RAMSEY LOCALS AND THE TOURISTS

Click to enlarge.

I have often said it's difficult for me to photograph people here. You have to appreciate that if I were to photograph someone at random, the chances are they could be neighbours, friends, acquaintances, basically no one here is a stranger. Someone will know someone eventually. Comments I make could be misconstrued as my humour is a little out there. This is usually why I stick to tourists to capture who always seem quite comfortable straying into the world of RAMSEY DAILY PHOTO . So why the change of policy today?



Yet again one the CDP bloggers has fallen foul of the local council in his area and asked to refrain from taking and in fact the photos have been banned. For the full story please go CURLY to where you can add your thoughts.


This image has been on the laptop for a while gathering dust. I cropped and desaturated it just to emphasise the tourist bikers on the right, with the local girls of Ramsey on the left as you look at the picture.) I just thought it was a comical image but have been reluctant to use it for so many reasons.

So what do you think about photographing strangers?

Ah yesterday, the image. Yes some of you got it. It was the laptop screen. The song Yesterday was playing and those were the graphics that were swirling around to it with windows media. Simple as that. It has been raining this week I had to improvise.

ODD SHOTS MONDAY - ARE WE THERE YET?

Ramsey, is just plain weird. Last week my odd shot was a footprint from a series of footprints that guide you part way round the town. Well across the road from those footprints was this oddity. What do you make of this?

Sadly it's recently been taken down. I took the shot before it was removed, again just documenting the town for posterity. How odd is it though? If you come into town by bus, right across the road from the bus station was this enormous sign on a slopping tree, pointing straight into town. So no need to approach a local. Look up ( you really couldn't miss it) and follow the pointed finger, and then follow the footprints. How simple is that! Irony is, Ramsey is so small, you actually don't need this rather threatening giant hand with the finely manicured nails
(gender indiscriminate) pointing out the direction, the place is too small to get lost.

Please, please put this sign back. I love it. It's just so quirky like the bright green footprints, the shocking purple house, and the swinging bridge. These are the oddities that makes Ramsey, well Ramsey. These are what make this town, from this funny little island unique.

What then in your town distinguishes it from any other place?

Want to join Odd Shots Monday?

Then see KATNEY

ODD SHOTS MONDAY- BIRDCAT

This is why the bird table is going to be replaced with feeding poles! How cheeky can you get? This is not one of my better photos. The colours too bright, the contrast is wrong, the horizontal crooked. I could go on. It's just one of those point and shoot efforts, more for the subject, rather than the composition. It's the first cat I've had on my soon to be dumped bird table, which to me qualifies it to be odd.

Any cat owners out there ? Do you own a act born wih no tail or have you heard of such a creature? They are called "Manx" cats and originate from here where I reside, the Isle Of Man. Another odd shot if I spy one, but not on my bird table.

Want to join Odd Shots Monday?

Then see KATNEY

Katney's Kaboodle is the place to join Odd Shots Monday and see other wierd and wonderful shots from fellow bloggers.

BRITISH ROBIN

Unlike a lot of my bird photos this is one I haven't had to save, it's just one that was very obliging and posed nicely for me. No he hasn't had a trip to the taxidermist, he really was that still.

I was going to just use Robin for the the title, but then I realised a lot of you wouldn't recognize ths bird. Having seen an American Robin on several of your posts, you can see the two birds differ greatly. The British Robin is easily identifiable by the red flash, therefore, not surprisingly they are also alternatively called Robin Redbrest. A common winter garden visitor with a beautiful birdsong, a British Robin.

For more camera critters see MISTY DAWN Camera ctrittrers.

THE SEAGULL HAS LANDED!

What is it with me and birds?

Here's what happened.

Two herring gulls were fighting in the back garden. I tried to separate them with a broom, the weaker one flew into the house and proceeded to have a mad half hour flying about. Managed to shoo the other one away. By this time the gull above had decided to sit where you see him now. At this point in the proceeding, I just had to take his pic, having texted my other half to tell him we had a gull in the kitchen. Now even for me this seemed in the realms of fantasy, as only so much can happen to one person, as far as birds are concerned, so pictorial evidence was required.

Now, getting him out was another challenge in itself. More shooing with brooms until he retreated to the garden , straight behind the oil burner. More problems! He sat there for about 2 hours, came out of his own accord, flew off and left me with a big pile of seagull mess as a parting gift for my trouble. You have no idea how much a scared seagull can pass. It must be me, beacuse I have moved house, even country and the birds still go crazy around me.

Want to join Odd Shots Monday?

Then see KATNEY

Katney's Kaboodle is also the place to join Odd Shots Monday and see other wierd and wonderful shots from fellow bloggers.

ODD SHOTS - A BIRD IN THE HAND

This is a chafinch that flew straight at the window of my house. I went out, put him back on his feet and sat trying to coax him round for hours. Eventually, he jumped on my hand and wouldn't go away. I already had the tripod set up, so I used the remote to snap him. I had to run round the garden flapping my arms trying to get him to fly off. The neighbours really thought i'd lost it this time.

Finally he left, finding the courage to take flight. I feed the birds in the back garden, so I quite often spend hours warding off cats and sparrowhawks, but this is the only one who jumped onto my hand. I hope this one qualifies for an odd enough odd shot for today.

For more odd shots see KATNEY

Katney's Kaboodle is also the place to join odd shots monday.

PEEL HARBOUR BLUES

After last night's torrential rain, it's nice to see the sun back.

Peel Harbour on a very sunny morning, with a very aqua blue sea. Not Quite the South Of France, but a beautiful day of which we haven't had many on the island for a while. Half an hour after this photo was taken the heavens opened, and the rain came. It's very hit and miss taking daily photos in the Isle of Man.

Peel is the 4th largest town, but really should be a city as it has a cathedral. For the best sunsets on the island come to Peel and if your feeling peckish try manx kippers, lovely homemade cakes, and best of all Davidsons ice cream. It is the best in the world.