the bad weather held off just long enough to make this weekend on the Isle of Wight great. Sunny and quiet. Surfing and plenty of good times with the little sitbonzo’s including how to make fire, cut marshmallow sticks and answer one of the all important questions in life……
do the white marshmallows taste different to the pink ones?
Still can’t decide. Better have some more.
So, in true rock star fashion there has been a bit of a mix up. Neil and the other band dudes did their practice but (forgot!!) to tell me where and when. I don’t think I am too much of a dictator behind the camera but I may have scared these good ol boys.
you can catch them at the Hare and Hounds, Preston Circus, Brighton at about 10pm Friday.
Mrs Sitbonzo booked the ferry to the island so the BonzoBus is now loaded and waiting to take us on the road. Bit of a misfire but she is pulling strongly ( the bus that is.) This may well be the last major road trip before she visits the tin doctor.
Fingers crossed for better weather than last time.
p.s. thanks for your feedback about the Knife videos.
What have I done? As we dropped the little sitbonzos off to swimming club we were spotted by some old friends so we stopped for a drink a chat and a plate of nachos. Turns out Neil is getting the band back on the road for a one off gig.( sounds more like the Blues Brothers) Now, I’ve never seen them play, but the playlist sounds good. They’re doing a charity gig in Brighton on Friday night. ( no, Its not to raise money for the penguin)
I’ll be in the Isle of Wight so wont be able to go but, did mention I need some video practice and tomorrow nights rehersal does sound like it could be some fun although I AM supposed to be taking some time off!
I have a plan. get mrs sitbonzo to drop me off, Drink beer and play at being video guy. Any blur / crap shots will magic into creative interpretation. edit quick and dirty and job will be a youtube success. oh yes the simple plans are the best, ones that involve getting drunk and doing fun stuff are better. Now, where did i leave the rest of my smoke grenades.
mmm wonder if Carrie Fisher will turn up.
The alarm clock goes off every day at 5.30am. Those days that I’m not off to work I turn it off. But, it turns out I don’t need an alarm clock because my body does a pretty good job of waking me up itself.
Voila. 6am bank holiday and I am wide awake. I’ve been wandering about, working on my plans for world domination and looking on ebay. I wonder what time I can wake up the kids? should I put in a bid for a 1980 Mercedes 450sl?
Eventually finished the ‘Knife crime’ videos by midnight Thursday. The late hour due to the last showing to web editor spotting that 2 of the stills in the middle of one of the shows were not the right boy. That meant a 2 hour remake of the whole thing.
I’m dissapointed not to have had much feedback but, I guess I’ve also not had any complaints. viewings are standing at just under 700.
Holidays this week, the last for a while, maybe we’ll try the Isle of Wight again. Weather still doesn’t look great. Meeting with the Grand Fromage on Tuesday. Can’t decide to turn up to the meeting in the campervan and Hawian shirt. Probably best not to.
The Croydon Advertiser recently hosted a conference on knife crime.
We filmed 5 interviews with the family and friends of 5 of the young people killed recently in Croydon.
To view these interviews please type
Knife crime into the search box.
Nilanthan Murddi died on the 16th August 2008. These thoughts are from his Sister Santhiya and cousins Ramya Muraliidaram and Vinisha Mahniuasaghan following the Croydon Advertiser Knife crime conference on Tuesday.
Knife crime. Nilanthan Murddi. from Sitbonzo on Vimeo.
Billy Ward died on the 8th December 2007. These thoughts are from his mother Jenny following the Croydon Advertiser Knife crime conference on Tuesday.
Knife crime. Billy Ward. from Sitbonzo on Vimeo.
Evren Anil died on the 13th August 2007. These thoughts are from his cousin Yasemin Aray following the Croydon Advertiser Knife crime conference on Tuesday.
Knife crime. Evren Anil. from Sitbonzo on Vimeo.
