It’s hard to believe that I took this photo nearly a year ago – a late December day on the shore of Menai Strait on Anglesey. There’s a view of the Great Orme across the water. Everywhere so still. Not a cloud in the sky. And sunshine warm enough to sit in.
I don’t know who the man on the bench is. He was reading a book quite surrounded by this view. There’s something of an optical illusion about it – the dark cap above the seat back (echoing the nearby black rocks in the water), his foot below the seat, yet the corporeal lack of him in between head and toe, where the sunlight seems to pass unimpeded through the bench slats. Curiouser and curiouser, said Alice…
copyright 2017 Tish Farrell
Tish Farrell 
That foot looks quite disconnected from the body, very strange…
Really nice bench sitting in the middle of nowhere.
Yes, a bench in the middle of nowhere can definitely seem like a gift 🙂
Cute commentary on the subject and I agree, it is curiouser and curiouser. We spent a night right before New Year’s in a small town near Fishguard, I think was the name…some Golden Lion Inn or something. And it was superb there; we were sad we only got to spend a night. Sigh.
Hi there, Bill. Nice to talk. Wales does have its magic places. This does not of course apply to its old slate quarries and slate workers’ towns which are hugely lugubrious, though have impact in other ways.
Yes, nice to talk…you’re lucky to have such places in your proximity and good for you, for going to them! I’ve been reliving our time in Scotland and soon will do the same with England, that surprisingly nice January we were there, very peaceful. Enjoy the day my friend! Bill
To me, the old slate quarries had their magic in the past, the old quarry ruins wove their magic on me, but not the enormous slag heaps
Well I can see what you mean, Sue, especially if one has a camera to hand. But what was in my mind was driving through Betheseda (Llanberis) on a dank December day and wondering what it was like for people who live there now, beside that mega hole in the landscape.
Oh, completely….Dinorwic, I think- a humongous scar on the landscape
Sad tales of the workers there too in the good old owner-exploiter days.
Yes, valid point Tish…
Bit of an optical illusion caused by the thckness of the slats and the sharp angle of the sun. i can see part of his shadow, I think, so it’s not just a head with a foot, hey? 🙂
We’ll never know 🙂
Looks like a gorgeous winter’s day. I noticed his hat and coat. 😀
🙂
Yes – perhaps he wasn’t fully there…wonderful photo!
That is a very interesting point 🙂
Beautiful photo and yes, quite a mystery 🙂
Thanks, Sam 🙂
I just wrapped my dressing gown around me a bit tighter. 🙂 🙂 Shivery, Tish!
Are you back?
No. I was just really tired after a 5am start and a bit of a fraught day with Leo suffering from a migraine. A nice lazy beachside day today and home tomorrow eve xx
A very skinny man with one foot?
Aw. You guessed!
It’s a beautifully composed photo, and very engaging – and that was without even noticing his lack of a body! I guess my mind just automatically filled it in.
Alison
Many thanks, Alison. It’s interesting the way we perceive or appraise scenes, isn’t it.
Lovely photo perfect in B/W. The seatback is having a venetian blind effect. Letting the light through but keeping the view hidden.
Venetian blind effect. That’s an excellent way of putting it. Thanks, Draco, for the kind words 🙂
What a great capture, Tish.
🙂
A very atmospheric photo. Nostalgic and beautiful.
Many thanks.
that is really cool how his body seems to disappear in the lines of the bench – nice capture
Great pic. Wonderful area. Love Anglesy, be it Beaumaris or Holyhead, I have done a lot of it in recent years. Planning to walk the coastal path too this year with my dog in search of pics, peace and…blog fodder.
Happy walking and gathering 🙂
Hell yeah…