Tons of Folks, AKA Folkestone

Had a lovely start to the weekend yesterday, up nice and early at 07:00 having a lovely morning coffee and editing photos, giving the website a minor refresh adding some new products to the store.

My daughter - having surpassed my expectations in approach and preparation to her GCSE’s - is starting her summer holiday, with a camping trip to wales, with her friends.

We decided to jump in the car and head over to Folkestone, for a dad / daughter day, photowalk, shoppping and some seafood at in the harbour.

Folkestone is a little gem of a spot and somewhere, with its charming harbor and vibrant streets, is the perfect destination for a day trip.

Both my kids are audiophiles, where my sons tastes are as broad I as have known, but my daughter possibly takes the edge, with her lust for live performance and festivals. I was given a sample of Declan McKenna and ‘Brazil’. This is a protest song, regarding the awarding of the 2014 World Cup to Brazil.

Ok granted, a fine tune.

Not only does my daughter and I share a (very) similar music taste and political stance, I considered my counter, the lure of Billy Bragg was to obvious, so I countered with Flag Day, the 1985 debut of The Housemartins. I loved this band was I was younger, never thought the bass player - Norman Cook - would go far?

Folkestone's harbor buzzed with activity. We opted for a seafood lunch, savoring fresh fish and chips while watching bobbing boats and colorful lifebuoys. Refueled and ready to explore, we ventured into the heart of the town.

Folkestone is a haven for independent shops. We browsed unique boutiques, stopping to admire everything from handcrafted jewelry to vintage clothing. My daughter, a budding fashionista, found a one-of-a-kind dress that she absolutely loved.

By the end of the day, we were both happy and exhausted and our arms laden with shopping bags. Folkestone's delightful blend of seaside charm, fresh flavors, and quirky shops makes it a perfect destination for a memorable Dad / daughter outing.

Half term

Well that was a much needed half term break, which got a bit lively on Friday with Storm Eunice hitting the British Isles.

The year thus far at work has been breakneck, so having the past week off, has been a much needed downing of work tools (laptop and mobile) and a lifting of play tools (cameras).

No grand plans, as these are due in April with (fingers very crossed), a European city break with the kids.

But the kids and I popped up to London for a day trip, the kids love the big smoke. They are also avid exhibition / culture vultures, which is lovely.

We went to see the America in Crisis exhibition, at the Saatchi Gallery. £5 general admission, is very reasonably priced for 3 exhibition rooms, with images ranging from the 1960’s civil rights movement, to the storming of Capitol Hill in 2021 and much in between. I can't recommend it enough.

The effects of Eunice resulted in another exhibition being cancelled at the 11th hour, which was a little disapponting. Our walk around our usual haunts (Soho, Wardour Street, Covent Garden, Seven Dials), was hindered by the high winds and cold, but we were about to have a limited meander, which resulted in a couple of keepers.

Next up was the highlight of the day, the kids first gig at Brixton Academy, seeing The Kooks. This was one for my daughter, shes obsessed with them ATM. Its something very sacred and special sharing a mutual like for music, I had a great time sharing this experience with them. I will definately be arrangng more soirees into live music this year, as an antidote to the pandemic. We also have the Red Hot Chili Peppers in London in June 2022, who are hopefully being supported by Thundercat.

Also camera wise, the past week saw me give the medium and large format cameras a workout.

I know it's clichéd that film slows you down and it's more about the entire process, rather than firing off images, but it really is.

Finally, I had a couple of queries from two of my followers on Instagram, one asking for some tips to get into film and the other querying my process on pushing fomapan 400 to 1600.

The former was quite revealing, I dug out an email I had sent to someone else a couple of years ago. I was genuinely shocked how prices of cameras, film and assorted paraphernalia have increased, we are a sacred group film photographers.

The latter was a lovely exchange with a pro photographer, when we shared our workflows, whilst wildly different, the output had the same goal / objective.

THats me for another month, until next time, keep snapping.