Last night there was a concert of Scarlatti, Lotti, Melgas, Rebelo and Caldara during the Greenwich Early Music Festival, performed by The Sixteen and conducted by Harry Christophers.
Seated in the upper gallery, the acoustics were perfect, the singing in Latin became another medium, not air or water but sound, surrounding and enveloping us completely.
The spiral staircase leading back down to reality was a delightful example of period stone and metal craftsmanship.
Category: Photography
Reflections in Water
A recent visit to the marina in Swansea offered up such delights, boat hulls, railings, brickwork, an endless rippling reflection of intense colours. The whole area has been transformed from the working harbour docks when it was no doubt dark and noisy and any colour suffused by coal dust. There are numerous shiny modern yachts moored here now but also just a few memories of its previous incarnation, the massive stone docks, gates and lift bridges.
Industrial Landscape
Taken whilst passing by on the train, this scene is so familiar from past journeys, though it has changed substantially, there are fewer chimneys and the air is clearer now. It is a magnificent and iconic scene of Wales’ industrial past, a dark tangle of metal silhouetted against the sky, swathed in smoke and steam, wet slate glistening in a shaft of sunlight. I imagine the noise, thundering of heavy machinery, lung-filling smoke and dust, bitter smells of steel working, searing heat from furnaces, workers rough clothes heavy with sweat and dirt and I’m thankful it’s not me who has to toil there.
Santa Monica Pier
The pier is boarded out with generously wide pine boards, nailed with large steel brads. Over the years the softer wood has worn away leaving a rich pattern of exaggerated grain and shiny, raised nail heads. At night the boards gleam as though polished by the thousands of footfalls passing over for many decades.
The pier is always busy but on this evening, despite the unnaturally chilly wind, there was to be a free outdoor film screening of 500 Days of Summer on a large inflatable screen. Hundreds of keen film-goers were arriving laden with blankets, folding chairs and snacks. The air was thick with the scents of hot food being prepared at various temporary stalls, no cheap burgers and hot dogs but artisan foods from an array of world cuisines. Wandering further along the pier I was surprised to see a trapeze school taking place, only $60 per hour, I was tempted for perhaps 30 seconds before remembering that at my age it was probably not the best use of my time or money. A student was flying, twisting, spinning and finally diving toward the net where she performed a perfect balletic pose, triumphantly bowing in response to her round of applause. All this was taking place in a half darkness, the pier lit only by feeble white lights somehow lending a timelessness to the scene. There was none of the glitzy brashness of modern America that I was expecting and I was not at all disappointed.
Star of India – San Diego Harbour
Reflections of white numbers and the red hull of the ship Star of India in San Diego Harbour. The water looks so oily and yet the reflection of the numbers is still so white. Because the ship is permanently moored, green algae is growing along the water-line which gives that green line.
I particularly noticed the jumble of lines in this photo, the variety of colours, angles and textures, just wish I’d used a smaller aperture to increase the depth of field so it was all in focus.
Sally Wakelin - Studies in Creativity 
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