Summer photography tips and tricks with Jessops' expert help!

Capture every moment spent with the children this summer! I love to take photo's of my children and the mischeif and mayhem that they sometimes get up to, but how to get the image right? Ian Savage, Head of Training at Jessops has these great tips for taking the perfect photo!


1. Child’s play
Kids rarely stay still long enough for you to take their picture, but instead of resorting to bribery to get them to sit down for a photo, start photographing them on the go. Either choose your camera’s sports mode or select shutter-priority and continuous AF. In both cases, your camera’s autofocus will keep your subject in focus, even when that’s a toddler wobbling around a playground on a bike with stabilisers. It really is child’s play to get a good shot!


2. Get together
Whether you’re enjoying a barbecue in the back garden or a walk in the park, it’s a great opportunity to get some photos of everyone together. And with just a bit of planning, you can get some lovely photo memories. Before you gather your group, scout out a good spot and think about your composition. All in one long line is boring, so consider arranging them in two lines; ask some to sit, or have the kids kneeling in front; or how about running towards you? Lines, by the way, don’t have to be horizontal; think vertically, too, and have fun!


3. Beautiful portraits
Taking portraits outdoors means you can work with lots of lovely daylight, and at this time of year you’ll be spoilt for choice when it comes to stunning natural backdrops. When you position your subject, make sure they won’t be squinting or pulling a face because the sun is in their eyes. Face them away from the sun – side lighting works well – and ask them to stand in a shaded area for a more flattering, less harsh light. Then all you need to do is turn the exposure mode dial to aperture-priority, focus on the eyes and take the shot!


4. Action shots
Feeling a bit more adventurous with your photography? Then try panning. This clever technique gives your photos a sense of movement. Pick the point you want to take the photo and face it, but then turn to the direction the subject will be coming from. Half press the shutter button, and without moving your feet, turn smoothly to follow the subject, fully press the shutter button at your chosen point to take the photo and continue to follow the subject out of shot.


5. Childproof!
Many cameras are waterproof, sand-proof, dust-proof and even drop-proof these days – so if you want to take great shots without worrying about the kids’ grubby hands, or damaging your new piece of kit, consider a camera that’s up to the challenge.

Recommended by Jessops: Ricoh WG-4 GPS
If you need a super-tough camera to take with you on your adventures, look no further than the Ricoh WG-4 GPS. It’s waterproof to 14m, shockproof to two metres, and can survive being crushed by 100kg weights: perfect if you want a camera that’s safe around kids, without compromising on quality.

I think I'll be putting this camera on my birthday list.... roll on September! 

Summer Food Tips

With the summer comes the sun (usually!). Here are ten top tips to help keep your tasty food safe over the summer months.

1. Use small ice packs in your picnic bag to keep food cool, fresh and hygienic (especially anything that it dairy based).
2. Add wet ingredients to sandwiches on arrival at your destination to avoid soggy bread.
3. When picnicking, pack rubbish bags, so you can take your leftovers and packaging away with you.
4. Don't attempt anything to grand - the most popular food is often the simplest. Quality, fresh ingredients always taste fabulous in the fresh air.
5. Buy some simple mesh dome-shaped covers to keep insects away from salads and other foods.
6. Stock up on paper napkins and hand-wash gel, and keep them in the car ready for impromptu picnics.
7. Simple crudités with dips are great sharing food and work well for summer lunches and suppers at home or on a picnic.
8. For sweet treats in summer, avoid chocolate, and opt instead for refreshing fruit salads and yoghurts, or finger foods such as flapjacks or shortbread.
9. Use insulated containers to keep cold foods cold and hot foods hot.
10.  Try herbal or mint tea, or iced coffee as a refreshing, thirst-quenching variation.

(These great tips come from The Co-Operative Food)

 

 



Summer Raspberry Sweet Treats!

Summer is a time for picnics and al fresco eating, but what's a picnic without a sweet treat?! Combine your outdoor eating with a good walk and you've every excuse for a tasty dessert!

We love these simple Raspberry Shortbread Bites - prepare in advance and then assemble just before eating... delicious!

