I 'm off work this week (lots of flexi time). I was hoping for good weather, and continue to work in the garden. This is b****y hard work – I am preparing the vegetable beds and tried to dig up the soil. After about 20 cam, there is just rubble in the ground. Apparently, this is what’s happening commonly in newly build houses, were the builders, when they leave, just dump the rubble in the garden and top it with a whimsy layer of top soil. Yep, that’s exactly how my soil is! Great. I dug about 30 cm deep or so, but can’t do no more, it is just too hard going through the rubble. I’ve done about 60% of the border in the last 4 weeks, planted so far runner beans, tomatoes, broccoli,coriander, rocket.

It is quite windy today, and not very warm, sitting in the garden and reading is not an option (that’s what I did yesterday, my ideal holiday occupation – bliss!). I took the camera out with me when I walked Bonnie. I still feel a little uncomfortable, walking with a big camera and enormous lens around my neck. I don’t feel very safe to be honest. Maybe its because I’m not used to it, but on the other hand I don’t want to miss out on photo opportunities. Today it was too windy to attempt pictures of flowers, they were blowing all over the place. So I did some more of those ducks/ducklings – all good practice. Downloading is easy peasy. I hadn’t realized what big difference the photo editing software makes to the quality of the pictures. I only did so far level tools. Takes up all my time, but is fun. And than there is a big book to read, all about Photoshop… Only 695 pages. Yes, I do enjoy it.

Oh, and I set up that Flickr account www.flickr.com/thepegster2009. Not a lot in there yet - another thing I gotta do!

Here is an example of my (still veeeery amateur) work in the photo editing programm. I did not use Photoshop for this, but the simple software which was supplied by Canon with the Camera. Didn't dare to look at Photoshop yet hee hee - that big 695 pages long book is waiting for me.

Original
edited with level / curve tools

Big news - well, for me anyway. I have finally bought my first D-SLR camera. Have been toying with this for the last few months, as I enjoy walking and wildlife/wildflowers more and more and really want to get more serious about photography. So... I have saved up on a deposit and got a Canon Eos 450D. There is sooo much to learn, I've been submerged in the 'Dummy' guide for the past few days and taking my first shots. I love it.

Problem is that this is going to be an expensive hobby. Already I realised that I may have to purchase more lenses with the stuff I want to take pictures off. I got 2 lenses with the camera (as I kit), and I want to get completely comfortable with everything in the first place. I'm still on the 'Automatic' setting for the camera, but hopefully will explore more in the next few weeks and can start experimenting with the manual settings.

Completely neglected cross stitch as a hobby, but will definitely return to it sooner or later - just enjoy taking pictures so much at the mo (and playing with all the new equipment). Here are some of the first pictures I took - completely unedited(haven't yet got the hang of Photoshop - another Dummy-guide I gotta get through LOL - Amazon is making tons of profit with me at the mo.

Thomas

Everyone at work liked this picture. Thomas looks absolutely enourmous, almost as big as Ruby but honestly it just looks like that in the picture, he is just one big fluffball.



-- Post From My iPhone

Cross stitch update

I have been neglecting my cross stitch in a big way in the past few weeks. And my friend Jo has taken to it big time - finished her first piece in less than 4 weeks. Well last week I had the ,Giraffe, from Dimensions in my rotation for the first week and as the progress picture shows I've hardly worked on it though I think the shape of the giraffe head is already recognizable! I've just been toooo busy last week for cross stitch - did a lot of gardening (I made a herb bed), playing with the phone for the last 4 days and of course looking for a camera. I would really like to get more seriously into photography (as a hobby) and do a lot of research into beginner DSLR camera's. Veerey confusing. Here is the picture of the giraffe, only a snapshot taken with the iPhone though.




-- Post From My iPhone

Out and about

Beacon Wood Country Park is turning out to be a favourite of mine, so much so that I now come here every Sunday. It is much quieter than Shorne (no Cafe or visitor centre here) and no car park charge. And the forest is dense, well as much as one van expect in the south east of England .




-- Post From My iPhone

Zadie Smith 'The Autograph Man'

Alex-Li Tandem sells autographs - a small blip in a huge worldwide network of desires. It is his business to hunt for names on paper, collect them, sell tham, occasionally fake them, and all to give people what they want: a little piece of fame. But what does Alex want? Only the return of his father, the reinstatement of some kind of all-powerful benevolent God-type figure, the end of religion, somthing for his headache, three different girls, infinitie grace and the rare autograph of forties movie actress Kitty Alexander. With fries.

The Autograph Man is a deeply funny, existential tour arond the hollow things of modernity - celebrity, cinema and the ugly triumph of symbol over experience. Through London and then New York, Alex is sent on a paper-trail, searching for the only authograph that ever matered to him, resisting the mystcical lure of Kabbalah and Zen, and avoiding all collectors, conmen and interfering Rabbis who would put themselves in his path. Pushing against the tide of his generation, Alex-Li is on his way to finding enlightenment, otherwise known as some part of himself that cannot be signed, celebrated or sold.

Here it goes, this is the first post from my iphone - I'm actually walking Bonnie at the mo and can't put the iphone away - nice little toy LOL

-- Post From My iPhone