Photoblogging in the UK

Preparing to launch

2007-08-14T08:21:00.000+01:00

Montbretia (Crocosmia Lucifer) & Campanula.jpg

2007-07-29T00:03:00.001+01:00

Montbretia (Crocosmia Lucifer) & Campanula.jpg, originally uploaded by DSNet.

Ashton Wood Eagle Sculpture

2007-07-27T18:00:00.001+01:00

Ashton Wood Eagle Sculpture, originally uploaded by DSNet.

Taken with an original Olympus OM film camera.

Droplets

2007-07-27T17:33:00.001+01:00

Droplets
Originally uploaded by DSNet

Taken with my Olympus E-500 using a Vivitar 28mm Wide Angle OM lens. As the Vivitar lens was made for the Olympus OM , it's not digital and there's no electronics for the camera body to communicate with. Therefore it can only be used in fully manual mode.
That's not a problem for close-ups and I really like the results you can get.

Flickr

2007-07-27T17:25:00.001+01:00

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

Drupal : an open source CMS

2006-11-09T06:48:00.000Z

DSNet | Building Communities

Blogger is great but doesn't have all the features I want, so I've been looking at open source content management systems (CMS). In the end , I chose Drupal, as it is extensible (there are hundreds of add-on modules) and powerful (it's fast!) and has a big active community of developers.

Check out my site, DSNet, by clicking the link above, and let me know what you think.

moby reflects on 9/11

2006-09-13T04:44:00.000+01:00

Moby's birthday just happens to be on 11th September. In his journal on 9/11/2006 (or 11/9/2006 if you're in the UK) he bemoans the way that this day has been hijacked by the media.

i, for one, as a human being, an american, and a new yorker, am not in any way served by once again seeing the footage of the planes flying into the twin towers. i lived through it once, i don't need to be gratuitously reminded of what happened, as every time i look at the sky from my roof i see a giant hole where the world trade center used to be.
to be blunt, i'm tired of the media and the administration milking tragedy for their own transparent purposes.
we know what happened. we remember what happened. leave us alone to mourn and remember in peace.

You can read the whole journal entry here.

"Breaking news" is a photo he took of Bush on TV with the unintended truism of the Sky newsflash "Bush: One of the worst disasters to hit the U.S."

Happy Birthday, Moby.

Olympus E-500

2006-09-05T12:27:00.000+01:00

After much deliberation I've finally bought an Olympus E-500 as my first SLR digital camera. It came with 2 Zuiko lenses; a 14-45mm f/3.5-5.7 and a 40-150mm f/3.5-4.5
It's a little overwhelming after my very compact Fujifilm 4700! An immediate benefit is the increase in storage. I have installed a 1Gb Olympus XD card and a Sandisk 1Gb Compactflash which now allows for over 300 shots at SHQ size.

2006-06-04T03:09:00.000+01:00

Small Faces - I Can't Make it

How cool is this? From photo to videoblogging.

2006-05-11T23:57:00.000+01:00

I've started a new site this week. It's just bare bones at the moment but it should eventually have more functionality than we can get here, so watch this space.

CIWF long distance transport campaign - Send a card, not a calf

2006-04-29T10:47:00.000+01:00

CIWF long distance transport campaign - Send a card, not a calf

Whether carnivore or vegetarian, I'm sure you'll agree that inflicting stress and real physical suffering on any living being is cruel. Most thinking meat eaters would feel more comfortable knowing that the the animal that they are about to eat at least had a good life before being quickly dispatched with the minimum of pain.
Transporting live animals long distances is bad for them, bad for the environment and bad for business.
The drive for cheaper food has cheapened our lives.
If you've got to eat them, at least treat them well for their short lives.
Please use the link above to send a message to Margaret Beckett asking her to look for humane alternatives.
Thank You.

Snakeshead Fritillary

2006-04-25T21:38:00.000+01:00

Fritillaria meleagris, for the Gothic gardener.
Solitary, with a preference for shade, you have to get close before it reveals it's unique character.
Photo taken this evening with the Fujifilm FinePix 4700 using manual focus.
Cropped a little but otherwise unaltered.
Checkout the wikipedia entry which seems to think it was originally called the Snakes's Head. A little dubious methinks.

