Timeless fun

The lake where we walk Daisy (just 5 minutes from home) used to be a tourist destination, from the early 1900's thru' to the 1980's. There were fairground rides, watersports, a tea room and a restaurant and it attracted people from far and wide. Nowadays it's unspoilt with only a small community building and a few picnic benches. On hot days it attracts smaller numbers of people who come just to paddle, sunbathe and enjoy the view. Today it felt quite timeless with such simple activities making for a very pleasant Sunday afternoon.

Pant...pant...pant

Not sure about this weather, it's a bit warm for a fur coat and this bandana isn't doing anything for me!

Pesky midges

I find it really funny to think of everyone in the UK packing a whole Summer's activities into 1 week of good weather. We've been sitting out with friends until late but fighting the midges with incense sticks and citronella candles.

Alium

Those beautiful buds have burst into stunning spherical flowers - they have the most amazing structure - will try a macro one day. But today loved the shadows cast on the wall and broke my rule of not photographing flowers in direct sunlight.

Getting stuck into custard

Daisy's cancer is back sadly and even with 2nd round of chemo we're only talking about 4-6 weeks. Needless to say, we're spoiling her rotten, including letting her lick out the custard jug!

What a difference a week makes

My daughter's friends were very envious of her little Jubilee photo shoot after dance last week (umbrella in the rain), so I invited them to join in today. There's a real feeling of excitement building as we lead up to the Jubilee and Olympics - a really big year for the UK. The kids are loving it all.

Oh and the title is a reference to the weather' Last week cold, windy and wet, this week warm and sunny - proper Summer at last!

Doubly beautiful

I love clematis but hate that they only flower for such a short time. Anyone know what variety this is - lost the plant label.

DOFfy Duck

I ran a photography course today and was using this duck to demonstrate the effect of aperture settings on depth of field (DOF) - hence his name! This was taken at f/1.8. This duck had lots of colourful brothers and sisters that were also photographed at different apertures by the people in the group.

(We did go outside later and photograph slightly more interesting subjects!)

Perishing Picnic in the Park

Despite unseasonally chilly weather we've had a great time at the first of many Diamond Jubilee events. This was the school PTA Picnic in the Park, originally conceived of back in January when we imagined Summer would have arrived by now. But we Brits are made of tough stuff - bbqs were lit, corks popped and we got on with enjoying ourselves.

Flower or anenome?

Its correct name, so my gardener tells me, is centaurea montana 'purple heart', or a variety of cornflower. Either way, it's stunning.

Btw, I'm not really posh enough to have a gardener but I've done a skills swop with one! I photograph plants for her on line catalogue and she does my garden. Win win :-)

Did you do a double take?

Nic bought me this excellent travel mug & we've tricked a few people with it. With the lid / lens cap on it looks just like a Canon lens & we've enjoyed chucking it at someone & saying "have you seen my new lens?" They panic like mad trying to catch it, not quite believing we would throw a lens!

This isn't going to hurt...

This has been a very familiar point of view for me over the last three months. I'm on my eighth visit to the dentists in that period of time!

Quintessentially British

We are gearing up to celebrate 60 years of rule by Queen Elizabeth II and to host the Olympics. Lots of lovely outdoor events, basking in warm sunshine, barbeques, picnics... or maybe not if May is anything to go by!!

Ready to fly the flag!

We're going to be in Florida for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee so have been buying patriotic holiday clothes to wear on the day! I think you'll know we're British, dudes!

Tea and cake by the lake

At last the sun came out and we reached 17 degrees. There's a lovely lake 10 minutes walk away - regular dog walk for us - and on Sunday afternoons Apr-Oct they do homemade cakes and tea. I'm not dead keen on this pic - depth of field is too shallow - but it sort of captures the nice afternoon we've had.   

Begging buddies

Daisy is always desperate to eat any breakfast leftovers & Abi was quick to spot a photo opp! We were creased up laughing at this today and it was a no brainer 365 shot!

My other hobby

My two favourite hobbies combined here - photographing my knitting! OK, so some of you now have me pegged as a granny but I can take it! This is taking shape as a baby blanket for photo shoots with newborn baby girls.   

Peony III

The peonies are now fully open and just about to go over. I got permission from other half (it's his plant) to snip one off and shoot it indoors. Although it only flowers for a short time at least I've immortalised these beautiful flowers this year in photos.

Budding

This is just one of more than a dozen allium buds about to burst forth in our garden. Lots of photo opps coming up I think. The pinkish background is actually a brick wall completely blurred out. I'm experimenting at the moment with shooting on manual exposure and using spot metering so that I can eventually get more creative with light.

Still not too old for cute finger puppets

One day not so far away Abi will lose interest in dolls houses, finger puppets and dolls... until then I'm savouring and capturing as many moments as possible.

Ivan the not so terrible

Sam got more than he bargained for when he posed next to Ivan the horse today! And he got headbutted by a cow - that one ended in tears and a bruised wrist. Ivan is a giant of a horse btw - 18 hands high - the tallest horse in the world is 20.2!

Kids' Kitchen rocks!

The Kids' Kitchen has been working overtime again today! This delicious fresh cream chocolate roulade is the result. Can't wait to try some this evening - just a small piece, honest! Unfortunately the cake didn't look quite as good after the shoot, as the canvas backdrop fell on to it & squashed it a tad... oops!

Top Hat

Abi found some great head gear at the local farmers' market today. Had a few good shots of people at the market but loved this so much I had to use it!

Pomegranate

Didn't initially like the background on this - softened it off a bit in post and was happier. An amazing fruit!   

Burgeoning

This perhaps should have been the title of yesterday's shot! This is the same peony that I photographed a couple of days ago just after the rain. It won't be the last time you see it as I want to get it when it's not closing up for bedtime too!

Dreaming about the future...

An off-guard moment during a "bump" shoot today. Wonder what she was thinking about? Shall I shatter the illusion and tell her about sleepness nights, dirty nappies, never finishing a cup of tea? No, let her dream on for now...   

After the rain

This beautiful camelia bud in our garden looks stunning after a refreshing shower. It's one of those flowers to enjoy at all stages as it's quite short lived.