The problem with having a digital camera and a portable 80 GB hard disk is that you take a lot of photos. There is definitely a risk of thoughtless happy snapping; it’s kind of like being able to eat as much junk food as you like because you have a great metabolism.

My only redeeming feature is that I’m not shy about deleting photos. I’ve deleted about 370 and I was happy with around 700, which is a two-thirds strike rate. It makes me feel better when I delete lots; the average quality of the remaining photos increases with each mediocre shot I send to the recycle bin.

I have finally gone through all my photos from the trip to England and France and here are some of the fruits of my labour. Don’t worry, I’m not going to subject you to a holiday photo slideshow — you know the kind, where the most interested person in the room is the one who went on holiday.