The Snow is Coming!

I have been trapped in a strange mood lately, not a negative one but something that has prevented me from making images this last month. I have done nothing of consequence except take pictures of the rapidly growing kitten, not something I would normally do but then new kitten new baby I suppose everyone has a fascination for a while. As for having no theme or focus this month I expect that is because I have been distracted with the prep for the exhibition. I can now move on, it is down had some great response but I would have liked more sales but that is the current climate here.




The climate is my focus now, I'm hoping to travel tomorrow and the impending snow is a little worrying it will possibly delay me or at worst it just won't happen another day will be on hold till later. In some repects though the change will give me something to do. I have been wanting to get on with my pinholes for some time and I am feeling surrounded by lots of potential activities. The snow is something I made images of last year and it will be great to revisit the subject. Last year the images were also made using a Diana F+ as well as a Pinholga here are some of them.

Missing month!

A little image for Dia de los Muertos!
October seems to have vanished in a blaze of glory or at least glorious colour, it has been filled with many events that would have been worth talking about at least at the time but in retrospect seem a little pointless to comment on at great length. I am a year older but also a year younger...than I thought! now this worries me because if I'm doing this forgetting thing now then it's really all down hill from here.

Did I mention I now have an allotment?! well I shall be taking images whilst I convert the plot into something more useable, it wasn't wildly overgrown but it has and is still being cleared slowly but surely and I have some great ideas for the biodiversity side of things with a living roof on the shed, that is soon to be erected. I have developed a new ability to sense where waste scaffold boards are hiding and grab them for raised beds. I also have great plans to use the shed as a Camera Obscura at the same time as a potting shed! I shall post pictures of the developments once I'm not using a film that is meant for the Art of Waiting project, though I have been using a number of cams including a Diana mini holga and LCA to record the changes.

Halloween celebrations have also been and gone but here they are a little bit of a damp squib but we are catching on, I should have pics of an Anime/Manga convention with some very 'cool' costumes which was held at Excel on the last weekend of October.

I have also been busy putting together a new book which I can now say is published and ready to view. This one has been a while in the making as I wanted to get the feel right. It is available to buy from Blurb and I have also been able to get a local bookshop interested. I hould at the moment be preparing for an exhbition in Dulwich, South London but I'm waiting for Frames and of course my prints are not quite as expected so the little time I have is now being wasted with waiting for corrections. I shall post again with details soon as I only have a few more days before it is supposed to be up. Love the pressure!!

Disappointment!

It seems May is going to be the month for indescision and maybe disappointment. I have too much to do and something has got to give, I didn't expect that it would be my blog. A serious lack of inspiration has been making it's mark felt on many a contribution this month. I just haven't felt willing to send in anything to the Art of Waiting project that I'm doing, willing is probably too strong a word I should maybe say able. Commitments have been so many this month, what with all the birthdays(not finished yet!) for the kids and family that any spare time to do 'stuff' is well out of the metaphorical window.

...And now I have just remembered that I haven't brought in this months batch of Solargraphs, a few days late, which is not a problem but only as long as I remember to bring them in tomorrow!

Jeff will have to wait patiently and hopefully not be disappointed when he does receive my contributions for April and May!

On a more positive note I now have work on show in two different parts of the world, India for the jury's pick at the Goa-Cap exhibit and USA for the Curious Camera(the latter being projected I believe). It would seem that sometimes the right themes are found and they strike a note with others.

Archery and Goals

I try to drag myself from my bed every Sunday (at least the dry ones) to get to a sports field a few miles away, where myself and if I can rouse her my daughter, attempt to get a few hours archery in and improve our skills in hitting that gold. Due to our current infrequent visits we need a lot of practice and despite it looking like an easy static sport it takes a lot of time to master and quite a lot of effort to maintain the necessary poise and concentration for a decent shot.

The random nature of my shooting at the moment means I can get anything from a gold to a miss in one end... not something to be proud of! this morning was no different and despite the mild weather I was left feeling like I could have managed to get a better score.

I have been waiting for a few years to achieve this and my ultimate goal would be to get a bowmen status but I'm happy to wait as the club is friendly and we have a good gab at the same time. Waiting for such goals is an interesting challenge though, whilst there the desire to get a personal best is so strong that it can leave you feeling frustrated by your own stupid mistakes but wait I do.

As for waiting I want to expand upon my previous entry regarding the project that I'm involved in with Jeff Natchtigall The Art of Waiting, a challenge yes! as much as my archery? on a mental level yes, I am finding it a fascinating project and one that I'm very happy to take on and support ( I actually can't wait to see what's on that film) but patience is becoming a virtue and as I try to get to grips with the ideas I propose to do and wonder whether I will ever find the time to send in the next entry i would just like to say that i'm grateful to be part of such an interesting group of people some of whom I had known before some not at all and others that I'm finding out about in such a curious way.

My entries for month two have recently been posted and contain some sketches that I do whilst waiting!