Hinckley & Bosworth District
© All Rights Reserved, Paul Hands
Photographs for this area of Leicestershire in Hinckley and Bosworth have been made as part of this project Leicestershire Photographed but also began and still continues to this day, my first major photography project started in 2012. Hinckley, Burbage & Bosworth Photographed began as a visual documentary to both record creative scenes in my local area and also to serve as the perfect way for me to practice and explore the art of photography.
This is where my professional photographic journey began - Hinckley, Burbage & Bosworth Photographed.
All images below are available to purchase for web and print use, for stock imagery and also for wall art including prints and canvasses.
POA
Please complete the form below to make an enquiry for use.
The Flying Scotsman jigsaw puzzle.
The Flying Scotsman locomotive engine 60103 flew through Hinckley Railway Station in Leicestershire on Wednesday 13th December 2023 on its route from Cambridge to Worcester. This puzzle has been created for the long running visual documentary project Hinckley, Burbage & Bosworth Photographed, which has been ongoing since 2012 and serves to document people and place.
Over 10,000 photographs have been created for this project and some of the best work features as fine art products including this one, my favourite of them all..
The story behind creating this jigsaw puzzle…
After the success of the jigsaw made at Hinckley station with the Braunton 34046 when it stopped at Hinckley in 2020 during the pandemic. It is only just this week that I’ve sold the final remaining puzzle from stock and won’t be producing anymore of that design.
The day before I was tipped off by people that discovered The Flying Scotsman was to come through Hinckley. I was supposed to be at a client meeting for some new business but managed to postpone the meeting until after I’d got the photograph of the famous steam locomotive.
After dropping my daughter at school in the morning, I prepared my kit, left the studio and drove to sit in the car park behind the station as I was early. I scrolled through my timeline and noticed a post suggesting TFS had made an unexpectedly quick stop at Humberstone Gate in Leicester and was going to be 10 minutes ahead of schedule. I panicked and just grabbed my camera bag and ran to the platform, while trying to get my camera out safely. I managed it in time and then once I was in position on the platform, I immediately did a lighting test and opted for the fastest shutter speed I could work with.
There was some good banter across the tracks with other photographers as well and everyone was genuinely excited about getting their photographs and videos.
Quite a bit of time passed and there was no sign of her, which surprised me because of that post I’d seen on Facebook. One man on the same platform checked his app and confirmed the location of TFS. Then an Intercity whizzed through but I caught it and used that as a practice to determine my camera settings.
A toot on an old horn came bellowing out from in the distance and we all knew!
Then she appeared from around the bend approaching Hinckley station with giant plumes of steam pouring from her nose and she was coming at some speed, I could tell. I was ready, picked my focus point and then started designing the composition, checked all corners and edges and knew I was on target as The Flying Scotsman flew in to my trap.
As soon as she left I had to pack up and run with my kit to get to my meeting but as soon as I’d finished there, I went straight back to my studio to do the post production on the photographs. I was excited to see what I’d made and now, here you have my very latest jigsaw puzzle production The Flying Scotsman.
I’m now in the design stages, regarding the packaging and expect the complete puzzle to be off the press and ready for collection mid to end of January.
Text from Wikipedia:
LNER Class A3 4472 Flying Scotsman is a 4-6-2 "Pacific" steam locomotive built in 1923 for the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) at Doncaster Works to a design of Nigel Gresley. It was employed on long-distance express passenger trains on the East Coast Main Line by LNER and its successors, British Railways' Eastern and North Eastern Regions, notably on The Flying Scotsman service between London King's Cross and Edinburgh Waverley after which it was named.
4472 became a flagship locomotive for the LNER, representing the company twice at the British Empire Exhibition and in 1928, hauled the inaugural non-stop Flying Scotsman service. It set two world records for steam traction, becoming the first locomotive to reach the officially authenticated speed of 100 miles per hour (161 km/h) on 30 November 1934,[1] and setting the longest non-stop run of 422 miles (679 km) on 8 August 1989 while in Australia.
Retired from British Railways in 1963 after covering 2.08 million miles, Flying Scotsman earned considerable fame in preservation under the ownership of, successively, Alan Pegler, William McAlpine, Tony Marchington, and, since 2004, the National Railway Museum. As well as hauling enthusiast specials in the United Kingdom, the locomotive toured extensively in the United States and Canada from 1969 until 1972, and Australia in 1988 and 1989. Flying Scotsman has been described as the world's most famous steam locomotive.[2][3][4]
A one off Christmas special jigsaw puzzle design with 1,000 pieces.
I created this photograph in the winter of 2022 on a Burbage Winter Evening, which is from the work I’ve made on the long running visual documentary project, Hinckley, Burbage & Bosworth Photographed.
Over the past 11 years I’ve been looking at various aspects of our community with my lens and recording moments, events, the changing landscape and also creating timeless artwork. From my collection, this is the best contemporary Christmas themed photograph, that compositionally offers an elegant scene of the village Christmas tree in the winter snow.
This puzzle has a strong difficulty level but it’s not impossible.
It’s definitely one that will bring you great satisfaction and pleasure at completing A Burbage Winter Evening.
