Charlie's WorldTree Love
Posted on September 15, 2011
Its no secret, I love to walk in the woods or forest, anywhere that has lots of trees.
Its the combination of the light, the colours, the smell and just how damn cool they are. They give off a wonderful vibe, maybe its all that oxygen they’re pumping out that goes to my head – who knows. They also mute the rest of the world, making it very easy to find peace and quiet, even when you’re not that far away from the hurley burley of real life. Read More
Kent
Posted on September 11, 2011
As regular readers would probably recall, I grew up in Kent (south east England) and it’s still a very special place for me, especially in the summer.
You see, I had great summers in Kent.
As a kid, we had endless hot summers, playing in the garden to the smell of freshly cut grass.
As a teenager, I had more freedom and I remember mountain biking down the bridleways and paths, hanging out with my friends in pub beer gardens, walking through hot and dusty fields and generally having a good time.
As an adult – well, I didn’t really live in Kent much, but coming back, I loved walking through the woods with my kids, having pub lunches and visiting the beautiful towns.
Holidays, part 7 – kids
Posted on September 9, 2011
And so it was time to take the kids back home so they had time to unwind before school started. This is the bit that’s hard – that still having fun but knowing that its almost time to go bit. Still – have fun we did and Ruth cooked us all a lovely late lunch/early tea as we played in the last of the English summer warmth.
We had a few hours, so I took some nice photos in the lovely light she has in her house.
Holidays, part 6 – mini golf, mini trains, castles and trees
Posted on September 7, 2011
We had almost come to the end of the holidays and there were so many fun things still to be done. I decided to go see what one of the locals parks had to offer as I’d heard it had been done up since I was last there. And done up it had been – lots of new play equipment, remodelling and the two decade old mini golf had finally been redone.
Holidays, part 5 – flying lessons
Posted on September 1, 2011
My daughter Ella is very special. Well, I would say that, wouldn’t I?
She also has a somewhat ‘relaxed’ relationship with gravity. As a ballet dancer, that’s a pretty helpful talent to have. She can jump and spring like a mountain gazelle.
There’s something else she can do.
Fly.
Holidays, part 4 – Bluebell Railway
Posted on August 31, 2011
100 years ago, England was criss crossed with railway lines. Small towns and villages were all connected with quaint single track upon which steam trains chuffed their merry way about, ferrying passengers in their wooden well appointed carriages. Sadly, the second world war meant that the upkeep of a lot of the track and rolling stock fell far behind, and budget cuts meant that a lot of the smaller branch lines were uneconomic to operate.
nifty fifty
Posted on August 30, 2011
Its been way too long since I used the 50 mil and I’ve kinda forgotten how to get the most out of it. Its sharp, somewhat slow to focus and has a wonderful depth of field – perfect for making stuff look out of focus. Its the best lens for portraits – set it to f4 and it’s tack sharp – provided you have a steady hand and are good at focussing on the eyes.
Anyway – its focal length is good for general stuff – particularly taking snippets of what’s around you. Jay is very good with the 50 – way better than I.
flowers
Posted on August 27, 2011
The one good thing about my little LX5 (yes, I’m still harping on about it) is that it has a macro capability, plus you can set it to different aspects on the camera (square, landscape etc) – which is pretty handy for composing flower type pictures.
I’m not really that into taking shots of flowers – they’re pretty enough and close up, they can be interesting I suppose – but I’m just not that good at taking them for the most part. I’ve seen some corking flower photos – some people can just visualise something that the looks good. I’ve also seen black and whites flower shots where the picture is all about form, light and texture – now that I do find genuinely interesting.
Holidays, part 3 – Groombridge Place
Posted on August 26, 2011
Groombridge Place (http://www.groombridge.co.uk) is only 30 mins drive from my parents house. I’ve been there before about 4 years ago with Ella, not that she remembers really, just snippets here and there. It’s a pretty cool place – an old moated English country house and beautiful gardens that also has an adventure playground and an ‘enchanted forest’ walk for children. Good enough to keep the kids happy for a few hours anyway.
Holidays part 2 – family
Posted on August 25, 2011
I gave my kids a massive hug when I got in on Friday – it had been 6 months since I saw them in person – Henry was dancing around in circles he was so excited. Its always so fantastic to see them.
The next day, after a good nights sleep, we went for a walk to the park at the top of the hill – it was a beautiful day too – warm, hot even, sunny, perfect. The kids had loads of fun playing, swinging, sliding, running and making friends.
Charlie's World 