I've always had a love/fascination with locks and cogs so feel the need to photograph any I see!
One photo left over from the other day conforming to my love of circles/spirals;-P
And one for my love of sci-fi!
Tuesday, 26 May 2009
Old stuff
I've always had a love/fascination with locks and cogs so feel the need to photograph any I see! 
Random selection
As I didn't venture out past the outskirts of Calne this weekend I decided to try a few things in and around my house, with a few new Photoshop techniques learned in the process.
Walkabout photos from the weekend
I've always loved things that look warn out, faded and in this case rusty. Love the colours!
I went around Bowood in Wiltshire this weekend to catch the end of the Rhododendrons, it's a fantastic walk and although a lot of the flowers were way past their sell by date I did manage to get some snaps of other things.
This door leads to the mausoleum above which sits a marble tomb looking out over the wiltshire countryside.
My mum makes another Hickcock appearence looking out over the view described above.
One of the marble carvings from inside the "tomb" (I'll post more information about this place once I find some).
Sunday, 17 May 2009
Illustrations
~ The Girl In The Bumble Bee Jacket ~
Where they came from nobody knowsbut they covered her body from her head to her toes.
She tried all she could but they just wouldn’t leave
the tale of the girl who was covered in bees
She told her friends it wasn’t funny
the fact that she’d slipped and been covered in honey
But crawling and buzzing they made such a racket, the little girl trapped in her bumble bee jacket.
~The Bot With A Cat On His Head ~
Awake all night he started to weep
all that he wanted was a quiet night’s sleep.
But every time he climbed into bed
he had to deal with the cat on his head!
Sunday, 10 May 2009
Illustrations
I've always loved stories, some of my earliest memories as a child are of being read to sleep with a fairytale or made up tall tale. It's one of the only things I remember as a child and no doubt contributed to me living in my own head a bit. Roald Dahl was always a favorite, his slightly twisted balance of light and dark really appealed to me and has heavily influenced my recent attempts at trying to get back into drawing.
It's no surprise with my love of the dark and fantastical that I soon found Tim Burton, the similarities between him and Dahl are obvious so it was a natural step to fall in love with film too. I've just finished reading Tim Burton's biography so as a tribute thought I would attempt a Nightmare Before Christmas inspired illustration.
It's no surprise with my love of the dark and fantastical that I soon found Tim Burton, the similarities between him and Dahl are obvious so it was a natural step to fall in love with film too. I've just finished reading Tim Burton's biography so as a tribute thought I would attempt a Nightmare Before Christmas inspired illustration.
Last week continued
The canal also plays home to many types of bird, these little ducklings are faster than you would imagine and soooooo cute
Random photo of the day!
Perhaps a technique I use to much sometimes but I feel it works well with flowers in particular
And I thought I'd try it on a portrait of some family friends too, looks ok.
A few snaps from last week
I ended up heading into Devizes briefly which has a great little canal which is very often filled with parked up barges. This one caught my eye because of the cool mix of peeling colours!
Trying to find new things around the house to take photos of can be hard but I liked the way the light caught this bottle.
Always have to have something dark and moody, this one is the entrance to a great little church in the high street.
Trying a new technique with this daisy, it works ok but will be experimenting more I think
Friday, 8 May 2009
Film Review
~ Star Trek ~
As a shinny new U.S.S Enterprise sits in the Starfleet docking station and new recruits make their way up through the academy, Director J.J Abrams has the unenviable task of bringing the Star Trek story back to the big screen in this years first true summer blockbuster.
It must have been a daunting task with so many people to please. With the die hard Trekkie fans, the sci-fi loving general public as well as the ever hopeful studios keeping their fingers crossed that this will be as well received as Spiderman 2 or possibly even have the success of the Dark Knight.
Right from the opening sequence the special effects are set to stunning as we focus on the Enterprise crew coming together to fend off a revenge driven Romulan force, there’s no doubt in what’s to follow – A kick ass battle.
