29th April 08 - The colours of the rainbow

This Project365 (photo a day for 365 days) is getting harder and harder, more so with the fact that I'm almost totally immobile. I find it more and more difficult every day to come up with an interesting shot to take...it would be easy to do just any old photo each day but I want this project to be a challenge too and make me use my camera more and more, and I'd also like each photo to mean something when I look back at them. Therefore I've decided to do a mini-theme, this one is the colours of the rainbow.

I've started at the beginning with...red! I've seen photos like this a lot and love the way that other photographers add a lot of texture to wood and metal in their work to really emphasise it. So I took a photo of the handle on the wooden garage door and after a bit of tweaking in Photoshop I added a texture to the wood to age it, I think it's worked.

So, for the next six days my aim is to finish off the alphabet. Hopefully by the time I get to Indigo and Violet someone will tell me what the difference is between them - if you see two photos of purple in a few days time you'll know I never did figure the difference out :)

28th April 08 - Visit to Meadowhall, then later some sunset chasing

Mum, Dad and I went to Meadowhall today, a huge shopping centre just outside Sheffield. Mum wanted to get a few bits and bobs and we all wanted out of the house for a bit to be honest. They got me a wheelchair, which I resisted at first as it's bad enough being on crutches right now without having to be pushed about in a wheelchair too. But I saw sense in the end and realised that it would make it quicker and easier for Mum and Dad to do what they wanted to do...it also saved my shoulders getting a pounding from the crutches. Trust me, I'm beginning to look like Popeye! I took the photo of Meadowhall to show the cooling towers at the Tinsley Viaduct as they are due to be demolished in the next year or so after they finish the roadworks on the viaduct. It'll be a real shame to see them go as they are a local landmark and a real legacy of Sheffield's industrial past, especially the steel works that used to cover the entire Meadowhall site. I was a bit nervous about taking the photos on the site due to all the recent fuss about Photographer's rights but I managed to get a number of photos off without any security guards turning up thinking I was a terrorist!

This evening, after dinner, Chris and I took a drive out in search of some shots of the dramatic clouds that were boiling up on the horizon. They were really impressive and you could see the rain falling on the horizon. We headed over to Firbeck, a village a few miles from my parent's house and got a few photos of the storm clouds contrasting with the yellow rape fields. We then went off in search of a decent vantage point to photograph the sunset, but it sank rather disappointingly behind a huge cloud and didn't give us the show we were hoping for...typical!

27th April 08 - A typical Sunday - Grand Prix, Chocolate Brownies, and Photoshop playtime

I had a very lazy day today, settling down to watch the Grand Prix this afternoon and then cooked some Chocolate Brownies before having a play on Photoshop.

The Grand Prix was OK, it was nice to see Lewis Hamilton get on the podium again, hopefully he's back on form after a couple of races where mishaps and mistakes left him struggling. I was amazed to see his team mate, Heikki Kovalainen, survive what looked like a horrific crash. His car left the track at around 140mph and headed straight for a tyre wall where it buried itself so far inside that they needed a truck to drag it out before they could assess his injuries. They estimate he experienced close to 100G (100 times the force of gravity) on impact. The safety systems in place in F1 are truly remarkable, people die in head on car crashes on the roads at speeds of less than 30mph so it always amazes me to see drivers walk away from the crashes in F1. Hopefully the systems will trickle down to normal road cars, as traction control, power steering, anti-lock brakes all started off in Formula 1. Best wishes to Kovalainen, I hope he makes a full recovery.

This was his crash:

The chocolate brownies were lovely. Mum and I made them and they didn't take long. I think they were in the oven for a little bit too long as they were a bit crusty round the edges but they did taste amazing. The recipe will be on on http://www.communityfriend.co.uk/ shortly, but head over there for lots more recipes anyway.

