Chris's 365 Project

The Big Night Out

2011-05-04T17:59:00.001+01:00

CSE Show. The Combined Services Entertainment show comes to Camp Bastion. No big name artists but it was a good show all the same. A nice relaxing evening of entertainment and a chance to unwind from the stresses of work...

It's all over...

2011-04-30T17:28:00.000+01:00

365 days later and the project is finished. As expected, I've learned one hell of a lot about photography! It's not just a case of looking for pictures, you have to see them. An unusual statement... but a true one. We often look at things without actually "seeing" them. Searching for un-noticed detail or unusual angles in the mundane everyday sights we come across is a skill that needs to be learned and a project of this nature certainly helps develop that skill.

I would not have been able to complete this project without the support and encouragement of my fellow 365ers at the PHOTOPORTAL website... thanks all of you.

I would also like to thank family and friends... many of whome have thought I've gone mad, taking pictures of the strangest things but have still found the time to comment either on this blog or on Facebook. You all had some input into the successful completion of this project. Thank you.

So what now? Well, I need a rest first of all. It has been quite an effort having to find a picture to take every day, especially in the difficult environment I find myself in at the moment. Another project is very likely, though what form it will take I do not know! I'm open to suggestions but won't decide until after I've returned home in June. Whatever it is, I hope you'll all stay with me for the journey.

Day 365 - Saturday 30 April 2011

2011-04-30T17:00:00.000+01:00

Gold. The (possibly!) gold plated contacts on an 8Gb SD card...

Day 364 - Friday 29 April 2011

2011-04-29T16:08:00.000+01:00

Catch. That's all it is... the catch on a high voltage cabinet that is part of the electricity supply to the pods. I found the unusual shadow cast by the late afternoon sun interesting...

Day 363 - Thursday 28 April 2011

2011-04-28T16:55:00.000+01:00

Taxi. C130 Hercules taxiing in from the runway after an internal flight...

Day 362 - Wednesday 27 April 2011

2011-04-27T16:30:00.000+01:00

ONYX. The rugged and very useful torch issued to deploying troops...

Day 361 - Tuesday 26 April 2011

2011-04-26T16:29:00.002+01:00

Move to the back of the bus please. Most of the old coaches used as transport around this huge camp originate from Germany...

Day 360 - Monday 25 April 2011

2011-04-25T16:10:00.000+01:00

Charleston. The same type of aircraft as the one featured in "Whale Tail" two days ago. This was all I could see of this one visible above some ISO containers at the back of the PHF...

Day 359 - Sunday 24 April 2011

2011-04-24T17:01:00.000+01:00

Hover. The pilot of this Chinook very obligingly kept his helicopter in a hover for a couple of minutes allowing me to play with shutter speed and get some motion in the rotors...

Day 358 - Saturday 23 April 2011

2011-04-23T16:45:00.000+01:00

Whale Tail. The rear end of another huge transport aircraft...

Day 357 - Friday 22 April 2011

2011-04-22T16:41:00.000+01:00

IL-76. These lumbering Ilushin 76 transport aircraft are quite common out here. They take forever to get up to any speed on the runway before reluctantly taking to the air, leaving a trail of black smoke from their engines! Their ex Soviet military heritage is evident in the nose and tail gunners positions they still have...

Day 356 - Thursday 21 April 2011

2011-04-21T17:03:00.000+01:00

Shade. In the shadow of a C130 Hercules aircraft on the blisteringly hot ramp...

Day 355 - Wednesday 20 April 2011

2011-04-20T17:00:00.000+01:00

RP-HX70. Quite a few busy days recently... you can tell from the subject matter of my 365 shots when I've got back to the tent and realised I haven't taken the daily picture and reach for the nearest object to my bedspace. Here is a shot of my trusty earphones...

Day 354 - Tuesday 19 April 2011

2011-04-20T16:54:00.000+01:00

Chicken in a Box. Quite literally. This KFC outlet in Bastion 2 is built into an ISO container. The smell of chips from there drives me crazy. I haven't had chips for ages and makes me wonder why the cookhouse doesn't serve chips!

