RKW Photography

Respects to Keith Alexander

Tribute to Keith Alexender from a fan. Copyright Richard Williams 2010.

It’s a sad fact that ex Lincoln City FC manager Keith Alexander died yesterday at the tender age of 53. Having been born in the same year I can assure readers it seems like no age at all.

So why do I, as someone who is most definitely not a football fan, wish to pay tribute to this man?

It’s simple. In this world, these days, it seems to me there are too few figures in public life that conduct themselves in dignified manner, maintain their integrity at all costs and are truly inspirational to their colleagues and those they have a charge over.

But Keith Alexander was just such a person. You could hear this in the numerous interviews I listened to on Radio Lincolnshire’s morning breakfast show. And yes, these were the only times I’d hear him speak.

There were the times when the board and Keith didn’t see eye-to-eye, but he always maintained his dignity and integrity during interviews despite what he may have been thinking. He always seemed to put the interests of the club first. And look what he did for the club.

Now I know far less of his achievements than any rank and file member of the supporters club, but even I know of the four play-offs he took Lincoln FC to, dragging them up by their heels in the process.

I believe this man is an all too rare example of how public figures should behave, and I take my hat off to you Keith.

And finally, perhaps, it says it all when the England football team wore black armbands as a sign of respect to him at last night’s match against Egypt.

I don’t use this phrase very often, but god bless you Keith. I’m sure you’re already being missed by thousands.

Konig Tripod

Konig Tripod from Amazon

This post is long overdue, in part because instead of just recommending a tripod another Going Digital tutor uses I thought I’d get one for myself and try it out.

Well, I’ve now been there, done that and got the tripod, so I can talk from experience as to what it’s all about.

First off, make no mistake, this is a blinder of a tripod for the price (under £50.00). In fact, I’d expect you’d have to pay more like £150.00 from another manufacturer to get the facilities and quality of build found in this Konig. I should mention that this tripod has another brand name – don’t know what it is but it makes it difficult to find on Amazon, but more on that later.

I find that many students who attend the Going Digital “Explore Your DSLR Part 1″ and not forgetting the “Get to know your Compact Camera” course often don’t have a tripod or have bought a very cheap one that is, in all honesty, to flimsy to provide good solid support for their cameras.

However,  not only is the Konig solid and sturdy, but it comes with a host of features normally reserved for its higher-priced competitors. For example, it not only has swivel feet, but also spikes for when the ground gets a bit soggy.

Another nice touch is not only one detachable quick-release plate but two. Ideal if you have two camera bodies, as it saves having to keep swapping over. My students love it when they work in pairs (if they haven’t brought their own tripods) because again they don’t have to keep swapping over.

And the design of these quick-release plates is a joy, the housing they lock into on the ball-head couldn’t make for a simpler or easier way of  attaching the plate. The release button is easy to use and there’s a locking mechanism to prevent accidental detachment. Attaching a camera to the plate is simplicity itself. Instead of the usual slot in the attaching bolt for which a 2p piece often comes in handy, the konig bolt has a flip-up handle making it so much esier to use.

Moving onto the head, it’s the ball-head variety – much simpler to use than a pan and tilt one. If  I had a criticism, and it’s a small one, the ball is a little stiff in its housing, but this may loosen up with time, we’ll see.

The load capacity of the tripod is 4kg and the picture shows it supporting a 1.4kg lens and a camera body that is just short of 1kg. Now, if I had any concerns about the tripod’s sturdiness I wouldn’t risk having to pay out nearly 4k to replace that kit. In fact, I extended the legs fully and wound up the centre column to it’s full height just to be sure I was still happy with the stability.

The centre column is reversible, so that the fact that the tripod legs won’t go as low as some of the competition doesn’t matter, because you simply turn it round. OK, so the camera is now upside down, but your picture orientation doesn’t know that!

Finally, the tripod comes with its own carrying bag.  Again, you usually pay at least another £20.00 from other manufacturers for this item,  so all-in-all this is one of the best camera equipment bargains I’ve seen in a very long time.

If you’d like to check it out this Heavy Duty Professional Aluminium Camera Tripod with Pro Ball Head on Amazon go right ahead. You won’t be disappointed.

Wear It Pink Day

Team Members of the Red Arrows and The Pink Ladies. Copyright 2009 Richard Williams (low res)

Today is Breast Cancer Care’s “Wear It Pink Day” and Grace Wright, PA to RAF Scampton’s Station Commander, and Gill Angel, the base’s Community Development Officer (The Pink Ladies) have been at the gates to the camp since 7:15am this morning collecting money for the charity. Continue Reading…