Poison Ivy Sketch - Complete

I've finally been able to finish my Ivy drawing. This is the result. I had to edit the photo because the colours didn't come out bright enough. Let me introduce, Pin-up Poison Ivy.

Tribal/Aztec Nails

Spiderman nails

Nautical Nails

Seeing as summer is just round the corner and I've taken up rowing this year, I decided to go for an ocean-y theme for my nails. Hence the nautical nails:

End of era

There comes a point in life where you've got to say goodbye and move onto the next step. Tonight was the first night that this happened for me. It was the upper sixth boarders leavers' dinner. We had a pre-drinks session, a lovely 3 course meal, gifts and of course speeches. It was the speeches that did it for me. When you start to reminisce about a place where you've spent the last four years of your life, it does take its toll on you. When the speech givers said 'I'm going to miss you all', I love you' and that I felt my eyes well up and my throat start to tighten; I was literally choking back tears. This is the first night of these times, the evening of our Prom will be one of the saddest yet happiest times I think.

Here is some photos from this evening:

Three Worlds: Sea, Earth and Space

The other week I got a taxi from Bishops Stortford train station back to school after spending the day in Cambridge at Anglia Ruskin's open day. I thought it'd just be another regular journey where I tell the cab driver where I'm from and all that, but it wasn't. Before I had gotten in the taxi the driver had been revising for his diving exam. I asked him how long he had been diving and where he'd been to.
Then the conversation got quite philosophical. He started telling me how he thinks that there are three worlds; at first I thought he was a little mad but I heard him out. He explained that there's the underwater world, there's our world and then there's space. He said that as much as he'd love to go to space that really isn't possible so he likes going diving. He said that when he goes diving, it's like sleeping for 45 minutes as its as if he was dreaming.
Underwater is a different world; he likes the idea of just being able to get a glimpse of the underwater world as you can only really dive for 45 minutes to an hour. The underwater world is huge, if you were to explore it, it would be difficult to choose where to start. The world we live in has too many problems; granted it does have its beauty but the idea of being able to just get away for a while, go underwater and explore something so incredible and peaceful, is incredible.
I would love to go on a diving trip for a week or so and do some underwater photography shoots, capture the weird and wonderful.

I GOT IT!

I am very pleased to say that I've got a conditional offer from Anglia Ruskin University to do Film and Television Production starting in September. I need to get a minimum of 200 UCAS points. I honestly did not think that I would get an offer because of how badly I thought the interview went. Oh well, I've now just got to work hard to get those grades! There's still hope! 

FutureProof

Back in December last year, I was proud to have organised the entertainment for my Sixth Form Christmas party. I was able to get FutureProof, a pop band, from Herts. The members are Jonni Wedge the lead man as vocals, Kiran Marshall the guitarist and Charlie Leftwich the percussionist.

 It started with a tweet to Charlie over the summer. I spoke to my head of year and Charlie, back and forth until it was all organised. I met Charlie, Kiran and Jonni the day before the gig as they wanted to set up the PA system beforehand and do a set run through. And we were all set for the gig; 9AM not exactly a rock star hour.

On the day, I borrowed a camera and decided to go shutter happy. Here are some of the photos I took:

Jonni during rehersal

Charlie

Kiran

Jonni

FutureProof fans

The boys with some students after the show

I'm so glad that the morning was a success after much unwanted comments from people at school.

They guys have just recently announced their first ever headline tour so if you live in the UK don't miss your chance to see them!

Here's a few links:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/futureproofmusicuk
Twitter: http://twitter.com/FutureProofBand
Charlie Twitter: http://twitter.com/CharlesLeftwich
Jonni Twitter: http://twitter.com/jonniwedge
Kiran Twitter: http://twitter.com/kiranmarshall

They've got two music videos of original songs up on YouTube which you can find here:
One More Chance - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVRyICi2oRo
Maniac - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xO6ggznSISY

Binham Priory, Norfolk

These are some photos I took at the Binham Priory in Norfolk; one of the places on my dad's random adventure list. This place was absolutely gorgeous; a lot of it was broken walls and towers which are the ruins of the original Priory. However, there is the main part of the church that is still intact and used which you are able to go in. 

