CAPTURE NEW HORIZONS

This was one of the images I took yesterday while getting some winter storm images in Dunbar.  This shot is in fact six images taken on the Fujifilm X-Pro2 and XF16mm f1.4 lens, taken in sequence and then stitched together using the 'photomerge' function in Photoshop CC to create a wider field of view. Once the images were stitched together I cropped it 3:2 to give it a standard size.  At 8121 x 5414 pixels the overall image was larger than the standard 6000 x 4000 I usual get from a straight image from the X-Trans III 24mp sensor on the X-Pro2. I then converted the image to mono using NIK Silver Efex Pro2 software, converting the image with one of the custom presets I have developed. I then did some dodging and burning to lighten and darken certain areas to increase the overall contrast of the image. Not long after I took this sequence of images the snow began to fall heavily again. ------------------------------------------------------------------------...

On Friday evening I organised the first Dunbar Photo Walk of 2017 which is open to all the members of the Dunbar in Pictures Facebook group. The first event was held at Dunbar harbour and 22 people turned out on a glorious spring evening.  The idea of the walks is for a bit of a social event with a spot of photography thrown in. We started at the RNLI Station on the harbour front and walked around Victoria Harbour before catching the sunset on the other side of Dunbar Castle. The next event is on Tuesday 23 May at John Muir Country Park and anyone is welcome to come along on this free event.   CLICK HERE for more details. All images shot on with a Fujifilm X100T or X-T2. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY VISITING THE ADVERTISERS ON THIS PAGE By clicking on the adverts you are helping support this blog...

This morning a package arrived on my doorstep containing the Samyang 8mm f2.8 Fish Eye lens with a Fujifilm X Mount.  This ultra wide prime lens is far wider than the 10mm end of the Fujinon 10-24mm f4 zoom and gives 180 degree of coverage.  Of course a fish eye lens give a distorted view of the world, the trick is to find suitable subjects.  The first real test will be to capture subjects at next week's 24 Hours of Le Mans.  This blog is just my initial impressions and I will do a complete review when I have finished at working at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. After unpacking the lens I put it on my Fujifilm X-Pro2 and headed down to Dunbar Harbour.  With the tide at its low point, the boats in the harbour were resting on their keels and it meant I could also get down low. The initial impressions of the build quality are very good, especially for a lens that costs just £212.  The lens hood is integral to the lens and can't be removed so the l...

Using the Fujifilm X-Pro2 and XF50-140mm f2.8 fitted with the 2x converter I took some close shots of the various row boats moored at the Balmaha harbour on Loch Lomond. In the strong afternoon sunshine the various colours and textures made for some interesting images. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY VISITING THE ADVERTISERS ON THIS PAGE By clicking on the adverts you are helping support this blog - thank you. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ALL IMAGES ARE THE PROPERTY OF MACLEAN PHOTOGRAPHIC AND CANNOT BE USED FOR ANY PURPOSE WITHOUT PRIOR PERMISSION MacLean Photographic run Tours and Workshops in East Lothian and the Borders of Scotland.   CLICK HERE  for more details and availability In June 2015 Jeff Car...

There is an old photographic adage that says the best camera to won is the one you have on you when there is a picture to be taken.  This was certainly the case yesterday evening when we were sitting on a bench at Newhaven Harbour in Edinburgh.   The light from the low sun was providing the perfect light for a picture of the boats and lighthouse and all I had to do was reach into my pocket for the Fujifilm X100 I usually keep there for spontaneous images when they present themselves. The image was taken on the X100 with the standard fixed 23mm f2 Fujinon lens.  The exposure was 1/320s @ f8 ISO200. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY VISITING THE ADVERTISERS ON THIS PAGE By clicking on the adverts you are helping support this blog - thank you. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------...

The colours and textures of the fishing equipment on the quayside of any harbour or port is manna from heaven for photographers and Dunbar Harbour is a good source of inspiration for a bit of artistic  snapping. The rusty rings and coloured ropes of the trawling equipment at Cromwell Harbour had me reaching for the Fujifilm X-T1 and 16-55mm f2.8 lens to get some close up shots.  The rust coloured iron work contrasts nicely with the green and yellow net and the frayed ends of the rope adds to the textures. Shooting at f2.8 means there is a wonderfully shallow depth of field to the final images.  The files were completed by sending them through NIK Analog EFEX to give the images an old school chrome finish with the slightly muted colours.

After supporting the annual Dunbar Dip , I decided to take a walk back via Cromwell Harbour to get some shots of the fishing boats that were moored up for the Christmas break.  With the low tide the boats were resting on the bottom of the harbour and I was able to get down low to get some different images of the Dunbar fishing fleet. Cromwell is the older of the two Dunbar harbours, the other being Victoria, and is named after Oliver Cromwell who used Dunbar as a base for his troops in 1650. Also visible in the stone wall is the remains of old stairs known at the Johnny Cope Steps.  General Cope landed his troops in Dunbar in September 1745 just prior to the Battle of Prestonpans where the Jacobite army, led by Prince Charles Edward Stuart, more commonly known as Bonnie Prince Charlie, defeated the English in the first major battle of the 1745 Rising. Cromwell Harbour is now a very peaceful place but very much a working harbour.  However there is plenty...

Today was my first opportunity to go for a walk with the camera since returning from Austria earlier this week.  I decided to take just the X-T1 with the 16mm f1.4 and the 90mm f2 prime lenses to limit my options and force me to think creatively with these two brilliant pieces of glass. My first stop was at the west end of the beach looking back towards the entrance to Dunbar's Victoria Harbour and the ruins of Dunbar Castle.  The shot at the top of the page was taken on the 16mm and then I switched to the 90mm as one of the Dunbar fishing fleet, the Triton, headed towards the harbour entrance.  You really get a sense of scale as the ramparts of the old castle tower over the little fishing boat. I then turned round 180 degrees to shoot westwards towards North Berwick Law as the sunlight hit the rocks while the brooding rain clouds gathered on the horizon. Meanwhile the sun continued to shine on Dunbar so I kept walking along the clifftop path.  As ...