@The_Doves Archives - Page 29 of 63

The B&W Photography Project | Week #5

Thank you to everyone that joined in with the Black & White Photography Project last week. I don’t know about you but I always enjoy looking at black and white photographs. The ones by Nick Brandt just blew me away, what an inspiration!

We’ve had this week off work so I’ve been able to take more photographs of POD than usual. This image was taken at Alice Holt forest in Hampshire. We bumped into three of our favourite people and followed the Gruffalo trail together. I love this image of the kids chatting while getting a piggy back from their Daddies.

How to join in

To join in with the Black & White Photography Project, just link up a short post, with or without words, featuring a black and white photograph. You can link up a collection of black and white photographs too if you prefer. The photograph/s can be from any time – old and new are welcome.

Do share your photo on Instagram using #bwphotoproject (PODcast is here). You can also share your posts and photos in the B&W Photography Project Facebook Group.

The Black and White Photography Project runs every Sunday. The Linky is live from that day through to Saturday. If you include a link back to PODcast I’ll happily share your post for you.

Inspiration on Pinterest

If you’re looking for inspiration, the Black & White Photography Project board has some awesome photographs.

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

Silent Sunday

Project 365: Week #32

We’ve had this last week off work so we’ve enjoyed lots of outdoor time – including a trip to Suffolk with beach, forest and playground fun.

Welcome to Project 365: Week #32.

Day 214

A lazy day at home today. Daddy created this pirate masterpiece for a party POD is going to. She just needs to perfect the “aye aye” and “arr!” and she’s all set.

Day 215

We headed over to Alice Holt forest in Hampshire today. We bumped into 3 of our favourite people just after we arrived so we got to do the Gruffalo trail together. I love this photo of the children on their Daddies shoulders – they look like they’re having a right old natter!

POD decided the only thing to do when she met the Gruffalo was to give him a cuddle. As you do.

Day 216

We headed to Suffolk today to stay with Buba and Gagam (POD’s Grandparents). First stop was to pop in on 93-year-old Yaya who is POD’s Great Grandma and The PODfather’s Grandma. This is a special photograph of the three generations together even if POD is a little distracted!

Day 217

Today was a glorious day. We headed over to Felixstowe beach with Buba and Daddy where POD got to brave the (cold) sea, make a sandcastle and look for shells for the first time.

This is the moment POD headed to the waters edge by herself and stood watching the sea.

Day 218

We visited High Lodge at Thetford Forest today, which like Alice Holt is managed by the Forestry Commission. We had a wonderful picnic under the pine trees then took to the Sculpture Play Trail. It included five play sculptures for POD to explore – she didn’t need much encouragement. The muddy bottom is from jumping over a puddle and losing her footing!

The walking and climbing eventually took it’s toll on a tired POD but she did brilliantly.

Day 219

On Thursday morning we visited Abbey Gardens which surrounds the ruins of the Bury St Edmunds Abbey. POD happily chatted the birds in the aviary and made a beeline for the play area as soon as she saw it. She loved the carousel and said hello to almost everyone while she was on it.

Having tested out the playground, there was just time for a quick ice-cream before we left. This is the last photograph taken of POD in her rainbow hat as it was lost shortly afterwards. We drove back to Surrey thinking it was gone forever and POD was so sad when she realised. But Buba returned to where we were and found POD’s beloved hat under a tree!

Day 220

We love POD’s hair (it took a while to grow!) but her beautiful mop was cut today. She enjoyed sitting in a makeshift car at the hairdressers. Although the blonde ends are not as long as they were, it looks much healthier now. The rest of the day has been spent in the garden enjoying various water based picnics – a role she took very seriously!

There were happy faces all round when POD’s rainbow hat arrived in the post. POD celebrated its return by wearing it while she watched Toy Story then filling it with hairclips.

Alphabet Project | M is for mountains

Thank you to everyone that joined the Alphabet Photography Project over the past week with letter L.

Letter M was tough as I wanted to do macro but mountains are pretty cool. This photograph was taken from a curiara (canoe) in the Venezuelan jungle c.2008. We stayed at Campamento Tiuna in the Laguna de Canaima for 3 days while we visited the spectacular Angel Falls – the highest waterfall in the World.

How to join in

The Alphabet Photography Project runs every Wednesday. A Linky is live from that day until the following Tuesday so you can upload a short post or an Instagram photo. If you include a link back to PODcast I’m happy to share it for you.

You can post a photo on Instagram (PODcast is here) using the hashtag #alphabetphoto. There are also Pinterest, Facebook and Google+ groups.

