Month: February 2016

Sit an infinite number of morons at an infinite number of smartphones – 19 February 2016

Posted on by Zogman

combo bThis blog starts with us sitting in a nice wee French restaurant in Embra next to a loud american who must be important – to himself at least. He rambled on about the wonderful food in this, his favourite restaurant. When his companion asked if the French onion soup was served with cheese he replied after a pause “It’s served the way it is in France.” (fancy that eh? In a French restaurant, now that’s a surprise). “I don’t know” would have been more honest, but then again he was american. Our soup, Scamp’s salmon and my pork chop were really excellent, especially after Wednesday’s disappointment at Browns. We will be back to Petit Paris in the Grassmarket.

On the train home we were stuck in a carriage with the six morons and their smartphones from the title. Three of them were discussing the merits of Twi’ur (sic!). One of them was explaining that she had a created the Genyus Bar (sic again! Although most of the carriage were sick by this time.) and emphasized her spelling of it. She then went on to create an on-line personna for one of them who then found that he had two followers. After that, there was no stopping them. They were hashtagging this and re-tweeting that. Then one of them got her jacket down from the rack. She had an EIS badge on it. Educational Institute of Scotland union. Teachers. Loud, opinionated and terminally stupid. I can say that now, I’m not a teacher anymore. I discovered the error of my ways and got out early. When we got off the train I pitied those left behind with the morons away from their lessons.

In between paragraph one and two, we just wandered down the Royal Mile then down The Bridges, through JL and then headed for the train.

Before paragraph one (are you still following me or do you need a map?) we got some tea in a new-to-us shop just off the Grassmarket as my usual tea shop was SHUT. Not closed, but SHUT. A very Scottish expression I always think. Maybe next time he’ll be open and we can discuss the world, its problems and ways to fix it.

Sit an infinite number of morons at an infinite number of smartphones and they will eventually … discover Twi’ur – well what did you expect? The entire works of Shakespeare? Remember, they were teachers.

Only the sphinx with the surprised expression came from today. The abstract was from Tesco carpark in a hailstorm yesterday (other supermarket carparks are available).

Weatherwise it’s such a lovely day – 18 February 2016

Posted on by Zogman

combo bWe’ve had just about everything flung at us today. Woke to a light covering of snow and temperature of 0.6ºc. Soon after that the snow melted and the rain started. No wind thankfully, for a change. Went to the gym and had a quick swim. I went on the VR bike to start with and cycled on Elba. I now know how Napoleon felt. What a place to be stuck on. Every hill seemed to be about 1:4 and it was constant uphill after uphill. I kept wondering if there was a button on the bike that would let me have a 360 degree view, like Google Street View. I’m sure somebody will be burning the midnight oil somewhere inventing it. If not, then they should be! I was totally knackered after that and did some easy treadmill stuff and some arm exercises because my legs felt like jelly. The worst thing is, that was level 1. Heaven knows what level 4 is like. I don’t think I’m ever going to find out.

When we came out it was still raining, but the sun was shining too, a common occurance in Scotland. It’s what we call “Summer”. This wasn’t summer though. The wind would have cut through you. After lunch I made a Thai Green Curry paste and watched the sleet battering against the window. I kept waiting for a break in the weather to let me get out and get some foties, but every time it looked promising, five minutes later something wet was falling from the sky again.

I eventually gave up and went out in the car to Tesco. The black clouds in the west looked ominous but the sun in the east looked promising. By the time I got to Tesco, hail was drumming on the roof of the car. I decided to sit in the warm and the dry and wait it out. I waited and waited and then there was a respite from the hail and I got to the shop nearly dry. When I came out, it was snowing – large fluffy flakes of the stuff and underfoot was treacherous with slush. Drove home and by the time I got back the snow was off and the sun had come out again. Went down to Broadwood Loch and got some photos of the ducks and geese.

Four seasons in one day? Oh no, we get much, much more than that in Scotland.

By the way, the Thai Green Curry was very nice. Needs a bit of tweaking, but then doesn’t everything?

