14.02.12 - Time for Reflection Thank-you for the wonderful response to my Dailies featuring Tiffany over the last couple of days. This shot will probably be the last I use as a Daily, but I'm including it just to show how unpredicatble things happen, no matter how much you plan a shoot. We had finished the shoot really, but before we left the Aviation Heritage Centre Tiffany had spotted some old vehicles at the far end of the hanger. This old car was in a closed display behind a fence, but we were allowed in to take a few final shots. The actual shot we wanted was from outside the car with the door closed, but as Tiffany was getting into the car I noticed the reflection in the window. I only took 2 quick shots from this position, and didn't look at them until I'd processed all the others. Even the monochrome conversion was an afterthought, and it is the only one of over 1,000 shots that I did this to, but we both really love it!

This is now my 5th year of shooting a photo a day and posting to this wonderful community. I don't always manage to take something new every single day, but I do try very hard and occasionally my Daily post will be a bit mundane. But such is life, lots of ups and downs, but mainly mundane. I am always my harshest critic, but serious constructive criticism from the viewer is always welcome. I have over 20,000 photos on this website now and would be very honoured if you spent time exploring them too.

Sadly Smugmug no longer uses Google maps, so I am not able to locate my images as accurately as I would like. Older images can still be seen on low resolution maps by clicking on the "map this" feature, but I haven't located newer images as the map quality is so poor.

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15.02.12 - Darkness Comes

I only took a few photos yesterday, all around the gathering dusk while I was walking the dog, and none of them amounted to much, it was simply too dark for landscape photography. But when I got home this shot of the approaching ridge line grabbed my imagination. I liked the tree silhouettes, and with a heavy crop isolated the more interesting ones. Then an adjustment of levels to bring out some definition in the clouds, a dark vignette, and I quite like the Gothic foreboding result. Here is a very different take on exactly the same image;
http://www.lightanddreamsphotography.com/Photography/ALTERNATIVE-DAILY-POST/15316442_m3F5HV#!i=1713580298&k=Bj2524C

Thanks again for the wonderful comments on yesterday's shot of Tiffany in the car, it is rapidly becoming one of my all time favourites.

14.02.12 - Time for Reflection

Thank-you for the wonderful response to my Dailies featuring Tiffany over the last couple of days. This shot will probably be the last I use as a Daily, but I'm including it just to show how unpredicatble things happen, no matter how much you plan a shoot. We had finished the shoot really, but before we left the Aviation Heritage Centre Tiffany had spotted some old vehicles at the far end of the hanger. This old car was in a closed display behind a fence, but we were allowed in to take a few final shots. The actual shot we wanted was from outside the car with the door closed, but as Tiffany was getting into the car I noticed the reflection in the window. I only took 2 quick shots from this position, and didn't look at them until I'd processed all the others. Even the monochrome conversion was an afterthought, and it is the only one of over 1,000 shots that I did this to, but we both really love it!

13.02.12 - Lancaster Bomber Girl

This is from my second day shooting with actress Tiffany Haynes, this time with an iconic Lancaster heavy bomber. The be in this cockpit was a boyhood dream come true, and the whole session was absolutely magical.

The eagle eyed amongst you will have noticed that I edited the original caption under my Spitfire Girl image yesterday, as I'd given out a bit too much information in my enthusiasm :)

I will add various links of interest later, so that people can follow up more of the background to Tiffany's project and interest in the Air Transport Auxillary women of WW2. We'd both like to thank everyone who has been so kind with their comments, and I will pass on updates as the project progresses.

This BBC documentary was one of the things that sowed the initial seeds with Tiffany, although as an actress she has a general interest in historical roles http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00tw1m1

The life of Diana Barnato Walker was also the inspiration for many of the images we recreated in our shoots. If you Google her you will find so much of interest, a truly original lady with an incredible story to tell!

For information on the Lancaster that we used, and other associated historical aircraft, visit the website of the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre at www.lincsaviation.co.uk

I will link to my own growing gallery of shots from our two days, currently standing at about 200 images, once it is complete. A few people have asked me if I intend doing any B&W conversions or period hues/effects? Tiffany specifically wanted to keep the shots full colour, so that they look modern despite the period subject matter. My interpretation of that is to immerse the viewer in the scene, rather than give the impression of looking back at a different world, if that makes sense? But I will be removing some of the modern backgrounds in images like this one, and replacing them in photoshop, maybe a cloudscape or simple blur.

