Bamville Cricket Club – Last Match of 2013

Traditionally Bamville Cricket Club celebrates their last match of the Season, by playing tow teams from within the Club, that way Bamville Club cannot lose. On Sunday they were blessed with bright sunshine for most of the day, and it was pleasantly warm, and Peter Carr, the Club Secretary invited me along, and he would be very pleased if I would take a Club Team Picture for that season, I duly came along together with my cameras, and I also chose to check out CamRanger again.

Because most members would be unlikely to have eaten lunch a splendid buffet was being laid out as I arrived. Rather than confining myself to only taking pictures of the match in progress, I took the opportunity to take informal pictures of many of those attending, both players and and friends and family.

I tried to make sure that I shot the very first ball being bowled, and from then on I was trying to anticipate when the bails were dislodged by keen bowling and was pleasantly surprised by how many of such shots came my way that day – I cannot be sure that the batsmen who succumbed were quite as thrilled as I was, to capture the moment of their downfall, but I was unashamedly thrilled when I managed to do so! I even longed for the classic shot of a stump flying, but that was not to be.

Taking photos of a cricket match is certainly a fantastic way to make a rod for my own back in terms of post processing as I have to be constantly trying to anticipate when a memorable picture is going to occur, so there will always be a mountain of shots where anticipated action fails to materialise, and one simply adds to the total of images one takes, and not only that you may miss something if you choose to keep deleting at the time of taking. For that reason I would recommend that hard drive manufacturers sponsor Cricket as a great way to fill large discs!

Thank you very much to Peter for inviting me, and a very big thank you for the hospitality and company, both were absolutely excellent, and an especial thank you to the lady who made some fantastic chocolate brownies.

Bamville Cricket 1st 2013 Match – Just a Few Highlights

For those not looking to see whether I managed to do you justice as a player, be you a player from either side, here are just a few shots that I felt gave the day some spice. If I have captured the moment you were clean-bowled and you do not wish to be reminded, then you may prefer not to be singled out in these highlights and prefer to be lost in the crowd of the images I was trying to capture the feel of the afternoon, you may consider going to the fuller, extended set of pages in the larger gallery.

Either way, thank you all for giving me some practice.

Bamville Cricket Club – Season Opener

This was the first match of the 2013 calendar, and it started in bright sunshine with Cumulus clouds that eventually dimmed the sun somewhat. Although I am not a follower of cricket, I need as much practice as I can get to capture the moments in the game, so here was an opportunity to be out in the warm sunshine, and keep my hand in. Believe it or not, I did do some fairly extensive culling to arrive at the enormous gallery of images that appear, but so those playing do not feel neglected, I have tried to cover as many as possible, and so that the collection does not look too samey, I kept on the move around the boundary.

Most shots were taken on the 100 - 400mm lens on the Canon EOS 7D, with a few fillers on the 24 - 105mm on the Canon EOS 5D MkII.

For those who do not have the stomach for looking through the larger gallery I have made a single-page gallery of the more notable images from my own viewpoint, some show my sense of humour rather than any merit from a cricketing perspective.

Harpenden ‘Classics on the Common’

I have not managed to visit the car and bike display on the Common at Harpenden in previous years. This year Peter Carr a local Product designer and I have met up to visit the 2012 ‘Classics on the Common’ – all the Common, bar the Cricket pitch, is completely overtaken by parked cars and bikes from all eras, with milling crowds of all ages and colour thronging the lines of vehicles. In the main the bikes are under the shade of trees,

Overhearing conversations of others, confirms to Peter and I that we were not alone in pointing to the types of vehicles we had once owned. When talking to some of the current owners we reflected on the costs of ownership from those periods in our lives – cars bought for a few pounds, enjoyed for months or years and often sold for more than we paid for them! I could not match Peter’s knowledge, experience or range of vehicles owned, yet I had owned a fair few in my time, though never anything exotic or powerful.

The sheer joy on everyone’s faces and in their chatter certainly was a far cry from the doom and gloom reported in the media. I know the hot sunshine was a contributor, but this was a crowd out to enjoy itself, and to consider purchasing in some instances. The spirit of the festival, because that is how it seemed pervaded the whole of Harpenden and the place was very much alive, and I am certain it will have given the cafés and restaurants a welcome boost, along with all the burger bars and ice cream vans on the common itself.

