Wilton Horse Trials

The Corner

I never met Bobby Robson, I can't claim to have met him briefly as he made his way to the dugout during a football match or some training session, there is no "there was this one time....." story telling of a brief meeting with the man, in fact the closest and indeed very, very tenuous connection to the man is that I used to be in a relationship with a girl who lived in Langley Park - early home of Bobby Robson.

A relationship that, when it ended, I thought was pretty much the end of the world and one that looking back I handled very badly and which affected future relationships for a long time after.

Still, what you gonna do that's part of growing up!

I can't even claim to be a fanatical football supporter. Not any more. I used to like it when I was younger and Newcastle United was the team I followed. I used to make the journey with a couple of mates from Witton Gilbert, a neighbouring village to Langley Park and close to where I lived, to go and see the 'toon army in action.

I remember standing, usually in the rain, in what was affectionately called 'the corner' long before the all seating stadium came about and along with my fellow fans used to chant with increasing volume and excitement "the corner, the corner, the corner..." as a way to highlight to the rest of the stadium that we were, in fact, the loudest of all fans there that day - seems a completely pointless exercise now thinking back but that's what you do at football matches.

I remember peering around all the heads of the people in front of me trying to keep an eye on the game and the feel of the excitement rise as we were attacking, the buzz passing through the crowd as everyone waited in expectation for the goal to be scored and the brief second of almost total silence before the eruption into a frenzied dance of shouting and celebration.

Or the groans and curses as the ball went wide!

As a young lad standing in the midst of all these full on 'proper' geordie blokes it was a bit intimidating - the smell of alcohol around you from their pre-match drink in the Strawberry, listening to the kind of language that you only hear at football matches, the 'words of wisdom' on football tactics and managerial advice expressed in the shortest, most succinct ways and in ways that would never be used by the current media football pundits!

The swaying of the tightly packed crowd as it moved like a sea of wheat swaying in a breeze.

The chants of derision aimed at the board for their most recent and seemingly stupid decisions.

The way we pretended, we thought convincingly and I'm sure now in hindsight that we didn't pull it off, to be older and more worldly wise than our years showed to try and be proper blokes.

I don't live in that area any more, I have never had any contact with the mates that I used to have from that area, even though we were really close mates - Darren, Jimmy, Martin, Lee (RIP) - I don't see the girl I used to go out with anymore - although I do still think about them all from time to time. After joining the Army I moved away and my interest in football dwindled and finally reached the stage where I didn't even pay any attention to the results on a Saturday.

My life has moved on.

When I heard the news about Bobby Robson's death, it felt strange - listening to the fans telling about their experiences with football - it made me think about other times - some better, some worse, but it shows that he was a bloke who has influenced much in the football world and by making people, me, think of other times has influenced much more.

Howay the lads!

Lost and Found

Lost...

...and Found

Cathedral

If you find yourself wandering around Salisbury it's inevitable that your going to end up near the Cathedral, which is where I found myself today. Not that I'm a religious person you understand - quite the opposite - but it seemed like a good opportunity to get some people shots...in situations like these keep your eyes open, keep watching for the pictures, they will happen fast and you will only get one chance to get the picture.

In the middle of the Cathedral there is a fountain that allows the water to flow over the rim of the fountain and creates a mirror effect which is good for playing around with reflection shots.

For me, it's more important to get people in my pictures and show how they were interacting with this historic building rather than simply going for pictures of steeples and spires and the like.



Photographing in these places can be a little intimidating at first, especially in the current climate when anyone with a camera is a terrorist or some such bullshit but if you go about your business like you should be there and act professionally then you tend to get left alone - at least in my experience, but I will be sure to post here should I get some hassle off someone next time!

Save our Steel

Thousands of people filled the streets of Redcar in Cleveland on 18 July to join a march to try and fight to safeguard Teeside's steel industry.

Following recent announcements of redundancies at Corus Steel, thousands of people from the area came to show massive support for the 'Save our Steel' March.

