Your Photos Matter - Create a Photo Book
I completely forgot about a collection of images I had so I decided to do something with them!
Don’t Forget to Publish Your Photos!
In October of last year, I went on a photography bucket list trip to the Isle of Skye. This wasn’t a last-minute trip but one that I had probably started to organise some 18 months prior to departure. Over that 18 month period, I had a lot of time to get excited about the trip. Needless to say that when the trip did finally come around my levels of excitement were through the roof.
With all that planning and excitement I find it odd that I left the photographs I captured just sitting on my hard drive. What was the point in spending all that time and money on capturing these images and doing nothing with them! So I decided the best and most interesting way to publish these photographs was with a photo book. If you a regular reader of the blog you’ll know how keen I am on creating something physical from my photographs. This time though, rather than print them myself I would create a photo book.
You can see how I went about it in the video below:
I hope you enjoyed the video and it has inspired you to dig about your catalogue of images, print some of them, or even create a photo book yourself. If you do, please let me know in the comments below.
My Isle of Skye Photographs
I hope you enjoy the collection of photographs that I placed in my book. Just click on a thumbnail to view the image full screen and see all the shooting information.
Discovering Beauty in a Winter Woodland
In the blog this week I head back to Holne Bridge to show you why I’m photographing one of my favourite autumn locations in the middle of winter.
Inspired by a Bit of Luck
I recently shared a blog post in which I talked about having a Plan A, B and C and how I ended up photographing one of my favourite autumn locations in winter. The photographs I captured surprised me and they made me realise that I was maybe missing a trick by ignoring Holne Bridge in the winter.
If I was missing a trick then I thought other photographers might be missing out on great photographs from their favourite seasonal locations by not shooting them off-season. As I already wanted to head back to Holne Bridge to capture some more winter landscape photographs I decided that I would create a video of my experience and share it with you in the hope that it will inspire you to do something similar.
Using a Circular Polariser
Over the last few weeks I’ve been chatting to a fellow photographer who is just starting out with his use of filters and I said one of the most important filters for most landscape photographers is the circular polariser. This statement was particularly true for me at Holne Bridge. In fact when it comes to photographing water the circular polariser is an essential bit of kit for me.
In the photographs below you’ll find an example of the same scene, one photograph was taken with the polariser on, and the other with no polariser. I think it clearly shows how much of a difference this filter can make. I’ve included a little demo of the effects of a circular polariser in the video as well. (If you are interested I use the Kase Filters K9 circular polariser).
I really hope you enjoyed this video and that it’s maybe inspired you to visit one of your favourite locations off-season. If it has or you already do something like this then please let me know in the comments below.
The Photographs
As always, here are the photographs that I captured in the video. Just click on them to see them in a larger format.
Holne Bridge at Winter, Dartmoor, Devon - Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm f/4 at 23mm, f/13, 1/4 sec at ISO 200, Kase Filters K9 holder and CPL.
The same image as above but without the polariser.
Winter River at Holne Bridge, Dartmoor, Devon - Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm f/4 at 18mm, f/13, 1/4 sec at ISO 400, Kase Filters K9 holder and CPL.
Keep Calm and Embrace the Grey
Big sunrises, amazing light, and epic skies. These are just some of the elements that have helped shape some of my best landscape photographs. But what do you do when you don't have those things? What if the conditions are grey, overcast and still?
It’s All About the Light
Over the years some of my best photos have been shaped by the light. I’m always seeking the type of light that will lift my compositions from looking a little dull and flat into something with texture, dimension and contrast. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that you can’t get good images in flatter light, but the images that I like creating often require good light to make them a little more special.
Winter in the UK can be a challenging time for photography. The weather can be rather unsettled and grey flat days tend to be the norm rather than the exception. With so much overcast weather I decided it was once again time to #EmbraceTheGrey and I knew just the place to go.
Right Subject for the Conditions
Back in December 2018, I had visited The Cobb and the image that I captured changed the way I viewed that location. Rather than a location I would only visit when the waves were big and the sky glorious, I really wanted to capture a photograph when it was all still, flat and overcast. I almost got what I was looking for on that visit but I actually wanted it to be even more overcast! I wanted it to be even greyer!
For some time now I’ve been hoping to get those very conditions so I could make the photograph that I had in my mind’s eye. When a recent weather forecast predicted the conditions I was looking for, I thought it was finally time to head back to The Cobb.
In my latest video below I will share with you the experience of going back to The Cobb to try and capture the image I had envisioned all those months ago. I’ll also show you how I post-processed it and how I printed it.
I do hope you enjoyed the video. Though I’ll always be chasing that glorious light, hopefully, this video has shown you that having a subject or location that you can embrace the grey with is not only useful but can also lead to some very pleasing images.
Do you have a favourite location where you #EmbraceTheGrey? Let me know in the comments below.
And finally, here is that image you saw me capture, print and frame.
