Not your usual daily Richmond 3 - # 08/184

High security .....notwithstanding it all, I liked the finishing touch of the spikes nailed to the top of the entrance gate.

Old Twickenham 1 - # 08/122

Walking through the core of old Twickenham close by the old St. Mary's church (remodelled in the 18th century) we are reminded that this was a very small riverside community, built on a rising slope to avoid floods and take advantage of the good landing point offered by the river bank.

Walking through gives an experience of sudden light, sudden patches of shadow, changes in level, a rich sense of rough texture and vegetable colour, and a variety of angular shapes.

The arrival of the railway changed all that - 19th century urban sprawl took over!

Angles, textures nooks and crannies - # 08/35

As we wander deeper into the old Brentford canal docklands we encounter narrow alleys and bridges over dock entrances. We see light and shadow, weeds, wire, metal, wood, bricks and mud. We see the hard and the soft and the passage of 200 years. It's a walk back in time and an urban historian's delight.

Camera: Olympus E3

Dive throughs and back ways of Richmond 3 - # 101

These two alleys lead off George St towards The Green. These two are highly convenient "dive throughs" and apart from each offering a cosy pub they host enjoyable little speciality shops.

The photographic challenge for me was to give the attractive Green a good exposure and reasonable focus, and at the same time show off the much darker alley scene in good exposure and focus. The shots please me because they show the variety of shop signs and a good mix of people looking interested and busily moving. This was taken on a bright late March day, so the trees are still bare. Although George St is very much late 1890s, these alleys and much of The Green are early 1700s.

Dive throughs and back ways of Richmond 2 - # 97

Leaving Church Court (yesterday's Post) we can go straight down to George St., the main shopping area.

This cut-through gives a nice view of the church as you look up from George St. I chose this shot because I liked the way the girls gave a kind of forward surge to the scene. In this alley there is a good independent book shop, surviving in spite of modern commercial pressures, a good little cafe - the Alambra (yes, they spell it like that!) - and the Angel and Crown pub, which looks quite splendid in its late 1890s decor. Noon day sun floods the alley, so it's good for sitting outside for a short time. It's worth clicking on the picture to enlarge it.

Dive throughs and back ways of Richmond 1 - # 96

Richmond is the perfect small town. There are numerous quick short cuts from one sector to the next, allowing the pedestrian to move rapidly without getting caught in the noise and chaos of the heavy motor traffic, and often allowing quick and convenient transfers between bus routes. I wanted to feature these because they provide delightful little vistas, they are rich in small shop signs and architectural features, and they set a challenge to the photographer because of the slabs of light and shade that make good exposures tricky, but interesting. Moving off Hill Rise we can dive through to the church via Ormond Rd and discover Church Court. We'll continue tomorrow.