The march was supported by men and women who live in the Teeside area and also by many others from towns and cities across the country who also attended to show their support...

Duckrabbit Multimedia

Duckrabbit are a UK based production company who combine the power of still images and audio to produce and showcase thought provoking multimedia pieces. Not only is the use of this work more cost effective than using video, it has a far greater impact.

'Duckrabbit' are photojournalist David White and BBC Radio 4 documentaries producer Benjamin Chesterton. I recently had the opportunity to submit a piece on the veterans from the 65th Commemoration of the D-Day landings in Normandy...

http://duckrabbit.info/blog/2009/07/audio-slideshow-the-veterans/

These are exciting times in the world of still image and audio combination and with thought there is scope to produce some great work.

Bowling Club

Well maintained greens, a warm summer evening, the gentle 'clack' of the bowling balls glancing against each other, gentle banter amongst the players and a lively social scene can mean only one thing - Bowling.

Summer Solstice

Record crowds, over 30,000, descended on the ancient site of Stonehenge over Yesterday and today to celebrate the Summer Solstice, the time of year when the earth's axis tilts most towards the sun.
People travel from all over the World for this event and at a little after 4.45am on Sunday morning the cheers rose and the horns and drums played with a little extra effort despite a night of drinking and celebration to mark the sunrise, this year however cloud prevented the sun from making it's guest appearance but this did little to dampen the spirits of the people there.

The event is attended by a wide range of people - Druids, old hippies and younger ones, travellers, young party goers, older people, families with small children and err photographers! This event is the one and only time during the year when people can get, literally, right next to the stones, some of which are more than fifty tonnes in weight. With the centre of the stones the focus point for the 'official' druid ceremonies people radiate out from the centre and wander around or sit with friends on blankets and plastic sheeting holding impromptu jamming sessions with all manor of instruments including guitars, drums, tambourines, violins, flutes and harmonicas.

There was a heavy police presence but this years event passed peacefully with only 37 arrests, although there were obvious signs that drugs still play a part for some at these events, but for most, alcohol provided all that was needed to get them in the swing of things.






Check out the Multimedia tab on my website at www.ianforsythphotography.co.uk for a slideshow from the event.

Veterans

65 years ago Allied troops parachuted into drop zones and landed on the beaches of Normandy in France at what was the start of one of the biggest operations in military history.

Some of the young men who took part in this operation, an operation that was known as D-Day, left behind on the beaches and in the fields and countryside of this beautiful part of France not only their youth but in many cases many of their friends.

On the 65th anniversary of D-Day over a thousand of the veterans returned to catch up with old friends, chat and reminisce about their experiences and remember their fallen comrades. For many, this could be their final opportunity to visit as the years finally catch up with them, but one thing that shines through when you speak with these individuals is that, despite the hardships and dangers involved during that historic time they remain proud and honourable men.

Samburu

A recent trip to Eastern Africa and the Samburu region of Kenya provided opportunity to photograph the people from the area.

The Day Job

Follow the link to see a brief commentary and a few pictures from some of the work I normally do as part of my day job.

Cut and paste the link below into your address bar.....

http://www.army.mod.uk/news/press-office/7728.aspx#

Arthur's Story

When I first met Arthur and his partner Kaz, they were riding up a dusty track on a motorcycle back to their caravan, a caravan that they have called home for the last year or so. The track that they were riding up is called the Drove, it runs next to the ancient monument of Stonehenge in Wiltshire, England and for many years it was used to move livestock along it, to the markets at Netheravon and Salisbury but now, it marks a pothole ridden border to this ancient monument and acts as an impromptu carpark for visitors to the circle of stones who are reluctant to pay the parking fees in the official carpark a little further along the main road.




I had spent the last hour or so waiting for Arthur to return and had spent it looking at the stone circle and the many hundreds of people climbing out of buses or day trippers who were swarming around the English Heritage monument, I had read about Arthur in the papers over the previous week and about the battle that he was now embroiled in and thought that I would try and meet him and find out something of his struggle.