Daffodils in Dyrham Park

2006-04-23T17:34:00.000+01:00

Pandora - Create your own radio station

2006-04-06T23:30:00.000+01:00

Pandora , from the Music Genome Project, is an interesting concept; type in a an artist or song you like and up comes an assortment of tunes that are mysteriously related. I put in Holy Modal Rounders , a favourite of mine, and I got some Woody Guthrie, Camper Van Beethoven (an excellent version of Pictures of Matchstick Men), a great acoustic guitar instrumental by Norman Blake (Jerusalem Ridge) and also the Rounders themselves (Cinch Mountain Backstep).
I think this element of surprise, introducing tracks I'd not heard before but somehow in the vein of my original request, is quite captivating. There seems to be a method of 'fine tuning' what comes next by flagging those that I particularly liked. There's certainly some good music out there that I may never have heard otherwise. Has anyone heard of Norman & Nancy Blake? Me neither but I'm glad I did. And now Train Tune from the wonderful John Renbourn.

R.I.P. Ivor Cutler (1923-2006)

2006-03-07T21:49:00.000Z

Please go and visit The Works of Ivor Cutler , a fine little site dedicated to this unique individual.

Listening to John Peel in the late sixties brought me into intermittent contact with Ivor's unusual take on life. I always found him funny, entertaining and somehow meaningful (without knowing what it meant). He fitted in so naturally with the other inhabitents of John Peel Land eg Capt Beefheart, Pentangle, the Bonzos, Pink Floyd etc
There should be a statue raised in Glasgow in his honour.

Dub on a Dark Side

2006-03-04T07:56:00.000Z

Dub Side Of The Moon
by The Easy Star All-Stars

How did I miss this? Released February 18th 2003, on the 30th Anniversary of the original, this is a fabulous reworking of the Pink Floyd classic

Track Listing
1a. Speak to me
1b. Breathe (in the Air) / Sluggy Ranks
2. On the Run
3. Time / Corey Harris & Ranking Joe
4. The Great Gig in the Sky / Kirsty Rock
5. Money / Gary 'Nesta' Pine & Dollarman
6. Us and Them / Frankie paul
7. Any Colour You Like
8. Brain Damage / Dr Israel
9. Eclipse / The Meditations

Bonus Tracks:
10. Time Version
11. Great Dub in the Sky
12. Step it Pon the Rastaman Scene
13. Any Dub You Like

2005-07-02T17:38:00.000+01:00

Please Support Live8

2005-06-29T08:12:00.000+01:00

I heard the news today (oh boy), that Chet Helms, Legendary music promoter, has died.

2005-06-04T08:53:00.000+01:00

Foxgloves

2005-06-03T00:04:00.000+01:00

2005-06-02T21:45:00.000+01:00

Cookie's Christmas

2005-06-02T21:36:00.000+01:00

Bichon-Frise (oil painting) by Maddy

2005-05-31T00:11:00.000+01:00

Maddy and Cookie in 2002

2005-05-30T23:43:00.000+01:00

Madeleine

2005-05-30T22:24:00.000+01:00

May Bank Holiday, Foxgloves and Bees

2004-08-01T19:55:00.000+01:00

"Prince", the Welsh mountain pony

Festival Express Film - The ill-fated Canadian train tour by Dead, Joplin, Band etc rumbles to life after decades in purgatory

2004-07-21T19:59:00.000+01:00

A good review from the San Francisco Chronicle.
I just can't help being a deadhead at heart. I don't suppose it will make general release over here so I'm looking forward to the DVD. I just hope it's available in Region 2 as I don't have a multi region player. If it's only region 1 I may have to consider an upgrade!

Gavin Poolman remembers using the film cans containing the only existing work prints of "Festival Express" for hockey goals. His parents were divorced, and his father, who was the original producer of the film, moved often. Young Poolman never could understand why his father insisted on lugging around this stupid collection of heavy film canisters. At one point, he dragged the cans out of the garage and stacked them in the street to serve as goalposts.

