CAPTURE NEW HORIZONS

Fujifilm X-T4 + XF10-24mm f4 - Haida 15stop ND + 3 Stop ND Grad - 480 seconds@f8 ISO160 Yesterday I hosted another MacLean Photographic 'Long Exposure Landscapes' workshop at Seacliff beach, a location I tend to take most of my guests to because of the immense variety of images available in a relatively small location. Located a couple of miles east of North Berwick, Seacliff features a small sandy beach looking out towards Bass Rock one mile out in the Firth of Forth.  At this time of year the small island is covered in gannets as up to 150,000 birds call this part of Scotland home from March until October.  We were treated to some fantastic diving displays as the birds fished just off the beach for most of the day. Fujifilm X-T4 + XF50-140mm f2.8 - Haida 15stop ND + 3 Stop ND Grad - 480 seconds @f11 ISO80 On the headland looking west is the ruins of Tantallon Castle, which is still an imposing sight high on the cliffs across the bay.  Just off the bea...

Living in Dunbar on the East Lothian coast in Scotland we get to see all types of weather.   I love watching and hearing the waves crashing on the rocky shoreline between Dunbar and Belhaven and the sea is the main reason we moved here nearly four years ago from landlocked Grantham in Lincolnshire. Yesterday evening was a great combination of strong winds whipping up big waves and a low sun creating fantastic side lighting.  I took the Fujifilm X-T2 and the XF100-400mm lens onto the cliff top walk to take some shots of the waves as the broke over the rocks at low tide.  It is also a powerful reminder that the sea is beautiful but also very deadly and I had no intention of getting down on the beach to a closer shot. The result was some spectacular waves hitting the rocks with the low sun providing the perfect lighting conditions.  I set a fast shutter speed of 1/2000 to freeze the waves as they burst over the rocks. ------...

I had another opportunity to visit one of my favourite locations here on the East Lothian coast and that is the small sandy beach at Seacliff. The beach is reached via a private road (there is a £3 charge to access the road)  and it leads down to the car park behind the cove.  As you look out in front Bass Rock is right in front, to the left is the Gegan and the tiny harbour and to the right is St Baldred's Cross, which is the outer marker for the Firth of Forth. Once you get onto the beach you can look across and see the ruins of Tantallon Castle on the cliff top. The reason for the visit was to allow a fellow photographer the opportunity test the X-T2 and XF100-400mm on his favourite genre - wildlife.  So we headed to the cliffs by the Gegan to take some shots of the Fulmars that are starting to set up home in the cliffs. All images shot on the Fujifilm X-Pro2 with a XF10-24mm f4 or Fujifilm X-T2 with a XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 ...

The view over the anchorage at Altandhu just before sunset Fujifilm X-T2 + XF10-24mm f4 - 1/40 @ f10 ISO400 (zoom 10mm) As the horizon brightened to the west we stopped photographing at our location near Inverpolly and headed in the car the 6 miles to a view point above the small fishing village of Altandhu. The clouds on the horizon had broken up and the sunlight was streaming through producing a spectacular display.  I had fixed the X-T2 to the Manfrotto 190 tripod while I used the X-Pro2 with either the 100-400mm, or the XF50-140mm with the 1.4x converter, to get some closer images of the sunset and the cloud formations.  Fiery skies about the headland to the south west of Altandhu Fujifilm X-Pro2 + XF50-140mm f2.8 + 1.4x converter - 1/320 @ f13 ISO400 (zoom 196mm) The light was fading fast and we had to work quickly.  Being exposed on a hill on the coast also subjected us to high winds, which were also pretty cold, which meant we had to wat...

The beach at Clashnessie  - Point A on the map Fujifilm X-T2  + XF16-55mm f2.8 - 1/250  @ f5.6 ISO400 (zoom 16mm) After the stop at Drumbeg we continued following the coast road, dropping down to the beautiful white sand beach at Clashnessie.  The west coast of Scotland is famous for its beaches and Clashnessie is certainly a beautiful sight.  Not sure that I would be taking a dip in that sea though as it looked pretty cold from where I was standing. The beach at Clashnessie  - Point A on the map Fujifilm X-T2  + XF16-55mm f2.8 - 1/200  @ f5.6 ISO400 (zoom 16mm) - Panoramic Mode As well as taking some standard images on the X-T2 I switched the camera to Panoramic mode to take the image above of the entire bay. The cottage at Loch a Phollain  - Point B on the map Fujifilm X-T2  + XF16-55mm f2.8 - 1/80  @ f5.6 ISO400 (zoom 30mm) By the time we set off again the rain had returned and the likely hood of a break in th...