Under the main plot the story is driven forward by the pivotal relationship found between Kirk & Spock, from the off they are at a constant battle with one another. The mental and sometimes physical games of tug-of-war continue until the pair learn to tolerate one another and eventually form a strong bond.
Chris Pine takes on the role of Kirk and brings a loud mouthed, fists first attitude which is well balance against his light hearted cockiness. It’s in Heroes Zachary Quinto’ perfect portrayal of Spock where the most meaty role can be found, watching him come to terms with his human/Vulcan heritage while at the same time battling with his emotional struggles he’s easily the most interesting of the two.
All the other familiar characters get a decent look in too, Bones, Sulu, Uhura and Anton Yelchin shines bright as thickly accented Chekov, with Simon Pegg bringing humorous relief in a well calibrated Scotty.
It must have been a huge challenge for the new cast who are essentially establishing already well established characters to bring any real heft to the roles and it can sometimes make them feel a little flat - all brawn and no brains. Luckily any flaws are only very minor and once they find their own feet and are known in their own right they will no doubt bring more emotional weight to the parts.
J.J Abrams brings a fast paced exciting and visually stunning restart to the Star Trek world, hardly taking his foot off the accelerator until the truncated final act. Hints of the first Star Wars films can be felt throughout and what we end up with is a promising start to a very pleasing return.
****
As a shinny new U.S.S Enterprise sits in the Starfleet docking station and new recruits make their way up through the academy, Director J.J Abrams has the unenviable task of bringing the Star Trek story back to the big screen in this years first true summer blockbuster.
It must have been a daunting task with so many people to please. With the die hard Trekkie fans, the sci-fi loving general public as well as the ever hopeful studios keeping their fingers crossed that this will be as well received as Spiderman 2 or possibly even have the success of the Dark Knight.
Right from the opening sequence the special effects are set to stunning as we focus on the Enterprise crew coming together to fend off a revenge driven Romulan force, there’s no doubt in what’s to follow – A kick ass battle.
Under the main plot the story is driven forward by the pivotal relationship found between Kirk & Spock, from the off they are at a constant battle with one another. The mental and sometimes physical games of tug-of-war continue until the pair learn to tolerate one another and eventually form a strong bond.
Chris Pine takes on the role of Kirk and brings a loud mouthed, fists first attitude which is well balance against his light hearted cockiness. It’s in Heroes Zachary Quinto’ perfect portrayal of Spock where the most meaty role can be found, watching him come to terms with his human/Vulcan heritage while at the same time battling with his emotional struggles he’s easily the most interesting of the two.
All the other familiar characters get a decent look in too, Bones, Sulu, Uhura and Anton Yelchin shines bright as thickly accented Chekov, with Simon Pegg bringing humorous relief in a well calibrated Scotty.
It must have been a huge challenge for the new cast who are essentially establishing already well established characters to bring any real heft to the roles and it can sometimes make them feel a little flat - all brawn and no brains. Luckily any flaws are only very minor and once they find their own feet and are known in their own right they will no doubt bring more emotional weight to the parts.
J.J Abrams brings a fast paced exciting and visually stunning restart to the Star Trek world, hardly taking his foot off the accelerator until the truncated final act. Hints of the first Star Wars films can be felt throughout and what we end up with is a promising start to a very pleasing return.
****
Tuesday, 5 May 2009
Film Review
~ Coraline ~
Ask ten people on the street who directed A Nightmare Before Christmas and at least half of them will come back with an answer of Tim Burton, they would of course all be wrong. The correct answer is Henry Selick, and the man behind Nightmare and Ronald Dahls James and the Giant Peach returns after the 8 years it took to complete this brilliant adaption of Neil Gaimans classic kid’s novel.
Coraline is the story of a lonely young girl (voiced by Dakota Fanning) who after moving house and feeling neglected by her parents discovers a door to a parallel world, a suspiciously perfect world in which her "Other Parents" (Teri Hatcher and John Hodgmen) can't do enough for her and give her a sense of family she craves in the real world. As you may expect from Selicks liking of the dark and twisted, things aren't always what they seem. There's something dangerously creepy about her other parents, tempting her to stay with them and leave behind her old life, staring hopefully with their big black button eyes (yes, everyone in the other world has button eyes). The tale takes a more sinister twist when Other Mother's true identity is revealed. Bizarre, terrifying and more than a little macabre it brings together elements of Alice in Wonderland, the Brothers Grimm and Wizard of Oz in an unique and disturbing game of hide-and-seek with unthinkable consequences should she lose.
