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I help aspiring and established photographers get noticed so they can earn an income from photography or increase sales. My blog, Photographer’s Business Notebook is a wealth of information as is my Mark Paulda’s YouTube Channel. I also offer a variety of books, mentor services and online classes at Mark Paulda Photography Mentor
All images are available as Museum Quality Photographic Prints and Commercial Licensing. Feel free to contact me with any and all inquiries.
Follow My Once In A Lifetime Travel Experiences at Mark Paulda’s Travel Journal
►►► Explore the world of HDR with me at farbspiel-photo.com - View. Learn. Connect.
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About | HDR Cookbook | Before-and-After | Making-of | Pics to play with
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(Hit 'f' to fave this image)
The story of this photo:
This shot was taken in Sidi Bou Said, a place near Tunis where many artists (also western artists) were staying to seek inspiration. This town was famous for inspiring artists. All buildings in this town are white with blue windows and doors. This gives the place a unique look. Today it is a major tourist attraction that is probably not missing on any guided tour through Tunis.
Take a look at my "HDR Cookbook"! It contains some more information on my techniques.
How it was shot:
> Taken handheld
> Camera: Nikon D90
> Lens: Sigma 10-20mm F3,5 EX DC HSM
> Details can be found here
How it was tonemapped:
> Preparation: developed the raw files with ACR mainly in order to reduce the CA [details]
> HDR creation and tonemapping using Photomatix version 3.1 (Detail Enhancer)
> Saved as 16bit TIF
How it was post-processed:
> Post-processing was done in Photoshop
> Topaz Adjust on the entire image to get back the colors and the details [details]
> Topaz Denoise (on the sky and the foreground separately - more aggressively on the sky) [details]
> Saturation layer on the sky (increased master)
> Levels layer on the sky (increased brightness)
> Saturation layer on the clouds (desaturation)
> Saturation layer on the foreground (increased master)
> Levels layer on the foreground (increased contrast)
> Saturation layer on the white walls (decreased blues to remove a blue cast)
> Vignette effect using a masked fill layer [details]
> Sharpening on the foreground using the high-pass filter [details]
> Sharpening on the sky using the high-pass filter (less aggressive) [details]
> Perspective correction and cropping
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Learn these techniques at farbspiel-photo.com - View. Learn. Connect.
- Thanks for viewing!
With the ever-increasing difficulty of finding a good man in today's dating world, Janice made friends with Fred the Facilities Supervisor in her building.
On Friday, at dusk, her simple message, courtesy of Fred's work on the building's sign, began it's slow crawl across the cold March sky. Maybe things will begin to change for her after tonight?
Best in Lightbox
I took this shot looking upwards from inside the tower of a folly. The structure, pattern and colour of the stones make this interesting. A sign on the wall outside prohibits climbing the tower. The iron grill across the top adds emphasis and increases a sense of enclosure.
So here goes the Sunday church shot. This is the main sanctuary of the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York. The last time I was here, the sanctuary was closed so had to return back with a shot of the chapel.
See it BIG.
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[Photo Specs]
- No HDR. Digital blending of 3 exposures (3 secs to 30 secs) at f/10, ISO 100 using Photoshop smartobjects
- Layer of curves for contrast
- Layer of saturation (reduced master and yellow, increased red)
- Channel mixer adjustment (green) to bring out the real colors of the green walls and the ceiling
- Layer of unsharp mask at the end
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Explore highest position # 24 on Feb 24, 2009.
Friends, thank you for your visit, comments, and faves.
A personal observation of the increasing distance between Earth and Mars, post opposition. Had hoped for more opportunities, but that is summer weather in South Florida.
Telescope: CPC800 XLT
Camera: ASI102MC-S - and Shorty 2X Barlow.
A thing of beauty is a joy forever; Its loveliness increases; it will never Pass into nothingness." — John Keats. 1795-1821 Endymion. Book i
The Holy Scriptures speaks about increase lawness and cruelty in the last days.
I'm sure this is not confined within one location or a country, but all across the world, an increase lawlessness abound. If we haven't witnessed real time cruelty done to another human being, pay attention to animals. Countless animal cruelty happening that it's ignored, tolerated or just majority of people couldn't be bothered to raised alarms against the practice.
As I love animals, this cruelty has impacted me.
Matthew 24:12
"And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold."
Proverbs 12:10
"Whoever is righteous has regard for the life of his beast, but the mercy of the wicked is cruel."
Luke 12:6
"Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God."
Numbers 22:32
"And the angel of the Lord said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out to oppose you because your way is perverse before me."
Isaiah 66:3
"“He who slaughters an ox is like one who kills a man; he who sacrifices a lamb, like one who breaks a dog's neck; he who presents a grain offering, like one who offers pig's blood; he who makes a memorial offering of frankincense, like one who blesses an idol. These have chosen their own ways, and their soul delights in their abominations;"
Job 38:42
"Who provides for the raven its prey, when its young ones cry to God for help, and wander about for lack of food?"
God gave man dominion over animals but not to abuse them.
I know some think them awkward and ungainly but I find them to be truly graceful in their own way! This is one of our Brown Pelicans at rest on Armand Bayou where it joins Horsepen Bayou and dumps into Mud Lake!
I might also add that with the alligator activity increasing its not likely these guys are still around! High winds and some unusually uncooperative weather have kept me away from the bayou for far too many days! Looking for a break on Wednesday! Heavy winds and taking photos from a canoe just don’t mix!
DSC_4190uls
The increase of population spurs technological progress and creates that anxiety which sets us against our environment as an enemy; while technology both facilitates increase of population and reinforces our arrogance, or "hubris," vis-à-vis the natural environment.
The attached diagram illustrates the interconnections. It will be noted that in this diagram each corner is clockwise, denoting that each is by itself a self-promoting (or, as the scientists say,"auto catalytic") phenomenon: the bigger the population, the faster it grows; the more technology we have, the faster the rate of new invention; and the more we believe in our "power" over an enemy environment, the more "power" we seem to have and the more spiteful the environment seems to be.
(for the diagram see: www.colorado.edu/AmStudies/lewis/ecology/sick.htm )
... The ideas which dominate our civilization at the present time date in their most virulent form from the
Industrial Revolution. They may be summarized as:
(a) It's us against the environment.
(b) It's us against other men.
(c) It's the 'individual (or the individual company, or the individual nation) that matters.
(d) We can have unilateral control over the environment and must strive for that control.
(e) We live within an infinitely expanding "frontier."
(f) Economic determinism is common sense.
(g) Technology will do it for us.
We submit that these ideas are simply proved false by the great but ultimately destructive achievements of our technology in the last 150 years. Likewise they appear to be false under modern ecological theory. The creature that wins against its environment destroys itself.
Gregory Bateson, "The Roots of Ecological Crisis" (1972)..YES 1972 !!!!!
White light: Takahaski 120 mm 1.4X extender Lunt wedge Televue 2X powermate Nikon Z8
Calcium light: Lunt 80 mm Lunt calcium module Televue 2X powermate ZWO 1294 camera.
Sunspot 3976-8 is large and complex and in calcium shows activity that might yet ramp up to a significant flare.
NEW JERSEY 2017 (Year End) BALD EAGLE PROJECT REPORT
ANOTHER PRODUCTIVE YEAR FOR NJ’S EAGLES
by Larissa Smith, CWF Wildlife Biologist
The Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ in partnership with the NJ Endangered and Nongame Species Program has released the 2017 NJ Bald Eagle Project Report. In 2017, 178 eagle nests were monitored during the nesting season. Of these nests 153 were active (with eggs) and 25 were territorial or housekeeping pairs. One hundred and ninety young were fledged.
In 2017 the number of active nests was three more than in 2016, but the number young fledged decreased by 27 from a record high of 216 fledged in 2016. The productivity rate this season of 1.25 young/active nest is still above the required range of 0.0 to 1.1 for population maintenance. Productivity could be lower this season for many reasons including weather, predation and disturbance to the nesting area. In 2017 nest monitors reported several instances of “intruder” eagles at nests which did disrupt the nesting attempts of several pairs. One of these “eagle dramas” unfolded at the Duke Farms eagle cam watched by millions of people. An intruder female attempted to replace the current female. This harassment interrupted the pairs bonding and copulation and no eggs were laid.
This year’s report includes a section on Resightings of banded eagles. Resightings of NJ (green) banded eagles have increased over the years, as well as eagles seen in NJ that were banded in other states. These resightings are important, as they help us to understand eagle movements during the years between fledging and settling into a territory, as well as adult birds at a nest site.
For more info: www.conservewildlifenj.org/blog/2017/12/06/new-jersey-201...
New Jersey Bald Eagle Project Report | 2017 may be downloaded here: www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensp/pdf/eglrpt17.pdf
Warm tea is the daydream, with 2 spoons honey, I have increased energy until late evening:))
Sepia classic as Bokeh Focus, no edit. By Tamton Lens 70-300mm, no crop.
Thank you to drink tea for health instead soda:)
Simply swim to my River: www.flickriver.com/photos/kornrawiee/
Fornebu (local form Fornebo) is a peninsular area in the suburban municipality of Bærum in Norway, bordering western parts of Oslo.
Oslo Airport, Fornebu (FBU) served as the main airport for Oslo and the country since before World War II and until the evening of October 7, 1998, when it was closed down. Overnight, a grand moving operation was performed, so that the following morning, the new main airport, located inland at Gardermoen (OSL), opened for operations as the main airport, as opposed to previously having been a minor airport.
As of 2001, the Fornebu area is being developed as a centre for information technology and telecom industry, as well as there being some housing project developments nearby. The new headquarters of Norway's telecom giant Telenor are located in the area.
The peninsula is connected to Langodden and Snarøya, which are more established areas of private residences.
Equipment=Nikon 750D
Lens Used=Tokina 17-35mm Lens
Exposures=7
Location=Fornebu, Norway
Workflow=Aurora 2018
Adobe Lightroom 5,
ON1 Photo 10=Increase Color,Dynamic Contrast, and Dark Glow
Nik Color=Brilliance/Warmth, Sunset, and Skylight
Aurora 2018=Realistic Dreamy
ciò che le il mondo dell'informazione ci proprone non è crescita, ma stabilizzazione di un sistema basato su regole precise: l'ignoranza.
what the world of the information us proprone is not "increase", but stabilization of a system based on precise rules: the ignorance.
