More FlickR

Fallow Deer Stags fighting - Bradgate Park

This is getting like a stuck record I know but anyway - Flickr. It is getting a bit of an obsession at the moment. As I write this I am just about to go over the 7000 hits barrier - nothing at all unusual about this apart from it took me 2 years to get to 6000 hits and just over a week to add another 1000 hits. So why the improvement? Well there is no special recipe other than spending a lot more time working with FlickR. I had done some research on how to improve the hits and they all came back with much the same answer - get your photographs out onto as many groups as possible and keep posting comments on other people's photographs. On the whole this has worked but it does have a down side. You do become more and more obsessed with pushing the numbers up that if you are not careful you can forget the whole purpose is make photographs for yourself not Flickr.

So where to go from here? Well one of the things I have found out is that there is a significant difference in the photography in the colder northern hemisphere compared to the sunny and warm tropical area. Well der you may think and you would be true but Flickr does allow you access to photographs that would never see the light of day, if you pardon the pun, in any other way. I have been particularly struck by the work of Rubbia, not just for the work as such but the quality of light. According to her Flickr profile she works in and around Rio de Janeiro and her photographs are full of a wonderful light that we just do get. It has a depth and warmth that is just not available here even on the hottest days. This is a real joy to experience and something I would not have done under normal circumstances.

Now I hope to get off the topic of Flickr. I am working on a guide to the rut at Bradgate park which hopefully I will publish on the blog in the next few days

Conkers...

Conkers

I know that this is a reflection of my age but I love conkers. In my mind they will always be associated to this time of year. As a child we would go out the the horse chestnut trees and spend hours trying to get down the seeds. We would then enjoy the delight of opening the newly fallen conker, revealing the nut inside its green covering. And what a colour - deep chestnut with a sheen that any shampoo manufacturer would have died for - just wonderful.

So why the wonder down memory lane? Well I was walking down a country lane yesterday when I came across two wonderful horse chestnut trees surrounded by newly fallen conkers. They lay on the ground just calling out to be picked up and of course I obliged stuffing my pockets - just as I had done all those years ago. It really is strange how the smallest thing can transport you back, however briefly, to your childhood - indeed it is usual a small thing, a smell or location that sets this of. It was a wonderful day for walking yesterday and the conkers just made it that little bit more special. The only problem I have now is what to do with all these conkers? Are well back to reality!

Flickr oh Flickr...

Stag and Old John - Bradgate Park.

Well what an interesting day I have had working on my photographs and trying to increase the number of hits I have been getting for my photographs on Flickr. To an extent I have achieve this. As I write this I have had over 119 hits - an all time record. So who have I managed to increase the number of hits? Well the only way to do this would appear to be to spend a lot of time in the Flickr domain, publishing your photographs to numerous groups, commenting on other photographs by other people and slowly but surely you get responses. Of course it also helps to have a strong photograph or two but really that is not the best way. There would appear to be no substitute for networking. Get your work noticed and then people will respond - just as in real life.

So what do I think about Flickr now? Well I am not too sure as to its long term viability for myself. Yes it does get your work out there and yes probably a lot more people will see it but there is a snag. You don't develop as a photographer. All you do is get your work buried in a huge pile of photographs which, if I had taken them, would never have seen the light of day let alone published for all the world to see. Don't get me wrong there are some unbelievable photographs on Flickr - photographs I can only wish to be able to take. But these are the exception and so are very difficult to find unless you know where to look - which is a skill I am slowly acquiring.

I suppose, in the end, it is what do you want to get out of Flickr - if it is an education in photography then you will be disappointed. If you want to have a brief glimpse at some amazing photographs then Flickr does deliver - but you have to work at it. If, however, you want to get some gratification for your work from total strangers from all over the world and you enjoy social networking then Flickr really delivers. I'm just not sure if this is what I want.

Busy day at the office...

It was almost like a film première. The photographers were out in their droves, long lenses straining for the next photo opportunity. Only it wasn't that it was Bradgate Park on a bright, fresh October morning. There must have been at least 20 photographers in the park all straining to get that one illusive photograph - only they weren't. It would seem that not only do deer herd but so do photographers. I asked one of the number whether they were from a camera club but apparently not. However, this didn't stop them congregating together. At one stage I thought it would spoil the morning but it didn't. I later spoke to one of the park wardens and he said that last Sunday a number of photographers entered the out of bounds area - a really silly thing to do and not obaying the code of practice for nature photographers.

