Day 31 - Computer Time

The BF and his computer time

This was taken before we did the big move over the weekend. Although, all of his computer gear is still at the old place. The reason? We still have internet there and his stuff is busy downloading/mining/something/using up the rest of the internet on the old plan.

I'm really enjoying taking photos in black and white. My only issue is that they seem to come up a lot lighter when I upload them onto the blog.  On my computer and on the screen on my camera, this particular shot comes out completely differently. Pretty much everything in grey is darker, almost black, which made the outline of his silhouette stand out against his monitor.

Anyone have any ideas why this might be happening?

Either way I still like it x

Day 30 - Packing

Packing up the old house, ready for the new.

The day we started packing. 

I didn't realise how much stuff we (I) had accumulated in the year and a half we have been living in our little apartment! Boxes everywhere, mostly filled with ornamental/books/games/toys.  Honestly we still don't have everything moved into the new house and its now a week later! 

Luckily we have an overlap of the two tenancies.  Officially, we move out of our old place on the 13th.  It gives us lots of time pack, move and clean everything properly before we hand over the keys.  It also means we can still wash our clothes at the old place! We haven't got a washing machine or dryer yet...

Looking forward to living in a large 3 bedroom townhouse! But I will miss this place. x

Sorry for the delays in posting. I'm still waiting for the internet at the new place!! Activation for it is scheduled for the 13th ... so far away!  On the plus side, we are eligible for fibre to the house so that would be awesome.  Got to check with the landlord first though!

And I gotta upload the rest of these!

Day 29 - Oh Lorde!

Lorde Concert, Silo Park, Auckland

I'm undecided about what photo I actually wanted to use for today.  There's the above, Taken during her performance of Royals.  Glow sticks, which were distributed by people before the show, lighting up Silo Park and moving to the beat of the song.  This one I love because it shows more of the concert, but I couldn't capture the right atmosphere with the glow sticks from my phone.

Day 28 - Lean

Casanova and his Gangsta Lean

Me behind?! AGAIN?!

Oh dear me...

This was taken on the 28th, tired after work I had planned to try and take a photo of the old artwork I had painted onto my desk back in 2007.  Only the lighting was pretty bad and there was too much going on when I did take the photo that it just didn't look that great.

I'll give that a go another day.

Meanwhile, my crazy cat was having a bit of a mental spaz, running all over the place.  Took a few action shots that were terrible and totally blurry.  When we finally calmed down, he was pretty good at posing for the camera.  I now have a few really cute ones, but this one I just love because he has this lean going on at the edge of the coffee table.

Anyone got any ideas for keeping to my blog schedule?

Day 27 - Music Nights

Laneways Festival, Auckland, NZ

Sorry about the quality of the photo today, unfortunately I wasn't able to take my camera with me to the festival.  A condition of entry was no 'professional' cameras, any with a detachable lens.

I had an amazing day listening to bands such as The Jezebels, Haim, CHVRCHES and The Presets.  Chilling with friends, drinking wine, lying in the sun.  Thanks to everyone who made this day happen!

It took me a while to remember to take any photos, by the time I took this, just before CHVRCHES, my phone was at 3% and wouldn't let me take any photos!! Luckily the instagram app has no such limitations as measley battery life!  Snapped this just in time.

Clearly it doesn't speak the volumes that was the Laneways Festival.  But my memory will be enough for me.

Any music festivals coming up I should look in to?!

Day 26 - Flowers

Flowers on a power pole, Auckland

Today was quite a drizzly, cloudy day.  There was nothing much to do and I was pretty tired all day.

I forgot to take my camera to the family luncheon and also didn't take any photos of my baking beforehand. Made delicious Rekorderlig Strawberry and Lime Cupcakes.  For anyone who doesn't know, Rekorderlig make amazing cider!

Late in the afternoon we took a walk along our 'cat' route, we try to spot cats and get a point for every one we see.  It was still a bit rainy and I couldn't spot many cats to take a photo of.  In the end all I took were these flowers which stood out against all the grey.

