The Nfl GameWeekend

Having been looking forward to my son josh coming to stay for many weeks at last it was here.josh arrived week before the nfl jaguars vs texans game at wembley which were both very exited about. a few weeks before i managed to get registered to go to the jaguars practice,which i had  tried for a few years before to no avail, so was amazed and exited that i managed to get to go, its free no cost to go , ad after practice you meet all the players. turned out to be a great day if not a bit wet as weather was not good at all. never mind that didnt distract from the day at all ,

meeting keishawn bierria linebacker  and  Quarterback Nick Foles was wonderful especially as foles was not playing at the game on sunday .he has since been reinstated as starter quarterback .lasted for 4 hours. we meet some fantastic fans and players and will definitely go again next year

Changing times

It’s been over a years since I posted , boy how the world has changed in that time Brexit another election and now a terrible virus which has brought the world to near standstill. Although it’s nearly end of May and the U.K. is starting to ease some of the lockdown restrictions life is far from normal! Technology has been a godsend the rise of zoom the life line for so many to see friends and family but a loving huge is hugely missed . Oh for the days when human contact can resume. Think that will be a great day as lockdowns ard lifted in some countries emotions remain high this virus is leaving scars and wounds that will long be remembered. I pray for some good to come out of it , and I’m sure some good will . That people would unit and love each other more I think that is happening . Praying for a better society to emerge from this

Here Comes 2019

As i write this 2018 comes to a close. as i look back over the past year i remember the good and the bad .and that might lead us to think that it was black and white ,when reality says that there were many grey areas, times when we don’t know it a decision will turn out to be right or wrong good or bad .but the grey times can be filled with an awful sense of negativity if we are not cautious and take time to regress.the past can become distorted and disconnected from reality from the truth . and sometimes those things decisions that seemed to go so wrong can be changed and made to become better .so on looking back i say don’t forget to see the colour in our lives even when all we seem to see is the black and white or grey. so as we go into 2019 im going to seek out the colour 

So i do hope and pray for a great 2019 for everyone who i know,and if you have read this i pray that your new year is also good .HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!!

Flamingos of the Camargue

In europe flamingos in the wild can only be seen in very few locations.one of the only places is in the camargue in the south of france .situated where the river rhone enters the mediterranean .last year 2017 700,000 flamingos were counted.the rhone delta is huge with many saltwater and freshwater lagoons which contain shrimp algae which the flamingos feed on . breeding takes place from march to june .feeding take place through tiny platelets through the bill.nests on mudflats making nests of upturn hardened mud

When the young are born they are not beautiful white they are light grey in colour .this changes as they grow ,there pink colour coming from there diet shrimps,algae,crustations,worms ect.

As the weather changes and summer turns to autumn some of the flamingos migrate to west africa returning the following spring . Flamingos that reside in the camargue are fairly easy to find as they group on mass and are present on most of the lagoons in large numbers ,a sight not to be missed and only place to see them in the wild in western europe 

Winters Days

A tree stands alone! years pass by seasons change but through it all the tree stands firm . When the weather is at its worse and the cold brings now as it has this winter ,i look upon a tree to remind me just how wonderful and marvellous nature is as every part every living thing so intricate in detail so beyond our total understanding .do you ask as i do how is this possible .how is this worlds nature living growing blooming happen did it evolve or was a much higher hand craftsman involved? on looking at a grain of snow which melts away to water in the hand .placing under microscope just delivers a deeper plan .as we look at all around us and inspect and investigate and inscape deep into each living breathing part of this creation our answers lead to just more questions .deeper deeper  we tread as the snow falls and the harder it is to move around feet sinking into deeper snow .i feel alone but i am not because all around life lives and breaths and hears , listens to our sounds .i am a bit deaf at the moment as i need my ears syringing .dont we take our senses for granted ! dont we taken all around us for granted .i know i do .and im gonna try and change that .so on these cold and sometimes  lonely days when snow lays all around look something thats been taken away not there .ive spent time thinking remembering love ones who have parted from us in this world .i think one day we will meet again ,but from now on will try to listen to the quiet storm .a growl will come from what seems not 

do not fear the wolf at the door ,its sometimes not .cause all can change in time and sphere eternal is our journey to hear .to hear the sound of silent snow ,as time pass by and eternity grows 

.im gonna look for  the  tree who stands alone .a man who was of long ago nailed to this tree for you and me .Just grab on and dont let go .