In the early 1970s, as the government's policy to supply organs and pianos nationwide increased demand, a keyboard instrument store called 'Pagoda Arcade' was built in Tapgol Park and other areas, and wind instrument-related stores were gathered in Jongno 2-ga right next to it. It was. However, in 1979, as part of the Tapgol Park maintenance project, the government demolished the Pagoda Arcade and moved it to Nakwon Shopping Center, which is said to be the first time musical instrument stores were established in Nakwon Shopping Center.
In the 1980s, the Chun Doo-hwan administration lifted the curfew and eased restrictions on entertainment establishments for many international events such as the 1986 Seoul Asian Games and the 1988 Seoul Olympics, which led to an explosive increase in the demand for live bands. As import regulations were relaxed, high-quality imported musical instruments such as Yamaha came into the country and greatly prospered the Nakwon Shopping Center during its growth period. In addition, at the time, Nakwon Shopping Center not only served as a wholesale and retail store for musical instruments, but also served as a training center for musicians. At that time, there were almost no facilities to systematically teach popular music, or in modern terms, ‘practical music’. As a result, Nakwon Shopping Center was crowded with people who wanted to learn various instruments in a short period of time and get jobs as musicians in entertainment establishments. Due to the boom in live bands, the number of stores selling various guitars, drums, and other musical instruments increased, and by 1982, the entire third floor was filled with musical instrument stores, and the offices on the fourth floor were used as warehouses for musical instrument stores. .
In addition, until the early 1990s, Nakwon Shopping Center was virtually the mecca of the music talent market where all performer-related recruitment and job search information in Seoul gathered.[4] Therefore, at that time, there was a separate business that did not deal in musical instruments but had several telephones installed in the office and specialized in intermediating between business owners and performers. As a result, Nakwon Shopping Center consists of business owners who hire professional performers as clerks during the day and sell musical instruments to the general public, professional performers who work as clerks during the day and sell instruments and give musical lessons, and brokers who connect professional performers with entertainment establishments at night. And a complex ecosystem of ordinary people learning musical instruments from professional musicians or buying musical instruments was formed, creating the golden age.
In the late 1990s, the economic crisis led to the closure of entertainment establishments, and the emergence of 'karaoke', which installed karaoke instead of expensive live bands, causing the market for professional performers across the country to collapse. In proportion to this, the demand for musical instruments naturally plummeted, but what unexpectedly saved Nakwon Shopping Center was the demand for churches. Since the late 1980s in American Protestant churches, congregational praise using bands for praise has been popular, but as this spread to Korean Protestant churches, it has become a trend for each church to have a band team. I didn't say his playing skills were good. This is why quite a few of the professional musicians currently active are from Protestant churches[5]. In the late 2000s, around the time when demand for churches began to wane[6], the field of so-called 'practical music' emerged, and practical music departments were established in junior colleges and four-year universities. In the late 2000s, idol bands such as FT Island appeared on terrestrial channels, and in the 2010s. Due to the early Cesibong craze, the emergence of young folk song bands such as Busker Busker, and the production of various audition programs, demand for musical instruments from the general public recovered to some extent.
A day of action by students opposed to the recently announced increases to tuition fee
A number of students attempted to protect a police van from further damage after it had been attacked
Engineering work being carried out on the Calder Valley line this week has seen an increase in freight traffic over the Standedge route 60096 is seen on the approach to Diggle Junction with a diverted Liverpool Bulk Terminal to Drax Power Station Biomass train.
++++ FROM WIKIPEDIA ++++
Inle Lake (Burmese: အင်းလေးကန်, pronounced [ʔɪ́ɴlé kàɴ]), is a freshwater lake located in the Nyaungshwe Township of Taunggyi District of Shan State, part of Shan Hills in Myanmar (Burma). It is the second largest lake in Myanmar with an estimated surface area of 44.9 square miles (116 km2), and one of the highest at an elevation of 2,900 feet (880 m). During the dry season, the average water depth is 7 feet (2.1 m), with the deepest point being 12 feet (3.7 m), but during the rainy season this can increase by 5 feet (1.5 m).
The watershed area for the lake lies to a large extent to the north and west of the lake. The lake drains through the Nam Pilu or Balu Chaung on its southern end. There is also a hot spring on its northwestern shore.
Although the lake is not large, it contains a number of endemic species. Over twenty species of snails and nine species of fish are found nowhere else in the world. Some of these, like the silver-blue scaleless Sawbwa barb, the crossbanded dwarf danio, and the Lake Inle danio, are of minor commercial importance for the aquarium trade. It hosts approximately 20,000 brown and black head migratory seagulls in November, December and January.[1]
In June 2015, it became Myanmar's first designated place of World Network of Biosphere Reserves.[2] It was one of 20 places added at the Unesco's 27th Man and the Biosphere (MAB) International Coordinating Council (ICC) meeting.[3]
Contents
1 People and culture
2 Climate
3 Environmental concerns
4 Tourism
5 Cuisine
6 See also
7 References
8 External links
People and culture
The people of Inle Lake (called Intha), some 70,000 of them, live in four cities bordering the lake, in numerous small villages along the lake's shores, and on the lake itself. The entire lake area is in Nyaung Shwe township. The population consists predominantly of Intha, with a mix of other Shan, Taungyo, Pa-O (Taungthu), Danu, Kayah, Danaw and Bamar ethnicities. Most are devout Buddhists, and live in simple houses of wood and woven bamboo on stilts; they are largely self-sufficient farmers.
Transportation on the lake is traditionally by small boats, or by somewhat larger boats fitted with single cylinder inboard diesel engines. Local fishermen are known for practicing a distinctive rowing style which involves standing at the stern on one leg and wrapping the other leg around the oar. This unique style evolved out of necessity as the lake is covered by reeds and floating plants, making it difficult to see above them while sitting. Standing provides the rower with a view beyond the reeds. However, the leg rowing style is only practiced by the men. Women row in the customary style, using the oar with their hands, sitting cross legged at the stern.
Lotus thread is used to weave a special robe for the Buddha.
On the way home from harvesting weeds in the lake
Fish caught from the lake - the most abundant kind is called nga hpein locally (Inle carp, Cyprinus intha) - are a staple of the local diet. A popular local dish is htamin gyin - 'fermented' rice kneaded with fish and/or potato - served with hnapyan gyaw (literally twice fried - Shan tofu). In addition to fishing, locals grow vegetables and fruit in large gardens that float on the surface of the lake. The floating garden beds are formed by extensive manual labor. The farmers gather up lake-bottom weeds from the deeper parts of the lake, bring them back in boats and make them into floating beds in their garden areas, anchored by bamboo poles. These gardens rise and fall with changes in the water level, and so are resistant to flooding. The constant availability of nutrient-laden water results in these gardens being incredibly fertile. Rice cultivation and consumption is also significant facet of the local diet and agricultural tradition.
Climate
Inle Lake is suffering from the environmental effects of increased population and rapid growth in both agriculture and tourism. During the 65-year period from 1935 to 2000, the net open water area of Inle Lake decreased from 69.10 km² to 46.69 km², a loss of 32.4%, with development of floating garden agriculture, which occurs largely on the west side of the lake (a practice introduced in the 1960s).[4]
Lumber removal and unsustainable cultivation practices (slash and burn farming techniques) on the hills surrounding the lake are causing ever-increasing amounts of silt and nutrients to run off into the rivers that feed the lake, especially along its western and northern watershed areas. This silt fills up the lake; the nutrients encourage the growth of weeds and algae. More important however is the development of floating garden agriculture, largely along the western side of the lake. This practice encroaches into the diminishing area of the lake, since over time, the floating beds become solid ground. About 93% (nearly 21 km²) of the recent loss in open water area of the lake, largely along its western side, is thought to be due to this agricultural practice. Direct environmental impacts associated with these combined agricultural activities within the wetlands and surrounding hills of the lake include sedimentation, eutrophication, and pollution.[4]
The water hyacinth, a plant not native to the lake, also poses a major problem. It grows rapidly, filling up the smaller streams and large expanses of the lake, robbing native plants and animals of nutrients and sunlight. At one time, all boats coming into Nyaung Shwe were required to bring in a specified amount of water hyacinth. Over the past twenty years, large-scale use of dredges and pumps has been employed with some success in controlling the growth of this plant. On a smaller scale, public awareness education and small-scale control have also been successful.
Another cause for concern is the planned introduction of non-native fish species, such as the Grass Carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella)] intended to improve fishery.
Sanitation in the villages around the lake is an ongoing concern for public health authorities, due to untreated sewage (with 72% of households using open pits, not latrines) and waste water flowing into the lake.[5] To ensure fresh and clean water, some villages now have enclosed wells and public access to the well water. Some studies of the lake's surface water quality indicates that the water is not safe for consumption.[5] Water from Inle Lake has dissolved oxygen ranges lower than those necessary for fisheries and aquatic life, while nitrite, nitrate and phosphate ranges are unusually high.[5]
Noise pollution is also a noticeable issue. The noise from the cheaper poorly muffled diesel engines driving the stern drive propellers is significant, and can be a distraction to the otherwise tranquil lake.
The summer of 2010 registered very high temperatures causing the water level of the lake to drop so low, the lowest in nearly 50 years, that drinking water had to be fetched from elsewhere and the floating market was in danger of disappearing.[6] One other serious consequence was that the hydroelectric plant at Lawpita, where the former capital Yangon received its power supply from, could not operate at its full capacity.[7]
In 2015 the United Nations added Inle lake to its World Network Biosphere Reserves. There are a total of 651 sites in 120 countries in this network, but Inle Lake is the first biosphere reserve to be added for Myanmar.[8]
Tourism
Inle Lake is a major tourist attraction, and this has led to some development of tourist infrastructure. Many small and large privately owned hotels and tour operations have arisen during the past few years. Local shops are flooded with consumer items, both local and foreign. The nearest airport is Heho Airport which is 35 km away. There are flights from both Yangon and Mandalay. Yangon is 660 km away by road, Mandalay 330 km.