Eugene Attram died on the 4th November 2006. These thoughts are from his father Isaac following the Croydon Advertiser Knife crime conference on Tuesday.
Knife crime. Eugene Attram. from Sitbonzo on Vimeo.
Gavin Brown died on the 14th October 2005. These thoughts are from his mother Anita following the Croydon Advertiser Knife crime conference on Tuesday.
Knife crime. Gavin Brown. from Sitbonzo on Vimeo.
Well. The back of this project is broken. Come to think of it, most of me is broken too. I’ve definitely got a cold coming, probably due to having the door to the edit cave closed, with the air con on for 2 days straight.
1 more video to encode then all 5 need to be uploaded to Vimeo and the Advertiser video hosting service. I guess that will take about 3 hours so, if I’m lucky I will be able to put this all up later this evening. If you have an RSS feed you will know as soon as they get posted.
I warn you though it may be tough viewing.
Mrs Sitbonzo has been very understanding but, I left her a message telling that for the 4th night in a row she will be home alone ( with the BonzoBrats of course )
Holiday next week 
Oh yeah, My mac is sad.
Man. I’ve been pulling all kinds of tricks to try to get this all to come together. I’ve got an external hard drive that is almost full and a mac that is rather frail. A colleagues Macbook with a DVD burner but no power lead!
Got thrown out of the office at 10 last night and got back here at 730 again. Still, I’ve produced the 5 videos as best I can and now just have to encode them and get them up onto various hosting sites. I guess I may be pulling another late one but these shows need to be live for the paper coming out tomorrow.
Updates later.
I’ve been sitting here since 7.30 this morning trying to import the near on 3 hours of video from last nights meeting. This mac is DEAD I am sure. The Wing Wang hard disk is just not big enough and the processor too slow.
Its now just after 1pm and I am seriously thinking of just tossing it out of the window. Did I say that my Mac needed replacing?
I’ve just borrowed one of the freelance photographers machines and am actually sitting open mouthed gawping at it as it is capturing the video in real time as opposed to the 1/4 speed mine will do with small clips. Hells Teeth!
gggrrrrr. Well, at least this will let me get the video on my machine so as I can start to edit.
Appy dayz!
2.30 update.. Curses….. new machine video not compatible with old machine video. I wonder if I am going to spend the night in the office? no. I’m not kidding.
We have a really important meeting planned for after work today. It will, I think, prove to be a very interesting piece for the paper.
I have been asked to capture it on video.
All the video pieces I have produced so far are the kind of thing that is possible to re shoot or dump. Tonight is different and I am determined to get it right.
Learning anything new is a challenge and this video malarkey is actually quite a bit harder than I ever imagined. Still, all these light pieces I have been making, like the new Inspect A Gadget, all help me to learn storytelling with moving pictures.
Its funny, after all these years as a committed stills shooter, I really look forward to picking up the video camera.
The second in our new series of gadget reviews
REVIEW Inspect A Gadget. 19th August 2008 from Sitbonzo on Vimeo.
** BREAKING NEWS****
A teenage boy stabbed in the neck during a brawl in Croydon in the early hours of the morning has died.
The boy, believed to be 17 years old, was attacked after a scuffle broke out between six to eight men on Sumner Road near the junction with London Road at about 1.30am this morning.
West Croydon murder. from Sitbonzo on Vimeo.
Latest shows are on this page but use the search box, look through the categories or browse the archive. If you don’t find what you are looking for just drop us a line.
It’s always nice to hear from you. Please leave comments, ideas for new soundslides or video. email. Voicemail or Text 07530 753 303
Thanks, Sitbonzo
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Flash (download here)Quicktime (download here)
Esther and Andy Pag set off with 9 other cars to drive from London to Greece using only cars powered by vegetable oil or bio-diesel made from used chip fat.
Grease to Greece. 16th August 2008 from Sitbonzo on Vimeo.
