.The start of spring.

April has arrived and its still pretty cold here but things are slowly starting to come back to life and the flowers are growing. I went out for a nice walk and snapped a couple of shots though there wasnt much life to shoot. All good practice though.

Dad

My dad just had a triple heart bypass last week..he had a heart attack in september an has been waiting to have the operation since. It finally came. It was a 7hr operation that went well..he suffered a collapsed lung afterwards an then had problems with his kidneys but he has now been able to come back home and is doing well. Before he came home i left a little message for him on the fridge

When he came home he let me snap a couple of photos quickly before he went to bed to rest. I was suprised at how clean and healthy his scar looked considering it was only a week ago that they operated. I thought it would be dressed aswell but apparently not..it heals faster this way.

So glad to have you home dad! You'll be good as new before you know it!

.Lola.

Ive been a bad blogger again...so much has been happening over the last couple of months but ive been picking up my camera as much as possible an taking photos of lola. As a result....i dedicate this whole post to the beautiful & wonderful Lola.

This was taken back in January...it was getting late in the evening an she'd just had her dinner. The lighting was crap but i couldnt pass up that adorable face of hers. She has some great expressions an this is her...im not looking at you face.

This month ive taken quite a few photos of her..after not picking up my camera for at least 2/3wks i decided i need to get back onto it and get some great photos that i could have printed big for everyone.
Ty & Lola stayed at the house for the night and i took the opportunity to snap a bunch of photos...i must of taken at least 50...to get only 5/6 good ones.

I love this one in color aswell....

Last one of our little session...

And before the end of the day...i managed to get a photo of Lola and her dad (my brother Richard)...she really is his twin...his mini me!

I had such fun over the day taking these photos of Lola..she is such a funny little girl and really a pleasure to spend time with. She pulls the funniest of faces and does the craziest of things.
Now all i need is for her big brother Ty to allow me to take some photos of him and then i can have some great ones of him to give to his mum & rich..not just photos of Lola.

101 in 1001

The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

My list: (in no particular order!)

1. Move into my own place
2. Grow my hair long
3. Finish my tattoo sleeve
4. Put together a photography portfolio
5. Get my own website up and running
6. Get down to at least 140lbs (10 stone) [0 lbs lost]
7. Buy a canon 5d or a nikon D3
8. Save enough money for at least 3 lenses [0/3]
9. Decorate my bedroom
10. Invest
11. Sort out my finances
12. Get my drivers license
13. Learn to speak french
14. Get a car
15. Call it quits with my birth mother.
16. Save at least £2000
17. Spend more time with my little brother Perry & little sisters Dana & Molly
18. Start a 365 day project and finish it
19. Start dating again!
20. Learn to understand photoshop
21. Release an photoshop action or raw preset
22. Buy a flash & diffuser [0/2]
23. Buy a dress or 2 [0/2]
24. Get down to a size 12
25. Display my work in a public place
26. Get my first paying clients
27. Take a picture a day or anything that interests me for at least 3months
28. Travel to at least 2 countries [0/2]
29. Spend less time at home
30. Develop a client base
31. Have a logo designed
32. Get at least 2 photos on canvas [0/2]
33. Join a gym
34. Do a photography course at college
35. Buy Marina Miller's VIP raw presets
36. Travel around america
37. Go to a flickr meet
38. Move away from Hereford
39. Learn to cook a complete roast dinner
40. Learn to play guitar
41. Get all my photos printed an in albums or frames
42. Visit museums & art galleries
43. Go to at least 3 concerts [0/3]
44. Learn to snowboard
45. Get a mac
46. Do fun yet educational things with my nephew & niece
47. Go on a girls weekend to ireland,paris or amsterdam
48. Organise a family party so everyone can meet
49. Read a book a fortnight
50. Clean out all my crap...clothes & paperwork
51. Look into a journalism course
52. Go to glastobury or redding festival
53. Eat only vegitarian for a week
54. Lean to develop film in a home darkroom
55. Buy a film camera
56. Run a mile
57. Go for a romantic night out
58. Buy a painting
59. See the northern lights
60. Take my mum whale watching in iceland
61. Start trying for a family
62. Learn to dive
63. Learn to read,write & speak italian
64. Do on location photoshoots with friends & family to build confidence & experience
65. Do a typing course
66. Get a job i love
67. Keep in contact with old friends
68. Write more letters
69. Buy a whole new different wardrobe of clothes
70. Visit & learn about africa
71. Learn to surf
72. Drink no diet coke for a month
73. Eat no bread for 1 week
74. Do 100 sit ups a night for 2wks
75. Find a new dentist
76. Get my nails done
77. Dye my hair a crazy color
78. Get my teeth fixed
79. Give blood
80. Have a poker night
81. Have a movie marathon
82. Buy an album a month
83. Start an LP collection
84. Throw a party
85. Have a candlelit meal
86. Have a candlelit scented bath
87. Write a magazine article
88. Make an distribute flyers/postcards advertising my services
89. Get a penpal/package exchange buddy
90. Do a pub quiz on a regular basis
91. Have a snowball fight
92. Make a list of all family birthdays and anniversaries
93. Watch a basketball game live
94. Visit ground zero
95. Finish my family tree
96. Dont swear for a whole day!
97. Buy prison break boxset an watch all the episodes
98. Convert to buddhism
99. Try sushi
100. Train myself to wear heels again
101. Get married


