Hello Heather - Birmingham Philharmonic Orchestra at Symphony Hall


A trip to Birmingham to see my daughter play with the Birmingham Philharmonic Orchestra - and some good photo opportunities around the Bullring.

After such a difficult week, I made a conscious effort to lighten the mood on Friday. I went out to look for shots that put a smile on my face. I hope they do the same for you.

How big is SHE!!

This is one HARD pigeon!!

The brave failure at Chelsea last night was quickly put in context today. I left work at lunch time and joined the thousands heading for Anfield. I was joined by my daughter who was a mere foetus in April 1989. When she was born later that year, I sort of hoped the she would be a Red and help to fill those 96 empty spaces in our ground.

But I promised myself that I would let that be her decsion. My wife's half of the family is blue and initially, it looked as though they might claim her support. In 2001, while we were enthralling Europe with the best UEFA Cup Final ever, the penny dropped and Jen quietly assumed a Red allegiance. She is now half way through a Maths degree at Warwick University but manages to get to a few games a season.

I'm lucky - I don't have to worry about her safety - I know stadia are largely safe these days - because of what happened at Hillsborough. It's just such a terrible shame that 96 men, women and children had to die to in such an un-necessary way before safety became a priority. Still, I feel that I owe an un-repayable debt of gratitude to the Hillsborough families. You have my eternal respect for the dignified way you have conducted yourselves over the past twenty difficult years.

Attending the service today ripped my insides out. I can't begin to imagine what the families were going through. I hope you could draw some small measure of comfort from the solidarity of the 28,000 inside Anfield today. YNWA.

It's Easter weekend and it's nice at home - both daughters home from Uni - family get-together to look forward to. Lucky, aren't I?

I know I am because there are hundreds of families on Merseyside and beyond who are approaching the coming week with a mixture of dread and sadness as the 20th Anniversary of the Hillsborough Disaster approaches. Personally, I didn't know any of the victims, wasn't at the game and only have to think about those who were, most days - instead of every day.

The families live with the pain and grief to this day because those responsible for the disaster walked away from it and remain unpunished in one of the most shameful evasions of justice this country has ever seen. They started to cover their tracks within minutes of their catastrophic loss of control. They were aided and abetted by the British Establishment who quickly closed ranks and, after a fudged inquest, the last flickering hope that justice might prevail, was snuffed out.

All of this will be as raw as ever this week. I will be there at the Service of Remebrance on Wednesday to pay my respects - but it doesn't seem like enough. What I would really like to see on Wednesday is David Duckinfield and his guilty colleagues behind bars. And Kelvin McKenzie swinging at the end of a rope. I can dream, can't I?

Can't seem to keep away from Crosby Beach - between the beach, tide and clouds, the scene is never the same twice. Tried a few different things with ties and shirts and even a towel. Results are mixed - but the skies were a dream and above is the 'shot of the day'.

I was a lot less impressed with Stratford-on Avon. It has a rich heritage of Medieval architecture but this has been largely swamped by subsequent development. Shame.

Warwick

A weekend in Warwickshire resulted in some glorious spring sunshine and some great new photo opportunities. These are some of the best images - a beautiful part of the world.

18th March 2009

Light at the end of the .. err .. bridge!

I took my car for it's MOT and went for a trek with my camera while it was getting done. I wandered up to the Stanley Dock locks on the canal, through the Eldonian Village and back into town. What a glorious day!

Real Madrid in Liverpool - 10th March 2009

I was at Liverpool's very first European tie at Anfield in 1964 (Reykjavik) and so I have been waiting 45 years to see Real Madrid at Anfield. They are one of only two teams in Europe that we HAVE to respect. No point in singing 'Five times' to them - we'd just look silly.

So when the Real fans came and applauded us for our passionate rendition of our anthem before the match, that was a huge compliment. Yes - YNWA is one of sports great rituals but these guys have seen it all - and they were impressed. The mutual respect continued throughout the match and even though we thrashed Real 4-0, their fans took it well, singing Lee-ver-pool at the final whistle. A huge compliment and greatly appreciated: the icing on the cake on a magical night. Gracias amigos.

Another Place, Crosby Beach - Sunday 8th March 2009

I went along to Crosby Beach with an idea for a shot in mind. I don't think the one with the towel and clothes quite works but I will go back and try again. Still, it wasn't a wasted trip, As ever at 'Another Place', the light,clouds and tide all make for an ever changing canvas - you just have to keep watching for the right shot.

St Lukes, Liverpool

So, I've got involved with this great bunch of Liverpool photographers who want to put their stuff on display to the public. Before long we are sorted out with a venue - St Lukes Church - or 'The Bombed Out Church' as it is known locally. So I thought I would walk up there one lunch hour and get a feel for the place - and take a few shots of this beautiful building. Took a few HDR shots. Later when I processed them, Photomatix had done weird stuff with one image. This was a grey flat day and there were no highlights and definitely no sunlight. I rather like the end result but would be at a loss to explain how I got there!