Day 353 - Monday 18 April 2011

2011-04-18T16:45:00.000+01:00

3 Band. One of the free radios given out to the troops by BFBS...

Day 352 - Sunday 17 April 2011

2011-04-17T18:00:00.001+01:00

Back Home. I wish I was! Close-up of the buttons on my MP3 player...

Day 351 - Saturday 16 April 2011

2011-04-17T17:57:00.000+01:00

SIGMA. Close-up of the barrel on one of my lenses...

Day 350 - Friday 15 April 2011

2011-04-15T16:36:00.002+01:00

Jingly Market. Not technically a market, these Afghan shops on camp are a permanent fixture and open every day. They still sell typical tourist/market tat though...

Day 349 - Thursday 14 April 2011

2011-04-14T16:00:00.000+01:00

SACRILEGE! I'm longing for the taste of the real thing now but this is all that is available. It'll have to do...

Day 348 - Wednesday 13 April 2011

2011-04-13T16:34:00.000+01:00

Ben 10. Another long awaited item from my comfy box, the brand new Ben 10 duvet set. I now officially have the most colourful bedspace in the tent...

Day 347 - Tuesday 12 April 2011

2011-04-12T16:47:00.000+01:00

Life! The rains have encouraged a fer blades of grass and the odd weed to grow in the ditches but this bushy growth of grass seems to be flourishing against one of the old boundary fences...

Day 346 - Monday 11 April 2011

2011-04-11T16:56:00.000+01:00

Silver Lining. After the storm the sunshine returns, though only for a while as it turned out to be a showery day today...

Day 345 - Sunday 10 April 2011

2011-04-10T17:10:00.000+01:00

1T. The inevitable aftermath of the stormy night last night is the flooding. This is one of the wooden pallets used as a stepping stone through one of many puddles...

Day 344 - Saturday 9 April 2011

2011-04-09T17:12:00.000+01:00

Perfect Storm. One hell of a storm brewing as we finished work! Spent some time (and nearly 100 frames) trying again to capture the spectacular lightning show (an effort that was a spectacular failure!). I did catch the approach of a huge sand storm rushing in from left of frame though. This is one of the last shots before I decided to put the camera away to avoid a huge dusty sensor problem...

Day 343 - Friday 8 April 2011

2011-04-08T16:56:00.000+01:00

Alt Gr. Well, I finally gave in and took a picture of my keyboard! I've used the LED light in my optical mouse as a light source to add at least a bit of interest...

Day 342 - Thursday 7 April 2011

2011-04-07T17:16:00.000+01:00

Dalek. Close up of my clip-on bedside lamp, an invaluable piece of kit on tour. This crop makes it look like one of Doctor Who's adversaries...

Day 341 - Wednesday 6 April 2011

2011-04-06T16:49:00.000+01:00

Oyster. My genuine fake $20 Rolex watch bought from a Jingly shop on camp. Works well enough though...

Day 340 - Tuesday 5 Apr 2011

2011-04-05T15:32:00.002+01:00

Mean Machine. Another silhouette shot of a passing helicopter, but when I saw this Apache comming I couldn't resist...

Day 339 - Monday 4 April 2011

2011-04-04T16:44:00.000+01:00

Slinky. For some strange reason there is a Slinky knocking about the office. You can make a lot of interesting photographic patterns with one of these toys. I tried a few today and had trouble selecting which one to post...

Day 338 - Sunday 3 April 2011

2011-04-04T01:22:00.000+01:00

Tins. A row of aircraft baggage tins waiting to be loaded for the Tristar...

Day 337 - Saturday 2 April 2011

2011-04-02T15:32:00.000+01:00

Morning glory. Yet another glorious sunrise. Taken from outside the accomodation whilst waiting for the transport to work. Makes going to work in the morning a pleasure...

Day 336 - Friday 1 April 2011

2011-04-01T17:53:00.000+01:00

Cage. A cage pallet perched ontop of an ISO container...

Day 335 - Thursday 31 March 2011

2011-03-31T17:12:00.000+01:00

Awning. There's a story behind this one! A few days ago a disgruntled officer compained about being kept waiting outside the PHF for a check-in, sitting in the hot sun for more than an hour. The answer... we now have an awning set up outside the front of the PHF tent so any 'huffysirs' with an aversion to a bit of sunlight can wait in the shade...

