Winding Gear

The layers of industrial history have largely disappeared in Wales and there are surprisingly few parks or museums to show off a heritage rooted in hard labour. The relic of the old iron and tinplate works in Ystradgynlais is one, though all that remains is two walls, a chimney, a few items of machinery. It takes a wide-angle lens to do justice to the site so I have concentrated on details.

Ironworks

Using a twin lens reflex camera allows you to get below the subject and look upwards. The Yashica 124G was one of the first I owned, and while it has a very good lens the winder sounds more like a coffee grinder than a camera. It was not a pleasure to use so I quickly sold it on and started using Rollei cameras instead.