A contemporary photographic piece of artwork as a jigsaw puzzle of Burbage in Leicestershire!
Yes it’s a challenge and…
Who wants an easy puzzle?
A Burbage Winter Evening 1,000 piece puzzles = £25 each.
These are unique gifts that you won’t get anywhere else and they’re going to be a limited edition.
I no longer trade on the market but I do have a small shop at the front of my studio in Burbage where you can collect your puzzles with prior arrangement.
UK P&P is available at £5
Fine Art Photographic 1,000 Piece Jigsaw Puzzles
About this puzzle:
This photograph was created in 2014 during one of the town’s famous vintage car shows. At the time of making the photograph, It was simply created to document what was happening in Hinckley but now I’m further along as an artist, I feel that this picture makes the perfect composition for a jigsaw puzzle.
I love this one because it has so many great features relative to Hinckley and also holds a high level of community and human spirit. There’s plenty of colours to help a puzzler out when piecing it together, the clock in the top left corner that has also famously never worked properly and has never been trusted but also the spire for St. Mary’s Church and the whole scene takes place right in the heart of Hinckley in the marketplace.
Puzzle Difficulty Rating: 5
Jigsaw puzzle difficulty ratings range from 1-10 with 10 being the most difficult.
Puzzle Quality:
Our jigsaws are printed on 120gsm silk paper. The print has a subtle lustre seen on the most popular brands. It is then bonded to a 1.5mm luxury puzzle board and cut using traditional die cutting techniques.
Our finished 1000 piece jigsaw measures 69cm x 48cm and is supplied in a 33cm x 20cm box with the image featuring in full on the lid.
The entire product is ethically and wholly British made by Great British Jigsaws and from completely recyclable materials in production and packaging.
Delivery:
UK Delivery will be within 7 days.
UK P&P = £5
Local Personal Delivery to Hinckley & Bosworth District ONLY = £3
International Tracked (Worldwide) P&P = £30
Pick up from my studio in Burbage is free.
Fine Art Photographic 500 & 1,000 piece Jigsaw Puzzle.
About this puzzle:
Aylesbrook Cottage is simply stunning and if you had to describe a chocolate box cottage, this would be it.
This is in Market Bosworth and is my first jigsaw puzzle for the village. I’d been searching for a puzzle in Market Bosworth since I started making them back in the Spring of 2020.
It’s situated on Station Road, opposite the village fire station.
Market Bosworth is a small market town in the Hinckley & Bosworth District of Leicestershire and features in the documentary project Leicestershire Photographed. Interactive artwork has been created from this work and includes this 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzle of Aylesbrook Cottage.
Puzzle Difficulty Rating: 7
Jigsaw puzzle difficulty ratings range from 1-10 with 10 being the most difficult.
Puzzle Quality:
Our jigsaws are printed on 120gsm silk paper. The print has a subtle lustre seen on the most popular brands. It is then bonded to a 1.5mm luxury puzzle board and cut using traditional die cutting techniques.
Our finished 1000 piece jigsaw measures 69cm x 48cm and is supplied in a 33cm x 20cm box with the image featuring in full on the lid.
The entire product is ethically and wholly British made by Great British Jigsaws and from completely recyclable materials in production and packaging.
Delivery:
UK Delivery will be within 7 days.
UK P&P = £5
Local Personal Delivery to Hinckley & Bosworth District ONLY = £3
International Tracked (Worldwide) P&P = £30
Pick up from my studio in Burbage is free.
1,000 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle
About this puzzle:
During the year of 2020, you might remember a global coronavirus pandemic happening, well during the first ever lockdown, the United Kingdom celebrated the 75th anniversary of VE Day since the ending of World War Two.
Families across the country came to their front gardens to have a socially distanced celebration of community and freedom all while being locked up in our own homes.
This photograph was created as part of a documentary about how the national lockdown and the virus itself was affecting the local residents of Hinckley & Burbage.
The photograph is of a street scene with residents partying outside their homes in Gopsall Road, Hinckley. This is wonderful and shows the high level of community spirit that can be found in the worst of scenarios and you could even be forgiven for not realising there was a global coronavirus pandemic going on when looking at this fantastic slice of local history.
Puzzle Difficulty Rating: 8
Jigsaw puzzle difficulty ratings range from 1-10 with 10 being the most difficult.
Puzzle Quality:
Our jigsaws are printed on 120gsm silk paper. The print has a subtle lustre seen on the most popular brands. It is then bonded to a 1.5mm luxury puzzle board and cut using traditional die cutting techniques.
Our finished 1000 piece jigsaw measures 69cm x 48cm and is supplied in a 33cm x 20cm box with the image featuring in full on the lid.
The entire product is ethically and wholly British made by Great British Jigsaws and from completely recyclable materials in production and packaging.
Delivery:
UK Delivery will be within 7 days.
UK P&P = £5
Local Personal Delivery to Hinckley & Bosworth District ONLY = £3
International Tracked (Worldwide) P&P = £30
Pick up from my studio in Burbage is free.
Please complete this form to make an enquiry for the use of my artwork…