-
Gallery: pick a word (January 2023)
How do we define a ‘good word’? One that is appropriate for the situation? One that does good rather than harm? Or one that sounds good when we hear it spoken or read it aloud? Or perhaps all three?
-
Gallery: pick a word (December)
One of my favourite poems, by one of my favourite poets, is about words. Some may say that’s not so surprising, when I like to use so many of them! And now again I am facing the task posed by Paula in her monthly Pick a Word challenge. Five words, five photos inspired by those words.
-
Gallery: fleeting moments in Indochina
Our visit to Indochina was only just over two years ago, yet in some ways it feels like a world away. A world barely touched by Covid, in which we didn’t question our ability to travel. Took it for granted, perhaps? Looking back at my photos I wonder why we didn’t realise that the disease already causing deaths and chaos in China would spread to engulf the whole world. Were we like ostriches, our heads in the sand? Or was it such an alien concept that we couldn’t envisage it?
-
Gallery: getting up close and personal
Like many photographers, I shoot quite a lot of images of flowers and that’s the first thing I think of when asked to showcase macro photography (which technically-speaking I don’t do) or close-up photography (which I do a lot). After that, my next thought will be insects. And I already have a few posts here on those lines. So what to do when Amanda asks for close ups and macros for this week’s Friendly Friday Challenge? The following photos are all taken from my travel archives, specifically my early 2020…
-
Gallery: let there be light
The sun bathes us in natural light, even when covered by cloud. But for part of each day it is hidden from our sight, lighting the other side of the world. Our ancient ancestors learned to make fires, to keep the threats that darkness held at bay (as well, of course, to keep themselves warm). Since then mankind has developed all sorts of artificial ways to mimic the light of the sun when it disappears at night.
-
Gallery: street photography in Hoi An, two ways
For most photographers the old town of Hoi An is a riot of colour, as it was for me too. The beautiful lanterns adorning the streets; the rich ochre of its buildings; the traditional costumes worn by many Vietnamese visitors; the boats bobbing on the river … But I also took a lot of street photos there, and traditionally most street photographers work in black and white.
-
Eating out with a conscience in Indochina
Eating out is undoubtedly one of the great pleasures of a holiday. Sampling the local cuisine; relaxing over a drink at the end of a busy day; enjoying the ambience of a well-run restaurant with perhaps a great view of the landscape or bustling city streets. But eating out is also a luxury in which relatively few in the world are able to indulge.
-
2020: my (pandemic) year in review
The year that has just past will remain long in all our memories, no doubt, and not for the best of reasons. A year ago the new coronavirus was just seeping into our consciousnesses and we had no idea how it would turn our lives upside down. We certainly know that now!
-
Gallery: a walk on the streets of old Hanoi
In the Old Quarter of Hanoi life is lived on the street. Meals are cooked and eaten, food and other goods sold, games played by young and old alike. Shops spill out on to pavements, while rickshaws, cyclo-rickshaws, bicycles, scooters and motorbikes all weave amongst the shoppers and strolling tourists.
