Nothing much, just a few photos of ships, mostly in and around the Solent. I used to do a lot of ship 'spotting' and taking pics - I still do, although probably not as prolifically as in the past - the main reason for this was that I have always loved photography and living near ports meant that ships were an attractive subject so I was interested in ships as a result; I like ships in themselves as well as the fact they (mostly) make attractive subjects. I did, however, grow up fascinated by the great ocean liners, thanks to relatives who worked on the original Cunard Queens.
Wildlife has always been a big interest of mine, but before digital photography came along I didn't do wildlife photography because of the cost - and waste - of film and processing. Wildlife runs away and is shy. Ships don't run away when looked at and aren't particularly shy! So, living on the north coast of the Isle of Wight, I turned my attention to the ships that passed by instead. I guess that if I'd lived near a large airport I'd have taken pictures of planes which are also not shy, although they move a lot quicker than ships.
I try and make the effort to go to Southampton or Portsmouth when something interesting is happening, such as the first arrival of a new ship, the final departure of an old favourite or just for a change of scenery. I also go to the Continent as and when funds allow, my favourite ship-spotting places being Belgium and Holland.
I also have a website called Ship-Photo. This is where the better photos will end up eventually. I used to have a website called Ship Images but Lycos, who were the web-hosts, decided to no longer offer hosting and I couldn't be bothered to redo or re-upload the thing elsewhere.
What else? Oh yeah, just the usual rubbish - I'm in my 40's, live on the Isle of Wight, have a little dog and am also interested in astronomy (most clear nights I am outside peering into the deep sky, with a 18" reflecting telescope), wildlife, reading, football (Southampton F.C.) and surfing. So, there you go. That's me.
And, how exciting, the first post - with pictures - is coming right up.
Updated 15th December 2012
