Sparrows

I went to a fantastic talk at St Austell Camera Club the other day. Sue Earnshaw showed us some amazing wildlife photographs taken all over the world, but also shots of the birds in her garden which she practises her skills on.

I felt inspired and since I enjoy sitting on my window sill and watching the world go by, having a camera in my hand seemed the natural progression.

These sparrows live in my roof, so they are always about.

Click on the photographs to view large versions.

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Eden

Went on a camera club outing to The Eden Project a few weeks ago (I've been a bit slack with the blog of late). I loved the dahlias, which were in full bloom:

(click on the image for large version)

as were the Verbena:

This little fella came to say hello:

I also snapped fellow club member Dan, who prefers polaroid to digital photography, while he wasn't looking. I enjoyed the old vs new technology in this shot:

You can see his photography here.

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Candid Kids

Went to a BBQ the other day and chased the kids round the garden with my camera. Was reasonably pleased with the results. Click on the photo for the large versions - they look better that way.

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Strobist Experiments

Inspired by a rainy day and an excess of garlic, I thought I would experiment with off camera flash.

I used two strobes, one fired into a white umbrella to the right on 1/4 power, another bounced on the ceiling above set to 1/2 power. I tried to balance the flash with the natural light coming in from the window to the left.

I then did a spot of dodge/burn in photoshop. Here are the results - which look much better in a larger size - click on the image for a larger version.

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The Legend of the Cheesewring, Bodmin Moor

I went back to Minions a few days ago, to show some friends how beautiful the landscape is around Bodmin Moor.

I climbed up to the Cheesewring and tried to make the most of the dramatic lighting conditions... because the light was bright with a lot of cloud the light was very patchy - and didn't always light up the bits I wanted it to!

View larger versions on flickr

The Cheesewring is a granite tor in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated on the eastern flank of Bodmin Moor.

The Cheeswring is a natural geological formation, a rock outcrop of granite slabs formed by weathering. It gets its name because the piled slabs look like a "cheesewring", a press-like device that was used to make cheese.

A local legend about this rock formation is the result of a contest between a man and a giant. When Christianity had just been introduced to the British Islands, the giants who lived at the top of the mountains were not happy about it. The Saints had invaded their land and were declaring their wells as sacred.

One of the larger giants, Uther, was given the task of ridding their land of the Saints. He confronted the frail St Tue, who proposed a rock throwing contest. If Uther won, the Saints would leave Cornwall. If St. Tue won, then the giants would convert to Christianity.

Uther took his turn first and easily threw a small rock to the top of nearby Stowe's Hill. St Tue prayed for assistance, and picking up a huge slab found it was very light. One after the other, they threw their rocks, stacking them up in perfect piles. When the score was 12 stones each, Uther threw a thirteenth stone, but it rolled down the hill. St Tue picked up this fallen stone, and as he lifted it, an angel appeared to carry it to the top of the pile of rocks. Seeing this, Uther conceded and most of the giants decided to follow Christianity after that.

Thanks Wikipedia

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Monochrome

I have been playing around with monochrome images lately and thought it was about time I posted some of them here.

Click on image for a larger version

To Touch the Clouds

Taken at Hells Mouth, Cornwall, a notorious suicide spot.

Just Like Old Times...

Seine Net Fishing at Hemmick Beach, Cornwall

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The Pirates of St Piran - Photo Shoot

I was asked to take some publicity shots for The Pirates of St Piran, an 18th Century Cornish pirate re-enactment group that do lots of fantastic charity work in and around Cornwall.

The shots were taken on the deck of the Kaskelot, a square rigger that lives in Charlestown harbour and has been used in films such as Return to Treasure Island and the Three Musketeers.

The rain was lashing down, sadly, so the decks were covered and conditions very dark, so I tried to overcome this by bouncing my flash off the canvas roof.

Click on the photographs for larger versions

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