Ideas for letter M

The #alphabetphoto theme can be interpreted in any way you choose. Your letter might be a photograph for example, an object that resembles a letter or an adjective. Have a look at the letter M hints in last week’s post. If you get really stuck, an online Scrabble dictionary is a good point of reference!

Inspiration for letter N

Here are a few ideas to get us thinking about letter N:

Notes, nails, necklaces, night, nonsense, nut, number one, national, natural, neck, narcissi, narrator, narrow, neighbour, net, nibble, nine, nippy, night, nonsense, notebook, novel, nurture, nuzzle, nose, nugget, nursery, nearer, nephew, nettle, nobble, novel, nudge, nifty, nurse, nana, neon, next, news, nod, nook, newt.

There are also lots of inspirational photographs on the #alphabetphoto Pinterest board:

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

Photographs from Cassiobury Park

We headed over to Hertfordshire to see my mum and one of my brothers the day after POD’s (un)birthday celebrations. It was another glorious day and POD insisted on wearing a party dress, ladybird wings and deeley boppers. Mum’s garden backs onto the 190 acre Cassiobury Park in Watford so we headed there for a picnic.

After a brief ride on Daddy’s shoulders, POD raced down the hill at great speed. Her incentive the bouncy castle and play area at the bottom.

Having had a look around (let herself into the play area) we found a nice spot for a picnic. POD made herself comfortable almost as soon as the blanket was down with Daddy creating additional shade with a shopping trolley. Mum brought a great spread that included sausages, sandwiches, crisps, cheese and treats. Someone couldn’t wait to get stuck in!

POD was given a mini golf set by Grandma so she spent a time playing with Daddy although this mostly involved chasing after him with the clubs. She was then treated to a Twix shortbread which I suspect she rather enjoyed!

Having lined the stomachs, we headed over to the miniature railway for a train ride. It’s a pretty little route and great fun too – POD was grinning from ear to ear throughout.

Next stop were the paddling pools (POD tested all of them) before getting changed and enjoying an ice-cream. The ladybird wings were back in place before long and the climbing skills were put to good use.

The nature reserve we visited next was so peaceful, hardly a soul around – such a contrast to the play area. Wonderful for us and for POD who got to explore and chat to a few ducks. We saw a dragonfly too but Mummy was too slow to photograph it.

POD spent a while trying to convince her uncle there was something in the hole of this tree. It’s like history repeating itself. I remember being told the wombles lived in our garden by the previous owner of a house we moved into. I was only five at the time and spent years calling for Orinoco…we didn’t even live in Wimbledon!

Linking up with #whatsthestory here on PODcast and #CountryKids at Coombe Mill.

What’s The Story? | 4th August 2014

Hello everyone, welcome to What’s The Story? for w/c 4th August 2014. I hope you’re enjoying the Summer holidays or at least making the most of the outdoors when you can. We have a mini break this week in that we’re heading to Suffolk for a couple of days. We’re hopeful the rain will stay away so we can introduce POD to crab fishing. Fingers crossed!

Thank you to those of you that joined in with #whatsthestory last week. As always there were so many great posts to read and such variety too.

If you’re new here What’s The Story? is a photograph based Linky which 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.

Feel free to use the What’s The Story? badge or include a link to PODcast in your post – I’m happy to share it in return. Please do take the time to comment on some of your fellow bloggers posts when you can. What’s The Story? is open every Monday through to the following Sunday.

There’s a community on Google Plus so do pop over if you haven’t already. You can find me at Charly Dove or PODcast.

Have a lovely week #whatsthestory.

The B&W Photography Project | Week #4

Thank you to everyone that joined in with the Black & White Photography Project last week. There were so many great photographs and I love that we’ve all become guilty of monochrome tinkering.

This week there’s a post on inspirational British photographer Nick Brandt. Born in 1966 and raised in London, he photographs exclusively in Africa. His goal to record the wild animals and landscape before its destroyed. He captured what he saw in a way that had not been achieved before – a trilogy of photographic books.

We spent time with my mum and one of my brothers in Watford Park last Sunday. I love this photograph of POD running down a hill although the contrast in this image from the miniature railway is better. It’s difficult to choose a sign over POD though!

How to join in

It’s easy to get involved with the Black & White Photography Project. Just link up a short post, with or without words, featuring a black and white photograph. You can link up a collection of black and white photographs if you prefer. The photograph/s can be from any time – old and new are welcome.

Do share your photo on Instagram using #bwphotoproject (PODcast is here). You can also share your posts and photos in the B&W Photography Project Facebook Group.

The Black and White Photography Project runs every Sunday. The Linky is live from that day through to Saturday. If you include a link back to PODcast I’ll happily share your post for you.

