(Apologies readers / viewers for the delay and backlog - many photos from Dubai and India yet to posted soon, internet connection permitting!)

A half-day of work on a Sunday allowed the opportunity for a "sight-seeing" walk through the Fitzrovia and West-End part of London. Starting off with the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Tavistock Gardens (not pictured), I made my way towards Russel Square and the British Museum. (The grand Hotel Russel shown below). Covent Garden had the expected amusing street performances, but the giant teddy bear (in a sorry state) outside St Paul's church was certainly unexpected. Cherry blossom gave a springy-feel to the entrance of the Parish Church of St Mary-le-Strand. Unfortunately I was a few days early to catch the Sony World Photography Awards Exhibition in Somerset house but I enjoyed taking photos myself in the central courtyard. The photos at the end were taken in the immaculately landscaped and florally-rich Victoria Embankment gardens.

Technical details: Sony a850 with Tokina 19-35mm and Minolta 70-210mm f4 lenses.

The North Wessex Downs is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), is located in the counties of Berkshire, Hampshire, Oxfordshire and Wiltshire. Today's delightful post is composed by Dan:

With Niraj’s departure to India imminent, this would be the last of our epic odysseys for some time (except of course for the one Niraj was going on). It was doubly important therefore that this walk was befitting of the occasion.

Not to their detriment, the North Wessex Downs have escaped the limelight of other, more popular walking destinations in the South – fading somewhat into obscurity behind the Cotswolds, Chilterns and the like. But in spite of this little injustice, one cannot help secretly wish they would stay that way. The quiet anonymity of these glorious hills and sleepy villages, add to their unique charm.

Our walk began at the village of Kintbury, perched on the River Kennet. It is not hard to imagine why this little known tributary of the Thames was the inspiration behind Kenneth Grahame’s classic Wind in the Willows. Down the road from Kintbury Station and before the turning for the start of the trail, was the splendid Blue Ball pub – perhaps one of the few places in the country that can boast on its menu, wood fired pizza. A short way into the walk, crossing some fields we caught our first glimpse of the red kites common to the region – soaring under the mid-morning sun. These majestic birds glided effortlessly, barely flapping a wing.

Beyond, emerging through a small pocket of woodland, we were greeted by the sight of newly born lambs. We paused for a while, taking in this simplest of nature’s spectacles. Further down we stopped for lunch at the Swan – an organic gastropub sourcing almost all of its produce locally from its own land and neighbouring farms.

Back up the road we stopped over at Inkpen Church – I have long believed that no walk is complete without a village church stop, preferably one with a graveyard too. This church was among the nicest we have seen in all our walks. Around halfway point we began the short, steep climb up Inkpen Hill. The views from the hill were nothing short of spectacular, with a panorama over five counties (though one could not really tell which was which). We continued on to the gibbet, a 17th Century hanging mast sited on top of the hill. The route took us back, completing a circular trail through the hillsides, patches of woodland and back to Kintbury.

Technical details: Sony a850 with Sigma 50-500mm (Bigma) lens.

Just a few photos taken during a walk in the Aquadrome on a nice Spring weekend.

Technical details: Sony a850 with Sigma 50-500mm (Bigma) lens.

Encompassing a PGA-standard golf course and set in 250 acres of landscaped grounds, these photos are taken in and around the 18th century Mansion House in Wokefield Park. An Asian wedding was taking place, although unfortunately had to be cancelled due to a fire in the kitchen shortly after these photos were taken! Also located on site is the UK BMW Training Academy – hence the car photos. And I could not resist the temptation to roam through nearby fields and farms trying to capture the elegant beauty and vibrance of the fantastic sunset the following evening!

Technical details: Sony a850 with Sigma 50-500mm (Bigma) and Tokina 19-35mm lenses.

Strongly recommended by a triathlon-organiser that we had met the previous day, we braved the cold winds and headed out to Calleva, one of the oldest settlements in Britain.

The lost town of Calleva Atrebatum was an Iron Age and Roman town which can be found deep in the north Hampshire countryside, outside of Reading. “But where once there was a busy, populous centre, now there are only green fields. All that is now visible above ground, of a settlement that thrived for more than 500 years between the first century BC and the fifth or sixth century AD, are sections of the late Iron Age fortifications of rampart and ditch, the Roman amphitheatre and, most impressive of all, the entire circuit of the late Roman town walls. Why did a major settlement develop in this location; and why is there no successor medieval and modern town? There are no certain answers to either of these questions, but trying to resolve them is one of the eternal fascinations of Calleva” BBC History.

The old church, located just outside of the city walls, was built in 313 AD when Christianity was no longer a proscribed religion.

Click or hover over to read the captions.

Technical details: Sony a850 with Tokina 19-35mm lens.

