Oozells Square, Birmingham, March, 2024

Oozells Square has featured on my blog over the years.  The appearance of the pink blossom on the trees heralds the start of spring in Birmingham. The square becomes a riot of pink colour and is a magnet for photographers.  This year, the blossom has arrived very early by about 2 weeks.  The warm wet winter has enabled the blossom to flower at the beginning of March.  Whenever the blossom appears then people flock to the area especially at the weekends.  On a bright sunny Monday morning, I had the square to myself bar a few people passing through. The sun was low enough to catch some of the blossom with its rays producing lovely colours. As luck would have it a few people passed by dressed in pink which matched the blossom. Taking photographs in the square is very competitive as many people will arrive over the next few weeks to get a picture. People dress up specially and families bring picnics to sit out and admire the blossom. The IKON gallery is an ideal backdrop to the blossom.  Please feel free to visit my other posts on the blossom.

Oozells Square, Birmingham, March, 2024
The Sun catches people walking through the square.
Oozells Square, Birmingham, March, 2024
Standing under the blossom.
Oozells Square, Birmingham, March, 2024
Time to move on.
Oozells Square, Birmingham, March, 2024
The blossom will be around for the next few weeks.

The blossom story from over the last few years.

2023 – Birmingham Blossom Watch

2022 – Birmingham Blossom

2020 – Blossom in Oozells Square

2018 – Cherry blossom experiments

Southbank, London, November, 2023

London Times is a short series of photographic blogs that record a recent visit to London. See more links at the end of the blog.

Following on from Paddington Basin my next stop was the SouthBank. Colleagues had booked dinner at Brassiere Blanc near to Waterloo station and I aimed to arrive early so I could take pictures in the area. Waterloo station was busy with commuters getting home on a Friday. This is not a station that I know well although I quickly found a couple of sweet spots for taking pictures.

Southbank, London, November, 2023
Waterloo Station
Southbank, London, November, 2023
The Friday rush hour at Waterloo station.

The Southbank was buzzing with people visiting the Christmas markets and the Royal Festival Hall. There was so much activity with the area under the Hungerford Bridge and Golden Jubilee Bridges being a mixture of regular bars and eating establishments. The added addition of Christmas markets was bringing in the crowds.

Southbank, London, November, 2023
Colourful lights.
Southbank, London, November, 2023
Festival Hall with a boat on the Thames advertising Slow Horses
Southbank, London, November, 2023
Christmas markets under the bridge.

Along the Queen’s walk, there is an old carousel which draws the eye. Such attractions are always good to photograph. I was able to set up the camera to do several slow-motion pictures of the working carousel. Many people are standing looking at their loved ones sitting on the horses. As they remain stationary, they make a nice focus for the long exposure.

Southbank, London, November, 2023
Spinning Carousel.
Southbank, London, November, 2023
Silhouettes agains the lights.

The London Eye has a commanding presence and was illuminated in pink providing a backdrop to the activity taking place around the Jubilee Gardens. There were good photographic opportunities at the entrance to the Jubilee Gardens that leads the eye to the eye. My final subject for my photographs was the Shell centre which was bathed in a contrasting deep blue and stood out as a backdrop to all the fun that was taking place in there area. The meal at Brassiere Blanc was very tasty and a set of restaurants that I will visit again in the future.

Southbank, London, November, 2023
The London Eye in pink.
Southbank, London, November, 2023
Fish and chips anyone.
Southbank, London, November, 2023
The Shell Building.
Southbank, London, November, 2023
Hungerford Bridge and Golden Jubilee Bridges.
Southbank, London, November, 2023
The Southbank at night.

Further links mentioned in this Blog.
Brassere Blanc Restaurant
The London Eye

Here are more pictures in my ‘London Times’ series.