Welcome to my blog, Whats this about then?

This is a place where I will be posting all sorts of things not just things relating to Derby and Derbyshire. On here you will find details of any videos I’ve made of things in Derby and also Time-lapse, stop motion animation, Tutorials etc. If I find some useful software for PC or iPhone then I will feature it here.I’m sure that there will be something of interest to someone on my many posts.Please leave comments on any posts if you like them.
Don’t forget if you are new to my blog and would like to read through the previous posts then see the Blog Archive section on the left side of this page.
Also there is a Search box at the top left of the page if you are looking for something but cant remember where it was. I am a trustee member of "Friends of Friar Gate bridge", aiming to get this bridge restored.

Thursday 29 July 2010

Video of Lara Croft Way, Derby Inner Ring Road and new road layouts.

This is the latest video in my “Derby Streets by car in HD” series, this one is a short car journey that encompasses all of the latest new roads and road changes relating to the Connecting Derby project on Derby Inner Ring Road.
These Roads are either newly opened or one way roads that have become two way.
Lara Croft Way is a newly constructed road where as the parts of Normanton Road and Burton Road were previously one way roads, these are now two way roads.

Lara Croft Way opened in two stages one direction on 11th May 2010 and the other way on 27th July 2010.

Because these are new roads they are not on Google Maps or Google Streetview.

However I have generated a detailed map showing the new roads and how they connect to form the new Derby inner ring road. I have also made a 360 degree interactive panoramic photograph near the traffic island at Lara Croft Way (a-la Google Streetview).

Also the driving video I have made here will allow you to see how it all connects together. This video was filmed at 7am on Wednesday 28th July 2010 which is why there is little traffic on the roads, giving a better view than queuing traffic!

Lara Croft Way Driving video

If you have a fast broadband connection and high-end PC then best to view in 720p HD and fullscreen.
The driving Video Route Details.
The drive starts on Burton Road (A5250) heading into Derby. On the right side you can see Mount Street which is where (up until 27/07/2010) you would rejoin the inner ring road in the clockwise direction. As you can see this section of Burton Road is now two way.

On the right we pass The Duke of York Pub.

We now arrive at the new Round-a-bout, this connects the following roads.

Burton Road (two way)
Mercian Way (not yet open), the next section of the inner ring road.
Green Lane (one way)
Babington Lane (one way)
Lara Croft Way (two way)
Normanton Road (two way)
At this round-a-bout I take the 4th exit onto Lara Croft Way, This is a brand new road which forms part of the final link of Derby Inner Ring Road. Lara Croft Way cuts through former streets such as Sacheverel Street and Wilmot Street. Lara Croft Way then connects to the existing round-a-bout on Osmaston Road.

The Osmaston Road round-a-bout connects the following roads:
Lara Croft Way (two way)
Osmaston Road A514 towards the Spot (two way)
Bradshaw Way A601, (two way) Existing inner ring road.
Osmaston Road A514 (two way) towards Allenton.
Charnwood Street (one way) now closed off.
Leopold Street (one way) now closed off.
Lara Croft Way

At the Osmaston Road round-a-bout I take the 4th exit which takes me back up Lara Croft Way in the other direction. At this round-a-bout I take left into Normanton Road. This section of Normanton Road used to be one way, as you can see its now two way. On the left is Leopold Street which is the way you used to go to get onto the inner ring road, Leopold Street was closed off on Tuesday 11th May 2010 when Lara Croft Way opened up in one direction only.

At the Charnwood Street junction you would normally see inner ring road traffic coming from the left but Charnwood Street is now blocked off at the Osmaston Road end.

Here on Normanton Road I turn right into Southgate Retail Park (Lidl) and do a u-turn in the entrance and head back onto Normanton Road towards Derby centre.

Notice here on the left that the slip road leading to Mill Hill Lane has been closed off, instead Normanton Road has become two way. So as of July 27th the Mill Hill Lane/Mount Street/Burton Road/Normanton Road loop part of the Old Inner Ring road is now no longer needed.

You are now allowed to drive Down Normanton Road in the other direction.

At the round-a-bout I turn left onto Burton Road which is now two way. It feels very strange being able to drive down this bit of Burton Road in this direction after all the years of it being one way.
Here we rejoin Burton Road where Mount Street used to join with it.