Embracing the Grey at The Cobb, Lyme Regis, Dorset - Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm f/4 at 16mm, f/13, 182 seconds at ISO 64, Kase Filters CPL and 6 Stop ND
Printing Notes
In case you didn’t catch everything in the video, here is what I used to print the image:
Printer - Canon Pixma Pro-10s (http://amzn.to/2Anrcj7)
Software - Edited in Lightroom and printed using Canon Print Studio Pro
Paper - Fotospeed’s Legacy Gloss 325 with custom ICC profile (https://www.fotospeed.com/Legacy-325/groupproduct/3103/) - one of my favourite papers!
Frame - Picture Frames Express (https://www.pictureframesexpress.co.uk/)
Practising Landscape Photography and Risk vs Reward
Is there value in practising your landscape photography? Do you consider risk vs reward? In the blog this week, I head to Belstone on Dartmoor National Park to capture some landscape photographs and to answer those questions.
The Value of Practising Landscape Photography
In the blog last week I spoke about the need to practise landscape photography. That trip to Dawlish Warren beach was my first trip out to capture landscape photographs in over a month. I certainly felt a little rusty so I was keen to keep the momentum going so I decided to head out again as soon as I could.
I decided I would head out a couple of days later and instead of shooting the coast again I opted to head up onto Dartmoor. The weather conditions weren’t exactly ideal for landscape photography. The forecast was predicting 100% clear skies (everywhere) and sub zero conditions.
Despite the weather forecast I was committed to going out and getting some practise in with the camera. Practising photography became really important to me after watching this video by John Free. I know John is a street photographer but the message is clear. It’s probably one of the most important photography videos I’ve ever watched.
Risk vs Reward
While the goal of my trip to Dartmoor was to practise my photography, I was still hoping to get some good photographs. This is where the risk vs reward bit comes in. It’s rare that the weather forecast is 100% accurate or the conditions are predicted to be perfect for landscape photography (whatever perfect might be), so there is always an element of risk.
Sometimes the risk is part of the excitement though. If you always knew what the the conditions were exactly going to do then some of the joy of landscape photography would be lost. While the forecast conditions wouldn’t necessarily yield a great photography, if I didn’t take the risk of going I might miss something special.
So did my trip to Dartmoor pay off? You find out in the video below where you will see the images I took and hear me talk more about the value in practising photography and risk vs reward. Enjoy!
I hope you enjoyed that 5 Minute Photo Adventure <insert playlist URL>. Do you practise your landscape photography? How do you measure risk vs reward? Let me know in the comments below.
The Photographs
As always here are the photographs from the video.
Dawn at Belstone #1, Dartmoor National Park, Devon - Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm f/4 at 14mm, f/13, 1/4 sec at ISO 64, Kase Filters CPL.
Dawn at Belstone #2, Dartmoor National Park, Devon - Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm f/4 at 18mm, f/13, 1/13 sec at ISO 64, Kase Filters CPL.
My Year Long Landscape Photography Project on Dartmoor
What happens when you photograph the same location for a year? In the blog this week I share with you the results of my year-long landscape photography project on Dartmoor.
One Year, One Location, Twelve Photographs
I’m going to keep this blog post really short as everything I would talk about here is contained in the video below. So rather than write a lot of text here I hope you’ll be able to find the time to watch my longest ever landscape photography video. I’ve actually tried to keep it as short as I can, but the video does contain a year’s worth of work so I hope you can excuse the length. So grab yourself a coffee or a drink and enjoy!
I do hope you enjoyed the video. Have you ever undertaken a similar project? Which image was your favourite? Please let me know in the comments below.
My Emsworthy Collection
Finally, here are all the photographs I took during the project and that you saw in the video. If you want to see the technical information for a photograph just click on it.
Every Photographer Should Do This
What's the one thing that every photographer should do?
The Annual Image Review
I wrote about the importance of doing an annual review at the end of 2017 and the following year shared with you my favourite images from 2018. Naturally now that we are now in 2020 it’s time to look back at 2019 and undertake the annual image review.
In the video below I not only talk about the reasons for me wanting to review my images from 2019, but I also talk about why I think it’s something every photographer should do.
Have you reviewed your images from 2019? Has my video encouraged you to do so? Have you published your favourite images? Let me know in the comments below.
Want to Know How to Find Your Best Images?
Here is the video I made at the end of 2017 that shows you how I go about using Lightroom to find my best images.
My Favourite Images from 2019
2010 to 2018 - An Image from Each Year
5 Things I Love About the Nikon Z 7
In my latest video I share with you the 5 things that I love most about the Nikon Z 7 mirrorless camera. I will also tell you about some of the things I don't like and show you some of the images that I've been capturing with the Nikon Z 7 over the last few months.
Another Nikon Z 7 Review
Does the world really need another review video about the Nikon Z 7? This is a valid question and one you may well be asking. After all, I purchased the Nikon Z 7 almost a year after it was first released so there is already a stack load of Z 7 review videos.
