On top of my little world in Sutton Bridge

Last week I was offered the chance of going to the top of the church in my village. An offer I couldn't refuse.

It's like urbexing with an invite.

The church itself; St Matthews was consecrated in 1843 and according to the internet it's the only flint stone church in Lincolnshire. Is it a that a wow thing?

I went armed with a couple of lenses; 24-70, 70-200 and a tripod (and obviously a camera). I used both lenses and just had a play.

It was windy at the top (excuse no.1) and I don't do landscapes (excuse no.2) but the shots that I got have come out quite well, in my opinion.

It wouldn't be right to not get shots of Sutton Bridge's namesake and it's other most famous landmark.

So it turns out that behind the cross is a door but what's behind the door? 

Back inside I captured a few more sights that only a few will ever see.

This thing is loud when it goes off!

I do hope that I can persuade the powers that be to get a shot up here of a wedding!!! 

And finally. 

As I said above and I'm sure I've said before in previous blogs; I'm no landscape photographer. 

It's both because I'm not really into landscapes and/or because of this I don't practice and try to get better at shooting them. But when faced with the almost 360 degree view I thought I would create a panorama of what 'makes' Sutton Bridge; One image containing both the bridge and the power station.

It took 9 shots in total. And 2 attempts because of the wind that resulted in a couple of shaky shots.

I used Lightroom 1st to merge the images but I couldn't get the horizon to be straight. The merging process via Lightroom resulted in an un-level horizon; the program created a hill to the left of the power station and there is no such thing as a hill in the fens.

So Photoshop was the answer but this caused a few headaches. 

It wouldn't merge all of the images seamlessly; probably the same problem that caused Lightroom to make a non existent hill. 

Photoshop just didn't understand!!!!

So I merged the 1st 6 images together, merged another 1 to those 6 afterwards and then finally added the final 2 images that resulted in a much better composite. But theres still a slight raised area which IM SURE is not there in reality.

Click on the image to expand.

Thank you Mark for the invite.

Fishers Shop, Sutton Bridge. How time has changed.

Towards the end of the summer of last year, thats right 2017 is now last year, I resisted a location that I 1st explored in 2014, heres the blog post; post;https://benchapmanphotos.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/exploring-close-to-home-in-sutton-bridge.html

Lloyd fancied a quick explore and I wondered how the place had changed almost 4 years later.

When I 1st visited, i was aware that it was once a shop only by the layout, shelves and price tags still visible. After that 1st visit, i tried to find out more information. Online i found a website about Sutton Bridge;  http://www.bridgewatch.org.uk, i emailed the people behind the site and the reply told me that the shop was Once 'Fishers', a small general store. I was also told that once it was hoped it could be renovated as a 'listed' building but the hopes were dashed by a lack of funding.

So three and a half years later, the site had been slightly improved; a broken fence, waste and overgrown vegetation and trees had somewhat been cleared. Windows had been removed around the building, though i do not know why?
I presumed someone was working on the building but once in side i could see no evidence of this.

Deterioration and dereliction continue to slowly consume the building. Rain continues to soak through the levels, one day to leave only the walls standing. But standing for how long?

Some of the same objects are still left in place, others are now lost.

Look into the darkness and find light.

If the old shop still stands in 4 years time i'll take another look. For now i'll continue to walk the dogs past and monitor what changes other make.

The 'elephant in the room' that is the Bridge Hotel continues to burden the village. I had a quick look in there too but this is the only photo.

Disrepair

If it was restored it would be an almighty home. I lost count of the bedrooms. The land and out buildings were vast.

The cost would be ginormous. Too much for average Joe.

Entrance was straight forward, the door was open.
It was easy going around the house as all belongings were gone and the majority of the house had been stripped to bare brick. Light shone in from all directions through holes and cracks in the walls. Sections of the house are not advisable to explore as the ceiling and floor look rotten. Even the last owner/developer has barred access to the worst room as I'm sure you would fall through immediately.

Take a look for yourself.

From the window of the grande house we could see another building in the distance. A 5 minute drive  landed us on the door step of this over grown farm building.

Look at how nature has reclaimed the land.

Thanks to Lloyd for the company.

Thanks for looking.

Tune in next time.

An old game of cricket before joining the RAF

A grim Sunday morning out in the middle of Norfolk, looking for a building in the middle of a woods that we don't know the location of.

Actually simple enough to find. Especially when Jack asks the 1st person we see.

If you ever want the perfect location for a stereotypical running through the woods and find a scary cabin horror film then this be it.

The Cricket Pavilion. 

Theres not much to see. The trees are much more photogenic than the ruin.

Although if like me you want to make something out of nothing and find beauty in everything then look a little closer.

These doorways are amazing, so much depth and mystery.

lose yourself

For a few years I've wanted to visit RAF Sculthorpe and see what was still there.

Opened approx 1943 it has been used by the RAF and later by the USAF during the cold war. Its now used for the occasional training exercise and the majority is an industrial estate.

Most importantly though; the buildings form the past life are still there. They're not exactly falling down either, granted they're smashed up inside but the structures will last forever or someone will demolish them, which ever comes 1st.

My constant search for the light in the dark.

He's looking at you.

We plan on going back very soon with my drone and spending a lot of time here as we only looked around a couple of the buildings and theres lots more to explore.

Always look whats behind the wall, fence, door. There's a whole world to see.