Azalea 2

And here is a close-up of the same azalea.

Azalea

I quite like this photo of this azalea that my youngest son (6 year old) gave me at Christmas. I like the lighting and composition, however (there always has to be a 'however'!!!), I don't like the focusing, its not very good really.

Coffee Bean

Well it's not really a coffee bean, but I thought it looked a bit like one. It's actually the end of a glasses case. I was experimenting with lighting and thought this one came out ok.

Ivy

Went for a walk around Cockington today. I felt like I had been cooped up inside for days, and it was refreshing to get out in the fresh air! This one is a close up of some ivy leaves (obviously!), in the background is (a fuzzy) Cockington Court.

Cob House

Did some more experimenting with black and white effects, using the channel mixer to get the desired look. This is a traditional cob house at Cockington organic garden.

River Dart

I took this pic of the river Dart at Totnes on my phone camera (Samsung D600E), hence the quality not being all that good. A few minutes after I took the photo and just as I was leaving, the sun came out and the sky became a really nice blue colour, but I didn't have time to stop and take another photo. Typical!

Chard

Well not a lot happened today, this time of year seems a bit stagnant, waiting for spring to happen, everything still dormant, just waiting. This is a photo of Swiss Chard (I think!?) growing in Cockington organic garden. It was really nice to see this growing in winter, it was a sort of reminder that spring isn't that far away.

Fairy Cakes

Did some baking with Ethan tonight. We made a pineapple upside down cake an some chocolate topped pineapple fairy cakes. The photo is of the fairy cakes.

Tide

Went for a walk on the beach this afternoon. It was nice to see such clear skies as we have had such stormy weather recently. The tide was really far out, and there was thankfully no sign of any pollution from the ship that has wrecked a few miles down the coast (The Napoli). This picture is taken looking down Paignton beach towards Torquay.

Pizza

The weather today was quite atrocious. Windy, rainy and cold, hence I didn't leave the house at all! This is a photo of what I made for dinner before it went in the oven, a sweetcorn and pineapple pizza with mozzarella cheese. Not the most fantastic of photos, but one lives and learns! However, the finished pizza went down very well with everyone!

Windswept

I love silhouettes, especially trees. This tree is on Dartmoor and I took it last October. I often see trees that I think would make a good picture, usually when I am either driving along or haven't got my camera with me! I would like to take more pictures of trees and might pick a tree and take a picture of it in all seasons.

Henge

Went out for a meal this evening with my parents and some of their friends. It turned out to be a really nice eventing, nice food, good company and we had a laugh! Didn't get to take any pictures though! I took this photo of Stonehenge last September, on the way up to London to have my eye operation. It was very busy and disappointing that there was no access to the stones themselves. It was an interesting experience though and I'm glad we went.

Coffee Beans

Today I found out a bit more about my course that is starting in September. It sounds fantastic! I am really looking forward to having a new tutor (though I will miss the old one). I think that she will bring a fresh approach to the course and it all sounds very interesting. The photo of the coffee beans was taken at the last minute because I couldn't think of anything else to take! Think it turned out okish though.

Bess

This is one of our dogs, Bess, posing nicely for a close-up! I need to practice focusing my shots a bit better, as I took a load of photos today and my focusing was pretty rubbish in most of them!

Stover

This picture is taken near to Stover Lake, and I have been experimenting with black and white!

Pumpkin

I found out today that due to yet more thoughtless incompetence from the WEA, my course is not running until September. To say that I am p****d off is an understatement! I took some more pictures in the light tent. This is a pumpkin that I really need to use up!

Vase

The weather was particularly bad today so there was no chance of going out anywhere to take photos. So James set up his light tent. This was my first time using one and I took some photos of various (and strange!) things. This one of some dried flowers in a vase turned out ok.

Reflection

Managed to get a little further than the settee today to take pictures! This is taken in Oldway Gardens. I tried to take photos of the squirrels we were feeding but they were much too fast! Wish I'd been quick enough to take a picture of the one that ran up James' leg!