12.02.12 - Spitfire Girl

OK my latest mystery project revealed! A little while back I worked with actress Tiffany Haynes, helping to reproduce scenes from the book "Lady of the Butterflies" for her showreel.

Tiffany is currently interested in the women of the Air Transport Auxillary (ATA) who flew aircraft in WW2, and she asked me to help her recreate some iconic photos from the era for her portfolio.

There is a backstory to this in that I had a lecturer at University in the 70s who flew with the ATA. She used to talk about flying bombers from the factory to the airfields, and then ferrying them around the Country as needed. Because they weren't flying in combat their guns weren't armed, but they did occasionally get "jumped" by German fighters and didn't stand much of a chance. It was a very dangerous job, and most people have no idea about it. There are so many great stories waiting to be told about these brave, and largely unsung, women.

This is a link to the BBC documaentary that sparked Tiffany's interest in this subject, and the life of Diana Barnato Walker in particular;
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00tw1m1

11.02.12 - Chase Me!

I'm posting very late, this is from Saturday morning sledging with the twins, but it has been a very hectic weekend. Apart from the sledging, Amy's dance rehearsal and Jack's swimming class, I also had a photographic job today, that will be revealed tomorrow morning when I post my Daily for today.

This doesn't look like much of a slope, but it was a lot steeper than t looks and we were sledging over 100 metres, by far the most the kids had ever done and so much fun!

10.02.12 - Love Snow :)

Thank-you for the wonderful response to my "Love Shadows" SP yesterday. You know that night photography is one of my major passions, well snow is another! When I get the chance I like to climb big mountains, the bigger and snowier the better, but for the last few years the opportunities have been somewhat restricted. Luckily we've had more snow in the last three Winters in the UK than the previous dozen, so I've been able to get my fix in other ways. Looking at this I think Mr Willis likes it too. We had a wonderful walk on Lincoln South Common yesterday in beautiful Winter sunshine, and today I hope to take the kids sledging before it melts :)

09.02.12 - Love Shadows :)

This is my enty for Paula's "shadow challenge", albeit a bit of a cheat! This was one of my ideas for the Dgrin Album Cover SP Challange, but the long crop was wrong for a CD album cover, more an internal gatefold from the classic days of vinyl. But then that is me all over!

08.02.12 - Winter Forest

Another grey day hovering around freezing, so not many obvious photo opportunities outdoors. However, I have been waiting for the chance to try this camera movement/slow shutter technique on a snowy forest scene, and I'm really pleased how it came out.

More snow is forecast for today, yippee :)

Late Edit;- I've just realised that because I post my pics a day late everyone else is posting their "Paula's Shadow Challenge" pics today. I missed Kim's Google Street View Challenge but hope to do something with shadows today, all things being equal :)

07.02.12 - Ye Olde England :)

Is there anything more quintessentially English than an old churchyard covered in a light dusting of snow? Well OK, maybe cricket on the village green, real ale pubs etc etc, but you know what I mean :)

This is All Saints Church, just down the road from me. It was built in the early 11th century, so pre-dates the Norman Conquest and is older than the Cathedral. Of course it is been added to and repaired many times, but it is a beautiful simple old church noneltheless. This moment of clear blue skies was very fleeting. !0 minutes before it was thick fog, and 20 minutes later it was a grey world again for the rest of the day. Another good reason for always having your camera with you!

14.02.12 - Time for Reflection

Thank-you for the wonderful response to my Dailies featuring Tiffany over the last couple of days. This shot will probably be the last I use as a Daily, but I'm including it just to show how unpredicatble things happen, no matter how much you plan a shoot. We had finished the shoot really, but before we left the Aviation Heritage Centre Tiffany had spotted some old vehicles at the far end of the hanger. This old car was in a closed display behind a fence, but we were allowed in to take a few final shots. The actual shot we wanted was from outside the car with the door closed, but as Tiffany was getting into the car I noticed the reflection in the window. I only took 2 quick shots from this position, and didn't look at them until I'd processed all the others. Even the monochrome conversion was an afterthought, and it is the only one of over 1,000 shots that I did this to, but we both really love it!