Joining in with *Movies in May*: a photography challenge

Morning!

As I've learned from taking part in the Summertime Photography Scavenger Hunt [hosted each year by Rinda at Gallo Organico] I'm quite partial to documenting  my months with a prompt in mind. And so  - with a few weeks to wait for the scavenger hunt to return for summer 2015 I latched on to another to get myself and my new camera warmed up nicely!

I first heard about this photo-prompt list for May from my friend [and yours no doubt, she's generous with her companionship like that!] Sian at From High in the Sky.

Sian's part of the Get it Scrapped team and their 'Movies in May' challenge seemed to be a fun twist on the photo-challenge idea: 

I think one of the initial ideas was to play along on Instagram with a photo-a-day ... but I'm neither on Instagram, nor particularly good at daily projects so I'm taking part here, on my blog, and in the 'scavenger hunt' style as mentioned by Sian in her in introductory post here.
 

And I'm planning to just see which photo opportunities I can find to match the movie titles whenever and wherever I find them, starting today with those I found over the recent May Day Bank Holiday weekend and what better way to begin ...

'The Great Escape':

 

Nothing says 'the great escape from the every day' quite like a motorway over-run with caravans and
RVs on a Bank Holiday weekend!!

 But to find one actually called 'Escape' ... well, that was a photo-hunter's trophy!

'Rear Window':

Remember my Hound of the Baskervilles moment that I told you about last week [the one where I needed the loo on the moors?] well ... this was the view [or lack thereof] through the car's rear window: 

That road sign reads 'Unsuitable for motor vehicles' ... and, seeing as how it's hardly readable through the fog ... it's a good job we weren't planning to head - blindly - in that direction!

 

Later that same day ... as we descended out of the mists we ended up in Helmsley where we visited the allotments which run along a public footpath as they're always good for a photo opportunity. [Last year, to mark the Tour de France starting in Yorkshire they had Sir Bradley Wiggins and a yellow bike loitering there]. So I captured this beauty to fit with ...

 

'Pretty Woman':

Just because your head's a terracotta plant pot doesn't mean you can't be pretty!

 

Later in the weekend we visited Fountains Abbey which is where my remaining photos were found.
Both the days prior to and after that day were rainy, grey and dismal ... and yet the Monday itself was glorious with no rain and clear skies, hence ...

 

'Perfect Blue':

And, as dogs were only allowed on the property if they were on leads I could even go ...

 

'Into the Woods':

One of the main reasons we chose to visit the Abbey and the Studley Royal water gardens around it was to see their Folly! installations; creative public art installations housed inside their 18th Century follies.

 

Here we are inside Irene Brown's 'Hall of Mirrors' ...

 

'Now you See Me':

Honestly .. I'm in there somewhere ... over on the right there. Can you find me?

OK then how about spotting Pan, Hecate and Neptune inside Simon Costin's 'The Curious Tale of the Professor and the Temple'?

'The Three Amigos':

Meanwhile up on the hill top walk we came across this giant 'nest' ... Gary McCann's 'Lost Property':

Which, on closer inspection - in amongst the twigs and branches - was made from all kinds of actual lost property! Which is where I got to cross another movie from the list ...

'Toy Story':

Crikey ... it's heartbreaking isn't it? Like Jessie's story in Toy Story 2?

And finally for today ... if you're contemplating what kind of bird would possibly require such a vast nest ... then here's your answer! Here's James coming face-to-feathered-underside with Gary McCann's 'Scavenger' ...

'Close Encounters':

 

If you like public art [and I do, so very very much] then the Folly! installations are well worth the visit! And they run until November 29th so there's time to get your camera ready and your walking shoes on. Fountains Abbey is also a UNESCO world heritage site ... so there's lots more to enjoy while you're there.

As for the Get it Scrapped #GISMoviesInMay challenge itself I can't seem to find out much more about it  - there's not a lot about it on their Facebook page  - but I did find this thread on their forum.

I'm pretty sure if you want to take part you can just run with the idea yourself. That's what I'm doing!

I've crossed off 9 of the 40 movies so far and am still keeping an eagle-eye out for moments that match the remaining titles. I doubt I'll try to find them all ... but I'll enjoy the hunt along the way!

See you soon.

Julie :-)

Cleanliness is next to artyness OR the things you come across in a bathroom when you've got a camera with you.

You know what it's like ... you're out and about when you find yourself needing to use 'the facilities' so you take yourself off to the said facilities where, upon entering, you're suddenly whipping out your camera to photograph something surprising you've found there.

What do you mean you've never done such a thing?

Then I guess you haven't been to the National Centre for Craft & Design [NCCD in Sleaford] lately. Last week I opened up the door to their public loos to find this gazing back at me:

And naturally I reached into my bag for my camera!

Here's a better look at the description of The Toilet Project by Meekyoung Shin:

And, before you ask ... yes, I did wash my hands.

And yes, I did do so by using the soap sculpture.

I wet my hands first  ... then gave the top of its head a rub before lathering up!

It reminded me of ancient weather-worn Greek and Roman statues battered by the elements.

By the way, this isn't the only Toilet Project Meekyoung Shin has created, there apparently are/have been several more dotted around the UK and I'd love to hear from you if you've also been startled by a soap sculpture while doing your ablutions ...

For the record ... there's also one in the men's toilets at the NCCD [I sent James in as a roving reporter] and he duly reported back that the version in there was rather less eroded, less worn, less used, than the one I'd photographed in the ladies.

I'd rather not think too hard about the implications of this fact.

Let's all just hope that the men have been feeling more reserved about using a work of art to clean their hands and have been using the regular soap dispenser instead ...

Julie :-)