Lazy

That's me today, lazy, so lazy that I can't even be bothered to get up to take today's picture! So I just stayed here on the settee and took a photo of the fireplace. Pretty uninspired really!

Harbour

Went for an evening stroll round Paignton Harbour. Took lots of photos of which there were only a couple of half decent ones. Must go for quality rather than quantity in future! It is still so dark at the moment, even though we are a few weeks past the Winter Solstice, roll on the lighter evenings!

Beach

Went to the beach today, it was good to make the most of the dry spell as it has been raining and really stormy for several days. The tide was right out and the sea was calm, got there just as the light was fading. This picture is of my 6 year old on the windy beach.

Candle

I have decided that actually trying to take a picture every day may be a bit unrealistic for me. So I have made a new rule for myself... to post a photo for every day, even if I haven't taken it on that actual day, though I will try to take it on the day if I can. This one, of a glass candle holder, I took a few days ago.

City

Went to Moorfields eye hospital in London today for my final post-operation check-up, which went really well. We had a few hours to wait before our train home, so we went exploring. I had planned on taking loads of photos but as it was quite late and dark by the time we left the hospital, options were rather limited. This photo is of Paddington Basin, an interesting re-developed part of London. Not sure about the glaring of some of the lights, but don't know how to avoid that. Got home late and tired, glad my eyes are fixed and we don't have to do that (500 mile round) trek to Moorfields again.

Mask

My daughter made this clay mask at school. I have been wanting to take a photo of it for a while. Not sure if I have the lighting, exposure etc right. I am doing it all by guesswork at the moment, and by what I think looks ok, which is possibly not what others think looks ok. I'm not sure I really want anyone else to see my pics because I think they are crap, but letting others see them and criticise them is a good way to learn. Sigh.

Self

Well, I didn't want to do a self portrait because I don't much like looking at myself. So that is why I decided to do one!(?) I think I will try and do a self portrait every month or so, partly because it will be interesting to view my weight loss (note the optimistic tone here!), and partly because I am wanting to learn different photographic techniques and editing effects. So here is my first effort.

Veg

I decided to do something creative with veg! But came up with this instead! I took so long arranging and snapping away at the veg that dinner was served pretty late (again). I really must practice taking clearer photos, maybe a tripod would help. So many of my photos are blurry. The veg later evolved into a (very nice) vegetable and cheese bake!

Breakdown

I never drive home through the lanes... except tonight when I fancied a change. And of course, it was then that the car decided to break down. I was merrily driving along when 'clunk' and what I thought was smoke started billowing out of the engine (turned out to be steam). Had to phone James, and my dad to give him and Ethan lift out to me. It was a cool, crisp, clear night (not raining at least!), the moon was just past full and we heard an owl which was lovely. Waited a while for AA and got towed home. I think it was a bit of an adventure for Ethan (who was more concerned that it was past his usual bed time!). The pic is of the car by a street light after it had been towed home.

Tea Total

Well I know it should be tee total, but it's a play on words! Today is the first day in, well a very long time, that I haven't had an alcoholic drink. I thought it would be difficult, but it wasn't, and I feel really pleased about it! I was planning on having February as an alcohol-free month, but I think that now is as good a time as any to start. My new years resolution is to become healthier, and drinking less alcohol is a good start, and will help me loose weight too. This pic is the hot chocolate I had at bed time, usually it would have been an alcoholic drink.

Communication (or lack of)

Spent much of the day on the 'phone trying to sort out details of my counselling course. Seems there is a lack of communication between tutors and the WEA, hence leaving us students pretty confused about when and if the diploma is starting. I think I had more clarity about it all by the end of the day.

Roast

Well, cooked my first ever roast pork joint today. It turned out quite well. Started cooking it too late in the day so we didn't eat until really late! Need to be a bit more organised on that front!

2007

We had a very quiet New Years eve. New Years Day started off dull and raining and a bit depressing. Later in the afternoon the weather cleared and we went for a walk on the beach between the rain showers. It really cleared the cobwebs! This pic is of the (almost) full moon over the sea.