Awful weather - typical Brits talk

Dustyevsky

I shoot 99% of my pictures with an old bridge camera and, like Farway, edit on a desktop. The program used for editing is Zoner; a version from the days when you could download programs for free. Now, it's only on subscription. ("You will own nothing and be happy" etc 😉) It seems obvious phones do an amount of image processing without human input, which can make their photos look vibrant, but like some of you, I prefer enhancement that doesn't stray too far from realism.

Here, I try to provide variety and a bit of serendipity with pictures. So, here's another moon photo from last night, captured by accident while I was asleep! 😆

I'm feeling somewhat under the weather this morning. 🤢 The hole digging has continued, and I might have overdone it a little, or maybe it was the stress anticipating the stand-off yesterday with the Openreach guys. I'm so glad that came to nothing. ☺️ I'd add that AI was really helpful in drawing-up a strategy for a worst case scenario. I'm using it now for the planning application. 😎

The weather here is due to be fine, with a NW wind holding temperatures down to a reasonable 20c. There's shopping, but if I feel OK, the pergola in my friend's garden may get some training wires added. 🤔

Although I didn't take any photos at the Old Fayre, Mrs Dusty did. Here are the entries for a floral display in a welly boot. (Unedited) 😉

Farway

Still sun & zero rain this morning, sigh 😟

Normal Friday feed & watering first thing before the heat gets going. I removed the tops of the outdoor toms after, because it's just about August & realistically only six to eight weeks left for them to ripen up, don't need any more foliage, just do the one job from now on.

If they do, as said before, my outdoor toms are doing very well for fruit set with this weather. One I do like the look of is the Bajaja outside. Loads of small cherry fruit, and just very sturdy. It's brother in the conservatory is nothing like it, hardly setting fruit at all, all very odd

My Paul Robeson, beefsteak type, are taking the normal beefsteak route with me, loads of flowers but poor set, both inside & out. Oh well, he may yet surprise me. Anyone grown a bombproof beefsteak, jumbo? I've tried the usual, Marmande, Mortgage Lifter, black Krim and all failed for me. It's only because I can't that I want to, if that makes sense.

My runners are improving, looking good with lots more flowers, and now I can see more beans coming along. Actually if it was not for the lack of beans it would be a good show from just four plants

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82086645#Comment_82086645

Agree on desktop and larger screen, so much easier. I use a few to tweak, mix & match, Some I actually paid for, odd I know. One that is very good, and has YT vids on how to, is Affinity, it needs registering but is 100% free. Look on YT for further info. https://www.affinity.studio/download

I have old Photoshop 7, but needs a parrot on your shoulder & a peg leg to use it 😉This is my usual one, easy to add writing on photo and resize for MSE but takes a bit of learning curve, not instinctive, I went on a course to learn, but there are loads of tutorials & even those book things in libraries. You may find a desert island with X marks the spot using goggle, Arrr, Jim lad ! 😈

Just refreshed, 2P sunset, nothing here but DDIL on hol in Newquay even noticed it and duly sent WhatsApp photo. I suppose for drought bombproof stuff it would need a complete rethink, but we all know once you do you will need waterproof swampy plants from then on

Dusty, surely that's a cheese in the water?

Pic, it's my Shasta daisies looking as I feel, past it. Actually not tweaked, as taken, using older lens on Fuji mirrorless giving the vignetting, manual focus to accentuate the bright area, blur backgound

Dustyevsky

Cheese? Anyone can see….Oh, hang-on… I threw your last image at AI, Farway…..and this was the result:

• This photo appears to show Winged Everlasting Daisy (Ammobium alatum), a perennial flower known for its papery bracts and yellow centers. [1, 2]
• The petals in the image seem to be wilting or drying, which is characteristic of "everlasting" flowers that maintain their shape when dry. [1, 2]
• The species is frequently grown from seed for use in dried flower arrangements. [1, 2]

🤣

twopenny

Ah yes. Drought and swamp. I do remember Geoff Hamilton back in the 70s giving advice on planting a drought proof garden because it was the way to go.

Then we had a decade of wet summers.

I must look up those editing programmes. All I want is a straightener, lighter and darker and sharpener. I had the full Adobe on my first second hand computer and spent hours changing photos which no one cared about.

Are digital still composed of pixels?

Love the Welly boot idea 😃

greenbee

We had about a cm of rain last night - good steady rainfall for a couple of hours, so it feels a bit fresher out there today.

