Cellpic Sunday: Spot The Bee

Can you see it?

(Another image from Guédelon).

Cellpic Sunday 7 July 2024

Lens-Artists Challenge: Habitat

My regular reader (sic) may recall that where we live in the depths of rural France is very much sheep country. I’d estimate that most of the local farmers have at least some sheep as part of their agricultural ‘portfolio’, so to speak, although none of them do so on what you might call an industrial scale.

Our nearest neighbour and her late husband were full-time sheep farmers, albeit only on a modest scale. Their flock used to graze in our fields, which certainly kept the undergrowth under control. Now retired, she still has a small flock of maybe ten ewes, more as a hobby than anything else.

Their new habitat is a field just across the road from our house, from where they view me, should I happen to pass by, with a mixture of curiosity and contempt, as I wrote about here.

Lens-Artists Challenge: Habitat

Flowering Fuchsias

The last photo I took in June with my smartphone was this image of two flowering Fuchsias.

Because this is my entry for Bushboy’s Last On The Card challenge, and is therefore completely unedited, it comes complete with a hanging flower basket, part of the door to what used to be a piggery and an out-of-focus football. Oh, not forgetting the drainpipe…

But them’s the rules and if nothing else it’s a lesson to think more carefully in future about what you’re going to photograph as the end of the month draws nigh.

The flowers are a nice shade of pink though.

Last On The Card June 2024

Cellpic Sunday: Camera-shy

So there I was, wandering around the medieval reconstruction site at Guédelon, when I spotted a charming little tableau: two donkeys with their heads together, grazing quietly in their enclosure.

I approached quietly but they must have spotted me, as they raised their heads and moved, dammit. Firstly, one disappeared behind the other and then they both turned tail and headed off – for pastures new, no doubt.

Cellpic Sunday 30 June 2024

Lens-Artists Challenge: Two rectangles

The Lens-Artists Challenge this week has been set by Egidio, with the theme of ‘two rectangles’. To me, that seemed like an open invitation to show a bit of minimalist symmetry.

Dusk on Sir Bani Yas Island in Abu Dhabi:

Lens-Artists Challenge: Two rectangles

Cellpic Sunday: Another room with a view

On a couple of occasions this year I’ve posted photos of the views from various hotel rooms I had recently stayed in.

We, this is another- from the past week. It is, shall we say, unprepossessing. Then again, it wasn’t a hotel room.

Cellpic Sunday 23 June 2024

Lens-Artists Challenge: Connections

No doubt I will, over time, be posting quite a few photographs I took last weekend at Guédelon, and here’s a couple that are quite appropriate for this week’s Lens-Artists Challenge of ‘Connections’.

Firstly, there’s this ancient-looking set of stone steps. In reality, it’s probably no more than twenty years old, as work didn’t commence on the site until until 1997.

Secondly, a very elaborate rope knot holding together the component parts of what looks like a ploughshare, or harrow.

Lens-Artists Challenge: Connections

Cellpic Sunday: The Guédelon workhorse

Last weekend, we went on a day trip (a very long day trip) to a place called Guédelon. Here, since the late nineties, a group of craftsmen have been using traditional materials and traditional methods to construct a medieval (14th century) castle completely from scratch. It’s not a reconstruction or a renovation, it’s a new build and it is absolutely fascinating.

The site is large and widely spread out, and this noble beast spends its day drawing a cart ferrying workers and materials around it.

Cellpic Sunday 9 June 2024

Cellpic Sunday: Rural Transport Infrastructure

There are many positive aspects of living deep in the French countryside, but easy access to public transport definitely isn’t one of them. People just have to make do…

Cellpic Sunday 2 June 2024

Return of the orange poppies

(Yes, it’s flowers again – deal with it.)

About five years ago we (i.e. Madame) scattered a packet of orange poppy seeds in what we’re pleased to call our garden. For the next three years they went viral – dozens (maybe more – I never actually counted them) of them.

Then nothing last year. However, they’re back again, with a handful appearing in one of our raised beds. This is one of them, preparing to unfold.

Last on the card May 2024