Cornish Memories

I had hoped to get out with my camera today but for various reasons I wasn't able to do so and as a result I felt a bit glum. As I am writing this I can see that it is now raining so perhaps I wouldn't have had such a great time anyway. To fill some time I decided to review a few old files and photos and I realised that I had a couple of folders that I have neglected so I have some work to do to sort through them. The first is a collection  of photos I took on a holiday in Cornwall at the end of September 2024. \9I can hardly believe that I have left them so long although I may have shared some mobile phone photos from that trip on Instagram and Facebook I don't appear to have done anything with this folder).

I had visited Cornwall briefly for a work trip a long time ago but I had never gone for leisure so I was really pleased to have an opportunity to go for a short break. I stayed in Newquay but travelled around a fair bit over the few days I was there.

These first two images were taken on Pentire Headland looking towards Fistral Beach. The conditions were a bit dull and overcast so I thought these images worked better in black and white. They are grasses which were growing on the top of an old stone wall.

These next few images are from St Michael's Mount. 

The cannon pointed towards Penzance, was one of many pointed in the same direction, I did wonder whether this was a sign of aggression towards the people of Penzance or a show of strength to ward off would be aggressors from the sea. 

I always like a nice sundial and this one definitely caught my eye. I originally shot this in black and white because I liked the way it looked in monochrome however when editing I actually wanted to bring out the colours in the sea and the stonework.

This last image was part of a "thing" I was doing with Lego minifigures, mostly using my phone's camera and you can see them all on my Instagram profile (Chipster_63), but here I have used my DSLR and I have kept it in black and white as shot. I have lots of minifigures that I like to pose in various locations to tell a story. In this image the figure represents me and has its own little camera and the image overall represents the time I spend taking pictures as well as being a little bit of fun.
 

So Much Fun

 Today I went to Burton Mere RSPB reserve. I asked my eldest grandson if he wanted to come along and take some photos with me, he is not yet 3 years old. He said yes and on the journey to the reserve he kept repeating "I am going to have so much fun". As I was driving I kept thinking "I really hope you do" because although the sun was shining it was very cold (barely above freezing) and I thought that he could quickly lose interest if he is too cold.

However wrapped up against the elements and armed with his camera he was clearly very excited. I didn't expect to take many pictures myself but that was not really the point of the trip, I was really looking forward to spending some time with him and sharing a place that I enjoy. It was really gratifying when we were sat in one hide eating our lunch when he got down from the bench and went over to a poster on the wall that I had seen he was studying, it had about 45 or 50 different birds on it, he pointed up at the picture of a Moorhen "grandpa" he said "we saw one of those on the lake" He was right and I was so pleased that he had taken note and could pick that out from so many other birds.

After lunch there was another treat when we were able to hand feed a Robin. His excitement when the tiny bird flew onto my hand and settled just a few inches from his own hand was wonderful to observe. We hear so much about how getting close to nature is good for our mental health/wellbeing it is also good for developing minds.

As we walked round, splashing in muddy puddles and cracking ice beneath our feet he told me more than once "I am having so much fun", he even asked to video call his mum and told her the same thing. His joy was infectious and I told him that I was also having lots of fun. 

I recently heard someone comment about people taking photos and sharing them online saying that he didn't get the obsession with capturing a moment and then reliving the moment 5 minutes later, when you could be living another moment. I get what he was saying and it is important not to become obsessed with that, but at the same time some moments are worth sharing and some images should be saved. Today was a special day, I was grateful that I could get out and even more grateful that I could share it with my grandson.

Here are a few images from our walk around the reserve:

Coal Tit

Reflections

Moorhen

Robin

Budding photographer/naturalist

Finger Paints

 This sh0t was just a bit of fun when it was taken but having cropped it slightly I think it is actually a pretty good photo and still funny.

It was taken in a small Czech town called Cesky Krumlov (there should be some accents on there that my keyboard won't reproduce). We stopped off here on the drive from Prague to Vienna at the suggestion of a Czech friend who quite rightly pointed out to me that there is so much more to the Czech Republic than its capital.

Driving through the countryside there were forests and lakes and then this beautiful bohemian town full of wonderful buildings was definitely a great place to stop. There will no doubt be more pictures to follow but for today just a bit of fun.

Fine Art Becomes Street Art

When you go to Florence there is so much to see and do, the renaissance architecture, the colourful stonework, the parks and gardens and so much more.

This was my second visit to Florence and it was definitely one of the highlights of the trip.  This time I had a little more time to explore and before I go on to share perhaps more traditional images of the city I wanted to share these quirky pictures that I captured as I walked around the city.

The first three images are of work by a mysterious street artist who identifies him/herself as Blub.

All across the city there are these pictures of famous works of art by the likes of Dante and Botticelli with all of the figures wearing scuba masks.

I had walked past a number of these pictures before I realised it was a "thing" and now I wish that I had captured more of them because they are really fun.  If you would like to see some more examples and read an interview with the artist then  click here

The final image of the no entry sign is also evidence of the fun at the heart of this wonderful city. Each No Entry sign (and there are a lot of them around the old city) and many other road signs have been modified with a unique artwork by the French Street Artist Clet. They are fantastic little works. Most of the time we hardly notice the road signs, well we notice them but we react to the symbol without really looking at them but when each one is a unique piece of street art you are more likely to take notice. As with the Blub pictures I wish I had taken pictures of mor of Clets work so if you want to see more why not click here.

The eye of the beholder...

No this post is not about beauty or about great photos its an exercise in subjectivity.

The four pictures above were taken within a second or two using the continuous shooting mode on my camera.

I can see a different shape in each picture and I would like to see if other people see what I see.  So I am inviting comments below just put the number 1 to 4 and next to each say what you see, go on its a bit of fun...