Urban fox

An urban fox sits quietly on a street corner in Bermondsey, south London, as the evening sets in. © Magnus Andersson

Ah, its been a while since I last posted one of these pictures shot from the car while sitting in traffic or just waiting around. I'm pretty sure that I have a few of them lying around, will have to dig around in the archive and see if I can find them.

Its Friday night and I've just finished work but over in America, the marketing genius that is Chase Jarvis, is doing a live video feed from a photo shoot. Starts at 6pm GMT. It will probably go up on his site after the event, should you miss the live broadcast.

Have a good one.

Umida Akhmedova vs. Uzbekistan

© Umida Akhmedova

Bizarre is the only way to describe the ongoing trial against documentary photographer Umida Akhmedova for 'insulting and libeling the Uzbek people and its traditions through her work' and could face up to three years in jail if convicted. She was commissioned by the Swiss Embassy to produce documentary work on gender issues and photographed scenes from everyday life in Uzbekistan.

She was accused after a “complex expert review” of her work revealed that “with her unscientific, unsound, and inappropriate comments, which contain hidden implications, are directed at discrediting values and traditions of our people, and hold negative information that can affect moral and psychological conditions of the youth,” she insulted “traditions of the Uzbek people, which is viewed as defamation, scornful, and disrespectful attitude towards national traditions.”

This is simply a absurd yet shocking case of shooting the messenger. Surely you cant hold a photographer accountable for the traditions and practices of the people that she comes across on her travels throughout a whole country? Her pictures are measured and poignant and full of rich historical detail for future generations. By simply observing a country she has now drawn the wrath of its government and 'defamed an entire nation'.

Sign the petition here.

A gallery of images available from CPJ here, read more here, BBC gallery here.

50% off?

Crashed double decker bus in Balham earlier in the week, with a nice little advert on the side. © Magnus Andersson

2010 is upon us and it has been a slow news year in London so far, not much to report. The terrible events in Haiti have been harrowing though and the images coming out of there are shocking. Here's a collection of images from CNN, but be aware that it contains graphic content. See it here, and please donate even just a little bit to the aid agencies, local or international.

As for the picture above, this happened on Thursday in Balham. Initial rumours said that it was a hijacked bus, but in the end it had an much easier explanation. The driver was still on the scene when we got there so we had a chat with him. Luckily no one was injured as he was on his way to the depot, but his response was classic: 'I normally drive a single decker bus'. Fail!