Yet another youth killed on the streets of Croydon this morning. We cover a lot of crime on our patch but it seems the rise in ultra violent attacks are on the increase. It really makes me sad to think how many people are affected by this tragic waste of life. The solution? Who knows but the liberal in me is being sorely tested.
I covered the police operation at the scene in stills and video and did my first ever voice over. Up within 2 hours of arriving on scene. Also, today I have produced the Grease piece which I will crunch overnight.
Off home to cuddle my children.
Teenager stabbed to death in Croydon brawl.
Be safe
A fun but busy day with the first of what I hope will become a regular feature. ‘Inspect A gadget’
Let me know what you think and, do tell, what is your best / worst gadget?
Had a good afternoon with Andy Pag who is setting off tomorrow on a drive to Athens with 10 other cars powered entirely by either vegetable oil or bio-diesel made from used chip fat. I’ll be in the office tomorrow producing the video. Go team kebab!
But, if it were this much fun I may be tempted to try! ( you need your sound on)
An interview with Daryl Strawbridge. Eyewitness to the Crane collapse at Croydon Park Hotel. June 2007. Daryl was in the park with his girlfriend when he witnessed and photographed this dramatic accident. He recounts his experience with us and we reshow the Soundslide made in the hours following the incident.
REVISIT. The Croydon Park Hotel Crane collapse June 2007 from Sitbonzo on Vimeo.
My late shift sees me back to crunching video. My poor mac placed next to the fan to try and keep it cool. Did I mention I am patiently waiting for the Mac gods to swoop down and deliver me one that can process a 4min video in less than 2 hours?
I’m no too unhappy to be sitting here. Little sitbonzo *1 was in such a foul mood yesterday on her return from a 4 day brownie camp that I did at one point think about sleeping in the garage.
ho hum. just another 1hour 50mins to wait. What to have for dinner?
bon voyage.
I don’t ‘do’ weddings as a rule. Too much pressure. I’ve done my sisters, My best friend and One other a long time ago.
However, having seen ‘the man’ in Oxford today I think it will have to be considered.
I could always sell my beloved camper and buy a…… well. Old style, mint Fiat 500, old mint Merc 450sl or countlless other classic cars. But, after nearly 6 years, she (Betty) has become part of the family. Lil Sitbonzo *1 would probably kill me. She is 9, owns half of the bus, and asks me every time we go for a drive when she will be able to take her turn at the wheel.
I can do Bahmitvahs kiddies parties and portraits
I suppose I could ask for a raise or wait to see the Christmas bonus???
When I left you last dear reader we were into a long day of soundslide production.
It was a long boring slog but had to be done. When almost finished the BATPHONE started ringing.
MASSIVE EXPLOSION Whitehorse Road Thornton Heath.
I jumped in the car and sped out.
My friends, expecting to meet me at 6pm were calling. ‘ you s’posed to finish at 5.30pm?’ yeas but it’s news fellas. I’ll meet you at the pub.
Great night with my oldest buddies but, they forced me to drink too much and then eat a truly excellent Chinese meal ( to celebrate the Olympics)
Friend *1 reccomeded listening to a guy called Dan Le Sac. and I pass you a link to two
utube videos which i think are very interesting.
Off to Oxford on Monday to take the van to the metal surgeon. She needs a facelift.
Massive explosion
http://www.thisiscroydontoday.co.uk/latestnews/South-Norwood-homes-evacuated-broken-gas-main/article-258879-detail/article.html
and while nearby, go this story too!
http://www.thisiscroydontoday.co.uk/latestnews/Young-man-splits-head-open-Thornton-Heath-pools/article-258859-detail/article.html
After Dark. House Freaks at Loop Pool Bar 19th July 2008
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 4:04 mins
After Dark. HUB 31st May 2008
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 5:30 mins
After Dark. Loop Pool Bar 31st May 2008
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 3:59 mins
After Dark. REFLEX 30th May and 19th July 2008
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 3:08 mins
After Dark. Crystal Palace Football Club Player of the Year awards. 16th May 2008
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 5:02 mins
After Dark. HUB 16th May 2008
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 5:56 mins
After Dark. HUB 10th May 2008
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 3:14 mins
After Dark. RIZE@LOOP 4th May 2008
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 3:08 mins
After Dark. HUB 19th April 2008.