The photo at the top of this blog was the result of some messing around on Photoshop this afternoon. I'd seen the style a few times on Flickr and liked it so thought I'd give it a go. I took about about 20 photos, each showing a different part of the radio, making sure there was plenty of overlap. Then loaded them all into Photoshop and then made a new, very large, blank canvas and copied and pasted each image into it in turn. Moving them into the right(ish) place. So I ended up with a Photoshop image made up of loads of layers, which I then added a drop shadow to each one to make them look 3D. It took a while but I'm pleased with the result. I'd like to try the technique on an outdoors shot, maybe a large building, to see what it look like. I enjoy trying new things as it keeps me learning and improving with the camera...at least that's the plan.

26th April 08 - Visit to Sheffield Botanical Gardens

Today Dad went off to play golf and Chris kindly drove Mum and I over to Sheffield for a walk round the Botanical Gardens. It was a beautiful day and it was the first time Mum had been there and she loved it. So did I really, it's a great place to go and relax. There were quite a few people just sitting relaxing on the benches and reading and others laid on the grass soaking up the sun.

We had a walk round about half of the park, and took lots of photos. Mum was in her element as she loves taking macro shots of flowers. The photo here was taken of Mum and Chris as they sat around one of the most impressive flower beds and got their close ups. I took up a position on a nearby bench and snapped sneaky photos of them :)

Mum did really well, stopping for a rest now and again, but you'd never guess she was only out of hospital following a major operation a fortnight ago.

After several photos and a good soak in the sun (Chris's head got burnt) we went to the cafe and had lunch. Chris and I had club sandwiches and Mum opted for a chicken wrap. It was all delicious, made even better by sitting out in the warm sun for the first time this year!

25th April 08 - More "get well soon" flowers for Mum

Mum received a visit from one of her friends over the road today who brought some lovely flowers for her. Of course I couldn't resist getting the macro lens out and taking a few photos.

It's been a quiet day today...the window fitter, Neil, finished off this morning and the decorator isn't due back until Thursday next week so we've got a few days with the house at relative normality. Dad spent a while cleaning the upstairs and getting the curtains ready while Chris and I did some cooking, some of which was videoed for the http://www.communityfriend.co.uk/ recipe section. It's great as we have to cook a lot and therefore have lots of lovely food about the house to sample :)

I got some emails from work today with the project we're about to complete all ready for me to do the final edits and compile it into a workable document. It's the culmination of a lot of work so it will be good to see it done and dusted. It will be weird doing work though this weekend,as I've not been in the office since late March! At least it's not much and I can do it at my own pace...ease myself back into it, as I won't be back at work really until late May!

Have a good weekend all

24th April 08 - Kevin the Yorkshire Pudding man

This is Kevin, the chef and owner of the Butchers Arm pub in Woodsetts, South Yorkshire. It's the local to my Mum and Dad and was my local too when I lived there.

I went down with Chris today as he went for a meeting with them to discuss websites and advertising. It's a lovely little pub and Kevin and Trish are real characters. I took this shot of Kevin in the kitchen as he was getting everything ready for tonight's carvery. The food here is delicious and really good value...in fact we're off there in a couple of minutes for the carvery. I can't wait as I'm starving.

For a review and more information about this pub then click here

23rd April 08 - Exciting times - we nearly have a chilli pepper

April 23rd 114/366
When I broke my ankle and moved down to my parents to be looked after (hee hee) I brought my chilli plant with me. It never really started to grow with any real momentum at my house but ever since it's got here it's been going great guns. Must be my Mum's green fingers. It's grown no end, so much so that we think we've spotted the makings of the first chill pepper growing off it. Don't get too excited though, we're a long way from a Chilli Con carne :)

Today I had a trip out with Chris to a few pubs that he's doing work for on behalf of http://www.communityfriend.co.uk/ and we took a few photos for the site. It was great to have a run out as the house was very busy with the window fitters doing the lounge window and the decorator making a start on the upstairs bedrooms. It's all looking great though.

22nd April 08 - Sticky toffee and marshmallow crispy squares

I did some baking today so that Chris could put the recipe on his website, http://www.communityfriend.co.uk/, there are loads of recipes on there so if you like your food then it's worth a visit. They're in the middle of a turn around with the website so keep checking back as they add more and more from the archives to the new site. I decided to cook "sticky toffee and marshmallow crispy squares" and they were so tasty. If you want to give them a go yourself then here is how to do it:

You'll need:

Equal quantities of toffee, marshmallow, butter and rice crispies. For a family batch, I'd use 400g / 14oz of each.

