Michael Powierski

First pic with the Pentax MX

0 comments Published Friday, July 17, 2009 by Michael Powierski in Pentax mx 50mm f1.7 smc cat Dudley British blue

The first ever keeper photo taken with my 'new' Pentax MX camera, as I have mentioned before using this camera is frustrating and fun at the same time and I will no doubt become a better photographer for it.

Camera: Pentax MX with 50mm f1.7
Model: Dudley ;)

-- Post From My iPhone

Dream Camera

0 comments Published Sunday, July 12, 2009 by Michael Powierski in Pentax MX SMC-M 50mm f1.7

Today is a momentus day ..... I was given the camera of my dreams, no not a Canon 5D or a Nikon D3 ... It's a Pentax MX 35mm film SLR from the 70's that originally belonged to my dad who was clearing some stuff out at the weekend and asked if I wanted it otherwise he was going to put it on eBay for £20! Ever since I was a little kid I have wanted that camera so I didn't need much convincing. Along with the camera I got a Pentax 50mm f1.7 SMC-M Prime lens, Makinnon 50mm f8 mirror lens, Vivitar 70-210 zoom lens, rolls and rolls of film and a load of remote shutter cables etc

So far Ive managed to shoot my way through two films which will be dropped off for processing tonight. I can only imagine how many disasterous shots I will find .... think Ive been relying on autofocus and the digital safety net for too long and it's both equally frustrating and fun at the same time to be forced to manually focus and set the camera corectly. After two rolls of film I feel I am a better photographer already! The proof will be in the photos though!

-- Post From My iPhone

Bumblebee in Leicester Square

0 comments Published Wednesday, June 17, 2009 by Michael Powierski in

Bumblebee,
originally uploaded by g-man .

So ... there I was in London's Leicester Square on the way to a meeting when I see a huge transformer stood outside the Odeon Cinema. It turns out that the official UK premier of the new transformers movie was to take place later in the evening.

This is the kind of thing I always wished I would see when I was a kid and heavily into Transformers ... a full size Bumblebee!!!!

Not seen the movie yet, and have heard mixed reviews ... I have to admit that I didn't 'love' the first one despite being a big fan of the cartoon series. Something seemed to be missing .... lets hope they have figured it out for the second installment!!

My Camera is bigger than yours - Google Street View

0 comments Published Wednesday, April 15, 2009 by Michael Powierski in Google Street View

Last night as I drove to Sainsburys near The Hub in Milton Keynes I spotted a black Vauxhall Astra with what looked like a big black chimney sticking out of the roof .... is this Vauxhall's coal powered answer to alternative fuels? No .. this is Google Street View. http://maps.google.com/help/maps/streetview/

It seems as though Google is now capturing Milton Keynes, there have been reports over the last few weeks of local residents claiming that Google are trying to take pictures of the inside of their homes .... See: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/technology/2009/04/the_battle_of_broughton_1.html

Personally I have no problem with Street View and think it is improving upon information we already have access to. I have read reports that people feel this is an invasion of their privacy, Google are taking pictures of areas that are free to the public to access meaning anybody can drive down a street and take pictures. Perhaps these residents should challenge every 'non local' that enters their street too?

OK .... so perhaps Street View makes it easier for anyone that is up to no good to access images without visiting a particular area .... Whatever did they do before Street View? ;) ... oh wait they probably took a walk or a drive up and down your street taking pictures with their camera ... they probably used a map or a GPS device to locate your street. Perhaps all those opposed to Street View should also contact the map makers that provide data for GPS devices and request their streets to be removed? I'm sure that will be useful when you are running late for a meeting and relying on GPS to assist you! ;) .... If your house is for sale somebody could go to the estate agents website and view pictures of the inside of your home :O which you willingly provided ... !

Street view has many legitimate uses ... perhaps Google have overlooked certain areas on how to ensure that images do not reveal any sensitive information about individuals captured in images. Overall this is something we should be excited about .... think how much better your Sat Nav would be if it could show you in a photo exactly where you need to be instead of getting you roughly in the right area? ... What if you want to see what the area you are going to on holiday is like? Educational purposes for schools ... How about researching a neighbourhood you would like to move to .... Yes you could just go to these places .. but think of how much more convenient it would be to have this information beforehand?

Google Street View ... a good thing.

A sad day .......

0 comments Published Sunday, February 22, 2009 by Michael Powierski in urszula grubb

On 20th February 2009 my sister Urszula passed away after spending 4 weeks in intensive care at the AKH Vienna Hospital. On January 18th she had an accident when sledging with her friends and hit a tree in the park suffering a major head injury.

I never realised until this happened how much I would miss her, ... after all it's not a situation I had ever thought about before ...... for me, my family and I'm sure for many other people that knew her this will be a life changing event and something that will stay with me for the rest of my life and serve as a reminder of how little time we all really get.

So that something positive can be gained from what happened to Urszula I have created a donation page on Justgiving.com and all funds raised will be donated to the Brain and Spine Foundation.

Urszula's Justgiving page: http://www.justgiving.com/urszula

The Bells!! ... The Bells! ..... Wedding Bells ;)

0 comments Published Monday, February 09, 2009 by Michael Powierski in wedding marriage michael grubb stephanie allardice engaged

I proposed to Steph today! Can't quite believe I'm getting married but I have to say that it is quite possibly one of the most exciting decisions I have ever made.

Mac and White

0 comments Published by Michael Powierski in

Mac and White,
originally uploaded by g-man .

My beloved MacBook, I was playing around this morning with my camera and happened to take this nice little pic!

Ever since I switched to a Mac I have had many happy days of computing and will probably never use the evil Windows for personal use ever again.

You can see more of my photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/33763199@N04/