Jim and his son Ashley

Today, I drove to the Stancombe Beech farm shop near Bisley this morning to stock up with vegetables and eggs as I'm making a big wintry veg soup tonight.  When I walked into the shop, which is attached to the yard beside the barns, I was cheerily greeted by Sally and Maria who were working there.

I had brought my new camera set to an aperture-priority automatic mode and whilst chatting to Sally she asked if I would take a picture of her and her niece Maria.  I have been taking pictures of their family and the farm life for a couple of years now, so I was delighted to try out the camera. they came to stand beside the racks of vegetables and I took two very quick snaps of them.  Then Sally's brother Ashley arrived and I persuaded him to join his sister and daughter and took another picture. and said I would email them later today.

I finished picking the vegetables and apples and Ashley offered me a very spicy olive to eat which was very fiery but warming.  I loved it.  As we chatted together by the counter, I asked what the banging noise was coming from the other side of the doorway.  He took me through the door to meet his father Jim who was busy assembling the new wooden holders for the honey combs which go into their beehives.  

I have been interested to learn about their honey business which Jim started when he was a young man. You may remember my blip earlier this year when I spent the day with Jim's other son, Keith as he went around Gloucestershire looking after a few of their very many hives. Here is my blip from that Bee day with Keith, with a link to my Flickr gallery. You can see lots of the work involved in caring for the hive in those pictures, whilst here you can see the new wooden frame for the honey comb on the bench beside Jim in this picture.

Since I'd already taken pictures of the Jim's other children and a grandchild I suggested I take one of him with Ashley, which I really like.  I didn't realise that Keith was in the barn behind us and I could have got him in the picture too.  Another time.  y which has some more bee pictures from then.


Maria has now asked me to take some pictures of her riding on her horses, which I am really looking forward to in a couple of weekends time.  I am very lucky to have volunteers for such interesting subjects.