Peter and a group of his friends were due to meet for Dinner at a restaurant, so we parted after meeting up with his wife Sue, and I returned to my car for the journey home and to put my pictures into another gallery.

Foresters Ever Closer to Completion

Toureen Mangan people are more in evidence on the Jarvis development site again, now that soil is going down to add the finishing touches to paths and grassy areas to come. And inside the basement is lessening its grip as a storage area.

Upstairs many of the bathrooms and kitchens have been cleaned up, tiles are up on the walls and down on many of the floors, the staircases are looking far more finished and lighting is going in all the common shared areas, and outside lighting for the pathways are being completed.

My sense of humour baffled one of the men when I asked whether this was the Cameron apartment – he was fitting the number ten to the door with infinite precision! I had had to lean into many of the more finished rooms on my knees as much of the protective coverings were being removed and this led to an amusing encounter where one of the builders noticed I had removed my hard hat, since I was always insistent upon only shooting those properly attired I felt very sheepish, thanked him, and scurried back upstairs to retrieve it – I had needed it off to be able to take one of the shots, and was thus ‘improperly dressed’!

Second 2012 Visit to Foresters

It was a crisp and bright winter’s day and for a change there was not the biting wind that we have had recently, so it did not seem so cold, and as I entered the site there was much more of the intended Retail part of the development to be seen as the scaffolding was now removed completely, and this was an area that I had not covered on my last visit.

There was a lot of outside work being carried out, removing some of the now redundant pipework in one area, and round the back the garden area was being rotivated and receiving topsoil. One of the electricians spotted my capturing his work in the retail section and told me that the main board area was now far advanced, so I shot that and I spotted that doors were now being hung on the storage areas in the basement, and also the water pipework now had meters fitted.

I had no time to visit much of the interiors this visit, except the drywalling was going on in the future retail section, so this will take priority on my next visit.

Last 2011 Visit to Foresters

This is likely the last visit in 2011 to the Foresters Development in Harpenden, and there was occasional sunshine, but it had rained a good deal over the last few days, so it was extremely muddy.

I spent some time covering the connection being made to heavy duty three-phase electricity cabling immediately below the Site Office Portakabin. I was intrigued by the clever shear bolts used to ensure a sound electrical connection; the studs shear when the intended torque is reached. The individual phases are shrink-sealed with a semiconductor material to ensure there is no crosstalk between the individual phases, and a conducting shield is then wrapped around the joints and bonded at each end by jubilee clips, before being covered by an outer plastic cover that is itself sealed at each end. The cover has two ports into which a mastic is poured that encases the connections completely weather-sealing them.

Nearby another man is grinding several steel reinforcing rods that were protruding from the edges of the pit where the electrical work was being done.

Elsewhere I took shots that finally showed some of the buildings more clearly now that the scaffolding is down, and that interior finishing was going in, and the work that was nearing completion at the back of the site, on the curving pathway.

Jarvis Foresters Exteriors Beginning to Show

Today's visit, again on a sunny day, showed me what had changed in the interim since my last visit. The trench newly dug on my last visit was now being populated with pipework. Many more kitchen and bathroom fittings were going in, and the floor tiles which had been down earlier, were all covered by protective rubber mats.

Windows which had been barely visible behind a lattice work of scaffolding and some deteriorating plastic sheeting were now visible to the world, so the final look of the buildings is becoming more apparent with each visit.




Beyond and to the left of the Site Office Portakabin, the garages now have the roof trusses up, here is one of the few places on site where scaffolding is still visible; the majority being behind the buildings to allow the renderers to work.

Whereas on most previous visits I would move around the various buildings using the outside stairs and ladders, today I did most of walking within the building using concrete stairs, so despite the bitter wind, I traversed the site in comparative comfort.

The unseasonable weather this late autumn is certainly a far cry from the snow that was here this time last year, and is probably very welcome for those still working outside.

Foresters Losing the Scaffolding

It is good to see the brickwork more clearly and most of the blind gaps replaced by windows; the building show much more of their finished looks, and now that the render at the back has been completed, they were getting ahead with the same for the top halves of some of the buildings at the front.

