Steppin' Out (Season 1, Ep. 12)

Welcome to December's Photo Challenge. I think you're gonna like what I've got in store for you. I know I say it every month, but the 25+ photos below are staggeringly good. Give yourselves a pat on the back. Thank you so much. Right, let's crack on.

How great is it to have Alyson back? When this little feature kicked off back in January if it hadn't been for Alyson we'd never have made it to February, let alone the rest of the year.

"This is on a sloped street in the town with loads of cafes & restaurants. In the Summer they use the stepped areas for tables. Hands up, it's not my photo, but I've not ventured out yet, so scoured  my phone for favourite pictures. Hope I'm excused?" Of course you are, Alyson! Welcome home.

Our good friend Rol next. He tells me this is very near to where he was born: "Steps down the side of Deer Hill Reservoir in Marsden. I used to walk up Deer Hill every day. Rain or shine." 

Here's one I recognise. You will too if you remember that Hovis ad from the 1970s: "A famous hillside in Dorset." (Gold Hill, Shaftesbury.) Cheers, Rol. You didn't fancy cycling it, then?

Rob got a lot of love last month for his surfers' shot. I think the accolades will come pouring in for this too: "A spiral staircase in an abobdoned building I found; I liked the way nature has taken over."

Adam steps up next: "Hi John, I took this in the Summer in Hurley, not far from Henley on Thames. A ramshackle bridge over the river." I love ramshackle, Adam; like this blog.

K has a lovely trio for us this month: "This one is an unassuming set of steps up to a village high street and a church opposite. Bland by day, but at night bathed in the glow of some festive lighting."

"This is an escalator in the Eagle Shopping Centre, Derby c.1994. Quite what I was doing taken grainy photos of escalators in the mid 90s is anybody's guess." If it's any consolation, K, I've been doing precisely that for nearly all my adult life.

"My third one is the family cat (as opposed to The Family Cat; that would be awhile other proposition) staring down from her at Casa K. Eyes that say 'I dare you to go for that toy - I will get there forty and I will draw first blood.'' Probably." 

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Bendy Ben goes next: "This is the nearest I get! It's pretty much the only photo I have with a ladder in it. Taken in 1995, that's nearly 30 years of leaderless shooting!" I love everything about this photograph, Ben. Not least our little Super Hero. And the ladder, of course.

Time for a newbie - Cooper Senior is an inveterate traveller. I can see that from his Twitter feed. He sent me this from Brisbane. Perfect, Coops.

The Swede has pulled out all the stops this month and has really, ahem, stepped up: "Southwold Lighthouse is 133 years old and stands slightly inland, rising 102ft above the rooftops of the Suffolk coastal town. There are 113 steps between street level and the lantern - I know this because I climbed them one damp Spring morning a few years back. It's not an adventure for the faint hearted, but the panorama from the top completely justified the nerve-wracking ascent, even on such an overcast day. Here's the view from the entrance looking up through the centre of the building, with the palpitation-inducing stairs winding around the wall." 

Thank you, TS. I've been to Southwold but have never been up these steps. I must rectify that.

Charity Chic is going up in the world. "My first entry this month is a bird's eye view of the escalators in Glasgow's Princes Square." Brilliant, CC. If a little vertigo inducing. 

"Entry #2 - tenament on Queen's Drive opposite Queen's Park." Thank you, CC. Your photos really do document modern day Glasgow.

I'm calling this next one from David a near miss: "I took this last week on a walk pulling in the magical Bennerley Viaduct, part of which is seen in the background. There are stairs to the left leading up to the less impressive nearby railway footbridge." Thank you, David. You tease us with your out of picture steps!

C, over to you: "Hi John - I couldn't find anything remotely current for this month's challenge I'm afraid but a delve back through some proper old-fashioned printed (!) photos turned up this one from a visit to Tintagel Castle over 20 years ago. After walking up, and then back down these steep steps, all 140 of them on a windy Summer's day that pint and a bowl of chips back at the pub certainly felt well-deserved. C x." I bet it did! Thank you, C.