Unlike when I purchased the Nikon D850 though, I decided not to make any specific vlogs or blogs about my purchase of the Nikon Z 7. So rather than make a song and dance about changing cameras I just never directly mentioned it. However, you are an eagle-eyed lot and my change of camera didn’t go completely unnoticed. A few of you asked why I moved from the Nikon D850 and what I thought about the Nikon Z 7 and I was happy to provide my reasons.
Now that I’ve had the camera for a few months I’ve decided the time was right to share my thoughts on this camera with a wider audience. I’m not going to repeat too much of what I’m going to say in the video but this isn’t a full review and I’m not trying to convince you all to go mirrorless! This video is just about me sharing what I personally like about the Z 7, some things that I don’t like and share a few images.
Whichever camera system you have, and even if you don’t agree with my choice and reasons, I still hope you took some value from watching it. I’d be really interested to hear your thoughts on mirrorless cameras, the Nikon Z system, and the future of DSLRs. Why not leave me a comment below.
Nikon Z 7 Landscape Photographs
The video included a number of landscape photographs that I’ve captured with the Nikon Z 7 which I’ve included below along with some of the shooting information which I hope you find useful.
52 Assignments Landscape Photography by Ross Hoddinott and Mark Bauer - On My Bookshelf S03E02
Are you looking to kickstart your landscape photography in 2020? In this episode of On My Bookshelf, I'm taking a look at 52 Assignments for Landscape Photography by Ross Hoddinott and Mark Bauer. It's packed full of creative assignments but there's really only one way to see how good it is and that is to head out on location and give one of those assignments a try.
OMBS On Location
Most of the photography books featured in On My Bookshelf (OMBS) are normally enjoyed at home with a nice cup of coffee. Every now and again though I get a book that has a more practical element to it and I feel the best way to share my thoughts on it is to go on location with it. I adopted this approach last year when I met up with Nick Livesey to discuss his book Photographing the Snowdonia Mountains.
When I received my copy of 52 Assignments: Landscape Photography by Ross Hoddinott and Mark Bauer I knew straight away that this would be another book that would be best demonstrated on location. The only challenge I had was which of the 52 assignments should I pick!
So join me in the latest episode of OMBS as I share my thoughts on this book and head out to Dartmoor on assignment.
I really hope you enjoyed this episode of OMBS. Santa was good enough to bring me a book on landscape photography that I’ve had on my list for a while now and I hope to bring you that episode of OMBS in the near future.
What do you have planned for your photography in 2020? Do you give yourself any assignments or projects? How do you discover creative ideas and techniques? Let me know in the comments below.
The Photographs
As always, here are the images that you saw in the video. I can’t wait to get back to this location. Hopefully when the light is a bit better and the wind a lot lighter!
West Mill Tor #2, Dartmoor, Devon - Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm f/4 at 21mm, f/13, 1/8th second at ISO 400, CPL and ND Grad.
West Mill Tor #1, Dartmoor, Devon - Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm f/4 at 14mm, f/13, 1/3rd second at ISO 400, CPL and ND Grad.
West Mill Tor #3, Dartmoor, Devon - Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm f/4 at 21mm, f/13, 1/8th second at ISO 400, CPL and ND Grad.
The Photography of Game of Thrones by Helen Sloan - On My Bookshelf S03E01
On My Bookshelf is back and this week I'm looking The Photography of Game of Thrones by Helen Sloan.
On My Bookshelf is Back
It's been a while since I last did an episode of On My Bookshelf (OMBS). In fact the last episode was back in April when I looked at Extreme Scotland and Beara (which is still one of my favourite books on landscape photography. The gap in episodes wasn't planned, it's just the way it has worked out. Maybe it's because during the darker months I spend a little more time reading books in the evening than during the summer.
The Photography of Game of Thrones
Over the next couple of months I hope to bring you a few new episodes of OMBS. I have a couple of titles on my bookshelf already and I'm hoping Santa will bring me a few more over the festive period. In this episode I'm going to start things off by looking at The Photography of Game of Thrones by Helen Sloan. Enjoy!
I hope you enjoyed that episode of OMBS and you are looking forward to future episodes (remember you can always watch the back catalogue here). Have you added any new photography titles to your bookshelf recently? Are you expecting any new photography books for Christmas? Let me know in the comments below.
Holne Bridge - A 5 Minute Photo Adventure
In the blog this week I head to Holne Bridge with Panasonic Lumix S1R to capture the last of the autumnal colours on Dartmoor.
More Time with the S1R
If you a regular reader of my blog you'll know that I've had the Panasonic Lumix S1R on loan for the last few weeks. I've been putting it to good use and I've shot the autumnal colours at Fingle Bridge and produced a video called In The Footsteps of Colin Prior. With those bits of content produced I was ready to (sadly) send the camera back to Panasonic. However, the very kind folks at Panasonic Pro Services said I could keep it for a little longer.
