I decided that while I had Ian’s 300mm lens I’d make a trip back to Tower Bridge and get some ‘close up’ shots.  It being such a long focal length I figured that my best vantage point would be from neighbouring (and very dull in comparison) London Bridge.  As it turns out, London Bridge isn’t far enough away with such a long lens so there were quite a few partial images but it was nice to get a slightly different vantage point.

I have to say I’m not a big fan of the buildings going up behind Tower Bridge, they certainly don’t add to the view.  Progress I guess?

One of the partial views of the towers and some sunset glowing clouds.  If you look closely at the cloud line you’ll see an airplane, something Ian’s lenses can’t help but photograph.

I did a few panoramas as well, but nothing extrordinary I’m afraid.  All in all it was a rather disappointing outing, but I did come away with this bit of knowledge: if you’re ever planning on shooting Tower Bridge from London Bridge, a 70-200mm lens is just about perfect.

Couple more images in the gallery.

After my last trip to Richmond park was only partially successful in finding any deer, I knew I had to go back and try again.  Fortunately, this time of year is the best time to go and there were several folks from the POTN forum who where planning a trip.  Better still, the plan was to go out (very) early in the morning to get a few shots with the sun rising and the deer just starting their day.

I was lucky enough to borrow a friends 300mm lens for the day, which made all the difference in the world.  The longest lens I own is 200mm, and it just wouldn’t have cut it on this day.  If you’re reading this and also wondering what to get me for Christmas, one of those lenses wouldn’t be turned away.  You’d even get a thank-you card!

It’s apparently too early in the season for the deer to start rutting, but there was a fair bit of territorial stomping and honking.  I don’t know the correct term for the noise the bucks make, but it sounds like an angry car horn so I’m going with ‘honking’.  There were a few of the bigger guys sharpening their antlers on trees, but no real action to speak of.

It was a bit of a learning experience as I’m not really all that familiar with the species of deer that are present here in the UK.  There are apparently 2 different types in Richmond Park: Red deer (the first two images) and Fallow deer (the second two).  The red deer are similar to the Mule deer we had back in Canada and Fallow deer are a bit of an odd one, looking like cute fawns that have moose-like antlers.  They were a bit less aggressive as well, letting us get closer to them and not spending their time competing with the other stags.

All in all, it was a much more productive day for deer spotting than my last attempt.  I only wish my wife and mother in law were along this time to see the amazing displays that they missed out on.  At least the deer aren’t going anywhere, we can always try back next time!  Thanks again to Lee for offering up a lift and to Ian for the lens loan.

There are a few more deer type photos in the gallery.

With Tower Bridge all dressed up for the Olympics I had to go back and get some evening shots of the new lights.  Not much to discuss, so on with the photos!

At a quarter to ten in the evening they put on a bit of a light show.  It basically consisted of of flashing the towers with multiple combinations of coloured lights.  Given the spirit of the Olympics I thought the Red, White & Blue theme worked quite well.

The gallery is here, but the images I’ve posted here comprise the entirety of the collection.  No need to explore any further!

With time dwindling down on mama’s visit, she wanted one more outing to get a few photos at the iconic Tower Bridge, resplendent with it’s temporary Olympic rings.  Looking through the archives of this site, I think it’s safe to say that Tower Bridge is my favourite of all of the London landmarks.  Possibly because I used to live by it and got to see it every day, but I really think it’s something special.  It doesn’t take much to convince me to head down there are take a few photos of it.

Any day along the south bank is going to be a busy day, but what with the nice weather and the influx of Olympic tourists the crowds were boarding on excessive.  We spent a fair bit of time waiting around for spots to clear up so we could get some decent images.  After a lot of fruitless patience I remembered that when the tide is out  there’s a nice, secret little spot that few tourists go that would be ideal for our photos.

The above shot was taken at our secret shore and provided a much nicer vantage point for the bridge.  There were a few other folks who had found their way down here, but everyone was pretty good about taking turns and staying out of each others  way.

More photos of Danni, mama & Tower Bridge in the gallery.

The good weather has been holding up and I think we’re actually going to experience a bit of summer here this year.  Danni has been telling Mama about some of the amazing parks in London and the possibility of  seeing a few wild deer in Richmond park had piqued her interest, so off we went!

Our previous forays to Richmond had been in the winter months, so spotting the deer was easy.  There was no tall grass for them to hide in, and I think a certain amount of luck meant that we stumbled across them without even really trying.  This time was to prove much different, and we several hours scouring the far reaches of the park in hopes of spotting the elusive critters.

We did find some other interesting things to see, like the massive mushroom/toadstool above plus several birds and the usual multitude of squirrels.  The park itself isn’t too shabby either.

At our last turn making our way to the exit, we finally found them!  A group of about a half dozen deer bounded through the tall grasses (How tall?  The deer in the above image is standing up) and we chased them for a bit until we managed to get a few photos.  All in all, a successful day out.

Of course, it can’t truly be considered a successful day until you’ve found yourself inside one of the many, many local pubs.  Of course, we decided that instead of staying local we’d make the trek across the entirety of London and bring Mama to our favourite pub: The Prospect of Whitby. Such a great location, definitely worth a look if you ever find yourself deep in Wapping territory.

More photos in the gallery!