PODcast

The Alphabet Project | C is for close-up

Thank you for joining in with the Alphabet Photography Project for letter B last week. Work is a little bit bonkers at the moment so apologies if I’ve not got to comment yet.

There were a few options for letter C but it had to be close-up! I absolutely love macro photography and one of my favourite things is capturing the detail in the every day. There’s definitely a how to take better macro photographs post in the making in time for Spring!

How to join in #alphabetphoto

To join in with #alphabetphoto all you need to do is link up a post with a photograph that represents the letter C. It’s your call on how you interpret the theme – it might be an object, an adjective or a representation of that letter.

Your photograph can be from any time too so don’t feel you have to take a fresh one each week! You can join in every week or once in a while too, it’s entirely up to you.

If you need any hints, head over to the Alphabet Photography Project page.

You can also join the #alphabetphoto project on Instagram (PODcast is here). Feel free to link up your Instagram photo here too. You can also share your post in the Pinterest and Facebook groups or in the Google+ community.

The Alphabet Photography Project runs weekly with a new letter every Wednesday. You can link up your post anytime from that day to the following Tuesday.

Grab the #alphabetphoto badge!

Inspiration on Pinterest
PODcast now has almost 2,500 followers on Pinterest. There are some awesome photos on the #alphabetphoto Pinterest board.

Follow PODcast grappling with a box of frogs’s board Photography: The Alphabet Photography Project on Pinterest.

A Winter walk at Painshill Park

We’re lucky there’s no shortage of places to visit in Surrey. One of those is the grade I listed Painshill Park – a magical wonderland perfect for stimulating the senses. It’s home to a magnificent collection of follies, including an extraordinary stalactite Grotto, and it’s a great place to unwind.

You can feel that sense of calm almost immediately as the lake is just a short walk from the entrance of this landscaped garden. Much to POD’s delight it’s alive with wildlife including ducks, swans and birds. Even in Winter the vineyard looks pretty special although I do love the sight of the red veined leaves and the grapes when they arrive.

Being outdoors and breathing in that fresh country air does wonders for blowing away those cobwebs. POD had a little bread for the ducks, much to the delight of the local swans that followed us for a short time.

There’s something rather splendid about Painshill. It’s not just those mystical follies either, the landscape is just exquisite. We’d arrived early in the morning just after the mist was beginning to lift. If it wasn’t for POD, you’d barely be able to hear a pin drop.

Painshill Park is set in 158 acres so there really is something for everyone. Although we’ve visited many times, it was great on this occasion just to amble around the lake checking out the ruined abbey, crystal grotto, turkish tent, five arch bridge and gothic temple as we went. Along with a couple of fishermen – one of whom was having a cheeky doze in his tent!

Watching the wildlife really was a highlight, it was almost as if they had the whole of Painshill Park to themselves.

The crystal grotto is the latest 18th century folly to be restored by the Heritage Lottery Fund. It re-opened last year and we’ve been to see it a few times – even meeting Father Christmas there last year. It’s only open at specific times but well worth a visit, it really is incredible inside.

The brilliance of Painshill Park is down to the artistic vision of the Honourable Charles Hamilton. He wanted a tranquil landscape setting enriched with follies, water, trees, shrubberies and a vineyard. That’s what makes it a great place for a wander, even if it is the middle of Winter.

Linking up with #whatsthestory here on PODcast.

What’s The Story? | 26th January 2015

Hello everyone, welcome to #whatsthestory for w/c 26th January 2015. Hard to believe it’s February next week! It has been incredibly busy though so apologies I’m not getting to comment on all your posts. Do feel free to tweet them to me and I’ll happily share for you. There is light at the end of the tunnel you’ll be relieved to hear!

Well after the three photo round-ups posts, this week we’re back in 2015. Painshill Park is a magical wonderland perfect for stimulating the senses. It’s home to a magnificent collection of follies, including an extraordinary stalactite Grotto, and the perfect location for blowing away some cobwebs!

How to join in

What’s The Story? enables you to share the stories behind your favourite photographs. To join in all you have to do is share a photograph and the story behind it. You can write as little or much as you like and your photo/s can be from any time. The Linky is open every Monday until the following Sunday.

Feel free to use the What’s The Story? badge or include a link to PODcast in your post and do share some comment love too. There’s a community on Google Plus so do pop over if you haven’t already. We’re at Charly Dove or PODcast.

You can read about other photography projects here (including #alphabetphoto and #bwphotoproject).

Have a great week everyone #whatsthestory.

The B&W Photography Project | Week #29

Hello everyone, welcome to week #29 of the Black and White Photography Project. Thank you to those of you that joined in last week, so many amazing images.

After POD’s pony ride last time, we seem to have a similar horse-based theme this week! We visited the Devil’s Punch Bowl on Saturday. Owned by the National Trust, it’s a designated area of outstanding natural beautiful and a great place to blow away a few cobwebs.

The views are absolutely incredible and there are beautiful wild horses there too. It was quite chilly though so we rewarded ourselves with hot drinks and cake afterwards.