Autumn at Holne Bridge
With the extra loan time I wanted to put the S1R to good use and make another video. As much as I'd loved to have produced another video on the scale of In The Footsteps of Colin Prior I'd have to produce something a little more close to home and within tighter time constraints. As I hadn't made one of my 5 Minute Photo Adventure videos for a while I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to do so. Though the best of the autumn colours were coming to an end I thought I might still be able to capture something interesting at Holne Bridge on Dartmoor.
Holne Bridge is one of my favourite locations to shoot autumnal colours and it was looking great when I visited there a few weeks before this trip (you can see the photos from that blog post here). I was a little unsure how the recent bad weather had impacted the leaves on the trees but fortunately for me local (and very talented) photographer Neil Porter drives through the area on a regular basis. He was kind enough to give me an update and as it was looking positive we both decided to meet up for spot of landscape photography.
A 5 Minute Photo Adventure
It was a great morning of photography and it was great to be joined by Neil. He knows a lot of good spots along the river there and he introduced me to a couple of new ones which I was very grateful for. Anyway, I don't want to spoil the video too much so here it is:
I hope you enjoyed the video and all the content I've made with the Panasonic Lumix S1R. I've really enjoyed using the camera and hope to use one again in the future. I also have to say that the folks at Panasonic Pro Services (who organised the loan) have been fantastic. Really friendly and easy to work with. Should I ever decide to purchase any of the S1 cameras it's good to know that Panasonic have the support services network in place.
I've got some exciting content coming up over the next few weeks including the return of On My Bookshelf, and some special new year videos, so stay tuned!
The Photographs
As always, here are the photographs from the video plus a couple of others that I captured after filming.
Holne Bridge at Autumn, Dartmoor, Devon - Panasonic Lumix S1R, Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 at 28mm, f/11, 1 second at ISO 200, Kase Filters CPL.
An Autumnal River Dart at Holne Bridge, Dartmoor, Devon - Panasonic Lumix S1R, Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 at 53mm, f/13, 1 second at ISO 200, Kase Filters CPL.
Downstream from Holne Bridge, Dartmoor, Devon - Panasonic Lumix S1R, Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 at 29mm, f/13, 0.8 seconds at ISO 200, Kase Filters CPL.
Upstream to Holne Bridge, Dartmoor, Devon - Panasonic Lumix S1R, Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 at 24mm, f/13, 1.3 seconds at ISO 200, Kase Filters CPL.
In The Footsteps of Colin Prior
Inspired by the landscape photographs I've seen in Colin Prior's book, Scotland's Finest Landscapes, I head to Loch Clair in Torridon to capture my own photographs of this stunning location. With only a few hours and typically Scottish weather, photography was always going to be a challenge!
Being Inspired
Inspiration for my photography comes from many different sources. Like most photographers, I look at a lot of photographs online using services such as Instagram and Flickr. For me though, one of the best sources of inspiration is the humble book. The bookshelf in my office is ever-expanding and I take a lot of joy in sharing my passion for photography books in my YouTube series, On My Bookshelf.
Last year I picked up a copy of Colin Prior's book, Scotland's Finest Landscapes and I thought it was amazing. I even did an episode of On My Bookshelf so if you want to hear my thoughts on this book in a bit more detail then click here. Even though I grew up in Scotland, and lived many of my adult years there, much of Scotland remains unexplored for me. Colin's book opened my eyes up to some of the amazing locations in Scotland and the photographic opportunities these wild locations could bring.
An Adventure to Scotland
As I browsed Colin's book I made note of all the places I would like to visit to capture my own photographs. The list was long! There aren't many negatives to living in Devon, but its distance from Scotland is definitely one of them. Trips back to the homeland are rare so if I was to tick off one of those locations from the list I would have to pick carefully and integrate it into whatever I was doing in Scotland on my next visit.
Fortunately for me, I had booked myself onto a photography workshop on the Isle of Skye with my workshop company of choice Dawn 2 Dusk Photography. The last time I went on a D2D workshop was Glencoe and I had an absolute blast. You can read about that adventure here. My trip to Skye was the perfect opportunity to spend a little extra time in the Highlands and visit one of the locations I saw in the book that had inspired me.
The Weather
As I was going to Skye I thought that one of the best areas I could visit was Torridon, an area of Scotland that I had not visited before. The images I saw in the book looked amazing and I was excited about capturing my own. I narrowed down the list and got ready for my trip to Scotland.
Arriving in Scotland I already knew that the weather wasn't going to be great and with only limited time before the workshop, I was going to have to work with what I had. What I really wanted to do was walk up one of the mountains to capture an epic vista but this was always going to be a bit of a challenge. Though I've bagged a few Munro's in my time, but these have mostly been fair-weather adventures. The weather forecast for the mountains when I was up was terrible. Way above my skill level!
Fortunately for me though, I had considered that the mountains might be inaccessible to me and I'd picked a few low-level locations as a backup. The night before I was due to head out I looked at my list and decided on Loch Clair near Liathach and Beinn Eighe. Would the low-level weather be kind to me? Would I get the opportunity to capture some amazing landscape photographs? Let's find out in my latest video, In The Footsteps of Colin Prior.