Method:

1. Melt the marshmallows, toffee and butter in a LARGE pan until smooth


2. Then remove from the heat and mix in the rice crispies ensuring the mixture is well mixed.


3. Transfer to baking tins and smooth down with the back of a spoon


4. After five minutes or so cut the mixture into squares and leave in the trays to cool (if you try and cut them later it will be too hard)

For this recipe and lots more please visit http://www.communityfriend.co.uk/

21st April 08 - A drive round the countryside and a visit to Babworth Church

The window fitter was here again today and as it was such a nice day Mum, Dad and I decided to go for a drive and take the cameras. After a trip round north Nottinghamshire we ended up at Babworth Church near Retford. When Dad used to be a teacher he had taken school trips there and knew there was a replica of the Mayflower boat there and that it's a great place to take some photos. Unfortunately when we got there the church was closed but we still managed a few shots of the outside.

On the way back to the house we stopped at The Turbine, the business centre where Community Friend is based for lunch. It's a great place and has a lovely cafe/restaurant. I had an pasta dish with asparagus and red peppers while Mum and Dad had chicken and vegetable soup. It was all fantastic.

Mum is still improving, getting better everyday. I'm having some discomfort with my ankle again, it seems to go in peaks and troughs, but the painkillers are helping. Dad cooked us all a great beef stew, roast potatoes, dumplings and sprouting broccoli. It tasted wonderful - I think he's taking to this "carer" role like a duck to water :)

20th April 08 - Killing time

It's been a quiet day today, so after watching the football I decided to have a play with the camera and try and replicate some of the really good photos I'd seen on Flickr recently. There is a particularly commercial style of shot often used to advertise wine that I wanted to try and pull off. So armed with the tripod, new macro lens, a wine glass, white chopping board for a background and some water with red food colouring I set to work. I didn't use red wine as being on crutches I was convinced my co-ordination would be so off I'd end up spilling lots all over the kitchen.

I took a multitude of photos as usual and it was really hard to get the look I wanted. I wasn't totally happy with the result but some "playing" in Photoshop later made the best of a bad job. I love practicing with the camera and the Project365 thing I'm doing is forcing me to use the camera more and more. It's certainly the best way to learn and ultimately improve. I got this camera on boxing day (26th Dec 2007) and have taken nearly 6500 photos already!

Chris has gone out tonight to take his friend Cathy to a concert for her birthday. It's the Human League he's gone to see, not quite his cup of tea...he's more a fan of Metallica :) But I'm sure he'll have fun! Mum is busy getting better - I can't believe the progress she's made in such a short space of time. I thought she'd be almost bed-bound for the first week or so but she's right as rain, albeit with a little discomfort now and again, nothing the painkillers can't fix. Dad is doing well, he's busy making sure the house is running smoothly while us invalids sit there feeling hopeless. It's funny as he has commandeered the calendar and changed it into a menu system for the week ahead so he knows where he is. It's like having a pub "specials board" on the wall every night :)

19th April 08 - Flower display at local church

I went down to the church in my Mum and Dad's village today to see a flower display that they had to impress the judges in a Best Village Competition. The display was really impressive, not surprising as I know the lady who had done it, and she is very talented.

I'd taken the camera and tripod and a couple of lenses hoping to get some shots but I bumped into several old friends, including a girlfriend from over a decade ago, so I spent much of the time catching up with them and chatting away. I managed one or two photos and was quite pleased with this one.

It's strange living back with my parents for the time being, especially being back in the village I moved out of nearly ten years ago. It's great being here and spending time with them all again but I do feel like I'm getting under their feet a lot. Hopefully it won't be too long before this cast comes off and I'm mobile enough to drive home again. Chris took me over to Beverley today to check on the house and pick up the post...it was good to be back, if only for a few minutes.

