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Wild Goose & Riddon


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Superb book!

 

Sorry no I cannot sell mine.

 

We had lunch at the Gidleigh Park Hotel - in Dartmoor - once (where a lot of Chris Chapman prints are hung. He lives nearby) I asked one of the staff where his prints were and was informed they were all hung in the bedrooms BUT... "would I like to look at his portfolios instead?"

 

It turned out that the lady I had asked was his wife! She nipped out and by the end of our meal the portfolios were ready for me to read in the lounge. Superb. Even better experience than the book.

 

He (Chris Chapman) was a close personal friend of another fine Devon photographer, James Ravilious who is now (sadly) deceased.

 

I will do some delving and try and find where a copy is available for you if possible.

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Yes Trevor, it's an interesting book, with a particular aesthetic. Unfortunately the copy I saw had completely come away from its hardbackcover, so I didn't buy it.

 

One mystery - in the acnowledgements he thanks Olympus cameras, but I have heard said that he used a Leica - any further information? I ask because the prints of his images are exquisitely sharp and the tonality is rich - it looks like he used a slow film and some very sharp lenses.

 

The subject matter is great and handled very well.

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In his VHS Video "Secrets of the Mendip Hills" I feel sure I saw him using a Nikon (FM2 or FE2) a lot. But you are right that he used Olympus at one time.

 

It was his friend James Ravilious (North Devon, Beaford Archive) who always used an M3 with uncoated pre-war Elmar lens and light yellow filter with Tri-X and custom modified hood and shoe mounted VF. Ravilious also use large format occasionally.

 

Chris Chapman favoured HP5 and manual focus SLRs. (I e-mailed him to thank his wife for her kindness in letting me see his portfolios at Gidleigh Park and he replied in some detail about what he & James Ravilious favoured in film and processing/printing.)

 

Trouble is I cannot check at the moment because the family have control of the TV/VHS/DVD right now and the VHS tape is tucked away in a box somewhere with our holiday stuff from when we went to the Mendips last.

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