Detailed Driving Route Map:

View Lara Croft Way, Derby Inner Ring Road Driving video Route in a larger map

On the first day of these new roads opening I was stuck in horrendous queues of traffic but I think once the Derby City council have adjusted the traffic light sequences at Lara Croft Way then this new section of the inner ring road will help a lot. I look forward to seeing the remaining section of the inner ring road opening between Lara Croft Way and Ford Street, this will complete Derby Inner Ring Road

Hope you enjoyed this little trip.
Andy

Tuesday 27 July 2010

Lara Croft Way, Derby Now open. 360 Degree Virtual Reality Photograph of the new road.

As of today, Tuesday 27th July 2010, Lara Croft Way was fully open in both directions.
Here is a 360 degree VR photography I took of the new road. Just like a Google Streetview view but better, using complete Spherical VR photograph 360 x 180 degrees.

The view you can see in my photograph is the new round-a-bout at the top of Babington Lane. This traffic island joins Lara Croft Way, Burton Road, Mercian Way (opening later in 2010), Green Lane and Babington Lane.

Use the mouse to drag the view around...
Lara Croft Way 360 degree V.R. Photograph.

Download Adobe Flash to display this panorama.

If you would like to see a high resolution, fullscreen version of my VR photograph of Lara Croft Way then click the link here :
High Resolution 360 degree view of Lara Croft Way, Derby.
I have made it so it auto-resets the view, so if you zoom fully all the way in and release the mouse button then after 4 seconds it will zoom back out again.

As well as Lara Croft Way being opened up fully today, Burton Road between this round-a-bout and Mount Street became two-way. It felt very strange driving in front of The Duke of York pub "the wrong way" after all these years.
Also Normaton Road between the new round-a-bout and Melbourne Street became two-way, thus meaning no more having to crive around Mill Hill Lane and Mount Street.

Unfortunately I think the traffic light timmings need some serious looking at because I tried the new route and it took 25 mins to get from Osmaston Road to Burton Road because the lights near Leopold street were only staying green for 10 seconds.


Lara Croft Way Map.
Here is a detailed map showing the exact location of Lara Croft Way in Derby, Click on the link below the map if you want a larger version you can print out :


View Derby inner ring road - Lara Croft Way and Mercian Way. in a larger map

The next road to open will hopefully be Mercian Way which connects to this round-a-bout and leads down to Abbey Street.

Andy

Monday 19 July 2010

Video of Derby Caribbean Carnival Parade 2010. Watch the procession of dancers.

Here is my latest video, this one is of the Derby Caribbean Carnival Parade 2010 which took place on Saturday. :



Hope you like my video.

Thanks
Andy

Tuesday 13 July 2010

Get your digital photographic prints done very cheap and quick at Costco Derby

Did you know that you can get your digital photographs printed at Costco in Derby?
This is better than any online printing service as you can collect them in person.

The prices are really cheap, the prints are high quality and you can upload your images from home and collect them the next day.
They also do large print sizes such as 18" x 12", The quality is amazing on these poster prints. The prints are supplied in carboard envelopes.

Prices for Prints at Costco Photo Centre Derby (July 2010)


    Size - Qty Copies - Price
  • 6" x 4" 1-49 7p each
      • 50-99 6p each
      • 100-499 5p each
      • 500+ 4p each
  • 7" x 5" 1-49 12p each
      • 50-149 10p each
      • 150-499 9p each
      • 500+ 9p each
  • 8" x 6" 1+ 22p each
  • 9" x 6" 1+ 22p each
  • 10" x 8" 1+ £1.09 each
  • 12" x 8" 1+ £1.09 each
 You can either order your prints via their website (limited to 5 prints) or you can use the free Kiosk software which allows you to place orders up to 5,000 images! With the Kiosk software you do not need an internet connection whilst you are preparing the order, only when you finally send the order through.
This easy to use software allows you to zoom, crop and rotate each print so you get just what you want.



How to use the Kiosk uploader software.
Get the free Kiosk software here:
http://derby.costcophoto.co.uk/about/kiosk

Click on the light blue rectangle where it says "Easy Download Kiosk/Uploader Software"
Download and install the Kiosk software.
The downloaded .exe file is 24.5Mb so does not take long on a broadband connection.

If you are using Windows 7 then I have found that this software has to be run in compatibility mode as follows (Don't worry its easy to do this) Install the software then right-click on the "Costco Desktop Kiosk" icon on the desktop and on the menu that appears select Properties then click on the Compatibilty tab
And tick the box next to Run this program in compatibilty mode for:
And select "Windows XP (Service Pack 3)" Click Apply and OK.
I don't have Windows Vista so not sure if you have to do the same with that Operating System.

When you run the Kiosk program for the first time it will download packages for each Costco UK location to update its self. You need to click on Settings and fill in your details such as address, e-mail and Costco membership number.