18th April 08 - Wanted to do this for ages!

I finally managed to get a photo of droplets falling into a glass of water. Now in the grand scheme of things...finding a cure for cancer, solving world debt, fixing climate change etc this may seem like a very minor achievement but trust me I was elated! I love photography so much and always get inspired by my friend's photos on Flickr and some photos by "Wappy Al" really made me sit up and say I want to do that!

So with the new macro lens set up on the tripod and a glass positioned under the tap I fired dozens of shots, until I realised it would be better with the flash on...after I got that sorted I started to get some pleasing results. Trust me, when you're spending most of the day in a cast with your foot up little triumphs like this feel really significant :))

This afternoon I got to cook dinner - as you know already I love to cook so I had fun getting all the ingredients together and after much hoping around on crutches and huffing and puffing I cooked fillet steak in a cream, white wine, shallot and mushroom sauce with cabbage and some potato gratin. Thanks to Mum for her help with the potatoes :)

Tomorrow I'm off down to our local church to photograph a flower display a good friend of the family, Sue has created for a village competition. I'm sure it will look amazing. Sue did a display for Mum when she was in hospital and it looked great.

17th April 08 - Thoresby Park

We went to Thoresby Park for a look round this afternoon. It was the first time Mum had been out of the house since being back home from hospital after her operation. She did really well and had a good walk round.

We had a coffee and a cake at the cafe there which was excellent. Really good value for money and great food. There will be a review of the place up on http://www.communityfriend.co.uk/ very soon.

In the courtyard was this beautiful motorbike lent up against a wall. I really like how they look, especially the old-style bikes full of polished chrome. This was a real beauty...I've no idea what type it was but I think it made for a good photo.

Maybe in about ten years when the mid-life crisis kicks in I'll get myself one :)

16th April 08 - Flowers for Mum

First hing this morning Mum received some beautiful flowers through the post from her good friends Nick and Mary. They must know we're a family of photographers as they were all perfect and very photogenic. As the window fitters were working upstairs I set the tripod up and took over the lounge and took several photos with the new macro lens. I'm really pleased with it and the level of detail is incredible.

Then just before lunch a good friend of the family in the village called round with dinner for us all for tonight.She knew we were all in the thick of it due to the window fitters, plumbers, decorators, Mum being in recovery and me in my cast! It was such a kind gesture and the food was terrific. It's a great feeling having such good friends.

After lunch I went out with Chris and we took a number of 360 panoramas for his business http://www.communityfriend.co.uk/ they came out really well and using some interactive software you had the ability to immerse the viewer in the photo. they will be really useful for the website and for future business. You can see some examples here

15th April 08 - Rain on the way

We had the guys round to make a start replacing the windows at my Mum and Dad's today. They were a great couple of guys, very chatty and a good laugh. They made a good go of it and with minimal fuss and mess got a couple of the windows done. I'm guessing they'll be here for another three days or so. They had to finish early as we were hit with an almighty rain and hail storm It just seemed to brew on the horizon and then slowly roll in, thankfully they'd just finished sealing a window before the worst of it struck.

Got out of the house today too, Dad took me with him to the butchers, a farm shop a few miles down the A1, full of local produce and it looked great. I was after some veal to do a nice recipe I found for tomorrow nights dinner but they didn't have any so we came away with some very tasty looking beef fillets.

Mum is improving, although she forgot to take her pain killers at lunchtime so felt rough this afternoon until she realised what she'd done and got some to take.

14th April 08 - Watching my beard grow

It's been a long day today. I didn't sleep too well again last night so I've been feeling drowsy all day. Not helped by being stuck in the house. I'm finding time to catch up on a lot of reading, which I love, and watching movies etc, but what I really want to do is jump in the car and go off taking photos, or even go to work (yes it has got that bad). Never mind, only 4 more weeks or so and I go to see the consultant again, hopefully to get the cast taken off.

Mum is doing well, she seems to be able to get up and walk around quite a bit. I think she is slowly beginning to feel the same frustrations I have in being so dependant on other people.

We'll tackle it together I guess.

