CAPTURE NEW HORIZONS

My favourite time of the day to shoot landscapes is dawn, I just love being out in the fresh air and watching the sun rise above the horizon.  At this time of year in Scotland sunrise is round 4:25am, which means a very early start to get in position. Luckily, I have plenty of beautiful locations to visit here in my home town of Dunbar and Barns Ness Lighthouse, which is only five miles from my front door, ranks as one of the very best. So I checked the weather forecast, set my alarm for 3am and packed my camera gear ready for a very early start. Luckily the forecast was correct with high clouds and the potential for a fiery sunrise so I got in the car and head out to Barns Ness to set up. I was trying out a brand new tripod on this photoshoot, a recently purchased 3 Legged Thing Punks Billy carbon fibre tripod.  This was replacing my sturdy, but weighty, Manfrotto 055 aluminium tripod, with an option ball grip head.  The 'Billy' was almost the same height...

As a professional photographer I place some extra demands on the equipment I use.  While I try to take the best care I can with the cameras and accessories i own, the amount of use the gear receives inevitably leads to some wear and tear and, sometimes, to breakages. The one part of my equipment that does get a lot of abuse is my tripod.  My current tripod is the Manfrotto MT190XPRO4 that I bought last summer ( CLICK HERE to see blog).  The Manfrotto has been all over the world with me and while i regularly check it over and service the catches and levers to keep it in top condition, parts do wear out or, in the case, get lost.   In January I was photographing in the deep snow in Glen Coe and two of the rubber feet became detached from the end of the legs and were lost in the snow.  I have only just got around to finding replacements and the process was very quick and painless using Manfrotto's own parts service here in the UK. I went to the Manfrott...

Over the next few weeks I am going to be producing a series of articles on how I give myself the best opportunities for bringing back some great images when out shooting landscapes.  These are also the tips I give my guests who attend one of the MacLean Photographic Tours or Workshops. This series of articles is not going to be about what your camera and lens you should be using. This is about giving you the best opportunities whatever camera you use, whether it is a pro spec DSLR, a enthusiasts DSLR, Compact System Camera, compact / bridge camera or a mobile phone.  All are capable of producing good images with the right knowledge and I don't see any difference when I conduct my workshops or tours. Right, now that is out of the way, the first part of this series is about support.  No, this isn't about having your friends standing behind you clapping and cheering as you take your pictures - that would probably be very annoying anyway.  No I am talking ab...

On Sunday evening during our recent stay in the Outer Hebrides we decided to drive out to Tiumpan Head to see the sunset. Tiumpan Head, which in Gaelic is Rubha an Tiùmpain, is the end of the Point peninsula on Lewis on which Tiumpan Head Lighthouse has been operational since 1900. After being refused on several occasions by the Board of Trade, the decision was reversed and a new lighthouse was approved in May 1879.  It took a further 21 years before the light was first shown on the new Tiumpan Head lighthouse on the 1 December 1900. In 1956 HM Queen Elizabeth II visited the lighthouse with a very young Prince Charles giving the first signal on the newly installed fog horn. The lighthouse was automated in 1985. CLICK HERE to visit the Northern Lighthouse Board website for more information on the Tiumpan Head Lighthouse Unfortunately the sunset wasn't that spectacular from Tiumpan Head Images taken on a Fujifilm X-T1 and X-Pro1.  Long exposure ...

After five years of hard service my Slik Pro400DX tripod was starting to show its age and so on a recent trip to London I decided to invest in a new 'best friend', a Manfrotto MT190XPRO4 tripod and X-Pro 3 Way Head from Park Cameras.  The reason I describe a tripod as a best friend because to a landscape photographer a good tripod is just that; it allows slower shutter speeds to be used when using small apertures and also allows precise adjustments during composition.  It also slows you down, making you think about what you are shooting. This weekend on our trip to the Outer Hebrides I was able to give the Manfrotto a good workout, being brought into use for long exposure images and also when I wanted to have that extra bit of support. The  Manfrotto MT190XPRO4 tripod certainly  did not disappoint. The Manfrotto 190 tripod keeps everything steady during long exposures The Manfrotto MT190XPRO4 is an aluminium tripod with four leg sections, which means i...

90% of the time photographers are looking for an image that is sharp and in focus and the best way to acheive this is by selecting the correct shutter speed to ensure that the image is sharp.  As a photographer who specialises in landscapes I use a tripod which allows me the freedom to select whatever shutter / aperture combination I need but a tripod is not always convenient.  So what are the different options available to the photographer. Handheld Images - use the correct stance to support the camera Most images are taken handheld, either at arms length a la mobile phone / compact camera, or with the camera up to the face looking through the viewfinder.  The 'arms length' method is the least stable because movement in your arms will be transmitted to the camera.  With the camera against your face the photographer becomes a sort of tripod, especially if you stand correctly with your feet apart.  Supporting the camera with one hand under the...