Cucumbers doing well, tomatoes setting but not ripening yet. Stripy courgettes producing, green ones not. Squash taking over the planet. Not much else going on - need to pull up onions and shallots, do some weeding, and sow green manure to avoid the soil drying out even more. Not attempting any more veg growing for now as I don't have the time to get it the attention (or brainpower) it needs.

Newly planted borders are doing well - turf was weeded (apparently, I'm not convinced), turned over, covered in cardboard, soaked, and mulched with woodchip in Feb. I started planting in June, and the soil was still damp. Pretty much everything has survived and some is even thriving! Elsewhere is looking less positive.

Farway

2P I must look up those editing programmes. All I want is a straightener, lighter and darker and sharpener. I had the full Adobe on my first second hand computer and spent hours changing photos which no one cared about.

Are digital still composed of pixels? Yes, fousands of 'em. But the later editing programs make life easier, sort of AI assisted, so instead of painting out phone wires pixel at a time, it's now just paint over it and it's gone & seamlessly blended

Basic lightener etc could be MS Paint, but I think you need to tell that nice Mr Gates, or his successors, that you want a free copy

twopenny

I've got Paint. It came 'free' with the computer back in the day but the old version doesn't have those things. All I can do is crop, if I can be donkied.

I did ask at the photo group but the responses to free were not useful. I'm talking to the wealthy retirees 🙄 and the techie forum similarly.

I'll have a look at your two tonight. Time I did something useful. I'm still trying to get my head around being able to stand up, plan things without pain stopping me. It's a weird thing to get used to after years and I just want to keep moving 🙂

Farway

Not tried paint myself, I assumed it did things it seems not to.

Just tried Affinity, I think it is will do as Photoshop but could be learning curve via YT.

Being pain free must be wonderful, but so easy to forget need to take care. Sent you PM

Farway

Back to gardening this morning, seemed to have missed Mrs Dusty boots first time round, a late edit I see. Hope you did recover Dusty and today sees you back to standard. What a good use for AI, I suppose it's easy to scoff but if it becomes a handy tool then why not use it when appropriate? I've used it to diagnose my coughing car, could be fuel filter, which makes sense because it has never been cleaned or changed. Due MOT soon so I'll ask garage to check and change if cheap & easy, which according to YT it is

Cooler today, still sunny but just mid 20s. I think I have a day off from watering, but may top up the bird bath and pick any blackberries

By coincidence, with 2P talking abut gardening for drought, half heard a bit on the radio on similar lines, plant stuff with deep roots, and Mediterranean things, lavender, Rosemary etc. But these are the same people who told us there would be Polar bears roaming in Hyde Park by now. And I'm still waiting for my flying car and robot servants !

I interfered with another lady courgette yesterday, her BF needed a leg up, so I played the Bee role.. Still early days but already some of the courgette leaves are showing powdery mildew. I trimmed those off and likewise removed older fading lower leaves on the tomatoes.

Dustyevsky

2p, I believe Icecream photo editor is easy and free, but everyone has their preferences. Faststone also handles the basics, though it looks a little old-fashioned nowadays. Just a couple of suggestions. 🙂

I am not too cranky this morning, thanks, Farway. It's just a cold……yes, a blooming cold in a very hot summer! 🤪

Yesterday, after doing the big shop, I felt able to attach all the fixings to the 20 cross pieces on my friend's pergola, but not lively enough to add the wires as well. Those will go on next time, using some of the electric fencing wire we collected here back in 2009. 😉

At home, we had quite a pretty sunset, so I took some snaps. In one, I edited out the last of of the 3 estate agent signs at the end of the lane. The other two helpfully blew down in last week's high winds! 😆

I'm just discovering how handy AI is, but also seeing how people may become over-reliant on it. When the modern Internet came along, it was fantastic how much one could learn without even leaving the house. However, it quickly became apparent not all the information could be relied upon, nor could many humans be bothered to check it, or synthesise from a variety of sources. The same concerns apply, and there's always that caveat about the possibility of mistakes. 😏

Comfortably warm today, so I might be able to sow a few seeds in the polytunnel with an eye on late summer. The courgettes have gone mad here without requiring any shenanigans with their bits. I harvested 8 from a single plant a couple of days ago, and I'm now forced to feed some to the hens! 😕 As things cool down we'll be able to grow more oriental greens and lettuce again. Recently, they've just bolted.