In The Gothic Gloom

Lockdown blues had got to me before. Late last summer, I was becoming a little bored of streetscapes and cityscapes and wanted to do something more interesting.

Before the woodlands and the countryside’s came a trip one Saturday afternoon to Woodside Crematorium in Paisley to capture the atmosphere here… It was a trip partly inspired by the works of Bernard Pierre Wolff (particularly his photos of Il Staglieno Cemetery in Genoa, 2 in particular were used by Peter Saville on the cover of the “Closer” album and the 12″ single of “Love Will Tear Us Apart” by Joy Division)

I think it’s something I managed to successfully capture. I hope you agree…

Quiet Contemplation: 5 September 2020, F/6.3, 1/60s, ISO 100, 50mm

Pointing Upwards: 5 September 2020, F/3.2, 1/400s, ISO 200, 50mm

Reaching to Heaven: 5 September 2020, F/3.2, 1/400s, ISO 200, 50mm

Don’t Blink: 5 September 2020, F/6.3, 1/80s, ISO 100, 50mm

Grief: 5 September 2020, F/4.0, 1/320s, ISO 200, 50mm

Are You Ready For Your Close Up?

Something I’d like to do at some point is portrait work. Not done very much of this type of photography. So, if anyone fancies being a willing victim for me, give me a shout.

In the meantime, here’s the closest I’ve got to portraiture with all of these pictures taken on the prime 50mm lens (commonly known as the “Nifty Fifty” lens). Dead trees, take your bow…

Branching Out: Gleniffer Braes, 23 October 2020, F/4.0, 1/50s, ISO 800

Here’s Twiggy: Gleniffer Braes, 20 March 2021, F/3.2, 1/80s, ISO 100

A Little Prickly: Glenburn-Barrhead cycle track, 1 January 2021, F/5.0, 1/60s, ISO 200

The Whole Log: Gleniffer Braes, 3 April 2021, F/3.2, 1/1600s, ISO 100

Some Murals…

Long weekend last weekend, i had some things to pick up and also some things to look at… Things needing a camera.

Little Japanese Girl: Side of Japan Street Food, Niddry Street, Paisley, 26 March 2021,, F/8.0, 1/50s, ISO 100, 30mm

First up is the above Mural, which i’d spotted on the bus home from work during the week. No recognisance required, just pitched up, took some shots and…. mind you, i hadn’t noticed the muriel above. Might see if i can get a pic of that.

Relax: Mural on Lawn Street, Paisley, 26 March 2021, F/10, 1/160s, ISO 100, 42mm

This one is around the corner, under the bridge and up from the first one, and I’d wanted to get this for a while. Coincidentally, both are on the sides of restaurants, with Paisley’s Thai restaurant ‘Thai Siam’ below this.

When I Tried To Go To Loch Humphry

Last summer i was moaning about being bored about taking pics of Paisley and city centre pics of Glasgow. One of my work colleagues had mentioned that they had gone on a walk to Loch Humphry (from Kilpatrick on the north bank of the Clyde, right next to the Erskine Bridge). With a week off approaching and with a mind to going to Lochwinnoch, i decided to try and do this.

Lowlands: Kilpatrick Hills, 1 October 2020, F/11.0, 1/100s, ISO 200, 36mm

Coming Down: Kilpatrick Hills, 1 October 2020, F/9.0, 1/400s, ISO 200, 18mm

There is a path to Loch Humphry, i’ve checked this on various map apps (and have subsequently checked this) but i took a wrong turn, or specifically a right, upwards turn. As the turn i took was steep and challenging. I was knackered by about half way up. Having said that, i did get some rather good landscape pictures.

Down The River… ; Kilpatrick Hills (looking west), 1 October 2020, F/8.0, 1/400, ISO 200, 25mm

Erskine Bridge from the Kilp[atrick Hills, 1 October 2020, F/10.0, 1/60s, ISO 200, 27mm

So, the moral of the story, do the prep. And I will be back, probably in the summer now (and when lockdown eases).

Turning Into Autumn: Kilpatrick Hills, 1 October 2020, F/11.0, 1/160s, ISO 200, 20mm

Still Winter…

Took a walk up to Gleniffer Braes last weekend, just to blow away the cobwebs, and came away with a couple of shots that in still the feeling of wilderness…

March Storm: Gleniffer Braes, Paisley, 20 March 2021, F/8.0, 1/125s, ISO 100, 50mm

Wilderness: Gleniffer Braes, Paisley, 20 March 2021, F/8.0, 1/125s, ISO 100, 50mm

The Lockdown 1… One Year On.

This week sees the first anniversary of the first occasion that the UK went into full lockdown to stop the spread of the SARS-COV-2 virus. That week was the first occasion where the streets were… well empty as an eerie silence descended.

