Metal…well that’s easy, metal’s everywhere. Taking a photo of it and getting it to say ‘metal’ rather than ‘car’, ‘knife’, ‘paperclip’ or whatever, not to mention reflection, was not so easy.

I was at the RAF museum with a few people from my camera club today and thought while I was there I might just be able to take some sort of photo that would say ‘metal’ as I wanted it to be. I had a look at some of the planes and while they were mostly made out of metal, they were generally painted in various liveries that covered up the metal I wanted to take a photo of. However, there were lots of engines about and I found this one. I didn’t want to show the whole thing as I think it would have said engine rather than metal, so here’s a slightly more abstract point of view that says metal to me. I think this could probably have done quite well for ‘mechanical’ earlier this year too…

“Metal”

Next in this double post is ‘grunge’. I suppose there are two ways to capture this…either dirt, muck, filth etc. or photographing someone who’s jumped on the style bandwagon of Kurt and Courtney…that’s Cobain & Love not Geiger & Cox.

Who am I kidding though? I know nothing about fashion so let’s have some good old fashioned grime. Another from the RAF museum, the photo opportunity that just keeps on giving. This was the front end of a plane fished out from the bottom of the sea.

“Grunge”

I was so tempted to stick up a picture of a rural post box, which I have taken many poor photos of in the last couple of weeks, so I’m pleased I can put something a little less obvious up.

It’s a sign post, but it’s still a post. I’ve done quite a lot of processing to it and I don’t really like what it’s done to the sky but I did want to add noise and texture to it so I suppose it’s done that.

I spent a lot of time thinking about this one and when I told my wife Jax that I was stuck she said “why don’t you photograph me?”

She said it in jest of course but it got me thinking. She was right of course, she usually is, Jax is quality. She’s been through a lot in the last couple of weeks, more than anyone should have to, a double whammy of awful news to two people very close to her. She’s dealt with it all brilliantly and with quality and (I don’t say this often enough) I love her to bits.

A personal one this time…”Quality”

I took this on the South Bank on a grim day a couple of weeks back. It hadly seems possible now looking at the weather but it poured down all afternoon. I was looking for something that said isolation (amongst a few other themes I was catching up on). This was the first shot I took on the day but it just seems right for it…hood up, lost in his own thoughts, writing whatever it is he’s writing, isolated from everyone else around him by distance and mind.

“Isolation”

More catching up to at the moment, not because of work this time but I just couldn’t think of an interesting way to represent ‘ingredients’. I’ve given up and have gone for the obvious shot of ‘ingredients. It’s a dull shot but technically I’m pretty happy with it.

“Ingredients”

I’m sure this one needs no explanation. I suspect this particular soldier hasn’t stopped anyone in years mind. Shot under the arch going between Whitehall and Horse Guards Parade.
“Stop”

I’m trying to stay away from the obvious on this challenge where I can and it sometimes results in entries that at first seem a little unobvious. This is one of those, another ’shoe-horn’ effort if you will, but what’s more indulgent than giving a sheep a house to live in? Yeah it’s derelict, but still…

“Indulgence”

I’m playing my first ‘joker’ of the year as I actually took this almost a year ago but to me this is ‘peace’. It’s one of those shots that people tend not to go wow at because it’s not a big striking panorama. This is more about a ‘feeling’…warm days in late spring and light cooling breezes. And it says peace to me because it’s out in the country, walking through fields far away from everything and everyone…

“Peace”

Two in one post this time round as I posted the fox cub photo last week. Not much to say about them really as they’re pretty self explanatory.

“Single”

“Stare”

I’m playing catchup over the next few days as I’ve fallen way behind with the 52. First up is shoot and typically I had a much better ’shoot’ image which I’ve already used in ‘play’. Ah well…This wasn’t an actual shoot, just what I observed of something that is often shot – a couple of pheasants in a field in the Cotswolds. Bit of a “shoe-horn” effort this one but it’s taken me long enough to get back on track so it’ll have to do.

The resizing on the web doesn’t really do it justice unfortunately.

Two in one post this week to catch back up. Following a bit of feedback I have decided to change my mind about ‘produce and am putting forward the mushroom as my shot for this week. I think it says ‘produce’ more than the cheese shot and think the simpler composition works better. I’ve left the cheese one up too for those that want to see it.

The ‘reject’

Next up is ‘Quad’. This was from a recent trip to West Mersea on the Essex coast.