Ingredients (makes 6)
Shortbread
200g butter, softened
200g caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
100g plain flour, plus extra for rolling
100g cornflour

Topping
150g raspberries, washed (other soft fruits will also work really well)
Clotted cream, fresh cream or butter icing, which ever is your preference
White chocolate chips/shavings

Base
6 ready made meringue nests

1. At home, make the shortbread. Pre-heat the oven to Gas 5. Line a baking sheet with greaseproof paper.
2. With an electric hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together for approx. 3-4 mins. Sieve the flour and cornflour into the mixture and combine with the mixer for a further 4-5 mins.
3. Roll out onto a floured surface to a thickness of approx. 2cm. Cut into rounds with a 6cm cutter. Re-roll the dough and cut further shapes if required (any leftovers can be your taste-testers!)
4. Bake in the oven for approx. 10 mins - the edges should be golden brown. Once out of the oven, sprinkle with a little sugar - coloured sugar looks a little bit more special! Leave on the tray for a couple of minutes to cool and then cool completely on a wire rack. The shortbread will keep for 2-3 days in an airtight container (if it lasts that long!)
5. When you are ready to eat the delicious treats, place a meringue nest on your plate, top with a little cream, a sprinkle of white chocolate and a few raspberries. Finish off with a shortbread top and enjoy! 

So there we have it - my entry for the Sweet Treats category! I hope that you enjoy it as much as my family does.

This post is an entry for the #MorrisonsMum (or #MorrisonsDad) Summer Recipe eBook Challenge sponsored by Morrisons, which has recently cut prices on over a thousand every day products. Find out more here price checker tool.

Breaking down the barriers - understanding the logic behind *some* Welsh words!

Being able to 'analyse' Welsh words makes it easier to remember them and then translate new words as you come across them.

These are just five quick examples of words which you break down into smaller words which *might* help you to keep them firmly in your brain!

• Cefnogaeth > cefn o gaeth > to have someone's back > to support

• Cyfrifiadur > cyfrif i addurn > a counting ornament > computer 
• anything beginning with cyfrif is to do with counting; cyfrifiannell is a calculator, cyfrif is to count, cyfrifydd is an accountant.

• Llyfrgell > llyfr gell > a cell of books > library
• oergell (cold cell > refrigerator) and rhewgell (ice cell > freezer) follow the same pattern, so anything with -gell is a container of something.

• Ffermwr > fferm gŵr > farm man > farmer 
• words ending in -wr are mostly someone who works somewhere; gyrrwr (gyrru gŵr) > driver, cyfreithwr (cyfraith gŵr) > solicitor, tafarnwr (tafarn gŵr) > landlord.

• Modurdy > modur tŷ > motor house > garage
• words ending in -dy/-ty are often a place where things are housed or work is done; ysbyty > hospital, gweithdy > workshop, gwesty > hotel. 

 

 

So, it makes sense to try and understand how the word is 'made', you will have a logical reminder of most words and be able to work out the unknown ones... well, some of them anyway! Of course, not all words DO follow a pattern, but it's a start!

 

Share some of your own tips below!

 

Welsh English words - a blend of two languages!

Although Welsh stands pretty strong as a language in it's own right, there are many, many borrowed words in the modern Welsh language. The spelling often looks very different to the English spelling, but when you say the word, all becomes clear!

Here are a few of my favourites!

• fan > van
• marmalâd > marmalade
• trowsus > trousers
• coffi > coffee
• cwestiwn > question
• plismon > policeman
• beic > bicycle
• sgarff > scarf
• ffrog > frock/dress

I'll be adding to this list so keep checking back for updates! Have you got any more to suggest? Let me know in the comments!



Image via http://bit.ly/Pszzlg

Language Learning - it's never too late!

Some of you may already know but for those who don't, I am learning Welsh and have been for the past 4 years or so. Now, when I look back it doesn't seem like I have achieved a lot in those 4 years... but I have! I'm confident enough to have a quick chat with Welsh speakers and can talk to the school teachers in Welsh - slightly stilted but I can do it!

So, I thought I'd write a series of blog posts to help other Welsh learners with their vocabulary, etc. This is by no means going to be a structured lesson plan(!) but just some hints and tips that I find useful.

Here's my list of 6 top tips 'dysgu Cymraeg'!

