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...

As a landscape photographer a good set of quality filters is just as important as a solid tripod to get a high quality image in camera.  I always have a circular polariser, at least one neutral density filter and a set of neutral density graduated filters in the camera bag everytime I go out on assignment or just for pleasure. When I became a professional photographer I was an early convert to the Lee filter system but then bought into the Formatt Hitech Firecrest system two years ago.  The Firecrest system offers me great quality colour neutral filters but I do find the filter holder a little fiddly and getting the polariser on and off is, quite frankly, a pain.    A couple of weeks ago I was approached by Haida, a filter manufacturer based in the city of Ningbo, 200km south of Shanghai, to see if I would be interested in reviewing their M10 and Red Diamond filter system.   I have to admit that, while I heard of the company...

One of the features on the new GoPro Hero 8 Black that I have been using around my home town of Dunbar is the Time-lapse feature that includes Timewarp 2.0, also known as Hyperlapse. This feature allows me to shoot stabilised 4K time-lapse video while on the move, with a choice of two focal lengths, wide and linear, as well.  It also allows me to slow the recording to normal speed with a tap of the screen and then return to the Timewarp with a second tap.  The effect is amazing! The Time-lapse function is easy to select on the Hero 8, it is selected by swiping the touch screen to the right. Timewarp is selected in the sub menu on the back and this can be altered to suit your requirements and saved as a preset.  The resolution can be set to 4K or 1080P for 16:9 format and two setting for 4:3 of 2.7K and 1440P. You can set the speed of the recording, with 2x, 5x, 15x and 30x options available.  The 2x will give 30 seconds of footage from 60 seconds of re...

In a new series of features I will be focusing on some of the areas I take guests of the MacLean Photographic workshops, starting with Barns Ness Lighthouse. Barns Ness is located a couple of miles to the east of Dunbar.  The area features two sandy beaches, one at White Sands and the other sweeping around the bay to the east of the lighthouse towards Torness Power Station. The lighthouse was built in the early 1900s, with the light going operational in October 1901.  It was built, like many of the lighthouses in Scotland, by a member of the family of lighthouse engineers, David A Stevenson, cousin to the author Robert Louis Stevenson (Treasure Island).  The lighthouse at Barns Ness was deactivated in 2005. For more information on MacLean Photographic workshops please visit the MacLean Photographic website HERE ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLE...

The second full Rockhopper of Percuel episode has been published on the MacLean Photographic Vimeo channel . In part two Skipper Barry Brunton explains the various controls, dials and screens he has in front of him in the Rockhopper's wheelhouse. As well as the controls and dials for the engines, he explains the chart plotter and GPS system, the auto pilot, a must for him as he is single handed on the 32 foot fishing boat, and the radios, including the emergency system. The video was shot on a Fujifilm X-H1, a GoPro Hero 5 Black and the aerial images on a DJI Mavic Pro drone. The Rockhopper of Percuel has a new web presence with the launch of the Rockhopper pages on the MacLean Photographic website HERE . The site has all of the Rockhopper videos shot to date, seven in total - two episodes and five 'shorts'. It also features a new online shop for Rockhopper of Percuel merchandise where you can purchase items such as baseball caps, cotton shopping b...