The Oncoming Nightmare; Dumbarton Road, Partick, 2 March 2020, F/18, 1/80s, ISO 400, 30mm

A Message of Love: Clydeside Pathway, Glasgow, 16 March 2020, F/13, 1/50s,, ISO 200, 18mm

Ex-Busy; Renfield Street, Glasgow, 21 March 2020, F/11, 1/100s, ISO 200, 32mm

This eerieness has persisted. Although the lockdowns have eased and then been reapplied, there has always been a feeling that things are not quite the same. Nightlife remains closed and there has been acreep of wildlife into the city, with seagulls hunting pigeon chicks for food where as before they were the happy beneficiaries of our discarded fast food.

At night this eeriness is amplified with just the bustle of Deliveroo/Uber Eats takeaway delivery people around restaurants and take away vendors to generate any kind of noise. While any noise in Central Station is dissipated by it’s cavernous roof span…

Not A Thoroughfare: St Vincent Street, Glasgow, 21 March 2020, F/11, 1/100s, ISO 200

Boris’s Britain; Gordon Street, Glasgow, 21 March 2020, F/11, 1/100s, ISO 200

Lack of Hope on Hope Street; Hope Street, Glasgow, 7 April 2020, F/2.4, 1/250s, ISO 50

Look West

Additional post this week. Accompanying the post about Coats Memorial Baptist Church, here’s a pic that shows how much it dominates the Paisley skyline. I do hope you like it as I nearly slid and fell into the Barshaw Park mud heading accross to the top of the hill (not something you see a lot of on You-tube videos…)

Paisley Skyline; from Barshaw Park, 12 March 2021, F/11, 1/500s ISO 200 (taken with aperture priority), 168mm

The Jewel In The Crown

As i intimated a couple of weeks ago, Paisley Abbey is not my favourite building in Paisley. It is a beautiful building that is difficult to take a bad picture of, but it is edged out, in my mind, by the Coats Memorial Church.

Catch The Sun: 7 June 2008, F/3, 1/11s, ISO 100

All It’s Glory: Front on (with Coats Observatory to the left), 31 January 2015, F/3.2, 1/100s, ISO 100, 5mm

Completed in 1894, the church was funded by the Coats family as a memorial to the founder of the J&P Coats company and funder of various projects in Paisley, John Coats. Coats himself passed away in 1883 with construction of the church taking 8 years. It is no longer in use as a church, an appeal in 2019 attempted to raise funds to renovate the church with a view to converting the building to a public venue space. (for more information see here…)

Stand!: The pulpit at Coats Memorial Baptist Church, Renfrewshire Open Doors Day, 7 September 2019, F/4.5, 1/15s, ISO 100, 18mm

Open Doors… ; On the steps, Renfrewshire Open Doors Day, 7 September 2019, F/14, 1/80s, ISO 100, 18mm

Waiting For The Night; Straight on, blue hour shot. 2 October 2019, f/5.6, 1/15s, ISO 100, 20mm

The last pic was the trickiest of the lot to pull off, thanks to a busy road and a group of young adults heading into the castle grounds who I didn’t want in the picture.

I Go Out Walking

Will be doing a post next week about my favourite building in Paisley (as i hinted at in my Paisley Abbey post). Till then, 2 long exposure shots from a couple of weeks ago.

Rush Hour: Junction 27, M8 at Arkleston, Paisley, 26 February 2021, F/18.0, 13s, ISO 100, 49.0mm

To The Centre Of The City: Junction 27, M8 at Arkleston (overlooking Gallowhill), Paisley, 26 February 2021, F/9.0, 20s, ISO 100, 18.0mm

The New Landscape

At the end of September 2013, i had taken a week off work, primarily to recharge batteries and to also prep for another Driving Test. There were other things bubbling away as well, things relevant to how i was feeling but too complicated to talk about here.

I failed the test and felt bad. Just really… really bad… low…. and…

Instinct kicked in. I nabbed my at the time new camera (the Lumix DMC-LZ20) and went out. To where, I don’t know.

Pride of Place: The Armadillo, the Finnieston Crane & The Hydro, 26 September 2013, F/3.3, 1/8s, ISO 100, 8mm

I eventually settled on heading out to take pictures of the new venue that was due to open in the next few days or so, the Hydro and also the surrounding areas, including the newly opened squinty bridge.

I think i spent 3 or 4 hours heading there and wandering about. Getting to grips with the camera, taking pics and working out what to take pics of. This pic is a newly edited version of one of the pics i took. It was edited because the original looked like a grey afternoon rather than early dusk. I think i still like this.

That afternoon as well was the first in a long line of days where being kind to myself was paramount.

The moral of the story. Be kind to yourself… and do what you love to heal.