Was going to go to Worcester today on the train. Then I thought I'd drive, then I thought I might go to Hereford instead. Then I finally decided not to bother with any long distance sightseeing and just walk around some parts of Cheltenham that I haven't been to yet. So I walked east along the edge of the town to a café called Whiskers in a patch of parkland. It turned out to be on the edge of a football pitch attached to the clubhouse and had a distinctly unappealing look to it, to me that is
So I consulted Osmand~ and plotted a circuitous course to Montpellier Gardens on the opposite side of town.
On the way I found a pleasant little café called Rainbowls where I'm having a mocha and a slice cake
Now I'm at Montpellier, as usual I'm entering from the end opposite the main entrance
The pavilion is actually an art gallery. The works on display today are photograph's by Martin Fry
I had a brief conversation with Martin Fry about his pictures. I was especially drawn to them because half of the display was of pictures of parts of Cornwall, many of which I frequently visited as a child (my mother was Cornish). The other half were mostly of Gloucestershire with a few of Cheltenham itself.
I was especially struck by a picture of Pittville Pump Rooms so i decided to buy a small print, it 6x8" card for 2.50 GBP whereas the print on display was closer to a metre across and printed on archival paper. Still a not too desperate a price, I think it was 200 GBP.
When I went to pay for it the man at the table with the payment card said "I'm the snapper." I said to him that i had been considering a trip to Cornwall but that now I had seen his photographs I don't think I need go because they are so memorable and of so many of the places familiar to me. I said how impressed I was with how he had captured the light. I told him I was staying near the Pittville Pump Rooms and must have passed it a dozen times and it had never looked as good as his photograph. I was also impressed by how he captured the waves and spray in the seascapes. I said he must have a very fast camera and he said it was a Nikon ZX I think. He must have had a huge lens to get some of the shots.
Here's a picture of the card I bought and also my attempt at recreating it.
The print is still in the plastic envelope to it's not a very good picture of the picture
Here's mine. I managed to find roughly the spot that Martin must have taken it from and zoomed in to get everything about the same size
Of course even if i had his skill and camera I still wouldn't be able replicate the picture because mine was taken in mid afternoon light in late summer whereas his was taken in early morning light in early summer
I took about a dozen shots in the shifting light as the clouds came and went. This seemed to be one of the best. My camera is a Sony DSC-HX50V ultra-zoom compact, exposure time 1/160, F number 6.3, image size 5090x3817 (but SW resizes).
Martin mentioned another picture and said I would be able to see the tree from the Pump Rooms when I got there. I'm not sure if i remembered the picture correctly but if I did then it's at the very limit of the 30 x optical zoom on my camera. Here it is:
Not bad considering the light and lack of tripod I suppose but definitely not likely to win any awards.
I'll go back tomorrow and see if the exhibition is still there to check which picture it was, I've probably misremembered .
Past my bedtime. But just now I checked for messages on Fabguys and I've been recognized in public again! I think that's the fourth time. This time it's someone at the art gallery in Cheltenham, not the photographic one in Montpellier Gardens.
So I'll go back to the gallery again tomorrow or Wednesday and see if I can say hello. Unfortunately neither of us can accommodate, although he did say he was fantasizing about using a private room at the gallery!
Problem is that there was a different volunteer on duty on the two days I went and I'm not 100% sure which one messaged me. Still I'll go back and I'll make sure I'm wearing my shortest skirt as he was very complimentary about my legs. perhaps I'll expose a bit more skin with a crop top too if the weather isn't too chilly.
Today's outfit includes the fake fur that I got for 0.99 GBP last week and the Pull & Bear skirt from yesterday with the long sleeved top, also from yesterday.
The weather is not ever so cold, it's about 18 C and not expected to get warmer than 19 C. But it's very breezy with occasional showers so I'm glad of the fur.
On the way to Montpellier I passed through Sandford Park in which is this curious structure. It reminded me of a WW II machine gun post but is, I think, part of the local flood defences.
The figure on top is The Weathered Man, commissioned by the Environment Agency
Across the road that divides the park is the more formal gardens of the park and a pleasant fountain
Walking though the park I came across this curious artwork
@Infamous607 It's just the camera angle that makes it look big, it's just a normal size for a mocha or Americano something between 250 to 300 ml I think.
