Photos of Castlefield, Manchester
I’ve just posted a new gallery of photos. This time it is a big batch of pictures of Castlefield, the urban heritage park on the edge of Manchester’s downtown core (and a short walk from my home).
It’s one of my favourite areas in Manchester and not just because it’s close to where I live. Apart from the trains passing overhead, it’s a strangely peaceful place for the middle of a busy city. The canals filled with geese and barges are soothing. Watching the locks open and spill out their contents is a patient beauty. The sunlight bouncing from the water into the arches of the many bridges is hypnotic. And all the regenerated red brick architecture is especially pleasing in the brief moments when Manchester sits beneath a blue sky.
Add to all the sense of history that lingers at each turn. The Roman Fort’s remains, the canals, the warehouses and now the updated buildings all speak of different eras in Manchester’s past. It’s a treat to be in the presence of a past that lives on so visibly and has been so carefully integrated into the present.
Please have a look at the photos here.
Photos of Manchester’s Beetham Tower
With the tiniest scrap of free time, I’ve had the chance to put together a gallery of images of Beetham Tower, Manchester’s tallest building and home to the Hilton hotel.
It’s one of those buildings that seems to polarize its viewers. Some enjoy its soaring form while others loathe its discord with the surrounding area. Add to that its height and you can’t escape a view of the tower. That, however, can be a boon when, like me, you live near it and are lost in Manchester – you can always orient yourself to it’s giant rectangular shape.
On the 23rd floor, the Hilton operates a bar/lounge that, apparently, affords some great views of the city. The cocktails cost as much as a meal anywhere else, so I haven’t yet made the trip up (though I could probably get away with not buying a thing…). I’ll have to make the trip sometime though – there are few tall buildings in Manchester with any public observation floors and I’d love to see this city from above.
Check out the photos here.
Pictures of Manchester Pride Parade
Pick afros, purple speedos, gold glitter, rainbow flags and a huge party. The essence of a gay pride parade and Manchester’s 2007 festival had all of them. Though getting into the spirit of it all when you’re not dressed the part might seem difficult at first, (and I’m never really dressed for that part…), the celebrations and exuberance of the parade’s participants makes it easy to pick up a rainbow flag to wave.
Of course, the colourful characters make for some fun photos, so I have just put a gallery of some of the fun faces of the parade. Check out the photos of the pride parade here.
Photos of St. Ann’s and St. George’s Churches
Today brings a double dose of photos of Manchester places of worship with images of St. Ann’s Church and St. George’s Church.
The former is still a practicing church in the middle of downtown, while the latter, just outside the city centre, has been transformed into apartments when it fell into disuse (and I would love to see the interior renovation some time in case a resident of the apartments is reading this and would like to invite me around).
St. Ann’s Church:
St. George’s Church:
Images of Urbis
I have just put up a gallery of photos of one of the more unique buildings in Manchester, the Urbis exhibition hall. Interesting angles and curves abound, images of overhead clouds dance on the glass, and the imagination soars at being able to ski down that steeply-slanted roof.
My only potential qualm with it is that it seems a bit out of place surrounded by much older buildings. While a number of these have been updated (the Triangle Centre, formerly the Corn Exchange and now a mall and the Printworks, formerly a press building and now an entertainment centre) they haven’t reached the level of modernism of Urbis’ slope. And accross the way, Chetham’s school and the Cathedral must be wondering what this 21st-century structure must be doing in the same park as them.
But on second thought, that diversity is one of Manchester’s appealing qualities for me. I shouldn’t complain about old and new rubbing shoulders when I’m such a fan of both.
View the gallery here.
More Photos of Manchester’s Town Hall
While I already have a number of photos available here of the exterior of the Manchester Town Hall, the building’s architectural wonders do not cease once you step inside. The first two floors of the building (at least the parts open to the public) make for a particularly good wander and I now have a gallery of photos of the interior to prove it.
A couple years ago, my wife brought two of her co-workers over to Manchester for a visit. They both worked in the city hall of the small city of Ichinoseki in northern Japan and they were blown away by Manchester’s building. I’m told they turned green with envy because the Ichinoseki city hall, well, it lacks some of the grandeur of Manchester’s municipal headquarters. Not that a Victorian Gothic building would make much sense in small-city Japan… Still, it’s nice when architects give the occupants of their buildings a treat.