A number of festivals occur from August to October on Inle Lake and in the surrounding areas. The ceremonial Hpaung Daw U Festival, which lasts for a total of 18 days, is closely followed by the Thadingyut festival of lights. Inthas and Shan turn out in their best clothes in great numbers to celebrate the Buddhist Lent. Traditional boat racing, with dozens of leg-rowers in traditional Shan dress compete on teams with a team on each boat. These boat races are locally one of the most anticipated affairs during the Hpaung Daw U Festival.[9]
Inle Boat Miniature
One of the tourist attractions in the village on the lake itself is the traditional silversmithing, which has fed into the local tourist economy. The silver is brought in from the mines that line the hills surrounding the lake and is boated into the village. Almost all the houses in the village on the lake itself sit on stilts and are made of woven bamboo. Tourists can satisfy their need for trinkets and memorable tokens by observing the silver being smithed and purchase items on-site. If silversmithing doesn't interest a visitor there are also local silk workshops that operate on the lake in a very similar manner as the silversmiths.[10]
Floating farm
Hand-made goods for local use and trading are another source of commerce. Typical products include tools, carvings and other ornamental objects, textiles, and cheroots. A local market serves most common shopping needs and is held daily but the location of the event rotates through five different sites around the lake area, thus each of them hosting an itinerant market every fifth day.[11] When held on the lake itself, trading is conducted from small boats. This 'floating-market' event tends to emphasize tourist trade much more than the other four.
The Inle lake area is renowned for its weaving industry. The Shan-bags, used daily by many Burmese as a tote-bag, are produced in large quantities here. Silk-weaving is another very important industry, producing high-quality hand-woven silk fabrics of distinctive design called Inle longyi. A unique fabric from the lotus plant fibers is produced only at Inle lake and is used for weaving special robes for Buddha images called kya thingahn (lotus robe).[12]
While hot air balloon flights are more popular in Bagan, they are also provided over Inle Lake with Balloons Over Bagan. There is also a winery near the lake, called Red Mountain Estate.[13]
Cuisine
Inle cuisine is different from Shan cuisine, as it incorporates local natural produce. The most well-known Inle dish would be the Htamin jin - a rice, tomato and potato or fish salad kneaded into round balls dressed and garnished with crisp fried onion in oil, tamarind sauce, coriander and spring onions often with garlic, Chinese chives roots (ju myit), fried whole dried chili, grilled dried fermented bean cakes (pè bouk) and fried dried tofu (topu jauk kyaw) on the side.
Save a Life, Surrender your Knife.
Increase The Peace, Keep Knives Off The Street.
Cowards Carry Knives.
Project Zao
#DropTheKnifeSaveALife
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It truly is a magnificent sculpture which, if you get the chance, to see it for yourself. The vision and workmanship is outstanding. It's incredible from any angle. The up-lighting is delightful, although I only managed to see this effect for a few moments.
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My YouTube Video: Knife Angel. Derby Cathedral. Oct 2019
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Rachel Webb, whose son Tom was 22 years old when he was stabbed and killed in St Peter's Street, Derby, by a 16 year old boy in January 2016, has been instrumental in bringing the Angel to Derby. She supported a knife surrender held across Derbyshire and knives from this were donated towards the creation of this sculpture.
The knife Angel has been created as a National monument against violence and aggression at the British Ironworks Centre in Oswestry and is a memorial to those whose lives have been affected by knife crime. It is a 27ft high sculpture, which Alfie Bradley has designed and created single-handedly using over 100,000 knives surrendered and collected in nationwide amnesties in 2015/2016. The angel began it's tour around the UK in 2018 when it was housed outside of Liverpool Cathedral for December and January in order to raise awareness of the impact of knife crime on society, the victims and their families and friends.
It is currently on a city tour of the UK.
Knife crime is rising across the country. The Knife Angel's presence in derby is very much a symbol of the hard work of partners and communities across Derbyshire to halt this rise.
Derbyshire Police are spearheading a multi agency campaign called Project Zao, which aims to prevent causalities and stop venerable youngsters from seeing violence as the answer. It targets those who carry knives and delivers a hard hitting educational package to thousands of young people across the county.
All 43 national police forces, the Home Office, anti-violence groups across the UK and hundreds of families who have been affected by knife crime are all strongly supporting the Knife Angel. Relatives of those killed by knife crime were invited to engrave the blades with names and messages for their loved ones as part of the sculpture.
The Knife Angel is a symbol of defiance and change, shining a spotlight on Britain's knife crime problem and its impact on communities, families and individuals.
The Angel; is helping to raise awareness of violent crime and helping young people understand the reasons not to carry knives.
Please show your support and join us in standing up to knife crime!
The history of Mountainair and the surrounding area merges with its present-day description, offering a Gateway to Ancient Cities.
Hundreds of years ago Abó had an abundance of water, creating a sustainable farming community that historians estimate may have reached 20,000 native inhabitants. A Pueblo (Tompiro) petrogylph at Abó, dated from the 1400’s depicts Tawa, the Sun-Father, one of the most revered deities of the Pueblo Indians and a key element for a bountiful harvest. Abó is positioned on a major east-west trade route the Abó Pass, a shallow gap that divides the Manzano and Los Piños Mountains. The community of Abó was still thriving when Spanish explorers came upon it in 1561. Abó was the head of one of the largest missionary operations in New Mexico, known today as the part of the National Monument Salinas Pueblo Missions. The three sites that comprise these ruins—Abó, Quarai and Gran Quivira—attract historians, archeologists, and visitors to Mountainair from all over the world.
Among the intriguing aspects of Mountainair are residents who can still tell the story of when their Grandparents called an area within the town, Monte Alto. However difficult it may be to locate historic documents verifying these tales, one can only imagine a small village of settlers, unaware of the attention they were about to receive.
The attention arrived with the railroad and the founding of Mountainair by John Corbett, Colonel E.C. Manning, and former U.S. Governor E. S. Stover in the summer of 1903. It was the first incorporated town in the area–before Torrance was a county and before New Mexico officially became a state. Strategically sited for the railroad at the summit of Abó Pass and named for its cool fresh mountain breezes, passengers first rolled into Mountainair in 1907 and continued to travel through during the 1960’s. This alternate route, now primarily used for freight, known as the Belen cut-off, is part of the transcontinental tracks. It was built in some measure to alleviate the extreme grades and delays over Raton and the Glorietta passes. The depot, currently owned by BNSF, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
In the early 1900’s, with rain in abundance, farming again played an important role in the area’s history, fostering a boom in the economy and increasing the population to nearly 5,000. This entitled Mountainair to become the “The Pinto Bean Capital of the World,” housing the nation’s largest bean processing center, with peak production reaching over 750 train carloads of beans in one season. Pinto beans, a sturdy crop, provided American soldiers their main rations through WWII. The beans were farmed on approximately 40,000 acres, using the rain as their principal source of water. In 1946 a 10-year drought began, leaving the land barren and forcing farmers to become ranchers or move to make a better living. With ranching now a mainstay in Torrance County and with a population today hovering at 2,000+ in Mountainair, there are likely more cattle than people living around the town.
In the mid 1980’s a resurgence of relocation to Mountainair took place and continues to this day, with numerous new or renovated homes and businesses in Mountainair and several innovative sub-divisions surrounding the town. This long and diverse history of Mountainair, in addition to the breathtaking views of the Chupadera Mesa and the Manzano Mountains, has a mystique that captures the imagination of writers, artists, photographers, and individuals searching for a unique and wondrous place. A little over an hour from Albuquerque, Mountainair, Gateway to Ancient Cities, offers an adventure into times past, enjoyment to its visitors, and endearment to its residents.
*New Mexico Tourism Department
I noticed that the same picture before this was very blue for some reason so I've increased the colour temperature a bit and reduced the blue saturation in Lightroom so see if it's any better. I've only just noticed how different the photos look on Flickr to how they do on my calibrated monitor!
An attempt to improve the original corrections, but frankly I don't perceive appreciable difference. Further noise reduction and increased sharpness are imperceptible at this enlargement and resolution.
The bird was found at dusk - after 6 pm on a day in early Mar. - so I have to be grateful for the end product, regardless.
And now, all these years later, a further attempt (see above) but this time with more perceivable improvement.
"Upbeat Economic Outlook Suggests Support for Rate Increase" by REUTERS via NYT t.co/GkIf2kk3R7 (via Twitter twitter.com/felipemassone/status/662008915698282497)
Lake Batur, Bali, Indonesia.
No-HDR, but 3 exposures manually blended together. (Dynamic Range Increase).
The whole Bali Photoset can be viewed here.
I help aspiring and established photographers get noticed so they can earn an income from photography or increase sales. My blog, Photographer’s Business Notebook is a wealth of information as is my Mark Paulda’s YouTube Channel. I also offer a variety of books, mentor services and online classes at Mark Paulda Photography Mentor
All images are available as Museum Quality Photographic Prints and Commercial Licensing. Feel free to contact me with any and all inquiries.
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In Southern California, Fall brings the increase in chance of beautiful sunsets. Back on the first of November, when the sun was setting over an hour later than it is now, the stage was set for an incredible light show. If you’ve watched enough sunsets, you can start to pick up on patterns in the behavior of the light. Here we can see the clouds to the south alight as if on fire above Rancho Palos Verdes and the Santa Monica Pier. The band of that fiery red and orange light had not reached the clouds above where I was standing and more importantly directly to the west, but I know the pattern. The light travels across the clouds from the south to the north, and a few moments later the sky all around me light up just as vibrant. In this moment, a prelude to the larger show where I was standing, the color above the pier was fantastic and I shot a three image panorama at 135mm before scrambling to change lenses and shoot the color as it arrived.
Watch a time lapse of this sunset here: vimeo.com/298539178
Increased activity around our bird box today - lots of coming and going, so I guess perhaps they are now feeding chicks?
I help aspiring and established photographers get noticed so they can earn an income from photography or increase sales. My blog, Photographer’s Business Notebook is a wealth of information as is my Mark Paulda’s YouTube Channel. I also offer a variety of books, mentor services and online classes at Mark Paulda Photography Mentor
All images are available as Museum Quality Photographic Prints and Commercial Licensing. Feel free to contact me with any and all inquiries.
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Updated head agronomist with increased brain probably excited the chest of a girl with a paddle ) • Обновлённая голова агронома с выросшим мозгом наверное возбудила грудь девушки с веслом )
"A Weak Increase for Durable Goods Orders in March" by REUTERS via NYT t.co/qmll20kP7c (via Twitter twitter.com/felipemassone/status/725020883509755904)
►►► Explore the world of HDR with me at farbspiel-photo.com - View. Learn. Connect.
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About | HDR Cookbook | Before-and-After | Making-of | Pics to play with
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The story of this photo:
The Holocaust Memorial is a memorial in Berlin to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust. It consists of a 19,000 square meter (4.7 acre) site covered with 2,711 concrete slabs. They are 2.38m (7.8') long, 0.95m (3' 1.5") wide and vary in height from 0.2 m to 4.8m (8" to 15'9").
