Magic Box

Magic Box
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Shop selling jokes and toys, near St James' Park stadium.

Tyne Tees

Tyne Tees
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

I think this is the building that's currently being transformed into the Star and Shadow, an alternative cinema in Newcastle.

Cowpen

Cowpen
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Cross processed medium format Agfa RSXII, taken on a Lubitel 166 - thanks to brendadada for the film and thanks to detailista for the loan of the Lubitel...

SHNRT

SHNRT
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

They're like SWAT but for rubbish.

Dragon Riding a Harley

Dragon Riding a Harley
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

It makes sense that a scaly lizard beast would prefer a Harley to a Vespa.

Grantham Road

Grantham Road
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Grantham Road in Heaton, where there's a lot of bad graffiti. By bad, I mean that it looks like it's been done by drunken eight year olds (which probably isn't far off the truth.)

Give Blood

Give Blood
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Excuse time: too busy recently to come up with anything more interesting than a description on these shots, plus my espion reserve is getting dangerously low :(

Bridges

Bridges
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Count the Newcastle landmarks - the Baltic art gallery is the castle like structure in shadow at the left; immediately to the right of it are the silvery bulges of the Sage music venue; the steeper arch is the Millennium Bridge, framing the Tyne Bridge behind it.

Quayside

Quayside
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

The Quayside has changed a great deal in the 6 years or so I've been in Newcastle - the further along the river you get away from the Tyne Bridge, towards Ouseburn, the more it's like it was then; delapidated, with signs of new growth in places.

Clone

Clone
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Stencil graffiti near the bus station in Durham - there are a series of these around that area, all with slight variations, some numbered. More interesting than random tagging.

Wheel Clamps

Wheel Clamps
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

The sign says 'Release Fee 40GBP', I think (espion lo-res - hard to make out). That indicates how old the sign is - 40GBP is probably what it costs to park for an hour now, so don't ask what the current clamping release fee is...

Mooring

Mooring
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

On the Newcastle bank of the Quayside.

Yellow Lines

Yellow Lines
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

I like how this one turned out. Sometimes the shots that seem least likely to be worth keeping turn out to be the most interesting.

Horse on a Spring

Horse on a Spring
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

A children's playground in Shieldfield.

The Charles Grey

The Charles Grey
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

This used to be called FM's, I think, and it used to be a bit seedy. It's a good place for a pub though, right near Grey's Monument.

Tyne Street

Tyne Street
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

The ingeniously named Tyne Street, which runs along side the river.

Midnight Express

Midnight Express
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

"Well it's not a train. It's a prison word for escape. But it doesn't stop around here."

A fun fair in Hyde Park, London - December 2005. Holga CFN on expired Kodak Vericolor medium format film (of which I still have boxes and boxes to shoot...)

Fortunately the fact that it's expired (about 15 years old) doesn't seem to have affected the saturation much.

Stop

Stop
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

The security barriers at the entrance to the main car park, University of Newcastle.

Framework

Framework
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

This week (so far) has been a little difficult in terms of updating Espion Daily, in that over the past few weeks I've been doing some quick updating during my lunchtime and, for various reasons, I haven't had the chance recently. I'm trying not to slip back into the old 'say what you see' posts.

Building

Building
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Construction on the old cinema site at Manors - an extension of the University of Northumbria campus.

Tower Block

Tower Block
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Shieldfield, Newcastle. There are plenty of interesting opportunities for photos round here that I hope to be able to explore more fully soon, with good weather.

Emergency Exit

Emergency Exit
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

I've been involved in a collaborative photo project for a while now, with the idea being that you shoot a roll of film and then post it to someone in another city so they can double expose it (or vice versa, of course.) The only problem is that I always seem to struggle to do my end in a timely manner, and have a backlog of films to shoot. Not having enough time isn't a good enough excuse - it's more a wax / wane thing. Some days I could shoot a roll of 36 exposures in a few hours, and be happy that the shots would be pretty good, not just fired off carelessly; other days I might struggle to do two or three. It's related to writer's block, I think - sometimes the inspiration's there, sometimes not.

Legs

Legs
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Near Grantham Road, Heaton.

I've noticed that, for some reason, when loaded in Internet Explorer, the text is a font size larger than it should be. I have checked the CSS and can't see any errors, although I'm no expert and I didn't go over it with a fine tooth comb. It loads perfectly in Firefox, though, so I'm blaming Microsoft.

Awakened from Sleep

Awakened from Sleep
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Swept from the clouds
We are among gardens under the sea.
Flaming white windows
From which nightingales flaunt in the sun.

- Philip Lamantia

Cross processed Kodak Elite Chrome, taken Buckinghamshire, Dec 2005.

Old Odeon

Old Odeon
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

The former site of Newcastle's Odeon cinema on Pilgrim Street.

Number four on my list of things I'd seen a few days ago was sunlight on the old abandoned Odeon cinema - it's the only one I tried to take a photo of, though, for various reasons.

Item five on that list was the Porsche Boxsters. This is getting ridiculous in Newcastle; the taxi drivers will be using them next.

BMW 1 Series

BMW 1 Series
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

A car being offered as a prize by the casino inside The Gate in Newcastle. Vegas it ain't.

The registration plate was 'WINNA' - which I find slightly ironic when that actually conflicts with a casino's business plan, i.e. to get as many losers in as possible.

People Watching in The Gate

People Watching in The Gate
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

I can't remember why, exactly, but something inspired me to take more of these 'bird's eye view' type shots - probably someone on Flickr. Or the craze for tilt-shift photos, which gives a similar although stranger distorted perspective.

Empty Street

Empty Street
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Well, I figured that if I didn't post boring shots now and again, everyone would get used to the riveting stuff I usually upload. ;)

Inside

Inside
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

Inside The Gate is a great place to people watch, especially from the second floor. Because it's a typical glass and steel building, there's a good view outside too, meaning it's possible to get little vignettes of meetings, disagreements and all sorts else.

Outside

Outside
Originally uploaded by teotwawki.

The Gate in Newcastle hasn't been around for very long, maybe a year or so now (or longer - I lose track).

Anyway, it seems that every time I go there these days, usually to see a movie in the Odeon, I have to dodge someone staggering out of the door about to throw up. This happened on my last two visits, and although I successfully dodged the wild-eyed retchers in question, I'm not sure how long my luck's going to hold.