Category: Family

Family related posts; generally only of interest to fellow members of the Brown Clan and relations by Marriage into this mad house.

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Spring Photo Shoots – Getting Ready

Here at the Brown Household we are starting to get ready for our Spring Holidays/Landscape Photography Trips.

We have two Spring Holidays planned, one to the Forest of Dean and one to the Shetland Islands.

Part holiday but also part photography trip, so we will be taking the car and not the motorcycle, so we will not be to limited with regard to what equipment we can take.

The primary shooting is going to be Landscape so i’ll be taking the Large Format Ebony.

LargeFormat-Chair-2

The secondary shooting will be be wildlife, so DSLR’s with lens up to 300mm will be needed.

Ferrys and hotels are now all booked so now its just a matter of research to try and locate some likely spots to visit to see if they are suitable.

Always exciting and certainly as far as the Shetland Islands, its the first time we have been there so should prove a new experience.

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Fun Sayings – English

There are a number of sayings that I really like. I was reminded of one of my favourites the other day when someone mentioned the loveliness and purity of the English Language.

English as a lovely language yes but Purity; certainly not.

English: a language that lurks in dark alleys, beats up other languages & rifles through their pockets for spare vocabulary.

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Comic Relief 2013 – Red Nose Day

Well its finally here, Red Nose Day 2013.

A funny way to raise money for charity. We will be having a few events here at work, and I know a few studios that are having studio events. So if there is an event near you please support it.

Hope you enjoy the day and together we can all raise a lot on money for Comic Relief.

 

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February is here and a fresh start to the Year

Gull coming to LandAfter the Sunday at Boutham Park shooting wildlife, I have spent the last week in bed with a rather bad chest infection.  Not only did the boss send me home on the Monday but even the Doctor sent me to Hospital to get checked out further.

So most of last weeks Blog entries were all pre-written posts as I have spent the time asleep in bed.

This Monday I am now starting to feel better and i’ll be heading back to work on Tuesday now that I can face staring at a computer screen without my head exploding.

I am going to be thinking hard about what I am going to photography this year.  With this I’ll be considering my lens and where I have gaps in my current selection.

I have two trips planned so far, both landscape and wildlife focussed.  The first is a trip to the Forrest of Dean, the second which we will be planning over the next few weeks is a trip to the Shetland Islands.

For the Landscape I have the gear and equipment I need but will lookout for mild large format telephoto, possibly 200-300mm range.  For the SLR, I am going to keep my eye out for something a little longer then my 70-200mm f/2.8 and possibly add another teleconverter.

So here as I finishing writing this with one last coughing fit over the keyboard, i’ll also add one more lens into the mix, possibly a Leica 90mm.

 

Lens to consider this year.

Large format:

210mm or 300mm f/5.6

Digital SLR:

300mm f/2.8 or f/4

200mm /f2

Range Finder:

50mm f/2

90mm f/2

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Landslips at Whitby

Whitby Harbour & ChurchWhitby is one of our top three holiday destinations in England.  When we visited a few months ago there had been a landslip, resulting in some houses having to be demolished.

Last week there has been another landslip, this time near the church.  See the BBC news website for more details.

Lets hope it does not get any worse.

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The Official Christmas Party

Tonight was the Official Works Christmas Party.

The theme as you may be able to tell was School Disco and many took this as a excuse to dress up.  Free drinks a meal and a chance to let our hair down after a stressful and busy year.

Photography care of my phone.  Considering the poor light the images are quite good, you can see why less and less people are using compact cameras and using there phones.

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Merry Christmas

Winter; especially December and January is a period of celebration for many regions, so Happy “-insert you region’s ceremony here-“.  If your not religious then enjoy your day off, unless your having to work to keep the rest of us safe. 

Bodhi Day

December 8th – On Bodhi day some Buddhists celebrate Gautama’s attainment of enlightenment under the Bodhi tree at Bodhgaya, India.

Hanukkah

December 9th – Hanukkah is the Festival of Lights and marks the restoration of the temple by the Maccabees in 164 BCE. Hanukkah is celebrated at roughly the same time as Christmas, but there is no connection at all between the festivals.

Yule

December 21st – Yule is the time of the winter solstice, when the sun child is reborn, an image of the return of all new life born through the love of the Gods. Within the Northern Tradition Yule is regarded as the New Year.

Christmas

December 25th – The day when Western Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.

Oshogatsu

January 1st – Shinto New Year, one of the most popular occasions for shrine visits.

Guru Gobind Singh

January 5th – Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) was the tenth and last of the Sikh Gurus. He instituted the Five Ks and established the Order of the Khalsa.

Orthodox Christmas

January 7th – Most Orthodox churches use the Julian rather than the Gregorian version of the Western calendar. As a result, they celebrate Christmas 13 days later than other Christian churches.

Makar Sankranti

January 14th – Makar Sankranti is one of the most important festivals of the Hindu calendar and celebrates the sun’s journey into the northern hemisphere.

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A Biker’s Night Before Christmas

On the Biking Blog “Ride it like you stole it!” which is sadly no more by Dave Dragon, there was a poem “The Biker’s Night Before Christmas”.

I have posted this before but as it is Christmas Eve I thought I was worth posting again.

Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the pad,

There was nada happenin’, now that’s pretty bad.

The woodstove was hung up in that stocking routine,

In hopes that the Fat Boy would soon make the scene.

With our stomachs packed with tacos and beer,

My girl and I crashed on the couch for some cheer.

When out in the yard there arose such a racket,

I ran for the door and pulled on my jacket.

I saw a large bro’ on a ’56 Pan

Wearin’ black leathers, a cap, and boots (cool biker, man).

He hauled up the bars on that bikeful of sacks,

And that Pan hit the roof like it was running on tracks.

I couldn’t help gawking, the old guy had class.

But I had to go in — I was freezing my ass.

Down through the stovepipe he fell with a crash,

And out of the stove he came dragging his stash.

With a smile and some glee he passed out the loot,

A new jacket for her and some parts for my scoot.

He patted her fanny and shook my right hand,

Spun on his heel and up the stovepipe he ran.

From up on the roof came a great deal of thunder,

As that massive V-twin ripped the silence asunder.

With beard in the wind, he roared off in the night,

Shouting, “Have a cool Yule, and to all a good ride!”