A few more photos of Valencia Aquarium

Here's a few more from the aquarium... I also took some shots of a very chirpy and expressive Baluga Whale but those will have to wait till tomorrow!

Valencia Aquarium

Whilst we were in Valencia we were recommended by friends who had been previously to visit the Valencia aquarium - and quite frankly it was well worth the trip!

Difficult to take photos as the rule in effect was NO FLASH (it disturbs the fish) - it's possibly why some of the photographs were grainy. Not to worry I got some superb shots below for your perusal!

Valencia Weekend Break

As promised I have posted some photos below of our short break in Valencia and Javea. Unfortunately it rained all day when we were in Valencia and my camera phone seems to have struggled in poor lighting conditions. These are mostly of the main cathedral in Valencia. We spent the rest of the day on a tour bus and ended up at Valencia's aquarium. Well worth a visit and myself and Helen (my wife) have promised ourselves to go back and spend a couple of days soaking up the history of the city.

I'll be posting photos of our trip to Javea and Valencia over the next few days.

Here's some to wet your appetite!

5 tips to improve your digital photography

I found this article over on the Kodak website.

I thought it would be 5 basic tips but this is for those advanced digital camera users who are looking for more from their digital camera than just point and shoot!

5 tips to improve your photography

Some interesting details there...

On the hunt for a new tie!

This image is not as sharp as I wanted it to be - my camera phone does seem to suffer from lense shake a bit. I am used to an SLR type of camera which sits heavier in the hand.

Anyway I blogged about an old tie my wife (and most of my business group) hate as its according to them. Its here if you want to take a look at a "sunshiney - brighten your day" sunflower tie

So under some duress I am taken to get not only a new tie, but also a new suit and shirt too. I hate clothes shopping.

Have to admit the store assistant (not in the photo) knew his stuff about fashion and suits. We were very impressed, even more so when we found out it was was his first day at the House of Fraser store in Cardiff.

Still I made it as pleasant an experience as possible for my wife - as I always do when we go shopping together.... ;)

Something to look forward too....

I'm visiting Spain next weekend - hanging out near Valencia.

I should have PLENTY of shots to blog on my return. If I get the chance I may blog whilst there.

Cheers for now

Daz

Still looking for a new car....

Found this Audi A2 SE 1.6 FSI on a 53 plate down at Newbury Audi. 23K on the clock, dealer unsure how many owners it had. He promised to fix the clutch (it judders) and the car also seems to whine when I took it for a test drive... Rob (the car dealer) said that it would be fixed.

Only thing was they offered £2500 trade in against our Ford Ka whilst the Audi's price was £10495. Not what we anticipated having been offered £3500 from 2 other dealers and £3700 from Toyota.

Checked with a mate in the trade who advised cap figure states £4100 for trade on our Ka and £7700 for the Audi. The dealer reckoned the Audi was not subject to the trade book (they really do come up with some excuses).

My offer was this: take our Ford Ka in p/x and we hand over £6K for the Audi. Not sure if they will want to do business. Its worth trying though.

I'd rather we went for the Tdi Sport model over the SE but not many around and seem to cost even more... we're not going to do that many miles so not worth shelling out extra for the diesel premium...

The Ridgeway Path (again) this time from the North

Looking from the B4000 by Lambourn across to the Ridgeway Ancient Path in Wiltshire - the ridge on the horizon forms part of the walk the wife and I strolled along last Saturday. At the bottom of the ridge sits the M4 motorway running from London to Bristol and then onto Wales.

The photo looked far brighter on my phone (and sharper too) but what the heck the sky looks dramatic enough!

Highworth town centre

I really like the town of Highworth. An old town set on the Cotswolds - just 3 miles from us.

Its where I go to pay in cheques to the bank. Parking is as you can see a nightmare as there are very few parking spaces. Usually I can go when everyone else is working so its not too bad.

The town boasts a 12th century Church - you can just see the tower behind the white buildings roof.

Unfortunately it is hemmed in on all sides so will prove quite a challenge to get a decent photo of it. I do like a challenge though!

Daz

The UK's oldest road - Hackpen Hill to Barbury Castle Hill Fort

I'm fascinated by history. I'd really wished I'd been born in an earlier age.... Roman Britain... I would loved to have been part of that time... no Internet access then though... (!)

Myself and Helen have been aiming to get a part of the Ridgeway Path under our belts since we moved to Wiltshire.

Its a 5000 year old ancient road. To know where I am walking was in use so long ago leaves me in awe and respect.

















I like some photos in black and white. This image in colour had the sky burnt out so I've desaturated the photo in an attempt to give it a timeless look. A shame the stile is a modern steel one that blights the landscape!















Looking back towards Overton Hill, I believe the start of the Ridgeway. In ancient times the path would have reached down as far as the Dorset coast.

The bales add something to an otherwise average photo.















Barbury Castle Hill Fort - an ancient Iron Age fort - there seems to be quite a few of these in this area.