On the left of the site a row of garages are nearing completion of the walls, and in the apartments many of the kitchen cabinets are going in and some of the bathroom fittings, elsewhere more of the plasterboarding is also going up, together with more of the wooden staircases.

Externally trenches are now being dug for some of the services, and the basement plumbing is even more apparent. It does not seem long before most areas will be weather-sealed, which will mean many of the workers will be inside carrying out their fitting whilst those outside will be concerned primarily with groundwork activity and very much at the mercy of our famous British Weather.

But just for today, we were treated very well indeed with sunshine the entire time I was on site.

Jarvis Foresters 7th October Visit

This day’s visit means the last of the high level view point from the Cerex crane at the Foresters Development by Jarvis Homes, as this coming Wednesday sees the dismantling and removal of the crane which has dominated the Harpenden skyline for  much of this year.

A gentle breeze was what the weather forecasters described, but it still felt slightly more than that when I was close to the cabin height to get the last images of the work from this viewpoint.

There forthcoming departure of the crane has meant considerable change to the far right end of the site, as the earlier wooden gates are open and the future road entrance is now visible. Another change is that a bit more of the scaffolding has been dismantled, giving a much clearer view of the finished result. A wooden staircase has gone in in one of the end cottages.

Although upon my arrival the sun was out, by the time I was concluding the skies were lowering and the clouds looked threatening and few drizzling spots of rain were falling.

Jarvis Foresters, Harpenden, 30th September

Blue skies, very warm – is it really the very end of September in the UK? I went round to the back of the site where work was going on with what I take will some garden area. Then I could see that an area on the far right which had largely been a storage area was now cleared to give access to the gates at that end. And, presumably to give space for the disassembly of the Cerex crane in a week’s time. The skyline of Harpenden will once again return to normal.

As I went around the interiors, tiles were going down now that the moisture levels had stabilised, and I saw that units for the kitchens were stacked in one room ready for installation and doors were having their hinges added, and a lot of the plastering was drying out. I did find one very strange sight – in one very small area that was being plastered the plasterer was equipped with stilts!

It seemed strange to me that it was the ground floor areas that were so much further ahead than the upper floors. It was not till later I noted that the scaffolding on the cattages at the end had been removed.

Jarvis – Foresters Development – September 23rd Visit

Arriving again with sunshine, I took a look around with slightly less pressure this time, as my car was beyond the reach of Traffic Wardens. Certainly many more areas of the roofs are now clad in tiles, but I mistakenly thought some of the scaffolding might have been coming down to reveal more of exterior of the various buildings. On the right of the site, the Retail area was one that I had not really covered completely on my last visit, so this was my priority.

Speaking to one of the tilers working on the circular section of this roof, he told me he was determined to avoid any step in the cone with his work, unlike the other roof close to the entrance done by a different company. It was good to hear voiced such a sense of pride and determination to do a good job!

This Retail section of the construction, is not as far ahead in terms of the roof as other areas on the site, so I was see ing far more carpentry as it slowly begins to take shape on all the steelwork. The three dormers are nearing completion from tilers and carpenters, but have yet to receive their windows. Down below, window frames are being assembled by their final destinations, still shrouded in their protective polythene sheeting.

Ridge tiles and corner tiles were being cemented, and valleys and dormers were being flashed with lead or zinc, so that the completed areas were becoming weather-resistant. Cabling was going in in many areas, and plastering was being done, and in the basement even fluorescent lighting and signage was in use. Hidden around the back of the site, curved walling was quietly progressing in what is the gloomiest part of the site.

The Cerex crane, which has been the most visible feature of this development, is due for disassembly soon, but has proved so useful it has already had its stay extended.

11th August Visit to Foresters, Harpenden

As I drove into Harpenden, it was spitting with rain, and I feared it might continue for my entire time on site, so it was not too surprising that Trevor should greet me with “Well, this time you have failed! This is the first time it hasn’t been sunny or at least good weather for your visits?” I think he was pleased that I could not continue with my comments that I often brought sunshine with me!

Jarvis are pressing ahead with the roofs currently and so I made the first task that of climbing the crane tower for some shots either at their level or from above. When later I was alongside the roofers, some plumbers were there too, and they told me to look at the crane hook as someone had high-jacked a flatulent gnome kidnapping it and and had banished it to the crane hook! Boys will be Boys; even when grown men!