Tiger adobe Photoshop and lightroom

As Christmas is now but a memory and we start the third month of 2018 ! unbelievable hove time seems to pass us buy so fast !!! .I decided to sort out my hard drives and go through my photographs and delete the ones which were not so good .on doing just that i found some pictures of tigers that i took a few years ago .i decided to rework some of them and as the  weather has been awful decided to play around with them in PS .this one had an ok back ground but after trying a different things i thought a replacing with a black background worked quite well .to do this in PS you have to use layers .firstly opened a exposure layer and underexposing to create the black background .i then used a round brush set to 100%opacity and on the panel pain used the brush to expose the image .a very simple and easy way to use layers and to transform an image .i used different opacity brushes on the edges of the images to blend the fur to the background you can then add layers to adjust colour saturation  and other effects .when finishing flatten the layers

above shows ps with the background and exposure layer open and using a brush exposing the image .

this next image shows the image layer . you can now add layers to adjust any part of the image you want  . when your happy with the result you then open the the layer panel and select flatten this flattens image into one layer 

you can the save the image in several different formats .if you want to work further on the image then save as a Tiff ,as this file type can be used with most other imaging software programs . this is quite a simple way of using layers and not too complicated !  im planning on photographing tigers again soon ,as i have better equipment now and feel that would be  good to do .

They will soar on wings like eagles

This story begins back last summer 2017 .but in the spring my son asked me i i would like to go and see an nfl american football team game at wembley on 1 october .i accepted and not being a person interested in sport at all didn’t really enthuse to much about the football but really looked forward to a day out with my son ,as it would be the first time we did anything together .well time past into summer .it was while i was on holiday that these words came into my head “im about to do  a new thing ,see its already begun ” well that didn’t make any sense to me at all.on return from holiday and back to work .then the words came in my head again “im  about to  do a new thing”.so i put these words into google and a verse in the bible came up :  

For I am about to do something new.

See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?

I will make a pathway through the wilderness.

I will create rivers in the dry wasteland. Isaiah 43:19.

So i prayed about these words and the verse asking god what it means .the only new thing i could think of was the football game i was going to with my son in october ,as it was now september and only a few weeks from the game i wondered if that was it it was the nfl game with my son ,yes it was a new thing for josh and myself ,so i concluded that this is what the words were about . but my son is not a christian ,i know hes got an open mind to something higher a higher power, a force ,that some things are planned ,but ive never talked to him about my faith in any detail .of cause he knows i believe in god and that i go to church ,that’s all .well josh arrives to stay with us a week before the nfl game at wembley.through the week we start discussing the game and the teams .one being the new orleans saints the other the miami dolphins .feeling i should get a bit acquainted with the sport i asked josh to explain the basics of the game to me which he did and i  got a basic grasp on how a game proceeds .well sunday arrives and we take an early train to london and on to wembley for the game .on arrival we queued and entered the huge stadium .the size of the stadium really overwhelming us with the shear size of the place .we found our seats and then on getting drinks settled and waited for the start in anticipation .the players came onto the field and then one of the players knelt and prayed in front of 84,000 people .then suddenly the words came into my head again .God now had my attention which surprised me as i was not expecting that to happen at all .well the game was fantastic the Saints won 20 -0 dolphins.but we then talked about the player who prayed and i explained to josh about pray and how we can all talk to god ,and he listens to us through prayer.it was a great time we both had and its something we plan on doing again ! it was a new thing and god was telling me that .but i didn’t think nfl american  football ,sport a thing i do not like at all .why this god ?well because my son was very into nfl . i then knew clearly that this is what god was using to bring josh closer to him .later when josh had gone home ,i started to look into the team players .it appears many nfl players are christians some with very strong faith .since then i have followed the nfl ,and now gives me many opportunities to talk to josh about god and faith in his son jesus and how he can guide  us in our lives ,and that god has a plan for all of us .one team other than the new orleans saints have caught my eye .the philadelphia Eagles ,a team with a lot of players who are christian a lot more than other teams them being very bold with there faith the team even making a film about there christian faith ! .any way i looked in the bible  for verses mentioning eagles ,and there are quite a few but one stuck out to me.   

