Lego figures are great to animate because their movement is simple, and they can stick to things. After we’d made a couple of videos (see below) we had a look on YouTube for others, and boy were there some good ones! Lots of great advice on there too.

Things We Learnt

• A consistent light source would have worked a lot better. We did have a play with an LED torch as a moving and spooky source of light, but think that would require more time to perfect.
• Use a tripod. I no longer have a tripod, so I was actually using Lego and blutac to steady the camera – I do not advise this. You want the camera as still as possible.
• Keep the backdrop still. Our backdrop was a sheet over a door, not fixed to anything. We hadn’t actually considered the backdrop when we started.
• Smaller aperture for bigger depth of field. I already knew this, but I’m one of those people that loves blurred backgrounds too much. Given the angle we were shooting, this didn’t work so well. Our initial tests with Shaggy he ended up out of focus for most of the video.

16 years ago someone introduced me to the glory that is “How’s it Going to Be?”, and that lead to the discovery of the quintessentially 90s Third Eye Blind. They’ve been on my “bands to see” list for quite some time as they rarely come to the UK. Friday was the night, and it was much as you’d expect. The full on fans loving every minute, and a large chunk of us waiting for the classics. I think you’ll get that divide when a band goes so many years without releasing a record, although I suspect it’s less of an issue when they play the US.

They’re a very interactive, tactile band. Stephan threw flowers into the audience and mashed his head on his guitar in the excitement (you can see the cut in the above video). We were instructed to talk to the people around us—I met a guy that followed the band around and had seen them over 50 times! That’s dedication.

The gig was a lot of fun, really upbeat. People completely lost it for Jumper, could not hear the band at all at some points. Would have been even cooler with less smoke so we could see their lovely faces better! All in all I was very happy to finally get to scream along to How’s it Going to Be, and pretend it was still the 90s

From Vegetarian Nosh 4 Students – Spinach, Bean and Potato Bake. Substitutions: Pure Soya (dairy free “butter”). I left out the honey but you could use Agave Nectar instead. Photo looks like a small serving, but with the beans it was more than enough.

From Vegetarian Nosh 4 Students – Tomato and Lentil Soup. Substitutions: none. The lentils really help turn this into a meal. Very quick and easy to make. I didn’t puree mine and it still tasted great.

From Vegetarian Nosh 4 Students – Sweet Potato Tagine with couscous. Substitutions: none. This feels like a big hit of nutrients. I’m not so keen on the texture of aubergine, so would probably swap this out for more courgette next time.

Barry M green and black crackle.

A combination of autumn colours as a freehand thick stripe. Orange and glitter are Barry M, purple is unknown.

From Vegetarian Nosh 4 Students – Split Pea Risotto. Substitutions: none. Hearty and filling, split peas are definitely a hit here.

From Vegetarian Nosh 4 Students – Cherry Cookies. Substitution: Pure soya (dairy free “butter”). I added some Freedom Mallows as well, which melted just like regular marshmallows. These were so good they did not last very long at all.

Barry M jelly orange, Barry M aquarium.