Just read this back, and it's a bit disjointed, sorry about that. I'm pretty tired. Oh well, back to watching my beard grow

13th April 08 - Mum's home today

Mum came home from hospital today. Great news! She had her operation on Tuesday evening so she's had a few days in hospital to get over the operation. By all accounts the staff at Doncaster Royal Infirmary were superb...thank you to all of you for looking after my Mum, we're all very grateful to you.

Get well soon Mum, take it easy, relax and let the rest of us take care of you.

12th April 08 - The "Bottom Shuffle"

I'm getting sick of this cast already. I feel so dependant on everyone else. I can't even go and get a drink if I want one. Dad and Chris are running round like blue arsed flies doing work to keep the house going now the plumbers have finished and cleaning like madmen ready for Mum coming back from hospital, and all I can do is sit here with my foot up. I usually live on my own so I'm very independent and now feel really useless and fed up.

The worst part of it all is that I can't put any weight on the bad foot at all so getting around is really hard work, I essentially bench press my entire weight every time I take a step - I now really regret my previous addiction to chocolate, ice cream and cake :)

The hardest part is getting up and down stairs...I have perfected the "bottom shuffle" where I drag myself up the stairs on my bum then use a "kick-stool" at the top of the stairs to help me back onto my feet. It's not a pretty sight at all trust me.

I love to cook, but it's one of the things I have had to give up now that I'm so immobile. However, I'm persuaded Dad to allow me to cook dinner tomorrow. I'm supposed to keep this foot elevated all the time but it's driving me mad, so I'm going to get set up with a stool in the kitchen and battle through it. We're having Cottage Pie which is my favourite. I'm sure I'll get used to these crutches and cast but if I had a saw handy they'd be off ASAP!!

11th Apil 08 - Sheffield Botanical Gardens

As Dad was busy round the house today Chris kindly offered to take me over to the Botanical Gardens in Sheffield to get some fresh air and to stretch my legs. When we got there it was raining so we headed into the large greenhouse and set about taking photos. I had my new macro lens with me and a monopod, I must have looked a right plonker with a camera round my neck resting on a monopod, two crutches and balancing on one leg trying to take photos. Needless to say the first 50 or so didn't come out too sharp, then I realised I had the focus set to one shot rather than AI Focus so they were bound to come out fuzzy with all the moving about I was doing. Having sorted that out I started to get some success, most of which are posted on my flickr profile. The image I've posted here is my favourite of the day, it looks like the sort of shot I always wished I could have taken before getting this lens. It's a great lens, very easy to use and really fast. I can't wait to be a bit more agile and mobile in a few weeks so I can get out and about with a tripod and see what it can really do.

This afternoon we went over to see Mum at the hospital again, after an awful journey to get there due to an accident on the motorway we only saw her for about 20 minutes, but she looks so much better which is fantastic. She was really cheerful and a lot more comfortable, although she still has some pain she has been able to get out and about a lot more and has eaten quite a bit too. Hopefully she'll be home before too long.

10th April 08 - New macro lens

My new macro lens arrived today. Less than 24 hours after I'd ordered it, so that was good. I really like it and it seems really sharp. I still have lots to learn with it, in particular controlling depth of field as at 105mm it is very shallow so I need to control the aperture quite a bit more than I have been doing. Every day is a school day as they say.

I was helped by Chris out in the garden and managed to get down on my stomach with my crutches and cast on to take some shots of the daisy's in the grass. They came out really well so was pleased with that. The new tripod is excellent too, it gives such accurate control and is so sturdy that you can be confident it won't move just after you've composed your shot. Money well spent I'd say.

We went to see Mum again this afternoon. She is doing well and has had all the tubes and drips removed from her and has even been up and about today which is great news. She is feeling really sick though and in quite a bit of pain so it's wise that she has decided to stay in hospital for a few more days rather than come home to the chaos at the house (plumbers still working). I'm sure she'll be feeling much better soon.

Then tonight on the way home we called at the Butchers Arms pub in the village for the carvery. It is delicious and such good value. You can read a review of the pub here. They scored 50/50 which is very rare! Well done to them, well deserved.

