CAPTURE NEW HORIZONS

Last week I bought a DICAPAC waterproof case for the Fujifilm X-T1 for a project I am working on and yesterday evening I took it for a test run in the rock pools at Skateraw harbour just along the coast from Dunbar. I attached the case to my monopod using a Manfrotto Mini Clamp and a Peak Design leash attached to the case as a safety line should the clamp fail. Using the XF18mm f2 lens on the X-T1 I set the camera to interval timer, set at 1 second intervals, and put the case in the water as the surf rolled over the rocks. I took around 200 images and while most were binned before downloading I got several 'keepers' from this unorthodox method, including the images you see on this blog. The camera was bone dry when I removed it from the case but I still put several sachets of silica gel in the bag just in case any water got through the seals. I will run a second test very soon, probably setting the WiFi remote app on the camera to see if it will work underwater ...

On the headland at Skateraw Harbour is a stone cairn topped with a wooden cross which is a memorial to the six members of the St Giles' (Canongate) Boys' Club who used to camp at Skateraw but lost their lives during the Second World War. The memorial was re-erected in 1980 and it was dedicated by the Very Reverend Dr. Ronald Selby Wright, the Founder Warden of the Club.  The inscription on the slightly faded stone tablet reads 1939-1945  To the Glory of God. In memory of  David Adams RAF aged 21  William Brown Lt BY aged 23  Jack Cooper RAOC aged 22  Jimmie Dalgleish MM RHA aged 23  Jim Stewart RAF aged 19  Jim Stobbie RN aged 19  Who loved to camp here and gave their lives that others too might love it.  "When the morning was come Jesus stood on the shore"  Click HERE and  HERE for more information on the memorial at Skateraw Images taken...

Yesterday evening the wind and the rain disappeared and so I gathered my camera bag up and headed out to Skateraw which is near Torness Point.  I wanted to capture the colours and the textures of the shoreline on this part of the East Lothian coast.  Skateraw has a natural labour with a beautiful sandy beach.  Around the point the shoreline is a flat rocky surface with lots of grooves and cracks that look like crazy paving and is home to rock pools, seaweed and other flora and fauna. When I arrived the tide was on the turn and waders were out in abundance feeding off the creatures that had been left exposed by the retreating sea water. The seaweed that was piled up on the tide line had started to dry out and the red and brown colours were quite vivid.  The growth that was still in water or was covered by water when the tide was in was still green and with the low angle of light coming from the sun the greens and browns where highlighted against...

The geology in this part of Scotland is amazing and very diverse, a very visual reminder of the volcanic past of East Lothian.  The beach at Skateraw looking west along the coast to Barns Ness is one of my favourite areas to captures the different types of rocks. Near the shoreline is a slab of rock that looks like crazy paving and even has seaweed growing in the cracks, much like our path at home but substitute grass for the seaweed. Now I am not a geologist, I don't know what type of rocks these are or what caused the formation but as a photographer I like the shapes and the textures. So this evening, as the sun was setting in the west, I headed out to Skateraw to take some shots as the tide receded.

To the east of Dunbar is a little harbour near the village of Skateraw and Torness Point. Looking west along the coast the Barns Ness lighthouse is visible in the distance.  Skateraw Harbour was one of a number of outlets for the districts rich limestone workings. It was built between 1799 and 1825 by two local farmers, Brodie of Thorntonloch and Lee of Skateraw, to ship limestone to ironworks in Devon and then return with coal. Prior to this it had been noted on maps that there was an anchorage in the area 'for barks in summer time.' The harbour went out of use between 1853 and 1892 - it was probably overrun by the sea. CLICK HERE for more on Skateraw Harbour and lime kiln Image taken on Fujifilm Finepix X100 and Fujinon 23mm f2 lens ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY CLICKING THE GOOGLE ADVERTS It doesn't cost you anything to click on an advert but...