List of books from my childhood until now

This isn't my normal post but this evening I decided that I wanted to write down all the books I've read, want to re-read and have my kids read.

A lot of these books I read when I was growing up, spending time in the library, always having 3 or 4 books checked out at a time. Thinking back, I remember always bugging the librarians for new book suggestions or books that I'd like them to order or books I should order. I was always involved in the 'Battle of the Books'; a competition within the year where we were given a list of books to read over the course of the school year, at the end the end of the year we'd be put into teams and quizzed about the books on the list. We'd be given part of a story where we would then have to name the book title for a point and the author for another. I loved this about primary school, getting us to read to perform well. If it wasn't for the great primary school librarians I had I don't think I would of been interested in reading.

The books I used to read were always quite dark or of mature topics, probably one of the reasons why I am who I am today.

Here is the list (*'s indicate which books I'd like my children to read):

Childhood:
* ~ Tuck Everlasting - Natalie Babbitt
* ~ Bridge to Terabithia - Katherine Paterson
~ Walk Two Moons - Sharon Creech
~ Island of the Blue Dolphins - Scott O'Dell
* ~ A Summer to Die - Lois Lowry
* ~ Number the Stars - Lois Lowry
~ Gathering Blue - Lois Lowry
~ The Giver - Lois Lowry
* ~ How to Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
* ~ The Outsiders - S. E. Hinton
~ A Child Called It - Dave J Pelzer
~ The Lost Boy - Dave J Pelzer
~ A Man Named Dave - Dave J Pelzer
~ The Westing Game - Ellen Raskin
* ~ Hatchet - Gray Paulsen
~ Charlotte's Web - E. B. White
* ~ Indian in the Cupboard - Lynne Reid Banks
~ Muggie Maggie - Beverly Cleary
~ A Wrinkle in Time - Madeline L'Engle
~ Because of Winn-Dixie - Kate DiCamillo
~ The Dollhouse Murders - Betty Ben Wright
~ Freedom Train: The Story of Harriet Tubman - Dorothy Sterling
~ The Golden Compass - Phillip Pullman
~ The Watson's go to Birmingham - Christopher Paul Curtis
~ Artemis Fowl Series - Eoin Colfer
~ Bud, Not Buddy - Christopher Paul Curtis
* ~ The Magic Tree House Series - Mary Pope Osbourne
* ~ Among the Hidden (Shadow Children Books series) - Margaret Peterson Haddix
~ Holes - Louis Sachar
* ~ Maximum Ride Series - James Patterson
~ Z for Zachariah - Robert C. O'Brien
* ~ The Giving Tree - Shel Silverstein
~ The Cay - Theodore Taylor
~ Summer of the Monkeys - Wilson Rawls
~ Ramona Series - Beverly Clearly
~ Everything on a Waffle - Polly Horvath
~ The Memory Keeper's Daughter - Kim Edwards
~  Madeline - Ludwig Bemelmans
* ~ Just Listen - Sarah Dessen
~ The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Series - Anne Brashares
~ Before I Die - Jenny Downham
~ So B. It - Sarah Weeks
* ~ Chicken Soup Series - Compliation of Authours
~ Speak - Laurie Halse Anderson
~ Running Out Of Time - Margaret Peterson Haddix
~ Pay It Forward - Catherine Ryan Hyde

Secondary School+ (\'s currently not finished):
~ Nineteen Minutes - Jodi Picoult
~ Handle with Care - Jodi Picoult
~ My Sister's Keep - Jodi Picoult
~ The Pact - Jodi Picoult
~ The Time Traveller's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
~ Dear John - Nicholas Sparks
~ The Last Song - Nicholas Sparks
~ A Walk to Remember - Nicholas Sparks
\ ~ My Week with Marilyn - Colin Clark
\ ~ Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
~ The Woman in Black - Susan Hill

I probably haven't mentioned all the books here but I've started using a great website called GoodReads. It is a website where you can rate books that you've read and add them to your read shelf, find recommendations that are tailored to your liking from the books you've read, make a list of the books you are currently reading, and save a list of books that you'd like to read in the future. Here is a link to my book shelf. Happy reading!

