Weeks 12 & 13: London & Basildon House

This one was captured at about 19:15 on Kensington High Street, London, while on my way to a dinner appointment. I was actually looking at a church spire across the road, thinking about capturing the weirdness of when I heard the ambulance and saw it forcing its way towards where I was standing. Putting the camera on my arm while holding on to a lamppost I waited and then hit the shutter once. This is the result, which I think I would entitle something like "Emergency! Get out of the bloody way!" I just hope the pedestrians look around before stepping out...


This is a very different image, captured while walking in the grounds of Basildon House, a National Trust property near Pangbourne in Berkshire. My wife is a volunteer room warden there and often works in the shop. On this particular day I took her to work in the shop and decided to walk the grounds to get some fresh air. Sadly, the aggressive wind, the dull sky and an equally dull photographer ensured I did not get any decent shots, until I saw a sad magnolia tree, part in bloom and part inert.

This shot really reminded that while Spring is a time for renewal and rejuvenation, there is also an element of death and decay as the flowers that attract the pollinators decay while the newly-pollinated seed gets ready to disperse in the circle of life and death at the heart of our experience. Post-processed in to selectively colour the decaying petals.