Bucket List

 It may seem like a strange thing to include visiting the Botallack tin mines in Cornwall in my bucket list of sites to see but is has long been an ambition of mine to go there. Not because the landscape was made famous by TV shows like Poldark but because of the real history of the place has always fascinated me; the hardships of the men who put their lives at risk deep under ground, the families who supported them and the harsh conditions they endured.  The site is managed by the National Trust and is genuinely a national treasure.

Although I was only in Cornwall for a few days I was pretty determined that I would get here and I was so pleased that I did. After visiting Land's End which was fun (watching a shoal of Tuna feeding down below the headland) it was also too commercialised and far too busy for my liking, a short drive up to Botallack was definitely the right move. For a start it was much more peaceful, there was hardly anyone else around, and the scenery was even more impressive. The industrial architecture was stunning and it was quite an adventure finding the right angles to photograph from. I got into a bit of trouble as I clambered up and down the slopes but the slight risks I took seemed insignificant compared to those taken by the men and women who made a living here many years ago.

I visited at the end of a sunny but blustery day at the beginning of October and I tried to imagine how challenging it must have been when the weather conditions were less favourable, or even quite hostile as I am sure they can be on such an exposed landscape.

Below is a small selection of the images I took on the day (I have more that I may share another time). I chose to do mostly black and white images because they are more dramatic than the colour images and I felt they were more evocative of the period when this place was in use. Feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you think.

St Michael's Mount

Just one image for today and for this I am going back to my Cornwall trip in 2024.

I have experimented a little with this view of St Michael's Mount, I quite like it but let me know what you think. I remember it as being quite a sunny day on and off and I enjoyed eating a delicious pasty from Philps' bakery in Marazion whilst looking across at this view. Although it was mostly sunny there were moments of cloudy weather too and even a little mist on the mount itself, and so I have edited the original image to bring out some of the drama in the sky.

I would like to have time to go back and do some long exposure shots and maybe get some reflections as well as maybe some night time shots with the mount illuminated, but who knows when that might be possible. In the meantime I will reflect on some of my photos and order some pasties from Philps.

 

Cornish Memories

I had hoped to get out with my camera today but for various reasons I wasn't able to do so and as a result I felt a bit glum. As I am writing this I can see that it is now raining so perhaps I wouldn't have had such a great time anyway. To fill some time I decided to review a few old files and photos and I realised that I had a couple of folders that I have neglected so I have some work to do to sort through them. The first is a collection  of photos I took on a holiday in Cornwall at the end of September 2024. \9I can hardly believe that I have left them so long although I may have shared some mobile phone photos from that trip on Instagram and Facebook I don't appear to have done anything with this folder).

I had visited Cornwall briefly for a work trip a long time ago but I had never gone for leisure so I was really pleased to have an opportunity to go for a short break. I stayed in Newquay but travelled around a fair bit over the few days I was there.

These first two images were taken on Pentire Headland looking towards Fistral Beach. The conditions were a bit dull and overcast so I thought these images worked better in black and white. They are grasses which were growing on the top of an old stone wall.

These next few images are from St Michael's Mount. 

The cannon pointed towards Penzance, was one of many pointed in the same direction, I did wonder whether this was a sign of aggression towards the people of Penzance or a show of strength to ward off would be aggressors from the sea. 

I always like a nice sundial and this one definitely caught my eye. I originally shot this in black and white because I liked the way it looked in monochrome however when editing I actually wanted to bring out the colours in the sea and the stonework.

This last image was part of a "thing" I was doing with Lego minifigures, mostly using my phone's camera and you can see them all on my Instagram profile (Chipster_63), but here I have used my DSLR and I have kept it in black and white as shot. I have lots of minifigures that I like to pose in various locations to tell a story. In this image the figure represents me and has its own little camera and the image overall represents the time I spend taking pictures as well as being a little bit of fun.
 

Comeback Kid

 A few months ago I watched a rerun of a TV show about Cornwall, I had a holiday planned and wanted to find out a little more about the area from a local perspective (the presenter has grown up, lived and worked in Cornwall for many years).

One of the things he highlighted while visiting Lands End was the growing population of Choughs in the region, a bird from the Corvid family that has long had a presence in Cornwall but whose numbers had declined significantly but were now beginning to gain a foothold once again. They are distinguishable by the curved bright red beak and red legs and are quite at home on the exposed rocky coastline.

I had seen them previously at a distance in Anglesey near South Stack but not close enough to photograph them. Visiting Lands End I hoped to see some a bit closer but although I did spot some they were never quite close enough.

I was staying in Newquay and one morning I went for a walk along Pentire Headland which provided some great views across Fistral Beach and along the coast. I spotted a small flock of Choughs along one edge of the headland and slowly approached them with my camera at the ready, fully expecting them to fly off but although they were a little wary they were too busy feeding to take much notice as I gradually inched towards them down on their level.

It was so rewarding to see them knowing that not so long ago this would not have been possible and hopefully you will agree that they are quite cool looking birds and you will see why I was so "chuffed" to capture these shots.