SparkyFizz

Riot weariness...

I'm not sure how everyone else feels, but I am weary of watching/listening/thinking/analysing  the UK riots in general, and London in particular.  Like most people, I was sickened by the whole thing and depressed by the state of our society.  The fact that the perpetrators were my children's generation somehow made it feel worse.  

I felt angry that the riots came so close to my area in South London  - Croydon, Lewisham, Peckham, Eltham.  I don't uphold the idea that all this was caused by the 'cuts' which haven't even started yet!  I think this was an abdication of morality and discipline across an entire generation.  I found myself agreeing wholeheartedly with Melanie Phillips, columnist at the Daily Mail, and Allison Pearson, columnist at the Daily Telegraph.

Yet in the middle of all this chaos, the dignified humanity shown by the father who lost his son in Birmingham after he was killed by a hit and run driver along with two other men.  Also the clean up operation which has been inspirational.  So there's still some hope for us I think... 

Teenager...

I am officially no longer the mother of children, only teenagers.  Tom had his 13th birthday today, and has just started his yet to be illustrious career as a Dance Music DJ...  Meet 'SoundMan Rush-T', pun intended.

His longed for present was a sound mixing machine and headphones.  He and Oscar tried to educate me on the difference between dub step, drum and bass, house, garage, trance, rave, techno... I like most dance music, but still got lots to learn.  Judging from today's volumes, I'm going to get a sound education. 

Happy Birthday Tom... you're such a life force and a pleasure to have around, but must invest in some earplugs.  He was so happy with this kit! 

Camera happy...

My other soon to be 15 years old daughter is desperate to learn photography (they both are actually), and likes to take pictures of all sorts of things.  My main problem is restraining her, insisting on radical pruning of her pictures, otherwise I would have hundreds on my computer!  This is, of course, a perpetual problem with digital images.  She loves the Fuji Finepix camera, and wants one of her own for her birthday.  

She took this in Canterbury, and I can't believe it's possible to open that door.

I love this photo, just wish there was one more human leg in the procession.

My girls outside the Primrose Bakery, with their friend (centre), who spends a huge amount of her time taking photos.  Perhaps it's something about the current teenage generation who've grown up with cameras on mobile phones.  

The produce of the Primrose Bakery...

...and the aftermath!

Vintage mood...

One of my almost 15 year old daughters is in vintage mood and has taken these pictures with a Fuji Finepix of her latest acquisitions.  The red leather gloves from e-bay are amazingly soft, but now she has to put them away until winter.  

She's bought some lovely clothes and accessories on e-bay very cheaply.  I suppose I used to do the same, but it involved trailing around all the vintage shops, which were then just called 'second hand shops'.

I can't believe satchels are desired objects again... I hated my school one, which looked just like this, with a passion!  Another e-bay purchase, my daughter loves it. 

I love all the 1970's scribbling on the flap.  Mine used to have engraved names of boyfriends and rock bands I liked, too embarrassed to name them!

The inside of her satchel is much more interesting than mine ever was - of course she wouldn't dream of using it for school!

Physalises...

Also called Cape Gooseberries, I think they are delicious, both sweet and tart and resembling tomatoes in texture.  They also have a lovely perfume.

I have been concentrating on developing some still life images this week.

The teenager is coming home next weekend, having completed his first term at university!  It's gone very quickly.  I'm so looking forward to having him home, but I haven't pined over him as I thought I would.  My other children have two weeks holiday, but he will have six weeks!  He also has to bring all his things home with him which is a drag... and means we have to take him to college and pick him up every term.

The Waiting Game...

Okay, I should have known he wouldn't be ringing me every day... still, I thought I might get a bit more attention!  Alas, he's having fun, and Mum comes pretty low down the list.  So, as I'm obviously thinking about him quite a lot I thought I'd post a photo he took in Lisbon this summer which I liked...

I remember when I went to college, long before computers and mobile phones, circa 1976.  The house that I shared with 11 girls in Coventry had no television or telephone.  That meant the tedious trip to the telephone kiosk and the correct coins to use it etc.  I started out phoning home each Sunday, but then it slipped... I am ashamed now to admit that on at least one occasion I didn't ring my parents for many weeks!  When you consider that this was the only contact they had with me, that they couldn't ring me, I have reason to be ashamed.  I suppose they could have written to me, but that wouldn't have elicited much of a response I suspect.  I was also the only child, so they must have been heartbroken...  Payback time for me...

Photography: C&G Manipulation Picture #2...

This picture was possibly the most complicated for me...

Before...

This was taken at night at home without any 'white balance' alterations, so the whole thing came out with an orange tinge.  I liked the picture though, beautiful profile and lovely negative space, so I decided I would alter it in some way.

This is a piece of vintage Sanderson upholstery fabric I inherited.  I decided to use this as a background for the profile. 

After...

I blurred the background, so that the profile would stand out.  The skin tone has been altered quite a lot.  I cut out the profile and placed it on the background.  The cutting out was more difficult than I expected in order to get a clean cut without shadows or other markings.  I used several 'layers' in Photoshop to get the final result.  I had to draw her eyelashes on a separate layer and merge it with the photo, they were too difficult to cut out...!

 

'A' Levels Results...

Congratulations Oscar!  My son got into Oxford University with his A level results, but he's not really happy...  He got an 'A*' History; 'A' English (1 mark off an A*); 'A' Classics (2 marks off an A*).  He wants to have the last two remarked, but of course marks can go down as well as up...  He also got an 'A' for AS level Latin.  A remark won't make any difference to his university place, but, I suppose, it's just a matter of personal pride.  Anyway, I'm very proud of him!  He worked very hard and deserves this, so good luck.  He's just off on a three weeks jaunt around Europe, which makes me very jealous.