Tallinn, the capital city of Estonia, is the oldest city in Northern Europe and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A beautiful little city in the winter snow, although the coverage made it a little difficult to see anything. Most of my short visit there was spent in the Old Town, on Toompea Hill overlooking the view and around the Christmas markets near the town hall. I just managed to get the shot I wanted of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral against the blue dusk sky. Walking up and down the cobbled streets, one can really appreciate the history in the old town and castle walls. The Christmas markets were bustling, shoppers were jostling, and all were entertained by the occasional bout of Christmas folk singing from the stage that had been set up. I managed to sample some rustic food, including elk and bear meat, the latter being expectedly tough. Many of the images presented here were quick snapshots in the freezing snow, and mostly taken with the Tokina 11-16mm F/2.8. I also used the Nikkor 35mm F/2 AF-D for a few shots. Some of the images show the vibrant colours of the town, especially draped in Christmas decorations. Other images lent themselves to a B+W treatment, which suited the historical quality of the buildings. A great place to go for a short visit, I am sure it is just as beautiful in drier seasons. It certainly looked like a fairy tale town in the winter snow.
Last week Jena and I spent a short while photographing the Christmas lights around Oxford and Regent Street in London. Nothing truly spectacular in my humble opinion, although I do enjoy light and colour. The Moon allowed for some interesting compositions. All these images were shot hand-held with my DSLR and phone at variously high ISOs and a variety of lenses. The last image was shot by Jena.
I took my dear friends Genka and Petar to Oxford for the day, a beautiful and historic university town. The weather wasn’t at its best, but we made the most of it, again making it seem like they were the only people there. The architecture was predictably ornate and resplendent, but we imagined that students at the various colleges must have a universal dress code, for they all looked the same in their chinos, loafers and scarves. Nevertheless, the poor souls have to tolerate the herds of marauding tourists trampling through their quaint city. As in London, I used my humble Nikon D40 with a variety of lenses, mostly the Tokina 11-16mm F/2.8, manually focused.
Last week I had a wonderful and memorable time with my dear friends Genka and Petar who visited me from Bulgaria. Genka had lived and worked here before, but it was Petar’s first time, so we took in all the main sites in London. We also spent a day in Oxford, but I will present those photos on a separate post. These are just a small sample of the many photos I took, and all include Genka and Petar in the shots, both of whom are very photogenic! From the images it may seem like we had the whole of London to ourselves, but I tried to capture them with as few other people as possible in the shot, or from different angles. They were very patient with me!Jena organised a surprise birthday dinner for Genka at our favourite restaurant, Tas Pide, and they brought out a delicious cake. It was a great evening with excellent service as usual, and it was followed by a short visit to a salsa bar. I took many shots of the London landmarks themselves, but I may present those in a separate post also. All the photos were shot with my humble Nikon D40, and captured RAW, which helped capture the most possible detail and recover highlights and shadows. I hope you enjoy these images from around London, and maybe you will be inspired to make your own visit. And if you need a tour guide…… J
T'is that time of year again when the nights start earlier and the days get colder, but at least Guy Fawkes gave us reason to enjoy some fireworks. My friend Natalia and I went to a fireworks display in St Alban's a couple of nights ago, and we were most impressed by the display. I must admit, having photographed the London New Year fireworks up close, my expectations were somewhat moderate, but it really was a very impressive and enjoyable display.Below are the photos I took with my Nikon D40 (now 6 year old technology) and the Tokina 11-16mm F/2.8, manually focused. All images shot RAW at around 1/30 at F/2.8, ISO between 800 and 1600 (some lower), and then converted and edited in Lightroom 4.I have tried to post a variety of the different fireworks in the display. The couple standing in front of me in many of the photos proved to be a useful compositional element, and helped to give some context to the images.Enjoy!
