Sympathy Pains

Born in 60 seconds - our birth story

“There are always exceptions to the rule, it just so happens that you were one of those exceptions.” This is my final Symapthy Pains article because as the title suggests I am now, for the first time, a father. I always wanted to finish this series with the birth story as every single one I’ve heard before is different and I figured ours would be too. What I wasn’t…
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Photo Challenge

Bokeh | Weekly photography challenge

Bokeh is the aesthetic quality of the blur produced in the out-of-focus parts of an image. This quality is produced by your camera’s lens and is most apparent in highlight areas. Is most often seen in portraits that are photographed using a wide open aperture.  Bokeh can be used creatively in so many different ways and can be the difference between an ordinary picture and one that has an…
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Sympathy Pains

Better in than out - 10 reasons why it's better to have a late baby

So my wife is in her 4th week of maternity leave and there’s no sign of baby. She’s got her favourite daytime TV shows, she’s joined a number of ridiculous Facebook groups where mums try and sell used junk they brought off ebay and she’s even started doing crosswords. On Sunday the first two of our NCT group gave birth and WhatsApp started buzzing with pictures and birth…
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Photo Challenge

Triangles | Weekly Photography Challenge

In art triangles are a wonderful and beautiful thing. We look for them to help describe an image, we create them with shadows and subjects and we use them to lead the eye around a picture. Take a walk into any art gallery and take a look at some of the old great masters. Whilst you might not see an actually triangle shape you’ll notice points of interest, like a highlight, that if you drew a…
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Sympathy Pains

Trying to be less sweary | Sympathy Pains

Oh sh***********t, Emma’s been on maternity leave for two weeks now which means only one thing, this baby is coming soon! The NCT classes are done, the nursery has been decorated and the hospital bag was packed weeks ago. Now all I have to worry about is being supportive through the whole birthing thing and try to rise a well adjusted child for the next couple of decades. That of course is…
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Photo Challenge

Seascapes | Weekly Photography Challenge

As an old seadog I’ve photographed my fair share of seascapes. There’s something about a seascape that I love but I can’t quite describe. Perhaps it’s the sense of vastness and simplicity. Perhaps it’s the subtle uniqueness that every seascape has both in the sky and in the ocean. Whilst most seascapes you see are taken from the shore I urge you, if you have the…
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Sympathy Pains

Out of office automatic reply | Sympathy Pains

This is an out of office automated reply As I mentioned weeks ago I’ll be going on maternity leave from 13th June 2014 so please send all your enquires to the main accounts email address. This email account will not be monitored as everyone will be far too busy working out how on earth they are going to cope without me for a whole year. Yes that’s right, I’m going to take a…
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Photo Challenge

Shadows | Weekly Photography Challenge

With the great British summer in full swing there’s surely no better time to capture shadows. Actually any time of year, in any part of the world is a good time or place to photograph shadows. The act of photography is all about capturing light and where there’s a light source there’s a shadow. This photography challenge be be about any type of shadow. You can try your hand…
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Sympathy Pains

Full term | Sympathy Pains

I got a nice email from The Baby Centre last week which read At the end of this week, you’re going to reach an important pregnancy milestone: your baby will be considered full-term. That means you could give birth any day now. Walking may become increasingly uncomfortable. Some mums-to-be say it feels as if their baby is going to fall out!  Holly crap. Any. Day. Now. Well i like to think…
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Photo Challenge

Rain | Weekly Photography Challenge

It’s nearly Wimbledon time and you know what that means…..rain. Just when we are starting to feel that summer is upon us the heavens open and along come the downpours.  Photographing rain can be done in many different ways. You can freeze or blur the movement simply by adjusting your shutter speed. It’s also interesting to photograph rains storms from afar or when you’re…
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