RAF Centenary Parade - 22/06/15, Uxbridge

Today, RAF Northolt celebrated their centenary through having a parade march through Uxbridge from 10.50am. Although it was a rather rainy morning, I must admit it was a lovely experience!

I positioned myself outside of the Poundland on the Uxbridge High Street as I awaited the parade of 170 military personnel - the perfect position! The streets were filled with spectators as they waited for the parade. Unfortunately, the parade was only small, but seeing so many members of the military (along with hearing them perform) was incredible. I was only able to take around 30 photos (all of which will be edited and then uploaded to the Facebook page), which was a little disappointing.

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keep an eye on our Facebook page, as there will be photo uploads of more events and more reports on events!

A little rant about GCSE education...

Ok.

So, I am just finishing my last two exams and, looking back now, I can honestly say that there are a few things that bug me about education.

1. Multiple teachers

In my school, it is common to find many teachers that come and go. Some will stay for years, some will stay a few months, some will stay for a half term/full term. What is my issue with having multiple teachers is when it comes to GCSE level.

Many teachers have different teaching styles, paces they teach at and the depth they go into. Unfortunately, I find that this is not helpful. When having multiple teachers over 2 years to cover the GCSE course, you find that some will not cover everything in the curriculum, they may claim that 'other teachers taught you it earlier', or you may find that content is skipped as the teachers are changed. This honestly irritates GCSE students to no end. In my opinion, teachers should have to remain with the GCSE students they are given until the end of year 11 or at least until they finish a unit - I will not begin to tell you how frustrating it is to have teachers that leave when you are half way through a unit then have them leave, or have teachers that don't know how other teachers have taught us. I honestly believe that teachers who are willing to stay long term should have the GCSE classes and short-term teachers should have the younger years - it is the only way that GCSE students can have a fair chance of being successful in their exams in my opinion, just like how remaining in one house for a long period of time rather than moving house every 2 years can be better for the child to adjust and settle.

2. Lessons during the exam period

Whilst some schools have early study leave, other schools either have no or a later study leave - this means that the students must remain in school when not in exams until they are on study leave. Whilst some teachers are more than happy to allow students to revise the topics they need to for their next exam, others are not, In my experience, my geography teacher got angry when we asked to revise physics which was an exam straight after the lesson whilst the geography exam wasn't for two weeks. I understand all subjects must be revised, but it is no right or justified at all to prevent students from being able to revise for their next exam, especially when they express their worry, stress and fear for it. Surely it should be easier for all students to be on study leave to to be out of lessons and revise their subjects in other classes or outside? That would be the best way that they could revise with little interference from teachers...

3. The constant high expectations

Yes, I am in the top sets for the subjects (no, I don't understand why), but it irritates me how all the teachers expect us all to become doctors, lawyers or other high paying, high status jobs - I actually want to go into acting or teach drama. When I tell my teachers that, I always feel like I'm letting them down as many don't expect that from me or sound disappointed in me. Why must they always feel that we must all have the same high goals? Not all of us will want to. Not all of us feel called to. Not all of us feel able to. It doesn't help when teachers tell everyone to aim for a C or above and feel as if they must go to sixth form, college or university. Why must we? Not everyone will be able to or will want to. It only makes us more stressed to feel like there is nothing we can do if we fail to meet a C or don't feel able to go to a sixth form or university.


So. That's it! My rant is done! What things irritate you about GCSE education (or education in general)?

Hey guys...

I'm sorry I let the blog go a little, so much is going on that I have going on, but I will be ready with new posts soon from Comic Con, Belgium and more!

Stresses of life...

Being a teenager is no easy task nowadays - at 13/14, you are expected to know exactly what you want to do in later life, at 16 you are expected to get A*-C in all of your exams and go to university and beyond that, you are expected to know exactly what to do - how to do taxes, how to look for a good house, etc.

Sometimes, I honestly do wonder what makes people think that teenagers and children can cope with these stresses....

A year...

It's strange how much change over a year.

A year ago, I still had my brother.
A year ago, I was confident and excited to be coming to the final two years of compulsory education.
A year ago, I was happier.

I'm sorry for a sad post like this, I just wanted to post something to say why I've been away so long, and this was the only way I know how :(

Updates

Hi guys,

Sorry for being away so long - I lost my brother on the 15th of May and have been finding it hard to come back. Now that summer is here and I have no school work, I can start to focus on this again :)

Being a blogger for 1 year is weird...

I have photos coming up some time today/this week so prepare for them!!!

Love you guys thanks for your patience <3

Minor update..

