I went out with the camera gear again today. The weather was
fine with some sunshine and blue sky, but it soon clouded over so I made my way
to the church to photograph the two mediaeval tombs I’d omitted the last time I
was there.
A thought occurred to me as I was walking through the
churchyard gate. Going into a mediaeval church to photograph tombs is a very MR
James-ish thing to do, and anybody familiar with his stories will have some
idea of the range of likely outcomes – all of them supernatural, of course, and
generally menacing. That was a silly thought, wasn’t it? I shrugged it off and
went about the business.
It wasn’t easy. The height of the tombs is such that there
was no way of getting above them, and the light was poor enough to make the use
of a tripod essential. The only way of getting a modest shot was to place the
tripod on the raised altar floor, bring it up to maximum height, and use the
standard lens. So that’s what I did. I composed the shot and took various meter
readings with both the camera’s meter and a hand held one. Duly satisfied, I
was just about to hit the shutter release when I was distracted by somebody
coming through the main door at the far end. When I looked back at the camera,
I saw that the whole apparatus was in the process of falling forward off the
altar floor. It crashed to the marble floor of the aisle below, with the camera taking
the full force of the impact.
Why did it do that? I don’t know. The tripod legs were
spread and I wasn’t aware of having touched it. I repeat: I don’t know. Would
it be extremely fanciful to wonder whether some irascible spirit took exception
either to me taking pictures without asking permission, or maybe to my presumption
in using a sanctified area for the purpose of so doing?
If that is the case, I should perhaps be grateful that they
let me off lightly. As far as I can tell, the only damage is to a minor piece
of equipment which is easy and cheap to replace.
Makes you wonder, though, doesn’t it?
4 comments:
It does make one wonder.
This was a suspenseful post! Waiting for ghosts to pop out... and then I became anxious while reading, waiting for you to mention that your camera wasn't completely ruined.
It was bound to happen some time. I don't know whether you're familiar with the short stories of MR James, but I've thought ever since the first day I moved in here that this is MR James country.
I did apologise and I'll be more respectful in future. And I've had a good lok at the equipment since. The only damage appears to be to a small metal ring that attaches the filter holder to the front of the lens. It's hard to believe, considering how far it fell and onto a stone floor.
You've mentioned MR James to me before and i looked him up and read a little.
I'm glad the damage was only small.
I think the appeal of MR James has as much to do with the sense of place as the creepiness of the plots. He also holds open a fascinating window to the typical attitudes of the Victorian/Edwardian academic.
If you want a couple of recommendations, 'A View from a Hill' is redolent of the sort of landscape in which I live, 'Lost Hearts' is quite creepy.
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