Images of North Wales
Though I had passed through Wales on a previous trip years ago, I recently had the chance to pass through again, but this time I got to stop in a few more spots. A lovely little family vacation weekend down to North Wales yielded sojourns to three castles and one exceptionally weird resort town.
Caernarfon, Criccieth and Harlech Castles were the old forts where I got to imagine myself as a knight. That favourite childhood pastime of mine is made that much easier when I don’t have to do much imagining of the sets – the castles are all right there. I could happily explore these old forts for days and I feel so lucky to be over here in the UK with the opportunity to see more of some my favourite buildings.
In addition to the castles was the surreal town of Portmeirion. I really wish I could impart to you just how confused I felt here. I couldn’t seem to wrap my head around the bizarre architecture and seemingly incongruous sculptures thrown together in a post-modern stew. I felt a little like I had wandered into a Salvador Dali painting.
Hopefully my next trip down there will allow me to get further South and explore even more of the country. For now, here are some photos to draw me back there.
Images of Rawtenstall’s 1940s Weekend
In a country so rich with history, the UK has ample opportunity for historical re-enactments and the rarely fail to pass up on the chance. A popular target for British nostalgia is the 1940s and its wartime significance. Near Manchester, the towns of Rawtenstall, Irwell Vale and Ramsbottom (I can’t think of joke I should use for that one) hold an annual tribute to that defining decade and I recently got to photograph the events in Rawtenstall.
The main event was the re-enacted battle at the Rawtenstall railway station. Dozens of military men in full 1940s uniforms battled it out on the rail platform in what was actually a startling display. In a way, I found it a little unsettling – sure I’ve seen plenty of WWII movies, but there was something about being able to actually feel each gunshot’s sound in chest that made this display sometimes feel a little too real. More than anything, it drove home how lucky I am to have never had to personally endure a war – I’m pretty sure I’m not cut out for it!
Mortar blasts, detailed makeup for the wounded, smoke grenades and an Avro Lancaster flying overhead added to the extremely well-choreographed re-enactment.
The battle was tricky to photograph due to so much movement taking place in so many places at once, but I managed to get a few good captures. See the gallery of photos here.
Barton Arcade Images
A semi-hidden gem here in downtown Manchester is the Barton Arcade shopping mall. Tucked in between Deansgate and St. Ann’s Square, the arcade doesn’t show much of itself from the outside, especially on the Deansgate side. But once you step inside, it reveals a beautiful glass and iron roof that fills the hall with light.
It’s always nice to cut through here even just for a glimpse when walking in the area.
See the photos here.
Photos of Haworth’s 1940s Weekend
I’ve just uploaded a new gallerty of photos of the Haworth 1940s weekend festival.
What could be more fun for a photographer than a bunch of people getting dressed up in vintage clothing or historically accurate costumes and being eager to have you take their picture? Well, maybe a smaller number of tourists crowding the narrow main street of Haworth would have been nice, but you can’t have everything!
Haworth village is a beautiful place on its own (photos to come…), but during its annual 1940s weekend, the vintage cars and costumes steal the show from the quaint main street and Bronte sisters attractions. I had such a good time, I think I might have to make it an annual visit. I look forward to 2008!
Photos of Manchester’s Dale Street Fire
I had a couple of errands to run near Manchester’s Northern quarter today, and having heard about the morning’s fire, it seemed a good idea to bring my cameras along. The blaze had been extinguished, but there was still a lot of fuss in the area.
Here are the photos from the aftermath of Manchester’s April 30th, 2007 Dale Street fire. A few more are available on my flickr stream.
Take Pictures, Build Muscles!
Whew…
For the last eight working days, a big part of my job has been the lifting of heavy gym equipment up and down stairs to a studio owned by Manchester’s Photolink Creative Group. I’m pretty sure, however, that the gym equipment was meant to get you in shape in an entirely different way. I think the treadmills expect you to run on them, not just carry them up and down stairs. The exercise bikes have seats on them for a reason. The handles on the elliptical trainers aren’t just for getting a handhold while lifting them.