This is a huge installation right besides the Barndenburg Gate. If you walk in between these concrete blocks, it's a humbling feeling which is probably the intended effect.
Take a look at my "HDR Cookbook"! It contains some more information on my techniques.
How it was shot:
> Taken handheld (3 shots - 0, -2, +2 ev) [details]
> Camera: Nikon D90
> Lens: Sigma 10-20mm F3,5 EX DC HSM
> Details can be found here
How it was tonemapped:
> Preparation: Developed the RAW files in ACR mainly for CA correction [details]
> HDR creation with Photoshop
> Tonemapping using Photomatix version 3.1 (Detail Enhancer)
> Saved as 16bit TIF
How it was post-processed:
> Post-processing was done in Photoshop
> Topaz Adjust on the entire image to get back the colors and the details [details]
> Topaz Denoise [details]
> Saturation layer on the sky (master)
> Saturation layer on the stones (toned down the blues, increased yellows)
> Levels layer on the stones (increased contrast)
> Vignette effect using a masked fill layer [details]
> Sharpening using the high-pass filter [details]
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en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aire_and_Calder_Navigation
The Aire and Calder Navigation is the canalised section of the Rivers Aire and Calder in West Yorkshire, England. The first improvements to the rivers above Knottingley were completed in 1704 when the Aire was made navigable to Leeds and the Calder to Wakefield, by the construction of 16 locks. Lock sizes were increased several times, as was the depth of water, to enable larger boats to use the system. The Aire below Haddlesey was bypassed by the opening of the Selby Canal in 1778. A canal from Knottingley to the new docks and new town at Goole provided a much shorter route to the River Ouse from 1826. The New Junction Canal was constructed in 1905, to link the system to the River Don Navigation, by then part of the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation.
Steam tugs were introduced in 1831. In the 1860s, compartment boats were introduced, later called Tom Puddings, from which coal was unloaded into ships by large hydraulic hoists. This system enabled the canal to carry at its peak more than 1.5 million tons of coal per year, and was not abandoned until 1986. To handle trains of compartments, many of the locks were lengthened to 450 feet (140 m).
Although much of the upper reaches are now designated as leisure routes, there is still significant commercial traffic on the navigation. 300,000 tons were carried in 2007, although most of the traffic is now petroleum and gravel, rather than the coal which kept the navigation profitable for 150 years.
Route
The Aire and Calder is a canalisation of the River Calder from Wakefield to Castleford, where it joins the branch from Leeds, which follows the River Aire. The Aire continues to flow eastwards to Bank Dole Junction, then continues in a north-easterly direction to Haddlesey, from where it follows a winding course to join the River Ouse at Airmyn. The section below Haddlesey is no longer part of the navigation, as a derelict lock blocks access to the lower river. Instead, the Selby Canal flows northwards from Haddlesey to the Ouse at Selby. Below Dole Bank Junction, the Knottingley and Goole Canal flows eastards to join the Ouse at Goole.[1] From just before Newbridge, where the modern A614 road crosses the waterway, this branch of the navigation runs parallel to the Dutch River, an artificial channel built in 1635 to alleviate flooding caused by Cornelius Vermuyden's original diversion of the River Don northwards to the River Aire in 1628.[2]
The Aire and Calder still fulfils its original purpose of linking Leeds and Wakefield with York and the Humber (and thence the Trent), although the routes by which this is achieved have changed significantly. More recent canals now also make the Navigation a vital link in the English and Welsh connected inland waterway network. Beyond Leeds, the Leeds and Liverpool Canal carries boats over the Pennines. The Calder and Hebble Navigation, which connects to the Navigation at Wakefield, allows boats to reach the Huddersfield Broad and Narrow Canals, and the Rochdale Canal. The Selby Canal connects to the Ouse, from where boats can travel upstream to reach York, Boroughbridge and Ripon, or downstream to the River Derwent. Beyond Goole are the Humber and hence Hull, Immingham, and the North Sea. The Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation, which can be reached via the New Junction Canal, forms a link with Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield to the south west, and the tidal River Trent at Keadby to the east.
History
Aire and Calder Navigation
In the early 1600s, the River Aire was navigable to Knottingley, and boats carrying up to 30 tons traded on the river, which was tidal up to this point. The traders of Leeds were keen to have a navigable link to the town, to make easier the export of woollen cloth, but bills presented to Parliament in 1621 and 1625 had failed. William Pickering, who was mayor of Leeds, had made further attempts to obtain an act of Parliament for improvements to the river in 1679, again without success. As the 1600s drew to a close, a number of bills were passed for other rivers, and there was general support for river navigations. A bill was drawn up in 1698, with support from wool traders in Leeds and general merchants in Wakefield. John Hadley surveyed the Aire, and Samuel Shelton surveyed the Calder. Although the bill had a lot of support, it was opposed by the City of York, who feared that the River Ouse would be damaged by the scheme.[3]
The parliamentary bill was hotly contested, and the House of Lords asked Trinity House to produce a report on the three rivers. This favoured the scheme, and in May 1699 the act of Parliament was granted. It named 18 undertakers, nine from the Corporation of Leeds, and nine "gentlemen of Wakefield", who would oversee the improvements to the River Aire (from the River Ouse at Airmyn via Castleford to Leeds) and the River Calder (from Castleford to Wakefield). The act gave them powers which included the creation of weirs bypassed by short "cuts" equipped with locks, the creation of a towpath, and the right to buy and demolish mills and weirs. John Hadley was engaged as the engineer immediately, and by 1704 the original work was completed, including 12 locks on the Aire between Haddesley and Leeds and 4 on the Calder. The locks were 58 to 60 feet (17.7 to 18.3 m) long by 14.5 to 15 feet (4.4 to 4.6 m) wide with 3.5 feet (1.1 m) depths over the sills.[3]
Capital to fund the scheme had been raised separately by the Wakefield and Leeds committees. A complicated restructuring of the finances in 1721 fixed the nominal capital at £26,700. Regular dividends at 7 per cent were paid to the shareholders from 1718, and the navigation was leased to various groups, who would be responsible for collection of tolls and repairs. The lease rose from £800 in 1704 to £2,600 in 1729, when receipts from each of the previous five years had averaged £6,016. The early trade consisted mainly of woollen goods from Leeds, Wakefield, Halifax and Bradford, with wool and corn from Lincolnshire and East Anglia travelling in the opposite direction. By the 1720s there were also significant quantities of coal.[4]
Development
Some development of the navigation occurred. In 1744, the undertakers bought some land at Airmyn, and developed warehousing and wharfage there, as a more convenient point than Rawcliffe, where the water was shallower. In the 1760s, £13,000 was spent on improvements and maintenance, with several weirs being rebuilt to improve the depth of water. There was a long-running dispute with Arthur Ingram, who owned Knottingley mill, which started in 1731, and was not finally resolved until 1776, when the company bought both of Ingram's mills. Despite this, the general profitability of the navigation led the undertakers to be complacent about its development. They asked John Smeaton to suggest improvements in 1771, but the subsequent attempt to authorise such improvements was disputed in Parliament on the basis that the present navigation was totally inadequate. The recently finished Calder and Hebble Navigation proposed to build a canal from Wakefield to the Dutch River, which would bypass the Calder completely, and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal supported a Leeds to Selby canal, which would bypass the Aire. During 1772, they asked Smeaton to survey a route to avoid the lower Aire, but his assistant, William Jessop actually carried out the work. He proposed a 7.25-mile (11.67 km) canal from Haddlesey lock to the Ouse at Newland. With Parliament not reaching a decision, they re-worked their plan, which was now for a 5.25-mile (8.45 km) canal from Haddlesey to Selby, with a new cut from Ferrybridge to Beal, and improvements above Castleford. In 1774 the Leeds to Selby bill was rejected by Parliament, but the Aire and Calder bill was passed, with a few amendments.[5]
Construction of the Selby Canal began in 1775, and it was opened on 29 April 1778. The new cut at Castleford opened in spring 1775, while those at Knostrop and Hunslet were finished in 1779. Methley cut was completed, but Woodlesford was not, as the company bought the mill there instead. All locks were replaced, and the total cost was over £60,000, of which around £20,000 was for the Selby Canal. The navigation remained profitable, paying £9,000 in dividends in 1775, which had risen to £32,000 by 1791. Most traffic now used the Selby route, and the transhipment facilities at Airmyn were closed in 1779.[6]
Selby was the upper limit for seagoing ships at the time, and became a major transhipment port for the smaller boats using the canal. Canal boats were limited to about 60 tons, whereas ships of up to 200 tons could reach Selby. By 1800, it was handling some 369,780 tons of goods, and the support industries of ropemaking, sailmaking and shipbuilding were expanding.[7]
Knottingley to Goole
In 1817, there was a proposal for an Aire and Don Canal, to connect Knottingley to the Dutch River at Newbridge, with a branch to Doncaster, and another for a Went and Wakefield Canal, to connect Cold Hiendley on the Barnsley Canal to Newbridge on the Don. With revenue from tolls reaching £82,092 in 1818, which enabled a dividend of £54,000 to be paid, the company was in a healthy state, and proposed their own route from Haddlesey to the Dutch River. The destination was then changed to Goole, and John Rennie was asked to survey the route. Those opposing the scheme were placated by a clause which ensured the Aire to Airmyn and the Selby Canal would be maintained. In July 1821, Rennie proposed the construction of docks at Goole, rather than a lock into the river, and the company proposed that 7 feet (2.1 m) of water should be available. Rennie died in late 1821, and George Leather took over as engineer. Construction at Goole started on 28 September 1822, and the company eventually built much of the new town as well as the docks.[8]
The canal and docks opened on 20 July 1826. A barge lock, 72.5 by 22 feet (22.1 by 6.7 m) and a ship lock, 120 by 33.7 feet (36.6 by 10.3 m), capable of taking vessels up to 400 tons, connected the extensive docks to the Ouse. The new section was 18.7 miles (30.1 km) long, with locks at Ferrybridge, Whitley, Pollington and Goole. The connection to the Aire and the Selby canal was maintained by the lock at Bank Dole. Goole became an official port in 1827, when it gained its own Customs facilities. The scheme had cost £361,484, of which £221,350 had been borrowed, while the rest came from company resources.[9]
