What a year 2020 was? For most of us it started with loads of hope and then it went downhill from there. As in, what was that year even? I am sure for a lot of us, it was a year we would like to forget.
Of course the year was not all that bad for some with a few achievements here and there. I certainly can find one or two things to celebrate, but the negatives of the year can easily erase those good memories. On reflection though, that one positive should be enough though to motivate you to keep fighting for better outcomes in dire situations. Right?
I just hope that 2021 brings with it good fortune and prosperity we all deserve.
Anyway, I did some number crunching for my blog and here are my stats for 2020.
Blogging-wise, 2020 was a good year for me as I stuck to my plan to blog at least once a week, with the exception of August as I was in the middle of finishing my Postgrad and it needed my attention.
I am really looking forward to 2021 as I cannot wait to share more of my work here and continue with the 30 Day Photo Challenges.
What would you like to see more of in 2021? Please let me know by leaving a comment below.
Thank you for reading this to the end and I wish you all the best in the year to come.
DISCLAIMER: This is my personal review of the Simple Green Smoothie Spring Cleanse aka Fresh Start Spring Cleanse 2017. Some of the words used here are from SGS to guide the cleansers (like me) write a personal experience on doing cleanse.
In My Own Words
I have been following Simple Green Smoothies since 2015 when I was looking for ways of improving my diet after having my second child and also introducing vegetables into my kid’s diets. After doing a few internet searches, I found Simple Green Smoothies. As much as they are based in the US and I live in England, that did not matter as I like how SIMPLE their recipes and guides to a healthy you are. It so happened that when I signed up for their newsletter, they were about to start their 30-Day Smoothie Challenge in October 2015 and I knew that would be the start of an interesting journey when it comes to healthy eating.
Well, that is a story for another day.
Fast forward to 2017, here I am looking for a way to get my healthy eating habits back on track and I get a newsletter from SGS about the Spring Cleanse. I have seen them do a cleanse pack before, but I was so reluctant to try as I was so busy with my studies, running a household and just trying to stay on top of things. Now that I have more or less finished my degree, I decided that the timing, although not perfect, was as good as any. So I took the plunge and signed up for the Fresh Start Spring Cleanse aka #FS21. The cleanse was a 21-Day programme from 3 – 23 April 2017, but you can still join the cleanse and start when you are ready. The disadvantage with that is that you will not be part of the Facebook Group that was created for the cleanse as it helps with getting support from other people trying the cleanse. My opinion would be to wait for the next cleanse as you would definitely benefit from having that moral support from other cleansers. The temptation to fall off the wagon is great and seeing that you are not the only one struggling when temptation rears its ugly head can be a relief.
Mixed Greens with Strawberry Herb Dressing
Groceries
Carrot Cake Warrior Bars
Smoothie Fruit Packs
Herbalicious Hummus with Veggies
So, for me, the best way to give my review of the cleanse was to do a video diary. Just me talking about how I feel whilst doing the cleanse, the recipes that I liked and didn’t like and the lessons I have learnt along the way.
Carrot Pineapple Green Smoothie
Baked Hash Cakes with Peas
White Bean Chard Skillet
Black Bean Zucchini Tacos
Apple Cucumber Mint Green Smoothie
Apologies for the long review. Also, some part of the edit the audio does not sync with the video and I could not fix it. So, for that, I am sorry!🙈
Towards the end, I did the following as per SGS’s questions for the review:
The Intro – Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? (ex: where you live, family, job, kids, pets, passions, dream vacation, anything that excites you really )
My Hesitations – What hesitations did you have about buying Fresh Start?
Favourites from the Cleanse – What was your favourite part about the cleanse?
Recommendations – If you had a friend who’s not sure if they should do Fresh Start, what would you tell ’em?
Carrot Cake Warrior Bars with Herbal Tea
Asparagus Quinoa Salad with Dijon Vinaigrette
Veggie Pizza with Quinoa Crust
Cream Machine Smoothie
Indian Coconut Curry with Brown Rice
In the words of Simple Green Smoothies
Fresh Start (spring) is a 21-day cleanse created by Simple Green Smoothies. This positive transformation program is for you IF…
• You’re ready to stop making excuses and take charge of your health.
• You want to feel energised, confident and well rested, so you can feel amazing in your body.
• You’re willing to skip highly processed ingredients and empty calorie meals.
• You believe health is a journey and you’re looking for a system that you can stick to without feeling deprived.
• You’re willing to invest a little extra time in the kitchen, knowing that healthy and nutritious meals take some extra lovin’ in the oven (no more “cooking is a chore” excuses).
• You’re excited to get out of your comfort zone (trying new foods, resisting temptations, giving up caffeine and alcohol).
What a year 2016 has been. I bet most of you would like to see the back of it and hope that 2017 will be much much better.
Well, the last time I did this review, I was under the assumption that I would attempt to blog as much as I would. I guess I should stop talking typing about it and just get on with it.
I know, I know. You are supposed to review what you have blogged about in 2016. Truth be told, I have only put up like 9 posts in 2016 and I will be including some if it in my review. So I thought I just put up what I have actually been up to in 2016 with a few insights here and there.
With that said, I have actually had a busy 2016, much of which I have shared on my Instagram feed, but I will share some of those highlights here with a few new images.
It is kind of a long blog post as I will be covering all 12 months of 2016 (even if I did nothing photographically that month).
So here goes…
January 2016
Whilst in the studio working on a project that never saw the light of day, I got a chance to photograph Aster, who is also a photographer. You can follow her on Instagram or check out her work here.