Landscape Photography Can be Hard
As you will have seen in the video, it was a challenging day. The weather conditions were variable, to say the least. It could be lashing with rain one minute, then you'd get howling winds, and then all of a sudden it would clear up. Typically Scottish really! There was no chance of reflections on the loch and I never saw the top of the mountains until I was finished for the day. While I knew the weather wasn't going to be great that day, I was hoping that it would break long enough to give me some dramatic light on the landscape.
Unfortunately, this never happened. While I did witness some amazing scenes such as incoming rain showers, crepuscular rays and rainbows, they were never really in the spots where I could have put them to good use in a composition. Despite the challenges of the photography I had a great time at Loch Clair. Yes it was cold, wet and windy at times but I had good clothing on so I was able to enjoy the wilderness and all it brings. I had a lot of time to look at the landscape while the weather was too wild to get the camera out and it looked amazing. It was just a pleasure to sit there and take it all in.
It was definitely a case of the adventure being more rewarding than the photography but I'm OK with that. Landscape photography can be hard but my love for the outdoors always means that I never consider my time wasted.
I do hope you have enjoyed this blog post and video. Who inspires your photography? Have you ever followed in the footsteps of one of your favourite photographers? Let me know in the comments below.
The Photographs
If you want to see the photographs from the video in a bit more detail you can see them below. They were all taken with the Panasonic Lumix S1R. Panasonic was kind enough to lend me this camera (and two lenses) to help me make this video. I have to say that the camera performed faultlessly despite the wild and wet conditions. I'm not planning on doing a full review of the camera but you can read some of my thoughts in this blog post.
Loch Clair Tree, Torridon, Scotland - Panasonic Lumix S1R, Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 at 24mm, f/13, 15 seconds at ISO 100, Kase Filters CPL.
Liathach from Loch Clair, Torridon, Scotland - Panasonic Lumix S1R, Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 at 24mm, f/13, 1/10th sec at ISO 100, Kase Filters CPL.
Loch Clair, Sgurr Dubh and Liathach, Torridon, Scotland - Panasonic Lumix S1R, Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 at 26mm, f/13, 1/15th sec at ISO 100, Kase Filters CPL.
Loch Clair, Liathach and Beinn Eighe, Torridon, Scotland - Panasonic Lumix S1R, Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 at 24mm, f/13, 40 seconds at ISO 100, Kase Filters CPL. Single image crop at 6:17
Loch Clair, Liathach and Beinn Eighe, Torridon, Scotland - Panasonic Lumix S1R, Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 at 24mm, f/13, 1/5th second at ISO 100, Kase Filters CPL.
Should YOU Photograph the Honeypot Locations?
Is there any point in capturing your own images from the landscape photography honeypot locations? With so many images captured from these popular locations you could be forgiven for giving them a miss. In this blog post I head to Glencoe in Scotland to photograph one of its most popular viewpoints and discuss why I think everyone should shoot a honeypot location.
They Are Honeypot Locations for a Reason
This is going to be a bit of a short blog post. There are a couple of reasons for this. Firstly, most of what I want to say is said in the video to go with this post, so there’s little point repeating it all here. I’m also a little short in time because I’ve got lots of exciting content to work on that I want to get ready before the festive period really starts.
All that aside, I’ve been wanting to make this video for a while. My original plan was to shoot it down at Durdle Door but I never quite made it there this year. When I started making plans for my trip to Skye I knew I was going to stop off in Glencoe so I decided that I would make the video there. Glencoe is not short of a few honeypot locations but I settled on the viewpoint with the small waterfall (on the river Coupall) and Stob Dearg in the background. There can’t be that many of you that haven’t seen that viewpoint before!
It’s a stunning viewpoint and one that I can’t resist photographing every time I’m in Glencoe. These viewpoints aren’t called honeypot locations for no reason! However, in some circles, photographing these locations and viewpoints can be frowned upon. While it is true that getting something new from these locations can be tricky, I don’t think this is a reason to not shoot them.
If you want to know why I think you should shoot them, check out my video below:
I’m sure most of you have already shot a few honeypot locations and have enjoyed the experience of capturing your own images. If you haven’t though, I hope this video has inspired you to visit places like the Glencoe viewpoint in the video, or even Durdle Door.
Do you have a favourite honeypot location? Are there any honeypot locations you’d like to shoot? Let me know in the comments below.
One Location, Many Viewpoints
If you want to see the images from the video in a bit more detail you’ll find them below.
The River Coupall and Buachaille Etive Mor, Glencoe, Scotland - Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm f/4 at 22mm, f/13, 1 second at ISO 200, CPL and 3 stop ND.
River Coupall Falls, Glencoe, Scotland - Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm f/4 at 15mm, f/13, 1/8th at ISO 160, CPL.
