Blast from the past

This image was taken by the canal in Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire back in 1996.

The canal had a path which i used to walk on a regular basis and i came across many monuments of Stoke's great industrial past that had sadly started to decay with the passing of time. Like many towns across the UK, Stoke on Trent was hit by the steady decline in british industry that started in the late 1940's.

The canals had been the 19th century version of the motorway, keeping the industries in Stoke on Trent supplied with materials. Now they are part of the tourism network of the midlands with canal boats full of holiday makers rather than coal or other goods.

This image was taken on my old trusty Pentax Super A using Kodak Tmax 400 film during a rather cold January day. At the time I was influenced by the landscape work of John Tordai which has a similar moody documentary feel.