Forty Three Years Ago – 17 February 2016

Posted on by Zogman

combo bForty three years ago today the weather was much the same. There was snow on the ground and it was cold. Two young folk, one 22 and one just 18 repeated their vows and became man and wife. How their lives have changed.

Today we took it easy. We had intended going to Edinburgh, but it being the middle of the week and with the prospect of more snow on the way, we decided to cut our losses and go to Glasgow instead. Rather than suffer the long bus journey through the wilds of Moodiesburn and Muirhead, I offered to drive. We eventually got parked in the third carpark we tried, despite the electronic signs telling us that there were spaces in the other two (they lied). Walked down through town me looking at a couple of cameras on the way, but still undecided which or even if I’d buy if it came down to it. Just like a girl can never have enough shoes, a photog can never have enough cameras. Decided on Browns for lunch and were mightily disappointed in the lack of flavour from both our meals. It’s feels like they have a reputation now, so they don’t have to try so hard. I think we’ll try somewhere else next time, but it’s a shame when it was a celebration meal and we rejected a few good restaurants before opting for Browns. Maybe it’s something to do with the name “Browns”: ordinary, nondescript, boring. Sort of sums it up really.

Went from there to the Art Store and picked up a couple of small Pink Pig sketch books and a wonderful bargain of a watercolour box reduced from £79 to £25!! Unfortunately, as I guessed, the Art Store is closing for good at the end of the month. According to one of the assistants, “the company is kaput”. Short term bargains for artists, but long term loss for art in Glasgow. They will be sadly missed.

After we came home, the weather brightened up and I managed an hour in St Mo’s just walking in the snow taking shots mainly with the 9mm. Some of the results are above. No plans for tomorrow, it all depends on the weather.

Exercise, Fuel and Pink Pigs – 16 February 2016

Posted on by Zogman

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAToday we did it. We got up and went out to find some exercise. To be honest, it was such a terrible day, the gym sounded like a good move. I may regret it tomorrow, but for today, it felt good to do some honest exercise.

All that exercise needs food to fuel it, so we went directly to Muirhead where the award winning butcher has his shop. Jic, we may have found a Scottish butcher that’s the equal of Chapman’s. Bought a fair load of meat and Scamp bought some fish. Even better, she got a haggis pie for lunch and I got a bridie. As I said at the start, exercise needs fuel. The fuel tasted fine. Almost as good as petrol does to a Crojian (probably only understood if you were brought up in Cumbersheugh)! After our low calorie lunch, we didn’t do much. The rain had been torrential when we left the gym this morning and it wasn’t getting any better as the day progressed. For a while I tinkered with that Nexus I was trying to do CPR on a week or so ago, but still no luck. What I did find was a fairly probable sounding explanation from a supposed IT specialist on a Nexus forum. Long story short, it’s a hardware issue that can’t be fixed at home. It would, of course, cost more than the value of a new Nexus to repair it. This time it goes into its pink folder and that goes into its poly bag and it goes back to its owner marked BER (Beyond Economic Repair).

Couldn’t get out to get a photo today, so I’d decided early on that today was a still life. Then, look, I even managed to include some architecture. Not real architecture, but straight out of my imagination. Last week I’d passed the Art Store in Glasgow and noticed the 50% off sale. I wasn’t greedy (for once) only getting a couple of Pink Pig sketch pads. I really like the texture of the paper and Fred has introduced me to A4 pads. The combination of good paper and large pads are good to draw and paint on. Hence today’s picture.

Had intended going to Embra tomorrow, but judging by the weather forecast, that may be postponed. We’ll see in the morning.

By the way, Happy Anniversary to Hazy & N D’Ag.

Broken Promises – 15 February 2016

Posted on by Zogman

combo bSo much for getting up and out early today.  To be fair, I did get up earlier than I have of late, but the ‘out‘ didn’t materialize.  What I did do was put the Christmas decorations up in the loft because that was overdue.  This isn’t the latest it’s been.  I think one year it was March before I got round to it.