The River Coupall and Stob Dearg, Glencoe, Scotland - Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm f/4 at 22mm, f/13, 4 seconds at ISO 160, CPL and 3 stop ND.
Mountain Landscape Photography - A 5 Minute Photo Adventure from Ben Cruachan
The ascent of a Munro is a rare treat for me these days so I was really excited when I recently got the chance to walk up Ben Cruachan to do some mountain landscape photography in the Scottish Highlands.
Hill Walking in Scotland
It’s rare for me to have the opportunity to walk up a Munro these days. I live hundreds of miles away from the nearest one, and when I am in Scotland it’s usually for a family holiday and so disappearing for a day in the mountains can be a little tricky.
I almost managed an ascent of a 3000+ ft Scottish mountain last year but some unexpected snowfall put all of the Munros out of reach due to my lack in snowy mountain skills. So when I planned a return visit to Scotland over Easter, I was eager try and squeeze in an ascent.
As is the way with family holidays though, my time was squeezed, so I had to select a mountain that I could do in a few hours!
Photography from the Summit of Ben Cruachan
When selecting which mountain I was going to walk up I need only have looked out the window from where I was holidaying. Ben Cruachan, standing at 1126 m high, it definitely qualifies as a Munro, and I could make a quick ascent and still be back down before it got too dark.
In order to get up to the summit in time for sunset I need to strip my backpack down to essential camera gear. So I just took my Nikon D850, my Nikkor 24-70 mm f/2.8, my tripod, and a few filters. I had considered taking the drone but the wind was too strong. (Though it was very still at the summit….how annoying!)
I also decided to take my vlogging camera because I thought my little mountain adventure would make for a great 5 Minute Photo Adventure. So if you want to see how I got on, then check out my video below:
It was unfortunate that the conditions weren’t a little better. The sun really fizzled out in the haze along the horizon so I didn’t get much in the way of light on the mountains. However, just watching that dramatic sky from such an amazing location was reward enough for me.
Do you ever get the chance to combine landscape photography with hill walking? What’s your favourite hill or mountain? Let me know in the comments below.
Landscape Photographs from Ben Cruachan
Before I go here are the photographs you saw me capture in the video.
Drochaid Ghlas from Ben Cruachan, Argyll, Scotland - Nikon D850, Nikkor 24-70 mm f/2.8 VR at 24, f/13, 1/5th sec at ISO 64.
Stob Dearg from Ben Cruachan, Argyll, Scotland - Nikon D850, Nikkor 24-70 mm f/2.8 VR at 24mm, f/13, 1/5th sec at ISO 64.
Rode Wireless Go - A Vloggers Review
Something a little bit different from me in the blog this week. I’m taking a look at the Rode Wireless Go, a wireless microphone that I hope will help improve my videos. But is the Rode Wireless Go the ultimate wireless microphone for the vlogger?
Reviewing Gear
I don’t normally review gear. I will sometimes talk about the products that I’ve paid for and use, but it is rare that I will do a flat out gear review. Even when if I do discuss something that it is gear focused, it’s normally for something that helps me take photographs such as a camera. I will also try and integrate the gear discussion into a trip out with the camera to take photographs.
The Rode Wireless Go is different though. As a wireless microphone system it really has no bearing on how I take my photographs at all. In fact, it’s a bit of gear that only helps me with creating content for my YouTube channel. So why am I talking about it on my blog? While I appreciate that the majority of people that read this blog have no interest in the practical aspects of vlogging, I know that a number of you actually do. There is a rich and vibrant community of photography content creators out there, and I thought that if I created a short video on my latest purchase it might prove useful.
So here’s a quick look at the Rode Wireless Go:
If you are a vlogger, are you thinking of getting this product? How do you currently record audio? Let me know in the comments below.
Regular Viewing Back Next Week
If you’re a regular reader of my blog, don’t worry, I’ll be back next week with another post or video on landscape photography!
Glencoe Landscape Photography - A 5 Minute Photo Adventure
In this coffee break length video I head to the Three Sisters in Glencoe for a spot of landscape photography. Unfortunately the conditions were a little windy. Did that put me off? Of course not!
Short, Sweet, and Very Windy
When I go on a family holiday to Scotland I often make grand plans for some landscape photography adventures. The reality is that these plans rarely come to fruition and I have to scale things back. With the time I do have for photography I do try and cram in as much as possible.
This year I was on holiday not far from Glencoe so when my family suggested we head to there for a pub lunch at the Clachaig Inn. I thought there would be a great opportunity to finish the day with a little bit of landscape photography. With the family safely heading back home I decided to hit some of the photographic highlights of Glencoe. Unfortunately, the weather conditions were going to somewhat dampen my plans.
Well, I say dampen, but rain would have been very welcome. In all my excitement about photographing Glencoe I had forgotten that it hadn’t rained there in over a week. In fact, it had been hot and sunny all week. As most of my favourite spots for landscape photography in Glencoe involve water of some kind, this made things very challenging.
