08

The weekend shall be busy and fun. A lot of photo opportunities will be had between now and Monday.

Last night I couldn't sleep for worrying about over-sleeping. As a result, I was still awake at 7am. Ridiculous, I am.

Yesterday I had the intention of taking some cool photos of a self-portrait idea I had. However, I dithered about all day and so missed the best light. Then I couldn't achieve the focus or composition I wanted (these things are really difficult when you are in front of the camera!), so I became frustrated and gave up in under twenty shots. One day, I will find volunteers and hey presto, my woes shall be gone (scouring ModelMayhem.com is one solution, but I always end up just looking at people I find attractive... how unprofessional).

A lot of photos to follow after the weekend hopefully, but for now, I bid you a happy Halloween:

07

BRRRR, it is cold.

Things keep breaking. Malfunctioning electrical appliances serve only to make me feel like a grown up.

Using towels from an airer instead of the tumble dryer is like using a piece of toast. Exfoliating.

On Sunday I went to my cousin's 7th birthday party. It was a beautiful day out and fun to see the family. I took photos but didn't realise just how many until I arrived home. I shall be sparing, here.

Little children are amazing. When you point a camera at an older person, they immediately pose or smile or say they are having a fat day or are looking too pale. Children though, they look straight into the lens and just... are.

06

It's been a while.

Last Friday I ventured into Kilburn armed with my camera, the address of a music venue and a vague idea of a band who were playing there. It turns out that they, Hero and Leander, were really cool - ear plugs were not required. The venue was nice (albeit not exactly accessible... I'd like to mention here how accomodating everyone was, both the band and the staff at The Good Ship) and Kilburn was not nearly as violent as its name might suggest (unfortunately, anytime I refer to it, I accidentally exaggerate the pronunciation and so it becomes Kill-Burn).

It was my first time taking photos of musicians and as suiting as the lighting was for such an event, it was difficult from a photographic point of view. You end up with a catch-22 of wanting a low ISO and fast shutter speed in order to crisply catch the action, yet needing a high ISO and relatively low shutter speed so as to actually allow light into the camera. As a result, the images I captured were more grainy than I'd hoped, not to mention the noticeable blur. Oh, and while I'm being critical, I think I need an eye test. Seriously, my focus is way out most of the time... even using auto-focus! But I digress. The next time I am in a low-light/event situation, I'm going to try using my 50mm 1.8 lens. This would mean trading zoom for a wider aperture, but it's a worth-while one, I think. Plus it would be so much lighter/discreet.

Anyway, a few of the photos:

 When I arrived home, I downloaded their EP from itunes (no idea why I even use itunes when the only apples I have reside in the fruit bowl).

Here, go see:

 In other news, I cannot stop saying awesome. The strange thing is, I lived with an American for many years and did not utter it once... now though, now I am unstoppable. A British alternative is urgently required. 

Super? Jolly good? Bloody marvellous?

Or, maybe not British, even. 

Bravo! Magnifique!

I don't know, suggestions please.

05

Playing with sunlight and bubbles. The weather has been perfect. These images were taken at the park on Friday:

04

After a few weeks without wireless internet, I have returned.

Over the weekend I visited a local Mind Body Spirit show after hearing about it from an acquaintance. It was in aid of Little Haven's hospice. Although all things new age do no massively appeal to me these days, I like the atmosphere and people that can be found at such an event, so I went, taking my camera with the intent of practicing my bravery - taking photos in crowds makes me nervous. 

It was the first event that I have tried to photograph and there were some definite learning curves. Now that I have done it once though, I am going to keep my eye out for other local events as it was fun in spite of the challenges. 

In the centre of the room where the show was held, an area was being used by various performers. My favourite were the Akula Tribal Bellydancers:

 Their response to the photos has been really positive and they are going to use some of them for their website, so that is exciting!

Now I need to find some sort of music event - I really want to try my hand at some shots of live musicians.

Fun times.