5 frames with a Minolta SRT303 and Ilford FP4 – By Allysse Riordan

By Allysse Riordan

It was a bright late spring day and I had the day off from work.

The latest lockdown restrictions had eased and I was slowly getting reacquainted with my bicycle. So I decided to pedal from my home to my local arboretum. Google Maps told me it was 20 miles away from my front door though I knew better than to trust it. I am in a habit of diverting to all the smallest roads I can find and Google is not great for that. Instead, I packed a paper map, plenty of water, some snacks, and my Minolta SRT303 paired with a MD Rokkor 24 to 50mm zoom lens. I loaded a roll of Ilford FP4, set the camera ISO to 200, and went off.

I was apprehensive of the ride. Although I had been back to commuting with my bicycle for a few months, I wasn’t sure how my body would cope with 20 to 30 miles under the sun and with many more hills than my commute. I set forth, knowing that worse come to the worse, my partner could come to my rescue with her car. She was already due to provide me with a lift back to our house.

I cycled familiar roads, following small blue road signs easily missed when driving by. My legs settled into the rhythm of the road and I relaxed, my body remembering how strong it used to be, how strong it could be again. I left known lanes for new ones. Leaves danced gently in the breeze creating an ever shifting pattern of light on the ground. I stopped often to take a breath, to take in the landscape, and to snap a few photographs.

The muscles in my legs tensed and burned as I climbed the steepest hill I had encountered since 2019. The road carried on and so did I, wishing I had panniers attached to my rear rack and camping gear with me. I could not recall why I had been incapable of cycling during the various lockdowns, my body unable to move faster than the speed of walking. In this moment, all I wanted was to lose myself in the network of English lanes and disappear into an everlasting English spring filled with trees in leaf, cow parsley in the grass verges, and sweat dripping down my back.

Unlike my bicycle, my camera had seen a lot of use during the various lockdowns. It had been a safety net to keep my mind occupied and my hands busy. I had grown so accustomed to it, that every gesture was intimately known. The old adage of ‘film slows you down’ was no longer true with my Minolta SRT303, the MD Rokkor 24 to 50mm lens, and Ilford FP4 rated at 200. At this point, they had transformed into an extension of my hands and eyes. As soon as a scene was pictured in my mind, it took mere seconds for me to stop the bike, swing the camera around my chest, put it to my eye, adjust the settings without looking at them, and press the shutter knowing I had captured what I envisioned.

The landscape transformed once more in a familiar layout of roads, driven repeatedly as restrictions from the first lockdown eased. Back then my partner and I use to take refuge within the trees of the arboretum on a weekly basis, our mind and soul seeking the soft company of trees and the quiet of birds. I pedalled on, my partner passing me in her car as I neared the arboretum. She waved and I sped up, attempting to catch her up even though I knew it was pointless.

We met up in the car park, locked my bicycle into the car, and stepped onto the known paths of the arboretum. We had been many times and yet each visit felt like a new scenery awaited us. From afar, the dense thicket of trees appeared uniform but as soon as we dove under their shelter, details emerged we had never seen. New buds had bloomed into flowers and new insects crawled on our legs as we laid on the grass eating our lunch.

The scent of wild garlic wafted by, beckoning us to a side path we had never explored. It led out of the arboretum. We climbed over a fence, walking on in the countryside. Clouds of dust followed our steps in the dried undergrowth until we stopped, surrounded by a carpet of wild garlic extending as far as we could see in either direction. We dropped down and began our harvest. I tried creating an image or two but the thick roof of the trees kept the light at bay. I left the camera on my back and focused on looking, smelling, touching, remembering another way. Our bounty collected, we returned to the boundary of the arboretum, detouring by the café for an ice-cream before the drive home.

We followed quiet roads, our speed so low, it was easy to pretend we were cycling. The horizon caught up with the sun, the world ablaze in a vivid orange glow. We stopped at a pub for a drink in the last of the sun, unwilling for the day to end. Eventually we had to go back to the car, roads widening as we neared our house at the edge of the city. Still, it was not all bad, wild garlic perfumed the car, a promise of woodland in our diner to come. And on my lap, my cherished Minolta SRT303 filled with latent images of golden memories collected on Ilford FP4.