But in the mid-'90s, after he grew up and went into the film business in London, Poolman was contacted by a film researcher from Canada who was trying to find the footage, and Poolman knew exactly where to look.

"He'd found the negatives to this stuff," Poolman said. "Apparently he'd been looking for it for years."

BBC NEWS | Education | Wild parrots settle in suburbs

2004-07-07T08:46:00.000+01:00

BBC NEWS | Education | Wild parrots settle in suburbs: "
The number of wild parrots living in England is rising at 30% per year, says an Oxford University research project."

I haven't seen any parrots in Bristol yet, but we had a woodpecker in the garden this morning. He had a very bold red cap but unfortunately he had gone by the time I had found the camera.

Project Parakeet is an indepth study of the growth of the parrot population in the UK. There are some interesting pics in the section 'Identifying UK Parrots' e.g.

2004-07-04T23:11:00.000+01:00

Abigail's view

NASA - Cassini-Huygens: Close Encounter with Saturn

2004-07-01T23:19:00.000+01:00

Loads of excellent photos at NASA - Cassini-Huygens: Close Encounter with Saturn

England v Croatia

2004-06-21T22:42:00.000+01:00

Finally, at the crucial moment, England played like a decent team. Croatia played really well and kept coming back to worry the England goal. Niko Kovac, particularly, stood out. Wayne Rooney proved that he is is, actually, pretty good and Scholes got his mojo back after 3 years to score with a very impressive header. England's win was finally cemented by Frank Lampard in the 79th minute.
More at BBC SPORT | Football | Euro 2004 | Croatia 2-4 England

from The Diamond Sutra

2004-06-20T23:48:00.000+01:00

'All phenomena are like a dream, an illusion, a bubble and a shadow,
Like dew and lightning.
Thus should you meditate upon them'.

The Vajracchedika-prajna-paramita Sutra

2004-06-20T23:29:00.000+01:00

Looking

Red Hot Chilli Peppers Live in Hyde Park

2004-06-19T20:32:00.000+01:00

It was an excellent day. Although the weather was predicted to turn cold wet and stormy, in the end the gods smiled on the crowd and kept it cool with just a small shower. Chicks On Speed drew a hostile reaction from the crowd and were,in fact, booed off stage! For their sake, I hope they get better or it's going to be a bad week for them. James Brown showed himself to still be the Godgrandfather of soul, giving a powerful performance with highly professional support from his band.

Hear this gig live over at the Radio 1 website. There's also a photo gallery, which makes this a valid entry for 'Photoblogging in the UK', even if none of them are my own, and a reviews page.

More info on the band at The Official Red Hot Chili Peppers Website

2004-06-18T20:06:00.000+01:00

Footcare

Help Wanted: Can you name this shrub?

2004-06-17T20:05:00.000+01:00

What is this? It has long sharp thorns to deter close encounters but does have this very pleasant blossom in Spring.

England v Switzerland

2004-06-17T19:15:00.000+01:00

I wouldn't say that I was a fan of football; I don't play it and I don't watch it every Saturday and I certainly don't follow a team. For the big matches like the current UEFA 2004, I felt unmoved by the advertising and the hype, couldn't even name the players (well, apart from Beckham, maybe Scholes, Ferdinand maybe).
However, on Sunday, with the 1st match being against the favourites, France, and my son strongly declaring his interest in watching it on our one and only tv, I succumbed. If I had really cared about the result, how awful I would have felt by such a crushing defeat by a vastly superior team. In fact, I did feel a little hollow. From being 1-0 up in the 1st half of the match, 'our' team spent the rest of the time hysterically defending this fragile lead until reduced to fouling anyone that came close to the England goal, which was depressingly frequent. This madness resulted in the giving away of 2 goals in the dying minutes of the match and snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. I definitely didn't want to watch any more.
Well, here I am, having just watched England's win over Switzerland. The Swiss team played consistently well and didn't really deserve to be reduced to 10 men in the second half. England showed a few good moments but are still remarkably inconsistent. Not quite as bizarre as against the French. Maybe it's the heat. Why am I beginning to care?

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Teleportation breakthrough made

2004-06-17T08:14:00.000+01:00

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Teleportation breakthrough made: "Scientists have performed successful teleportation on atoms for the first time, the journal Nature reports. "

2004-06-16T08:39:00.000+01:00

Rose & Co.