Up high with commanding views this area became a place of sanctuary during problematic times. In AD 556 there was a major battle here between Celts (the locals) and Saxons (the invaders). The Saxons won.

An impressive 360 degree ditch system to help hinder attackers, though it did not stop the Saxons so it seems.




















Nowadays the hilltop fort is more popular with people kiting, walking and mountain biking. It really is a peaceful area away from the hustle and bustle of everyone else down below.

The defences and ditches would have been a lot higher and deeper back in ancient times. In the green field on the right of the photo would have once stood the fort's wooden buildings.

I'd love to see an Iron Age village/wooden fort replica built here. It would give visitors a real sense of what it would have been like to live here thousands of years ago.

Well I think it's a good idea!

An afternoon walk from Blunsdon to Hannington, Wiltshire

Lovely walk, across an Iron Age fort in the village of Blunsdon, across recently plowed fields, over stiles and wandering down long wooded lanes. Perfect.

Beautiful skies, warm weather. A delightful Pub at the end of the walk. 'Twas closed though when we got there. :(

Very thirsty, we turned back for home taking a slight detour to view the town of Highworth from a distance.

Our favourite pub - The Jolly Tar Pub and Restaurant, Hannington, near Highworth - friendly from the outset, the staff and owners make our visits here a really positive and enjoyable experience. They offer Bed and Breakfast too.

Only downside?? It can get busy and they're not open all day on Saturdays or Sundays.

Quiet, secluded wooded lanes, centuries old.
I wonder how many have walked this lane over time??

There's something about this photo I JUST LIKE. Perhaps its the curvature of the high branches in the two trees in the foreground....

Looking uphill to Blunsdon's Iron Age fort - a difficult shot and slightly burned out in the upper right hand corner, still I'm pleased with it. Would make a good desktop background.

Blunsdon's Iron Age Fort is uphill and off to the left. I love the sky in this photograph. I think I tricked the camera to underexpose the shot slightly. Just enough to capture the sky detail...

Halfway between Blunsdon and Hannington, the view is south easterly. The hills you can see on the horizon form part of the Marlborough Downs in Wiltshire.

Took about an hour to walk each way. On the return walk we resorted to eating wild blackberries to help quench our thirst until we got home. Haven't picked blackberries since I was a kid!

Looking for a new car

We're looking for a new car - a small run around, a bit bigger than our current Ford Ka. Really liked this Ford Fiesta but somewhat overpriced for a car that was a year and a half old. Not sure if the dealer would budge on price and I hate being subjected to their sales techniques, really turns me off buying from them!

Just treat me like a human being, do not pretend to be my next best friend, give me a fair price on my trade-in and show a willing to negotiate on the price and its more likely I buy.

Treat me like an average punter and I'll think you are treating me like an idiot and go find somewhere else to buy.

View from a vintage glider

Vintage glider - side by side in a barge at the top of the winch launch.
Wind in your hair gliding. Nothing better!

Beware your spelling mistakes!

Richard Basham of Konica Minolta proudly displaying his list of wanted trades and businesses for our BNI Bradman group in Bristol.

We're not sure at this point he is aware of the spelling mistake - click on the photo for a clearer view!

Kiting near Woolacombe

A few friends of mine are into flying "power kites" - one of them even has a 25 meter wing span kite - it can literally FLY YOU!

The Red Arrows Display Team

The Royal Air Forces Red Arrows taxiing out for take off

Smoke on! Go! Close formation flying display starts.

The Red Arrows going vertical.

Red Arrows Display Team

Blogging photos from a mobile phone

I've always had an interest in photography and since they have installed cameras into mobile phones what better way to show off my photos.

I recently picked up the Sony Ericsson K800 mobile (cell) phone - with a 3.2 mega pixel capability - enough data to actually print 6 X 4 photos. So I've used the phone on a regular basis to take snapshots of what I see in MY life.

I do prefer landscape photography over anything else, I find the power and drama of nature highly rewarding. I'll post photos of any gliding I do as I am big into that as well.

Some photos you may like and some you may not. Tell me which ones - with your input I can improve my skills and post better photos of things I see and think would be of interest to you.

There will likely be a lot of landscape photos of Wiltshire in the UK as this is where I reside. Myself and my wife do try to get out on weekends and walk the footpaths of the area that we live in.

Feel free to use the photos in any projects you wish. If you decide to use any commercially then please let me know where you intend to use them (this protects me from being associated against any projects of a sordid or suscipious nature).

If you wish to have a larger version for a background for your computer then let me know and I will sort you a bigger version.

If you have photos you wish to see online then my only requirement is that you send them to me in a web format - 72 dpi and that they were taken with a mobile phone camera - please tell me which phone they were taken with. That's the only requirement. I'll post any photos you send - please though no pornography or anything that others may find offence with.

So enjoy my blog and hope to hear from you soon.

Darren

PS Below there are a lot of photos. 2 reasons, one I've been busy building up photos and too to quickly generate significant content for this blog.