Day 334 - Wednesday 30 March 2011

2011-03-30T17:19:00.000+01:00

Rainbow. Stacked ISO containers silhouetted against arc lighting...

Day 333 - Tuesday 29 March 2011

2011-03-29T15:51:00.000+01:00

Flypast 2. Another helicoper shot. No idea what this one is, probably of Russian vintage but it's one of several operated by a private company to deliver supplies, often underslung in cargo nets, to remote locations. This is one of a flight of 2 returning to Bastion in the late afternoon. Unfortunately the shutter speed was too fast to capture movement in the rotor...

Day 332 - Monday 28 March 2011

2011-03-29T15:44:00.000+01:00

NON-POTABLE. I posted an image a while ago of a tanker filling up with water at a stand pipe. This is the other end of the operation, delivering non-potable water to various locations around camp...

Day 331 - Sunday 27 March 2011

2011-03-27T16:47:00.000+01:00

Mug. At last! My MFO box has arrived after a mammoth six and a half month journey by sea and road. I now have my favourite mug and can enjoy a cup of tea in style. No more horrible cardboard cups...

Day 330 - Saturday 26 March 2011

2011-03-27T15:59:00.000+01:00

Description: Dusty Sunrise. Plenty of dust around this morning making it difficult for the sun to shine...

Day 329 - Fraiday 25 March 2011

2011-03-27T15:53:00.000+01:00

Sunrise landing. A helo comming in to land early in the morning as I'm waiting for the transport into work...

Day 328 - Thursday 24 March 2011

2011-03-24T12:52:00.000Z

Crack. Dammage to one of the heavy duty blast walls...

Day 327 - Wednesday 23 March 2011

2011-03-24T12:48:00.000Z

Pallet. The edge of an aircraft cargo pallet, this one being the property of the US Airforce...

Day 326 - Tuesday 22 March 2011

2011-03-22T16:52:00.000Z

Stars n Stripes. Its an overdone technique these days but I saw this and thought it had to be done...

Day 325 - Monday 21 March 2011

2011-03-21T15:19:00.000Z

Canvas. The sagging roof of the inbound passenger terminal tent in the early morning sun...

Day 324 - Sunday 20 March 2011

2011-03-20T16:13:00.000Z

Fandango. The fan on one of the 'air conditioning' units in the departures tent. Unfortunately they all seem to have only two settings, hot and very hot! Its like an oven in there these days...

Day 323 - Saturday 19 March 2011

2011-03-19T16:12:00.000Z

SCHOPF. Mud splattered cut-out lettering on the side of an airfield tug...

Day 322 - Friday 18 March 2011

2011-03-18T15:35:00.000Z

Shake, Rattle and Roll. A 2 second hand-held exposure of a passing bus. This image, for me, captures the experience of riding around camp on the potholed dirt tracks...

Day 321 - Thursday 17 March 2011

2011-03-17T16:14:00.000Z

Merlin. A helicopter parked under a service shelter...

Day 320 - Wednesday 16 March 2011

2011-03-17T03:26:00.000Z

Red/Black. A pair of marker pens hanging from a cardboard file on the office notice board...

Day 319 - Tuesday 15 March 2011

2011-03-15T17:31:00.000Z

In chains. Close up of a pretty heavy duty chain used to secure the PHF...

Day 318 - Monday 14 March 2011

2011-03-14T16:27:00.001Z

Jerry. A line of fuel containers...

Day 317 - Sunday 13 March 2011

2011-03-14T16:21:00.001Z

Pin. Close-up of the notice board...

Day 316 - Saturday 12 March 2011

2011-03-12T15:16:00.000Z

Crystal. Bottled water, plenty of it available. Have to drink 5-6 bottles a day now the weather is warming up...

DAY 315 - Friday 11 March 2011

2011-03-11T16:20:00.000Z

Zerosix. As promised, here is the 'Banksy' style grafitti on a blast wall close to Piacettos coffee shop...

