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Phoebe says...

From me, Sarah and of course, Phoebe – who chose this Christmas message.

I’m just ordering Sarah’s last Christmas gift (something she told me yesterday she wanted and they didn’t have in the shops), so a quick message before going quiet for Christmas.

The cake is just about to be iced, the mince pies are done, the turkey is defrosting (!) and the presents wrapped (mostly).  The last few presents and the cake will get done at 3pm, which is when Christmas really starts for me.  Just after 3pm, we’ll join millions of others all around the world with the Nine Lessons and Carols from King’s College, Cambridge.  And I’ll know Christmas has arrived.  Each year I forget how much I love this start to Christmas; this year I was reminded early by this post. As you’ll see from my comment there, I get all tingly when ‘Once in Royal David City’ starts; followed by the wonderful language of the service itself – “in heart and mind to go even unto Bethlehem”, “all those who rejoice with us, but on another shore”… (as Sam Seaborn in The West Wing would say, a little thing called cadence) to the final reading that “In the Beginning was the Word…” and the triumphal Hark the Herald Angels Sing.

May your Christmases be merry and bright, peaceful and restful. God bless and see you soon.

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Been suffering with thick head, cold and aches for the past two days.  And that, coupled with my lack of voice, has meant that I’ve kept away from the office (firstly, people couldn’t hear me; secondly, if they could, they’d laugh; thirdly (and most importantly) nobody wants to risk catching another bug this close to Christmas).

Am feeling better today, but still tired.  I think tomorrow I’m going to need a serious coffee before I start to get my head back into gear.

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So, I failed to post this from way back in, oh, October… Yes, I finally got around to buying the camera I’d promised myself from the bonus I got in January.  And by waiting a little, I got a new but cheaper model than I’d intended…

D90-1

Ah, the tell-tale bag from Grays of Westminster. For those of you who’ve never been, beware.  If you’re a Nikon user, it is impossible to step through their hallowed portals without spending money.  They’re very friendly there though, and don’t mind giving you a lot of free advice whilst helping you choose your purchases.  And they don’t do anything but Nikon.  So you’re guaranteed they know what they’re talking about.

So, here it is, the box of delights itself.  I’ve splurged out on a new Nikon D90 to replace my previous D50.  Fond as I was of the D50, I’d found I was now wanting to change settings far more often. And having to dive into the menus each time was frustrating me – having buttons that naturally fall under your thumb is just so much better.  I was on the verge of buying a D300, Nikon’s semi-professional/serious amateur offering.  But I’m glad I waited. No, not for the video capability.  Simply because this is nowhere near as heavy.  Which is important when you’re carrying a very heavy lens on the front all day.

D90-2

D90-3

And here it is.  The new, smaller Nikons wouldn’t give me the features I wanted.  And no, I’m not just talking about buttons versus diving into menus.  See that button the bottom left of the lens? Yes?  Depth of field preview.  Something that needs physical functionality and can’t just be done in software.  The D90 is the first model in Nikon’s range with this.  Plus the smaller models (D60, D40) are, well, smaller.  Which means that when you’ve got hands my size they’re fiddly.  This feels very natural to use.

And everything you get in the box. Same battery as the old camera, so I now have a spare and a spare charger.  CD – useful for some; I’ve not put it in the drive yet as Lightroom will pull pictures in direct.  And that 278-page manual… which I’ve still not finished reading.  The notable omission? Yes, no new lens.  Tempting as it was to spend more, I really didn’t want Nikon’s kit lens. It is remarkably good value in the kit (only £120 more for a 18-105mm lens with image stabilisation).  But I already have the 18-200mm lens which has been just about glued to the front of my D50 and is now firmly fixed to my D90.

D90-4

My one regret? I’d pre-ordered with Jessops because there was a good deal with a memory card thrown in for free.  I ordered they day they became available.  It was shown as pending before our trip to Italy and always going to be touch and go as to whether it would arrive in time.  And it didn’t.  Without bothering to e-mail me, or anything, they cancelled the order.  No, I didn’t just re-order. I did what I should’ve done in the first place and went to Grays.  No, I didn’t get the free memory card.  But I did get some advice, and gave support to the sort of shop that deserves to stay in business.  And I am now one very happy photographic bunny (at least when I get the chance…)

 

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I have finally caught up on Flickr with The Game.

The concept:

  1. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
  2. Using only the first page, pick an image.
  3. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd’s Mosaic Maker.

The Game

The Questions:

  1. What is your first name? Richard
  2. What is your favourite food? Pesto pasta
  3. What high school did you go to? Dr Challoners*
  4. What is your favourite colour? Blue
  5. Who is your celebrity crush? Juliet Binoche
  6. Favourite drink? Deuchars
  7. Dream vacation? Napa Valley
  8. Favourite dessert? Pavlova
  9. What you want to be when you grow up? Accountant**
  10. What do you love most in life? Sarah***
  11. One Word to describe you. Tall
  12. Your flickr name Photoverulam****

Share your creation on your blog, upload it to Flickr, even add it to The Game pool.

* Dr Challoners came up with nothing. I had to use just Challoners
** I know, I know. But I already am one. And that means I can’t just pick a more exciting career. Like being…… a LUMBERJACK! Leaping from tree to tree!
*** I had to cheat a little here and search just my own photos 😉
**** Oddly, I get only three pictures when I search for my screen name. Not sure why it’s picked only these two shots. Ho hum!

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Mmmm cake

The last Sunday before Advent is often called ‘Stir-up Sunday.’  Traditionally it’s when Christmas pudding was made.  As we’re not having one of those this year, we made our cake instead.   I forgot to post this last week; the cake is now safely tucked away coming out only to be ‘fed’ with brandy on an occasional basis before being covered in marzipan and icing.

Why ‘Stir-up Sunday’?  The best explanation I can find is on the website of Woodlands Junior School in Kent – read here.

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To Gloucester in October on a steam train, with thanks for last Christmas to my Mum and Dad.  Our trip on the Sir Lamiel (a ‘King Arthur’ Class 30777, no less, or so the leaflet said) took us from London Waterloo to Gloucester. It was a bit slow from Waterloo round to the main line, but after that we chuffed along quite nicely with a good head of steam (give me a break here, I’m trying to sound like I know about steam trains and failing!).  A quick stop to take on water near Didcot and then off to Gloucester for a look around.  Gloucester’s main claim to fame is the Cathedral.  You might just recognise the cloisters (pictured). I could tell you all about the amazing fan vaulting, the craftsmanship and the light.  But you’d probably far rather know that they double as the school corridors for a certain boy wizard…

SteamDreamsMosaic

Centre. Switch, 1. Topping up, 2. Speeding along, 3. Arrived, 4. Hot work, 5. Sir Lamiel, 6. Gloucester Cathedral, 7. Great window, 8. Tomb, 9. Cathedral, 10. Light, 11. Hogwarts!, 12. Hogwarts!

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mosaic4664811 Batch two from our trip to Lake Garda.  We took a trip into Verona one day – here’s the photos to prove it!

 

Have to confess I had been a little nervous about another Italian city having found Naples so horrible.  But Verona was clean, friendly and very easy to get around, and full of interesting places to visit.

Click on the picture to the left or here for the Flickr set.