Martin is a real sport: he sent me this: "Brutal, in the best sense. (It's not really the picture I wanted but my phone ran out of charge when I got to the better staircase!)

So I said: ''Go back!'' And, to his eternal credit, he did just that. "Eleventh hour I know, but here are two angles of the other brutal staircase." Now that's what I call dedication! Thank you so much, Martin. And the sun came out for your return visit!

Riggsby next. And who thought we'd get two lighthouses in the same month? Not me, that's for sure. "Hi John, I took this at the Old Point Loma Lighthouse, San Diego bay."

"And a stairway of pebbles at Torrey Pines Beach." Thank you, Richard. As always.

And finally. Yes, it's that time in proceedings where it falls to me to wrap things up and to thank you all for your valued contributions. We've amassed one hell of a gallery this year and curating it has been an absolute joy. If you fancy doing it all again next year I'll gladly keep it running.

Anyhoo, without further ado - my first one is taken in Rock City and is the staircase leading up to the main hall. 

The mask dates this one. It's the Blue Monkey pub in Canning Circus, Nottingham.

This rather impressive fire escape backs on to James' flat in Manchester's Northern Quarter. It's got that Physical Graffiti vibe all over it.

A recent visit to QMC - Queen's Medical Centre - and I saw this.

The next couple were taken in the Silver Lake District of Los Angeles. They are, of course, the 'Music Box Steps' - scene of Laurel & Hardy's 1932 classic film. They were a bugger to find and, no, I didn't bring my piano.

Well, that's about it. It just remains for me to say that I'll be compiling a 'Best Of' from this past year and will probably post them this side of the New Year. Thank you again and God speed.

Splish-Splash!

What started out as a very low key feature back in January with just one or two (literally) loosely themed snaps has now grown arms and legs and turned into something of a monster. In a good way, I hasten to add. Not all monsters were capes, or something like that; you know what I mean. Just one more instalment until our end of year finale. But before we get ahead of ourselves - and in true Vision On style - let's take a look at this month's gallery. The brief this month was 'A splash of colour'. 

In time honoured tradition Rol is up first - "Hi John, I used to love photographing sunsets for my old blog, Sunset Over Slawit. Here are some of my favourites. Hope they fit this month's criteria. All the best, Rol." Thank you, Rol. Why did you call time on your old blog?

Another newbie, Jo-Shreeve from Redruth. Much of her photography is based around the amazing beaches in the south west. But this week she's on her travels: "Swapped a cold & wet Cornwall for a little bit of heat! Sunshine, sangria and the beach!" A great shot, Jo. Enjoy Spain!

My friend David seemingly divides his time these days between Nottingham and London. His photos this month come with two/three word descriptors:

Queens Drive, Nottingham NG2

Clerkenwell EC1

Bridlesmith Gate NG1

"Nottingham Light Night 2023." Now an annual artistic fixture all over the city. Cheers, David. Yes, I took a few at Light Night; always something there that catches my eye.

Another newbie - Rob As his Twitter/'X' bio says - he came for the poliics and stayed for the photos. "It was a really cold March day at Saunton Sands in North Devon a few years back and I'd gone to the beach to help supervise a group of kids including my son. I was trying to get a few surfer photos and the camera was on maximum zoom when these three came out the sea with a bright red surfboard. I was just waiting and hoping for them to turn to their left so I could get a proper shot of the board and then there it was, right over the wet sand getting a lovely reflection too." I must admit to messaging Rob and almost pleading with him to let me use this image. I absolutely love it. Thank you, Rob. Come back next month, won't you?

James next. "Hi Dad, a couple for you this month: The Sultan Abdul Majid Mosque in Byblos, whose blue dome stands out against the sand and terracotta structures that surround it."

"The Beit Toureef Guesthouse in Gemayze, Beirut. Not that far from the 2020 port explosion, it sits amongst buildings that show signs of that devastating blast."