I should also point out that Arthur has a more formal title, a title that may, to the uninitiated, seem a little strange, he is known, legally, as King Arthur Pendragon and is, to use his full title, the Titular Head and Chosen Chief of The Loyal Arthurian Warband and Battle Chieftain of The Council of British Druid Orders.

He is, basically, the head of all the Druids. The leader of all those that follow the beliefs held sacred by this ancient order.



Druids - A brief background...


The Ancient Druids were Judges, Kingmakers, Scientists, Magicians and Priests. The word Druid comes from both the Cornish and Welsh words meaning either knowledge of the Oak or Wizard, or Wise man.

Druidry itself is more of a philosophical viewpoint than a religious view, although it would be fair to say that many Druids view themselves also as Pagan Priests.

There are three basic grades or types of Druids, these are....

The Bardic grade, which deals predominantly with teaching, poetic, artistic, and academic skills, the Vate grade that deals predominantly with the Intuitive and Magical skills and the Druid grade that deals also with Public ritual and Judgements.

There are many different Orders of Druids, both National and Local. Some prefer to only work within their own Sacred landscape, whilst others are equally at home in many different locations. Some Orders concentrate on the teaching side of Druidry, whilst others will concentrate on the Magical and Intuitive.

Arthur is the recognised King of all the druids.


For the last year or so King Arthur has been fighting a battle, a struggle, with English Heritage and ultimately Wiltshire Council over access to the site, he wants the removal of the perimeter fence around the 'henge to allow druids free access to the site, to their site, their monument, so that they can once again conduct their business on free land, a land they see as a very sacred place. This battle has resulted in an eviction order being placed on him and as of last Saturday he was meant to have moved on from his make shift home, something he flatly refuses to do.

Since he set up his picket last summer, a picket that has been entirely peaceful and without any violence, over 8,000 people, including tourists from all over the world, have signed a petition supporting his cause. He wants the fences removed and to open it fully to the public, with a tunnel under the A303 and grass over the A344 roads.

His supporters all say that far from posing a nuisance, they ultimately helped English Heritage to keep the site tidy by picking up rubbish and raising awareness of the importance of this site.

Kim

Arthur and Kaz are supported at the site of their protest by fellow druids Kim and his wife Andrea, who own a well lived-in camper van next to the caravan and who provide administrative and logistical support and are equally passionate about the cause. They also receive visits from local druids to offer support as well as constant phone calls and emails from supporters the length and breadth of the country.

At the time of writing, Arthur has not left the site of his caravan and to date the local authorities have yet to enforce the eviction order placed on him.


The struggle continues...

Yours in the heat of battle;
The peace of the grove and
The sacred space between

To read more of Arthur's struggle visit his website...

www.warband.org.uk

Polo

Two teams, four players in each team, a period of play is called a 'chukka', there are six of these in a match, each lasting for seven minutes.

Polo is a fast and furious subject to photograph, all the usual sports photography challenges apply:
Fast movement, rapid exposure changes, awareness of clean backgrounds, accurate focus, capture peak of the action, anticipation, get the ball in the frame, composition, good light...

Try and get all these things together and add healthy touch of luck and your on your way. Obviously spending time on a subject lets you 'read' the sport better but don't let unfamiliarity with a sport put you off having a go at getting some pictures.

Try dragging your shutter to get some movement to show the drama and action.


You don't just have to fill the frame, try shooting a little wider to go for more of an 'arty' shot, and don't forget about the prep work going on behind the scenes with the grooms getting the horses ready, feeding them and putting the saddles on, there are plenty of documentary shots to be had.

This was my first go at shooting Polo and I'm looking to get back next weekend and have another go, it definitely presents a challenge but if you get the chance, then get amongst it.

What a State!

Nobody can have missed the recent coverage of the G20 meetings in London and the death of a worker returning home from his job as he passed by police officers and was pushed violently to the ground or the reactions of a police officer as he struck a female protester in the midst of the demonstrations and followed it up with a strike with his baton.

