Wednesday 30 December 2009

Women in Photography

I came across a wonderful web site today: http://www.wipnyc.org/

Some exceptionally good, inspiring photography. Enjoy!

Tuesday 29 December 2009

E-Kagen, the best value Japanese restaurant in England

I have had a very bad conscious for about six months now. I've been a terrible person. I offered to take food photos for a restaurant that I really like, and even said that I could make them a little web site - just because I like their restaurant so much and think that it deserves more publicity.

The horrible thing is that so far I haven't managed to do anything else than take some photos and buy a domain for them. Well, that is going to change soon! Here are some photos that I'm going to use for their web site (http://www.e-kagen.co.uk/)






















...more to come...

Sunday 27 December 2009

Little wren

My long lense (Canon 100-400mm) always attracts attention wherever it goes. Today I was walking Zebedee (and the lense) in Stanmer Park when yet another person commented: "Wow, that's a big camera!" I said that I had it with me in case I saw some birds during my walk. And complained that I rarely see ANY in Stanmer Park, apart from magpies and the odd robin. To my surprise they replied that they often see green woodpeckers and many other birds there. The bastards. So I decided to make a special effort today to spot any other birds than magpies.

Pretty futile effort. First was this:



Yeah, there's a great tit there. Honest. For about 1.2 seconds, and then it flew into the top branches of the tallest trees. I only got this one, extremely crap photo.



I've seen tits before in Stanmer Park, but always so high up in the trees that there has been no way to get a photo of them.

Then, a little later, I saw a bird that I haven't seen in Stanmer Park before.



Let's zoom in.



Hey, it's a cute little wren. I think I've spotted wren only once or twice before in England, although apparently they are quite common here. They are very rare in Finland, and I never saw one there, so I get pretty excited when I see one. I remember just HOW excited I was to see the first one ever. Let me tell you first that I remember wrens from the big bird book we used to have in our home when I was a kid; the little wren with its funny little upturned tail. I always thought it was a strange but cute little bird that I would probably never see in the wild. Who would have thought that the first time I see one in "nature" was going to be 30 years later in the middle of the City of London, hopping along in a flower bed that I was staring at absent-mindedly while taking a ciggie break from work (looking after the London branch servers of the largest Japanese bank).



It was the first time I HEARD a wren today. Its song is quite loud given the size of the bird!



Well, that was it for birds on today's hour long walk. We had to hurry home in order to drive to London, but on the way back to the car Zebedee found some (probably) fox poo to roll in. Nice. The stinky so-and-so.

Thursday 24 December 2009

Christmas Eve

It's Xmas! I can't wait to see what Santa has brought me! But, crap... we have agreed to do it the English way and open the presents on Xmas Day! Rubbish! If this was Finland I would have opened my first present as soon as I woke up on Xmas Eve! Or at least I'd rattled all my presents in an attempt to find out what was in them! Not fair!

Saturday 19 December 2009

Walk in a snowy park

We ventured out today for a walk with the doggie. It was life-threateningly dangerous to walk on the pavements as they were covered in very slippery, uneven ice! Brighton and Hove City Council don't seem to bother with making its streets safe to walk with the help of some sand or salt... I only wonder how many bones have been fractured or broken today on the streets!

This orange reflection of the sunset on the ground... pure ice.



The Pavilion.









We popped in the Northern Lights for a glögg and as we walked in, someone at the bar asked whether my camera was the new 5D. He turned out to be a photographer himself (James Winspear) and we had a chat with him while his lovely springer Max played with Zebedee. Have a look at his web site and you'll see first class architectural, interior and portrait photography. Very impressive, indeed, and he is a very nice person to boot.

Then we went for a walk by the sea before it got dark.



...after which we went back to Northern Lights to have another delicious, warm glögi and some Scandinavian food. The photo is foggy due to the big temperature difference between out and in!



On the way back Miles spotted this fantastic clothes shop window. Click on the picture to see it bigger.



Completely strange to have winter in England! I mean, ice on the roads and everything. I've probably only experienced this kind of thing about three times since I came to England in 1995. According to the weather people the fun is about to end in a couple of days, though.

Friday 18 December 2009

Snow rose

Hurrah! We have snow!

View from my office window first thing in the morning.



Neighbour's palm trees...



Our garden.






Our road.






Tobogganists in the side street!






Extremely excited Mr Zebedee.












Our car has been used as a source for snow balls.









I've been wondering what kind of a rose it is that is blooming in our garden in December. Now, I think, I know: a snow rose.




Thursday 17 December 2009

It's snowing!

See! It is!!



FAIR Trade Shop

I took some photos of FAIR Trade Shop in Brighton today for my friend Rachel of La Luminata. Here are some of them: