Business Breakfast at Putteridgebury

I had to readjust my biological clock to prepare for the 5.45am alarm call to allow me to go to my first Business Breakfast at the Putteridgebury Campus of the University of Bedfordshire. The last time I had a business breakfast was when I met up with bankers from The World Bank to photograph a several million pound cheque-signing, and that was aeons ago.

Considering how sunny yesterday was, I was amazed that there was still snow around, yet at least the snowdrops were showing and the moles had been mining with gusto. I got the impression that a magpie had been burrowing into it. Whilst outside, Nigel Huddleston, a local parliamentary candidate, came up to chat – I had last seen him when he led the protest march against the proposed Bushwood development.

What a change in weather from yesterday when the sun had been out all day, but I did want to at least have a record, so did take a look around the old house, before going in for the meeting. At first because I was early, there were only a few people around and those unlike me, all wearing suits and ties. I glanced at a few badges and was once again not too surprised to read the names of Banks! However, as the room filled, I began to see obvious business men, which gave me the opportunity to network (the primary purpose of the visit). I got to speak to Wes Randle, who had taken over as head of the Innovation hub. I did idly wonder how many present saw the connection between the University logo and the flowers at the window.

I listened intently to the speakers, but was forced to interrupt one speaker, Laura Church to express my desire for the construction of a flyover to improve the link between Capability Green and the Junction 10 of the M1, and avoid interaction with traffic to Luton from the A6. These two streams need not meet at the present roundabout, unless serving Luton. I firmly believe that it is a project Luton cannot afford not to build.

May I extend my thanks to all, including the Canteen staff who provided very good food, that made the event a success.

1st Someries Scout Group Quiz Night

It was great to be invited to join a team again to give our grey cells a workout in Stopsley at the local Scout Hut. It was much warmer than it has been and the moon was almost full. We met up at the Bowles residence where we had a chitchat before the walk to the venue. I took my next door neighbour, Brenda and at Jennie and Colin’s we met up with Janet, Wendy and her son Christopher.
In the recent past our teams had been joint second and first, so no pressure! After the first round we had come tenth out of twelve – not exactly an auspicious start, but one thing our group did not lack was laughter! As our table was 2 our position at the start of the marking was good and to see 4th come up was more promising, but glance away for a moment and take another look and the position was 9th.
Towards the end we were mysteriously listed at 7th yet our score was much higher than those above us, but a trip to the scorer and we were restored to 4th – passable but we did have several Tombola wins, Jennie chose a large basket of fruit which she generously shared amongst all the team.
We all had a great time and didn’t mind the slight drizzle of rain on the walk back to a cup of tea and more chatting, all of us promising to meet for the next one at Christmas.

A Bitterly Cold Dawn

Eleven Days on from the other bright morning when I found myself covering the Protest March between the villages of Slip End and Caddington, I woke early and I already knew there was a possible bright start to the day. I took a look outside and decided I needed to take some photographs.

I got dressed, collected my camera and a few lenses and wandered first to our newly refurbished Co-op store. Already there was activity; the shutters were up and staff were preparing for the new day, I took a handful of shots, then jumped in the car and drove to Slip End where I took shots of the re-routed Public Footpath and the soak-away for the motorway, before moving towards Luton Hoo and the hill down towards the Lower Luton Road.

I spotted a lone Red Kite gently soaring over the valley and a pheasant took off from behind me and flew over the road; I managed to capture a couple of shots before he disappeared, but in the biting wind I had to wait quite a while before the Kite came into range again, but at last I was able to get some usable shots, even though it remained fairly distant.

Adobe ConnectNow

I am willing to bet that a substantial number of experienced Photoshop CS4 users have never noticed, let alone used, the free screen-sharing feature within their File menu.

If you are one of that number and either work remotely or have colleagues that could help you out when stuck, and they are some distance away, then take a look at this feature. I would add that I do feel the program does need some attention; in particular the positioning of its alert messages requesting access at various stages – I sometimes feel that the programmer was either a psychologist testing observation skills or he was a Games Geek! They are placed entirely randomly, yet they do need to be answered for the program to continue; so be alert!

How does this feature work? Well, to state the obvious you do need an Internet connection; it works from your browser to fire up the Adobe ‘ConnectNow’ application and the initiator requires the free Adobe ID, and the recipient (there can be a maximum of two) is invited to the ‘Meeting’. This invitation to join is made via email which contains the URL to which the recipient responds by clicking; this either opens the session in an open browser, or first opens the default browser, then opens the session. They may possibly have had to load an ‘Add in’ program, or a later version of the free ‘Flash Player’.

When sending out the invitation link via email, set the button in the top right of your screen to allow automatic entry. The name of your guest appears at the bottom left of your window once they have accepted the invitation. You then set the role by choosing ’Participant’ in the attendee’s pulldown menu.

Along the top of both your screen and that of the person you are contacting are a series of icons to set up devices such as webcams, microphones, and screens. The purpose of the Meeting will define how and what is set here. However, if you plan speaking using ConnectNow then click to open the microphone before setting the WebCam, but do remember you will both (or the three of you) need to have fast connections to support all of ConnectNow’s functions simultaneously, if in doubt use the telephone for voice communication to avoid ‘choppiness’ or echo from feedback. Do remember there may well be a delay between you finishing asking a question, before the other person responds. This can be disconcerting.

In the main recently I have been the recipient of meetings with Adobe in various parts of the globe, but as I have been using it increasingly to offer help to remote clients, I felt it was time to pass on my experience of using ConnectNow to a wider audience. I will also add that I have tended not to use the full facilities for bandwidth reasons, and often relied on the telephone for the verbal aspect, and the screensharing and text for explanations, but with good fast links, all the facilities are there to use ConnectNow in its entirety.

A few points to bear in mind. If either party has a single screen then the images of ConnectNow’s control panels appear as blue ‘J-cloth’-style areas on the recipient’s screen, so it is a good idea to bear this in mind when setting up a screen for the other to view and/or control, and move that panel off to the side, whilst maximising the meaningful position and area. When you are controlling another’s screen your cursor will remain as an arrow, which can be confusing if it is a brush which would normally display its size! Also, if for instance you are on a Mac and are controlling a PC, you will need to know the corresponding shortcut keys – small, but important points.

Adobe ‘ConnectNow’ is not the only contender for the features I have described, Skype and iChat are also available. It is platform agnostic and does offer participants control over other’s screens, which Skype does not, though it is also cross-platform, whereas iChat is only available for Mac-to-Mac work. It is the most polished, but all could be improved in some ways. I imagine Apple would say that there is Apple Desktop Remote, which is the professional tool. However, I think as Broadband improves in speed and more users take up the free options, they will receive the necessary attention.

NO! to Bushwood

Perhaps it was an omen, and that the sun does indeed shine on the righteous. In this case the righteous indignation of the villagers of Caddington and Slip End to the proposed building of some five and a half thousand homes in pristine greenbelt, who already suffer from an inadequate infrastructure to cope with existing local projects.

The sun shone on icy roads and pavements as first the organisers then the support teams and the Press gathered in the Slip End Village Hall car park. They were waiting for those who planned to walk in protest between the two villages most affected by this ill-conceived attempt by Developers to build their proposed monstrosity in an area which is outside the preferred zones for new housing within the area.

Esther Rantzen was there at the start, as were Ruth Gammon, Richard Stay and Nigel Huddleston, and several faces known to the local community, and as the crowd swelled, the St. John Ambulance team and the Police were on hand to help ensure the smooth running of the march. Despite this, numerous vehicles did find themselves retreating or being diverted, but good humour was in abundance, as were dogs who were more used to solitary walks. Families were out as much to enjoy the sunshine and the social gathering as to protest, and it was also obvious that the schools, parents and churches had been helping children to create their own personal banners and tabards.

Despite many choosing to join the march part way through or at the final destination, there was a very commendable turnout of willing villagers who braved the cold to make the full distance, though they did have to be coaxed to chant – to many it was undoubtedly a great social occasion, even though whilst photographing the event I did hear a lot of talk that was centred on the point of it all.

Once everyone had arrived at Caddington Green, the case (CaSE4!) was explained in greater detail, as to why it was essential that the local voice was heard, even though the Developers have yet to make an official Planning Application. One of the local doctors, Dr Verity, also spoke to the crowd, to appeal for people in the ‘at risk’ groups: the elderly and and the under-5s, to visit the surgery for Swine Flu jabs. Can we be immunised against greedy and devious Developers?

It will be interesting to see how prospective local politicians treat this issue when they seek our vote this Spring.

Slumdog Coincidence

Tonight was special – my niece's name writ large on the screen for the hair and makeup for Slumdog Millionaire shown on Film Four for the first time, my first viewing, and on Virginia's Grandma's 94th birthday!

It was great to see it all the way through, and albeit fleetingly to have spoken briefly with Virginia earlier in the day in Mumbai. A fitting way to end the day, what a great film.

Now, the Return Trip to Paris

Originally the training trip to Paris was to be between Christmas and the New Year, but Eurostar’s problems caused a change of plans, and made me nervous about the timing of the visit, but it worked out reasonably well in the end, and I was lucky as other travellers suffered cancellations. I kept my camera ready and captured little architectural details and challenged myself to try to capture scenes at high speed through grubby windows as the landscapes of England and France sped by.

Once in Montmartre I grabbed every small break from the computer screens to keep taking photos of life in that part of Paris, and I was amazed at just how many people were out and about in the ice, snow and cold, and at the hours at which I found them, they were outside restaurants on the pavements chatting merrily, and the Sacré Couer Funicular Railway was still running at one o’clock in the morning, though I think it may have closed soon after I shot a punter going towards the turnstile.

I learnt just how versatile is the Canon 5D in near darkness when using ISO 6400! I even found a spot in the area for which I carried a memory from my first ever visit to France, when I was a teenager! However, that visit was in the warmth of Spring or Summer!

Just the Day before I Left for Paris…

The sun shone out of a blue sky and the air was crisp and cold, but the temptation to get out to take pictures was irresistible, and I was fairly sure that Tringford Reservoir would be a haven for birds in need of food, and the public would be out for walks around the edge, and more than willing to offer. As I passed Pitstone, I spotted some hot-air balloonists out in the reasonably still air, however as is often the case I was arriving late, but at least they added some interest to the Windmill.

After a few shots that included the Ivinghoe church, I set off for Tringford where I was rewarded with a low golden light across the reed beds and slowly melting ice across much of the surface – the small trapped twigs melted some circles in the ice which made interesting patterns, and the blue ice against the golden reeds made for an interesting contrast in colour.

Further in where much of the ice had melted, small islands were left, which meant bread thrown by passers by was only reached by skittering ducks or the long necks of swans.

I caught a hurried sight of a cormorant, interesting groups in silhouette and one narrow boat idling along the nearby canal. Altogether a restful interlude before my trip to the Montmartre district of Paris, where I spent six days, mostly alongside an American photographer to help him understand how Lightroom was to help in his photographic workflow, how it linked with Photoshop, and also how he could explore new retouching techniques for his fashion and beauty photography. Galleries of images taken mostly at night in the few breaks I took from the training, and these sunnier pictures are now ready.

Paris and Training

Aboard the Eurostar train, it took a while to get seated, since the aisle was so narrow, but once that was behind me, I took the camera out - only to find we were entering a tunnel! It was at this time an American made a comment on my lens and then the camera.

Hugo, for that was his name, and I got chatting about photography and iStockphoto. I gather he works for them on the technical side. He requested my business card, but apolgised that he hadn't brought his own, promising he'd take a look at my blog, and would also mention my book on his site, despite his being a PC person! I'll keep a look out for his email giving me his details.

