Daffodil Hunting.

Off we went to Saltram House this morning hoping to photograph daffodils and couldn't find anything decent in the way of narcissus. In short we did not find ourselves in "such a jocund company". Considering that we have had St. David's Day, and that it is thought the daffodil was introduced to Britain by the Romans, you'd have thought we'd have had better luck. What a contrast to this time last year at Mount Edgcumbe, Cornwall, pictured. Maybe it's because we have had an unusually cold winter!

It's so frustrating when you go off with a picture previsualised only to come back empty handed. Never mind, it's not a great day for photography today anyway, very damp and dismal. And my camera battery is going flat...

Ned and the Giant Prawn

Is it a cod? Is it a prawn? One thing's for certain you won't find one anywhere else. This piece of street-furniture surmounts a five metre tall cocktail stick between the National Marine Aquarium and the Mayflower Steps in Plymouth, Devon UK. It is usually referred to as the Plymouth Prawn or Barbican Prawn but I have been unable to ascertain its correct title.  I will investigate further next time I am on the Barbican. The second photo is a crop of the first taken with my new toy.

Ned's first photo with the Sigma 10-20mm lens.

Well, here's my first halfway decent picture with the Sigma and I have to say I love it so far although I haven't really had time to really put it through its paces. I am pleased with the sharpness exhibited and the colour seems lovely and warm, but the camera was on a tripod after all. There is some flare but I was shooting into the light.

I have taken some other photos hand-held which look a bit soft to me but I think it may take a for me while to adjust to focussing the camera. I fully expect any problems to be user error rather than the fault of the lens. Time will tell.

A trip to Haytor.

We took the kids up to Dartmoor today and killed two birds with one stone. We tired them out by climbing Haytor, and then we explored the the famous old Granite Tramway.

We were lucky; a local lady we met said that until a couple of weeks ago the rails were completely covered in gorse but that had all been cleared away in the last couple of days. I was pleased that the railway's points were so near the roadside, no more than 30 feet I would say.