How to join in

To join in with the Black & White Photography Project, just link up a short post featuring a black and white photograph or black and white photographs. The photograph/s can be from any time – both old and new are welcome. You’ll find a post on how to create better black and white photographs here.

Don’t forget to share on Instagram using #bwphotoproject. You can also share your posts and photos in the B&W Photography Project Facebook Group.

Grab the badge!

Feel free to grab the #bwphotoproject badge (you’ll find a monochrome one here) or link back to PODcast, I’m happy to share your post in return.

Inspiration on Pinterest

PODcast now has over 2,500 followers on Pinterest. If you’re looking for monochrome inspiration, do check out the Black and White Photography board. It features some incredible photographs from artists all over the World.

Follow PODcast grappling with a box of frogs’s board Photography: B&W Photography Project on Pinterest.

Silent Sunday

The Alphabet Project | B is for birthday

Thank you to everyone that joined in with the Alphabet Photography Project last week, so many great interpretations of the letter A.

Sometimes you know exactly what photo you’ll use for a letter even if there are other options. This is one of those weeks. I absolutely love this image of POD dressed as a fairy – it was a great moment and captured without her realising. The festive period is a special time but even more so when your daughter’s fourth birthday is on Christmas Day!

How to join in #alphabetphoto

To join in all you need to do is link up a post with a photograph that represents the letter B. It’s your call on how you interpret the theme – it might be an object, an adjective or a representation of that letter.

Your photograph can be from any time too so don’t feel you have to take a fresh one each week! You can join in every week or once in a while too, it’s entirely up to you.

If you need any hints, head over to the Alphabet Photography Project page or check out letter B on Scrabble Finder.

The Alphabet Photography Project runs weekly with a new letter every Wednesday. You can link up your post anytime from that day to the following Tuesday.

Grab the #alphabetphoto badge!

Pinterest gorgeousness

PODcast now has almost 2,500 followers on Pinterest. There are some awesome photos on the #alphabetphoto Pinterest board.

Follow PODcast grappling with a box of frogs’s board Photography: The Alphabet Photography Project on Pinterest.

The year in photos | September to December

It’s the last installment of our look back on 2014. Another photographic extravaganza featuring some of my favourite photographs of the year.

POD ventured out on her first bike ride in the forest and discovered it was actually a lot of fun. She’s not mastered steering or pedaling yet but hopefully we’ll get there over time!

We wrote about the wonderful Whipsnade Zoo and how much we loved it. We also spent a lot of our weekends outdoors enjoying the Autumn sunshine. Winkworth Arboretum is always a National Trust favourite (at least twice!) and it was impossible not to capture London’s blue skies on occasions during the working week.

We visit National Trust sites whenever we can – usually in Surrey and the surrounding areas. At times we venture further afield. Ickworth House is located near POD’s grandparents and we had much fun there in the latter part of the year. POD especially enjoyed hiding behind a post and pretending she’s invisible! We also went pumpkin picking for the first time which was brilliant. Secretts Farm laid on tractors which took us to the pumpkin field where we picked three of our own. As you’d expect, POD was donning her headband round her forehead! The walk from Farringdon to Waterloo saw a huge increase in the volume of London photos including some wonderful sights from the Southbank.

We love the tranquility of Painshill Park and even got to have a ride on the Great Cockcroft Miniature Railway which POD loved. The firework display at Stoke Park was a must as it has been the past two years.

As always there were lots of opportunities to photograph blooms, especially wet ones! We ventured over to Squires Garden Centre to see Father Christmas. POD asked him for a reindeer, a change from the usual unicorn. I suspect that wasn’t quite what he had in mind when he asked her what she wanted. We really were on top of the World when we went to Newlands Corner. The well-renowned beauty spot has the most incredible views and smells divine just after the rain. We also escaped for a weekend to see my dad in Budleigh Salterton, enjoying some long-overdue time by the sea.

The lead up to the festive period and Christmas itself is always a busy time. With POD’s birthday on Christmas Day itself, it’s always a special time for us. Hard to believe we now own a four-year-old. We even managed to venture out on New Year’s Eve for the first time in a while to a forties style party!

If you missed the previous posts, you will find January to April here and May to August here.

Linking up with #whatsthestory here on PODcast.

What’s The Story? | 19th January 2015

Hello everyone, welcome to #whatsthestory for w/c 19th January 2015. We seem to be speeding though the month don’t we? Hopefully it won’t be long before we see the first signs of Spring.

This week’s post is the final part of our year in photos – September to December. It includes some of my favourite memories too like being on top of the World at Newlands Corner, pumpkin picking and POD’s Christmas Day birthday.

How to join in

You can read about other photography projects here (including #alphabetphoto and #bwphotoproject).

Have a great week everyone #whatsthestory.

The B&W Photography Project | Week #28

Hello and welcome to week #28 of the Black and White Photography Project. Thank you to everyone that joined in last week, so much monochrome loveliness.

This project has been great for tinkering with photos you might normally leave in colour. These photographs were taken at Bockett’s Farm in Surrey. POD has only been on a pony once before but took to it like a duck to water. It’s a lovely photo in colour but seems more emotional in monochrome somehow. Perhaps it’s because she looks so unbelievably grown-up (and cheeky!).