The weather outside whilst journeying across northern France was dull and overcast until the outskirts of Paris, when there was a glimmer of wintry sunshine from breaks in the clouds.

It was easy to spot Marco, mine host for the next six days, as he stood as promised with his helmet immediately ahead of me at the end of the Gare du Nord platform. We greeted each other as if we had known each other all our lives, and it has been as easy as that between us the entire time. He then helped me to a taxi, and he then sped off on his scooter, and we arrived at his apartment just after he had parked up.

I am here to help him learn how Lightroom can benefit his overall workflow with Photoshop, and to help him to extend his retouching skills. It is both fun and challenging with both of us exchanging our life experiences and joshing each other over our choices of computer platforms!

In the few moments when he has had other commitments, I have managed to capture a few of the local scenes, but the light has never been brilliant. Pictures taken the day before I left for France at Tringford Reservoir and those taken since may have to wait for my return before appearing, but I will try to get something up sooner.

Although our temperature has hovered around the -5˚C mark, we only had a short flurry of snow this morning (Wednesday); that did not settle, yet I hear the UK has had quite a fall, which makes me wonder whether Eurostar will have the wrong type of Snow!

AA, ECU, LR, PS and QC at Xmas!

Free time has been scarce over this Christmas period, so a gallery of images taken around the village probably a week ago, have yet to be sorted and displayed. Having time together with both my daughters was great, and afforded the opportunity to take some shots of my elder daughter’s neighbourly birds, as I waited for the arrival of the AA man!
Why was I waiting for this visit?
– On the journey over to Grantchester, my car’s display was trying to get a message to me via an orange engine symbol warning light on the dashboard. I also detected a misfire. The AA man arrived in a skid, that gave me cause for concern over his abilities as a driver, but his lack of acumen in this department was not reflected in his diagnostic ability, fortunately!
He checked that his initial diagnosis was backed up, by thoroughly checking that the ECU (Electronic Control Unit) was sending the right signals, and that the fault lay with the Coil Pack. It was not taking the signal that produced the spark for Cylinder Two, and guess what? It was a chunky, sealed unit, that from bitter experience I knew was going to be costing me a three-figure sum; but not on Christmas Day. Nor on the day after, nor the day after that! I have now purchased four new spark plugs and this coil pack, and so my car has certainly had its fair share of Christmas presents – far more than I have spent on others or myself over the same period! It is also due a service, so it is in for a Happy New Year too!

I am currently awaiting confirmation of a trip to Paris to help an Italian, Paris-based fashion photographer with Lightroom and Photoshop workflow, and retouching for close on a week. Eurostar’s mishaps caused a postponement of this venture from the inter-regnum twixt Christmas and the New Year.

My using both iChat and Skype over the last few days has helped several photographers remotely, from as far as the South of France and as near as north and south London, and somehow allowed me the time to send in an initial submission to Quality Control (QC) at Picture Library, Alamy – I learnt this had been accepted just yesterday, so when I can spare the time I shall be getting some of my work up there, for sale.

Stop Press – News – The Paris Training Trip is booked, but my mobile number will still reach me.

Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year

To all those visitors to the galleries on my Blog, I hope that 2010 proves that with the right attitude, we can all work and be rewarded for our efforts, and confound all the Doom Merchants who would rob us of our smiles. Times are tough, but they need not be miserable. Recently my village suffered from a severe loss of services, and some continue to do so, but there are many even in this country, who are far worse off. Try to think for a moment of all those in that beautiful county of Cumbria, who are without their homes.
Think of those families and friends of soldiers and airmen in the hostile lands of Afghanistan and elsewhere far from home, and some of those families whose loved ones have been lost in the conflicts in other parts of this troubled world.

Be grateful for whatever we have.