Faced with yet another outside scheme which would bypass the navigation from Wakefield to Ferrybridge, the company looked at improvements which would give 7 feet (2.1 m) of water all the way to both Leeds and Wakefield. Thomas Telford surveyed both routes, and it became the basis for an act of Parliament which was passed in June 1828. It included a clause to ensure that the Selby Canal was maintained with a depth of water of 5 feet (1.5 m), and made provision for extensions to Goole docks. Work started on a new cut at Castleford and on the line to Leeds, but legal action over the Selby Canal meant that it had to be made deeper and wider in 1832 and 1833. The Leeds line was completed in April 1835, somewhat later than anticipated, as the banks were made more substantial, to cope with steam tugs, which would be introduced in due course. The seven locks above Castelford were all 18 feet (5.5 m) wide. Improvements to the Calder to Wakefield took longer, as there were problems with floods filling the workings, difficulty with constructing foundations for an aqueduct which would carry the navigation over the River Calder at Stanley Ferry, and then in transporting the castings for the aqueduct to the site. The cost of the improvements ran to around £510,000.[10]
Modernisation
The Aire and Calder tried to work with the railways when they arrived in the 1840s, by making traffic agreements, but still suffered a significant drop in trade. Receipts dropped by one-third between 1851 and 1856.[11] Thomas Hammond Bartholomew, the chief engineer, had been experimenting with steam power since 1813, and steam paddle tugs had been operating on the system since 1831. When he died in late 1852, two-thirds of the traffic was pulled by steam tugs. His son, William Hammond Bartholomew, replaced him and introduced tugs with propellers soon afterwards. These could tow ten keels, carrying 700 tons, but were held up at locks, as the keels had to be worked through one at a time. Between 1860 and 1867, the locks from Goole to Castleford were extended to 206 by 22 feet (62.8 by 6.7 m) to alleviate this.[12]
In 1861, Bartholomew met with the chairman, Warde-Aldam, to propose a system of sectional boats, each consisting of six compartments, with a bow and stern section. The compartments or tubs would be unloaded into ships by a hydraulic hoist at Goole, which would lift them from the water and tip them over. Warde-Aldam thought that such a system could carry 45,000 tons of coal per year, and £13,382 was allocated for three train boats, a hoist, and hydraulic machinery to control the hoist and the lock into the docks. By late 1864, the prototypes were operational, with the stern section replaced by a pusher tug. Soon afterwards, extra compartments were ordered, as experience showed that a tug and seven compartments could fit into the larger locks.[13] In 1874, Warde-Aldam noted that "...the people now call them 'Tom Puddings' from their wobbling gait." The length of the trains increased to ten or eleven tubs, but such a train was difficult to steer from the rear, and so the tugs moved to the front and pulled the assembly. In 1880 they carried 151,860 tons,[14] and by 1913 there were 18 tugs, 1,010 compartments, and 1,560,006 tons were carried, 33 times Warde-Aldam's original estimate.[15]
After the First World War, another programme of improvements to the locks was carried out, extending the locks to 457 feet (139 m), which enabled trains of 19 compartments to operate regularly. Experiments with trains as long as 38 tubs were carried out, but the difficulty of splitting the train to pass through the locks meant that 19 was the usual maximum. The compartments continued until the late 1960s to carry around half a million tons of coal, long after most British canals had ceased to be used for commercial traffic, but the gradual demise of the coal industry led to compartment traffic ceasing in 1986.[16]
The 20th century saw two major phases of improvement. In 1905, the New Junction Canal connected the Aire and Calder to the Sheffield and South Yorkshire Navigation near Stainforth. It was funded by the Aire and Calder, with the Don Navigation eventually meeting half the cost.[17] During the 1960s, the navigation underwent another modernisation scheme, in which the locks from Goole to Leeds were upgraded and enlarged to accommodate vessels conforming to the 600-tonne Euro-barge standard.[18] There is some variation in lock sizes, with the smallest being at Knostrop, which is 203 by 22 feet (61.9 by 6.7 m) with a water depth of 8.4 feet (2.6 m) over the lock cill.[19] Euro barges are 200 by 20 feet (61.0 by 6.1 m), and when fully loaded with 600 tonnes of cargo, have a draught of 8.2 feet (2.5 m).[20] Locks on the Wakefield section can accommodate vessels which are 195 by 17.6 feet (59.4 by 5.4 m) with a draught of 7.5 feet (2.3 m),though rigid vessels are constrained to 141 ft to enable turning at Wakefield [21] while the locks below Castleford have three sets of gates,[22] so that a 200-foot (61 m) section can be used, rather than the full 457 feet (139 m) required by the compartment boats.[23]
The main problem with upgrading the Wakefield branch was the dimensions of George Leather's cast iron aqueduct over the River Calder at Stanley Ferry. Structural analysis showed that parts of the ironwork were overloaded, and so in 1981 a new concrete aqueduct was cast by John Laing Construction Ltd, on a site a little further upstream. The complete structure was then pushed into position by hydraulic jacks in a six-day operation, after which the navigation was diverted over it, although the old aqueduct was left in place and can still be used.[24]
Although coal mining was one of the main reasons for the success of the navigation, it has also brought problems, caused by subsidence. In March 1988, the bank near Lemonroyd lock collapsed into St Aidan's opencast mine, which then flooded.[25] A significant factor was the presence of excavations below the opencast workings where lower coal seams had previously been mined. The failure resulted in some 780,000 cubic yards (600,000 m3) of material, including the banks of the river and the canal, slipping into the workings, which then flooded to a depth of 230 feet (70 m), creating a lake which covered 250 acres (100 ha).[26] An act of Parliament was obtained to allow 1.9 miles (3.1 km) of new waterway to be constructed. The original locks at Kippax and Lemonroyd were replaced by a single lock at Lemonroyd.[25] Opencast mining finally resumed ten years later, after the site had been pumped out,[26] but the coal reserves are now exhausted, and the site forms a nature reserve, with wet grasslands, reedbeds and open water covering 740 acres (300 ha).[27]
Traffic
A 20th-century modification of the compartment boat system was used to feed the coal-fired Ferrybridge "C" power station. Starting in 1967, Cawoods Hargreaves used trains of three tubs or coal pans, which were rigidly connected, and pushed by a tug when loaded. The trains were filled with coal using canalside chutes at the colliery and pushed to the power station, where a hoist lifted each pan from the canal and upturned it to drop its contents onto a conveyor belt. Nine tugs and 35 pans were employed, with each pan holding around 170 tonnes. By the time the final load left Astley colliery in December 2002, 43 million tonnes had been delivered to Ferrybridge in this way.[28] Experiments were made with trains of four pans, which allowed copper pipes to be carried on top of the coal for delivery to Goole, but this was short-lived.[29] Coal carrying came to an abrupt halt in 2003 when the St Aidan's opencast mine was exhausted and the coal from Kellingley colliery was found to have levels of sulphur content high above the acceptable limit.[30] During 2008, three of the trains were used on the River Don, to transport 250,000 tonnes of limestone from a quarry at Cadeby to Hexthorpe.[31]
British Waterways introduced a similar system in September 1974. Called BACAT, for Barges Aboard Catamaran, the system consisted of trains of barges, which were pushed by a tug, and which would be loaded between the twin hulls of a custom-built delivery ship. The ship would then transport them across the North Sea to continental waterways, without their contents having to be transshipped.[32] The concept failed after 18 months, as the dock workers at Hull blacklisted the entire British Waterways fleet, because they believed that the system would threaten their jobs.[33] Most of the commercial traffic using the navigation now consists of petroleum tankers and gravel barges.[30]
Leisure boating
The Aire and Calder was built for commercial freight, and although the volume carried has dropped significantly, particularly since coal deliveries to Ferrybridge power station by canal stopped, the navigation still carried 300,000 tonnes of freight in 2007, down from 1.64 million tonnes in 2000.[34] The Leeds to Castleford section and much of the Wakefield branch are now mainly used as leisure routes, but below Castleford, the industrial nature of the waterway is more obvious, and pleasure boats must give way to commercial vessels. 600 tonne vessels, designed to make maximum use of the locks, produce considerable wash, and are not as manoeuvrable as a narrow boat.[21]
Much of the ex-industrial (western) part of the Navigation now has the appearance of a tree-lined, gently-twisting river. The eastern part of the Navigation, sometimes known as the Knottingley and Goole Canal, is rather different: it has long straight stretches, but mainly through flat land that has always been agricultural.[35] Between Wakefield and Leeds, via Castleford, the Navigation is part of a circular cruising route or "ring", formed by the Leeds & Liverpool and the Huddersfield or Rochdale canals. The Outer Pennine Ring utilises the Huddersfield Canal, while the North Pennine Ring uses the Rochdale Canal for the southern crossing of the Pennines.[36] Beyond Castleford, boaters can travel on to Selby, York, Goole, Sheffield, and Keadby. With the possible restoration of the Barnsley Canal and the Dearne and Dove Canal, the section between Wakefield and the New Junction Canal might become part of a new "Yorkshire Ring".
Route 31 can be a fairly busy route connecting East Craigs and Corstorphine in the west and heading south towards Lasswade, Bonnyrigg and Polton Mill.
Hopefully a sign that XLB's could become a more regular sight on this route maybe. Lothian City 1082 almost at the end of its working to East Craigs. 07th April 2019.
While chasing light on the mountains last night in the little Cessna, I encountered a few whispy clouds floating in the sky near me. As I circled around one of them, I watched it light up with brilliant hues that increased in intensity right when I was looking straight towards the setting sun. It was as if I was turning up the volume of color as I completed my turn. In all the times I've flown, this was the first time I can remember seeing and making this kind of thing happen.
I help aspiring and established photographers get noticed so they can earn an income from photography or increase sales. My blog, Photographer’s Business Notebook is a wealth of information as is my Mark Paulda’s YouTube Channel. I also offer a variety of books, mentor services and online classes at Mark Paulda Photography Mentor
All images are available as Museum Quality Photographic Prints and Commercial Licensing. Feel free to contact me with any and all inquiries.
Follow My Once In A Lifetime Travel Experiences at Mark Paulda’s Travel Journal
I help aspiring and established photographers get noticed so they can earn an income from photography or increase sales. My blog, Photographer’s Business Notebook is a wealth of information as is my Mark Paulda’s YouTube Channel. I also offer a variety of books, mentor services and online classes at Mark Paulda Photography Mentor
All images are available as Museum Quality Photographic Prints and Commercial Licensing. Feel free to contact me with any and all inquiries.