I wanted the video to cover three locations, but every location I visited looked horrible and dry. As it got closer to sunset I decided to head to a viewpoint that would allow me to capture an image of the Three Sisters. Unluckily for me though the weather had other ideas!
I do hope you enjoyed this short video. Do you have a favourite location in Glencoe? Have you ever taken photographs in very windy conditions? Let me know in the comments below.
Those Photographs
Here are the photographs you saw in the video.
Beinn Fhada and Gearr Aonach, Glencoe, Scotland - Nikon D850, Nikkor 16-35 mm f/4 VR at 25 mm, f/10. 1/8th sec at ISO 64.
Gearr Aonach, Glencoe, Scotland - Nikon D850, Nikkor 24-70 mm f/2.8 VR at 31 mm, f/13. 1/4th sec at ISO 64.
The Three Sisters - Beinn Fhada, Gearr Aonach, and Aonach Dubh, Glencoe, Scotland - Nikon D850, Nikkor 16-35 mm f/4 VR at 16 mm, f/13. 0.6 sec at ISO 64.
Looking Back
All this talk of Glencoe has made me think about the last time I made a video there, so I thought it would be a good time to share that video again:
Why and How I Calibrate My Monitor
What is monitor calibration? Why should you bother? How do you do it? In this coffee break length video I will try to answer all those questions. I'll tell you what monitor calibration is, why it is important and also how I calibrate monitor using a SpyderX calibration device.
The What, Why and How of Monitor Calibration
Last year I did a relatively long video on monitor calibration and printer profiling (you can see it here). I've recently changed my calibration device though, so I thought it was a good time to revisit the subject of monitor calibration. My new calibration device is a SpyderX and it works directly with my Eizo monitor to perform the calibration.
However, you don't need an expensive monitor like those from Eizo to benefit from using a monitor calibration device. So in the video below I will take a quick look at monitor calibration, what it is, why you should do it and how I used the SpyderX to calibrate my 2nd monitor (not an Eizo).
I hope you enjoyed that short video but if you like to more detailed information on calibration then check out this free ebook.
Just a short video and blog post from me this week, but I’ll be back next week with a new blog post on a recent landscape photography adventure!
Landscape Photography and Fitness - Running Up Cat Bells with David Dixon
Can physical or mental fitness have any impact on your landscape photography? To help me answer this question I'm joined in my latest video by fellow photographer and vlogger David Dixon. To put us in the right frame of mind we decide to run up Cat Bells in the Lake District for a spot of sunrise landscape photography. At the summit, we also have a conversation about how physical fitness and mental well-being can benefit our photography and our lives.
A Fast Ascent of Cat Bells
The ascent of Cat Bells in the Lake District is a popular walk and for good reason. The relatively short ascent to 451 m can be achieved by most with a reasonable level of fitness. Those who do make the ascent are rewarded with some spectacular views. For this reason, it is very popular with landscape photographers.
It is an ascent that I’ve made twice myself (here, and here), and each time I’ve been rewarded for my efforts. Each time I stand at the summit though I always think to myself what it would be like to run up the path. I’ve been up there before and seen some fell runners and being a keen runner myself I’ve always thought I’d be able to make it.
Running Friends
The idea of running up Cat Bells had been bubbling away at the back of my mind for sometime when I noticed that fellow photographer and vlogger, David Dixon was doing a lot of running as part of a January challenge. The challenge of running up Cat Bells would be much easier and more enjoyable if I had a friend to run it with. It wasn’t long before me and David had hatched a plan!
Is Fitness Important in Landscape Photography?
Being a vlogger I obviously wanted to video my run up Cat Bells, but I didn’t want the video to be me and David just running up a hill. So we both decided to do our own videos with slightly different themes. In my video you will find me running up Cat Bells and doing a little photography, but also talking to David about how fitness impacts my landscape photography.
So if you want to know why being fit is important to my landscape photography, or you simply want to see some dawn shots take from the summit of Cat Bells, the check out the video below.
Of course as David is vlogger himself he recorded his own video of our little adventure. So for a slightly different point of view check out his video below:
Your Thoughts
Does you physical fitness impact your landscape photography? How do you like to keep fit? Let me know in the comments below.
My Photographs
And finally, here are the photographs I took that morning.
Cat Bells Dawn Panoramic, Lake District - Panasonic Lumix G80, Lumix 12-60 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 12mm, f/9.0, 1/60th sec @ ISO 100.
Golden Crags, Cat Bells, Lake District - Panasonic Lumix G80, Lumix 12-60 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 18mm, f/11, 1/40th sec @ ISO 200.
Dawn Crags from Cat Bells, Lake District - Panasonic Lumix G80, Lumix 12-60 mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 12mm, f/11, 1/50th sec @ ISO 200.
Extreme Scotland by Nadir Khan - On My Bookshelf S02E05
In the latest episode of On My Bookshelf, I take a look at Nadir Khan's Extreme Scotland. Is this a book for photographers, adventure sports fans, lovers of the Scottish landscape or is there something in it for everyone?