Aster, 2016
It was whilst working on the project I mentioned above that I made a conscious decision to spend a lot of time in the studio just getting to learn more about lighting, what works and what doesn’t. Basically, I and a few friends were on a mission to build our studio lighting confidence in a way, like this image of myself taken with the help of my photographer friend, Michael Tubi.
Elsie, 2016
Also, this gave me a chance to work on my people skills whilst taking their picture. It is not an easy fete, making someone feel comfortable in front of a lens. It also made me learn a few things about myself as a photographer and what I enjoy doing.
My time in the studio also gave me ideas on how to work towards my final project my degree and future projects moving forward. 2016 was definitely looking up.
February 2016
The sporting calendar or should I say, my sporting photography calendar for the year started in February with the Rugby Six Nations tournaments kicking it off.
I managed to get access to a few of the England Women’s matches that happened at The Twickenham Stoop and Twickenham Stadium.
London, UK. 27th February 2016. A lineout during the Women’s Six Nations match between England and Ireland at Twickenham. England won the match 13 – 9. Credit: Elsie Kibue
On top of this, I was busy researching, planning and working out my final year project (FMP) for my degree. So anything I did henceforth formed as part of my research.
March 2016
By now it was already settled that I would be focusing my FMP on ‘Women in Sports’ and I was experimenting with different concepts. This image I took of some of the University of Westminster netball team before they got ready for a match at the campus sports hall.
UniWest Netball Team, 2016.
At the same time, when the opportunity arose, I was back in the studio building my portraits portfolio. I got to work with a singer, songwriter, Vicky Sola in collaboration again with Michael Tubi.
Vicky Sola, 2016.
April 2016
London Marathon month was here and I again got access to cover the press events leading up to marathon day itself. I always enjoy myself when I am out and about photographing sports athletes. This year, one of my images ended up being used on the front cover of a newspaper in Scotland. My first ever FRONT PAGE.☺️ One of the highlights of the year.
ACTUAL IMAGE – London, UK. 24th April 2016. Callum Hawkins first of the British men elite runners to cross the finish line during Sunday’s Virgin Money London Marathon. Callum Hawkins crossing the finish line first with a time of 02:10:52 coming 8th overall. Credit: Elsie Kibue
Newspaper Usage / Tearsheet
May 2016
May is always a busy one for me as it is my birthday month and the London Rugby Sevens Series comes into town for its final leg. A weekend of rugby sevens usually takes its toll on me that it takes me a few days to recover after the tournament. I thought I do something different from the norm and I ended up taking the Kenya 7s team photos with my Instax Mini 8 camera and they got featured in the Instax UK HQ Instagram account.
Also, a few of my images were turned into illustrations by an artist based in Kenya, Dennis Muiruri.
Willy Ambaka – Actual Image & Illustration
Biko Adema – Actual Image & Illustration
June 2016
This month was one hectic month. It was the month that was full of mixed emotions. It was the month that the Degree Show happened. It came and went by so fast, that the months leading up to this felt like a weird blurry past.
I was actually gutted by one thing though…the prints refused to stay up on the wall. It was a good and bad thing. No one foresees such circumstances, but you just have to roll with the punches and exhibit the best way that you can. So, they ended up on the floor.
And this is how when the Travers Smith staff came by to see our work, found them and something about my project made them pick it for the CRS Art Programme their firm started in 2015. Boy was I beside myself when I got the news that my work was selected. It had been an emotional few months leading up to the exhibition as I was really struggling to come up with a concept/project that I would be on going beyond my degree.
My continued collaboration with Frenglish (French & English) Artist & Producer, Man Like Nells happened. We went back to the studio to shoot some more images for promotional work.
Nells EP Photoshoot
Nells EP Photoshoot
The second image ended up being used in an interview Man Like Nells had with MOBO later in the year in December. You can read the whole interview here.
July 2016
With the rollercoaster that June was, I just decided to enter a photo competition, enjoy the summer, my kids, prepare my prints for Travers Smith and wait for the Olympic games to begin really. I unconsciously ‘put away’ my camera.
The academic year in the UK starts and I am basically planning my next few months of writing schedules and what I can also do in-between to keep my photography mojo going. So I organised a few photo shoots with the Men’s Basketball team from University, but this ended up happening in October once all the freshers were settled and teams finalised. So, I didn’t do much photography wise other than a store opening in my area…
Visited the 1:54 Contemporary African Art Fairin Somerset House, saw some artwork and also researched for my dissertation as I would be writing on African Photography. I also managed to attend the official launch of the England Women’s Rugby Team, aptly named the RED ROSES.
It was also the month the winners for the MyAfrica Photo Competition were announced. Unfortunately, I did not win, but my submitted image was one of the few selected to be featured in the Mo Ibrahim Foundation competition gallery.
Other than the pressure of writing a 10k paper, I managed to squeeze in a few days of photo shoots. As planned, the University’s photo shoot went ahead as the UK continued to bask in an extended summer of sorts.
I took the opportunity at the WR Awards to continue on with my Instax project. This time shot using the Fujifilm Instax Mini 70 that I bought so I could gift the Mini 8 to my son.
I decided to ‘chill out’ and plan for the new year. So I will end this review with the gem I created with my heartbeats. After all, I do consider myself a mumtog (a mother and photographer).
2016 has certainly been interesting, but I am really looking forward to what 2017 has in store.
What would they like to see more of in 2017? Please let me know by leaving a comment below.
Thank you for reading this to the end and I wish you all the best in the year to come.