Finish date: Saturday 6th November 2010

Wish me luck guys...ima need all the support i can get : )
(I'll edit this post as an when things get done)

Christmas Day!

Christmas day has come and gone already..it went by so quickly. I didnt take any pictures of the family over the day..i think because people expected me to i felt less like taking them. In truth,i missed my grandad and it didnt feel right without him. My grandad has been at our for christmas every year since my nan died..and probably every year before that..so for him to not be there..with his cracker hat on sleeping in the chair oppostite my sleeping dad..it just didnt feel right. I feel bad that i didnt take any because it was Lola's first christmas and it should of been a special one..but saying that,she was over stimulated and after being helped to open 2 presents she'd had enough. She didnt want any part of this christmas present game and proceeded to chew one of her new books in attempt to stop the agonising teething pain she is suffering from at the moment.
I did get up and go for a walk with my mum and the dog christmas morning though and took a couple of shots of nothing inparticular.

My mum still refuses to look at the camera thou...

But she expects me to when she wants to take my picture...i look dreadful thou...early morning,cold,no make up...need i say more!

After everyone had left and christmas was 'over' i took a few snaps of little things..a couple of the xmas decorations..the candle..our light sticks in the hall...nothing special or important..just little things!

Christmas is here...almost!!

Its christmas in the morning..its so exciting..i love christmas..ive been fairly unprepared this year though..left everything abit to the last minute. I should have been more prepared but right now im gonna put that down to the fact that ive been working 9-6 every day and have only managed to buy the odd thing on my lunchbreak..time goes alot quicker than it used to im sure.
Last week i managed to go an get my hair cut at long last though..just in time for my staff party..

I havent been taking as many pictures recently. Ive been working like everyday until 6 and by the time i get home its dark and usually wet and i dont as yet have a flash or any equipment for my camera other than my lenses so i find nighttime photography impossible...plus i dont have anyone to photograph really..it sucks!!
I did get to go take my dog for a nice long walk last week though when i had the day off work..i only took a couple of shots but this is by far my favourite. I made her sit still for about 10mins after she dropped the stick at my feet..i wouldnt throw the stick for her until she looked at me.
She looks so damn miserable...what a cruel owner i am!!

Im off to go finish wrapping presents now..just in time to put under the tree for the moring..Merry christmas to everyone..have a great day and enjoy the last of the year!!

Xmas

We finally got round to putting up the christmas tree the other night..it was alotta fun but i had to get up in our attic several times which wasnt fun. I hate attics because i hate spiders..that and we have no floor in our attic so you have to walk on the beams which can be difficult with all the crap up there. Anyway..i got up there several times as we discovered half our decorations werent in the boxes we thought they were an then the box we got down didnt have anything in
We set it all up and got the lights out and i snapped a shot of the final thing...all bokeh'd for ya'll..i jumped on the flickr bandwagon on that one.

Sunday,we headed up to visit my aunt & uncle in ludlow and stayed at their house for lunch. I took a quick shot of my Uncle while we were sat around the dinner table..the light was crappy as it was wet and miserable outside and starting to get dark but i still like it. Til i was about 15 my uncle had a beard..then one day it was gone..i remember i thought he looked so weird without a beard anymore but now,i cant imagine ever having a beard..though,i think he would look alittle like santa claus!

I think ive decided on a name for my 'business' as if it was that. Bovina Sancta! photography..its latin for Holy cow! I thought it was funny...unless you know latin its unlikely you'll know what it means so it still sounds sensible and stuff : )