Flower Power

I quite like this delicate little plant with its very pale purple flowers, that I came across in the grounds of the castle.

I think it is a member of the geranium family. But I'm no Percy Thrower, so not entirely sure that I am right.

It's A Great Life On The Buses

Well I've now found the time to start blogging again. After coming back from Cornwall and catching up with things at home, I can hopefully get going with the blog again, and even write about the days that Gail and I were away on our road trip around what Thomas Hardy called Wessex.

Today's story also deals with the past, in the form of a trolleybus that has been missing from the streets of Nottingham since 1 July 1966, when it was taken out of service, as this method of transport had been phased out.

To commemorate this fact, a number of vintage buses were on display in the Old Market Square today, as all this happened 50 years ago. An AEC Regent belonging to West Bridgford UDC, An Atlantean city bus from the 1970s and one from the South Notts Bus Company were all parked up for everyone to see.

But the trolleybus was getting the most interest, as a lot of people had never seen one in the flesh so to speak. Even me. Especially the one that took that final trip all those years ago.

It has been subject to a lot of restoration work, as it wasn't in very good condition when it was sold off. But now it looks brand new, even though they haven't really bothered that much with the driver's cab. It all looks so primitive, compared to today's state of the art buses and coaches.

Ding, ding. All aboard!

Still Waters

The cascade in Highfields has been off limits for some time now. But I was pleased to see that the gates are open again, and you can once again walk across the stepping stones to see the lovely waterfall. T's a real attraction to the park.

So I've done exactly that, and setting a slow shutter speed, I've captured the water tumbling down the rocks, as though it's frozen in time.

Bird's Eye View

Whilst cycling on the way home through Highfields, I saw this shape wading through the stream. I couldn't make out what it was at first. So I got off my bike, and slowly and very quietly crept up to a nearby tree and waited to see what would appear.

I waited a few minutes and could see that it was a heron. A bird that I had not seen in the park before. As it started to walk away, I very quietly followed it, whilst getting my camera ready to try and take a photo or two of it before it flew away.

There are quite a few trees along there, so I managed to move to one closer without disturbing him.  I managed to take a photo or two, before it spread it's large wings and flew off in the direction of the Lakeside Arts Centre.

Daisy, Daisy

A simple shot today of a daisy growing in the spring sunshine, during my cycle ride on my way home through Highfields.

Army Dreamers

Here's one of the army vehicles that were on display in the Old Market Square the other day.

A big green truck. I think it would make a very good conversion into a camper van. Plenty of space and high up, so you would get a good view from such a high position. Especially if you put a little skylight in the roof.

It's Me In The Spotlight

Another squirrel shot. This time he's being highlighted by the late afternoon sunlight, falling low and peeking through the trees in Highfields.

Sun Day

A busy Sunday in the garden and garage. Some tidying up and sorting out, so I didn't get to go on any photography expeditions.

And also being busy, I forgot to look out for the blood moon, that was meant to be on show tonight. When I did look, it seemed to be the same whitish colour.

So here's a shot of something sunny for Sunday, our sunflower in our garden. The head is starting to die, which means that the seeds should be almost ready to harvest.

Golden Green

The sun setting over Highfields, I think makes for quite a nice restful scene, especially with the blue sky still poking through the trees.

I took this with my fisheye lens, so there is a slight curving to the trees, but nothing too drastic or surreal.

Face In The Crowd

This rather worn out face has seen a lot since he was attached to Beeston's parish church all those years ago.

I wonder how many weddings, funerals, garden parties and Remembrance Sundays he's seen over time?

I also wonder how he lost his nose. Age, an accident, or maybe sadly vandalism.

He's getting a good head of green hair. A Victorian punk perhaps.

On The Run

A bit of an arty photo today of the trees in Highfields.

I used an old manual lens on my digital camera, and was just playing around with the f stops and shutter speeds. I also employed a bit of camera shake, just a little bit to give it a feel of say being chased or the feeling of not quite being alone, but you can't see anyone there.

Curious?

Today, being the first of the month, it's City Daily Photo theme day.

The theme this month is Curiosity. I'm not sure whether my photo fits in with the theme, but I only just remembered that it was time, and I didn't want to miss the party.

So is everyone baffled about what my close up is of? Can it be some matches, sweets. A toy perhaps?

No, it's none of these things. It's actually a close-up of the stamen from some ivy. I took it with one of my legacy lenses. Hence the soft focussing and a little bit of flare.

I hope you like it and plan to visit some more daily photo sites, to see what they have on offer.

Sunk

Over the weekend I was reading about some people who had been boating on Highfields' lake and got stuck in the mud at one end of the lake.

Apparently they didn't see the warning sign that is close to where the mudbank starts. So I thought I would have a look at this sign and work out why the boaters didn't see it.

Here's the said sign, and it's not surprising the people got into trouble, as you can't even properly read what the sign says, let alone the small size of it. It doesn't even look like a proper sign, just maybe something that has been thrown in the water.

No doubt the council will now replace the sign with a new, bigger and easier to read one. But surely this is something that should have been done a long time ago.

Orange

A bit of colour on a fairly grey and overcast day.

Saw these growing in a bed in Highfields. Their bright orange colour certainly stood out to me, so I couldn't resist taking a photo or two.

It's raining whilst I am writing this. So does that mean that summer is over for another year?

Green And White

A soft focus close up of a flower that is currently growing out of the wall of Nottingham Castle.

Blackberry Way

I've had a play with an old legacy lens today on my EM-1.

It is a Japanese Chinon, 50mm f1.7 lens. Completely manual. I had to use an adapter, so I could use it on my camera, as the thread is completely different.

It took a little bit of getting used to, as I am so completely used to using autofocus lenses. Some shots were a bit out of focus, but I don't think this one is too bad, of the first blackberry to appear in the garden.

There is quite a soft, dreamy quality to the photo. I must have a go with a model sometime, or the cats to see what sort of photo it can make on a bigger subject.

Are You Going To Strawberry Fair?

A wild strawberry growing in the garden.

I wonder who will get to eat this first, me or a bird?

Not A Blue Berry

Another shot from the garden plants. This time its some ripening blueberries on the bush that we bought from the garden centre earlier in the year.

We are looking forward to tasting our own homegrown organic blueberries when they fully ripen in the autumn.

Cherry Picking

We have a few fruit trees in the garden; apple, plum and cherry. For some reason there is no fruit growing on the apple tree at the moment, while tiny plums are forming on the plum tree and the cherry tree is first past the post with it's small crop of cherries.

As you can see the birds have discovered them as well and have been eating a few. I'm not sure if they are ready yet, but I have picked them all anyway, and put them in a cloth bag with an apple, just to make sure they do ripen naturally.

It's A Topsy Turvy World

I'm still not very well, so haven't managed to leave the house, but as it was such a lovely day yesterday, I took this photo of the garden through a crystal ball in readiness for this month's theme of 'upside down'.

We haven't got a very big garden, but you can see some trees, a conservatory and of course the lovely blue sky.