Karen Gillan (Amy Pond) Filming Dr Who Confidential in Charlestown

The BBC have been filming an episode of Dr Who in Charlestown, Cornwall this week on the tall ships.

I popped down with my daughter and my camera to watch Karen Gillan film a piece for Dr Who Confidential. She was nice enough to pose for a photograph with my daughter and friends afterwards.

Click on the photograph for larger version.

From en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amy_Pond

Amy Pond meets the Doctor in the first episode of the 2010 series, "The Eleventh Hour". Fresh from his regeneration and having crashed the TARDIS into Amy's back garden, the Doctor is dressed in the torn and soiled remains of the Tenth Doctor's attire and is in the final stages of his regeneration, making him behave erratically, as he is 'still cooking'. Once inside Amy's house, the Doctor eats various foods, including fish fingers dipped in custard. At Amy's request, the Doctor investigates a crack in her wall that he discovers is a damaged point of time and space. As he attempts to make repairs, he is interrupted by the cloister bell from his damaged TARDIS, telling him to return before it vanishes into the time vortex. The Doctor promises Amy that he will return in '5 minutes', but due The TARDIS' erratic state, he does not reunite with Amy until 12 years later, when she is 19. In the intervening time, she has been to four psychiatrists as a result of her insistence on the reality of the "Raggedy Doctor" (and has bitten each of them due to their insistence that he is imaginary). After their reunion, in which Amy helps the Doctor save the earth from the Atraxi, The Doctor takes the newly repaired TARDIS on a trip to the moon and back to 'run her in'. While he is gone it is two years (for Amy; how long for the Doctor is not specified) before he returns for her, and invites her to travel with him. Amy makes the Doctor promise to bring her back the next morning but does not tell him why: the next day is to see her wed her long time boyfriend Rory Williams.

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Lanhydrock

I went for a photography wander around the Lanhydrock Estate last Saturday with members of St Austell Camera Club. The grounds were a stunning mix of Victorian gardens surrounded by acres of grass and lovely old trees.

I took a few shots (click on the photo for a larger version)

I loved this old door, it reminded me of The Secret Garden and made me wonder what was behind it...

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Roche Rock and the Legend of Jan Tregeagle

The weather has been quite dramatic in Cornwall in the last week or so. Flash floods in St Austell caused chaos for some who had to be rescued from their homes and there was talk that the beautiful 14th Century bridge in Lostwithiel would collapse.

I noticed that the sunsets had been quite dramatic so went out to Roche Rock last night to see whether I could get any nice silhouette shots of St Michael's chapel. Sadly the position of the sunset scuppered the shot I had in mind, so I settled for shooting the kids sitting on a nearby rock with the sunset instead.

Click on photographs for larger size:

Then I shot the Chapel in "blue hour".

Click on the photograph to read the legend about the ghost of Jan Tregeagle.

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The Legend of the Cheesewring, Bodmin Moor

I went back to Minions a few days ago, to show some friends how beautiful the landscape is around Bodmin Moor.

I climbed up to the Cheesewring and tried to make the most of the dramatic lighting conditions... because the light was bright with a lot of cloud the light was very patchy - and didn't always light up the bits I wanted it to!

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The Cheesewring is a granite tor in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated on the eastern flank of Bodmin Moor.

The Cheeswring is a natural geological formation, a rock outcrop of granite slabs formed by weathering. It gets its name because the piled slabs look like a "cheesewring", a press-like device that was used to make cheese.

A local legend about this rock formation is the result of a contest between a man and a giant. When Christianity had just been introduced to the British Islands, the giants who lived at the top of the mountains were not happy about it. The Saints had invaded their land and were declaring their wells as sacred.

One of the larger giants, Uther, was given the task of ridding their land of the Saints. He confronted the frail St Tue, who proposed a rock throwing contest. If Uther won, the Saints would leave Cornwall. If St. Tue won, then the giants would convert to Christianity.

Uther took his turn first and easily threw a small rock to the top of nearby Stowe's Hill. St Tue prayed for assistance, and picking up a huge slab found it was very light. One after the other, they threw their rocks, stacking them up in perfect piles. When the score was 12 stones each, Uther threw a thirteenth stone, but it rolled down the hill. St Tue picked up this fallen stone, and as he lifted it, an angel appeared to carry it to the top of the pile of rocks. Seeing this, Uther conceded and most of the giants decided to follow Christianity after that.

Thanks Wikipedia

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Monochrome

I have been playing around with monochrome images lately and thought it was about time I posted some of them here.

Click on image for a larger version

To Touch the Clouds

Taken at Hells Mouth, Cornwall, a notorious suicide spot.

Just Like Old Times...

Seine Net Fishing at Hemmick Beach, Cornwall

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More Steam Trains...

I'm accidentally becoming a bit of a spotter. I haven't invested in an anorak yet, but have been weighing up the benefits of a pac-a-mac.

There is something a little bit special about a steam train though, if they were pulling into your local station I'm sure you'd think about popping down for a look.

I jostled for position with the old men on the bridge to catch the King Edward I pulling into Par Station :

(click photographs for larger versions)

Then walked down the platform to the business end of the train. I bet this fella loves his job:

Check out the little Cornish Piskie hitching a ride :)

Finally the train headed off to St Blazey, where a couple of men operating the turntable by winding it round - looked like hard work!

Train Spotters Info:

GWR 6000 Class 6024 King Edward I, once driven by Prince Charles.
King Edward I is a GWR 6000 Class steam locomotive built in June 1930, originally housed at Plymouth Laira dept, before being transferred to Old Oak Common, London, in March 1959 and finally to Cardiff Canton depot in 1962.

Thanks Wikipedia

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The Cornish Fishermen Project

Well, I have been looking for something to get my teeth into.

I was feeling quite uninspired by the camera clubs competition 'People at Work'... I had thought for weeks about what I might do, but by the day the entries were due in, I still had nothing.

I didn't really want to walk into a shop and shove a camera in someones face and I wasn't even sure that would make a good shot in any case.

Then I heard that the Three Jays, a local fishing boat, was being launched (by hand, not wheels) down at Gorran Haven, a local Cornish fishing village. I didn't take much time to weigh up the options, as well, there were no options, so instead I grabbed my camera and headed off.

It was late morning, and the light was quite harsh, so I decided to use Photomatix to try and pull some detail out of the shadows and calm down the highlights. I was fairly pleased with the results over all.

There are more to come, but here is a taster:

Here is the one I entered for the competition - it came 2nd :)

(It's pretty much impossible to see them properly at this size - so for better, larger versions, click on the photograph and it will magically grow)

More to follow - watch this space :)

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