HMS Ocean

2009 has so far been a good year for me regarding sales of my work. It's always interesting to find out who has bought my images, whether they are mounted, mounted and framed, or simply prints on their own. Now and again I find that my work has been sent on to people around the country, who may have once lived here in the North-East and want a little something to remind them of the region.

I regularly exhibit my work in the Sunderland Tourist Information Centre. I have had quite a lot of success since my first framed photograph was sold there back in November 2008 and my latest sale has a bit of a story behind it. The photograph above, which is Penshaw Monument At Dusk, was mounted and framed on request before being displayed in the Sunderland Tourist Information Centre and has achieved sales of 10 in the last few months alone. Sat in a 40 inch panoramic frame, the image is quite dramatic and shows Sunderland's most prominent landmark at it's best. The last unit on display was bought as a presentation gift and has found itself a new home - onboard HMS Ocean, the giant Royal Navy helicopter carrier that made a recent visit to Sunderland. The 22,500 tonne amphibious assault vessel docked at Corporation Quay in Hendon and spent a total of four days there. The warship is a sea-going commando base, capable of rapid deployment anywhere in the world.

It's nice to know that my work is now being displayed on water as well as land, which is something I never envisaged a short while ago. HMS Ocean must have clocked up thousands of miles since it left Sunderland recently - again, a nice thought that my work is reaching territories that I never imagined. And long may it continue!

To view a short article on HMS Ocean's recent visit to Sunderland just click the link below.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/wear/8262991.stm

Thanks again, Ash

A Flock Of Seagulls - Newcastle Academy

My first 'Live Music' blog entry. It was time to use my compact Fuji camera again - a permanent fixture when it comes to live music concerts. The battery (and spare) had been charged during the day plus I had the luxury of an empty 4gb memory card.

 

Tonight it was 'A Flock Of Seagulls', who started life in the 1980's as part of the New Romantic/ Electronic scene. The venue was the O2 Academy in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. Quite a few people showed up for this one, although it was by no means a packed house. I went to the Academy with my gig mate 'Billy Bootleg' and got a reality slap at the bar when the young lass charged me £7.20 for two pints of lager!!! Mind you, them Geordies have always been a set of robbing buggers, eh (wink).

The gig itself was great. Fifteen songs in total. At £13 a ticket it was a steal. The support act, Billy Blood-Axe, was a bit of a joke though. Never mind, at least he had the balls to get up on that stage...unlike me. He he.

Ash

Whitby Sunrise

It's 5am and I'm traveling from our base at Robin Hood's Bay to the nearby North-Yorkshire town of Whitby. Yes, that's right - 5am !! In my still rather tired state I keep asking myself what the hell am I doing. I mean, I could be tucked up in that nice warm bed, knocking out those zedders, yet here I am on this cold morning in search of a nice sunrise shot over Whitby Harbour. It's always a gamble when you rise early for sunrise photography. I've lost count of the times I've showed up at the crack of dawn, but the sun hasn't. Low cloud on the horizon can often make your efforts a complete waste of time, but striking lucky can make those efforts all the more worthwhile, and that was what I was hoping for.

I parked up on West Cliff shortly before sunrise. There wasn't a soul about. It was very quiet, as you would expect. Just the odd seagull calling here and there. A fishing boat left the harbour below my vantage point on the cliff, and in all probability, the crew were in search of those rather nice cod that Whitby is famous for serving up.

The sky was fairly clear, and I was hopeful for a few nice shots when the sun finally made an appearance on the horizon. A man and his dog walked by as I set up my tripod - he must have thought I'd lost the plot, taking photographs at this mad hour! But, you've gotta break a couple of rules to get the shots you want, regardless of the time and location. So, I was in position and the sun came up at 5.20am. I snapped away, rattling off a dozen or so frames, before beating a hasty retreat to the car. As I returned to Robin Hood's Bay, a wild deer ran across the road, just missing my car. It jumped over a broken fence and ran off into the distance. Five minutes later I was back in bed and off to sleep. A couple of hours later I was outa bed and in the shower, before being treated to a lovely cup of tea and a massive bacon sandwich, courtesy of my wife. She knows the score...aye, brown sauce anarl!!! I then reflected on my early rise by checking my 'Whitby Sunrise' shots. I was quite pleased with them. It was well worth the effort.