To add your images you click on the "Add Pictures" button, you can now select as many images as you want, when you click ok they should start to show up like my screen grab below. The Kiosk user interface is nice and easy to use. You have full control over each individual image.



you click on each thumbnail one by one and select what print size you want, in this example I have selected 6" x 4". You can also select the Quantity for each print.

In the top right of the Kiosk window you will see your image with a dotted box on it, this is the crop area. Because most digital cameras do not take phtographs in the right aspect ratio for a 6" x 4" print it will mean you have to loose the top and bottom of your image, this rubber box shows the area that is going to be cropped. You can move the corner handles of the box to choose what part of the image you want to remove, you can also use these controls to zoom in on part of your image.

Once you have confirmed your order and its uploaded all the image data, You will recieve and e-mail to say you have placed an order. You will get another e-mail when they start to work on your order and then a third e-mail to let you know when your prints are ready for collection from the Costco Derby Warehouse.
Just print off this confirmation e-mail and take it to the Photo Centre to get your prints

You pay for the prints at the Photo Centre rather than the normal checkouts.

A bit of Background info on Costco.

Costco is one of the largest membership only warehouse club, Founded in USA in 1983. Today they have over 550 locations around the world. Over 20 of these are in the UK and we are lucky enough to have a Costco in Derby which opened a few years ago.

http://www.costco.co.uk/what_is_costco/what_is_costco.htm

They sell a vast range of goods mostly in bulk and cheap. The Derby centre has a food court where you can buy hot food cheap such as a large Jacket Potato with as many fillings as you want for just £1.25
The Costco Derby photography department is located on the right hand side as you go through the entrance.

Where to find Costco Derby on a map

This Costco warehouse can be found on Wyvern Way, Derby, DE21 6RS


View Costco Derby, Wyvern Way. in a larger map

The entrance to Costco car park is off the round-a-bout between Burger King and Pizza Hut. It has a large car park with very wide parking bays so no problems opening car doors to get stuff in.

Google Streetview of Costco Derby from the bridge over the River Derwent.


Costco Derby Opening times:

Monday to Friday
Trade members 10:00am - 8:30pm
Individual members 12:00 - 8:30pm
Saturday
9:30am - 6:30pm
Sunday
11:00am - 5:00pm
Bank Holidays 10:00am - 6:00pm

Costco Derby is open 361 days a yeay, only closing for Christmas, New Years Day and Easter Sunday.




If your a keen photgrapher then hopefully you will find my blogpost of use. If you are a regular user of photobox or snapfish then this is a great alternative to those print services and you can go and collect the prints yourself so no postage to pay and you can even get prints on a Sunday.

Large prints are given to you in flat carboard envelopes rather than rolled up in tubes so you don't have to struggle to flatten out your prints before mounting them in a frame.

If you need your prints quicker then Costco also have PC Kiosks in the Photo Centre where you can plug in your USB flash drive and get your prints within minutes, these cost twice as much though.

Thanks
Andy

Sunday 11 July 2010

Video : Dovedale, See the Stepping Stones like never before. Beautiful Derbyshire Peak District.

August Update blog post : Stepping Stones Heath and Safety gone mad.

Here is my latest video promoting the local area. I dare say that if you are from Derbyshire then Dovedale Stepping Stones will be somewhere that you will have visited at some time. Its a great place to visit, perfect if you are looking for somewhere to visit in Derbyshire while the weather is nice. This tranquil and beautiful place is a "must see" place.

This video came about because I actually visited Dovedale one Friday in order to take lots of Panoramic photographs, while there I took a few short video clips too. When back to Derby  I looked at the videos and wished that I had recorded more footage. My answer to this problem was some clever software called  Pano2Movie as it allowed me to create video-like pans and incorporate them into the real video footage.
The first pan starts at 0:30, the sun rays which start at 0:45 I created using the "Light Rays" effect on the timeline in Sony Vegas 9 Pro to give the illusion of the Sun through the trees.

The sequence that starts at 4:17 shows what you can do using Pano2Movie as this kind of movement would not be possible with a video camera because I am panning to the ground while standing on stepping stones that are in the middle of the river Dove!

At 4:33 I used the FOV markers in Pano2Movie to zoom in, as you can see this made a very odd effect which makes it look like we are moving in mid air.

Anyway enough of the techincal stuff sit back and enjoy my video of Dovedale. This video is best viewed in 720p HD and fullscreen.

My video of Dovedale Stepping Stones.




My original source video that was uploaded to YouTube was 474Mb and took over two hours to upload!

