I have been experimenting with still-life photos of flowers and fruits, and I thought I was getting some good effects with a completely black background, like this one, using sunlight coming through the window as the light source and a sheet of black card as background. The idea was to contrast the spring freshness and bright colours against the unreflecting black - a sort of memento mori. The problem with this one is the over-strong sunlight - I have since invested in studio lights, which ... Read Full Story

Well, here I am again, after a longish absence. I put the blog on hold for a while, with the idea that I would “sort some things out”. Of course it doesn’t work like that, and nothing has been sorted out. Life goes on, and it just gets more and more complicated, the more I think about it. But hey, that’s life. And this, dear readers, is not life, it’s a blog. So I’ll enjoy it while I can. Pictures - what is the use of a blog without pictures? HereR... Read Full Story

This blog is on hold, while I try to sort some things out.  I haven’t written anything for over a month, and the lack of time (I am actually busy in the office!) isn’t the only reason.  I’m really no longer sure what this is for.  I wanted to write something about the things I have been doing in Second Life, like the fabulous show that Velazquez Bonetto and Josina Burgess have put on using my photographs, but it just seems too difficult.  I am now going into an extended peri... Read Full Story

It is impossible to write a post in this midnight « Sayonara, Mata Ashita I found this through the Wordpress Tag Surfer function, which gives a random list of blogs using the same tags as me. There’s an awful lot of dross and verboojuice out there, but this blog is genuine, heartfelt emotion that reaches around the world.   I’m not sure, but I think the title means “so long, see you tomorrow”. Read Full Story

This is a track from Sippiana Hericane, an album by Dr. John commemorating the devastation wrought by Katrina in August 2005, whose effects are still being felt today. New Orleans is a mythical place in my imagination, rather like Jerusalem to a medieval Christian - in fact, a trip there would be a pilgrimage.  If asked what music I like, “anything from New Orleans” is a good answer, covering well over half of my record collection - from King Oliver and Louis Armstrong to Dr. John... Read Full Story

As I think I mentioned in an earlier post, I am convinced that chance acquisitions of books are always worth it. For one thing, interesting books have a way of being there one week and gone the next. So when I found a copy of I am alive and you are dead in a branch of the Soho Bookshop, I just had to buy it, and my theory was proved right. It’s a really good read, and a moving account of Philip K. Dick’s life, which at times I found unbearably painful. I used to read a lot of... Read Full Story

As I think I mentioned in an earlier post, I am convinced that chance acquisitions of books are always worth it. For one thing, interesting books have a way of being there one week and gone the next. So when I found a copy of I am alive and you are dead in a branch of the Soho Bookshop, I just had to buy it, and my theory was proved right. It’s a really good read, and a moving account of Philip K. Dick’s life, which at times I found unbearably painful. I used to read a lot of... Read Full Story

Harper B introduced herself at Mia Lundquist’s gallery opening at Cetus, and gave me the LM for this fantastic installation by Douglas Story and friends, which Therese has also written about. When we got kicked out of Cetus (thank you Lindens ), I TP’d over to have a look. The installation is superb, a giant flower structure nestling in the landscape, with ambient music and shapes that shift as you walk over them. There is more information on the Dynafleur blog.  Harper has lo... Read Full Story

Harper B introduced herself at Mia Lundquist’s gallery opening at Cetus, and gave me the LM for this fantastic installation by Douglas Story and friends, which Therese has also written about. When we got kicked out of Cetus (thank you Lindens ), I TP’d over to have a look. The installation is superb, a giant flower structure nestling in the landscape, with ambient music and shapes that shift as you walk over them. There is more information on the Dynafleur blog.  Harper has lo... Read Full Story

In my last couple of posts, I talked about photography as a means of portraying memory and dreams.  I don’t take many pictures recording events in the real world, apart from family gatherings and so on, which I don’t really enjoy doing (I’m not good at group portraits).  This picture does (sort of) record a public event.  It shows the concourse of Liverpool Street Station in the City of London; I took it at about 5pm on July 7, 2005. The scene would normally be completely ... Read Full Story