9th April 08 - Visited Mum in hospital then I did some baking

After another day with the plumbers at the house, where they managed to get lots done we headed out this afternoon to visit Mum in hospital. Like most people, I was looking forward to seeing Mum but pretty apprehensive about what I'd find as I knew she'd had had a major operation and would probably be in bad way. She was asleep when we arrived but awoke with the biggest smile I've ever seen when she realised we'd come to see her which was lovely.

She looked really well, even though she is still in a lot of pain. It was about 24 hours since they'd done the operation so she was in much better shape than I'd imagined. I'm really looking forward to getting her home so she can fully relax and start to get better.

After dinner tonight; beef casserole, mashed spuds and cabbage cooked by Dad, I set about making some food of my own. I found a recipe in one of the many food magazines and books lying around and thought I'd give it a go. It's called banana bread.

It was pretty easy for a man on crutches to make as it involved weighing a few ingredients, mixing them in a food mixer and pouring the whole lot into a bread tin and getting it in the oven. From the little bit I managed to taste that had leaked from the tin it tastes lovely! Just waiting for it to cool and we'll all have a slice.

I also ordered a new lens today from Warehouse Express, it's a Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro lens. Hopefully it will be here tomorrow, so you can expect a lot of closeup shots for the next few days :)

8th April 08 - Cream tea at Dukeries Garden Centre

Dad took Mum over to the hospital today for her operation so Chris and I headed off to the Dukeries Garden Centre at Welbeck for a walk around. Well Chris walked, I sat in the wheelchair while he pushed me around, an easy life!

We had a look round and bought some books then some clothing at the outdoors shop they have there. They also have a great farm shop full of local produce so we picked up a few bits and pieces there. It was somewhere I could have spent a fortune so it's a good job we didn't hang around too long.

Then we treated ourselves to a cream tea at the cafe there, the Lime House Cafe which is excellent.

Dad phoned to say Mum was settled at the hospital and the operation was scheduled for this afternoon. I really hope it goes well, it'll be great to have her home again too.

7th April 08 - Boiler trouble

As I'm staying here at Mum and Dad's while I'm off my feet and very immobile I'm struggling to find too many new things to photograph. Today provided an opportunity to mark the demise of the old boiler.

Mum and Dad are having a new central heating system, boiler and radiators fitted in the house. The workmen were here all day today and will be here all day tomorrow too. Unfortunately we're now without heating, hot water and a working shower :(

But I'm sure it will all be lovely when it's finished.

I'm back!

As you can see from the post below I have managed to break my ankle :(

I went over to North Yorkshire last weekend to see Mum and Dad who were staying in a cottage there for the week. I was intending to stay the weekend then drive back home on the Monday for work. However, on the Sunday we went for a walk near Ribblehead Viaduct and I managed to slip on some wet grass and break my ankle.

Dad and Chris took me under the arms and we slowly and carefully made our way to the car. We were about 20 miles from the nearest hospital (Kendal) so off we went in the car. It was the worst, most painful and distressing 40 minutes of my life. I was in so much pain. When we got there I was X-ray'd and found out I'd got a nasty break. I was put in a cast and told to go to Lancaster Hospital the following day to see a specialist as my break was quite bad and may need an operation to put a plate and pins in to aid recovery.

The following day we drove to Lancaster Royal Infirmary and after another painful examination and more X-rays I was relieved that I didn't need an operation. I was referred to another consultant nearer home the following week and sent back to the cottage.

There I stayed for the week with Mum and Dad. It was a lovely cottage and despite my injury we did manage to get out and about quite a bit and take photos. You can see them on my Flickr profile - click here then click on the sets button to find the set for the week in North Yorkshire.

I'm intending to carry on with the blog now that I'm home. I'll also have quite a lot of time on my hands as I'm signed off work for the next two months!

I hope you're all well:)

Broken ankle!

Hi all. I've broken my ankle while walking in north Yorkshire. Normal service will be resumed shortly :( ouch it hurts!!