Ash 

Angel Of The North

After today's visit to Penshaw Monument I was back in the car and off to the Angel Of The North, another of the North-East's most recognised landmarks. By the time I'd made the fifteen minute journey the rain had passed and I was able to take a few more photographs under fairly cloudy skies.

Once again, the Angel is another local icon that I've photographed on numerous occasions. As it is situated next to the A1(M) it is seen by thousands of motorists every day, with a fair few of them stopping off to get a closer look. Today there was the usual scattering of visitors who were all keen to get photographs before they left. I was only here for a few minutes before making my way back to Houghton-Le-Spring.

Maybe Gateshead Council should consider lighting the Angel up at night. What a sight that would be!

Later, Ash

Penshaw Monument, Sunderland

Penshaw Monument stands on the top of Penshaw Hill on the outskirts of Sunderland. It can be seen for miles around and is one of the North East's best known landmarks. It was built in 1844 and is located about three miles north-by-east of Houghton-Le-Spring, and "derives its name from the British Pen and the Saxon Shaw, a wood or thicket; thus Penshaw is the wooded hill." On the top of a lofty eminence, called Painshaw Hill, is a Grecian monument, erected to the memory of the late Right Hon. John Lambton.

I must have photographed this local icon hundreds of times, mostly at night when it is illuminated by powerful lights. As Penshaw Monument is Sunderland's most famous landmark I decided to use my photographs of it on business cards, invoices etc. It has been my logo since 2003 and will remain so for many years to come.

Today it was quite windy at the summit of Penshaw Hill. There were a few people about but I managed to get some shots when they disappeared round the back of the monument. The dark clouds above suggested rain was on its way and within a few minutes it came down quite heavily.

It's been at least a month since I was here for some night photography - I'll get myself back up there soon and let you know how I got on. Thanks.

Ash

The Headland, Hartlepool

I'd only previously visited Hartlepool on one occasion, to watch a pre-season friendly at the Victoria Ground against my team - Sunderland. Today my wife went shopping so me and my son, Christopher, visited the Museum Of Hartlepool on the historic quay. It wasn't half windy - lost me cap on more than one occasion, much to the amusement of the little fella.

After our museum visit we headed for the Headland, a few minutes drive away. I parked up and we went onto the sand and mucked about for half an hour, looking into the rock pools for any sign of life. Nothing. The multi-coloured houses that overlook the harbour draw you in. Each one rendered in a different colour finish. They were just waiting to be photographed. These shots were taken with a Fuji compact, hand-held.

Cheers, Ash

Lower Slaughter, The Cotswolds

Lower Slaughter - not a very pleasant name eh? This place definitely takes some beating. I thought I'd seen the best of it in Cornwall, but clearly not, as Lower Slaughter was the most picturesque of all the places I'd visited during my week's holiday. Similar to Bourton up the road, this was a very quiet village and very much 'off the beaten track'.

Whilst looking at some postcards in a 'Bourton' gift shop, I happened to notice a sketch which was labelled 'Lower Slaughter'. It looked like something from an old film, but as it had caught my eye I remembered the name as we drove from Bourton to Stow-On-The-Wold. I had taken a wrong turn and headed up a country lane so I could do a u-turn and head back off to 'Stow', our original destination. It was along this country lane that I noticed a signpost that read 'Lower Slaughter' so ahead we went and there it was. We parked up next to St Anne's church and made our way across the road to the main street which was divided by the River Eye. The place was spotless. Again, very quiet with the odd person walking a dog here and there. All we could hear was the trickle of the water and the bird song. The sun was quite low and it shone against the houses next to the river. We sat for a while and took it all in. My camera got some stick mind, aye, there was no stopping the shutter! Even the ducks posed nicely before we headed on our way and off to Stow-On-The-Wold. It doesn't get much better than this!

Ash