The Blog and Ramblings of Greenman Photography
Well I’m a lookin out of the window on a Bank Holiday monday, and quite frankly I’m not impressed. I specifically put in a weather order for bright conditions with interesting clouds. Words will be had!
Here are some examples of what should have been happening out there. Stupid ministry of weather! Sort it out!
No one likes to be interrupted, with this in mind the Govt of the time threw up 103 Martello Towers around the south and east coasts of England  from 1804 to about 1812. “KEEP OUT!” and “GETORFFMOILAND!” Big Stylee 🙂
I like a good old trundle around the local coastal defences, they kind of give off a grumpy solidness which I can relate to. I want one!
Times change but sometimes intent does not. A couple of hundred yards from the Napoleonic Martello Tower situated at east lane Bawdsey in Suffolk there is a WWII shore defence system built 140 years later. Same purpose different foe.
Beauty of a day on Sunday so went for a blunder to see what I could find to blunder about and fall over in. Came across Butley woods which are normally private and full of GETORFTMOILANDyness, but on this occasion were open to the public for a small fee in aid of the Madame Curie cancer trust, probably as the woods were a bustin full of daffodils which is the trusts logo.
Lots of woodland tracks and paths swathed in daffodils, enough to make Welshman giddy!  Not a drop of Welsh blood in me so I was safe 🙂
But the best bit was when I got home. There was roast in the oven and the house smelt just a little bit bloody brilliant! 🙂
Just a quick update of my last post, Sepia Selenium Cyanotype, Â to those of you who showed an interest in its progress. I was trying to get a look close to that of the Roger Fenton images of the Crimea. The heavily sepia’d image seemed to be the closest but was lacking in general wear and tear and . . . well, Muck!
Not really one to use textures and brushes to be honest, So I found some photoshop brushes on an old disc that came with a magazine I once bought and had a bit of an experiment. Some were right over the top, but I am a persistent fiddler and so I fiddled away until I was happy, I also watch a lot of “Carry On” films. I think the end result is reasonably close. Have a look at some of the originals   http://allworldwars.com/Crimean-War-Photographs-by-Roger-Fenton-1855.html
Lots more fiddling with the sliders, Oh I loves a good fiddle me. Went to a historical military Doo Dah a couple of years back in aid of the charity Help for Heroes. Was a great bash with loads of re enactment types ranging from Hoplites through to WWII, lots of photo opportunities, and the old re enactors really dont mind you getting in their face, and strike poses all over the shop, great fun.
Now, in a previous post, Â Â Â https://everydayparanoidvisions.wordpress.com/2011/10/08/orthochromatic-steampunkery-and-wobbling-in-the-wind/Â Â I got me hapless subjects holding long poses in order to get a bit of a wobble on so as to add a wee bit of that there authentic orthochromatic wibbly wobbly look. I was trying for the orthochromatic look, lightens blues and darkens reds, after I red an article in the “Black and White Photography” magazine, and thought that I would give it a bash. I used several presets in various software packages, once I had achieved the look that I was after, to add grain or tone and all in all I was fairly pleased with the results.
With that in mind I wanted to try and improve on past efforts. Delving in the archives I came a cross a set of images of the victorian, Crimea era, Lancers. Now the re enactors were pretty tip top at gettin the authenticity right, but when taking images, full glaring colour does seem a bit incongruous as you have to remember that photography in that era was blokes in top hats lugging around massive great wooden camera bodies and tripods, and pretty much still in its infancy. So I had a go at trying to mimick some of the Crimean war photographs that I have seen. Good examples of those taken by pioneering photographer Roger Fenton can be seen here  http://allworldwars.com/Crimean-War-Photographs-by-Roger-Fenton-1855.html  There are some cracking Beards and sideys a goin on in some of them.
First of all after the initial mono conversion I tried a light sepia (above). I then tried a selenium tone which I personally found more pleasing. I then added some grain and some white vignetting (below).
But after looking at the Fenton images I took a rubberized mallet to the sliders to get the really heavily sepia’d effect below. I think all it needs now is creasing up and some dirt and scratch effects, I was going to dig out some textures and give  it some blending but not enough time today, so I shall leave it out for the cats 🙂
Lots more practice (fiddling) needed I fear, good job I do it for the love 🙂
Decided to add a new category to the old blog, The Road Goes Ever On. Got a bit of a thing of old tracks, paths, roads and ancient rights of way. When ever I’m out blundering about and I see one I can’t help meself, I have to go and investigate and fall over somewhere along it
EveryDay Paranoid Visions 