I like it.

Got any suggestions on what to do with a rainy day?

Day 25 - My City

Auckland City, NZ

We went to the Auckland Seafood Festival today, and it was the best day for it.  The weather turned out great, the music was nice, wine was excellent and the food was (for the most part) divine. Came home with a bottle of lemoncello, which had nothing to do with seafood but helps make a great mojito!

From the wharf where the Festival was being held, you got a great view of the port and the city. I thought it made for a great photo :)

What are you all up to this weekend?

Day 24 - Monkey

Monkey Lunch - Auckland Zoo, Auckland

I went to the zoo today, just spent the day taking my time watching the animals and enjoying the lovely weather.

Normally at the zoo I'm with a small child so their attention span means we have to move on to the next animal before I'm ready.  I love animals, and watching the animals do their thing.  Today I had a lot of fun watching the spider monkeys. They had just been fed and were doing some funny things trying to get food off each other.  

This monkey had 3-4 pieces of carrots and got into a bit of a fight with another monkey who wanted some before pushing the other one off this pole.  Then he sat up there to eat them.  Its a shame I couldn't get him against the green of the leaves, but I love his face in this.

Munch, Munch. 

Day 23 - What is it?

What is it?! I don't know... Casanova startled.

Basically he was playing in the blue blanket with his butt sticking out, I think he was hiding from all the photos I was trying unsuccessfully to take of him.  I threw a balled up piece of paper into the kitchen to try and get his attention and he popped out of his hiding spot and sat there like this.

I think he's adorable.

Also I forgot to turn off the 'Pop' feature from my previous session and didn't notice until I uploaded all the photos... and then I was too tired to post when I got home last night...

Anyone else as forgetful of things as I can be?

Day 22 - Games Night

Fun times playing games. Munchkin, Friends House.

This was one of the longest games that we had ever played.  I'm pretty sure it took like 2-3 hours to play, all of us on the final level and my BF blocking everyone from winning by selling off all his cards... 

Munchkin is a pretty awesome game.  This version is the Star Munchkins with the Expansion Clown Wars and the booster pack of Ships.  Ships are my favourite addition to the game :D.

I'd love to play the original Munchkin, just because there are so many expansions.

What game would you love to play?

Also this was a night to celebrate a friends birthday, so Foo, Happy Birthday! You're another year older! Thanks for the fun times and may all your wishes come true :)

Day 21 - Trains

It's late but I wanted to post this today before I slip back into my old habits of posting a couple of days later.

I went for a walk with the BF and had to stop at the tracks on our way back because the train was coming.  Unfortunately I thought about it too late to do a long exposure as it went past so I might do that another time.

Anyway I really like the colours in this, and yeah... enjoy :)

Goodnight! x

Day 20 - Patterns

Patterns on a lamp

Today's shot is mostly because I'm lazy, it's wet and I really don't want to go outside. It is also because I have loved the pattern on this lamp ever since I saw it in Ikea a couple of years ago.

This little lamp was one of the first things I loved from Ikea and actually started a pretty insane obsession.  

A couple of years ago I went to Melbourne with the BF to see his dad and having never been to an Ikea before I asked if we could go (We don't have anything like Ikea in NZ!).  All I can say is WOW. I know its not everyone's cup of tea, but the set-ups and the layout and then the warehouse underneath.  I was in heaven. 

I'd been eyeing up similar little lamps online but when I spotted this in one of the set-up rooms, I had to have it.  It took me a while to get to where I could pick one up, Ikea is so huge, but I I found my lovely lamp (+ so much more) and I brought it back with me home.  I was so scared that the poor thing might break in my suitcase but here we are today.

Now this little beauty helps me light up my little corner of the lounge and I love it.