London

M & M World

Just a couple of photos from M & M World, London from when I visited back in October. 

Occupy London Protest: Part 4

This is probably my favourite photo from that day so I decided to give it its own post. How kind some of use humans can be, eh?

Occupy London Protest: Part 3

Occupy London Protest: Part 2

Occupy London Protest: Part 1

Back in October there were protesters camping outside St. Paul's cathedral. I went to see what could be photographed with a friend and here are some photos that I took that day.

Interview

Yesterday, I had sent off my portfolio to Anglia Ruskin to go along with my application around 12:30 during my lunch hour. Two hours later I had an email inviting me for an interview. The interview is on the 3rd of May at 10:20 with the course tutor Robert Klenner as well as the Senior Lecturer for the Film and Television course; finding that out has really turned my tummy I know that this is 6 weeks away but I'm already incredibly nervous! I really want to get an offer or something for this course. I hope they like me. I'm going to have to start preparing now for this interview, although I have no idea what sorts of things they will be asking me about which will make it difficult.

You can view my submissions by looking at my other posts that have the portfolio tag. 

Gone so young

Last summer my dad took us to the Binham Priory which is partly church ruins. I went out to the graveyard on my own and there was an area of overgrown grass of which I found this grave stone. Broke my heart.

'In the Memory of
Emma Elizabeth
The beloved child of Robert and Susan Smith
Who fell asleep in Jesus
October 3rd 1874
Aged 5 years
and 9 months'

Svengali

'The movie tells the story of Dixie, a small town guy with a big dream, leaving the Welsh Valleys for the bright lights of London intent on becoming the manager of the best band in the world. The film is still in the process of being filmed and editing; a release date has not yet been revealed. Svengali is a feel good British comedy with the soundtrack to match.'

The film is currently still at the filming stage but editing will start taking place in the next 2-3 months. 

Director: John Hardwich
Actor/Writer/Producer: Jonny Owen
Actor: Martin Freeman
Actress: Vicky McClure

Here are some links to check out and find out more information about the film:
Official website: http://svengalimovie.com/
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2262175/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/svengalipage
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/SvengaliMovie
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/svengalimovie
Tumblr: http://www.svengalimovie.tumblr.com
Google+ : http://www.gplus.to/SvengaliMovie
First webisode: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ZaYParM3im4

Keep checking back for updates as I will be posting more about this. Share it around and let's get a hyper going.

Portfolio: Final Storyboard

As you may have read on the last post, I submitted my portfolio this afternoon. These photos are screen shots of the final storyboard that I submitted. Fingers crossed, eh? I've already got an email back saying that they will be inviting me for an interview soon. I'm already nervous and I don't even have a date for the interview! 

Portfolio: Essay

As you may have read I had to submit an essay as part of my portfolio to Anglia Ruskin. This is the essay that I sent off this afternoon.

'The documentary I watched was I’m in a boy band on BBC 3 because it appeals to a wide audience and is linked to music. It was about the experiences a boy gains when he is a boy band member. The audience is drawn in from the start; this is executed by a humorous analogy of boy band members as creations of God. The programme used interviews of past and present boy band members giving an anecdotic insight into the life of a member. Archive footage from concerts of various bands was used which allowed the viewer to relive the events they may have been a part of; I found this to be my favourite feature as this connected the viewer to the programme. The programme made use of quick-paced editing which was effective because it engaged the viewer’s attention through cutting between clips of concert footage, interviews and music videos. Whilst this made for stimulating television, a weakness of the production was the lack of variety in camera angles.  On the whole though, the documentary was informative and an enjoyable viewing experience.

I think that a good documentary should be both informative, entertaining and, where appropriate, aesthetically pleasing. Viewers’ emotions must be taken into account throughout the programme and the narrative should strive to create empathy with the subject. A variety of angles and shots can help to tell the story effectively.

If I was making a documentary, I would aim to use humour, drama, music and sound effects to enhance the narrative. However, while the above are important, I would strive to let the camera tell the story through a wide variety of footage, in order to maximise the viewing experience.'

Portfolio: Shot 10

Portfolio: Shot 9