Along the way Coraline meets a whole host of intriguing characters. Upstairs we have ex Russian gymnast Mr. Bobinsky (Ian Mcshane) and occupying the house below are retired actresses Misses Spink and Forcible (Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders) who in places manage to provide a risky humor that will put a wide eyed smile on parents faces.
Proving after 2001's unsuccessful Moneybone that when left to his own devices Selick is right up there with the likes of Nick Park with his careful and loving attention to detail when using stop-motions unique appeal to bring stories to life, he takes it one step further with Coraline by introducing 3D into the mix. Gone are the days when 3D films would use every given opportunity to throw something out into the crowd for gimmicky effect, here Selick is restrained and uses to technique only to augment the story. It's the depth that 3D offers, dragging you into the world in front of you like peering into someone else’s window, a feeling that is heightened in the Other World when sets were built 3 times as deep to exaggerate the sense that you are right there along with the characters.
Every aspect of the film is meticulously animated in such detail that there are moments where you just can't fathom how they did it. Humming birds, performing mice, a praying mantis tractor and even a talking cat, it's all breathtakingly believable thanks to the beautiful and spellbinding way in which it all comes together. Aimed at children but with more than enough to satisfy the adults too, this is the best animated film I've seen since Nightmare.
*****
~ X-Men Origins: Wolverine ~
Wolverine has long been established as one of Marvel's most successful comic book characters with a huge fan boy following, it’s no surprise then that he's being used first in a series of planned spin-off origin stories.
Hugh Jackman returns as the titular misanthrope and it's hard to imagine anyone else wearing the adamantium claws quite so well. As expected from an origins story though, most of the other characters - some old, some new - are sporting fresh new faces. Liev Schreiber takes on the role of Wolverine's half brother Sabretooth and seems made for the part, managing to bring a new dynamic and brooding primal menace to a character relegated to henchman in the first film. It's in this highly dysfunctional relationship that the story get's it's driving force as Sabretooth plays right hand man to an excellent Danny Huston who wears the boots once filled by Brian Cox as sinister military geneticist William Stryker.
A catch up prologue is reduced to the pre-credits covering details of Logan as a child from 1845 leading through a series of marginalized war stories until they are face to face with a firing squad - which doesn't go as planned - after which Stryker offers them a deal to become part of Team X. After a raid turns nasty Logan starts to realise this isn't what he signed up for and backs out. Stryker though is obsessed with harnessing the abilities of other mutants and years of cat and mouse follow.
Although Origins is an accomplished piece of comic book action, when dealing with such a well known character it sometimes feels like we're treading over old ground. Much of Wolverines back story was covered as a minor subplot within X1 and the superior X2 so there's nothing new here for the educated fans. I found that most of my interest - and something to get the geek crowd drooling - was the introduction of other popular characters that show up in teasing cameos. Tyler Kitsch as pitch perfect Remy le Beau aka Gambit or the cocky loud mouth Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, both of which seem destined to have their own stories brought to the big screen.
Overall, no small niggles with the slightly hackneyed Hulk-esque story can detract from what is essentially a thoroughly enjoyable blockbuster. It may lack the impact of the previous films but director Gavin Hood (on first time big budget bow) does well to reboot the franchise. I can't wait to see where they take it next!
***
Ask ten people on the street who directed A Nightmare Before Christmas and at least half of them will come back with an answer of Tim Burton, they would of course all be wrong. The correct answer is Henry Selick, and the man behind Nightmare and Ronald Dahls James and the Giant Peach returns after the 8 years it took to complete this brilliant adaption of Neil Gaimans classic kid’s novel.
