Sunday night Leopard and I were in the centre of Birmingham - about where the picture was taken from. It was really cool to be so close to the city centre - just 10 minutes walk away. I had never been to Birmingham before and didn't know what to expect. The city centre is quite small, enclosed by a ring road, and it is hilly so a three level shopping centre can be on street level on each level - very confusing. The place is very attractive with some great buildings. I especially liked the Hyatt hotel which is flat glass with some of the higher stories extended a little so they create additional shadows and reflections. It was a thundery evening and the reflection of the changing skies looked spectacular.
This was the first time I managed to get good evening photographs. The camera tries to make them look like daylight and I discovered that telling it to seriously under-expose the image gets the right effect. Of course it is essential to sit the camera on a wall or something to hold it rock steady for the long exposure. (Its too much trouble to carry a tripod around).
And now Churchill.
I am working my way through Winston Churchill's 6-volume history of the Second World War. I got volume 1 in a charity shop for £1 and fiund it so un-put-downable that I bought the rest of the set in a 2nd hand shop. About 2/3 or 1/2 of the books consist of re-printed memos that Churchill wrote before and during the war. I've no doubt Churchill, like anyone else, had a selective memory of events, and another raconteur might emphasise other issues. But I don't think it is an exaggeration to say that there was no one else who could have led Britain to victory. And the story is so much more vivid for being supported by "live" documents. If you have not already read it, try it.
Churchill was 66 when he became Prime Minister in May 1940. And not content with winning the war, he then went on to write a 6-volume history of it - which would have been enough of an achievement in itself for most people.
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