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My dad died on Friday night. On my way home from work, before it happened, I stopped to photograph this landscape. I know that every time I look at this image I’ll remember my dad and what happened on Friday. My dad was a good and kind man, who was flawed and challenged just like all of us. He put the best of his life into my brother and I. This picture will kind of stay with me now, that’s the power of photography; I hope I’ll be pleased about this image over the years.
Shortly before Christmas, as the current endless cold snap was taking a grip, I was treated to this beautiful light while travelling from Kilmacolm toward Bridge of Weir. Those are wind turbines in the distance. (f18 1/200 (80 x 1.6) ISO 200)
These are a few images from Edinburgh’s torchlit procession on the 29th December. The exposure was a real challenge as the light levels were so low, and the contrast between the burning torches and peoples’ faces was so large. I don’t mind admitting that the hit rate for these pictures was pretty poor. I took most of them with my 70-300 zoom, and although it is a great lens, it isn’t really a large enough aperture lens to let in the kind of light that you need to do this and to stop motion effectively. I still enjoyed capturing the atmosphere however and in fact I wish I could take more pictures like this first one; it has bags of mood, and doesn’t need good exposure on the man’s face. The rimlighting provided by the torches says more than good detail could. (f5.6 1/80th (235 x 1.6 crop factor) ISO1600). Yay, I remembered this time that some of you like the data!
I don’t know these people, but looking down the mound and using this man’s arm as a frame for the lovely girl that he was photographing has caught a little love story in the midst of the celebrations. (f4.5 1/80th (70 x 1.6) ISO 1600)
If you know me you’ll know that I love gargoyles. Odd when I have no great fondness for churches. These I consider to be their cutest features! This one was on a fairground “haunted house” ride and I couldn’t resist it in the smoky torchlit atmosphere. The zoom was fully extended and the shutter speed was glacially slow. This illustrates well the effectiveness of Canon’s image stabilisation. No way I could handhold that length of zoom at that exposure without it. (f5.6 1/13th (300 x 1.6) ISO 1600)
While passing the fairground rides I watched these two thrillseekers being locked into one of the scariest rides I have seen. This cage is on two massive bungee cables and on release launches the poor inhabitants of the cage at frightening acceleration into the sky. They then bounce up and down and frankly all around while the tall buildings next to them dissapear below them. This image would have been good if I had had the presence of mind to move a little to avoid the safety brace handle getting in the way of the man on the right. I knew it wasn’t right but didn’t think the picture was worth the bother. Moral of the story, listen to those nagging doubts as you photograph; so much of it is instinct. (f5 1/50th (165 x 1.6) ISO 1600)
Perhaps one of them at this prelaunch moment is beginning to realise what he has let his poor stomach in for. My pants were in danger of soiling just through watching! (f5.6 1/25th (300 x 1.6) ISO 1600)
And now to the kind of ride I could just about manage as long as it doesn’t go to fast. On this particular evening it was way too cold to contemplate sitting in an open gondola. Just a simple fairground shot, but the composition pleases me. I had switched here to my 17-85 lens. It has a really annoyingly slow aperture, but again the image stabilisation is effective. (f4.5 1/15th (24 x 1.6) ISO 1600)
And finally, one of my favourite public monuments or pieces of public art. The Scott monument is a magnificent tribute to a damned good author and populariser of Scottish romanticism. I always think it looks like the rocketships on the covers of 1950’s sci fi novels. In close and wide to abstract the shape, a quick monochrome conversion to accentuate the shape and form and bob’s your uncle! If you want to see how good the canon IS is, note the 1/4 second shutter here, handheld! (f4.5 1/4 sec (17 x 1.6) ISO 1600)
While driving home from Carradale on the Kintyre peninsula last Monday I came upon this scene just as the last light was fading. The spot is the ferry slipway at Kennacraig for the Islay ferry. Strictly speaking the sunset was gone and so I set up my tripod to catch the final moments and indulged in this 10 second exposure. The long exposure has made the loch glassy and ethereal. I pushed the saturation a little to accentuate the tiny afterglow. I am more into portraiture than landscape, but I sympathised with the landscape bloggers who endlessly beg Canon to put a direct mirror-lock-up button on their SLR’s. As it is, I have mine in my “my favourites” menu so it is only 2-clicks away, but how annoying that irritating “direct print” button is when it could be used for mirror-lock instead. Canon should ask the 13 people worldwide who use direct-print on an SLR if they could live without it?
f18 ISO 100
Taken after a coffee in Glasgow’s Prices Square. Two things made this a challenge. The back-lighting of the centre’s Christmas lights required fill flash which of course was colder in colour temperature than the yellow cast tungsten background. The second problem was the impossibility of framing Claudia without distracting bright spots or areas behind her head. It was an opportunist shoot, with only 3 exposures before we parted. I therefore used monochrome to work round the colour variation between foreground and background. I also cloned and shaded some of the extreme lights in the background. The result isn’t perfect, but does feel like it captures some of the shy intensity of Claudia. For the record, Claudia doesn’t enjoy being photographed; I am therefore all the more grateful for her relenting for the sake of this portraitist’s art. I hope she likes it.
OK I cheated. I couldn’t choose my 2nd favourite picture of Linda. I have chosen my 2 joint 2nd favourites. (What a cop-out). Looking through these was a load of fun and brought vividly back to mind how great a time Linda and I had doing these pictures. For those who are interested the arch is one of the bridges over the Kelvin in Glasgow’s botanic gardens.
Guess what, both taken with the Sigma 28 f 1.8. What a lens…
No-one could ever accuse me of being a landscape or architectural photographer, so you might be surprised that I am posting some pictures of an Abbey. Fountains Abbey in Yorkshire is a 15th century ruin preserved by the national trust. It is a photography playground because of the shapes and forms everywhere you look. It is however really difficult to capture in any single overview image so I have gone for a mixture of details to give you a flavour of what’s on offer. Black and white just seems to me to be irresistible for a 15th century ruin. I absolutely recommend a visit, its a good walk as well as an interesting sight.
That’s all folks!
Johnny: Bright Cookie, Gentle Man and Cruncher of Numbers.
I had the pleasure of meeting this amazing man this weekend. From the moment he admitted that he had been referred to my pictures he was doomed. He allowed me to grab a picture or two in the lovely setting of Knaresborough in Yorkshire. I hope the picture has captured something of his easy going personality and his gentle wit.
I know I’m very lax about details, but for those who care, ISO 200 f1.8 1/500th!
Today in Renfrewshire there was a lovely mist after the rain went away. There was a layered “shades of mistiness” effect that I couldn’t resist. I haven’t felt like stopping by roadsides recently due to lots of large and upsetting changes in my life, but I’m glad that the desire to do so here was too strong too resist. This picture was very much snatched, and required a square crop to make the foreground wires work as a subject, but still captures something of the frequently misty landscape around Bridge of Weir in Renfrewshire.
Ruth was not only a lovely subject to photograph, but was also a great pianist. She brought a relaxed and fun approach to the session. I have a particularly fond memory of meeting Ruth as she insisted on giving some lovely wine and fine biscuits to say thanks; a really lovely person.
by Matthew
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