Follow My Once In A Lifetime Travel Experiences at Mark Paulda’s Travel Journal
“...and the hive boundaries were extended another three quallids in all directions today. Consummation rates are steadily increasing.”
“Excellent, Commander. See to it that they are sustained.
Now what do you have to report on the remaining subject of the latest batch? With the anomalies removed, I expect a normal output. The stores from our last harvest are beginning to diminish...”
“The assigned replacers are even now leading her to one of the cultivation chambers, your Greatness. The she-human's disposition recommends her as highly receptive and practical and the ideal atmosphere was one that would appease her concerns and appear, to her opinion, aesthetically pleasing. I chose to emulate the fungi desert of E'gallorsk. Combined with occasional manipulation it should create a sense of well-being and evoke a trace of Romanticism, as the humans call it, in her. Affection toward the target replacer will inevitably increase.”
“That will suffice.
On a related note, it has occurred to me that you have no experience with a “third wheel”, as the humans call it. You are liable to compromise the subject's emotional balance unless cautioned; see that you do not cause the subject to harbor too much animosity toward the extra replacer, but do exploit it as leverage to create more affection toward the other. Proportioned correctly, you will produce peak amounts of positive mental output and a minimum of the opposite. I will not have our food supply embittered, so try to take the extra replacer out as soon as possible. Preferably with a “natural disaster”, for obvious reasons.”
“Of course, O Queen. And the he-spy? Shall I leave him as he is?”
“...No. He will resist us, but put him under constant mental bombardment regardless. It will cause him to feel hopeless and isolated...I want him where he will pour affection out to a replacer of the she-spy even if he knows it IS a replacer.”
“It will be done, O Queen.”
After Reldan killed that terrible worm, I felt free. The trauma wasn't so bad once I knew it could never be repeated. I still felt kind of helpless, though. Especially after fainting for the first time in my life...embarrassing. I'm really glad Reldan's not one of those stupid male chauvinists, if he was he'd probably be gloating over how useless I've been thus far. Not anymore! I politely took my bag back from him. You have to start somewhere. I then felt a compelling urge to get away from the burned worm corpse...it reminded me of my ordeal. I turned away and started walking and a second or two later Reldan and that weird green girl he has trussed up caught up with me.
“Bad memories?” Reldan asked.
“I don't want to talk about it,” I replied, “I'm just so glad to be back with you.”
“I understand.”
He then, at my request, related the story of all that happened since we were separated, with me occasionally asking questions. As he talked, we began to walk up a gentle incline in the cavern, and the bones strewn about began to dwindle in number. As we turned a corner, I was blinded by the sun as it peeked through the cave entrance, but what a sight for sore eyes (literally!) it was! After a while my eyes became accustomed to the bright light, and I looked around the vast landscape that stretched before us.
“This doesn't look anything like where we were before...” I gasped.
“I traveled quite far to find you,” Reldan replied, “and the land changed again.”
Did it ever! A sandy desert spread out as far as I could see, drab in itself but made beautiful by thousands of glowing orange mushrooms that dotted the landscape. As we walked away from the rocky outcroppings surrounding the crystal cave, I began to notice thorny green roots curving and twisting in and out of the ground.
“Everything here is edible, and those roots are an excellent water source,” Reldan interrupted his own story to explain excitedly, “We could survive here for weeks!”
I was of course delighted, as food was always a source of anxiety and not having to worry anymore...well! The landscape was also lovely to look at, but the promise of easy food was hard to beat.
Reldan then got to what I supposed was, for him, a rather uncomfortable part of his story: why he had been forced to restrain Djiimi. Apparently she had tried to make advances to him-very aggressive ones-and he, not wanting to cheat on me (we're not even married!), had to resort to some rather drastic measures...
He was very pained about the whole matter, but I assured him that I trusted his judgment.
Wow...he was alone with that (admittedly) attractive mutant scum and he resisted her to that point for my sake when I could have been dead?! What a great guy!
__________________________________________________________________
Hope you all enjoy! I'm really pleased with the roots despite the engineering problems they presented, and I hope to never edit that many 'shrooms again...
:D
*********************
The Avengers is a spy-fi British television series created in the 1960s. The Avengers initially focused on Dr. David Keel (Ian Hendry) and his assistant John Steed (Patrick Macnee). Hendry left after the first series and Steed became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants. Steed's most famous assistants were intelligent, stylish and assertive women: Cathy Gale (Honor Blackman), Emma Peel (Diana Rigg), and later Tara King (Linda Thorson). Later episodes increasingly incorporated elements of science fiction and fantasy, parody and British eccentricity. The Avengers ran from 1961 until 1969, screening as one hour episodes its entire run.
The pilot episode, "Hot Snow", aired on 7 January 1961.
The final episode, "Bizarre", aired on 21 May 1969.
The Avengers was produced by ABC Television, a contractor within the ITV network. After a merger in July 1968 ABC Television became Thames Television, which continued production of the series although it was still broadcast under the ABC name. By 1969 The Avengers was shown in more than 90 countries. ITV produced a sequel series The New Avengers (1976–1977) with Patrick Macnee returning as John Steed, and two new partners.
In 2007 The Avengers was ranked #20 on TV Guide's Top Cult Shows Ever
1961: With Dr David Keel (Ian Hendry)
The Avengers began in the episode Hot Snow, with medical doctor, Dr David Keel (Ian Hendry), investigating the murder of his fiancée and office receptionist Peggy by a drug ring. A stranger named John Steed, who was investigating the ring, appeared and together they set out to avenge her death in the first two episodes. Afterwards, Steed asked Keel to partner him as needed to solve crimes.
The Avengers followed Hendry's Police Surgeon, in which he played police surgeon Geoffrey Brent.[3] While Police Surgeon did not last long, viewers praised Hendry. Hendry was considered the star of the new series, receiving top billing over Macnee, and Steed did not appear in two episodes.
As the series progressed, Steed's importance increased, and he carried the final episode solo. While Steed and Keel used wit while discussing crimes and dangers, the series also depicted the interplay—and often tension—between Keel's idealism and Steed's professionalism. As seen in one of the two surviving episodes from the first series, "The Frighteners", Steed also had helpers among the population who provided information, similar to the "Baker Street Irregulars" of Sherlock Holmes.
The other regular in the first series was Carol Wilson (Ingrid Hafner), the nurse and receptionist who replaced the slain Peggy. Carol assisted Keel and Steed in cases, without being part of Steed's inner circle. Hafner had played opposite Hendry as a nurse in Police Surgeon.[3]
The series was shot on 405-line videotape using a multicamera setup. There was little provision for editing and virtually no location footage (although the very first shot of the first episode consisted of location footage). As was standard practice at the time, videotapes of early episodes of The Avengers were reused. Of the first series, two complete episodes still exist, as 16 mm film telerecordings. One of the episodes remaining does not feature Steed. The first 15 minutes of the first episode also exists as a telerecording; the extant footage ends at the conclusion of the first act, prior to the introduction of John Steed.
The missing television episodes are currently being re-created for audio by Big Finish Productions under the title of The Avengers - The Lost Episodes[4] and star Julian Wadham as Steed, Anthony Howell as Dr. Keel and Lucy Briggs-Owen as Carol Wilson.
1962–64: With Cathy Gale (Honor Blackman), Venus Smith (Julie Stevens) and Dr Martin King (Jon Rollason)
Patrick Macnee as John Steed and Honor Blackman as Cathy Gale
Production of the first series was cut short by a strike. By the time production could begin on the second series, Hendry had quit to pursue a film career. Macnee was promoted to star and Steed became the focus of the series, initially working with a rotation of three different partners. Dr Martin King (Jon Rollason), a thinly disguised rewriting of Keel, saw action in only three episodes produced from scripts written for the first series. King was intended to be a transitional character between Keel and Steed's two new female partners, but while the Dr. King episodes were shot first, they were shown out of production order in the middle of the season. The character was thereafter quickly and quietly dropped.
Nightclub singer Venus Smith (Julie Stevens) appeared in six episodes. She was a complete "amateur", meaning that she did not have any professional crime-fighting skills as did the two doctors. She was excited to be participating in a "spy" adventure alongside secret agent Steed (although at least one episode—"The Removal Men"—indicates she is not always enthusiastic). Nonetheless, she appears to be attracted to him and their relationship appears similar to that later displayed between Steed and Tara King. Her episodes featured musical interludes showcasing her singing performances. The character of Venus underwent some revision during her run, adopting more youthful demeanour and dress.
The first episode broadcast in the second series had introduced the partner who would change the show into the format for which it is most remembered. Honor Blackman played Dr Cathy Gale, a self-assured, quick-witted anthropologist who was skilled in judo and had a passion for wearing leather clothes.[5] Widowed during the Mau Mau years in Kenya, she was the "talented amateur" who saw her aid to Steed's cases as a service to her nation. Gale was said to have been born 5 October 1930 at midnight, and was raised in Africa. Gale was early-to-mid 30s during her tenure, in contrast to female characters in similar series who tended to be younger.
Gale was unlike any female character seen before on British TV and became a household name. Reportedly, part of her charm came from the fact that her earliest appearances were episodes in which dialogue written for Keel was simply transferred to her. Said series script writer Dennis Spooner "there's the famous story of how Honor Blackman played Ian Hendry's part, which is why they stuck her in leather and such—it was so much cheaper than changing the lines!"[6]
Venus Smith did not return for the third series and Cathy Gale became Steed's only regular partner. The series established a level of sexual tension between Steed and Gale, but the writers were not allowed to go beyond flirting and innuendo. Despite this the relationship between Steed and Gale was progressive for 1962–63. In "The Golden Eggs" it is revealed that Gale lived in Steed's flat; her rent according to Steed was to keep the refrigerator well-stocked and to cook for him (she appears to do neither). However, this was said to be a temporary arrangement while Gale looked for a new home, and Steed was sleeping at a hotel.
During the first series there were hints Steed worked for a branch of British Intelligence, and this was expanded in the second series. Steed initially received orders from different superiors, including someone referred to as "Charles", and "One-Ten" (Douglas Muir). By the third series the delivery of Steed's orders was not depicted on screen or explained. In "The Nutshell" the secret organisation to which Steed belongs is shown, and it is Gale's first visit to their HQ.
Small references to Steed's background were occasionally made. In series three's "Death of a Batman" it was said that Steed was with I Corps in World War II, and in Munich in 1945. In series four episode "The Hour That Never Was" Steed goes to a reunion of his RAF regiment.
