Bristol 2019

By shendyNo Comments
I'm lucky enough to work by the Harbourside in Bristol, which does make for some nice lunchtime walks - this is the sort of thing that I tend to post on Instagram (@shendy42), so quite a few of these are taken on my phone. Here's a selection of photos I took around the Harbourside area during 2019. Some of these are taken on film, from when I was testing my dad's Pentax cameras.The first section were taken at the Underfall Yard, and there's also quite a few images from Cumberland Basin which is another place I keep going back to as it's got the gritty concrete look I like. But I don't only photograph the harbourside - I do see other bits of Bristol....
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Music 2019

By shendyNo Comments
These are from some of the gigs I went to in 2019. The first one is from Neil Finn at St George's back in January 2019 - genuinely one of the best shows I've ever been to. It was him, sons Liam & Elroy and his wife Sharon. Fantastic songs (especially the Crowded House stuff, obviously) and such an intimate venue. Then a couple from Little Steven & The Disciples of Soul at the O2 Academy - I've never seen so many people on that stage! This one was an absolute blast, and bloody loud! The rest are from Muse at Ashton Gate stadium - spectacular! I've started up a separate music blog, which I really do need to write more on, and there are write-ups of a few of last year's gigs there - plus other musings....
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England Rugby World Cup Squad, August 2019

By shendyNo Comments
Prior to the 2019 Rugby World Cup, the England squad were training at Clifton Rugby Club, and the sponsors O2 laid on a "meet the squad" event. Happily, this took place round the corner from my office so I booked an afternoon off work and went. After an interminable wait, (most of) the players eventually arrived and generally mingled, posed for photos and signed autographs.There were also some interviews - Joe Marler is very funny, although I think he had to keep reminding himself to keep the content and language suitable for all ages... As a Northampton Saints fan I was of course on the lookout for our players - Piers Francis wasn't around, I didn't get to meet Courtney Lawes (he was called off to do a "grip & grin") but I did manage to see Lewis Ludlam and wish him luck....
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Amsterdam

By shendyNo Comments
In June I was given the opportunity to attend a conference in Amsterdam, at just a few days notice. Never having been before, I graciously accepted. As it happens, the conference itself was really interesting, and then I headed out every evening with my camera.Doing some research beforehand I found an Amsterdam photography blog (whose name I now shamefully forget) which pointed out the best places for photogenic bridges, churches and houses - very useful. Everything you've heard about cycling in Amsterdam is true, and then some - an amazing number of cyclists, and I saw about 3 people in lycra or on bike with anything more than basic gears. The bike park at the station is a sight to behold! The last photo is from the conference, where one of the keynote talks was from Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple. A lovely city that I barely scratched the surface of - I didn't get to any museums because of the conference - so...
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Dance

By shendyNo Comments
Earlier in the year I saw an advert for an outdoor dance photography workshop in central Bristol in July - that sounded really good so I signed up, thinking how nice it could look on a warm summer evening as the sun set. So of course, when it came to time for the event, the weather was awful. I really felt for the dancer, who worked really hard for all of the photographers, 6-7 of us, in the pouring rain....
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