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 6:40 mins
After Dark. Reflex 12th April 2008.
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 2:28 mins
After Dark. RIZE@HUB 30th March 2008. Another one?
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 6:19 mins
After Dark. RIZE@HUB 30th March 2008.
Photographs by: Paul Martyniuk
click on the picture to play.
Duration 6:20 mins
11pm cat starts making a noise to go out
1am cat sits outside window making a noise to come in
4am cat jumps on my head wanting to go out
6am cat comes in and makes a racket for food
6.30am I go to work!
7.30am I get to work and start production on 13 After Dark soundslides.
12.30pm I am on Afterdark soundslide number 6
later today aprox 6.30pm pick up my best buddy to go to the pub. ahhh I deserve it. If I am taking your photograph tomorrow I may be a bit groggy
yo yo daddy mac! no no, not a new mac but a good meeting with the chief. I love going into meetings with some really strong ideas and a receptive audience, when you know you are both talking sense and get some good things discussed and sorted out. Those kind of meetings really make life alot easier.
so would a new mac by the way!
Ian Stratton is still at mission control working on the site but I am sure there will be some cool things going on soon. I hope one of the next things is a coments section as long as it dosent get filled with spam which is what happened before.
I made the mistake of telling the little sitbonzo’s about the kittens i photographed today and had quite a long and pleading discussion with them explaining again why we can’t get one. The facts are that our lakeland terrier would be more than likely rip it apart before it had a chance to use the litter tray. One of our cats already traumatised by a close and not so productive meeting, moved in with the neighbour.
————————————————
4th August 2008. Stand by your beds. the chief is back.
Well, It was a long day. Thanks to the guys on the desk, not too stressful but, no new mac and my 80-200mm lens is still in the menders. The 300mm lens is also still broken in the safe! grr.
However, when I got home, the delivery I have been waiting for had arrived. 2 new filters for the video camera. Cool. Unfortunataly, the skylight (to protect the lens) wont combine with the lens hood ( to protect the lens) doh, thanks Sony or B&W I don’t know who to call a Klutz.
I got some comments from you lot and thanks for those. I do need more so please keep them coming. I also managed to cheer up the Editor with some good feedback which is always nice.
3rd August 2008. oh err Mrs. Did you enjoy your bit of camping?
It’s got to that time of the holliday that always comes. The Sunday before the return to work!
We did a few days on the Island but were sad that our usual campsite had been taken over. £5 per night now magically £25+vat? We ditched idea that and stayed in Auntie Penny’s garden. Not quite as intimate as it sounds as Auntie Penny owns a pretty big chunk of the coast near Ventnor. Lots of bunnies and some cattle in the next field kept both the kids and the dog happy. The rain meant we came home a bit soggy. Everything in the washing machine now for mammoth ironing session this afternoon.
I’m kinda looking forward to getting back to work and cracking on with this new video adventure. I do hope the request for a beefy mac (not the golden arches kind) has gone through but in the meantime I will have to continue with this one, sitting next to the aircon to keep the processor from frying.
my list of video ideas is short so I really would appreciate any input you care to make.
so far I have:
the cost of bottled water both to pocket and planet.
some kind of ‘interesting’ cooking show.
Ian S’s look at a once famous theatre, now a bit shabby.
fuel ( early stages)
I think Ian Stratton ( web guru) has been working on a new look for the sitbonzo site so I hope to be able to sit down with him sometime this week to have a look at what he has done so far. the early look I got last week was pretty cool.
This picture kinda sums how my time in the camper feels to me.
