Vesna Armstrong Photography

Cemetery Road, Haworth, Brontë Country Apart from my usual, general New Year resolutions, this year I have made some resolutions referring  to my photography, as well. Next year it will be exactly 30 years since I first took up photography; I love it more than ever now and would like to continue taking photos regularly, but I feel the need to do new things and grow creatively. I thought about what direction I want my photography to go and what exactly I want to do, and here is a summary of that. 1. I want to try my hand at iPhoneography. At the moment I have an android mobile phone that takes less than satisfactory quality photos, and for that reason, so far I have only used my DSLR and  compact cameras to take photos. My mobile phone needs changing now, so I thought I'd switch over to an iPhone that will enable me to take better photos. I am also eager to explore iPhone photo editing possibilities including different editing apps. 2. Very soon G and I will be getting ou

It is time for another Christmas still life; it is something I have done for about ten years now, and it is always a challenging and fun bit of work for me. This year it is not about my usual classic still life work containing several props, but a simple, close up affair of just one object. The reason for this choice is that firstly, my mind has been way too busy with all sorts of things to think up a complex composition, and secondly, I have decided to start creating more book cover-ish still life images which entails simplicity and often even minimalistic approach. This year I am very pleased to have ended up with two festive photos, one of which is the merit of my partner G. f/5.3  1/40 sec.  ISO-6400  112mm   I love Christmas lights; for me they are the most important part of decorations; anything that lights up will catch my eye, and so did this glass globe at the Home Bargains store where I work. I knew straight away I wanted to use it as the subject of a Christmas still

I'm still not taking any new photos, but feeling perfectly fine about it. Loving and living photography is not just about taking photos, but also looking at other people's work, whether for inspiration or simply to keep abreast with what's happening in the world of photography; it is also about thinking  what your next step is going to be and also, not forgetting the good photos you've taken recently that are still waiting to be edited and possibly shared. And that is exactly what I have been doing. Moreover, Christmas is coming, and a little lull in taking photos suits me well while I am making a start with preparations for the holidays and waiting for fresh inspiration from the new season. Just lately the weather here in Yorkshire has turned rather severe; typical November conditions set in: frosty mornings, foggy and chilly days with quite a lot of rain and cold and early nights with my garden solar lights hardly getting enough sun to light up at all. Days like this

I haven't taken any photos recently that I would like to share, so it's time for a bit of catch up on what I had taken earlier this year. Back in September I went for a great walk the photos of which have been waiting to be given attention they deserve. I was on my annual visit to the wonderful Ponden Hall . I arrived lunch time and set off for my planned walk early afternoon. The weather was great for photography, especially for taking photos of the kind of landscape around Ponden and Stanbury moor. There were a lot of clouds in the sky, some white, some dark and a bit menacing, but thankfully it stayed dry; one moment the sun was out and the next it was screened with clouds creating a moody lighting, perfect for capturing the spirit of the bleak moorland. It was an easy four mile linear walk following just one well defined path, but although never very far from habitation it felt quite remote. Ponden Reservoir - my starting point A view towards Worth Valley from the

When I go for my usual short visits to Zagreb, my native city, I never used to feel I had time to go anywhere else in Croatia. All my family and friends live in Zagreb, and there is so much to re-visit and photograph in the Croatian capital. But, as in recent years I have come to increasingly like the nature and countryside and care less and less for cities and city lifestyle, I am now ready to explore and experience "other Croatia" - smaller towns and villages, rural areas and spots of natural beauty. On my last visit to my native country, this October, I got to go somewhere I had wanted to go for a long time and had never been before, the beautiful small town of Slunj in the Kordun region, central Croatia. My Mum's next door neighbour and dear friend, Zorka was born and raised in Slunj and has two family houses over there where she spends a lot of time. She kindly offered to drive us and stay with us in her townhouse for a couple of days. The weather was beautiful and