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u3a Photography Group - Ness Battery - 27 November, 2024
by Tim Wright - 06:29 on 30 November 2024
Ten of us arrived at the Ness Battery this morning with full sun and no wind. Although there was a little nip in the air when in shade the conditions couldn't have been better for a late November tour. Andy Hollinrake is an excellent guide and for the next 75 mins he gave us a very good talk about Ness Battery and its uses in both the First and Second World Wars and beyond. He had photos of the guns used and the Gunners operating them but they were never used in anger. He explained the function of the Control Tower and the Searchlight and Gunnery control mechanisms plus the close call for the seasick St Ola passengers on one notorious occasion. The Piece de Resistance though is the Mess Hall and its English Landscape Mural which occupies 3 walls of the building . For those homesick Squaddies fetching up in the Far North in War time it must have been a daily reminder of home and what they were fighting for too. Andy had done a great deal of research into the Artist AR Woods. He had also obtained a Watercolour done by him of the Ness Battery in it's full wartime state. Then it was free time to take as many photos as required and anyone with a fixation on Rust or Concrete would have had a plethora of material to work with. All in all a wonderful tour on a beautiful day.
Nine of us then went to the Shed take away in Stromness and sat outside in the sun with our takeaways. Following lunch a lot of us went to view the extensive Christmas Exhibition at the Pier Gallery. However it was so calm and sunny that a few minutes were dedicated to taking Reflection photos around the Harbour. This inspired the leader, in the absence of any other suggestions having been forthcoming, to decide that the next Project Theme would be "Reflections".
I am hoping that we will be able to have our next meeting in Dounby Computer Room on Wednesday 22nd Jan 2025 in the morning. Confirmation and details nearer the time. We will be looking at the Granton on Spey trip photos. Please look out 5 photos from each day (ie 20 altogether) that we were away to put into a compilation of the trip. I will collate them in a Power Point format similar to the Pfd that you receive from me each month and we will view them that day along with the Project photos and the photos from today at the Ness Battery.
The Project this month will be "Reflections ". Please send David 5 photos on that theme and 5 photos of today's trip to The Ness Battery to me. The closing date will be earlier this time as we have a lot of photos to be passed along and collated. The closing date will be Monday 13th Jan 2025. You should be over your Christmas excesses by then!
Keep clicking ,
Tim
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