Using various film cameras in my early self-taught sailing days I was using both slide film and color negative of various types. All are produced here after long storage and then digital scanning with an Epson V600 Perfection. There is a mix of boats here. I am indebted to Prof. Herb Bodman who invited me to crew aboard “Whim”, my very first off-shore sail from Camden, Maine to Deltaville, Va (Chesapeake Bay). We did compass and a speed log of a cork float tied to a 120 foot string thrown overboard using a stop watch to see how fast we went the 120 feet. A #2 pencil and a paper chart does the rest. The vintage boat pictured here was Prof. Herb’s own mentor sailing a 2-masted top-sail schooner having met in Marion, Mass.
'Whim' on a beat in Buzzard's Bay
You may wonder, who shot this? I did (film) climbing to crosstrees with camera
Prof. Herb doing breakfast
This film section documents my first ocean boat also christened ‘Hejira’. She got me off of inland lakes and harbor sailing when I was ‘going to sailing school’ using a 700 pound Lightning sloop rigged sailboat to learn and be coached by good friends on High Rock Lake where I sailed and raced over 5 years. This first ‘Hejira’ I had for 2 1/2 years using her to learn open ocean navigation and get experience. Longest sail was Wrightsville around the Capes Lookout and Hatteras direct to Block Island , Newport, and Martha’s Vineyard. a return trip was interrupted by 3 days, 2 nights of squalls struggling to round down Cape Hatteras (going south, a very bad idea) and finally enter Ocracoke for shelter and rest.
Diamond Shoals light tower rounding north on the rhumb line to Block Island
Wow! Shooting into the sun and perfectly capturing this intensely backlit dance of chaotic waves at sunrise ...from a moving boat ...without the aid of modern electronics ...at the end of a 24-hour watch ...ain't easy! --Jim Welborn--
SSW of Bald Head, coming home.
Cape Lookout looking west. "The Hook"
Trimming the leech.
Sun sight, Jackie with stopwatch.
Companions
Hejira (#1) after 625 mile sail to Block Is, RI.
No rest.
getting it done, going north
Luff trim
Sign: "you can't have too much fun".
'Dare' rendevous outside of Morehead City