This is my brother, Chris. He died on November 2nd.  He was a courteous, loving and caring man, a real gentleman.
He was full of life and fun and jokes. He loved to talk and tell stories. He was a very practical person, very organised. We were very different in outlook but had a huge respect and love for each other. My big brother was always there for me and now he isn't. He leaves a big hole in my life.

Iguana

I have just completed this iguana 125 cms. nose to tail, originally commissioned as a wedding anniversary present but the budget was blown after the second days work so will now go on sale. It took four days to complete The main technical difficulty was in the back legs overcome by constructing them in three separate parts plus the five fingers. The crest was made in the same material I use for chicken wattles a synthetic chamois.

Here Lies Art

I'm taking part in  an unusual exhibition called Here Lies Art . I have taken my inspiration from the symbol on the main gates of Nunhead Cemetery of a snake devouring its own tail ouroboros- a symbol of eternal life.
This public art exhibition takes place in the splendid restored Anglican Chapel in Nunhead Cemetery, one of the Magnificent Seven Victorian cemeteries on the outskirts of London, opened in 1840. Here lies art inspired by: burials and catacombs; tombs and monuments; mourning dress and stationery; angels and symbols of death. There is also a photographic tribute to the Leysdown tragedy, where 8 Walworth scouts drowned at sea, one of them, William Beckham, is an ascendant of the footballer David Beckham. 

Location: Anglican Chapel, Nunhead Cemetery, Linden Grove, London, SE15 3LW. 
www.fonc.org.uk

Directions: Nearest station Nunhead, 15 minutes from Victoria, then a 5 minute walk.

rarities

I have made a porpoise and a mermaid recently. The winged mermaid sold on the second day of Art in Action. I haven't made one in over a year.

The porpoise came about as a commission from Klaus Lucke a research scientist working in Buesum, Germany

Peony Flower

It was too windy for garden shots so I took this photo indoors. A 30 second exposure at f22 and much effort with the torch to 'paint' the light on. 
I think this photo has the look of a old painting or print with the light illuminating the wooden table a little and the flower looking as though it has browned under layers of varnish.

Peony flower and bud

I only managed one photograph tonight before my tripod broke. It wasn't very dark and I kept the torch trained on the bud exposing for two seconds. The warm light of the torch and the cool blue light has produced some nice purple shadows in the middle

The garden by torchlight

Clockwise from top left:foxglove,angelica,geranium,aqua legia,rhubarb
I heard Linda Rutenberg on the radio talking about photographing plants at night using a torch and I couldn't wait to give it a try. It took some experimenting with exposure times and how much to waggle the torch. Some magical effects are possible and there are lovely black backgrounds. With film in the camera  there might have been a lot time waiting for possibly disappointing results. I love the the instant results from digital photography, discarding the failures immediately and pursuing the more interesting ones.Why not take a look at Linda Rutenberg's blog 
http://www.thegardenatnight.blogspot.com/

I liked the foxglove photograph on the left because the light was played over the top part a little more so that the lower blooms have a bluer cast. These are 5-10 second exposures so best done on a still night although the effects from a little movement can be really nice as can be seen on the aqua legia where the lower blooms are moving but the top has stayed relatively still. 
These images reminded me a little of Mary Delany's decoupages or "paper mosaiks" as she called them. She mostly worked on a black background with cut out tissue paper. She started making them when she was 71 and made thousands before she died
http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/pd/m/mary_delany,_passiflora_laurif.aspx