Inspiration on Pinterest

If you’re looking for inspiration, the Black & White Photography Project board has some awesome photographs.

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

Silent Sunday

Inspirational Photographers | Nick Brandt

Having had a look at the work of Ansel Adams, this week we’re taking a peek at British photographer Nick Brandt.

Born in 1966 and raised in London, he photographs exclusively in Africa. His goal to record the wild animals and landscape there before they are destroyed.

Brandt moved to the United States in 1992 where he directed music videos for artists such as Michael Jackson, Moby and Badly Drawn Boy. While directing ‘Earth Song’ for Jackson he fell in love with East Africa. It was at that point he decided to capture the animals and landscape in a way that had not been achieved before – through a trilogy of photographic books.

Brandt doesn’t use a telephoto or zoom lens instead preferring to get up close and reveal the animals personalities with medium-format black and white film. This is what makes his intimate images of animals in dramatic landscapes and portraits so striking.

The first book in Nick Brandt’s trilogy, On This Earth, includes 66 photographs from 2000-2004. They showcase an African paradise which contrasts his subsequent books. Elephant with Exploding Dust is one of Brandt’s best-known images.

A Shadow Falls features 58 photographs from 2005-2008. As the title suggests, this second part of the trilogy takes a more melancholic stance. A critic described it as a love story without the happily ever after. The opening images show an unspoiled lush green world but become starker – an abandoned ostrich egg on a parched lake bed the most poignant.

The final part of the trilogy, Across the Ravaged Land, was published in 2013. It documents the disappearing natural world and animals in East Africa – humans are introduced for the first time. The image of the ranger with tusks of an elephant was taken before Big Life was created – a foundation Brandt started in 2010. The charity now employs 280 rangers and protects 2 million acres of wilderness in East Africa.

Although Brandt shoots on film, he scans his negatives then dodges and burns the images. He doesn’t add or clone animals or skies – the scenes are exactly as he saw them. His large limited edition prints have sold for up to $160,000. Brandt has had multiple solo exhibitions worldwide with his first seeing 140,000 visitors.

All photographs in this post were taken by Nick Brandt. For further information please do check out his website. You can also visit the Artsy Nick Brandt page which provides access to over 50 of Nick Brandt’s works and up to date exhibition listings.

Project 365: Weeks #30 & #31

Its been a busy couple of weeks with POD’s Summer BBQ sandwiched in the middle. Her birthday is on Christmas Day and it’s the first time we’ve had a party outside December. We couldn’t have asked for a better day.

Welcome to Project 365: weeks #30 & 31.

Day 202

Today was all about preparations for POD’s forthcoming (un)birthday. There were bubbles to test

and a garden to be tidied (plus a little macro practice!).

Day 203

Little time for taking photographs today other than some bloom love after watering.

Day 204

Working in London today. These wonderful chimneys were captured on the walk to Waterloo at the end of the day.

Day 205

This ancient looking building is just by Somerset House.

Day 206

It’s amazing what you can spot when you change your route slightly. This is a photograph of the RNLI located on the other side of Waterloo Bridge looking towards the Shard.

Day 207

Today was the day of POD’s (un)birthday! We kicked off with a visit to a nearby park while the car was in the garage. POD was thrilled to discover ducks, ducklings and a playground.

Back home we couldn’t have asked for better weather for POD’s party. The children got to run riot in the garden for a time with a mini sports day and bubbles to follow. On the menu was BBQ food with jelly and ice-cream for after. POD insisted on wearing her Christening dress – this is her chilling with a loot bag after everyone had left. You can read ducks, a playground & the party here.

Day 208

On Sunday we headed to Watford Park to see my mum and one of my brothers. POD got to run all the way down a hill albeit still clutching her ladybird wand!

Following a picnic in the sunshine (this is POD with her first ever Twix shortbread biscuit) we enjoyed a train ride. POD then had a quick paddle and a change before we set off for a walk – her ladybird wings back in position.

Day 209

Today was spent at RHS Wisley with fellow bloggers Annie from Manneskjur, Victoria from Southbourne Gardens and Kriss from Over There to Here who has just returned to the UK. The children got to run around the gardens and we took lots of photographs. This is POD saying hello to her namesake

and this is just one of the beautiful flowers at RHS Wisley.

Day 210

Working in London from today. This photograph of an old Post Office sign was taken in Lincolns Inn en route to Waterloo.

Day 211

This building is on Drury Lane just where I turn onto Bow Street and past the Royal Opera House. There’s something rather fabulous about the brick of this grand building against the blue sky.