Hey guys, sorry for the lack of updates, but GCSE French has become quite a nuisance and my exam is May 12th, the week of my Confirmation :( So, as you can see, my life has been hectic! Luckily, there will be a lot of new photos, such as from the marathon, another school trip and the Science Museum! :) I will update over my half term and hopefully I will have more to talk about too.

Whilst I'm on the topic of updates - do you guys know about my Youtube channel (Gamercrazygirl2468)? I might update it and change it, but that will take some time - any ideas on how i can change it? Xx

London Marathon

Hi guys!
I'm off to see the London Marathon, which means one thing - NEW PHOTOS!! I'll try to have them up this week, but I cannot guarantee unfortunately, as I am so busy!

Bye for now guys, but watch this space!! Xx

Hai guys!

So, a lot of updates for the last few months!! Lets start from November 2013...

November 28/29th
From September, we had been preparing a variety of musical performances, including 'I'd Do Anything', 'What is This Feeling?' and 'America', for my school's first showcase and we performed on the 28th and 29th of November. Also, my friendship with a majority of my mates improved dramatically (see what I did there lol) and, due to it, I talk to them a lot more, especially my best mate Christina :) The 29th of November was also the date when I did the best thing that I will never regret - I asked my best friend out after the showcase :) and I must admit I will never forget the conversations we have, the day I asked him out, nor every day since.

Christmas
Did any of you watch the Doctor Who episode?! I loved it!! Plus, I got:

*Nokia Lumia 520
*1D perfume, album and film
*Phantom of the Opera music
*Shrek the Musical film
*Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask
*Farming Simulator

New Year to now
DID YOU ALL WATCH SHERLOCK?! OMG.  JUST OMG. I'M SORRY BUT OMG.
#SherlockLives
Okay, end of fangirl moment, haha

So, from the start of the year till now, life has been good. I've had my GCSE mocks (I got B's in Biology, Chemistry and Maths, an A in English and a C in both the higher and foundation reading, an E in the foundation listening and a C in the higher listening), I'm still with my boyfriend, I've had a lot more opportunities in school to improve my photography, I've begun to write and draw more, I talk to my mates more and I feel the happiest I have ever been in y life :D On the other hand, I have also had quite a few moments where I have felt incredibly down, especially this past week or two - it might just be mood swings due to stress, but I still don't know :(

So thats it, pretty much!! How has life been for you guys?

British Museum school trip!

So, on the 15th on November 2013, my school went to the British Museum and, as I wanted to do photography for the school and for my own personal usage, I decided to take my Canon 40D with a reasonably small lens (I can't remember what it was, I think it was the 75-300mm or something) which i must admit is a VERY nice camera :)

So, on that day, my friends Beth, Usayd and I went around the Egyptian, Mexican and several other exhibits and, during the visit, i took around 100 or so photos, such as:

:D

Wow, sorry for the low amount of posting! Hopefully this holiday I'll add more, as well as update the Facebook page I set up (search A Photographer Kid on Facebook and like the page! :D )

So, its now about two weeks to Christmas? I am so excited, especially due to something that occurred several days ago that I still can't believe is real! I will try to explain in the holiday if I get time! How are you guys going to spend the holidays? I will be staying at home, visiting family and celebrating!! I am so excited!

Hopefully I will see you guys soon! <3

Camera Club: Food photography

Hey guys!

Sorry for the long time between posts, but this one is quite an interesting and fun post!

So, last Thursday, I tagged along with my dad to his photography club that runs locally and it was his turn to lead the session, which he decided to do food photography for. During the session, we tested with a variety of equipment and shared tips on how to improve our photos so that they can look more professional and more appealing - Here are some of the ones that I managed to take!

Yes this is blurry, but i love the effect that the
blur has on the image

The last month...

I am so sorry that it has been a month since my last update!

I am beginning to think about doing some more photography but I just don't have the time available, as I have school and a LOT of coursework and homework and tests (oh my!). I hope that, during the half term, I will be able to upload some from a club on thursday and some new photos!!

I have to dash, I have homework :( but I will return!! Mark my words!!

The Funny Things In Life...

Have you ever seen something that caught your eye, that makes you laugh a little? It's moments like those that I love the most, where there is a badly positioned or badly designed thing that makes me laugh, especially due to my weird view in things. During the summer holidays, I found a lot of things like that, and I couldn't miss out on the opportunity to photograph them and share them with you!

 When my mum and I went into town, we had to go to a card shop and, when we were leaving, I saw this card at the corner of my eye and thought I misread it. Upon re-reading the card, I realised that it was a card for a 50th birthday, but, due to where the card behind was placed, my mind decided to read it as a card for a 500th birthday (yeah, because everyone lives to 500 (-_-)), haha. Would have made my day if there was a nearby card that read "Holy crap, you're old! O.O"

My dad and I were shopping and we were looking and the DVDs and music and my dad picked this up and said, "How bad of a placement is this?" He then showed me the CD and I laughed my head off. By the way, this is supposed to say "Trucking Songs" and it is by Eddie Stobart, but my dad and I severely misread it...