2004-06-15T18:30:00.000+01:00

Somewhere different

2004-06-15T11:54:00.000+01:00

Organic Design 2

2004-06-15T11:49:00.000+01:00

Organic Design 1

nmazca.com : fractalism : fractal buddha realms

2004-06-15T01:22:00.000+01:00

These are quite beautiful if
a) you are inclined towards Buddhism and
b) love fractals.
Got me on both counts.

2004-06-15T00:33:00.000+01:00

Don't let the wheels of your own mind drive you crazy

60's flashback

2004-06-14T13:44:00.000+01:00

Go here for a more dynamic version. It's a sixties screensaver, changing every 20 seconds.

More on the H2G2 Movie

2004-06-14T09:27:00.000+01:00

The H2G2 Movie started filming on April 19th 2004 and I'm pleased to see Martin Freeman (from The Office) as Arthur Dent, Warwick Davis (remember Willow?) as the body of Marvin the paranoid android and the mighty Bill Nighy as Slartibartfast.
Poor Douglas Adams had largely rewrtten H2G2 for the movie version but he tragically died before it's completion, so Karey Kirkpatrick (of Chicken Run) was brought in to finish it.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy -- Movie Blog

2004-06-14T09:06:00.000+01:00

Anything to do with the HHG is worth a look, and now we have The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy -- Movie Blog. Today they have launched a photo gallery. There's only 1 photo in it, so it's not really what I would class as a gallery yet, but it's good one. Check it out

2004-06-13T23:59:00.000+01:00

Do Pigeons Dream?

2004-06-13T23:53:00.000+01:00

A fascination with taps

Betty the Crow

2004-06-13T17:17:00.000+01:00

In this movie, shot in 2002, you can see Betty the New Caledonian crow first use a straight piece of wire but seems to realise after a few attempts that it would be impossible. Incredibly she then fashions the end of the wire into a hook shape by wedging it into a crack and bending it.
Here's some stills from the movie, capturing some key moments:

Betty the Crow

There's an interview with Alex Kacelnik about Betty in this week's New Scientist or you can visit

Behavioural Ecology Research Group

Early report on Betty at New Scientist online magazine

The Stapleton Record has moved

2004-06-13T08:33:00.000+01:00

I've moved my blogs that purely relate to Stapleton to a new blog, The Stapleton Record
and renamed the current blog to reflect the direction this one seems to be going in. So the other one appeals to my sense of order and this to my sense of disorder!

The 1999 Solar Eclipse over Stapleton

2004-06-12T12:54:00.000+01:00

Solar Eclipse over Stapleton on Wednesday, 1999 August 11 around midday.
I took this photograph, during my lunchbreak, with an Olympus OM1.
The light was quite unusual , very different from moonlight. Before the eclipse there had been considerable chatter from the birds then, as it grew darker,all conversation quickly dropped off until an eery silence was added to the alien light. After a short while,just a few minutes I think, the light began to return to normal and with it the birdsong and normal life returned. A very interesting experience.
More info on this eclipse can be found here

2004-06-12T10:14:00.000+01:00

In the garden today

2004-06-12T09:55:00.000+01:00

Sunset over Eastville Park, Bristol

Slough election won on roll of a dice

2004-06-12T08:15:00.000+01:00

BBC NEWS reports that: "Two candidates in Slough were forced to roll a dice to decide the outcome of the election after two recounts failed to split them. The Tory beat the independent." I've never heard of such a way to decide a democratic election!
This, for my sins, was my town of birth and, fittingly, the setting for Ricky Gervais' "The Office". A village originally known as Upton-cum-Chalvey as it first grew organically from a a muddy puddle (a slough) with a coaching inn, then faster with the advent of rail and the telegraph (the high tech of the day which enabled a criminal escaping from London to be nabbed by the rozzers at Slough railway station). Growth then artificially accelerated between the world wars by an influx of migrants from Wales , Ireland and the north of England together with a massive building program of council housing. While Slough was very successful in terms of employment, housing, social welfare etc, my memories are of a rather bleak and characterless place. When I first ventured away in my teens and discovered historic and wealthy places nearby like Datchet, Eton & Windsor on one side and Ivor Heath (when Pinewood Studios was still in full swing) on the other side, I could not help but see my home town in a poorer light. Mind you, that was in the '70's and I was drawn to the bohemian tribal lifestyle of collective living and pretty well anti-everything-that-was-straight. God, I was so immature! Now I understand why parents worry so much about their children.

