Winter woods

Winter woods
Originally uploaded by janibach

This is either my backyard or my neighbour's. Without barriers, one runs into the other and the boudaries are less clear.

Late Winter Snow

Neighborhood in winter
Originally uploaded by janibach

I went out this morning to photograph this lovely sunny day. Much as I can't wait to see the end of the snow, scenes like this are real treasures. A few hours later most of this snow had melted away.

Another snow day in New England

View from the back. 7:19am



View from the side. 7:22am



View of front window. 7:25am


It's now 8:45 am on Monday morning and a time at which I would normally be getting ready for work but today is another "snow day" so the whole family is home and another day is added to the end of the school year. There isn't the same excitement in March as there is when the first snowfall of winter comes and even that doesn't compare to people's reaction in my homeland to a few flakes of snow. At this point we are all thinking about Spring, especially after the milder weather we've had recently.

New York! New York!

I've just returned from my first visit to the Big Apple in 25 years and found it a very different place. Back then it was a hot, dirty, noisy and slightly scary place (not least because it was August, I was only 23 and addicted to American police dramas). This time it was chilly, clean, less noisy and felt as safe as I'd feel anywhere. Of course it was February but sightseeing in Times Square after midnight was magic!

Here is a selection of my favourite photos from the weekend.

1. The Apple store from inside the entrance.


2. Me and Him on 5th Avenue.


3. Chrysler Building and Grand Central Station


4. Same again, only closer. Love this one.


5. Love this one too - about 12:30am on Sunday Feb 15th, Times Square. People were posing by the heart for their Valentine's Day pictures.


6. 30 Rock. I love all the Art Deco design in Rockefeller Plaza


7. Last time I was in NY I went up the Empire State Building. This time I was able to photograph it. Ironically, last time, I was irritated by the World Trade Center because it was so big it spoiled the views. This time there was a clear view across and I was sad that I have no photos of the Twin Towers.


8. Zoomed in on Central Park and beyond.


9. What were once tall buildings... I like looking for the old amongst the new.


10. Reflections - a great design trick giving the illusion that the building isn't really there.


There wasn't time to see or do much more than this. We spent a lot of time sitting at tables in restaurants, talking and catching up. In between we probably walked about four miles Saturday evening and another mile or two on Sunday before we had to leave the city and head back north. I can't wait to go again - and I can't believe that I haven't been before.

Goddess Moon

A blue-pink winter sky, a serene moment captured by an old school chum who inspires more than she knows. Look up once in a while and take a moment to breathe, enjoy, and be thankful for all the good in the world. Thanks for the inspiration Kaz,

More on photography

In 2006 I got a new camera which I loved, but in the space of a year it was all but completely destroyed. Fortunately it was still intact the last time I was in London. These are my favourites of the photos I took at that time.

Something Old, Something Blue is a fascinating juxtaposition of one of London's newest landmarks with one of its oldest. I hope to get more from within the Tower walls this year. I love the Gherkin and the Tower buildings themselves are a mishmash of different kinds of architecture in this picture, so as long as there aren't too many more gherkins in the pipeline and the old architecture remains in its rightful place, I like it.

Blue Sky, London Eye uses one of those colour-accent effects that my camera has - my newer camera doesn't have that feature, sadly. I really like the greys and the contrast with the blue.

Britain in the Sky is one of my especial favourites. I managed to get the British Airways plane in the sky as it flew over the (formerly) British Airways London Eye and as it passed a cloud which to me looks strangely like a map of Britain.

Rope Line gave me a rare opportunity to see some photographers waiting for.... whom? This was The Mall and there was a red carpet and a gallery of some sort, so I waited with them. Sadly I didn't recognise anyone who walked the red carpet that day, despite hanging around for over an hour. It was fun people-watching though.

A few weeks later the poor camera was flung rather dramatically (and accidentally) into a swimming pool. It was dried out and continued to function, but not quite as well as before. A few months later it was jammed into a locker door and dropped a couple more times. It's now in Jamie's possession and I have a new camera, up from 7mp to 12. I hope to be able to get some good shots this year.

Marbleous

marbleous
Originally uploaded by janibach

Several years ago if you'd asked me if I had any hobbies, I'd probably have said "shopping" and "socialising". Actually I also knitted and cross-stitched fairly frequently, but they sounded too spinsterish to admit to as "hobbies" for a young single independent woman. At about the same time that I got married, I stopped full time work, so there was actually a need for me to find an absorbing occupation.

It was a few years before I had time for hobbies other than taking care of children and watching TV but at some oint I decided to take up painting. I painted like mad for about three years and then stopped as abruptly as I started. That led to photography - both for inspiration and to post my work online. That in turn led to me setting up my own website and messing about with page and designs. The art led to me trying to "paint'' in fabric, using colours and textures - I started a piece a year or so ago and it's still not finished because I'm looking for the right fabric to finish it off.

I enjoy photographing the wildlife I see outside my house, as well as street scenes and famous landmarks, but in the latter case I try to find less common aspects.

Occasionally I photograph something around the house, like this marble game.