When Scamps crowd of ladies came round for their practise I couldn’t decide whether to go for the Gym/Swim option of a walk in the sun.  The sun won, because I can go to the gym any day and the swim option is best selected on a dull rainy day.  Best to get out and get some foties taken, so that is what I did.  I walked along the railway from Auchinstarry and when I got to Dumbreck Marshes, the silence was deafening.  I really mean that.  It wasn’t a total silence.  It’s hard to achieve that anywhere in the UK although parts of Skye come close.  No, there were sounds like the grass rustling and the occasional small bird singing, but no road noise or aircraft noise, because the breeze was from the east, so planes were taking off to the east and by the time they were overhead, they were already at 5000 odd feet and not making as much noise as when they were on their final approach at under 2000 feet.  It was a lovely afternoon with hardly anyone about.  I even managed a small ink sketch of a house in a stand of trees.  Very relaxing.  You don’t get that sort of silence at the gym or the pool, and I still had to walk back so I was getting some exercise too.

Got a few photos, but not many.  I’m finding it difficult to motivate myself with this 365.  Maybe I need a year off, but I’ve started now and I need to see it through.  As Scamp says, if I stop now I’ll regret it later.  No doubt I will, but I need to find a new set of subjects.  Something other than landscapes and macros.  Maybe architecture would fit the bill.  I don’t fancy portraiture.  Still life was working for a while there, but that’s quite a difficult subject to get right and an easy one to turn into a cliché.  I’ll think about it.

Tomorrow is to be a gym/swim day, we’re both agreed on that.  We need the exercise, as if the hour of salsa and another hour of bachatta wasn’t enough tonight.  Good fun, but tiring.

Ice is Nice – 14 February 2016

Posted on by Zogman

combo bSome days you can only just manage to drag yourself out to take one or two photos, other days the opportunities are endless. Such was it today. When I woke, the sun was battering at the window trying to get in to lighten our morning. After breakfast I couldn’t resist it any longer and I took the Oly out to play in the snow. Great light, but treacherous underfoot with about 20-25mm of ice on paths and roads. I’d only put on my boots, not my crampon things. I detest them, but they are useful on days like this. Anyway, once I got to St Mo’s, it was a bit softer and safer walking on the snow than the ice. Spotted some deer, but not before they saw me and raced on ahead. No chance to even take the camera out of the bag, but it was just as good watching them run throught the trees, occasionally lit by the morning sun.

Today I concentrated on the little bits of light and ice sitting on grass stems and branches of low weeds. Managed one shot of a grass stem with a bead of thawed ice on it. For once I got the focus just right with the grass slightly blurred, but the aerial image in focus. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tried to get this effect, and this morning I achieved it by accident. Also liked the oversharpened and oversaturated shot of the cowparsley head covered in beads of melting ice. The contre-jour shot of the leaf was a no-brainer. Warm coloured subject against cool background colours. Simple. Just getting back up again from the crouch that’s needed to take the shot, that’s the challenge for me.

Back home for lunch and a coffee, then Scamp wanted to go for a walk to Condorrat. More walking over the icy crevasses, and then one last look for something interesting with the Nikon this time, but the light was too low by then, so I got nothing worthwhile. Up early and out. The early bird gets the worm (and the good shots). That should be my motto from now on, providing it’s not raining. Click on the shots above to see the images better on Flickr.

Snow – 13 February 2016

Posted on by Zogman

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAIt snowed today. We were meant to go to Embra, but we decided it would be better to stay local. We finally agreed to go for lunch to Vecchia Bologna, yes, I’ve mentioned it before. Anyway, we drove through a bit of snow to get there, had lunch, went to Waitrose and then drove through a full scale blizzard to get back. No matter how bad it got, you just have to keep repeating “The holiday is booked, The holiday is booked …” That gets you through a lot of stuff.

Built a lens tester to check that bloody Tamron. Results are inconclusive. I think it’s back focusing, but I’ll need to re-do it in better light. Basically I don’t think I care any more. It’s not doing what it should. I’ll send it away to Tamron and get them to check it. If that doesn’t make it any better, I’ll drop in and the camera down the stair and claim it on insurance – only kidding Mr Insurance Man (Fingers crossed behind my back).