I could continue picking faults with the morning but with my local knowledge and some understanding of deer behaviour I was able to find good sites and get some good shots. I just wonder what most of the other photographs were like? A ho.

Try again...

Well I was sort of right and sort of wrong about today. It was nice when I got up and then I realised that Snettersham is 70 miles east of me - where the weather wasn't as good. Whether this would have made the trip a wash out we will never know. Anyway, I'm going to try again tomorrow - this time deer hunting in Bradgate Park. At least the weather looks more promising.

Best laid plans...

Snow Bunting - Titchwell

Well I was going to get up early tomorrow and get over to Snettersham for dawn and the wader spectacular. However, the weather forecast is for heavy rain first thing in the morning and so this would spoil the whole experience - so I have decided not to go. Now I can guarantee that when I wake up tomorrow it will be brilliant sunshine and the weather forecast was not as accurate as promised. For once I hope it is raining when I wake up - we'll see!

6000 hits...

Queen Anne Statue - St Pauls Cathedral - London

Well I have hit the magic 6000 mark. Well actually there is nothing magic about this at all other than it is a bit of a milestone for me. I am fully aware that there are many people who may get this number of hits in a much shorter time than I have but it still feels a bit of an achievement. What does that say about me?

So I guess the next question is how long will it take me to get the next 6000 hits? And what does that say about my photography? Or is it just the case that it doesn't mean anything at all and these are just random events. I suspect the last thing is probably closer to the truth than anything else. It does give me something to think about.

Another early rise....

Red Deer Stag at Dawn - Bradgate Park

It was dark when I got into Bradgate Park this morning. You could just make out murky figures moving in the gloom - these were mainly fallow deer although there was a rather large red deer stag nearby who you could smell but hardly see. However, you could hear him when he started to bellow - this always brings a chill to me when I hear it. Autumn has really arrived.

I had spent the previous day looking after my wife who had broken her arm. However, as I was getting up early she would still be in bed for most of the time so I didn't feel too bad leaving her at home. This makes Mandy sound like an invalid, which she is not, but she does need my help from time to time

After this promising start the whole session became a real disappointment. The light was nice but there really wasn't anything interesting to photograph. Still it is still early and there is only one thing you can do in these circumstances - persevere - so I will be getting up early for the next month or so. Now what we need are some nice frosts to help matters.

My most popular photograph to date...

Red Deer - Cervus elaphus - Stag calling, originally uploaded by Guthlac.

To date this is the most popular photograph I have posted on Flickr There are many reasons for this - not least of which it is one of the first I ever posted!

Phones and Broken Bones...

Well I had great plans for today. I was going to get up early and have an enjoyable time with the deer. However that went by the wayside when I had far more important things to think about - my wife broke her arm!

She took a tumble in the garden and after a the pain got greater and greater we decided to go the the local A&E. Now first things first. I have only ever used the A&E once in anger for myself and they were very good and very efficient. The same goes for Mandy. We arrived just after 5pm and slowly worked our way through the process. The waits were not too long and there were sign explaining what was happening and why people might jump the queue - clinical need i.e. you are not as badly injured as they are. However, this didn't seem to be too much in evidence. Just as an aside this is the one part of the NHS that everyone uses and has been improved out of all recognition over the years and so which ever party wins the next election will tamper with this at their peril. The staff work hard and deliver a good services sometimes under very trying circumstances. So find cuts elsewhere but don't touch the A&E.

There endth the the sermon. Anyone who has visited hospital will be well aware of the waiting involved if you have a minor injury. This does give you time for people watching. You sit there wondering how they got injured, what is the story. If you were a author you could do worse than spend time waiting in the A&E you would get scores of books from just watching the people. So as we waited for the x-rays to be taken we had a steady stream of young kids with injuries, mainly injured arms or ankles. At first this might seem strange until you start to connect the dots. Most of them had sports kit on and as this was a Wednesday I assumed that most schools play each other and I was watching the fall out from these contests. Most of the injuries no doubt would heel in good time and the kids would have tales and scares to show their friends.

