July 26, 2006
July 25, 2006
Freecycle
So David told me about freecycle and I gave it a go, and before I knew it I'd shifted an old printer that I couldn't get rid of on eBay for 99 pence plus postage (I didn't really want the 99 pence, I just wanted shot of the printer).The Norfolk freecycle group is awash with amazing stuff, and now I'm seeing posts everywhere about how great freecycle is - for example just in the last few days Norman got shot of doors, freakgirl got shot of tapes.
Already I feel bad for the number of things I threw out in the great purge of the last few weeks that I could probably have passed on to others. This has just spurred me on to new heights of freecycling, and hopefully I'll be able to rehome all the stuff around here that hasn't been needed for months.
July 20, 2006
Old school
I'll be taking photos at Adrian's wedding tomorrow - no, I don't think I'm good enough either, but he assures me he'd rather have a million digital snaps to do with as he pleases, rather than 30 ludicrously expensive "professional" pics that he has no rights over. Anyway, as a backup to the 350D I've pressed into service an old EOS 620 that belonged to my brother-in-law.
I needed to check that it was still in good working order, so after replacing the battery I put a cheap film in it, and went out to take some shots with the new 50mm prime lens I'd also got. So how did it do? Well, I'm quite happy with the shots, though I definitely need to keep an eye on the focus when doing close-ups with the 50mm lens. I love the larger viewfinder on the 620, but I find it disconcerting that I can't instantly review the shots. It looks like the photos from film come out quite a lot warmer than the ones from the 350, so I'll have to play with the white balance a little and see if I can get some warmer digital shots.
The public pics are over on flickr, in the EOS 620 test shots set.
July 19, 2006
July 17, 2006
Prime time?
Like Tim, I recently got a new lens for my camera - though mine was on the recommendation of the Canon EOS Beginner's FAQ, and since I have a Canon 350D, I got a Canon EF50mm f/1.8 ll Lens - 52mm. It's taking quite a while to get to grips with a prime lens (I still keep reaching for the lens to zoom it), but I love how this forces a "back to basics" approach to framing shots (i.e. you have to walk about a lot).
I also got a circular polarizer. I need to figure out how to use it to best effect, but to get an idea of the difference it makes, I took two almost identical (typical tourist, terribly clichéd) shots of Norwich Castle:
I think I need to practice some more ;-) I also got a new tripod, a Manfrotto 055D, which should do to get me started. I tried out a Canon EF24-70mm 2.8L, but at over £900 I couldn't quite convince myself I needed it ... yet. I'll live with the lower quality 18-55mm for now.
July 15, 2006
July 13, 2006
ApacheCon US: Hands-on Cocoon
Good news everybody! My tutorial proposal for Apachecon US has been accepted, and subject to sufficient people signing up, I'll be talking about everything you ever wanted to know about Apache Cocoon but were afraid to ask. The website is being updated, but as soon as it's live I'll link to it so y'all can sign up!Awww, I love you Ryanair!
My trip to and from Rome was obviously my turn for the travel gremlins to be out in force. The outward journey was messed up by nature (a stag was struck by an incoming train, delaying all services on the line to Cambridge and my onward connection to Stansted Airport). Thankfully I'd allowed the obligatory extra two hours for train travel in this country, so after an hour of being told "the train will be here in 20 minutes", I managed to get a car from the wonderful folk at Norwich Car Hire. One mad race later, I made it to the airport just in time to hop on the plane. It was a good job I'd used internet check-in, since I'd have been walking to Rome otherwise.
The return journey wasn't so fortunate. Due to "operational reasons", our plane was delayed by nearly three hours. Not as bad as Ugo's 4 hours and 20 minutes, Matt's cancellations or Gianugo's epic journey, but it was compounded by the fact that Rome Ciampino has very few facilities, no wireless internet, and nowhere near enough seats (c'mon people, it's not rocket science: how many people boarding planes at any one time? Right, that's roughly how many seats you need). There was also an entertaining 10 minute wait once we'd all boarded where the captain had to negotiate with the airport to persuade them to re-open. Adding insult to injury, if I'd known the flight was going to leave at midnight, I could have taken the time to catch up with friends in Rome instead of sitting in an airport.
The delayed flight and the long drive home (even though it was completed in record time, given the lack of traffic and a heavy foot on the accelerator) meant I didn't reach my bed until nearly four this morning. Yawn!
Oh well. I know if you play the airplane lottery often enough you are more likely to get flight delays and cancellations, and I still count myself lucky to get to see so many places when traveling on business. I just get a little grumpy without enough sleep ;-)
July 11, 2006
Hot stuff
I'm off to Rome in a few minutes, and I thought I'd better check the weather forecast so I can dress appropriately. And blimey, what a forecast:
To put that into context, on Wednesday night it will be only 2 degrees cooler in Rome than the top temperature in Norwich during the day:
I'm going to melt!
July 10, 2006
Hello, old friend ...
I'm doing some fixes to a site today which requires me to revisit an old friend ...
Doesn't time fly?