May 31 2011

Movie Maker

I spent a few hours today putting together a video to show case our club display at the weekend. Nothing too fancy, just something put together with Movie Maker. I’m getting to grips with the camera and it’s video functions. I even managed to find time at the show to take a few clips of individual bonsai.

I’m amazed by the success of our Club You Tube Channel that started back in November and has nearly 13,000 views to date!! I know I trawl around looking for good quality or informative bonsai videos on the net, it appears I’m not alone 🙂 With a little extra effort we have been able to put together clips of tree progressions, shows and the popular Bonsai School. These seem to be what people want. They are not up to the standard of the Graham Potter, Bonsai Basho, Atelierbonsai or Bjorvalabonsai, but add to the total of the online bonsai community.

If you want to have a look at the latest video, it’s just went live on the channel. Click below to view.

NIBS Spring Display 2011

May 30 2011

The Rest…

Here’s the rest of the photos from the NIBS Spring display.

May 29 2011

Shattered!!

After a day setting up the display and 2 days of demos and tree critiques, I’m absolutely shattered!! Was it worth it? I had great fun and the help from new club members, and there obvious enjoyment of the event, made it all worth while. I got to meet some new people who visited the display over the two days and were obviously keen to learn. Lets hope they seize the day and join the club. Here’s a few photos from the display.

Tree Critique in progress

That’s it, enough’s enough, I’m away to bed. More tomorrow.

May 29 2011

Hectic!!

Hardly have time to post anything yesterday and today with our club display in full swing. Nursing a fuzzy head this morning after last nights celebratory beers watching the Champions League Final. I’ll have plenty of stuff to add during the week.

I had a great time yesterday doing a tree critique session with some members and the public.

May 28 2011

As a Liverpool supporter I’d just like to say…

Congratulations Barcelona 🙂

May 27 2011

BIG Elm!

I was picking up a few trees from Josh for the display and was greeted with this Elm just lifted from the ground this Spring. It was the first time I had seen it in a pot. Impressive 🙂

May 27 2011

More Drama…

After getting the big OK last night that the display was going ahead as planned, Dobbies tried to shaft us again this morning. Wanted us to have demo and display in the middle of a bloody restaurant for 2 days so a 1 hour kids party could use the display room. Make sense? Not to me!! Car was already packed so I went over and chewed out 2 managers who didn’t have a leg to stand on. After a heated exchange, mostly on my part, they backed down when I said we were walking away and reverted to the original plan. My secret spy on the staff says the minions working there are delighted 🙂

So, drama over this was my day in pics.

Trees from here…

to here…

to this..

which we changed to this…

and then to this..

The usual tweaks to be made to the display in the morning when more trees arrive. Now looking forward to a few days of pure bonsai 🙂

Plenty more photos being taken tomorrow.

May 27 2011

The Art of Bonsai Japan Episode 3

I keep posting these as they come out. Quality vids well worth the 10 minutes to watch.

The Art of Bonsai Japan 3

May 26 2011

Valerian BBC NI Wild Week

Nothing to do with bonsai but, I have been watching the Wild Week Series on BBC NI this week and have added a few photos on their FlickR group which they use to create a ‘red button’ slide show. I had a few selected for the slide show last night and tonight, to my delight, they used one of my photos on the actual programme 🙂

This is the one they used. It’s of a Valerian growing out of a wall at my Father-in-laws house.

They used these ones on the red button.

May 26 2011

What do you mean, double booked??!!

After spending 4 hours today getting trees sorted out for the club display this weekend, I got a phone call from the garden centre to say the room was double booked!! After being offered a very poor second area for the display, I reminded them that it was they who invited us this weekend, we had advertised the event, we had booked it first and we where using it for 2 full days not a private party for 2 hours.

After informing them that if we couldn’t have the room, then we were binning it and they could tell the visitors why there was no bonsai, they changed their minds and let us have the room. Not a great start, lets hope the set up goes better tomorrow. Here’s a few trees I’m putting in. As I’m doing a tree critique, and want to talk about specific things, these trees have been picked to allow me to babble away merrily.