Day 61 - Wednesday 30 June 2010

Alien. This is one that went all wrong! It was supposed to be a macro shot of my optical mouse which has a red LED that lights up whenever the mouse is moved. I don't know what the closest focusing distance is on the V1, but it was obviously not close enough for what I was trying to do!

Strangely though... I quite like the result as it has an alien feel to it...

...Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar 7-28 f2.8-4, 1/2 @ f4, ISO 200

Day 60 - Tuesday 29 June 2010

Life is... This a very colourful mural on the wall of The Art Organisation's (TAO) Nottingham branch building on Station Street. TAO is concerned with the regeneration of derelict property and the support of the arts and education in art for the benefit of the community.

They create opportunity for artists to access affordable space, from which they can teach workshops and classes, prepare new artwork, exhibit, perform, sing and play - a platform for creative expression, and understanding, for the benefit of the wider community...

Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar 7-28 f2.8-4, 1/640 @ f8, ISO 200

Day 59 - Monday 28 June 2010

Shadows. Bright sunshine brings bold shadows. This intricate pattern is the result of the sun shining through a steel bench on Nottingham railway station. This image also forms one of the panels in a tryptych for the forum competition on Photoportal...

Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar 7-28 f2.8-4, 1/400 @ f8, ISO 200

Day 58 - Sunday 27 June 2010

Aftermath. England 1 Germany 4! What a shambles... England takes an early bath in the world cup. This picture shows the alcohol consumed by my son and I whilst yelling obsenities at the TV screen...

...Sony alpha200, Sigma 18-200 f3.5-6.3, 1/15 @ f6.3, ISO 400

To compensate for no picture yesterday...

Unguarded moment. My lovely wife, Debs, was complaining I don't take any pictures of her. I do though but she rarely likes them so here's one I took whilst she was preparing Sunday dinner this afternoon. She likes this one!

...Sony alpha200, Sigma 18-200 f3.5-6.3, 1/80 @ f6.3, ISO 400

Day 57 - Saturday 26 June 2010

Yet another pictureless day! This was the last day and the morning was too busy handing in kit and cleaning accomodation blocks for picture taking. Then a lot of hanging around waiting for the final parade and 'Op Bombburst' the mad dash home.

Will have to take 2 today to compensate!

Day 56 - Friday 25 June 2010

Microlite. This, and other microlites, constantly overflying the training area were dubbed the "Taliban airforce"...

Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar 7-28 f2.8-4, 1/2000 @ f8

Day 55 - Thursday 24 June 2010

Another walk onto the training area, this time to a copse next to "Taliban tunnel" for this sunset shot. I had sen the potential earlier whilst tabbing past here in full kit with a man-pack radio strapped to my back whilst patrolling back to the harbour area following a section attack...

...Sony alpha200, Sigma 18-200 f3.5-6.3, 1/15 @ f7.1, ISO 800

...and again to compensate for no picture yesterday, this one is right at the edge of the training area next to the Liverpool to Southport railway line...

...Sony alpha200, Sigma 18-200 f3.5-6.3, 1/250 @ f7.1, ISO 800

Day 54 - Wednesday 23 June 2010

Another missed shot day! No excuse for it really, I could have found something to take but I was so fatigued by this point my creative juices had dried up! Another 2 pictures to post tomorrow then...

Day 53 - Tuesday 22 June 2010

Reminded by my mate Sharron that I hadn't taken my pic I grabbed this late evening sky from the parade square between the mess and the accomodation block...

Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar 7-28 f2.8-4, 1/250 @ f7.1

Day 52 - Monday 21 June 2010

Formby Point. To make up for the no card error, I returned to Formby Point and was rewarded with this early sunset shot as soon as I got there which was lucky because a few minutes later the sun dropped below the cloud bank effectively ending all the photo opportunities...

...Sony alpha200, Sigma 18-200 f3.5-6.3, 1/640 @ f7.1, ISO 100

Day 51 - Sunday 20 June 2010

I went on another evening stroll onto the training area and shot some more pictures of the old wrecked military vehicles... this time with the advantage of having reviewed the previous shoot and knowing what I wanted to do as a result...

Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar 7-28 f2.8-4, 1/320 @ f8, ISO 400

...and to compensate for yesterday's lack of a picture, here's another from the same shoot. One would hope the bullet holes in the rear door of this Land Rover ambulance were the result of the old hulk being used as target practice...!

Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar 7-28 f2.8-4, 1/160 @ f4, ISO 400

Day 50 - Saturday 19 June 2010

Another pictureless day! This time down to the punishing training schedule I was on and the fact that I was totally knackered mentally physically and emotionally!

I'll compensate by posting 2 pictures tomorrow... I promise :)

Day 49 - Friday 18 June 2010

I did go out to take pictures today! I had a very pleasant evening walking along the beach at Formby Point and must have taken around 30 pictures... but embarrassingly, I didn't have a memory card in the alpha 200. I was rather surprised (and annoyed) that the camera lets you take pictures without a card and without warning you. The only indication is ---- on the info screen where the images remaining number would be :( Must be more careful next time!

So to compensate I'll post another shot from yesterday's shoot :)

...Sony alpha200, Sigma 18-200 f3.5-6.3, 1/200 @ f6.3, ISO 100

Day 48 - Thursday 17 June 2010

Reflection. We went on a navigation excercise in the hills and I took loads of photos. This is the reflection in a river I saw when crossing a bridge...