A film version of the series was in its initial planning stages by late 1963 after series three was completed. An early story proposal paired Steed and Gale with a male and female duo of American agents, to make the movie appeal to the American market. Before the project could gain momentum Blackman was cast opposite Sean Connery in Goldfinger, requiring her to leave the series.
Series transformation
During the Gale era, Steed was transformed from a rugged trenchcoat-wearing agent into the stereotypical English gentleman (he had first donned bowler and carried his distinctive umbrella part way through the first season as 'The Frighteners' depicts), complete with Savile Row suit, bowler hat and umbrella with clothes later designed by Pierre Cardin. (The bowler and umbrella were soon changed to be full of tricks, including a sword hidden within the umbrella handle and a steel plate concealed in the hat.) These items were referred to in the French, German and Polish titles of the series, Chapeau melon et bottes de cuir ("Bowler hat and leather boots"), Mit Schirm, Charme und Melone ("With Umbrella, Charm and Bowler Hat") and Rewolwer i melonik ("A Revolver and a Bowler Hat"), respectively. With his impeccable manners, old world sophistication, and vintage automobiles, Steed came to represent the traditional Englishman of an earlier era.
By contrast his partners were youthful, forward-looking, and always dressed in the latest mod fashions. Gale's innovative leather outfits suited her many athletic fight scenes. Honor Blackman became a star in Britain with her black leather outfits and boots (nicknamed "kinky boots") and her judo-based fighting style. Macnee and Blackman even released a novelty song called "Kinky Boots". Some of the clothes seen in The Avengers were designed at the studio of John Sutcliffe who published the AtomAge fetish magazine.
Series script writer Dennis Spooner said that the series would frequently feature Steed visiting busy public places such as the main airport in London, without anyone else present in the scene. "'Can't you afford extras?' they'd ask. Well it wasn't like that; it's just that Steed had to be alone to be accepted. Put him in a crowd and he sticks out like a sore thumb! Let's face it, with normal people he's weird. The trick to making him acceptable is never to show him in a normal world, just fighting villains who are odder than he is!"[6]
1965–68: With Emma Peel (Diana Rigg)
In 1965 the show was sold to United States network, the American Broadcasting Company (ABC). The Avengers became one of the first British series to be aired on prime time U.S. television. The ABC network paid the then-unheard of sum of $2 million for the first 26 episodes. The average budget for each episode was reportedly £56,000, high for the British industry. The fourth series aired in the U.S. from March to December 1966.
Previously The Avengers had been shot on 405-line videotape using a multicamera setup, with very little provision for editing and virtually no location footage. The U.S. deal meant that the producers could afford to start shooting the series on 35mm film. The use of film rather than videotape was essential, as British 405-line video was technically incompatible with the U.S. NTSC videotape format. Filmed productions were standard on U.S. prime time television at that time. The Avengers continued to be produced in black and white.
The transfer to film meant that episodes would be shot using the single camera setup, giving the production greater flexibility. The use of film production and the single camera production style allowed more sophisticated visuals and camera angles and more outdoor location shots, all of which greatly improved the look of the series. As was standard on British television filmed production through the 1960s, all location work on series four was shot mute with the soundtrack created in post production. Dialogue scenes were filmed in the studio, leading to some jumps between location and studio footage.
Diana Rigg as Mrs Emma Peel
New female partner Mrs Emma Peel (Diana Rigg) debuted in this series, in October 1965. The name of the character derived from a comment by writers, during development, that they wanted a character with "man appeal". In an early attempt to incorporate this concept into the character's name, she was called "Samantha Peel", shortened to the awkward "Mantha Peel".[7] Eventually the writers began referring to the idea by the verbal shorthand, "M. Appeal",[8] which gave rise to the character's ultimate name. Emma Peel, whose husband went missing while flying over the Amazon, retained the self-assuredness of Gale, combined with superior fighting skills, intelligence, and a contemporary fashion sense.
After more than 60 actresses had been auditioned, the first choice to play the role was Elizabeth Shepherd. However, after filming one and a half episodes (the pilot; 'The Town of No Return' and part of 'The Murder Market'), Shepherd was released. Her on-screen personality was deemed less interesting than that of Blackman's Gale and it was decided she was not right for the role. Another 20 actresses were auditioned before the show's casting director suggested that producers Brian Clemens and Albert Fennell check out a televised drama featuring the relatively unknown Rigg (she had earlier guested in an episode of the TV show; 'The Sentimental Agent' that Clemens had written). Her screen test with Macnee showed that the two immediately worked well together, and a new era in Avengers history began.
A prologue was added to the beginning of all the fourth series episodes for the American transmissions. This was to clarify some initial confusion audiences had regarding the characters and their mission. In the opener, a waiter holding a champagne bottle falls dead onto a human-sized chessboard; a dagger protruding from a target on his back. Steed and Mrs. Peel (dressed in her trademark leather catsuit) walk up to the body as the voice over explains: "Extraordinary crimes against the people, and the state, have to be avenged by agents extraordinary. Two such people are John Steed, top professional, and his partner Emma Peel, talented amateur. Otherwise known as The Avengers." During this voice over, Steed pours two drinks from the wine bottle and Mrs Peel replaces her gun in her boot. They clink glasses and depart together. Fade to black and then the opening titles proper begin.
Film location plate presented by ABC TV to the Stapleford Miniature Railway, which is still in use today
In contrast to the Gale episodes, there was a lighter, comic touch in Steed and Peel's interactions with each other and their reactions to other characters and situations. Earlier series had a harder tone, with the Gale era including some quite serious espionage dramas. This almost completely disappeared as Steed and Peel visibly enjoyed topping each other's witticisms. The layer of conflict with Gale – who on occasion openly resented being used by Steed, often without her permission – was absent from Steed's interaction with Peel. Also the sexual tension between Steed and Gale was not present with Peel. In both cases, the exact relationship between the partners was left ambiguous, although they seemed to have carte blanche to visit each other's homes whenever they pleased and it was not uncommon for scenes to suggest Steed had spent the night at Gale's or Peel's home, or vice-versa. Although nothing "improper" was displayed, the obviously much closer chemistry between Steed and Peel constantly suggests intimacy between the two.
Science fiction fantasy elements (a style later known as Spy-fi) emerged in stories. The duo encountered killer robots ("The Cybernauts") and giant alien carnivorous plants ("The Man-Eater of Surrey Green").
In her fourth episode, "Death at Bargain Prices", Mrs Peel takes an undercover job at a department store. Her uniform for promoting space-age toys is an elaborate leather catsuit plus silver boots, sash, and welder's gloves. The suit minus the silver accessories became her signature outfit, which she wore primarily for fight scenes, in early episodes, and in the titles. There was a fetishistic undercurrent in some episodes. In "A Touch of Brimstone" Mrs Peel dressed in a dominatrix outfit of corset, laced boots and spiked collar to become the "Queen of Sin".
Peel's avant-garde fashions, featuring bold accents and high-contrast geometric patterns, emphasized her youthful, contemporary personality. She represented the modern England of the Sixties – just as Steed, with his vintage style and mannerisms, personified Edwardian era nostalgia. According to Macnee in his book The Avengers and Me, Rigg disliked wearing leather and insisted on a new line of fabric athletic wear for the fifth series. Alun Hughes, who had designed clothing for Diana Rigg's personal wardrobe, was suggested by the actress to design Emma Peel's "softer" new wardrobe. Pierre Cardin was brought in to design a new wardrobe for Macnee. In America, TV Guide ran a four-page photospread on Rigg's new "Emmapeeler" outfits (10–16 June 1967). Eight tight-fitting jumpsuits in a variety of bright colors were created using the stretch fabric crimplene.
Another memorable feature of the show from this point onwards was its automobiles. Steed's signature cars were vintage 1926–1928 Bentley racing or town cars, including Blower Bentleys and Bentley Speed Sixes (although, uniquely, in "The Thirteenth Hole" he drives a Vauxhall 30/98), while Peel drove a sporty Lotus Elan convertible which, like her clothes, emphasized her independence and vitality. During the first Peel series, each episode ended with a short, comedic scene of the duo leaving the scene of their most recent adventure in some unusual vehicle.
For this series Diana Rigg's stunt double was stuntman Billy Westley, Patrick Macnee's stunt double was Peter Clay.
Fifth series
After one filmed series (of 26 episodes) in black and white, The Avengers began filming in colour for the fifth series in 1966. It was three years before Britain's ITV network began full colour broadcasting.
This series was broadcast in the U.S. from January to May 1967. The American prologue of the previous series was rejigged for the colour episodes. It opened with the caption The Avengers In Color (required by ABC for colour series at that time). This was followed by Steed unwrapping the foil from a champagne bottle and Peel shooting the cork away. (Unlike the "chessboard" opening of the previous series, this new prologue was also included in UK broadcasts of the series.)
The first 16 episodes of the fifth series begin with Peel receiving a call-to-duty message from Steed: "Mrs Peel, we're needed." Peel was conducting her normal activities when she unexpectedly received a message on a calling card or within a delivered gift, at which point Steed suddenly appeared (usually in her apartment). The messages were delivered by Steed in increasingly bizarre ways as the series progressed: in a newspaper Peel had just bought, or on traffic lights while she was out driving. On one occasion Steed appeared on her television set, interrupting an old science-fiction movie (actually clips from their Year Four episode "The Cybernauts") to call her to work. Another way Steed contacted her was in the beginning of episode 13, "A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Station" when she enters her flat and sees a Meccano Percy the Small Engine going around a circular track with a note on one of the train cars that says "Mrs. Peel" in bold letters, she then walks over to Steed who says "you're needed". At the start of "The Hidden Tiger" Peel is redecorating her apartment (wearing a jumpsuit and drinking champagne); she peels off a strip of wallpaper, revealing the words "Mrs Peel" painted on the wall beneath. She turns to see Steed in the apartment removing another strip of wallpaper, revealing "We're needed" painted underneath on another wall. In another instance Emma enters Steed's flat to find he has just fallen down the stairs, and he painfully gasps, "Mrs Peel, you're needed." Often the episode's tag scene returned to the situation of the "Mrs Peel, we're needed" scene. "The Hidden Tiger" returns to the partially redecorated apartment where Steed begins painting a love heart and arrow and the initials of two people on the wall, but paints over the initials when Peel sees his graffito. In "The Superlative Seven" the call to duty and the tag both involve a duck shooting situation where unexpected items fall from the sky after shots are fired.