At the same time, I think this regimen of junior power lifting must be doing my body some good (as long as I don’t suffer a hernia). I mean, I can’t have this much muscle pain without it being good for me, right? Soon I’ll be able to toss these exercise machines up to the second story without breaking a sweat.
As much as I might sound like I’m complaining here, that’s not the case. I’m pretty lucky to have the opportunity to work in the field I love and with some talented people happy to share knowledge with me. And if I happen to build up some muscles along the way, that’s not bad either!
Photos of Pelican
As promised in the previous post, here is the second half of the show played by These Arms Are Snakes and Pelican.
I wasn’t sure how Pelican’s long, instrumental post-metal compositions would translate to the live environment, but I was pleasantly surprised. The massive, dense songs made me think this is what whales would listen to (if whales liked to rock).
And of course the photos:
Photos of These Arms Are Snakes
Another night and another good show in Manchester. This time it was These Arms Are Snakes and Pelican. Rather than post too many photos in one entry I’ve broken this up into two. The Pelican photos will follow shortly.
These Arms opened the night and from the opening chord to the final feedback lead vocalist Steve Snere didn’t stop frantically moving on the circular staging area at the centre of Satan’s Hollow, a club decorated to resemble an evil grotto where the devil might host Playboy bunnies.
I had always liked These Arms are Snakes, but their live show took their music to another level and I was glad to see it.
And now for the photos:
Photos of Moneen and Bayside
Living in Manchester has its perks and one of the big ones it the city’s love of music. The passion Mancunians have for music contributes greatly to the vibrance of the city even though the weather can often drag people down. Really, what better than a good rock show to lift your spirits on a rainy day?
And no one lifts spirits better than Moneen. For my first show since arriving in Manchester, I was happy to have some good old Canadian content. Playing at the Roadhouse, a small Manchester club, Moneen put on their usual high-energy performance (perhaps one of their best that I’ve seen) that culminated in lead singer Kenny Bridges’ shorting of the club’s main circuit. During the finale of “The Passing of America,” Kenny’s exuberance got the better of him after he had climbed up on the stage monitors and he thrust his guitar in between the ceiling and the lighting rack. When two electrical devices made contact that shouldn’t have made contact, the whole club was plunged into silence and darkness. There were to be no encores…
Bayside and Attack in Black (another Canadian act) opened and both did a rockin’ fine job. Most of the crowd had come for Bayside and happily chanted along through the whole set. I suspect Moneen made a bunch of fans out of the folks that stuck around to watch them bounce off the walls.
Moneen:
Bayside:
Attack In Black:
In Case You Were Wondering…
No, I still don’t have a proper Internet connection at my new place here in Manchester. The process of trying to get everything set up has been more than a little frustrating, but I’ve almost become resigned to the fact that it’s just going to happen when it happens. Virgin Media has been a large source of the problem thanks to multiple orders not being properly registered, but now the process seems to be held up by some kind of fault on the line. Not much I can do at this point except laugh a little bit (and keep going to the library and internet cafes to get online).
But, I have had the chance to be online long enough to update my site with a few photos I had lying in wait. The Banteay Srei photos are now up to tide people over. I know they’re not photos of Manchester, but I’ve had these ones ready for uploading for longer, so they go first. Shots of Manchester are well overdue though, so I’ll do what I can to show off at least a few shots of my new home city.
Cross your fingers for me that the problem with my connection is soon fixed. But don’t hold your breath – I wouldn’t want to be responsible for anyone losing consciousness…
Moving to Manchester
Today’s the day I head off to Manchester to start a new chapter in my life. I anticipate being offline for a few days while I get my internet access sorted out, but when I’m up and running, I’ll be providing new contact info and new writings on my adventures in the UK.
I look forward to sharing more experiences with you, this time from England and beyond!
Darby Sawchuk is a Canadian-born photographer who currently resides in Manchester, England. He has travelled to over 40 countries and is always adding more to the list. He creates stock for multiple agencies and is available for assignments.
+44 0790 992 8932