R&B music legend Ray Charles dies

2004-06-11T08:14:00.000+01:00

The legendary R&B musician, nicknamed 'The Genius' Ray Charles died last night aged 73, in Los Angeles. He died of acute liver disease, which was diagnosed after he underwent hip replacement surgery.
Apart from his musical legacy, he actively supported Martin Luthor King in the 60's by raising money for legals costs incurred when Martin was jailed after deliberately breaking the law.

R.I.P. Ray

War Diaries of Stapleton Tench Eachus

2004-06-10T20:20:00.000+01:00

While searching for any references to Stapleton I came across the War Diaries of Stapleton Tench Eachus
The entry for the 9th June reads:
"Another cold night. Poured with rain all night, which has made the ground quite sodden. We have only one blanket and ground sheet per man and no wooden floors, which in such weather is both uncomfortable and dangerous for the men to lie down. Went on route march after the 2nd parade through the most beautiful country imaginable. The fair fields of France are fair indeed to look upon and are justly entitled to such distinction, for an hour I passed through waving corn-fields and rich pasture lands, all ablaze in brilliant colours, vivid red poppies, blue corn-flowers and flowers of countless hues, intermingled with the growing corn and spread out in all directions in picturesque patches on the cultivated slopes and in the valleys, Abbeville with its elegant spires and pinnacles could be plainly seen in the distance. It was indeed a truly glorious spectacle of peace and prosperity. Our path suddenly dipped sharply down into the valley of the Somme towards the village of Epagnette and upon gaining the main road, halted and adjourned into a cafe, where we indulged in some selections of light French wine. Arrived back in camp about 12 noon. Dinner 1 pm, parade at 2 pm, when we were tested in telegraphy which lasted until tea time, afterwards had shave and clean up and went down to the cafe where I called yesterday and conversed in French with Monsieur et Madame and their daughter. I remained with them until 10 pm partaking supper at their table, which consisted of steak, sausages and beans together with beer followed by a couple of eggs especially fried for myself and two cups of tea. The whole only costing me 1f 50c."

This paints an idyllic view of the war in France , with a very poignant remark about the flowers in the fields, but it was only his 3rd day in this country. Things will soon take a turn for the worse.

The diaries had been kept in a box and used as payment for a car repair inthe 70's. The new owner had held on to them until 1998 when he sold them to Jon Wickett. Jon has since transcribed the 15 diaries in their entirety , believing that they stand as a remarkable record of the times. The 1st diary is available online , the rest are for sale. Canny fellow!

Pepys' Diary

2004-06-09T07:57:00.000+01:00

I have discovered that Pepys' Diary has been (or should I say 'is being') admirably translated to the blog format. Each day a new entry from the famous diary is added to the blog, which adds a dynamic interest.
Another advantage of this format is that both the creator of the blog and those reading it have added a considerable no. of annotations.
For example, in the entry for the 8th June 1661 which starts

'To Whitehall to my Lord, who did tell me that he would have me go to Mr. Townsend, whom he had ordered to discover to me the whole mystery of the Wardrobe',

we can see that Whitehall referred to the Palace, 'my Lord' was Sir Edward Mountagu (Earl of Sandwich and Master of the Wardrobe , was a distant relation of Pepys and they attended the same school at Huntingdon) and that Thomas Townsend was Clerk of the King's Great Wardrobe.

Cottage Gardens

2004-06-08T21:02:00.000+01:00

ACS Education - Landscape Design has an interesting list of plants ssuitable for the cottage garden plus advice on planning.