Discovering Other Photographers
I discover the work of other photographers in many different ways. A few weeks ago I wrote about how discovered the book Beara by Norman Mccloskey in Outdoor Photography magazine. The book that I'm looking at in this episode of On My Bookshelf, Extreme Scotland, I found by listening to a recent episode of one of my favourite photography podcasts, The Togcast.
The book Extreme Scotland appealed to me in 3 different ways, photography, adventure sports and Scotland! But does it deliver on any or all of those things? Let's find out.
I do hope you enjoyed this episode of On My Bookshelf. A bit of a short blog post from me this week I'm afraid as I'm writing this while I'm on holiday in Scotland. However, I am here with my camera so I might have time to create some content for a blog or vlog. So stay tuned!
You can pick up a copy of Nadir Khan's Extreme Scotland here.
Capturing the Decisive Moment - On the Streets of Birmingham with the Fujifilm X-T2
After watching a few videos on street photography I was inspired to give it a try myself. So armed with a Fujifilm X-T2 I hit the streets of Birmingham. Was I able to capture the decisive moment?
The Fujifilm X-T2, Street Photography and Being Inspired
I'd never really considered doing street photography before. I've definitely enjoyed looking at street photography much in the same way that I like and appreciate many different genres of photography. However, actually going out and doing a bit of street photography didn't really seem like my kind of thing.
Recently though I've been coming around to the idea that street photography might indeed be something I’d want to try. I think most of this new found motivation has come from watching street photography videos from my good friend, photographer and fellow vlogger Gareth Danks. The more I watched his videos the more I wanted to give this genre of photography a try.
When I mentioned this Gareth he very kindly offered to take me out and help me capture some street photographs. As fortune would have it we were both spending a couple of days at The Photography Show a few weeks back so we decided that we should hit the streets of Birmingham on the Saturday evening. I was really excited about the prospect of trying something new with my photography.
As I was going to try something new with my photography, I thought I also needed a new camera for the job. But what camera should I get for street photography? Well, there was only one camera I was really considering and that was a Fujifilm. So I got myself a Fujifilm X-T2 and hit the streets with my Fujifilm camera and street photography guru, Gareth.
Can I Capture that Decisive Moment?
So how did I get on? Did I manage to get some good street photographs? Let's find out…
Learning Photography All Over Again
As you'll have seen in the video I didn't find street photography easy. To be honest though, I didn't think I would. It was actually a bit like learning photography all over again. Plus I had the added challenge of learning a new camera system. However, despite all that I really, really enjoyed it. I was lucky to not only have Gareth to help with composition, camera setup, but to also to video it for me. I don't think I would have been able to manage my vlogging camera along with everything else.
All that aside, I liked the challenge of finding and capturing compositions. In some respects, it’s the same as landscape photography. You find a good composition and you wait for the right moment, but in a city environment, you need to have your eyes trained in a different way. Gareth was just wondering about picking out compositions and at first, I was just walking by everything. Step by step though, I started getting into the flow. Yes, it was a challenge, but a fun challenge.
Rent or Buy
It's worth pointing out that while I did use a Fujifilm X-T2 for this shoot, I did not buy this camera. I've always wanted to try a Fujifilm camera so for this street photography shoot I decided to rent one for the weekend. I got my rental through WEX Rental. Service was fast and efficient and I got the whole weekend rental for the cost of just one day's normal rental. I also paid for delivery and collection service so it was delivered and collected from my house on Friday and Monday respectively. Great service!
Birmingham Street Photography
I'm certainly not going to claim that my photographs are amazing. Like any genre of photography, it's going to require a lot of practice to ever get even remotely good. However, I very much enjoyed the experience so I'm keen to do more and see how my street photography progresses.
Have you done any street photography before? Got any street photography tips? What is your favourite location? Let me know in the comments below.
Finally, here are some of the photos I captured.
Beara by Norman McCloskey - On My Bookshelf S02E04
Some landscape photography books stand out from the rest. Beara is one of those books.
Discovering Beara
I'm not sure if I was aware of the work of Norman McCloskey before I got Beara, but I do know how I discovered Beara. I was flicking through the March 2019 issue of Outdoor Photography magazine when I spotted a feature on the book. As luck would have it my wife had been asking me what I wanted for my birthday so I asked her to get me a copy of Beara.
Obviously, the sample pictures in the magazine were enough for me to want a copy but it wasn't until I actually got the book and read it that I realised what a fantastic collection of landscape photographs Norman had put together.
Anyway, I don't want to reveal all my thoughts here on the blog. Instead, why don't you check out the latest episode of On My Bookshelf and let me tell you a little more about Beara.
I do hope you enjoyed this episode of On My Bookshelf . Will you be picking up a copy of Beara? Have you been to the Beara Peninsula? Let me know in the comments below.
PS - You can pick up a copy of Beara direct from the author by clicking on this link here.