Day 314 - Thursday 10 March 2011

2011-03-11T03:27:00.000Z

Tigger. Stencilled wall art is starting to appear everywhere. This tiger is close to the Tazmanian devil one I posted earlier. There is a really nice 'Banksy' style one near the coffee shop, I'm hoping to take a picture of it tomorrow in daylight...

Day 313 - Wednesday 09 March 2011

2011-03-10T03:43:00.000Z

The pond. Not the famous poo one though. Although the weather is starting to warm up now and the place is starting to dry out, there are still areas where large temporary ponds of muddy water exist. This one is outside the Asian DEFAC. I was standing on a walkway to the DFAC entrance made from a row of wooden pallets to take this picture...

Day 312 - Tuesday 08 March 2011

2011-03-08T12:13:00.000Z

Vent. A somewhat redundant feature on the busses we ride around on...

Day 311 - Monday 07 March 2011

2011-03-08T02:55:00.000Z

Flypast. A quick grab shot of a passing low flying helicopter...

Day 310 - Sunday 06 March 2011

2011-03-07T00:13:00.000Z

Swat. Close up of a very useful fly control device. No flies were harmed in the production of this image - YET...

Day 309 - Saturday 05 March 2011

2011-03-07T00:05:00.000Z

Aerial. Makeshift aerials attached to the rear of the pods...

Day 308 - Friday 04 March 2011

2011-03-04T22:55:00.002Z

Mud and water. Another "happy" mistake. I was trying to capture reflections of the PHF in the huge puddles when the camera moved during the exposure...

Day 307 - Thursday 03 March 2011

2011-03-03T12:24:00.000Z

IP65. Close-up of the light fitting above my bed space...

Day 306 - Wednesday 2nd March 2011

2011-03-03T03:01:00.000Z

Flood. So much rain recently there are huge puddles everywhere...

Day 305 - Tuesday 01 March 2011

2011-03-02T03:00:00.000Z

Pallet. Propped up against the fence at the back of the baggage tent...

Day 304 - Monday 28 February 2011

2011-02-28T03:19:00.000Z

Ghost. This was an attempt at trying to catch some spectacular lightning by leaving the shutter open for 20 - 30 seconds. It was an absolute failure but I did catch a line of American Marines walking through the frame. One of them paused long enough to leave a ghostly image...

Day 303 - Sunday 27 February 2011

2011-02-27T12:03:00.000Z

Dolly. The top of one of the dollys used to move aircraft pallets and tins around...

Day 302 - Saturday 26 February 2011

2011-02-27T11:57:00.000Z

Zig Zag. Shadows cast from a row of Hesco barrier...

Day 301 - Friday 25 February 2011

2011-02-26T12:20:00.001Z

TATA. The badge on one of the wonderful 4X4s we have to use...

Day 300 - Thursday 24 February 2011

2011-02-25T02:14:00.000Z

Sunset. Another Ying & Yang shot of beautiful sunset and razor wire...

Day 299 - Wednesday 23 February 2011

2011-02-24T02:51:00.000Z

Guy. An important part of keeping my abode upright...

Day 298 - Tuesday 22 February 2011

2011-02-22T12:29:00.000Z

Cross. The church tent in Bastion 2...

Day 297 - Monday 21 February 2011

2011-02-21T06:50:00.000Z

Hesco. A line of empty hesco barrier awaiting filling with rubble...

Day 296 - Sunday 20 February 2011

2011-02-20T03:16:00.000Z

Danelagen. The brightly lit entrance to Camp Viking, the Danish compound within Camp Bastion...

Day 295 - Saturday 19 February 2011

2011-02-19T12:50:00.000Z

PGSS. The side of an old HUMVEE outside my accomodation...

Day 294 - Friday 18 February 2011

2011-02-19T12:46:00.000Z

Alien. The grain pattern in a sheet of plywood...

Day 293 - Thursday 17 February 2011

2011-02-19T12:42:00.000Z

Parched. The water doesn't stay around for long before drying up...

Day 292 - Wednesday 16 February 2011

2011-02-19T12:38:00.002Z

Ditch. Back in the dustbowl, but it isn't as dusty as before now the rains have started. It's muddy instead...

