Following on from seeing what was happening in the Old Market Square, Gail and I took a walk down Bridalsmithgate. There are quite a number of fashion shops along there that have really good window displays.
Here's a terrific example. Really surreal, but amusing as well. It's been around for a little while now, and I have often thought about taking a photograph before, but I think it works better at night, rather than in the day, with people walking by and shadows across the glass.
Here in Nottingham and in several other cities across the country, candlelit protests took place tonight against the Government's plans for the NHS. They appear to be quite radical, and could possibly mean the end of free medical care as we have known it for the past 60 years.
Unfortunately there wasn't much of a turnout. Probably only about 12 people in total. No press or police in attendance. A few passers by stopped to chat. Gail and I took a few photos. Alas there wasn't that much to see.
As I have covered many demonstrations in the Old Market Square before, I think I was expecting to see more of an event. Maybe it was the cold weather that put people off, or not many people knew about it. Gail didn't, she works at the local hospital!
So here's a shot of their 'glow in the dark' demo on the steps of the Council House.
A quiet day at home after the excitement of the last few days. This means that I didn't take any photos. I nearly snapped a violent hailstone storm this afternoon which lasted several minutes, but the stones were falling too quickly, and I didn't think it was worth setting up my tripod.
So we are making a welcoming return to Belton House, where we met up with Stewart and DW last Sunday. And it was a sun day, unlike since, where we've had rain, freezing fog and now hailstones.
Among the many photos that I took, was this one of lots of ladybirds warming up on a small bush in one of the many gardens that surround the country house.
Besides being a photographer, Ed a Flickr friend of mine is also the bass player in a local band called The Proper English Gentlemen. Ed posted a message on Flickr the other day promoting the band's next gig at The Maze and also asking for people to come along and take photos of the band in action.
So Gail and I did exactly that. Neither of us had been to the place before, so we weren't exactly sure what we were looking for, or where about's in the city centre it was. I knew it was on Mansfield Road, up near the cemetery, but that was about it. Fortunately we soon found it and paid our admission fee; a bargain £2 each.
Ed found us in the small audience, said hello and informed us that things were running a little behind schedule. It didn't matter that much, as there were going to be a number of bands on during the evening.
I was surprised that there weren't that many people there, but the crowd that was there were quite enthusiastic for Ed's band and the one that followed.
The stage was tiny. Probably only about 10ft x 10ft. Here's a shot of Ed's band in action. Not brilliant, as the stage lighting wasn't that good, and I wasn't sure if the place would allow flash or not, so I persevered with the lights available. I've turned the photo to black and white as it hides a multitude of sins like noise and purple fringing.
An artistic interlude with today's photo. A reflection of a tree in the lake at the Arboretum, where I went last week with my brother. It used to be his local park, so he was keen to see it again and re-visit favourite spots and enjoy the memories.
We also popped over to the house where he lived as a youngster, and other places that were all part of his childhood, before he left these shores for a new life down under in the mid 1960s.
He's back in Australia now after spending a few more days in London. Gail and I are hoping to fly out to see him sometime this year, or next, and relive our special memories of our wedding day in Sydney.
We both spent a very enjoyable evening tonight in the company of Michael Lau, a local professional photographer who was leading a small class on the subject of studio photography. He began by asking what sort of cameras we had and how we used it. Michael suggested that we all tried to use the manual mode all the time, instead of auto or aperture priority etc, as we would get better quality shots, as we would be controlling how the camera took the photograph. Even though it would take us longer to work out the individual settings.
Whilst Kat our model for the evening got ready, Michael explained how the lights worked and what we would be doing with them. Although we had done a tiny bit of studio work before, it was good to have a bit of a refresher. Kat said that she was ready and so the shooting began. As there was only five of us in the group, it allowed plenty of time for us to have a good go each.
The biggest problem I had was trying to think up imaginative poses for Kat to create, such as the one here. Fortunately she had obviously done this sort of thing before and so helped me out. I will have to start a collection of fashion photos, so they can give me some inspiration for next time, as its something that Gail and I want to continue with. Especially now, as we bought a small studio lighting kit from the camera show last week in Birmingham.
For more information about Michael, why not pop over to his website and see the sort of photos that we aspire to taking.
Stewart has chosen this week's Headbanger Challenge, and it's a bit of an odd one. We have to show the word of the hobby that is closest to our heart. Now Gail my wife is the closest to my heart. But she is not what you would call a hobby. More like a full time job! But the best one going. No wages. But loving someone goes beyond a monetary value. As you can't put a price of loving and being loved. The friendship and the happiness that it brings and the warm glow, knowing that there is someone in the world that cares for you, and would do anything for you.
My favourite hobby is of course 'photography'. This blog will be six years old at the end of the month, and I have lost count of how many photos I have taken in that time. Some of course go straight to the waste bin, while others could be classed as acceptable. Even good. It's an expensive one as well. With items that are always needed, like other lenses, a tripod etc.
I also like doing sudokus and crosswords. So instead of showing a photo of my camera etc, I thought I would combine the two interests, and have created a Scrabble board using words all to do with photography in one way or another. It took me a little time to work out. Obviously 'photography' was going to be the main word. Then it was just a case of listing things that go with it.
I had a few tiles left over. But overall I am happy with the result. Of course being a Nikon user, I just had to slip that in somewhere. Don't forget to visit the other members of the team and see how they have interpreted the theme. And do enjoy this piece of photography themed music.
Everyone knows that sex sells. It's been in the ad-mans' bible since marketing began. Drape a scantily clad female on a car and you sell twice as many as ones that don't. Even if the other cars are more reliable. Pop a hunky man in an advert for a drink, and sales go through the roof.
But who would have thought you would have to use such tactics to sell potatoes. Yes, sex is now being used to sell the common, everyday spud. I doubt they taste any different to other potatoes you can buy. After all they all come out of the same place; the ground. But for some reason, the farmer who supplies our local greengrocer with potatoes has decided to glamourise his sacks. Maybe he thinks that he might sell more. But since a large majority of women do the food shopping, it's surely a lost cause. Still it's eye-catching in a way. So it is doing it's job in one way. Which I suppose is the point of the exercise.