Day 19 - Flower Footsteps

Botanic Gardens, Auckland NZ

The BF and I went to the Botanic Gardens on Sunday.  Amazing weather, beautiful scenery.  It really would have made for a great day for a picnic... If we had remembered to bring a picnic. 

We wandered around the gardens, me snapping pictures and him just walking with me. I'm starting to wonder when he will get sick of me taking photos all the time haha. 

I really liked how bright these flowers were against the grey of the footpath, so I snapped a couple of photos while we were walking past.  Wasn't paying much attention to the people walking past, but I quite like this one with them in it.

One more upload and I will be up-to-date! Now I've just got to get Cas to stop playing with the cord so I can upload todays photos...

Day 18 - Cat in a Box

Casanova and his new favourite game

Cas, my lovely crazy kitten, has a new favourite game.  Its called I'll ate your socks through this hole in the box.  If you hold up a sock to the hole, he will literally grab it and pull it into the box, all the more fun if it is on your foot and it becomes a tug-of-war. 

At last count he had 10 socks hidden in his box.  

This was taken as we were playing with a pen, running it along his box, and he would try and grab it through the hole.  He started biting the box to try and create a bigger hole.  I thought it was super cute.

This was taken on the 18th Jan. Still got a couple more photos to upload, but will probably do them after I've finished work.

Day 17 - The Computer

My Computer, Auckland NZ

For some reason the photo isn't uploading properly but here it is anyway.  The quality has deteriorated some where between my computer and the blog...

This is my computer, my lifeline to the outside world.  

I love the shape, and lines on the case and the LED's that light it up. I think I also spend far too much time on my computer, but will see how long that lasts once we move and its no longer in the lounge facing the TV.  It makes for too good a spot to watch my TV shows and browse the net at the same time...

Anyway, this was taken on the 17th.  As you can see I'm still running a bit behind in the updates. I'll try and upload days 18-20 today as well.

Day 16 - Lock It

Rubbish bin in Myers Park, Auckland, NZ

I was walking home with the BF through Myers Park, taking photos of him walking ahead of me and random things in the park.  Snapped a couple of photos of people lying up on the grass bank and standing around (BF told me I looked like a stalker! So I stopped doing that pretty quick...).

Noticed this bin on the side of the path and got a massive smile on my face when I read the sticker on the lock.  It just amused me so much "I'm so F#@KING proud to lock this bin!".  I had to take a photo! I think it turned out pretty well.

What's put a smile on your face this week?

Day 15 - Lonely Toy

The Lonely Toy

I'm running a bit behind in posting on the blog, but luckily I've been keeping up with the photos using Reddits r/365photos sub.  You guys are a life saver! 

This photo was taken on the 15th Jan, I was feeling a bit tired from work and not wanting to go out to take a photo.  Cas had been playing with some of my toys that sit on the shelf and he knocked this one off and was eating it on the floor.  I took a couple of photos of him eating it and playing with it, but this last one I snapped after he was done playing looked quite neat to me so here's my photo for the 15th.

Hope you like it and sorry for not updating properly!

Day 14 - Cat Tunnel

Casanova and his tunnel

I've been trying to get a nice photo of my cat running through his cat tunnel, unfortunately its getting quite late here and the lighting in the lounge is pretty crap so I can't really use the shutter speed etc.  Tried using the flash in conjunction but I just got those cat laser eyes.

Now he's stopped playing my game so I will give it go another day. 

Day 13 - Keyboard Buddies

The keyboard buddies, they keep me company while I work.

This was actually taken on the 14th, I'm a bit behind but hope to catch up today.  Life is getting a bit hectic trying to find a new place to live!

These guys were given to me by a friend and they have sat in front of my screen for several months now. Recently my cat has started trying to play with them, but they have managed to stand tall and resist being moved too much. With the help of some nicely placed blutack!

Do you have guys have any keyboard buddies that watch over your workspace?