The other thing I noticed was the mobile phone. Now there was a time when these were banned from hospital premises not any more. They seemed to help people get through the experience by either texting each other or playing games - this included myself as I got some serious tetris in whilst I waited. Here is a tip for the managers at Leicester Royal Infirmary - install a free Wi Fi and you will cut your complaints by half.

So we left the hospital three hours later, my wife's arm in a sling but no need for plaster. She is sore but already pottering around the house checking up on what I am doing to her house. Could have been worse and I would just like to say thank you to the staff of the Leicester Royal Infirmary for ensuring that the experience was not as frustrating as it could have been

Gateway between Leicestershire and Rutland - Launde

Gateway between Leicestershire and Rutland - Launde, originally uploaded by Guthlac.

Yesterday was the start of a very occasional series of walks based on the Leicestershire Round. For those of you who are not aware the Leicestershire Round is a 100 mile long distance walk around the county of Leicestershire. Only it does stray into Rutland for just a mile of so and this gateway leads into England's smallest county. This photograph also appeals to my technical side.

I love boundaries and their influence on people. I have spent many a happy hour trying to retrace ancient boundaries in the land mark. Also it does have just a hint of Narnia. Just what is through this mysterious gate?

One final thing on this part of country. It is so very silent. There are the noises of the countryside, the wind in tress, the rustle of autumn leaves but no human noise at all. However this was shattered by the military. Harrier jets from the nearby airfield on from time to time shattered the peaceful idol. It was so unexpected and at times disconcerting - you find your hearing or to be more precise your brain straining for noises that modern urban life creates. They just weren't there.

What an Idiot...

Brancaster Golf Course from Titchwell - Titchwell, originally uploaded by Guthlac.

Well that is me. I used to be so good with time and dates - always on time - never miss an appointment. However not any more. I seem to be getting worse. this time I missed my good friend David Manley's coffee morning - I thought it was today - instead it was last Friday. What a complete clot I am. If you read this David I am very sorry.

Churchill and Parliament - London

Churchill and Parliament - London, originally uploaded by Guthlac.

I no this getting a bit boring but you have to go through the process to see if they work and what changes you will have to make. Anyway I have changed the template to see if this improves the way the photo and post look. One thing I have noticed is that should I wish to add any hyper links I have to add them afterwards within blogger rather than in Flickr.

Southbank - London

Southbank - London
Originally uploaded by Guthlac

As you may have seen I have set up a direct link between my Flickr account and my blog. This is a test of the whole process. One interesting thing is that the spell check is provided by Google Chrome, my favoured browser which doesn't seem to recognise the word Google. Now that is strange!

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Peter Liepke

I have spent the last week or so salivating over a portfolio of Peter Liepke's work in the latest edition of SilverShotz. Leipke is a successful commercial photographer but the work shown is more of his personal images of his adopted New York city. Well worth checking out. To see the work click here

FlickR....

Titchwell beach

FlickR is a strangely intoxicating service. Every time I decide to reduce my input it keeps coming back with something interesting - interesting enough to keep me uploading photographs. The latest thing is the viewing numbers. Now I am a VERY small fish as far as hits are concerned but I am now up to nearly 6000 hits. Nothing special there but it does give you some feedback as to what is viewed and not from your work. I am fully aware that this is not a scientific survey but it is the widest viewing I am likely to get and this is not to be sniffed at. So perhaps there is some value in flickR afterall. Perhaps...?

One final thing. I have now changed my flickR account name to http://www.flickr.com/photos/guthlac/. It looks a little more professional

Another early start...

Young Swallows being feed - Welney

Another early start but worth it. We spent the day walking along the beach at Titchwell and birdwatching at Welney. I am knackered but the early results are encouraging. I did learn one thing today. When I am in an area where wildlife predominates then I should really concentrate on this - today I tried to make some landscape photographs at Titchwell and only ended up getting myself in a bit of a mess as there was just too much bird photographic opportunities and I just couldn't work on the landscapes. You would have thought I would have worked that one out by now! D'oh!!

High Dynamic Range...Some Thoughts...

Langton Caudle - Stonton Wyville

I keep coming back to this subject and having played around with it for a while I thought it might be useful to try and marshall my thoughts and see if they make sense - to me at least! So High Dynamic Range (HDR) what is there to say? I think the first thing to say is that it can result in some very bizarre and, to my eye at least, unsatisfactory images. (See Google Search) I am not sure why this is. I suspect that many people have been intoxicated by the power of Photomatix. It is all too easy to produce some strange outcomes with Photomatix and many people seem to to do this.

