Hot and Cold

I've been suffering from a nasty cold during this heatwave in Manchester, so unfortunately I've not been so eager to get out and get some good shots, combined with the fact I'm now essentially unemployed and needing to save money too.


However, Business Boom Bolton recently did a little feature on my work that can be found here, following the collaboration I've had with them at The Mancunianist.


I'm currently waiting for my Canon 55-250mm to sell, having sold my 18-55 last week. Then I'm going to get either a Canon 18-200 or Tamron 18-270, I like the sound of the extra reach and the fact the Tamron is physically slightly smaller and lighter but I've read the Canon beats it on focus speed and sharpness, so still undecided....


Today I'm trying to get motivated again which is hard when feeling so worn down and roasted. I've almost finished my Open Uni course but have found out something interesting. Unwittingly, by stopping working and doing this course to give myself a taste of OU learning, I may have exempt myself from the new university fee system as of September. If I decide to start a degree with them this year, I can count my Digital Images course as credit on most of the degrees and thus avoid the new £6k-9k a year fees.

I've yet to learn the full story on this, as I'm not sure how I'd get the finances for it as I'd also be ineligible for the new loans the government are running. I've also yet to decide on a degree to study. I quite like the sound of Philosophy and Psychological Studies BA hons, however their Open Degree leaves a lot more scope to study different modules that interested me. The problem is, with either of these degrees, I'm not entirely clear on what careers might be relevant at the end of it. Plus with it being OU they are designed to be done part-time over around 6 years, where as I feel I'd much rather crack on; but living costs need to b considered too, not to mention travel ambitions....


Anyway, I feel I must upload at least one picture as its yet again been a long time since my last post. Feast your eyes on this. I was wandering near Piccadilly Garden in Manchester when I noticed a swarm of bees living under some unfortunate person's bike basket...

As for the Trans-Siberian or other travel ideas, I'm at somewhat of a dead end. I've not worked up the balls to just go alone, and still found nobody interested. I don't know if it's the right thing to do now I could be beginning studies, but theres many other places I'd like to visit soon too such as Vietnam/SE asia. It's monsoon season soon, that could be fun...

Nifty Fifty

Right. I'm still no clearer as to what the hell I'm doing. I've had a few weeks of no work which has been nice & I'm ahead on my Open Uni course with the prospect of doing a degree depending on funding.

I recently met with the chaps over at The Mancunianist (www.themancunianist.com) who like my shots and are rolling a few out via their blog, with a means to collaborate further in future and hopefully get many more people seeing my photos.

A couple of weeks ago I manager to get a Canon 1.8 50mm lens which has been fun to play with, best shot so far:

I'm going to look at at least setting myself up as a freelance so I have to option to take shots for people if asked, but I'm still unsure whether to get a new job, go back to my old job for a while, or just bugger off abroad on my savings.

My latest big travel idea, if can find someone to drag along, is to head to Moscow and board the Trans-Siberian. Stop at Ulaanbataar in Mongolia, and end up in Beijing. Then, getting way ahead of myself here, possibly stay in Hangzhou (near Shanghai) with my mate Lee. From there it'd be possible to go to Hong Kong, and on to Vietnam and SE Asia.

The planning and eventualities of this are baffling my mind at the moment, but from a few hours research the main costs for the Trans-Siberian would be around £1500.

I've also decided for such a trip a super-zoom lens would be nice, so if anyone would like a Canon 18-55 and 55-250 set of lenses, give me a shout :)

The Mancunianist

I've been a busy boy the past week or so, getting stuck into my Open Uni course and taking some street shots for a Manchester based fashion site. Not to mention looking at travel and job opportunities, starting the process of getting fit again, and helping out in my folk's garden.

I've taken some nice shots for The Mancunianist (which can be seen on my Facebook Page and their website soon http://themancunianist.com/)  and I'm coping to collaborate with them further in the future. These are my first attempt at fashion based shots, so for someone with no fashion sense myself I hope they look alright. I've also been in touch with another one of their contributors, Nicole Broad, whose blog can be found here: http://www.cookoo-galleon.blogspot.co.uk/

In other news, I just acquired a Canon 50mm 1.8 lens to have a play with and I'm debating selling my 18-55 and 55-250 in favour of an 18-200 to save me the rigmarole of lens swapping! I'm trying to revamp my Facebook page, organise my archive of images spread over 3 hard disks and 2 laptops, set-up a new website for a portfolio and maybe even try and organise a joint exhibition with Jennifer Doohan.. I just wish my attention span wasn't so crap!

Here's a few recent gems, more news soon, be sure to follow me on Twitter at @jnewbiggin :-

Reboot.

Getting the ball rolling again is never an easy task, but it's about time I picked this page back up.

Where have I been?

Since the last update on Boxing Day, I've not been doing much else aside from work. 5 days a week Mon-Fri I've been working around the country, staying away from home. Most weekends I've been too lazy or uninspired to shoot much, climb, travel or write. I'd be really tempted to rant and rave about the annoyances of work, but this wouldn't really change much and if anything it's given me the finances and drive to work toward something I do want to do...

As of last week, I've decided to take some unpaid time away from the treadmill of earning and I'm hoping to do a few of the following.

Get fit again - I've climbed a grand total of once since last September! The combination of lack of climbing, running or swimming and the life style of living out of travelodges hasn't been doing favour for my physical and mental health! I'm probably the most unfit I've been in the past 2 years...

Create more photos - I've just signed up to a 10 week Digital Images course with the Open University, I'm hoping this will re-inspire me and help network with some other photographers to get more of my work around. I'm considering following this on to do one of their Bachelor of Arts degrees, but I'm hoping to speak to one of their representatives in person first to discuss loan options and ideas. From their extensive list the two that catch my eye are Psychology and Philosophy BA and their Open Degree option.

Travel? - for quite some time now I've been saving and developing lots of travel ideas. I'm just rather daunted of disappearing abroad alone again and returning some time later with no funds or jobs. Possible ideas so far - India, SE Asia, Canada, China via Russia & Mongolia on the Trans-Siberian Railway.... Pricey!

What else is new?

Since the previous post I've also invested in a Samsung Galaxy S2, excellent phone and very useful for sharing stuff on the go. I'm also in contact with a local creative website who might want to feature me on their Artists page, and maybe even collaborate with them on a sister website. Lots to work on!