On a more sombre note I just wanted to give a quick heads up for a photography auction I am supporting…
On 29th September 2009, an earthquake triggered a tsunami in Samoa, America Samoa and Tonga. The tsunami devastated villages along the southern coast of Samoa, killing 140 people and displacing thousands of others. Oxfam responded in the immediate aftermath but are also working longer term to help individuals rebuild sustainable livelihoods and cope with their personal trauma.
Annabel Cook, freelance picture editor at The Financial Times, was shocked and appalled by the devastation that the tsunami left behind and as a result has decided to help raise money for Oxfam’s Samoan Tsunami Appeal by organising a photography auction. The cause has a very personal appeal for Annabel who has been motivated by her undiscovered Polynesian background – she is half Fijian and has friends and family in Samoa who have all suffered from the disaster.
The auction will take place from 7pm onwards, Tues 9th March at The Financial Times and features work from a number of different fine art photographers and photojournalists (and of course one of my own prints from my ‘Light After Dark’ project).
Please do show your support for this cause by becoming a fan of the auctions Facebook page. For more information about the event please contact Annabel via email [email protected]
The historic heart of Hydro lies in the underground passages and water-works hidden away from prying eyes. I visited Loch Lednock in the South of the Breadalbane system and by luck the main dam vent was purging water and pressure ahead of essential maintenance.
Standing at the centre of the dam peering over the edge gives one the sense of the “gravity” and energy the dam stores before being converted to electricity. With a massive difference in height between the loch level and ground level below the huge stream of water is over 50ft high squeezing between a gap in the valve of only 2 inches.
When directed down underground tunnels this water pressure would end by spinning the turbines of St. Fillans power station. The station itself is more James Bond than utility company. After driving down a steep access road another spotless plant room but underground with bedrock lined walls awaits.
So Dr. Evil how do the civil engineers access the pressurized tunnels.. Through the atmospheric, slimy, eerily lit spoil pipe of course..
Got to be careful I don’t mutate into Fred Dibner whilst on this trip.. However I can’t help resist a little celebration of British pride and Engineering splendour. I was given a guided tour of Lochay Power Station before being left to photograph in my own time. Hosted by Roger Twigg who after 40 years in the game knows a few things about Hydro. Spinning at 500 rpm this drive shaft supports over 65 tonnnes of generator coils which generate over 25KW of electricity during peak load. The energy coming from pure Scottish rain with a little help from gravity. Zero carbon emissions..
First commissioned after WW2, Lochay is perhaps the most spotless working engineering marvel I have ever toured. You need to wipe your feet entering the plant from the office! 2 huge turbines and generator sets dominate the main room. Which have only needed new bearings in nearly 60 years of green energy service. No detail or cost has been spared when built but similarly never frivalent, it smells of grease, pride and purpose.
Wood lined ceiling and handrails provide access and house machinery engineered from solid steel to last at least 100 years. Machinery originating from the once proud cities of Bradford, Liverpool, Glasgow dominate the room and hum rhythmically in the background in unison powering our very modern needs.
After an incredible 1st day touring the Breadalbane area I had decided upon my “resting” place for the night. In the shadow of the incredible Ben Lawers mountain lies ‘Loch Lawers’. This artificial body of water is capped by a huge concrete buttress dam holding back millions of tonnes of water above the Killin area to be released as kinetic energy. At an altitude over 1000m and the savage winter much of the loch was frozen and the surrounding slopes still covered in a thick blanket of snow.
I drove slowly through the drifts and ice to reach the far end of the loch with the dam and incredibly the faintest glow of Killin town in the distance. The pink glow of light pollution peeking from behind the horizon. A glorious day of sunshine and clear skies lies hand in hand with twinkling starlight and hard moonlight.
As the temperature dropped quickly to -12 I setup a camera to record a Time Lapse of the moonlight rotating around the mountain. The temperature quickly frosted everything but the lens glass coating and fully charged batteries last only a fragment of the time as the temperature dropped. Pesky electronics, where’s my large format camera…
The images presented here are digital lighting tests ahead of 5×4 shots. I warmed the film on the truck’s heater as I loaded the slides hoping the temperature increase would help the film’s reaction to the low light and help the initial detail in the shadows. Having the dual effect of removing any moisture on the emulsion that could frost. (Fuji take note)
I struggled to focus the ground glass with my breath frosting the loop. Finally resorting to placing my torch on the stream bed in the foreground to create the faintest focusing point. These digi tests I hope only hint at the detail and colours the final images will show.. The unprocessed 5×4 negatives are sat safely unloaded in my ammo tin in the bottom of the truck. I am nervous and excited to see what the 2 hour exposure time has produced on the first 5×4 shot of the project. However this can wait.. I have an appointment with Lochay Power Station as soon as I defrost my jerry can and get the kettle on..
Firstly, a big congratulations to Ikuru Kuwajima who won the Fujifilm Distinction Awards last night. A good night was had by all and the free booze certainly helped me sleep on the way back up to Scotland!
Next point of call is the Loch Sloy hydro scheme but before the shooting starts and I fall back into the depths of signaless Scotland, a quick flag up to the London based amongst you…
Next weekend sees 2 exciting diary dates – Curse of the Black Gold is coming to town.
Ed Kashi is a fantastic photojournalist and advocacy idol of mine. ‘Curse of the Black Gold‘ documents the consequences of half a century of oil exploration and production in the Niger Delta exposing the reality of oil’s impact and the absence of sustainable development. The exhibition opens at HOST gallery on 8th March running til 3rd April… be sure to catch it.
For the eager beavers amongst you, filmmaker, Julie Winokur (Ed Kashi’s wife) will screen her short film Curse of the Black Gold as part of the Artivist Film Festival at The Shaw Theatre on Saturday 6th March. It’ll be a good ‘un.