"As a bonus, the blue water of the Barnafoss waterfalls in Iceland - vivid against a backdrop of earth and volcanic rock." Stunning, James. Thank you x.

The lovely C over at Sun Dried Sparrows: "Hi John Years ago I painted this stone cat in bright swirling blues and greens, as you do. She's all faded and chipped now but on a drab day like today I thought she could fulfil this month's photo challenge. Just as I took the pic, something darted into the shot (top left) and provided an unexpected extra splash of colour. A photo-bombing robin! C x."  

"Oh, and sending this one too - these Japanese Maple leaves are such a vivid pinky red right now and seeing the colour and shapes contrasted with the turquoise-green of my shed put me in mind of an exotic fabric design." Fantastic, C! The cat is, quite literally, a work of art.

Paul Sutton King a purveyor of picture postcards. He posted this on a gloomy Weneday morning - "So it’s back to Burano." Unsure exactly where that was, Paul, I hurredly checked my Atlas: Venice! Could quite easily be a picture postcard. If it's not already, that is.

Khayem next from one of the best music blogs Dubhed: "Someone has taken on the job of painting bollards, BT boxes and the like in central Gloucester. A splash of colour indeed! This one particularly cheered me on an otherwise grey and grotty morning." Quite a few flowers this month, K. I love yours!

The ever dependent Stevie next from Charity Chic Music who says: "Who needs green on red when you can have red on green!" Not me, Stevie!

Ben said he was struggling to shoehorn a phonebook in this month but kindly supplied these two contrasting images. Thanks, Ben. (It's a brave man who gets his camera out in a locker room!)

Old friend of the blog, Adam, next from Bagging Area: "This electricity substation, one of those modern green fibreglass boxes not a lovely 1930s brick, or even a 60s concrete one, has had its drab appearance and surroundings enlivened, unofficially, by a local graffiti artist. On the Bridgewater Canal in Broadheath near Altrincham, it makes me smile every time I walk past."

I know what you mean - cheers, Adam.

The Swede (TS to his friends) at Unthought of, Though, Somehow. "The artist Vinnie Nylon has exhibited his work all over the world and currently he has a fabulous show, Future Primitive, running in the little Suffolk market town I call home. In the weeks leading up to its opening, Vinnie rocked up in person to create a handful of site specific pieces around the town. This one is my favourite." Thanks, TS. Would love to se the rest of 'em sometime.

 

I wouldn't want to play poker against Riggsby. He texted me a couple of days ago and said he was finding this month's challenge, ahem, "challenging" and that he didn't have any photos for me. "Not hitting the expected splash" he opined; fast forward 48 hours and I was deluged! Here's six of the best:

"A splash of colour? This is a nearby neighbourhood where we often go for walks."

"This is going back over a decade, taken on a Guinness ruled night in Dublin."

"Say hello to Zigguy Fawkes! A 'flash' of unexpected colour." This is surely an album cover in the making, Richard!

"A building, likely a bank, in the British Concession in Shanghai displaying the Chinese flags.'' (pic c/o Jingyi - Richard's wife).

"Room for a typewriter with a splash of colour?" Always!

Lastly, with but a three word strap line: "Shanghai, pre-pandemic." Thank you Richard (and Jingyi), I really do look forward to your transatlantic contributions each month.

And so, once again, a couple of mine to bring proceedings to a clattering halt.

This is a pub in Worthing, East Sussex. I forget its name(!) 

Regulars will probably recognise this very famous building in Dingle, Liverpool - the former 'hood of Richard Starkey. 

When did you last see a postman wearing long trousers? I'd say you've got more chance of finding the Ark of the Covenant.

I'll leave you with this rather lovely autumnal wreath I saw on my travels this afternoon. Set against a heavily glossed black door I thought it could sneak its way into this month's collection.

And what a collection it is. Once again, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, you've really come up trumps...again! Thank you, all. I'll post December's challenge in the comments section below in the next few days.