1. Enroll in a class - you can learn loads of vocab at home via online courses but you cannot practice online like you do in a group situation. Lessons can be formal or much more informal so don't be scared by the 'classroom' aspect of it! One class local to me meets in the pub, so never say never!
2. Read at least 5 minutes every day in your target language. I'm lucky that we have many Welsh books at home due to my children being educated in Welsh, but don't forget libraries will have a good selection of books available and you can request books to be ordered in if necessary.
3. Try to use a few words in 'real life' each day. Even if you only say 'diolch' (thank you) when you've paid for your items in the shop, you'll get used to hearing your voice saying the 'strange' words!
4. Talk to someone in Welsh as much as you can - the dog or cat is VERY useful for this. Again, it's just getting used to your voice sounding different (and the dog/cat will never criticise your accent!).
5. Watch S4C or listen to Radio Cymru. The children's programmes on S4C (Cyw) are very useful as the language used is simple to understand and not over-complicated.
6. It will not happen overnight! There have been some times when I've sat in a lesson and felt completely lost, but don't give up! Ask what you need to ask, as there's probably someone else wanting to ask exactly the same question as you but they aren't brave enough. So be the brave one!

Of course, these tips can be used when learning any language. So give it a go! Do you have any tips you'd like to share with us?

The BritMum's Challenge - being a #morrisonsmum!

Morrisons used to be my supermarket of choice when living in the city. Living literally a 10 minute walk or 2 minutes drive away made it really convenient and easy to do both the weekly shop and smaller top-up shops in between. Since moving to the sticks, a visit to Morrisons supermarket is quite a luxury! Our local supermarket isn't the cheapest, but for day to day shopping for bread, milk, etc. it's fine and I can't justify an hours drive each way for a small shop!

So, enough about me and my Morrisons relationship - how did we get on with the BritMum's Challenge?

The 'I'm Cheaper' campaign has been covered in the national media and on the Morrisons website itself, but it's much easier to see for yourself what exactly is cheaper and how the overall prices compare. We were pleased to see that it was not just own label items that were cheaper; branded items and marketplace produce is also included in the price promise, with clear markers showing you where the price changes had occurred.

I don't often consciously 'track' the cost of my shopping, but know the prices of regular items such as bread and milk. The Morrisons prices compared better than my usual supermarket for most general items, but there were a couple of items currently on offer in my usual supermarket that were more expensive in Morrisions, but this was purely down to the particular special offer.

Our weekly shop consists of probably half and half branded products and own label products, but we did buy a few treats for over the Bank Holiday weekend due to celebrating my youngest child's 7th birthday on Sunday!

I try to plan at least half of our meals for the week so with each shop I do, I have some sort of shopping list to work to. The rest of the meals are more flexible as we would see what special offers were in store at the time! To help us plan this week, we decided to look at the recipes on the Morrisions website. There's a great recipe tool where you can search by meal, ingredient and even whether the recipe is 'kid-friendly'.

Here are the links to the recipes that we chose to make throughout the week:

Perfect Pizza served with salad and crusty bread

Chilli Con Carne served with rice and a dollop of natural yoghurt

Cheesy Chicken Nuggets served with potato wedges and carrots/sweet corn

Tuna Pasta Bake, again, served with salad and crusty bread

And a couple of treats and puddings!

Raspberry Ripple Fluff

Yoghurt Lollies

Pancakes - I know it's not Shrove Tuesday, hey it's not even Tuesday, but we love pancakes!

All of these have a good value, price per serving - who can beat the pancakes at literally pence per serving.... but it all depends on how many you eat! The pizza is less than £1 a serving, of course, you can add more toppings which can alter the price but even then, a great mid-week meal for the family.

The chilli con carne (our favourite!) works out at under £1.30 per portion - rice included! Both the chicken nuggets and tuna pasta bake come in at about £1 a portion, so again, great value!

The pizza, chilli con carne and tuna pasta bake all use the same basic tomato sauce base, so we made this in one batch and used it through the week (it will keep for up to 3 days).


Raspberry Ripple Fluff - with extra birthday decoration! 

On top of our weekly shop, we bought picnic items for our day out to Fairbourne Railway on Monday and other items to use for meals throughout the week, for example a seafood mix for making paella one day, treats for the dog, drinks and after school snacks for the kids! We spent around £100 in total, so with the treats thrown in, we feel that this was very reasonable.
Overall, Morrisons provided good value for money, with sensible offers and 'I'm Cheaper' prices on things that you would buy in a normal weekly shop.

The only thing that stops me from shopping here more regularly is purely the distance! So, if you've a Morrisons local to you and you're not a regular customer, give it a try!