Fosse Way - Sharnford

But what should a HDR photograph look like? This is a ridiculous question but what I mean is why use HDR at all? Well the main reason HDR was developed was to capture a much higher dynamic range than a normal sensor could. There are a whole series of problems with this, not least the problem of producing a true HDR output, either as a print of or on screen.

So the technique is fraught with complications and problems. Over the past few years many software developers have produced software that automates the mixing of images to produce a HDR image. Here we start to enter a problem area. Each of these software packages produces their own outcomes, probably slightly different from the next, and so we have to ask the question exactly who produced the image? Now this an angel on the head of pin argument with no real conclusion apart from leaving a bad taste in your mouth. But it is important when considering HDR images as they are amalgams of two or more images captured at the scene.

In part as a result of concerns over control and, if I am truthful, never really feeling comfortable with the Photomatix software I now blend my own images together to produce a HDR. I also feel this helps me produce the result that I want rather than what the software insists on producing. One example that I feel I have been able to overcome is the problem of movement between images of such things as leaves, people etc. I can now address this problem with much greater certainty by controlling the whole process myself. This is also the case with the control of details within the image as well.

So what is the result of all this? Well, I feel I have moved away from the metallic look and feel of many HDR images. I am now able to produce images that have significant increase in details and tonal range and whilst retaining their original look and feel. The photographs from my current Leicestershire Round series demonstrates what I mean - the later would have been very difficult to produce with Photomatix as the sheep moved quite a bit between the three images.

I am coming to any conclusions or am I just confusing matters even more? Both and neither. I feel that HDR is an important technique that I currently use extensively but it can be a dead end if you let the software control what you are doing - however this is true of all photography - it is the photographer that makes the photograph - the equipment facilitates nothing more.

iPhone - long term reflections...

Well it has been just over 6 months since I bought my first iPhone and I thought it would be useful, if for no one else but myself, to set down some thoughts on the beast. Well the first thing to say is that I am inseparable from the little beastie - well most of the time. In day to day life I cannot now really understand life without the iPhone. It answer so many questions on a daily basis. I find myself surfing the net for answers all the time because the phone is just there - so much easier than logging on to my computer - convenience trumps power anytime.

So much so good. And it does get better. I now have a number of apps on the machine which are so very useful. AroundMe is so useful. When you are out and about and would like a coffee then one click on this app and there you have a whole list of surrounding coffee vendors. Now I know it is far from perfect but it provides you with a easy guide.

The maps app is another useful piece of software that can be very useful. Last week I used this app to navigate around central London. Very Very useful but does have the draw back of only working well in an area with really good 3G coverage - hence it worked so well in London. It is not so hot in country but then that is what the OS maps are for.

I find myself waking up in the morning and using the machine to scroll through my emails before I have taken a shower. Now this is probably a damming indictment of me but I find it so easy to use - again this is made easy by WiFi coverage.

So these are the good point what of the negative ones? Well I am struggling to come up with any. Perhaps the biggest problem I have noticed is that the battery does tend to heat up if you don't keep the thing switched on for a long time. Now to be fair to Apple I had the machine inside a fleece pocket next to my body which no doubt contributed to the battery getting hot but it is a problem that you need to monitor.

There is also a question of reliability. This is the second iPhone, the first lasting only a few months. However, Apple replaced the phone straight away so this didn't cause a huge problem but it is there.

Having looked at these two problems I am now wondering why I find the machine such a wonder but I guess it is just perfect in what it does or perhaps to be more precise it meets my needs. I am not a huge phone user, nor do I text that much so I don't know whether it is any better than many of the other phones on the market. However, I would note that all the major phone manufacturers are making iPhone wannabes but none have the completeness of the iPhone. In the end they tend to be pale copies of the iPhone (I don't include in this Blackberry because it seems to be a robust machine with a clear idea as to what it is trying to achieve. I just love there tactile keyboard - much better than the iPhone touch screen version.)

So 6 months on I now find myself an Apple convert - well as far as phone are concerned. I can no longer envision living my life without the iPhone - even given the problems I have noticed. The iPhone, not perfect but once you own one indispensable.