Pentax SLOMO Test

Today I had to run some errands and bored in the public transport I decided to play with my Pentax MX-1 newly discovered Slow Motion video capability and ability to apply filters onto video (in this case Black and White with a Blue filter). So here's some random video captures in slomo on the street. Shot from the hip, of course, street photography style. Added my own track to it as the silent movie era is long gone. Although the camera only captures slomo in VGA mode (640x480) and only 15s at a time, it's still pretty awesome in terms of image quality (which I hope won't be lost on upload here).

Public outcry as ex PM Blair gives testimony

Video Part - 1

Video Part - 2

London 29/01/10 - Former Prime Minister Tony Blair was called today to take the stand as a witness at the Iraq War Inquiry among public outcry and protests, on the 29th of JanuaryThe former PM took to the stand as protesters outside the heavily guarded Queen Elizabeth Center II called for Mr Blair to make a defendant and to be taken to The Hague as a war criminal. Amongst the audience were family members of soldiers who lost their lives in the war.

Mr Blair's testimony caused upset among the families and many walked out of the Inquiry and a protester, Mr Gabriel Carlyle from Hastings, who gained access to the Inquiry room attempted to, in his words, conduct a citizen's arrest of a criminal. Mr Blair's testimony caused further outrage with the admission that he would have taken the same decision of going to war again if put in the same position. The protests continued to the end of the day and further protests awaited the former Prime Minister as he made his way out. The Inquiry continues until February this year

Photographers storm Trafalgar Square in protest

Saturday 23/01/10 - Photographers descended today en masse onto Trafalgar Square demonstrating in defence for the right to take pictures in public. The event, organised by the "I'm a Photographer not a Terrorist" movement, brought photographers to Trafalgar Square in large numbers in an unlicensed mass event that highlighted the plight of photographers and the undergoing erosion of civil liberties under controversial anti terrorism laws, most notably Section 44 of The Terrorism Act. Photographers, both professionals and amateurs including tourists, have been stopped, searched and have had personal details taken by police officers and police community support officers as well as having equipment cinfiscated with little to no evidence, or suspicion of being in breach of any laws. The misuse of the Terrorism Act in the United Kingdom has recently been ruled to be in breach of human rights by the European Court of Human Rights, as complaints have reached a record number, but the despite this the Home Office is seeking to appeal against the rulling. Among the demonstrators was professional architectural photographer Grant Smith, who was apprehended last year by several police officers while taking pictures in what was one of the most controversial cases of misuse of anti-terror laws. The event also counted with the presence of David Hoffman, a photographer whose career has spanned 30 years of journalistic focussing on social issues and particular the increasingly visible control that governments exert over the general public. Despite its high numbers was, the demonstration was peaceful and only one minor incident took place which did not result in any arrests.

Thousands of Muslims commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussain

Thousands of Muslims descended onto London streets to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussain, grandson of Prophet Muhammad. According to history, 1400 years ago Imam Hussain led an army of 72 men against the army of a tyrannical regime comprised of 30,000 soldiers on the plains of Kerbala, a desert approximately 100Km from the south of today's Baghdad. The small army was destroyed yet it took the 30,000 strong nearly 4 hours to defeat them.

Imam Hussain is regarded as an example of standing to make a difference in face of adversity,opression,dictatorship and injustice both by Muslims and non-Muslims and his words are widely quoted by intellectuals, world leaders and revolutionaries.

The march attracted a diverse Muslim community with a message of peace and against of the misuse of religion as justification for personal and political agendas.

09/12/09 - The Danish leaked documents - the Climate Camp's reaction

(this report pertains to 09/12/09)

London 09/12/09 - As news of the leaked documents at the Copenhagen summit reach the Climate Camp, the GLA takes steps to evict the Camp. The Viewfinder went to find out their reactions.

West Papua and the "Act of Free Choice" - Demonstration at the Indonesian Embassy 01/12/09

West Papuans celebrated today what is long held to be West Papua's independence day despite Indonesian dictatorship and suppression of West Papuan culture. The event, celebrated around the world and in the country, counted with the support of the Free West Papua movement in London and the support of International Parlamentarians for West Papua, first established in 2008 and International Lawyers for West Papua. In London, the symbolic launch of the book "An Act of Free Choice.Decolonisation and the Right to Self Determination in West Papua" by P.J. Drooglever, marked the day, with talks at no1 Parliament Street, culminating in MP Andrew Smith alongside West Papuan Chief Benny Wenda delivering the book to the Foreign & CommonWealth Office, in a gesture to "educate the UK Government and the world" of the situation in West Papua. A demonstration in front of the Indonesian Embassy in London also took place as well as letter which was delivered by hand by West Papuan Chief Benny Wenda and wife Maria, despite Indonesian Embassy officials refusing to personally receive the letter.

Drooglever's book, deals with a 1969 act which was presented by Indonesian military and is largely regarded as a whitewash with a claim that West Papuans had chosen Indonesian rule rather than independence. For this effect, the Indonesian government had selected a little over 1000 Melanesian men as West Papuan representatives, around 0.2% of the population, to make the claim. Although, the UN General Assembly Resolution 2504 recognised that there was indeed an event under the denomination of Act of Free Choice, it was not recognised as an act of self-determination. There were severe doubts about the entire process and the men who were selected also claimed that they were blackmailed into signing up for the act. Ever since, the small yet naturally rich country has endured 45 years of a bitter independence struggle under Indonesian rule and great number of human rights abuses and genocide have been reported but the media blackout imposed by Indonesian rule as made the situation largely unnoticed to the outside world. Reports of genocide, rape and disappearances by Indonesian military as well as suppression of West Papuan culture and national identity are nowadays frequent and more widespread as exiled Chief Benny Wenda and the worldwide Free West Papua movement alongside the International Parlamentarians for West Papua initiative have ensured that such reports have global reach. An exposing documentary, “Forgotten Bird of Paradise” by British film maker Dominic Brown, the first foreign national to have gone undercover into West Papua and to have spent time with the country's independence fighters, is now available. The revealing piece, exposes the extent of human rights abuses and the extent of West Papua's struggle for independence.

Young people demonstrate as youth unemployment rises

London, 28/11/09 - Students and Union bosses descend on London to demonstrate against the rise in unemployment among young people; pay and staff cuts in education, and called for the right to free education and better work and training schemes. London, UK. 28/11/2009.

Students and union bosses from all over Britain descended onto London to demonstrate against pay and staff cuts, funding cuts and called for reforms in the education system, as youth unemployment rates go up. Calls for a right for free education, better work and training schemes for young people, as well as a call to the fight against the rise of the far right for protection of the rights of the worker and the regular citizen were the focal point of a demonstration across London. A petition was also delivered to no10 Downing Street by the Chairman of Youth Fight For Jobs movement. The movement counts with the support of national unions as well as the Socialist Party and has vowed to keep campaigning for the rights to jobs for young people as well as involvement in the fight against the rise of the far right.