Today's blog post is brought to you by Dan...

It is not often that we venture to the east of the capital, or perhaps more accurately, anywhere east of the Metropolitan line. There is some logic to this unofficial frontier that has come to dictate our walks, at least on costs and convenience grounds given that we mostly set off from Niraj’s base in north-west London. Nevertheless, it would be hard to deny that Niraj’s inexplicable preference for the West [of England as opposed to the whole world] also plays a part.

That said, the Epping Forest Walk marked an exception to this long-standing convention. Covering some 6,000 acres, the forest is London’s largest open space and stretches 12 miles from Manor Park in east London to just north of Epping in Essex. The forest is also of national and international conservation importance with two thirds designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Special Area of Conservation.

Our walk began not far from Chingford Station at Connaught Water– one of a number of man-made lakes in the area that were formerly gravel excavation pits. The circular route took us on a well-trodden track through the heart of the forest, northwards to High Beech and back. Although famous for its ancient oak, beech and hornbeams that have stood for many centuries, the forest is home to an astonishing variety of trees - around twenty species in all.

Just before halfway emerged the hamlet of High Beech, the only settlement within Epping Forest. Being Good Friday, we caught a procession heading towards the Holy Innocents Church – a quaint church entirely embosomed by the forest. On reaching, we stood for a brief while in the church’s graveyard, musing momentarily on the impermanence of all things, before entering the church for some inner repose. A little while later, we headed further on, passing the Epping Forest Visitor Centre to the King’s Oak pub for a spot of well-earned lunch. The return leg took us eastwards and back south through Loughton Camp – the site of an iron-age hideout, and along the small streamlet of Loughton Brook meandering its way through the forest, before eventually reaching the far side of Connaught Water where we had begun. 

Technical details: Sony a850 with Sigma 50-500mm (Bigma) lens.

At last, a few spring-like moments creeping into our weather forecast... allowing a little more time to familiarise myself with the Pen Mini and explore the capability of these old lenses.

Last two photos taken at London Bridge, the rest are from Regent's Park. Photos are unedited, some have captions. I personally love the snow drop and crocus photos taken in glimpses of gorgeous dusk lighting.

Technical details: Olympus E-PM1 with OM Zuiko 28mm f2.8 and 135mm f3.5 lenses.

A small collection of photos taken over a few visits to Stocker's Lake and the Rickmansworth Aquadrome...

Technical details: Sony a850 with Sigma 50-500mm (Bigma) lens.

Lugging around the bigma lens and a full-frame camera (plus other lenses) on a few occasions gave me the excuse to invest (as many other's are) into a smaller complementary set-up. I decided to stick with Olympus for a few reasons: as I love their beautiful colours, jpeg processing engine and there accuracy in metering etc. Furthermore, I wanted to use a small collection of cute and compact manual focus Olympus OM Zuiko prime lenses  (most are approx 30 years old) that have not seen any action recently. They're easier to shove in a bag, and less intimidating than the big gear too!

Below are a small set of unedited photos taken around Hatch End, with some of these legacy lenses.

Technical details: Olympus E-PM1 with OM Zuiko 28mm f2.8 and 135mm f3.5 lenses.

Another cold but beautiful winter evening at Stocker's Lake, Rickmansworth. The place was alive with the sounds of birds, and I was lucky to witness the mating of Canada geese, a sight rarely seen. Having watched the two romantically courting side-by-side for a few minutes, I decided to stop my walk and wait for some action.. it paid off. 

Some info from canadagoose.org: Canada geese (and swans) mate for life. Mated pairs not only raise and protect their young together, but also look out for one another over the course of their lives. One mate will stay by the other's side if injured or dying, even if the rest of the flock is moving on. They are extremely devoted to one another.

And further description of the mating / courtship adapted from preservewildlife.org. These steps can be seen in the photo story below (although I've added a few captions on the photos too - hover over or click to expand and read):

During mating season, couples will go off together and be alone. ... The displays that the males perform range from the Head-Up-Tail-Up (male throws his head back and jerks with his tail feathers erect) to the Grunt (male rears out of the water and slowly sinks back down while making a loud grunting sound). Both the male and accepting female then continues the courtship by performing other displays separately or in unison. Mating occurs in the spring on the water and at night time (that’s why they aren’t seen mating).

Copulation begins with both sexes bobbing their heads up and down and touching their bills to the water horizontally with their necks extended. As the female extends her neck and her wings flattened out, the male “joins” her (while in the water). The female is usually partially submerged or completed submerged (with only head out of water) while copulation takes place. The male stands on her back. After copulation the female bathes while the male faces her and then he bathes.

Technical details: Sony a850 with Sigma 50-500mm (Bigma) lens.