Ok, so my mum, grandparents and I went into ASDA and we went into the desert section when I noticed this little fella all alone by one of the deserts and I just had to take a photo, especially as it was in an unusual place in the first place...
Why would anyone leave a Smurf in ASDA anyway? :s Haha
I just remembered....I let him like this too... I wonder who noticed XD

Following the Smurf incident, we went to the vegetable section and, by the mushrooms, was a conveniently placed Pepsi bottle. I didn't move it, and immediately, my mind yelled, "I see you...you better by this....I'M WATCHING YOU.." Ok, that didn't creep me out...STOP STARING AT ME YOU CREEPY WEIRDO!!!

 This is my absolute favourite because, as I went into a restaurant/pub with my mum and grandparents, I turned my head to see, staring at me, a high minion from my favourite film, Despicable Me 2. When I saw this, I just had to take a photo and I could not stop laughing as we got into the car to leave. I don't think I'm over it now... *starts to giggle*

Finally, whilst in York, we passed a shop where there was a gothic Hello Kitty in the middle of the display, looking at me as if it was an ordinary doll. Since taking the photo, I have noticed that the Hello Kitty doll next to it is facing away and there is a small horse on the shelf below looking as if it is scared beyond anything and is hoping that the gothic Hello Kitty will not notice it. Well, I have something to tell Gothic Kitty - *Ahem* - "Goth Kitty, Death Kitty, Little Ball of hate! Dress-Black Kitty, Love-Black Kitty, Death, Goth, Death..." :P




I hope you guys enjoyed this blog post - sorry it took so long, I couldn't complete it all at once, so had to do it in sections. Hopefully, the next blog post won't take as long to publish! I believe that there were some new videos as of two weeks ago on my channel, and I'm thinking of starting a facebook page for this blog, so please share your thoughts through the comments! Bye guys! x

This week...

There will be no new posts until (hopefully) Saturday or Sunday, as I am extremely busy with preparing to return to school, returning home from my holiday and just everyday  chores. Also, as of next week, I am returning to school and I will not be able to post as frequently as I hope, so I hope that you don't mind the possible long breaks. If there is a long break, I have videos on my youtube channel (Gamercrazygirl2468) that are available to watch until my next post is available.

For now, please enjoy these photos from my trip to Rome in April this year. Until next time! xx

Yorkshire (11th-18th August 2013) - York

Last week, I went to Yorkshire (one of my favourite places in England) to visit some family and a friend and whilst there, I took several photos and videos, and I thought that I'd tell you about some of my favourite things to do around Yorkshire, as well as random things that made me laugh or that I saw there. Firstly, lets explore York! If you have visited York and have anything else to add, please comment!

The reason why I love York is because it is has markets, the history and the performers that you can sometimes find hanging around the area. During the summer, there is a small fair for children, there are occasionally buskers with exceptional talent and amazing performances outside the M&S building (near where the fair is held in Summer) that can leave your mouth agate.

A church near the Shambles and many of the shops

For example, St Margaret Clitherow (for more information on who she is, click this link - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Clitherow ) was once living in The Shambles (a street which is, to my knowledge, one of the oldest parts of York) and The Shambles is a very old, narrow and beautiful street within York, which dates back beyond the 1500s and consists of cobble roads, narrow pavements and historical buildings.

The Shambles

Within York, you will also be able to find many Catholic shops, ice cream/chocolate shops, high street shops and unique little shops that you've never heard of, or sell different things that you have never seen before, such as old fashioned sweet shops, unique gifts and clothing and accessories - for shoppers who prefer shopping in areas that have unusual objects or those who just prefer to go for a quick look around, York and the markets around The Shambles a brilliant place to visit, even briefly.

Erm...

One final reason why I enjoy York is simply for the photography, as you might have guessed by the number of photos here and by the fact that my blog is called 'A photographer Kid'! If you spend 5 minutes walking around York, I am sure that you will find a hint of beauty. For example, I found the smallest things, such as the angles, the flowers and details beautiful and felt the need to photograph it. If you are a budding photographer, I am sure that you will find many things to take photos of, as there is no limit as to what you can find within the streets of York.

A Church near the main shops and a
smaller shopping area

A beautifully decorated pub

One of the small streets near
The Shambles

A small street within the main shopping
region in York

The view of another Church
(or Cathedral)  from the small
shopping area, containing Boots and Fenick

A bridge near one of the main car park

Part of the shopping area