Day 291 - Tuesday 15 February 2011

2011-02-19T12:36:00.000Z

Plank. The well worn top of a picnic table...

Day 290 - Monday 14 February 2011

2011-02-14T22:51:00.000Z

Red Rose. Well, it is Valentines day after all...

Day 289 - Sunday 13 February 2011

2011-02-13T18:25:00.000Z

1 Litre. Boiling water seen through the window of our kettle...

Day 288 - Saturday 12 February 2011

2011-02-12T21:27:00.000Z

Passage. Access to the rear of some shops on Westgate in Grantham...

Day 287 - Friday 11 February 2011

2011-02-11T17:00:00.000Z

Gaff Sloop. More shadows on the blinds (that reminds me of a song by Tom Jones!). This one is a model ship on the sunroom windowsill...

Day 286 - Thursday 10 February 2011

2011-02-10T11:46:00.000Z

Hidden Elephant. A ceramic plant holder hiding behind the venetian blind on our landing windowsill...

Day 285 - Wednesday 9 February 2011

2011-02-09T19:11:00.000Z

Butchers Row. A small side street in Grantham, recently pedestrianised...

Day 284 - Tuesday 8 February 2011

2011-02-08T19:30:00.000Z

Underneath the arches. Crumbling brickwork under an railway bridge on the East Coast Mainline near Grantham...

Day 283 - Monday 7 February 2011

2011-02-07T15:56:00.002Z

Bleak! Storm clouds dominate the sky on my afternoon walk in the wind...

Day 282 - Sunday 6 February 2011

2011-02-06T13:50:00.000Z

Barking. Close-up of a gnarled old tree trunk...

Day 281 - Saturday 5 February 2011

2011-02-05T16:53:00.000Z

Twist. Pasta in a storage jar. Taken and edited in a hurry between todays two rugby matches...

Day 280 - Friday 4 February 2011

2011-02-04T23:15:00.001Z

Wick. Another candle close-up. I liked the red glow in the middle of the flame...

Day 279 - Thursday 3 February 2011

2011-02-03T17:55:00.000Z

Crackle glaze. Macro shot of a decorative Christmas candle...

Day 278 - Wednesday 2 February 2011

2011-02-03T17:46:00.000Z

Sand Ladder. Detail of some essential off road equipment hanging from the front of one of a Jackal patrol vehicle...

Day 277 - Tuesday 1 February 2011

2011-02-01T22:47:00.001Z

Interior. No windows on this flight so I can only take a picture inside...

Day 276 - Monday 31 January 2011

2011-02-01T22:40:00.000Z

H4H. Baz is collecting unit patches from the troops as they pass through the terminal. They are being sewn onto a 'Help for Heroes' flag which will eventually be auctioned off to raise money for the charity. Great idea Baz...

Day 275 - Sunday 30 January 2011

2011-01-30T18:45:00.000Z

Taz. Interesting drawing on a blast well outside the American PX. Don't what the Arabic/Pastu/Dari phrase is though...

Day 274 - Saturday 29 January 2011

2011-01-29T16:35:00.000Z

Bic. The tops of a stack of pens in a box, lit with the boss's blue LED light...

Day 273 - Friday 28 January 2011

2011-01-28T20:44:00.000Z

Splash. Fancy paintwork on the side of one of the PHF coaches...

Day 272 - Thursday 27 January 2011

2011-01-28T20:38:00.000Z

Grafitti. Scribbled on the side of the very dirty white tent, shame I didn't see it on the 28 November...

Day 271 - Wednesday 26 January 2011

2011-01-26T18:01:00.000Z

Neytiri. Close up of the cover of a DVD. Its the collectors edition of one of my favorite films...

Day 270 - Tuesday 25 January 2011

2011-01-26T17:57:00.000Z

Window. A view into the Piacetto coffee shop...

Day 269 - Monday 24 January 2011

2011-01-24T20:34:00.000Z

Rugs. Seen hanging outside the carpet sellers shop on the Boardwalk...

Day 268 - Sunday 23 January 2011

2011-01-24T00:48:00.000Z

ISO. Just a few of the thousands of containers out here...