The series also introduced a comic tag line caption to the episode title, using the format of "Steed [does this], Emma [does that]." For example "The Joker" had the opening caption: "Steed trumps an ace, Emma plays a lone hand".('The Joker' was to a large extent a re-write colour episode of the earlier Cathy Gale b/w era story; 'Don't Look Behind You' as were a few other later episodes re-writes in colour of b/w era tales.)
The "Mrs Peel, we're needed" scenes and the alternate tag lines were dropped after the first 16 episodes, after a break in production, for financial reasons. They were deemed by the U.K. networks as disposable if The Avengers was to return to ITV screens. (Dave Rogers' book The Avengers Anew lists a set for every Steed/Peel episode except "The Forget-Me-Knot".)
Stories were increasingly characterised by a futuristic, science fiction bent, with mad scientists and their creations wreaking havoc. The duo dealt with being shrunk to doll size ("Mission... Highly Improbable"), pet cats being electrically altered into ferocious and lethal "miniature tigers" ("The Hidden Tiger"), killer automata ("Return of The Cybernauts"), mind-transferring machines ("Who's Who???"), and invisible foes ("The See-Through Man").
The series parodied its American contemporaries with episodes such as "The Girl From AUNTIE", "Mission... Highly Improbable" and "The Winged Avenger" (spoofing The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Mission: Impossible and Batman, respectively). The show still carried the basic format – Steed and his associate were charged with solving the problem in the space of a 50-minute episode, thus preserving the safety of 1960s Britain.
Comedy was evident in the names and acronyms of the organizations. For example, in "The Living Dead", two rival groups examine reported ghost sightings: FOG (Friends Of Ghosts) and SMOG (Scientific Measurement Of Ghosts). "The Hidden Tiger" features the Philanthropic Union for Rescue, Relief and Recuperation of Cats—PURRR—led by characters named Cheshire, Manx, and Angora.
The series also occasionally adopted a metafictional tone, coming close to breaking the fourth wall. In the series 5 episode "Something Nasty in the Nursery" Peel directly references the series' storytelling convention of having potentially helpful sources of information killed off just before she or Steed arrive. This then occurs a few minutes later. In the tag scene for the same episode, Steed and Peel tell viewers – indirectly – to tune in next week.
For this series Diana Rigg's stunt double was stuntwoman Cyd Child, though stuntman Peter Elliot doubled for Rigg in a stunt dive in "The Bird Who Knew Too Much".
Rigg's departure
Rigg was initially unhappy with the way she was treated by the show's producers. During her first series she learned she was being paid less than the camera man. She demanded a raise, to put her more on a par with her co-star, or she would leave the show. The producers gave in, thanks to the show's great popularity in the US.
At the end of the fifth series in 1967, Rigg left to pursue other projects. This included following Honor Blackman to play a leading role in a James Bond film, in this case On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
Rigg and Macnee have remained lifelong friends.
1968–69: With Tara King (Linda Thorson)
Thorson and Macnee
When Diana Rigg left the series in October 1967, the British network executives decided that the current series formula, despite resulting in popular success, could not be pursued further. Thus they decided that a "return to realism" was appropriate for the sixth series (1968–69). Brian Clemens and Albert Fennel were replaced by John Bryce, producer of most of the Cathy Gale-era episodes.
Bryce had a difficult situation in hand. He had to find a replacement for Diana Rigg and shoot the first seven episodes of the new series, which were supposed to be shipped to America together with the last eight Emma Peel colour episodes.
Bryce signed his then-girlfriend, 20-year-old newcomer Linda Thorson, as the new female costar and chose the name "Tara King" for her character. Thorson played the role with more innocence in mind and at heart; and unlike the previous partnerships with Cathy and Emma, the writers allowed subtle hints of romance to blossom between Steed and King. King also differed from Steed's previous partners in that she was a fully fledged (albeit initially inexperienced) agent working for Steed's organisation; his previous partners had all been (in the words of the prologue used for American broadcasts of the first Rigg series) talented amateurs. Bryce wanted Tara to be blonde, so Thorson's brown hair was bleached. However the process badly damaged Thorson's hair, so she had to wear wigs for the first third of her episodes, until her own hair grew back. Her natural brown hair was not seen until the episode "All Done with Mirrors".
Production of the first seven episodes of the sixth series began. However financial problems and internal difficulties undermined Bryce's effort. He only managed to complete three episodes: "Invitation to a Killing" (a 90-minute episode introducing Tara King), "The Great, Great Britain Crime" (some of its original footage was reused in the 1969 episode "Homicide and Old Lace") and "Invasion of the Earthmen" (which survived relatively intact except for the scenes in which Tara wears a brown wig.)
After a rough cut screening of these episodes to studio executives, Bryce was fired and Clemens and Fennel were summoned back. At their return, a fourth episode called "The Murderous Connection" was in its second day of production. After revising the script, it was renamed as "The Curious Case of the Countless Clues" and production was resumed. Production of the episode "Split!", a leftover script from the Emma Peel colour series, proceeded. Two completely new episodes were also shot: "Get-A-Way", and "Look (Stop Me If You've Heard This One) But There Were These Two Fellers".
Dennis Spooner said of the event that "Brian left The Avengers for about three episodes, someone took over, and when Brian came back, it was in a terrible state. He was faced with doing a rewrite on a film they'd already shot." The episode had a story error where Steed leaves for a destination. The villains then realise this and pursue him – yet arrive there before Steed does. It was fixed by having a character ask Steed 'What took you so long?', to which he replies 'I came the pretty way'. "You can only do that on The Avengers you see. It was just my favourite show to work on."[10]
Clemens and Fennel decided to film a new episode to introduce Tara King. This, the third episode filmed for the sixth series, was titled "The Forget-Me-Knot" and bade farewell to Emma Peel and introduced her successor, a trained but inexperienced agent named Tara King. It would be broadcast as the first episode of the sixth series. Tara debuts in dynamic style: when Steed is called to Headquarters, he is attacked and knocked down by trainee agent King who mistakes him for her training partner.
No farewell scenes for Emma Peel had been shot when Diana Rigg left the series. Rigg was recalled for "The Forget-Me-Knot", through which Emma acts as Steed's partner as usual. Rigg also filmed a farewell scene for Emma which appeared as the tag scene of the episode. It was explained that Emma's husband, Peter Peel, was found alive and rescued, and she left the British secret service to be with him. Emma visits Steed to say goodbye, and while leaving she passes Tara on the stairway giving the advice that "He likes his tea stirred anti-clockwise." Steed looks out the window as a departing Emma enters the Bentley driven by Peter – who from a distance seems to resemble Steed (and was played by Patrick Macnee, wearing a bowler hat and umbrella).
Bryce's original episode introducing Tara, "Invitation to a Killing", was revised as a regular 60-minute episode named "Have Guns Will Haggle". These episodes, together with "Invasion of the Earthmen" and the last eight Peel colour episodes, were shipped to America in February 1968.
For this series the government official who gave Steed his orders was depicted on screen. Mother, introduced in "The Forget-Me-Knot", is a man in a wheelchair. The role was taken by Patrick Newell who had played different roles in two earlier episodes, most recently in series five. Mother's headquarters would shift from place to place, including one episode where his complete office was on the top level of a double-decker bus. (Several James Bond films of the 1970s would make use of a similar gimmick for Bond's briefings.)
Added later as a regular was Mother's mute Amazonian assistant, Rhonda (Rhonda Parker). There was one appearance by an agency official code-named "Father", a blind older woman played by Iris Russell. (Russell had appeared in the series several times previously in other roles.) In one episode, "Killer", Steed is paired with Lady Diana Forbes Blakeney (Jennifer Croxton) while King is on holiday.
Scriptwriter Dennis Spooner later reflected on this series. "When I wrote "Look (Stop Me If You've Heard This One) But There Were These Two Fellers", that was definitely the last series. They were going to make no more, so in that series we went right over the top; we went really weird, because they knew there weren't going to be any more."[11]
Spooner said the series "worked because it became a parody on itself, almost. You can only do that so long." Overall he attributes the success of the show to its light approach. "We spoofed everything, we took Mission: Impossible, Bad Day at Black Rock, High Noon, The Dirty Dozen, The Birds... we took them all. The film buffs used to love it. There were always lines in it that people knew what we were talking about."[11]
Vehicle wise, Steed continued to drive vintage green Bentleys in the first seven episodes in production. His regular transport for the remainder of the series were two yellow Rolls-Royce cars. Mother also occasionally appeared in silver Rolls-Royces. Tara King drove an AC 428 and a Lotus Europa. Lady Diana Forbes Blakeney drove an MGC Roadster.
The revised series continued to be broadcast in America. The episodes with Linda Thorson as King proved to be highly rated in Europe and the UK. In the United States however, the ABC network that carried the series chose to air it opposite the number one show in the country at the time, Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In. Steed and King could not compete, and the show was cancelled in the US. Without this vital commercial backing, production could not continue in Britain either, and the series ended in May 1969. The final scene of the final episode ("Bizarre") has Steed and King, champagne glasses in hand, accidentally launching themselves into orbit aboard a rocket, as Mother breaks the fourth wall and says to the audience, "They'll be back!" before adding in shock, "They're unchaperoned up there!"
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Courtesy of Chatwick University Archives, 1960
My first 'grunge' piece. I used Photomatix for the grunge effect and I increased the brightness in the headlamps using the adjustment brush in Lightroom, essentially turning them on.
►To increase the population of the city of San Francisco and create jobs during the depression were the main political motivations for creating the bridge.
►Joseph Baerman Strauss designed and built the Golden Gate Bridge.
►Money was raised to build the bridge with a voter approved bond issue backed by Bank of America.
►Official ground breaking began on February 26, 1933.
►The Golden Gate Bridge was the first construction project to ever use the rotating drum mixer concrete trucks so common today.
►The production of the bridge was the first of its kind to ever use nets as safety for falling workers. These nets are now standard on any bridge project today.
►The bridge was designed to be a part of the beauty of the area, with slatted railings to improve passing motorists' views, special accent lighting, and the red paint to blend with the red in the hills of Marin County.
►The bridge officially opened for business on May 26, 1937.
►Strauss's company was paid a $1 million fee, but unfortunately Strauss died within a year of completing the bridge.
Can also be viewed at 500px.com/photo/15437985