by James Balston | Apr 14, 2017 | Gardens, Heritage, Landscapes
I thought I’d planned things quite well, having two shoots in Sussex on the same day. I’d booked out much of the day to shoot a home in Burgess Hill, and was then booked to shoot a restaurant in Crawley, late afternoon and evening. The home, however was... 
by James Balston | Oct 18, 2016 | Architecture, Churches, Heritage, Travel
I try to use my National Trust membership much as one uses motorway services. On a long drive across the country, they’re wonderful places to stop, stretch your legs, and have a cup of tea. Ok, so you can’t buy petrol, but then the price of petrol at... 
by James Balston | Jan 22, 2016 | Artists' Homes, Decoration, Heritage
No. 575 Wandsworth Road is pretty unremarkable from the outside. Part of a modest Georgian terrace, it sits in rather scruffy surroundings, in the no man’s land between Vauxhall and Battersea. To walk through its front door however, is to stumble upon an... 
by James Balston | Jan 1, 2013 | Antiques, Heritage, Travel
2012 was a memorable year for so many reasons, the Olympics, Paralympics and Queen’s Jubilee rating high among them. Underpinning much of the year however, was that perennially British theme, the weather. In particular the seemingly incessant rain. With classic... 
by James Balston | Sep 29, 2011 | Antiques, Architecture, Bedrooms, Gardens, Heritage
Hardwick Hall’s famous epithet comes as no surprise on first catching sight of the house, perched high on its hilltop. Standing before it, within the ornate garden walls, its grandeur took my breath away. As an avid visitor of country houses, and a National...