If you would like to print out your own version of my Christmas Card, it can be found here:http://tinyurl.com/ydmuktn

Snow and Village Life

Snow came to Caddington once again, overnight Thursday, and Friday dawned into bright sunlight. At first the sky was a dome of clear blue from horizon to horizon, the villagers were slow to venture out, but with camera and a second lens, I wandered around to capture the activity.

Several school-age children soon realised that this worth getting out of bed for. However to their evident dismay, this was ‘the wrong type of snow’ since it would not stick together, so snowballing and igloo-building was doomed to failure, but kick it and it makes a fine display!
It was a time for the very young to be towed on sleds by parents doing the morning shopping, or in one case (though sadly after I had put the camera away!) for some bright spark to ‘borrow’ Gran’s mobility scooter to tow a kid along the pavement at a much slicker, and effortless pace!

Dogs were walked, babies prammed, and toddlers swung, and smiles infected everyone, there was definitely a holiday spirit abroad. However, clouds began to form, and soon the sun began to be veiled, but before it disappeared totally, I did manage to capture some of the interplay of light and shade on snow-covered cars in the local garage, a lone starling singing from atop my own kitchen chimney cowl, a red letterbox with its ‘arm’ of snow, and a few examples of how snow can transform a mundane scene into something more magical.

But now it is Sunday morning, and as I write this, I have learned that what I believed was my boiler failing again, and my home telephone choosing to go on the blink, was in fact a village-wide calamity. Amazingly, an emergency committee has sprung into action, and volunteers are distributing small electric hotplates and heaters, from the Community Centre to anyone in need, and others are paying visits to the local elderly. The Gas supply will be out for the next few days, and we all need to turn off at the mains.

Snow has brought a sense of community in so many ways.

Aylesbury Church Concert

Having thoroughly enjoyed hearing the Aylesbury Community Concert Band playing in Wendover High Street, I wanted to hear them again in a church hall in Aylesbury town centre. Not knowing the venue I set off early, but the details I had were not correct, so I ended up walking around St. Mary’s, which was totally deserted, I tried phoning to get an update but there was no reply.

Not only that as the time approached for the start, and all the notices made no mention of any event that night at this church, it became obvious I was not in the right place, finally with only minutes in hand I got a return call which told me I had to go to the Methodist Church, but the description and directions matched the Wesleyan Chapel, which ironically was very close to where my car was parked!

The beauty of the venue was there was a raised balcony from which I could shoot and I could move around for different viewpoints. It was still on the borderline from a speed point of view – digital noise would therefore be a challenge, but I managed.

I also got a chance to sing, but I doubt I was heard above the band, even though I put my all into ‘Oh, Come All Ye Faithful’!

Wendover – Christmas Carols around the Christmas Tree

It was a foggy evening drive from Caddington to Wendover, and I was cutting it fine, so finding a space to park the car was none too easy, but I had seen the crowds forming so knew the destination, and a brisk walk never did me any harm.

The Aylesbury Community Concert band were there to play Christmas Carols, and I had just enough time to get myself ready to take some shots of the players. There was a good and cheerful crowd, and the playing was excellent to my ears, yet I could see that everyone was finding their hands and fingers getting steadily colder, which must make it hard to play an instrument.

The children were having a great time running round the War Memorial, quite oblivious of the chill, and probably equally oblivious of the music, except when it came to ‘Away in a Manger’ when they did burst into song!

Lightroom – Badges on the Grid Images

Recently I have found that some users of Lightroom are not fully aware of what all the badges on their pictures within Lightroom's Library module Grid display actually mean or do.

I have created a single A5 PDF document that explains their functions, so that it becomes more obvious just how informative as well as powerful this is. Adobe helpfully provides numerous hotspots with lists of the options that can be displayed as badges on each image. Technically the three small icons in the bottom right are the badges, but I have lumped all the items overlaid on the pictures under the name 'badges' for simplicity.

The items without a contextual list of choices of what to display have Tooltips to explain their function.

Overall, I hope that what I have explained proves useful. The PDF is in the Galleries section the right, titled 'Lightroom Badges'.