Here are a couple of samples that won’t be in the book, mostly because they just aren’t good enough, but also because I don’t want it to be Flynn-heavy. The publisher who first expressed interest convinced me to widen the scope of film choices to include more films from recent times, something I reluctantly agreed to even though seriously cutting into the samples from classic films.
Often, film locations will be discovered, only to pose difficulties in positioning oneself in the precise spot from which the movie’s cameraman filmed the scene (David can attest to this, having joined me on a search I was doing to set up a shot for a scene from “Charge of the Light Brigade”). Also, although only official stills are being used for the book, there are occasions when no stills were taken for a particular scene and I use a screen grab to locate and set up a “Now” shot for my own interest. This is the case in the two samples shown here. I may not be publishing them, but they are fun for me to share with fellow fans on the blog.
The wide sample is a composite of screen grabs and my location photos. I will often put a composite together to show a wider view of the location that the panning movie camera didn’t capture in one framing (see the duel with Friar Tuck in my “Then & Now” page). The two stitched screen grabs show Flynn on horseback in both shots, and required me to shoot from two positions to replicate the panorama. The results are less than satisfactory (there are condominiums and overgrown trees now in the way), but I think we Flynn fans can appreciate it more than would the ordinary film fan.
Also included is a sample from another scene from the same basic location, a better lining- up of my “Now” shot but less interesting because the scene doesn’t highlight Flynn.
Enjoy!
— Robert
I love what you are doing. Keep doing it!
Thanks, twinarchers. There’s much more in the bag and much more to come.
That was a wonderful day Robert, getting a taste of what it is like to explore these locations and what a mental challenge it is to line the present up with the past. Our location that day was in the center of a housing development plopped down onto the hilly area where Boots was shot, and other films, too. It’s hard to put into words the fascination of it – elevations change but some things don’t, like large rocks, or mountain ranges. Robert has an uncany eye for lining up what was with what is. And there is a fair amount of climbing up and down the terrain. I kept looking at the dirt under my feet, the surrounding hills and views, and paid attention to the feel off the sun on my face, the breezes, because this is what the cast and crew felt being there, too. Away from the houses you could be back in time, and seeing what the characters in the film saw. That moment of recognition is a gift when you realise you are standing in the right place! And a few steps ahead, you would be in the shot itself. Thanks, Robert …
Thank you, David. It was a truly enjoyable outing with you along. We should do it again someday. At some point I’ll post what I was able to cobble together from our day at Iverson trying to line up the shot from “CotLB.”
Fantastic, Robert! Thanks for sharing! So the book is about to be out?
No, Inga. Sorry to say it is still in line behind The Chronology (and several others). But thanks for your interest.
Great work, Robert!