Day 12 - A Girl and her Feather

A girl and her feather,  Auckland

The BF and I went to the zoo on the weekend and took his 4 year old, Miss A, with us.  We had lots of fun doing a top trumps style game that the zoo had put on, comparing our Galapagos Tortoise with all the other animals. We even managed to trump some of them! 

In the aviary, with the parrots and finches, Miss A found this little feather on one of the branches and was so excited. She came running up with it while I was taking photos of some of the birds and I was able to snap this photo before she told me all about it.

She made sure to put it in her bag to take home to show her mum and collected a few others through the rest of our trip around the zoo.

Overall it was a great end to our weekend.

Hope you all had a good weekend and bring on the start of another week at work!

Day 11 - Light Trails

Watching the traffic - Auckland, NZ

I couldn't sleep last night so went for a walk, thought I would take the camera with me.  I ended up on a foot bridge above this road and decided to play around with the exposure times and shutter speeds.  Had a lot of fun trying to figure out the how to make light trails and getting a steady hold on the camera. 

I didn't have the tripod with me so I held the camera against the bridge to steady it. It worked well enough and I got  a couple of steady shots in the end :)

I had a lot of fun, and it really cleared my head. 

Hope you all had a good night and will see you later on. I really need to post these on the correct days haha.

Day 10 - Sitting on a Tree

Panmure Basin, Auckland, NZ

Dad came down for the day with my Aunt so we had a picnic on the Panmure Basin.  It was a lot of fun and afterwards while we were sitting along the 'shore' and this lovely bird was just chilling on the tree.  Unfortunately we couldn't get close enough but managed to snap this before he flew away.

Day 9 - Sunset

Sunset, Auckland, NZ

Playing around with some of the settings on my camera last night.  Lovely shot of the 'view' from leaning over our deck and looking west. 

I really need to get back into the habit of posting on the day I'm supposed to... 

I've gotta go to work shortly so I'll cut this short.  Hope you guys have a great day! 

Day 8 - Overgrown

Overgrown Path.

Another day, another photo.  I was busy house hunting yesterday and didn't really have time to post or take photos.  This was a quick snap on my way home from work.

Day 7 - Mother Duck

Ducklings and their Mother, Glen Innes, Auckland, NZ

Walking home from work tonight and I spot out of the corner of my eye this tiny little duckling trying to struggle through a fence to its mother.  I looked a little closer and there were a couple more ducklings trying to get back through as well.  Tried to pull my camera out to get a photo of the struggle when Mother Duck must have noticed me and rushed around the end corner of the fence to herd her little ones to her.

As we were by a busy road I decided to follow them so they didn't try and cross the road.  They wandered for around 5 minutes up the road with little rests along the way. We got to this area with long grass where they stopped for a little while.  As I was trying to get out my phone to take a sneaky snapchat for some friends they scuttled off into the long grass.  Got some funny photos of the Mother Duck poking her head up above the grass to see where she is going. 

Looking back through all the photos this one stood out to me, a Mother Duck standing watch over her babies.

Hope they make it somewhere safe for the night.  Best trip home in a long while.

Anything interesting happen on your way home from work? 

Day 6 - Boxes

The shelves at work, somewhere in Auckland.

Don't have much to say about this, work was work.  I'm doing the skeleton shift so I can take my leave later on in the year, which is great .  I also kind of miss the monotonousness of packing stock and sending it out.  Beats trying to figure out what people actually want and then organise said thing over the phone between countries.. Anyone else have to work over the break?

Actually looking at this photo again I really like it.

Anyway, onward and upwards.  See you tomorrow.

Day 5 - Cas, The Sleeping Cat

Casanova the Cat, asleep in my workspace...

Today was a rather crappy day.  The weather was yuck, overcast and slightly raining.  Also the house is a mess and I really can't be bothered cleaning.  Basically I'm being really lazy. I did manage to go to the gym though! 

(I didn't think it would be very appropriate to take the camera with me...)

