Diana in London

It was fate that she and I would meet someday. my pretty Diana F+ that is. One Sunday afternoon I found her at the museum shop. There she was beautifully boxed up and on clearance! I was instantly in love with her and felt it was serendipity! That was almost two years ago. I don't bring her out enough to play but I did bring her to London with me. How appropriate right? Diana in London. She's light, travels easily, fun to shoot and always conversation starter for strangers and how can she not be? She's a Diana.

iPhone snapshots of London

A picture heavy post of iPhone photos captured while exploring London... 

  

           

More on London: 

Tea in London | A mini-guide to London

London

Looking through my scans I was really disappointed in the lack of photos I took while in London especially since the bulk of our time in Europe was spent there. Thanks to our friend D, our experience in London will always be one I cherish and feel so lucky to have. Despite warnings on the bad food we'd eat, with the help of D, my beau and I lucked out and got to enjoy some really good food.  We also stayed at D's place in Islington, outside of all the major touristy spots and got a feel for being a Londoner.

Sweet recollection of London:

• - Staying at D & G's place! I loved the garden and all the natural light. 
• - Eating at some great local places: Fig & Olive, Selale, and Udderlicious. 
• - Reading the Londoners and Four by Three Blog to really get a feel for life in London. 
• - Most museums are free with the exception of the exhibitions. At the V&A we saw Horst: Photographer of Style and Wedding Dresses.  The British Museum is also a must see. 
• - Grabbing a drink and checking out the view at Aqua Shard. 
• - Spending hours in a bookstore is like heaven to me and I did just that at Daunt Books and Foyles. 
• - Taking a break from all the walking and enjoy tea at The Savoy. 
• - Attempting to eat Sunday Roast twice in one day. It was that good and reminded me very much of a Thanksgiving meal. 
• - And because we love food we visited Borough Market to try a little bit of everything. They also have champagne which we sipped on while people watching. 
• - I'm sure Londoners avoid this street but I didn't! I shopped my heart out at Oxford Street. 
• - Riding the bus and using my oyster card was the best way I learned my way around London. The nice thing about the oyster card is it doesn't expire. My beau used his which he bought two years ago.
• - As much as I enjoyed London we must part and I love that London is a hop skip boat train ride away from Paris and easily accessible to so many other great places. 

"When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford." - Samuel Johnson  As read from the book, Londoners.

My Cup of Tea

It’s amazing how passion can fuel you. After spending most of September in Europe, my first priority once home, was to get my 20 rolls of film processed. To shoot on film requires patience and love of the artistic medium otherwise you’ll find yourself pulling your hair out. To travel with film can sometimes be frustrating too, if not for me, for those I am traveling with (sorry, Babe). I always have to take into account the time TSA will need to hand check each roll of film and when you’re out and about discovering your surroundings the roll of film typically ends at the worst time such as a geyser shooting water a few feet away from you. So to bring it home safely; I get a little antsy to see it to the end of its creative cycle.

My first day home was spent in the darkroom processing my black and white film. It is so gratifying to be able to fly across the world and capture as much of the experience through each click of the shutter, protect the images to see its way home with me (seriously though, you should see me going through TSA), carefully developing them with my little hands and watching the images appear on the strip of film as I remove it from the reel. That instant of rediscovering those moments is absolutely wonderful!!! Yes, shooting film may be a nuisance at times but the benefits outweigh it. 

The first stop on our trip was London. My beau’s friend, D who lives in London graciously offered us his place to stay and provided us with the best recommendation on places to eat. Of course you can’t go to London without having high tea and he recommended The Savoy. On this day we visited Buckingham Place, walked through St James Park and made our way to The Savoy. Our experience at The Savoy was great; the customer service was exceptional. I was never able to pour my own tea because somehow our waitress would beat me to it. We enjoyed a long afternoon sipping on bottomless tea, eating unlimited pastries and sandwiches while listening to this talented lady play the piano. 

The Savoy

Strand, Savoy Way, London WC2R
0EU, United Kingdom

Shot on Kodak Tri-x 400. Developed with love by yours truly. Scanned at home.