Macfilos Weekender from Richard Alton
‘I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.’ Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
I share Churchill’s affection for pigs – they make me smile. When I took this photo I was planning a range of humorous greeting cards. I’d found my subject and an attractive setting, at a ‘rare breeds’ farm near Birmingham. Now all I needed was good light and some action.
On my first visit — in early September — the light was ideal in the middle of the afternoon. But Constance the Tamworth Pig wasn’t in the mood for posing.
On another visit, persistence and good luck finally paid off. After an hour of fruitless pig watching, I went for a mug of tea. Then, as I left the farm café, I heard pigs squealing. Following the noise, I realised it was feeding time. What excited the pigs was the sound of the metal feeding bucket as it was put down and the handle rattled. Each time she heard it, Constance got on her hind legs to see if it was her turn to be fed. I managed a total of six shots. From memory, I think I had a collapsible 90mm lens (from the 1950s) on my Leica M3.
I never launched my greeting card range, but Borealis Press used this image on a card and fridge magnet, so my efforts weren’t in vain.
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This photo brought tears to my eyes. Literally. I don’t know what came over me. My first reaction was, Constance, if it were up to me, I’d take care of you and make sure you die of old age.
You’re not alone, Dragan, feeling protective towards a pig. Twenty or so years ago, a pair of Tamworth pigs made the news headlines in the UK. Bound for the abattoir, they escaped and made a dash for it across country. For a few days, the newspapers reported sightings. Then, when the pigs were finally captured, money was raised to look after them at a rare breeds farm in Kent.
Great photo, Richard. Churchill had an up and down relationship with my country, but he was a great man for the quotable quotes. I particularly like his quote about democracy and alternatives. George Orwell had some good names for the pigs in Animal Farm such as Old Major and Napoleon, but he kept the name Winston for 1984.
Constance is certainly a lively example of a pig and you have captured her very well with her name plate in front. I have that collapsible 90mm f4 Elmar and I have used it on an M3, but I have never been able to get much good out of it with apertures wider than f8. I did get a nice shot about 5 or 6 years ago of a swan family with very young cygnets at about f8.
Have a great Christmas and New Year.
William
Thank you, William. It’s a long time since I read any George Orwell, but I can’t imagine Constance becoming a tyrant. I think I must have a ‘sweet’ 90mm Elmar, although it doesn’t get used much nowadays. It suffers from flare more than difficulty with focusing. I’m embarrassed to say that the gorgeous hard leather case that it came in swung my decision to buy the lens. Have a relaxing Christmas and best wishes for 2018.