...Sony alpha200, Sigma 18-200 f3.5-6.3, 1/50 @ f6.3, ISO 100

Day 47 - Wednesday 16 June 2010

Alt creek. Managed to escape from camp for an hour or so to the local 'beach' in Hightown where several yachts are moored. When the tide recedes they are left in the mud at crazy angles...

...Sony alpha200, Sigma 18-200 f3.5-6.3, 1/125 @ f8, ISO 100

Day 46 - Tuesday 15 June 2010

More detail from the old vehicles on the training area. The vehicles were only a short walk from the accomodation so I visited this location a couple of times...

Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar 7-28 f2.8-4, 1/250 @ f5

Day 45 - Monday 14 June 2010

Lock/Unlock. There is a fair amount of old military kit dotted about here. Detail from some of that old tat...

Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar 7-28 f2.8-4, 1/250 @ f8, ISO 100

Day 44 - Sunday 13 June 2010

Fir. This camp has a lot of these interesting pine like trees. They are certainly an evergreen variety but instead of cones they have clusters of catkin like growths on the end of every branch.

Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar 7-28 f2.8-4, 1/200 @ f4, ISO 400

Day 43 - Saturday 12 June 2010

Treeline. Day 1 in the camp where I'll be staying for the next 2 weeks. The one thing you notice about army camps is that everything is arranged in neat rows. Even the trees lining the main road in camp are standing to attention.

Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar 7-28 f2.8-4, 1/320 @ f8

The big gap!

Those of you following my blog will have noticed a large gap in postings! No... I haven't given up... I've just been working away from home for 2 weeks without an internet connection.

Strange that only a few short years ago access to the internet was something of a luxury... now it's pretty much a part of our everyday lives and we find it difficult to live without it!

Day 42 - Friday 11 June 2010

Iron Man. Away from home for 2 weeks in the North West. Stopped off in Crosby on the way up to see the Iron Man exhibit on the beach. Pretty impressive...

...Sony alpha200, Sigma 18-200 f3.5-6.3, 1/1250 @ f8, ISO 100

Day 41 - Thursday 10 June 2010

Neat. Pretty dull and lifeless day. Spotted this field on the drive home from a meeting. My original idea was to include a farm house and prominent trees at the far end of he field as a focal point the leading lines of the crop would lead too, but it just wasn't working so I tilted the camera down to concentrate on the lines of vegetation...

...Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 7-28mm, 1/250 @ f6.3, ISO 400

Day 40 - Wednesday 09 June 2010

Blue abstract. I've been looking through various bottles of fluid and trying to capture the distorted view of the world they offer. This is a plastic bottle of hand soap. Though there is no recognisable scene, I liked the abstract nature of this image...

...Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 7-28mm, 1/250 @ f4, ISO 400

Day 39 - Tuesday 08 June 2010

Flower and rain. Another wet day, but a busy one. Once again the garden comes to the rescue for today's picture. Rain drops on a purple shrub, the name of which I have no idea...

...Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 7-28mm, 1/100 @ f4, ISO 800

Day 38 - Monday 07 June 2010

Parker. Graffiti scratched onto the walls of an old sandstone building. The building is the old Police station in Grantham which has remained empty and boarded up since the Police opened a new modern station a few years ago. Whilst I was taking this picture, a security guard challenged me... apparently I need permission to take photos of the old building! I didn't argue and left with my image of the day...

...Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 7-28mm, 1/200 @ f4, ISO 800

Day 37 - Sunday 06 June 2010

The Great Flood. The break in the weather promises a wealth of photo opportunities. As I drove to work this morning in a torrential downpour I was thinking about reflections in puddles. I wasn't dissapointed, as I arrived to find much of Nottingham station under an inch of water. One of the reflected windows and orb light fitting in this photo featured in my day 2 image...

...Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 7-28mm, 1/40 @ f3.2, ISO 400

Day 36 - Saturday 05 June 2010

Peek-a-boo. I rather liked the reflection in this window but my garden isn't a very picturesque subject so I had Evan peek through the blinds to add a much needed touch of interest...

...Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 7-28mm, 1/50 @ f2.8, ISO 100

Day 35 - Friday 04 June 2010

Bollards. My eye is getting re-tuned to the local environment again as I'm begining to see potential pictures in my everyday routine. This row of bollards is outside Matalan which is on my walking route to the railway station...

...Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 7-28mm, 1/400 @ f8, ISO 400

Day 34 - Thursday 03 June 2010

Clematis. Still struggling for inspiration today but fortunately there is a Clematis growing in the garden with huge blooms that came to my rescue...

...Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 7-28mm, 1/80 @f2.8, ISO 400

Day 33 - Wednesday 02 June 2010

Sunset. Pretty difficult day on the picture front. Just couldn't get motivated after the picture rich environment of North Wales! Had to make a specific trip out for a picture when the sun was setting and found this field of Barley (I think!) on the Drift between Barrowby and Harlaxton...

...Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 7-28mm, 1/250 @ f8, ISO 100

Day 32 - Tuesday 01 June 2010

Fence. Busy day today, packing up the caravan in the drizzle followed by a 6 hour drive home. Still had time for my 365 picture though... this is the fence boundary of the campsite at Aberdaron...

...Sony V1, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 7-28mm, 1/250 @ f4, ISO 100