Map of Dovedale Stepping Stones.
If you have never visited Dovedale Stepping Stones then here is a detailed map of this area.
I have marked the exact position of Dovedale Stepping Stones along with where you park etc.


View Dovedale, Derbyshire Peak District in a larger map

If you want to take the map with you then click the link above so you have a large version you can print out.
If you zoom out a bit you will see I have even marked on useful bits on the road to the car park.



Hope you like my little video of Dovedale.
Andy

Tuesday 6 July 2010

Derby Caribbean Carnival 17th July 2010 with Procession Route Map.

UPDATE Click --- > The 2011 the Derby Caribbean Carnival takes place on Saturday 16th July.



Here is my complete guide to this years Derby Carnival. Complete with detailed route map for the procession so you know where the best place to stand along the route to get a view of the dancers and their great costumes.

Keep an eye on this blog on Monday as I will hopefully be uploading a video of Derby Carnival 2010.

On Saturday 17th July 2010 the 24th Derby Caribbean Carnival Parade will take place.
The Procession starts at 1pm from Pear Tree Street and navigates slowly through Derby to the Market Place about 3pm. Shenell Gayle has been crowned Derby Caribbean Carnival Queen and will head the two-hour procession through the Market Place. On the procession, a 30-strong group of dancers from Derby West Indian Community Association will be joined by troupes from other cities, including London, Leicester, Nottingham, Bradford, Leeds and Birmingham.

On Sunday 18th July 2010, the Caribbean Carnival will descend upon Osmaston Park, where music acts will perform on stage. There will also be a fun fair, catering stalls selling Caribbean and European foods and arts and crafts stalls








Here is a short video I took at last years Derby carnival :



Derby Carnival Procession Route Map
Here is a detailed map showing the complete route that the 2010 Derby Carnival Parade will take on 17th July 2010. Click the link below the map if you want a large version you can print out:


View Derby Caribbean Carnival Procession Route Map. in a larger map

I took lots of photographs at a previous Carnival which you can see on my website :
Derby Carnival Photogrpaphs.





Lets hope the weather is good for this years carnival. You can check out what the weather is going to be like for this years Derby Carnival by clicking here:  Derby Weather.


Andy

Sunday 4 July 2010

Pick Your Own Strawberries now at Scaddows Farm, Ticknall.

Update ! July 2011
Click me ----> Driving time-lapse video to PYO Farm.

Its that time of year again when you can go and pick your own fruit at several places around Derbyshire.
Because of the great weather over the last few weeks this has to be the best crop of Strawberries.
British Strawberries are the best by miles.

Here is a photograph of the fruit we picked in about 20 mins, over 3.5Kg of large sweet Strawberries. These cost £5.75 which includes 27p per cardboard basket.






This particular P.Y.O. farm is Scaddows Farm at Ticknall, have been there before and its not far to drive to from Derby, just head out of Derby via Chellaston on the A514 then over Swarkestone Bridge and right just after going through Stanton by bridge and follow that road until you see the Pick Your Own Strawberries signs on the left. (See my map below).
Its just an 8 minute drive from Chellaston (following the A514 all the way to the farm)




If you are using a SATNAV to get there then use the Postcode DE73 7JP and as you get near Scaddows farm you will see the PYO signs so you can't miss it.

Google Streetview of Scaddows Farm Entrance.

Once you drive through the gate you turn left and follow the path down to the car park. Park up and get a cardboard basket or plastic punnet from the owners and then walk through the gap to start picking the Strawberries. Once you have picked enough you just walk back to the people with the scales and they will weigh the baskets and tell you how much to pay.
They will also ask you to get on the scales so they can see if you have eaten any and not paid for them ! (Only joking).
My tip for getting the best Strawberries is to walk right down to the bottom corner as most people are lazy and just stay near the entrance.

The Pick Your Own fruit area is open 9.30am-7.30pm and has lots of FREE parking.
As well as Strawberries they also have Raspberries, Gooseberries and Blackcurrents that you can pick for yourself. Fruiting Season is June to late July, depending on the British weather.


View Scaddows Farm, Pick Your Own Strawberries. in a larger map


As well as the Pick Your Own area there is a Farm Shop which offers fruit and veg from South Derbyshire Growers, meat from an award winning butcher, Cheese from Leicestershire and locally made jams, chutneys, cakes and other goodies.

Farm Shop Opening times
Monday - Friday 8.30am-5.30pm (café closes 4.30pm)

Saturday 8.30am - 4.30pm (café closes 4pm)
Sunday 10am - 4pm (café closes 3.30pm)


Scaddows Farm website.

Hope you found this post of use. Go out there and get some real fresh fruit for yourself !
Andy.