The way that the public know about this is because it was, of course, all reported in the media.
Now the facts of these events will come to light in due course, following full investigations and the wider public will find out the details one way or another, it will reach the public domain - it always does. Eventually.

But what should not be forgotten in all the debate, blame, investigation, recriminations, suspensions and everything else that kicks off when events like this take place is that it is the media, there at the time, experiencing the same risks as everyone else, only more so - They risk flying bottles from protesters on one side and they risk flying batons from the police on the other - that takes it from an incident that would pass by without a second thought to one that brings these events to public awareness.

So am I saying that all members of the media are crusading superhero types battling for the greater good of society, who bravely forge ahead with the relentless conflict against the tyranny of the institution and the 'big brother' mind set of the database generation, the politically incorrect, 'there is no hidden agenda' government spokesman?

Is this what I mean?

Is it bollocks!

Of course they're not, they are regular people trying to do their job. Okay some may have an agenda, either their own or their employers but for the most part, many of the ones I have met, especially the photographers, are just going about their job and trying to do it well. To supply images for their newspapers and publications.

But because of how close we now are to living in a full on nanny state where our every move is known, where what we eat is wrong, where what we drive is frowned upon and where we go is monitored, where most of what we choose to do is treated as suspect by those who must know better as they are government ministers and politicians and as such they must know better, we are, after all, but simple folk, who, due to our obvious and basic stupidity would descend into a lemming like panic if not for the comforting support of our government angels watching over us all from their granite towers in Westminster.

The media is not entirely blameless of course, some of the scare mongering pushed to us all is by design, some of it is simply to sell papers and magazines some of it is because they are in the dubious position of having to put out to the public the Government lines that they need to feed us to keep us in check, to keep us in line, to maintain their control.

The climate is changing, the world as we know it is changing at an ever increasing rate, terrorism will get you, it will strike you down at anytime and any place, there is no escape. Soldiers come back in flag draped coffins from shitty places overseas and their stories are overshadowed by the higher and, of course, far more important story of Jane fucking Goody! Who gives a shit about her?

We are fed, by some areas of the press, but more by government press releases, a diet of mediocre bullshit, of mundane, celebrity orientated crap with the occasional statement of regret from a politicians' spokesperson about their unfortunate and regretful failings that keeps us all distracted whilst the real work of fucking up the country takes place.

You know how it goes...

"......It is of course with deep regret that I messed up my expense accounts, I didn't know, honestly, it is a rather confusing system, and you should also know that I thought that I was downloading educational pdf files and never for one minute thought it was porn, oh, but I have just bought a new electric car to help save the planet and as such have implemented a new bill to see 10, 000 new electric cars released onto the streets of the capital that will guarantee a reduction in carbon emissions by 3% by the year 2050 and on this subject I can categorically state that any talk by the opposition party of a 70% increase in carbon emissions in order to produce the electricity for the cars in the first place is false because we have some scientists and some experts and stuff checking it out, BUT if you let us put you on our DNA database you will be safe from everyone including terrorist cells from Pakistan and Manchester, deranged power crazy, ill-disciplined riot police, environmentalists at Stanstead, paedophiles and Catholic priests, climate change, cancer and the Jehovah's fucking witnesses, but please remember to vote for us and not them because at least we won't mess things up as much as they will. The war in Afghanistan is of course going well, exactly as planned, pretty much, it is of course with deep regret that we have lost so many but as our 'cut and pasted' words of concern say we will never forget the sacrifice of Corporal er, what's his name and of course America remains our closest friend as does anyone else with strong business links between us but unlike the opposition we will never simply pretend that we give a shit about those third world types, we of course really, really do. Really we do, so anyway thanks for coming to the press conference, unfortunately I cannot take any questions because they might prove difficult and you journo types will change my real meaning anyway."

Don't forget to vote!


What a State!