At least for a short while. This past weekend, Jena and I attended the Star Trek convention in London, notable for having all five series captains at the one event. There were also a raft of other cast regulars and guest stars, all arranged in a seemingly humiliating hierarchy of stands. The entire event was really just a money-making exercise, with exorbitant fees for autographs and merchandise. Since I'm never particularly star-struck, I didn't indulge myself. We stayed for a few hours and captured some of the costumes and also the actors from afar. Some people came from far overseas to attend the event. Interesting how such a broad range of people are fans of the Star Trek mythology.Anyway, here are some of my shots. Almost all of these were shot at a very high ISO and with my walk-around zoom, the 18-200mm. A few shots were taken with the 50mm F/1.8G.
Sheffield Park And Garden, managed by the National Trust, is a wonderful landscape, famous for its lakes and vibrantly colourful foliage. The autumn colours were out in force on my visit, although the wind did unsettle the water, making it rather difficult to capture perfect reflections. The grounds really are a joy to walk around, and the people there were friendly and as enthusiastic about the colours as I was. There was also a waterfall connecting two of the lakes.As well as taking in the great views, I tried also to capture individual autumnal details, such as backlit leaves, berries and plant bulbs.I used four different lenses; the Nikkors 35mm F/2 AF-D, 50mm F/1.8G, 18-200mm VR and the Tokina 11-16mm F/2.8. All came in handy for various shots.I hope you like the photos below, and I hope they motivate you to make your own visit to this great park and garden.
Gothenburg is too beautiful a city to limit to just one blog post, so here are a few more. The city is a treasure of culture and vibrant colours, especially in the autumn, as well as some beautiful architecture and stunning gardens.Again many of the photos depended on having good lighting at just the right time (e.g. dusk), and I have also included a few more night time long exposures.In case my photos do not succeed in inspiring you to make your own visit, please visit http://www.goteborg.com/en/ for more information.
Autumnal colours in Gothenburg, Sweden, are quite spectacular. The botanical gardens and public parks are a perfect showcase for this seasonal vibrance. The public park even has a pool with seals, and further up is an enclosure for penguins!As lovely as Gothenburg is by day, it is quite beautiful by night too, and the abundance of structures and lights provided many shooting opportunities. You will note from the images below that I am a great fan of water reflections.Further out from the town are the beautiful Delsjon Lake and Vrango Island, which are definitely worth visiting.I was only there for a few days and presented here are only a small snapshot of the city and its surroundings as I saw them. I hope you will enjoy them, and perhaps make your own visit there one day. Please visit http://www.goteborg.com/en/ for more information.
Jena and I both happened to have an afternoon free yesterday, so she suggested that we visited Winkworth Arboretum in Surrey. The autumnal colours are just beginning, and look especially vibrant this year compared to the dullness of yesteryear. Winkworth Arboretum is a splendid place to roam around and admire the countless species of trees and plant life, as well as to capture some of the seasonal shades. The weather was a little overcast during our visit, so we focused our compositions on leaves and plants to really study the colours. I also used Jena herself as a subject, as she is very photogenic. These shots below from me were taken with either the Nikkor 18-200mm VR or the 50mm AF-S F/1.8G. You can probably differentiate between them from the quality of background blur, the latter lens giving the smoother result. I hope you enjoy these images and are inspired to seek out and capture some autumnal foliage yourself.
Jena and I went for a stroll one evening this week along the south bank, ending up around St.Paul's Cathedral and the Tate Modern Gallery. We had dinner at one our favourite restaurants, Tas Pide, next to the Globe Theatre. The food, service and ambience are always excellent there, and we were so stuffed we had to carry our desserts home!These images were all taken with my phone, the now ageing Nokia N8, since I couldn't be bothered to lumber my DSLR and lenses around with me, and it wasn't a meet specifically for shooting. But hopefully these images will again reinforce the point I have made before that the best camera is the one you have with you. The camera, whether a phone or DSLR, is neither a barrier nor excuse for composition or creativity. If I'm just out walking, I simply don't care what camera I use, I'll shoot what I see. The phone obviously has limitations such as night shots, which tested the limits of the sensor, and for serious night shooting I would, of course, use my DSLR. But as a casual snapshot taker, it seems to do alright. Well, I hope you enjoy the images below.
