One wet and windy morning.............

The view from my studio window never ceases to fascinate me. The one below taken not on a wet and windy morning but a cold and snowy one.

I'm extremely lucky as it looks over a wide sweep of the Teifi valley here in Alltyblaca, Ceredigion. (I'll leave you to find it on the map). The river flows down past and makes a wide sweep here on its way to Cardigan Bay. Much of my life has been spent photographing the landscape so I am constantly aware of the ever-changing scene that unfolds hour by hour and sometimes minute by minute.

When we moved here over thirty five years ago Red Kites were very much on the danger list and 'twitchers' would camp out for hours or sometimes days to catch a glimpse. This was the area where a few pairs had managed to survive. Now I am privileged to see upwards of a dozen at a time wheeling about overhead. One of the many sights that can, along with the overall view, distract me as I work.

Not too long ago the view provided me with far less frequent daily distractions. Not because it has improved or my appreciation for it increased but due to the fact that I spent many hours in the darkroom. On the short winter days when I might spend all day printing I entered the darkroom in morning darkness and emerged at dusk. There were times when I sympathised with the lives of the pit ponies who toiled in Welsh coal mines all year and enjoyed their two weeks of daylight and sunshine every summer. My working days have changed a little in recent years so the opportunities to appreciate the scene outside rather than getting on with work have increased as my darkroom time has decreased.

I say decreased - it hasn't gone completely, I hope future ramblings here will explain more in due course. For now though this brief intro. will have to suffice. I will post more.......if the view outside doesn't distract me too much..............