Just over a month ago Paul broke a couple of metatarsals in his foot when he landed a jump badly. After a fair bit of physiotherapy he's about ready to get back in the water but while he was recuperating he took the opportunity to use our new 600mm lens and shoot some windsurfing photos of his friends. I'm guessing once he's back in the water I'll be nagged to go and take some photos of him!

A few weeks ago, we were contacted by a friend to let us know that the very talented Jamie Scott & The Town were going to be playing a couple of shows at a hot new venue, 7 Seas Live, in Limassol. Not much happens on this little island that particularly interests me but after having listened to these guys online, I was more than eager to hear them play live.

Jamie immediately struck me as charismatic with a very strong stage presence. Never having heard him sing live before I wasn't sure what to expect but I was more than blown away with the music & talent on the stage both from Jamie and the band members, Chris & Nick. This was one of those times that I wish the music had my full attention rather than the photography. It's quite rare to be immediately taken with a particular song or singer but it quite literally took only a few moments before I knew that I was going to love what I was hearing. The setlist seemed to be sung and over in what felt like a matter of minutes and I was left wanting to hear more...

A couple of days later, we got to shoot a few more photos of Chris & Nick who were incredibly easy-going and fun to be around. Not having met Jamie the night he performed at the music venue, I was pleasantly surprised to find that his charisma wasn't limited to his stage presence. Along with his more than personable manager Richard, who incidentally came across as the perfect choice for Jamie's manager, we went to one of my favorite locations (soon, and sadly, to be pulled down) to photograph Jamie on his own.

Being a Nikon girl, it's a VERY rare occasion where you'll hear me wishing to own a Canon camera but this is one of the few times where I'll admit to wishing I had a 5D MkII for the HD video capabilities. Jamie sat in the middle of the run-down, dingy warehouse, as if no one else was there, and began to sing - it was beautifully melodic and the acoustics were absolute perfection, in complete contrast to the dilapidated surroundings that we were in. Sometimes, still photos just don't cut it!!

I've lost count how many times I've listened to Park Bench Theories but I highly recommend taking a listen to Jamie Scott & The Town at http://www.myspace.com/jamiescottandthetown

The February SWPP competition saw my first Gold awards of 2009 in a mixed bag of categories - pictorial, fashion, publicity & wedding contemporary.