 but those who hope in the Lord
    will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
    they will run and not grow weary,
    they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31 

well i started following the eagles being drawn by a lot of negative media attention. the eagles were 1 seed doing best in the nfc conference ,but there main player got injured and was out for the rest of the season ,the stand in QB nick foles took his place ,but the team was being disregarded by the sports experts and media ,since have been known as  the underdogs .anyway  they have won both two big games that they weren’t meant to win  against all odds .before the last game i noticed this verse from the bible was being posted a lot on there facebook page ,and on winning that last game the verse certainly seemed to be for the Eagles they beat the minnesota vikings 48-7 .and are now in superbowl 52 in just over a weeks time    so i will be watching and praying for the Eagles to soar high and win the superbowl .incidentally its fact that eagles fly higher than any other bird !!!! so on the 4 th of feb josh and i will be watching the superbowl !!

  

 

 

 

The Camargue

The Camargue is a large wetland area situated in the south of france in the bouches de rhone area.Its a wetland delta where the river rhone meets the sea.at Arles the petit rhone splits from the rhone and also meets the sea ,therefore making a huge delta wetland, in fact the largest in europe and is home to a huge diversity of wildlife which include mammals and birds among the mammals wild horses are the most famous ,and can be viewed with ease from many places    These white horses are amongst the oldest species on our planet.in fact estimated at being approx 2000 years old ,they have certain feature which differ from modern breeds of horse one being wider hoofs so as to better cope with the wet marshland terrain

More than 350 species of resident and migratory birds are found also including the only breeding colony of flamingos in europe .thousands of flamingos are truly a magnificent sight to see  one of the best places to guarantee seeing them and getting quite close is park ornithologique. the camargue is also home to owls among them the european eagle owl which is resident in the wild 

the vast area of open space natural food sources make it possible for the many species to survive alongside eachother. this was my first trip to the camargue and already fixed up next years trip , so many more birds too see and photograph .can really recommend to all who love wildlife and photography

Rspb Titchwell Trip

Few weeks ago while i was on holiday in north norfolk ,i visited rspb titchwell . Situated on the north coast of norfolk near thornham and holkham beach .its a large reserve with a very diverse habitat .stretching  from a wooded area at the entrance you can take two different trails one goes out to the beach and the other sort of follows the  coast but runs along scrapes. we decided to walk out to the beach as it was a hot and humid day and the cooler breeze from the sea would be most welcome .it takes about half an hour to reach the beach there are hides along the way and a few very large wetland scrapes actually a lot where many waders can be seen like the bar tailed godwit (above ) black tailed godwits avocets  redshanks ,sandpipers, and curlews. these are only what we saw in the scrapes but many many species can be viewed here varying on the time of year of your visit.on arrival at the beach ,terns can be seen common terns little terns and sandwich terns ,as well as oystercatchers ,turnstones

on the walk back gives you a second go at maybe spotting a more unusual bird , which is always possible .there is at the entrance a shop and cafe selling food and refreshments ,which is most welcome and you will need after the long walk !! certainly can recomend rspb titchwell very highly and is a must if you are a keen birder/photographer

Norfolk

Although its been just over a week we returned from norfolk,i thought i would just post ,to say how beautiful that county is and you are really missing a special place if you have not ventured there. of cause if you like wildlife birds in particular its  fabulous  and your in for a treat as theres always something to see. but the wildlife doesnt begin and end with birds theres hares lots of them ,just take a drive out into the countyside and stop and watch a wheat field especially after the wheats been cut they are easy to spot then .i was amazed just how many there were ,later learning that north norfolk is a hot spot for hare s .theres also a lot to do for all ages young and old good beaches ,plenty of cafes ect  steam railways .but we stumble upon a gem . at west runton is a shire horse sanctuarywith 1500 horses and donkeys its great for kids and adults and is not expensive there is a museum of old farm machinery used by the shire horses which gives an insight to a time gone by 

set in beautiful countryside not far from the sea as well so beach could be worked into the day as well.

.then there are the seals which can be seen on blakeney point .there are boat trips that take people out to see them 

hundreds of seals and different species can be seen at very close quarters.they are there all year round.and is quite a nice trip to do on a sunny summers day. moving on to bird watching ,there are three big reserves on the north coast rspb have two and the wildlife trust one .many many species can been seen at them all especially in migration time as many birds stop of there on there long journeys 

Well i hope you will be inspired by norfolk as much as i am ,and will have found this post of mine of interest.by for now Simon