Coraline is the story of a lonely young girl (voiced by Dakota Fanning) who after moving house and feeling neglected by her parents discovers a door to a parallel world, a suspiciously perfect world in which her "Other Parents" (Teri Hatcher and John Hodgmen) can't do enough for her and give her a sense of family she craves in the real world. As you may expect from Selicks liking of the dark and twisted, things aren't always what they seem. There's something dangerously creepy about her other parents, tempting her to stay with them and leave behind her old life, staring hopefully with their big black button eyes (yes, everyone in the other world has button eyes). The tale takes a more sinister twist when Other Mother's true identity is revealed. Bizarre, terrifying and more than a little macabre it brings together elements of Alice in Wonderland, the Brothers Grimm and Wizard of Oz in an unique and disturbing game of hide-and-seek with unthinkable consequences should she lose.
Along the way Coraline meets a whole host of intriguing characters. Upstairs we have ex Russian gymnast Mr. Bobinsky (Ian Mcshane) and occupying the house below are retired actresses Misses Spink and Forcible (Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders) who in places manage to provide a risky humor that will put a wide eyed smile on parents faces.
Proving after 2001's unsuccessful Moneybone that when left to his own devices Selick is right up there with the likes of Nick Park with his careful and loving attention to detail when using stop-motions unique appeal to bring stories to life, he takes it one step further with Coraline by introducing 3D into the mix. Gone are the days when 3D films would use every given opportunity to throw something out into the crowd for gimmicky effect, here Selick is restrained and uses to technique only to augment the story. It's the depth that 3D offers, dragging you into the world in front of you like peering into someone else’s window, a feeling that is heightened in the Other World when sets were built 3 times as deep to exaggerate the sense that you are right there along with the characters.
Every aspect of the film is meticulously animated in such detail that there are moments where you just can't fathom how they did it. Humming birds, performing mice, a praying mantis tractor and even a talking cat, it's all breathtakingly believable thanks to the beautiful and spellbinding way in which it all comes together. Aimed at children but with more than enough to satisfy the adults too, this is the best animated film I've seen since Nightmare.
*****
~ X-Men Origins: Wolverine ~
Wolverine has long been established as one of Marvel's most successful comic book characters with a huge fan boy following, it’s no surprise then that he's being used first in a series of planned spin-off origin stories.
Hugh Jackman returns as the titular misanthrope and it's hard to imagine anyone else wearing the adamantium claws quite so well. As expected from an origins story though, most of the other characters - some old, some new - are sporting fresh new faces. Liev Schreiber takes on the role of Wolverine's half brother Sabretooth and seems made for the part, managing to bring a new dynamic and brooding primal menace to a character relegated to henchman in the first film. It's in this highly dysfunctional relationship that the story get's it's driving force as Sabretooth plays right hand man to an excellent Danny Huston who wears the boots once filled by Brian Cox as sinister military geneticist William Stryker.
A catch up prologue is reduced to the pre-credits covering details of Logan as a child from 1845 leading through a series of marginalized war stories until they are face to face with a firing squad - which doesn't go as planned - after which Stryker offers them a deal to become part of Team X. After a raid turns nasty Logan starts to realise this isn't what he signed up for and backs out. Stryker though is obsessed with harnessing the abilities of other mutants and years of cat and mouse follow.
Although Origins is an accomplished piece of comic book action, when dealing with such a well known character it sometimes feels like we're treading over old ground. Much of Wolverines back story was covered as a minor subplot within X1 and the superior X2 so there's nothing new here for the educated fans. I found that most of my interest - and something to get the geek crowd drooling - was the introduction of other popular characters that show up in teasing cameos. Tyler Kitsch as pitch perfect Remy le Beau aka Gambit or the cocky loud mouth Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, both of which seem destined to have their own stories brought to the big screen.
Overall, no small niggles with the slightly hackneyed Hulk-esque story can detract from what is essentially a thoroughly enjoyable blockbuster. It may lack the impact of the previous films but director Gavin Hood (on first time big budget bow) does well to reboot the franchise. I can't wait to see where they take it next!
***
Monday, 4 May 2009
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
