1 Day 12 Pics: June

You’d never usually catch me doing so much snapping on a typical Saturday. But Emma and Michelle’s challenge had me pulling out my phone every hour to catch bit of what Tom and I were up to.

We woke up to an incredible thunderstorm- rain hammering down and clouds rumbling; an appropriate setting for the moment we discovered we were out of coffee…

Tom ran through the rain and I met him at Olivo’s for breakfast. Seriously good food: scrambled duck egg, black pudding and apple fritters, and ciabatta toast. There was plenty of coffee.

Back home, I finally started tackling the big pile of books in the loft. You might have noticed on Pinterest that I’ve been having lofty dreams for a while. This is just the beginning of a big job. I’ve taken a ‘before’ picture in the optimistic anticipation of sharing an ‘after’ before too long.

The sun came out and I spent the afternoon gardening and running errands. I love an excuse to take the chain ferry, and picking up goodies for a picnic seems as good an excuse as any.

We spent the last hours of the day exploring the forest and waterways of Newtown. We found a path we’d never explored, leading to a tiny bird hide perched out on the water of Clamerkin Lake. There are still so many places on this Island that I’ve yet to find.

I loved this photography challenge. It made me really aware of every hour in the typical kind of day that can fly by in a blur. It had me noticing more moments, and look for the beauty in them. I hope you’ll join in for July!

Tom the Camera Man

I’m sure Tom won’t mind me outing him as an Instagram addict. He’s always loved taking photos, and he’s been happily sharing them with others over on Instagram for over a year. There’s never a walk where he isn’t getting fodder for the feed, especially if we’re out in the golden hour, and he’s a merry hashtag inventor (#chasingwight and #offroadisland for a start.)

So he was petty delighted to get an email from the guys at IG the other day letting him know that he is now one of their a suggested users; a well-deserved accolade for his beautiful gallery! Do go check it out for a snapshot of this island life: forest, beaches, country lanes, and a few flowers and honeybees…

Pictures in an instant

I like a good picture; I’m amazed by the power of visual information and am an incessant doodler. So it’s no surprise that I’m a bit of an Instagram addict. I love the possibility of seeing so many perspectives on the world in an instant, and the opportunity to share my own.

So, in the interests of sharing, here are some of my favourite IGers:

@5ftinf – beautiful photos of everyday. I’ve never seen so many perfect photos of one table.

@wheninparis – a different view of this beautiful city.

@hannahqueen – simple pics from a country life. Makes me want to buy a cabin and grow pumpkins.

@alice_gao – just fantastic photography.

@hilldwellertom – my favourite view of Island life, from my favourite man.

And here’s me!:

@rusty_rambles – a little of my everyday.

Have you become an Instagram addict? Who are your favourites?

Holding the camera

Tom is certainly the Official Photographer around here. He is the one with camera in hand for every occasion, who will suggest a walk simply because ‘the light is good’.

I love sharing adventures with someone who so happily (and unobtrusively!) records them. After the classic teenage embarrassments of ‘Say cheese,’ and ‘Just take one more for luck,’ I have a slight aversion to cameras. So I am happy to leave the snapping to someone else. But, this does mean that looking through our albums, you’d think I’d been on a decade of holidays by myself. There is also a danger, on this blog, of my taking credit for pictures that are nothing to do with me! Tom’s made me appreciate the pleasure of revisiting a trip through pictures, and I don’t want to lose him from every scene.

So, this is me promising to do better. To not only carry my camera in my bag, but to actually take it out and use it. I suspect 99% of the photos round here will still be courtesy of Tom, but I will endeavour to add my fair share to our photo memories.