This photo is of my dear Mr Casanova taking a lovely nap on my desk as I try and organise the pieces of paper around him. I gave  up in  the end. No work done today. Thanks Cas.

Hopefully tomorrow is a better day and I can take a few more photos of things other than my cat. (As much as I love him)

Day 4 - Love in the park

A couple enjoying the view at the park. Western Springs, Auckland, NZ

The BF and I went for a bike ride to Western Springs to feed the ducks, swans and geese. We stopped in a shaded area to feed some Swans and their babies plus a few sparrows. I spotted this couple not far from us and thought it made such a cute photo. 

Not sure what we are doing tomorrow but hopefully I'll be able to snap some more photos.

See you all on the flip side.

Day 3 - Work Pallets

On the way home from work - Glen Innes, Auckland

Day 3, and I'm back at work! :(

So, the BF actually picked this one out. Of the few photos I took on the way home from work this one caught his attention the most.  Something about the angles, but neither of us are that good with photos.  I'm back at work for a couple of hours today, just to get some of the orders out over the holiday period. I normally work in the office but we have a 'new' ish dispatch worker so over this period I've been asked to fill in.

A few of the other warehouses are also 'open' over this period and these were some pallets that had been put out on the side of the road for collection.

Hope you're all enjoying your holidays (or whats left of them) and I will see you on the morrow! 

Day 2 - Lazy Day with the Cat

ACTION!

Ok, I lied. There's no action in this. All there is, is a sleeping cat. MY sleeping cat. His name is Casanova (Cas for short) and I think he is just gorgeous. This is basically all we have been doing today...

We were supposed to go to Western Springs and feed the ducks/swans/geese/eels and I could take some nice scenic shots and play around with the aperture/shutter speed and exposure settings on my camera.  The BF went off to get a new mechanical keyboard instead and now is all a taptap-a-tapping in the other corner of the lounge. He doesn't really want to leave his computer now....

Outside looks lovely though, and I would just love to be lying out on the deck.  Unfortunately we live in an apartment at the moment and I'm a bit wary of opening the deck door in case Cas decides to get curious and follow me out there. Actually, to hell with it, I'm just going to shut the door behind me and hope he doesn't make sad cat faces at me through the glass.

Hope you are all having a wonderful day today and we will see you on the morrow!

Day 1 - A Hike to the Falls

The start of a New Year, the creation of some resolutions and the idea to finally (and I do mean finally!) join in on the craze so many of you have started and that I have always wanted to do!

Welcome to

365 Days with Katles!

A quick explanation about what this is all about. Basically, I'm going to take a photo a day for the entire year and post them here.  I'll add a little paragraph about what the photo is about or why I took it.  Hopefully they will be interesting but some days are bound to be boring.

Introductions! The name is Katles, this is said like Kate-ills. Don't ask me why, its been my nickname for years and it has kinda stuck. It's kind of like Cattle, you know cows?? But how it sounds like Cat (the animal cat) and ill (as in you're sick! cough cough). 

ANYWAY...

I'm 23 and live in New Zealand. I'm new to photography, basically that means I got what I think is a fancy camera and I like to take photos of things I think look cool.  I'm learning things like aperture and shutter speed and how to put a lens on a camera body properly! haha...

If you have any tips for me please let me know!

Todays photo was taken at the Kitekite Falls in Piha, Auckland. 

This lovely dog was certainly braver than I was! He was very friendly and definitely enjoyed his time at the falls. 

We had a bit of a paddle in the shallow end, water was waaaaaay too cold to go too deep. Maybe next time I'll be braver! I'm glad our NYE was just some quite drinks at ours, otherwise we might not have done the hours drive and short hike to these falls. This was a beautiful spot and I'd love to go back and do some of the other hikes in the area.  

I was originally going to post a photo of the waterfall but this photo just stood out way more to me (maybe because I'm such an animal lover!).

I hope you all have had a lovely start to your own new year and I'll see you tomorrow.