It’s flooers today for a PoD (Photo of the Day if you hadn’t worked that out). I don’t know if the greater the number of flowers, the greater the depth of ennui. If so, I should have switched to wide angle and photographed the whole bunch. Hoping the snow stays until tomorrow when I’ll go out and get some black and white snowy shots. Tonight I had a bottle of Adnams Broadside. Thank you Jic for introducing us!

Booked – 12 February 2016

Posted on by Zogman

combo bWe finally got a holiday booked for Scamp and I.  We were beginning to think that we wouldn’t get away at all, but now we are good to go.

Went in to Glasgow today.  Couldn’t decide at first whether to go to Stirling or Glasgow, but I wanted to have a look at a camera and I was pretty sure I could get my hands on it in Glasgow.  There was no chance of seeing a camera in Stirling.  With that in mind, we headed for Glasgow in the afternoon.  Other than visiting the travel agent and then Jessops, it was just a quick trot round the shops, then home.  There was one surprise, the Art Store in Queen Street was offering everything in store at 50% off.  That may sound good, and indeed there were bargains to be had, but it made me wonder if this is another independent art shop that has gone to the wall.

The camera was not as good as I had hoped it would be.  It was an Oly E-M5 and I got my hands on it in John Lewis.  First impressions were that it felt a bit clumsy and not as neat as the E-PL5.  I then tried it’s newer sibling the Oly E-M10 in Jessops.  It was neater and more ergonomic than the older E-M5, but still didn’t make me want to part with my money.  I had no intention of buying the camera from either of these shops.  I only wanted to use them to get my hands on them and give them a bit of comparison.  If I was going to buy one, I’d go to one of the second-hand dealers on the net like MBP in Brighton.  Anything I’ve bought from them has been really good quality and was at least a third off the price when new.

Three shots today from our walk around Glasgow.  Nothing outstanding, just a few candids.

Cold and bright in Glasgow.

A day of ups and downs – 11 February 2016

Posted on by Zogman

combo bA sunny, cold start again. This time it started with the mercury not quite managing to crawl above the zero line. To use less prosaic language, it was about -1.5ºc at 8.30am.  The good, cold weather stayed most of the day.

Scamp went to arrange a spring holiday for us. I went to meet Fred as the world needed setting to rights again. After we both returned, I thought the world had indeed been set on its axis again, then Scamp told me that the travel agent’s phone and internet wasn’t working and even worse, the holiday she was going to book was no longer available. Fred and I had spent over an hour and a half making sure everything was sorted and then BT steps in an screws everything up.

Bean soup for dinner. Which begs the old joke: “I don’t care what it was, I want to know what it is now”

Tomorrow we were going to Embra, but it looks as if we are going holiday hunting now. Hope BT have got their act together.

Today’s photos are the results of my recent painting.

 

 

Bright again – 10 February 2016

Posted on by Zogman

combo bAnother bright day, but frosty this morning. Thermometer was showing only 0.1ºc at 8.30 when I was making breakfast, so just a wee bit cool.

Scamp was going out visiting today, so I had the afternoon to myself. I did venture out, but only as far as the supermarket and then back to do a bit of painting. Nothing for general consumption yet, but enjoying slapping the paint on. Later on I decided I’d better try to get some photos taken. I went down the Luggie burn for a change and got a decent shot of the only snowdrop I’ve seen down there. There are more to come, but none want to show themselves yet. Probably waiting for warmer days. I also found lots of catkins of different varieties. So if the snowdrops are out and the catkins are out, hopefully spring will be just around the corner.

I’m still not happy with the images I’m getting with the Tamron (Sorry to harp on about this Jic), so I decided to build myself another lens tester. For some reason I’ve deleted (or more likely a dodgy program called File Juggler – avoid like the plague) has deleted the AutoCad files for it from my PC. Then I found that some kind person had uploaded a PDF of almost the same model as mine. I printed it out last night and am hoping to assemble the model tomorrow to check if the D7000 is back or front focusing, which might be causing the lack of sharpness. If it’s not that, then the lens is going back to the Tamron hospital to have it looked at.