The skeletal aluminium framework for partitioning is going in at the ground floor, and more of the underfloor heating piping, and down in the basement which is now a large storage area , plumbing, drainage, electrical cabling and even signage is going in. Looking beyond the skin of scaffolding the final shape is becoming ever more obvious.

23rd June 2011 Jarvis - Foresters Development

Arriving at the site in sunshine on a day when showers were forecast is not necessarily a good omen, but all I experienced were just a few isolated drops on just a couple of occasions, fortunately towards the end of my visit.

The main change was the addition of some of the wooden roof trusses going up to the left end of the site. Another point of note was how almost every spare space was filled with stacks of insulation panels! I learned this was to beat an imminent price rise!

To get a better idea of what was going on across the site, it was once again worth a higher viewpoint which meant climbing to the third platform of the crane, because the mesh of scaffolding precluded getting a good view of the progress of the brickwork from the ground.

In the basement, the array of pipes was further advanced, with bays beginning to be built, whilst outside the crane was helping move pallets of breeze blocks and preformed trusses around the site and the forklift truck was resiting some of the insulating panel stacks.

However, scaffolding planks were being transported by hand from where they had done their job at second floor level in one area and were now needed in the left hand corner of the site, just above ground level.

1st Site Visit since Op.

After a forced absence of more than a fortnight, I returned to the Jarvis Foresters site in Harpenden to see for myself how much the brickwork had progressed. Once again I had brought sunshine, at least that’s my story! Some on site reckon I only turn up when the weather’s good, but I’ll admit it has rarely rained on my visits. Even Steve Morcombe had been fairly lucky weatherwise when he generously took shots whilst I was away.

One surprise visitor to the site was a hedgehog that had fallen into the basement, but Steve was on hand to rescue it; there is not much nourishment to be found on a building site, especially in a basement! Although I did catch a glimpse of a crow finding some morsel deep within a skip, and flying off with it in its beak!

Arrays of pipes are appearing in the basement mainly but a few are reaching the higher levels, and it’ll not be long before steelwork for some of the roofing will be arriving on site.

Harpenden Site Update in my Absence

During my forced absence due to medical reasons, Steve Morcombe the Forklift driver on the Jarvis Foresters site very kindly offered to take some photos, so that there would not be a major break in my coverage of the progress on site.

I have tried to take as much care with the post processing as I would have lavished on my own photos. I trust he is happy with what I have done.

I am certainly grateful for the shots he has taken and am more than happy to give him credit for the work, I only wish I could have been there myself, but I was under anaesthetic at the time in Luton & Dunstable Hospital.

A Tower Crane Comes to Harpenden

Jarvis are working on a fair-sized site just behind the High Street at the north end of the town.

It is as you enter from Luton that you first glimpse the crane towering above the trees, but it is hard to grasp why it is necessary for such a tall crane. As you come closer the reason becomes apparent, the site is long and thin and to deliver concrete to where it is needed and avoid the concrete mixers from unnecessarily interfering with local traffic these mixer vehicles approach down a tiny alleyway to the edge of the site then feed a hopper which is then hoisted and swung to where it is needed. A lower crane cannot move in these confined spaces, but a taller one can because the angle of the arm is so steep.

The hopper has an elephant’s trunk to pour the concrete where it is needed, and an ingenious tilting skid allowing it to be filled directly in manageable doses directly from the mixer lorry. The mixer is therefore present for the entire time it takes for the hopper to be filled and emptied until the nixer’s entire content is exhausted, so it is a three-man operation: the driver, a signaller to let him know when to pour and when to stop whilst the third man folds the trunk and tips the hopper and swivels the chute. To minimise the amount of concrete spilt on site, there is a skip at the side to deal with the dregs after each delivery to the hopper.

I have tried to capture the elements of the process and to convey just how tall this crane is and what a splendid piece of kit it is with its smart cab, all its cables and counterbalances, and how the operator has a bird’s eye view of both ends of the hopper’s travel from mixer to where it is being poured over the mesh of steel reinforcing cages. It is a non-stop process, except for when the mixer has to drive out when its load is finally exhausted, and another has to take its place.

Work – I could stay and watch it all day! Well, photograph it!