please Mr OR, your fans hang on your every posting!

 

[Ian Ball]

I appreciate the photographs very much.

 

[The Old Ruminator]

Lets do some more then. Had a great rant in the bank but it will do no good.

Me at White Company c 1980.



Pretending to be a cave diver at Pridhamsleigh.



Bakers Pit 1960's



Enjoying Daren Cilau.



Enough of me lets have some portraits of nicer looking folk. 


N.



Catch em when you can.

Mike.



My very first caving portrait. Terry , Holwell c 1963.



Tony



Him again . Nearly always doing something daft.



I do like this one. Portraits are best unposed.



M.  Portraits need to give an essence of character. I liked it but he might not as people often dont see themselves as others do. We photographers sit on a fine line between offence and our own view of character.



Nikki is possibly the best model I have photographed. She is purely natural and being a photographer herself has an innate understanding of what her photographer wants to see. Her character shines. I never have to say anything just be there to catch that wonderful smile.







Some like Nat are great models in a differant way. Instinctive I suppose. Not the effevescance but a more sublime quality. Again I would rarely have to say anything but ask her to flick the hair so the camera could see it.



You will find that no matter the cave background a  "wrong "model will spoil the image. Its not their fault. Nothing gets radiated for the camera to pick up. Maybe just a sense of boredom with the whole proceedure. Thats why you have to be quick or un noticed. The rictus grin is worse brought about by continual faffing by the photographer.

 

[The Old Ruminator]

A few more portraits.

Watch for the outstretched arm or hand. Sometimes it can look out of scale. Sometimes it works as a support or frame.



An unposed " sneak " shot.



I would call this a portrait. The glasses give the subject something at odds with the position he is in. For some reason it struck me as funny.



A spontanious reaction is great. Be prepared for it.



Not everyone like their photo taken.

 

[The Old Ruminator]

The day of my departure draws closer. I suppose we could all say that. No. I mean off to WA.


So -


Only the little things.


Surface tension.




Only a handful of people know where this is in Shatter Cave.



Botryoidals.



When there is not enough use a mirror image.





Fingers



Helis.







Long gone but not forgotton ( trod on ! ) Shatter Cave.



Shatter Cave. Ok here is where a cave warden can help. If you do not know a cave intimately you will never find the best macros.



Withyhill.







The Frozen Deep. Rarely noticed and up on the roof.



Reservoir Hole again.



Shatter Cave.




With macro the compact camera comes into its own. The TG series handles macro well but remember the depth of field on Macro or Microscope may only be one or two mm. You can compensate a bit by having a black background. Also you have to be perilously close to the subject so lighting is awkward. Often I just set the Scurion to one side but you can use a ring flash. The TG ring flash is basically a prism reflecting light from the main flash. In awkward situations it might be best not to use macro but to crop in the final image. The zoom on TG's rarely works well. OK not pin sharp but its a compromise. Photography always is. You often have to sacrifice some element to get what you want. For me its the general image. No faffing about and hope for the best.

 

[Laurie]

You've reminded me just how many lovely young ladies there were, and still are, are in the caving world.

 

[Fulk]

Off subject, but since you mentioned it

Had a great rant in the bank but it will do no good.

.
Some time ago I had an ongoing battle with the bank, and one day an American visitor came to stay with us; she said that I shouldn't let the bastards walk all over me, but 'go in there and kick ass'. So I did . . . with an amazing result. So ? you never know, it might work!

PS I like the pics.

 

[mrodoc]

Thanks for ushering in page three Roger. Without you Tony and Laurie I doubt that I would have the will to continue.  :bow:


So one today so far as I am about to continue my monthly battle battle in Nat West where they make me qu for 20 minutes to pay in a cheque as I wont use the bloody robot.
Wanted a new credit card last week. Said I would have to wait half an hour to see somebody. Let battle commence.


So caving in the 60's here epitomised by Pete Rose on the Blue Pencil chain, Swildon's Four. Stinky lamp spare. Edison cell , Old boiler suit. You young 'uns never had it so good.

Pete still looks like that