A New (Reconditioned) Nikon DSLR

I had a day off today and my goal was that I would buy that DSLR that I've been thinking about for a few weeks now. I drove up to Carmarthen Cameras, traded in my Nikon D40 that I had for several years and was now tired and unsuitable for my photographic needs.

I bought a reconditioned Nikon D5200, not the most expensive camera but hopefully one that will work with me to give the results that I'm looking for. I'm not sure yet if I like it or if being a reconditioned camera that I have made the right decision.

I took it out for a "test run." I'm not unhappy with the results, but I'm a little concerned that it stops, a green light comes on, and it takes 5 mins or so to work again, It looks like I may have to go back to Carmarthen to replace this one.

I'll use it tomorrow as I'm going over to Caldey Island with a group of walkers to explore the island and have a picnic, and see how both I, and the camera get on.

These are a few images I shot today ...

Saundersfoot shops and seafood places...

 A kiosk to book that Fishing Trip or Boat Trip around the beautiful shores of West Wales

Buy some Saundersfoot Rock or an Ice Cream in the afternoon... then to the butchers to buy your meat for supper!

I cant remember the name of this shop... cards, souvenirs and more ...

A quick visit to my sister's house ..she wasn't home so I took a few shots of the rose in her garden ....

So until tomorrow ...looking forward to our visit to Caldey Island. The last time I sailed over to Caldey was in the rain, with my then two young children. 

Trace....

Trying out Digital ... forgetting to adjust the settings was my first mistake ... I'm so used to using Analogue Cameras, I've forgotten that I need to change the settings on a Digital. I wanted to try my old Nikon DSLR this afternoon to see how it fared. I do need a new camera though, mine is a little tired, the quality isn't amazing and it has dust marks everywhere! I'm not sure yet which camera to buy... a good quality fixed lens, or another DSLR. I've looking at my options.

I'll continue with Analogue as well as Digital, but it is getting a bit expensive to buy films and have them all developed. There's no harm in diversifying is there.... and life changes, circumstances change, creativity moves on.

Trace ........ my reason for taking photographs this afternoon, as well as testing out my old digi camera, was to find the traces of people on the beach, left behind after a day out...Sandcastles all shapes and sizes ....

Two Men and a Beer ... it was quite curious to see these two men digging and building a massive sandcastle! They said that they were going to carry on building until the tide came in at 6pm. Aching with the effort after already digging and building since 10am, I asked if they had any particular reason for building the biggest sandcastle I'd ever seen... they had no reason, just a determination to carry on until it was impossible to carry on any longer. Good Luck to you both!

Writing on the Sand ... a message of Happiness and Peace ...

Children's colourful fishing nets..

Walking up from the beach, a shop selling all manner of beach items... then across the road, a kiosk selling ice cream and candy floss...

Sue's Pantry..a very popular cake shop, cup cakes galore, lemon rock cake and tens of other varieties to tempt the most strict of dieters!

My favourite shop .. Chobbles. Its so difficult to make a choice, there are every kind of sweets you could think of. A nostalgic place where the sweets take you back to you childhood. A veritable choice of amazing delights.

Sadly like many towns around the UK, an empty shop. Its not the only one in Saundersfoot, I always feel sad to see these wasted spaces. 

So now to go and have a look at some affordable Digi cameras that suit my pocket!

Humans Channel 4 Sunday Night 9pm

It was really good to see Colin Morgan back on our TV screens. I haven't seen him much since "Merlin" and I think he's a terrific actor. More of him please!

Humans is quite sinister. It's frighteningly believable that something like this could happen in the future. Robots programmed to do just about anything that we do. I hope I'm not around if/when it does happen. What on earth would we real humans do then?

This is an intriguing drama, a thriller with undertones of real darkness. We don't know yet what the other machine people are, the ones that Colin Morgan's character is protecting, but it has been hinted that they are machines with emotions and feelings. Nothing is quite clear yet.

There are many good actors in this drama, the script is great and the acting top notch. Well done Chanel 4.

I'm looking forward to the next episode.

A June Day ...

Poetry in Motion

 120mm Colour Film

A Walk In and Around the Woods

Pentax Camera, 35mm Black and White Film

Wisemans Bridge Woodland Road and The Lily Ponds at Bosherston....

Using a Mamyia Twin Lens camera, 120mm Kodak Colour Film.

Bluebells, vibrant colourful trees, a favourite place of mine to roam. The light here is fabulous and when I drive along this road, I always slow down, it is breathtaking; it makes me glad to be alive, thankful that I live in such a beautiful country and never fails to make me feel "Wow" this must be one of the wonders of the world.

Bosherston in early April I think. Bright sunshine, maybe not the best time to take photographs, but I love the harsh light, the sharp detail. As I walked around the ponds, there was a small path to the water where birds hid amongst the reeds. I could here them, but not see them. I did see a heron, but he was too fast for me to catch. 

A double exposure of the reeds....

The exposure isn't right for either of these two images (above and below) but it doesn't matter to me. I could correct them, but to me, this is how the light appeared at the time, everything in my sight was pale. Shot at different times, the one below later than the one above so the water appears more blue in this one, reflecting the colour of the sky,

AlanTuring - The Imitation Game

I watched The Imitation Game this afternoon. Its a dull, drizzly day so I went to the library to see what I could find. I'd wanted to see this film for a while and as luck would have it, it had been returned just this morning.

I am full of admiration for Alan Turing, the people who worked with him and many others who broke codes at Bletchley to help us win the second world war.

Alan Turing was a victim of his time, sadly. He was a genius mathematician; he broke the code of the enigma with his magnificent, oh so complicated machine, The first computer.

Image courtesy of theindependent.co.uk

He invented the first computer, all of us have benefited from his work. And yet, at the time, when minds were closed, rules were Victorian, laws were positively stone age, a homosexual man had to hide his sexual preferences or be damned. He suffered because he was a Gay man. He was almost child like in his honesty, unable to hide or lie or be deceitful in order to shield himself from the wrath of the authorities. He didn't go to jail although he was charged and sentenced to two years for "Indecent Behaviour," He chose to opt for a two year hormone therapy that the judge offered to him as an alternative. The hormones affected his mind and body.

But those were the laws of the day, and I nor anyone else can change them. They make me angry and very sad, but there are many things of the past that make me ashamed of how we were and how we thought, and glad that I live in the 21st Century, though sometimes I wonder if life has changed that much. In many ways it has not. But in some ways, we are more enlightened, I think, I hope....