2004-06-08T20:57:00.000+01:00

Brachyscome multifida

2004-06-08T19:37:00.000+01:00

Mystery Fly

2004-06-08T19:33:00.000+01:00

Today in my Garden

The Transit of Venus

2004-06-08T07:36:00.000+01:00

Hope I can get down to Castle Green to watch the Transit through the Bristol Astronomical Society and Bristol University telescopes.

The Dalai Lama on China, hatred, and optimism

2004-06-06T10:10:00.000+01:00

I came across this conversation with the Dalai Lama. Fascinating.

Gardening for wildlife

2004-06-06T07:11:00.000+01:00

Planting non-native species can sometimes introduce diseases that seriously affect native ones eg Dutch Elm disease. Dutch Elm Disease is the fungus, Ophiostoma ulmi, which is spread by the bark beetles Scolytus scolytus and Scolytus multistriatus. These beetles feed in the upper branches of the tree and introduce the fungal spores to exposed tissue. Once infected the disease spreads rapidly and unless treated at the early stages the tree will not survive. Although the disease was first recorded in the UK in 1927 it was a non-aggressive strain and had a very limited impact. However in the 1960's a more aggressive strain, originating from North America, was imported into this country via diseased timber. Within 10 years 50% of all English elms in the south of Britain had been destroyed. Further north the effects were less devastating due to climate and relative isolation.
Japanese Knotweed is a prime example of introducing a foreign species that then thrives due to having no natural enemies, much to the detriment of local flora and fauna.
With the destruction of local species comes the reduction and eventual loss of all those that depend on them ; butterflies and birds being particularly sensitive.

Visit The Natural History Museum's Postcode Plants Database. It has provided us with an extensive database of native flora searchable by postcode based on the Atlas of the British Flora, 3rd Edition (published by the Botanical Society of the British Isles, 1982).
Using the Postcode Plants Database to identify suitable plants, gardeners and householders can contribute directly to native species conservation in Britain.

In my postcode area, I found that there are over 600 native species , including

142 annuals, e.g. Anthemis cotula (Stinking Chamomile!)

38 biennials, e.g. Campanula glomerata (Clustered Bellflower)

6 climbers, e.g. Clematis vitalba (Traveller's-joy)

43 geophytes, e.g. Iris pseudacorus (Yellow Iris)

59 herbaceous perennials

17 large shrubs or small trees

19 large trees

36 marsh plants

202 perennials

2 parasites ie Cuscuta europaea (Greater Dodder) and Viscum album (Mistletoe)

Eye

2004-06-05T18:55:00.000+01:00

Eye

2004-06-05T14:08:00.000+01:00

Eagle Sculpture in Ashton Wood , Bristol

2004-06-05T13:32:00.000+01:00

Madeleine
�2004 D.Sandilands

Dalai Lama's visit to the UK

2004-06-05T13:25:00.000+01:00

Listen to the Dalai Lama's recent talk at Glasgow

Join the Free Tibet Campaign

2004-06-05T09:46:00.000+01:00

Cookie the kitten, from 2003

2004-06-01T19:30:00.000+01:00

Single Pigeon considers a trip to Wales

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

2004-05-31T17:30:00.000+01:00

The new HP film was released today and, as it was a Bank Holiday and the weather a little on the damp side, we just had to go and see it.
The opinion of my 2 teenage children is that the book beats the film hands down. Though I quite enjoyed it, Lord of the Rings towers above any of the Harry Potter films.
The Hippogriff and the werewolf are excellent animations and overall the interaction between the real actors and computer generated imagery was very realistic.
This is a bit darker than the other 2 films, which , combined with Harry Potter and chums growing up a bit and some well placed cameos by actor/comedian favourites Lenny Henry & Dawn French plus the wonderful Emma Thompson as Professor Trelawney, has resulted in an entertaining film. Due to the length of the book many scenes have been either cut altogether or condensed to the point that important moments are fleeting at best.

*** stars

Hello World

2004-05-10T08:28:00.000+01:00

Welcome , dear stranger, to the Tulgey Wood, where all the borogroves are eternally mimsy, just as they should be. This small node is intended to be a record of my favourite photos with occasional commentary on anything that takes my fancy.

Please feel free to add a comment as the Wood will otherwise feel uncared for and could wither and die of loneliness. No pressure then :)