A few more shots of New York rattling around in my hard drive, so I thought I'd share them here. These are from my awesome vacation there with my amazing friend Lisa, when we went for her birthday. Slightly different take in this group of pics, but still capturing the essence of what we saw and where we went. Such a terrific time!There is still a huge library of shots stashed away of which this is a tiny sample. Hopefully they convey the eclectic nature of the city and its energy and vibrance.
Leopards are probably the most resourceful and intelligent of the big cats, demonstrating far greater adaptability to their changing environment than the other cat species. Even though this has enabled them to be relatively numerate around the planet, they are still endangered, threatened by poachers and often seen as a pest. They are also perpetually harassed by other species such as hyenas, baboons and lions. Leopards are smaller than lions and tigers, but have incredible strength, often carrying in their jaws prey that is far heavier than themselves high up into tree canopies. They are extremely shy and weary of most animals, especially Man. They have an uncanny ability to move through their environment unnoticed, slinking away into the background or night. They are, of course, effortlessly beautiful, as these photos have tried to capture. Like my tiger photos, I have captured these leopards in captivity at various locations around the world, albeit trying to exclude any notion of their captive enclosure/surroundings. And like the tigers, I have been more concerned with their photogenic aesthetics, rather than making a statement about their environment. Again, I would gladly give up the privilege of photographing them anywhere if their survival in the wild was protected and guaranteed. The photos below include the African and Amur species, as well as a black ‘panther’ leopard. As with many of my animal portraits, I have tried to obtain eye contact from the subject to capture a more engaging image for the viewer, occasionally irritating the poor cat in the process! Well, anyway, I hope this small tribute engenders greater endearment to this remarkable animal.
Exactly why the Special Air Service use the Brecon Beacons for their training manoeuvres and selection process is now becoming clear to me. This weekend past I embarked on a nearly 10-mile hike around an endlessly undulating and arduous route that rewarded me with several beautiful waterfalls along the way. My industry returned the images you see below, along with copious soakings in mud and water. I didn't manage to see all of the many Brecon falls, so I will return to find the others. For almost all the waterfall images, I aimed for the silky look of running water, achieved through a slow shutter speed. Some of the images were acquired by using a 10-stop ND-Grad filter on my Tokina 11-16mm F/2.8, and others by using a shutter speed of around one second and a narrow aperture while focusing with the Live View. Virtually all images were taken on a tripod. I also took images with my Nikkors 35mm F/2 AF-D and 50mm F/1.8G AF-S. I would like to have gotten closer to the falls to create more dramatic perspectives, but the water spray from them would have smothered the lens. The last few images are of the spectacular sunset that I happened upon while wandering around Abergavenny Castle. Despite all the travelling we do, it is easy to forget what lies in our own backyards, and Wales, a country that I have had a fondness for since I first lived there 10 years ago, is one of the United Kingdom’s most scenic places.
On a bit of a shooting spree lately, with myself, Jena and Kevin all frequenting Tower Bridge and the surrounding area to capture some more shots, especially to exploit the dusk blue sky.I must say, while we were on the apparently privately run, but publicly accessible, docks around Tower Bridge, we were accosted several times and told we couldn't use our tripods. The gentleman informing us was perfectly civil and just doing his job, but I cannot fathom any reason why a tripod cannot be used in an area where the general public and tourists amble through all day every day, to say nothing of the fact that we were photographing landmarks over which no one has a monopoly. It seemed rather pointless and petty to us, and so we defied the odds and still managed a few tripod-mounted shots! For the shots below, I used mainly the Tokina 11-16mm F/2.8, and my Nikkors 35mm and 50mm primes. I also took a few shots with my phone.
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