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About The Author

By Allysse Riordan
Field Recordist. Sound Artist. Photographer. Writer. Microadventurer. Usually found traipsing in the countryside if not inside creating something from material collected while outside.
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Comments

Bill Thoo on 5 frames with a Minolta SRT303 and Ilford FP4 – By Allysse Riordan

Comment posted: 14/06/2022

Hi Allysse, this was gorgeously written. I could see, hear, feel and smell every moment. The images are also lovely. Bill
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Allysse Riordan replied:

Comment posted: 14/06/2022

Thanks a lot Bill. I'm glad you enjoyed the article and felt immersed in it.

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Fred on 5 frames with a Minolta SRT303 and Ilford FP4 – By Allysse Riordan

Comment posted: 14/06/2022

ALLYSSE: Nice narrative and photos!!
Makes me want to go out and do the same as you!
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Allysse Riordan replied:

Comment posted: 14/06/2022

Thanks Fred :) I whole heartedly recommend a cycle ride with a camera. I've had quite a few since and it's always a joy.

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Peter Roberts on 5 frames with a Minolta SRT303 and Ilford FP4 – By Allysse Riordan

Comment posted: 14/06/2022

A bicycle and a Minolta SRT, what more could you ask for?
A 303 was my first quality camera way back in the seventies and while I have a 101b and a 100x I've yet to source a decent replacement. As you've implied it's intuitive to use and your images prove that.
Wonderful heartfelt narrative as well.
Thank you for posting.
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Allysse Riordan replied:

Comment posted: 14/06/2022

Thanks Peter :) The Minolta SRT are lovely cameras. I hope you find a decent replacement for yours. I think I got lucky finding mine. I look for a back-up every now and again but they seem rarer than other SRT models.

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Wes Hall on 5 frames with a Minolta SRT303 and Ilford FP4 – By Allysse Riordan

Comment posted: 15/06/2022

The Rhododendron (arboreaum?) shot has come out lovely Allysse, cycle and camera time does wonders for the soul doesn't it? Wasn't Westonbirt by any chance?
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Allysse Riordan replied:

Comment posted: 15/06/2022

Thanks. I'm really happy with how that shot came out too. I forgot to take notes on that image so not sure of the details of the plant... Cycle and camera times are always the best. I'm glad I found my way back to both. I've had many a ride with a camera since and it's always good. It was Westonbirt. I still find myself there quite often. I love this place.

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Shawn Low on 5 frames with a Minolta SRT303 and Ilford FP4 – By Allysse Riordan

Comment posted: 15/06/2022

Such a lovely piece, filled with literary visual imagery. Such a delight to read. I have a Minolta SR505 coming and can't wait to use it :)
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Allysse Riordan replied:

Comment posted: 15/06/2022

Thanks Shawn. I'm glad you enjoyed the read. Exciting about the new camera! I love the Minolta SR(T) range. They are such simple and intuitive cameras to use. I hope you enjoy yours.

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Demao Song on 5 frames with a Minolta SRT303 and Ilford FP4 – By Allysse Riordan

Comment posted: 17/06/2022

Beautiful photos and articles. I enjoy it as much as you do.
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Allysse Riordan replied:

Comment posted: 17/06/2022

Thank you :)

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Peter Barker on 5 frames with a Minolta SRT303 and Ilford FP4 – By Allysse Riordan

Comment posted: 17/06/2022

Oxford Bike Works if I am not mistaken? Same as mine. Nice bikes aren't they? Thanks for the article and inspiration. Peter
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Allysse Riordan replied:

Comment posted: 17/06/2022

Correct about the bike. Well spotted. It is a fantastic bike. My best description of it is a sofa tank. It feels indestructible but is as comfortable as a sofa. Glad to read the article inspired you. I hope you get to have a cycle with a camera soon.

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