Howick Hall

[paulmurphy]

We both had a day off work yesterday and the kids were at school so we went for a visit to Howick Hall in Northumberland - this is the family home of Earl Grey (of tea fame -blended to disguise the lime taste in the water from the local well).
Thought you might like to see a couple of shots

The hall itself



As we were passing the church on the estate, I noticed the sunlight streaming through a side window illuminating the bible and altar



This is a different take on the above image



It is a lovely place to visit if you are within travelling distance, large grounds, arboretum and a magnificent tea room (home made cakes and of course pots of earl grey tea)

Cheers

Murph

[David Kilpatrick]

Yet another, Paul. 20 years within a short drive of this and I have never been. In fact this is the first time I have seen a photograph of it which made me want to go there. I really wish I was not condemned to sit at this computer or work with gear I really don't much want to test all the time!

Today was lovely outside, Friday is supposed to be rainy. But my deadline for the close of work was to complete a review of the Profoto D1 500 Air Studio lighting kit, so this is what I had to do instead of going outside - of even going anywhere with a camera:



It may be the best you can buy but, but for £2000 I really need more than two ordinary old white vinyl umbrellas just like the ones we had 30 years ago - and no other light-shaping included in the kit. Still, I needed a test subject, and we had a new cat tower to assemble - which I think in cat terms is about equal to Howick House in Earl terms:



David

[paulmurphy]

I've driven past the signs for Howick Hall many times, that was the first time I went in and I'm glad I did.

Testing gear must be good sometimes, getting your hands on new toys without having to buy them, that looks like a pretty good cat tower, although it doesn't look like your cat is too happy, had it just woken up?

Cheers

Murph

[David Kilpatrick]

I've driven past the signs for Howick Hall many times, that was the first time I went in and I'm glad I did.

Testing gear must be good sometimes, getting your hands on new toys without having to buy them, that looks like a pretty good cat tower, although it doesn't look like your cat is too happy, had it just woken up?

Cheers

Murph

No, but being taken into the studio was not familiar - needed 10 minute to be allowed to explore every part of the room, and decided that the space behind the canvas background was the best place to go. Shirley off-pic putting him on the tower and getting expressions. He was not all that unhappy, but Birman cats always looks sort of serious and intense. He was the only choice, our other two cats make the tower look silly because they are too big for these things, they are built for normal domestic kitties, standard size. Even so, curled up our largest cat cat used the top platform. He just fills it entirely.

Doing this reminded me how much I used to enjoy still life studio work, preparing products and shooting them. Even just the process of vacuuming the tower after assembling it. Still life photography is 90 per cent preparation, getting stuff just right and then lighting it. The camera is the last 5% of the work. But it's nearly 20 years now since I had that sort of work. Steadfast Tools sent me their last tool catalogue to do in Kelso in 1990 I think. We did one brief burst of studio work again around 1994-6 when we had the first digital studio in Britain, but Kelso was not the place to have it. We should have been in a city to make that work.

There is work in the Borders, but not on the terms I was used to (at the time anyway) so we did not pursue it. But I had forgotten that I actually LIKE doing it.

David